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Chapter 2
AJ continued slowly through the water. Now, waist deep, his hands hidden just below the surface, if he opened his fist, Brian’s necklace would glint with dying sunlight. Oh, the irony. He imagined, somewhere within him, that if he held God’s symbol when he died, that maybe He would take pity on a damned soul. He knew his chances were slim, but he had nothing else to hope for. He felt the sand give out beneath him, and he was submerged into the frozen water, his hands grasping at nothing. The necklace, wrapped tight in his fist, sparkled as he moved. He watched it, aware of how calm he felt. It was as if everything was moving in slow motion. Letting the air leave his lungs, he closed his eyes, welcoming the salt water into his body.

***
Brian felt the sand cooling off beneath his toes as the darkness overtook the skies. He had given up on his necklace, if it was lost now, he would never find it. Leigh had hoped the necklace would help Brian find his center. Now, it was just one more lost opportunity. He allowed this new sorrow to swim in his heart with the others, realizing this trip might be the last time he would see these men, this life, this pain. He stopped walking, turning to watch the last few lights of the sun and ocean that seemed to race out to catch the rays. As he brought his gaze back towards shore, he noticed a piece of driftwood, fairly nice-sized, floating about 175 feet out. With a sickening thud in his stomach, he realized it wasn’t driftwood at all, but a human body. For the first time in a long time, he prayed to God. He knew that body, damnnit, and that man better not be dead. Not now, not like this. As the last ray from the sun seemed to reach out and stroke the floating body, Brian ran straight out into the water.

He sucked in his breath when the first shock of the cold hit him, but he quickly regrouped, and as fast as he could work against the waves and knee deep water, he headed farther in. As soon as the water reached his waist, he dove face first in, and began swimming towards the now very visible body.

He reached the body, which was laying face down, and quickly turned it over. His worst fears were confirmed when he saw AJ’s face staring up at him, the eyes closed as if in a peaceful sleep, the lips tinted blue. Brian didn’t waste any time, and grabbed the back of Alex’s shirt so that his head was out of the water. Swimming quickly, he began to drag AJ back to shore. He couldn’t explain why, after all the pain this one man had caused, yet he felt compelled to continue. Maybe it was for old-times sake... but maybe it was just because AJ was human. This thought caused shame to rise in Brian’s throat, but he pushed harder against the water, determined to prove himself wrong and get AJ to shore.

Slowly, and with an agony inside him that Brian barely recognized, the water began to get shallow as the shore came closer. When Brian reached the sand, he dragged AJ’s body high enough until his shoulders were on packed sand. He fell to his knees next to the unresponsive form of his friend. Wiping the younger man’s face free of sand, he began to weep.

“Please, Alex,” He prayed, watching for movement. He placed two fingers against Alex’s neck, but the flesh was so cold he couldn’t find any pulse. Desperate, he placed the side of his tear-streaked face against AJ’s small chest. He almost yelled out when he heard a heart beat. He should’ve known. Whether AJ liked it or not, he was always a fighter. He looked up, scanning the beach for help. Suddenly the idea of a private island was horrifying.

He looked down at the body of a man he had loved, fought, embarrassed, and destroyed. If he wanted Alex to live, he was going to have to save him.

“You bastard,” Brian said, his voice cracking as another teardrop escaped. He straddled AJ, intent to give him CPR, although he had no training. He tried to recall the posters from hospitals and doctors offices, but knew he was mostly relying on what he had seen on TV. When his lips pressed against AJ’s, he closed his eyes, focusing on letting air reach AJ’s lungs. After a couple of breaths, he sat up, looking for a change in the empty shell beneath him.

None came.