Over The Top: The Suck
"Not with you worms!" says Bog.
We start to come out of the water. Bog grabs Fly by the arm and twists it behind his back. Fly calls out in pain.
"This is our waterhole from now on!" says Bog, "No scum like you allowed near it!"
That's when I did something realty stupid. I tried to help Fly by pulling at Bog's arm. He wrapped his other arm round my neck and choked me. Now its me that's calling for help. Mitch and Fly couldn't do a thing. Bog punched me in the ribs. I feel like he's broken at least three of them.
"Time to get rid of some garbage!" Bog said. He dragged me down the stream and stopped beside the Suck.
"No!" I gasped.
"Shut up!" said Bog.
He threw me into the water and stood on the side of the stream, watching me. He didn't care if I drowned. He wanted to see me go under the log. I could feel the current pulling at me. It dragged me nearer to the Suck. I tried to swim against it but there was no way out. If I went towards the bank, Bog would chuck me in again. He was laughing at me.
Mitch and Fly had taken off. They were running like rabbits to get help. They wouldn't make it in time. I could feel the water grabbing at my legs. Pulling me into the darkness. I took a deep breath and went under.
My head broke the surface and I found myself blinking in dull sunlight. The sky was dark with clouds and it was raining. I didn't understand. First it was the evening and now it was the middle of the day. All in a few seconds?
I swam to the side of the stream, very carefully avoiding some blackberry stems with barbs along them, and crawled up onto the sandy bank. I looked around. Where was I? I looked upstream. There was a huge tangle of blackberry and gorse. I could see a tree trunk as big as a truck. I heard slurping sounds. I must be past the Suck! But how did I get through without drowning? Maybe I did drown and this was all a dream? Maybe this is what it was like when you're dead? I pinched myself and it hurt.
I walked back to the Suck. Carefully. No sign of Bog or
