O...2: "A Sinking Sort of Feeling"
By: X3Dee
Omri blinked the dark world back into existence, her head and shoulders aching, her fingers cold and numb; what an odd sensation she thought, glancing down to study the abnormalities she was feeling. Mud pooled around her numb hands, her pale fingers hidden by the dark ooze that was slowly filling the roof of the overturned Toyota.
What had happened? She cringed as she pulled her arms up towards her ribs, an aching pain flicking like a strobe light behind her ribs. Dull and throbbing, Omri found herself ignoring the pain as she wiggled free of her seatbelt, managing to roll down onto her knees.
She cringed, her arm wrapping tightly around her chest as her ribs began to ache under her flesh. She'd have a massive bruise along her left side, probably, though as she crawled through the opened door she figured nothing had been broken. She swore as her hand found something sharp deep beneath the mud, the offensive object cutting deep into her palm.
No time to worry about it as she managed to free herself from a foot of what smelt like sewer; she managed her way up onto her feet, her arm cradled against her chest as she marched through the muck, seeing Sydney up on the road with an unconscious Peninnah. The blue haired girl was staring at her she thought, but then realized she was looking through her; big brown eyes full of panic, Sydney jumped with surprising speed back into the mud.
"Watch Penni," she yelled as she trudged past her, mud up to her knees. Omri went to grab her arm, to stop her from crawling back into the car, but Sydney flailed wildly, throwing herself into the upturned vehicle. "Don't!" she snapped, her breathing ragged as she pushed herself back into the mud. "It's sinking, she's sinking!" Sydney wheezed.
Omri watched her wiggle back in through the back door, Sydney swearing at the Toyota as she made her way to the front seat. "Open the door, Omri, open the door!" she shouted out, her words muffled and vague as rain continued to pound away at the top of the platinum blonde's head.
She quickly made her way around, mud grabbing at her ankles as if it were alive. God it was miserable fighting through that muck, her arm still tucked against her chest. "How badly is Aubrey hurt?" she yelled down at the undercarriage, hoping Sydney could understand what she was saying.
"She's bleeding," Sydney managed to respond, her voice barely audible.
Omri grabbed the car door, yanking at it and tugging on the handle to try and pry it away from the damaged frame; it didn't budge, the frame dented in on itself and acting like a claw around the edge of the door. "It's stuck!" she shouted as she kicked the wheel well, the metal creaking as her heel made impact.
"Other side, other side!" Sydney cried out, her feet pressed against what was left of Aubrey's window. Inside Omri could see Sydney dragging Aubrey to the other side of the front row, her thin legs kicking and struggling against another few inches of slime. With her shoes suction-cupped to her feet, her sucks filled with mud, Omri muscled her way through the rain to try the other door.
Sydney's shoulder was pressed against the glass, the unconscious Aubrey laying against her chest as they sunk deeper into the mud. The blue haired spazz was prying at the handle, pushing against the window in hopes of forcing the door open; it too was stuck, however, and Omri swore as her fingers slipped from the handle.
She fell back, mud splashing up and around her hips and waist; Sydney said something from behind the glass, her mouth moving as she slammed her fist against the window. She couldn't hear her anymore, the rain picking up and pouring over her in thick, freezing sheets, droplets pounding away at her exposed skin like hail bouncing off the street; god why did it hurt so much to move?
In spite of the pain Omri pulled herself up again, flinching as her ribs cried out in protest; she wouldn't be strong enough to get the door open, not with broken ribs, and the mud was too high for Sydney to free Aubrey and herself through the back door where they had first escaped. What could she do at this point? She couldn't let them sink, but she didn't have the muscle to get them free.
Omri glanced back, seeing Peninnah come walking around her with a large rock pressed against her belly. She marched past her, hair a matted mess tangled behind her neck and shoulders, but she stomped on by Omri as if she weren't there at all. With surprising strength, Peninnah turned and slung the rock against the passenger window, the chunk of stone effectively sending a long crack through the glass.
Peninnah kicked at it, seemingly unaware of Sydney pressed against the opposite side of the glass. She roared, her knuckles turning white as she slammed her knee into the window again and again, the glass finally breaking and shattering against the tiny girl's knee and sheen. Sydney said something, her voice muffled by the still thrashing storm, wind whipping harshly against Omri's ears.
From around her neck her headphones continued to blare what sounded like screamo, but even that was becoming hard to hear. Knowing that the storm would soon block out everything, Omri used the heavy rock as a score for the scene unfolding. She made her way to the Toyota once more, standing alongside Peninnah; together they reached into the sinking SUV, grabbing Sydney's shoulders while she wrapped her thin arms tightly around the still dazed Aubrey.
"Pull!" Sydney screamed at them, her feet visibly kicking against the passenger seat.
Omri flinched as her ribs creaked in protest, her shoulder crying out for her to give up and rest. She resisted, her head spinning as she and Peninnah pried their friends from the wreckage. "I got you, I got you!" Peninnah sobbed as she dropped down in the mud, wrapping her arms around Aubrey's shoulders. "Help me!" she screamed again, pulling the oldest girl away from Sydney.
Omri stepped back as Sydney battled to climb to her feet, her legs and back heavy with black slime. Together Omri and Sydney forced their hands beneath Aubrey's shoulders, pulling her up and out of the mud. Peninnah grabbed her legs, helping them drag her up from the ditch...
They set her down along the gravel, rain washing blood and mud from her face.
Sydney dropped down to her hands and knees, panting heavily. "We're ok, everybody's ok," she muttered.
Peninnah sobbed as she held Aubrey against her small frame, her arms wrapped tightly around the unconscious girl's shoulders. Omri herself had her arm wrapped once again around her injured ribs, her breathing heavy and painful as it left her lungs. She was in pain and soaking wet, covered in mud and broken glass, but she was glad. Happy because looking back at the SUV she could tell it had sunk at least another foot since they had freed Sydney and Aubrey...
In her ears music continued to play, her headphones somehow still perched carefully around her neck. Another breath escaped her lips before she dropped down on her knees, her hands grabbing her headphones and pulling them up over her muddy ears.
Music would sooth her, music would calm her, music would make everything alright...
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