Johnny & I : The Island by Daria Paus (hardest books to read txt) 📕

was no longer scared, no longer felt the need to run away. But the irony didn’t go unnoticed by me. When I finally found someone worth staying with, life itself would tear us apart.

A wave of sadness washed over me, bringing tears to my eyes. When he kissed me again the feeling was forgotten. His lips left goosebumps in their wake as they trailed down my body. When he returned his mouth to mine, the only thing I could focus on was this moment. And as he lowered himself down on top of me, and our bodies melted together into one, the rest of the world faded away.

An ear-shattering boom reached my ears seconds before the window cracked.

15

Trapped

I bolted upright, staring wide-eyed at the cracked glass which still trembled in the aftermath, as I tried to make sense of the abrupt transition back into reality.

"What the fuck was that?"

Johnny stared back at me with an equal look of alarm on his face.

I shook my head, not sure what I’d heard.

"Bloody hell." He looked at me with the same mix of emotion that must’ve been on my own face. I was tempted to ignore it, whatever it had been, it didn’t concern us. One look at Johnny told me he was having the same thoughts, and I couldn’t help but smile at his confused expression. His eyes traveled between our naked bodies and his typical ‘what the fuck’ look came over his face. Then he groaned. "I have to check it out."

I nodded, knowing he was right.

We both got dressed in a rush, and the moment I stepped through the door, the smell of smoke filled my nostrils. My eyes darted to Johnny, and the look on his face sent a chill down my spine. Not knowing what to expect I hurried after him in the direction of the pier.

A wall of heat hit me before I saw the dark cloud of smoke rising above a raging fire, which seemed to come straight out of the ocean. My feet stopped moving. I stood frozen to the spot as the situation slowly materialized before my eyes.

“Wait!”

The roar of the fire drowned my attempt to reach him, and as he ran toward the boat, I knew I had to stop him before he’d get himself killed. His recklessness no longer surprised me, but just because he didn’t care about risking his life—I did.

I caught up with him, already out of breath from the sudden sprint.

“Are you crazy?” I gasped, pulling him backward. “What the hell were you thinkin’!”

Once at a safe distance, I let him go, but he didn’t try to move this time. The stunned expression on his face and the lack of action was the only answer I needed. It was too late.

"How . . ." I trailed off, taking my eyes off Johnny’s face to look at the burning boat.

“How could—"

He shook his head in disbelief.

I lay a comforting hand on his arm, shielding my mouth and nose with the other.

As I stared down at the flames, a thought popped into my mind and my body went cold despite the overwhelming heat pressing against us.

We were trapped.

I held my breath as if that would make it better, but honestly, it felt like I had forgotten how to breathe. That boat had been our only way off the island. Yes, my secret wish had been to stay here forever, but I realized now, that no matter how badly I wanted to stay with Johnny, I also needed to get home to my family. Now when it seemed my wish had come true, all I felt was a simmering panic deep in my belly.

We waited for the fire to die down before heading over to the beach. There was no need to rush, the moment it had started it had already been too late, and it was with sorrow in our hearts that we stopped to watch the remains of the boat.

A look of disbelief was written all over Johnny's face as he walked up to the waterline and picked up something floating there.

The sun burned my skin and the waves rolled peacefully, not at all caring about what had happened. I couldn't help but think back to the stormy night when we’d been out, risking our lives to save the boat.

There was nothing left of her now, just a few twisted pieces floating, and the burning remains of oil on the surface of the water. What couldn't burn had sunk, leaving only the memory of the once magnificent ship for us to miss.

We’d feared the storm would take her, but never could we have guessed a fire would be her destruction.

"It wasn’t an accident."

I walked closer to see what he was holding.

"Is that what I think it is?" I asked, not fully understanding yet.

He nodded. "It's gasoline. And it’s not mine.”

A chill ran down my spine and I came to think of the feeling I’d had on the beach that morning. I’d pushed those thoughts aside, blaming it on my imagination, but maybe I hadn't been wrong?

"Johnny," I began. "I remember somethin'.”

Before I could explain, a flash of recognition ignited in my mind and the words caught in my throat, threatening to choke me. The color drained from my face as little snippets of voices echoed in my mind.

She's dead, push her out. 

Get rid of her. 

The world started to spin around me. I grabbed Johnny’s arm. The nagging thought that had been so far out of reach, now overwhelmed me.

"Bree."

Hands on my shoulders.

"Bree!"

I managed to swallow, to breathe, to finally look up at him. He must’ve seen the fear in my eyes, but before he could ask, the words burst from my lips.

“I heard someone, voices in the dark. That first night. They thought I was dead.” I paused to suck in a few gulps of air. “It’s them, they did this. I told you I had this feeling, but I couldn’t remember.”

When I’d told him