Riptides

Jack rolled up to the station at midday the next day; the December sun was high in the sky and beating down on the beach. The run up to Christmas was always busy and the sweltering heat was proving to be too much for some of the beach goers. When he stepped inside he found Tommo and Jenna tending to someone who’d collapsed in the first aid bay. He’d barely had chance to tear his gaze away when Riley was calling him over to the monitors.

“I was looking through the cctv from last night and you might want to see this.” Jack focussed on the screen watching the time on it tick round to 7:10 pm and someone, who could only be Al, dumping his stuff on the sand before heading into the water. Riley fast forwarded through the video to a point where the gaps between Alexander dropping under the water and resurfacing were getting increasingly long. “He was trying to get back in for almost fifteen minutes before he first went under, then he kept fighting. If you look at screen three, you can see Zack and yourself in the garage.”

Jack watched intently, knowing there was a lesson to be learned from this or Riley wouldn’t be showing it to him. If he didn’t know any better, he’d have said that there was another skunk-dyed haired man propelling himself into the water just mere seconds later. Riley re-winded the short amount of time and Jack saw himself fly across the screen again. “That’s your new personal best Jack-o. If you perform like that in the challenge you’ll probably be in the top 3.”

The annual Lifeguard Ironman Challenge wasn’t until January, but over the last year Jack had been pushing himself to train more and clearly it was paying off. Last year he’d placed thirteenth and although that wasn’t particularly high, it’d earned him the respect of the other lifeguards. Astonished didn’t even cover the emotion Jack was feeling at that second in time, he was in complete disbelief. “You really think?”

Riley nodded. “You’re a force to be reckoned with; if you keep your training up you might even beat me.”

Jack laughed at the ludicrous possibility that he could be a competitor for the prize position. Even if he put his mind to it, there wasn’t enough training in the world that could get him to peak above those who’d been competing for years. It was a nice thought though.

Jack got up and headed for the window to watch the beach as usual, when he noticed Zack wasn’t sat beside him; he frowned looking back over his shoulder at Riley. “Where’s Zack?”

“Promenade patrol.” He stated, flicking through some notes on a clipboard. “And locker room duty later. He did well last night too, but the fact that you were here because he’d had his phone on the buggy can’t go unpunished. It serves as a reminder to everyone that your mobiles stay in here or your locker and turned off unless you’re on a break.”

A chorus of ‘yes boss’ rang out through the station so Jack nodded, looking back out at the coast with his binoculars. It couldn’t have been ten seconds before Riley’s voice returned to his ears.
“Oh and Jack-o, I need you to swap with Pixie down by the swim zone, he’s been out all morning and we all know he’ll look like a tomato if I leave him out all day.”

Jack bounced to his feet, quickly dumping his mobile before making his way out onto the steps. The moment he stepped out a smirk pulled at his lips as he called back through the open door “Hey Tommo, lover boy’s here.”

Tommo stumbled out of the first aid bay and past Jack, a grin already plastered on his face as he bounded down the metal staircase and threw himself straight into the arms of his boyfriend. Jack felt something flutter in his chest as he watched the two interact; he soon pinpointed the feeling as pining. He pined for that sort of relationship with someone where you could wear your heart on your sleeve and never worry about distance. Tommo’s boyfriend flew ten thousand miles just to get here for this moment –Tommo hadn’t shut up about it since last week. A few of the other guys joined Jack to watch the scene, hooting and teasing as Tommo clung to his boyfriend that little bit tighter than necessary. In Jack’s opinion, Louis ‘Tommo’ Tomlinson was quite possibly the luckiest man on the beach at that moment.

“Alright lovebirds break it up, Tommo take a long lunch but be back by two.” Riley was strict but he was kind, and seeing the two together had put a smile on the whole team's faces. Louis dropped back to the floor, taking his boyfriend's hand before replying with a thank you. Jack wasn’t sure if Louis’ glossy eyes would be noted by the rest of the team and be a source of embarrassment for him in the coming weeks, or if they’d let it slide. He hoped they’d let it slide –their brother had his lover ‘home’ for Christmas which was a wish most of them didn’t need to make. Jack didn’t like to think of himself as an envious person, but he had to admit watching people have family and friends around the holiday time always made him feel a pang of jealousy. The only other gay guys on the team were happily taken, and the majority of the others were happy with their relationship statuses. It was only really him that felt odd without another half -despite being single since he was fourteen.

He replaced Pixie and settled into the buggy with Cam for a few hours of chatting, and fishing kids who’d swam too far out from the water. Aside from helping a couple of lost kids find their families the day was pretty uneventful - the number of volunteers and lifeguards on duty meant nobody got into too much trouble. The extra eyes on the shore always made their jobs easier, and the visitors safer.

By five, the numbers on the beach were slowly dispersing and Jack found himself stood beside Zack who was muttering profanities subtly under his breath –from what Jack could gather, someone had taken a shit in the shower cubicles again. Jack found it hilarious, but mostly because he wasn’t the one who’d had to clean it up. He’d been sent to help Zack hose down the tiles after the leaving rush. It always surprised him that there was even any sand left on the beach every time he got assigned the bathroom.

“Is it just me or have Harry and Louis been in that supply closet for twenty minutes?” Jack asked, staring at the little blue door in the corner as he continued to rinse the wall.

“Hmm I think you’re right, must be giving him a very special in depth tour.” Zack waggled his eyebrows a laugh leaving his lips. “You see that’s the perk of being gay, you get to have quasi-public sex in bathrooms without being questioned for why the other one was in there.”

“Well it’s never stopped you and Helen.” Jack smiled. “I remember last Christmas, and judging by the noise you were making you should remember too.”

“Shut up.” Zack’s face flushed red in embarrassment. “You promised not to talk about that.”

“Oh did I?”

Before Zack could retaliate their walkie-talkies crackled to life making both of them freeze “I need Jack-o to the main station please. That’s Jack-o to the main station, over.”

“Oooh someone’s in trouble.”

“As if.” Jack flicked the hose pipe at Zack spraying him with the water. “Was I the one who had to clean shit off the floor? No, I wasn’t. Who’s getting to leave cleaning duty? Oh yeah, me. Have fun having nothing to mask the sound of Tommo getting it on.”

When he got back to the tower, he didn’t really know what he was walking in to. Sure he’d been confident that he wasn’t in trouble, but how certain could he really be? He was about to find out either way as he pushed the door open and climbed the last few steps.

“Ah Jack-o, good. Get your things you’re going on an adventure.” Riley gestured to Jack's mobile that he’d left on the counter hours ago.

“Adventure?” Jack looked dubious as he slid his phone into his pocket. Adventures usually meant a training run or filling in at one of the nearby beaches like Bronte or Tamarama. Neither of which Jack wanted to do; he was tired after his restless sleep the night before –he couldn’t get his thoughts about Baltimore out of his head.

“Yes adventure. Don’t look so skeptical, you’re getting off early for it!” Riley held out a carrier bag which Jack quickly took. Peering inside he saw the blue towel along with a set of keys and an unmistakeable wallet. “I need you to go up to the hospital and get these to Alexander – his details are on the cards. They called up and asked specifically if you’d be able to take them up for him.”

“Why? Like why ask for me?”

“He wanted to meet his knight in shining armour.” He laughed. “Seriously though, I’ve no idea. But seeing as we’re not short staffed you can go.”

Jack shrugged accepting the adventure. (Who’d be mad enough to turn down leaving work early?) He was halfway out the door when it dawned on him. “Wait, I never gave him my name.”

“Oh, well yeah, he actually requested the stripy-haired bastard, you’re the only one we got. So chop chop, get your ass up there.”

An hour later Jack was stood in front of a receptionist who was taking her time about ringing through to the ward to check it was okay for him to go up. He’d run out of flattery to give, and had resided to giving her puppy dog eyes as she continued to mess about on the computer without making any actual calls.

“And what was it again? Mr. Barbara cat?”

“Barakat, I’m the lifeguard he asked for. Can you please call them already?”

The woman glanced up completely un-phased by the somewhat mock desperation in Jack’s eyes. “Hmm, no. You’re not on his visitors list.” A small smile settled on her face.

“Of course I’m not on the visitors list -I’m just dropping off his house keys and stuff.” Jack was getting frustrated to say the least. Why couldn’t it be as simple as providing them with a name and date of birth and getting a ward number in return? “His ward called me. They’re expecting me, I just can’t remember the number.”

“Well I’m sorry, but visiting is reserved for family members and people on the list. You’ll have to come back another day.” Satisfaction was painted on her face as the smug smile broadened. She was enjoying this far too much. He was going to have to lie –and lie well- to get around this one.

“Listen lady, I’m not being funny but I’m his cousin. I’m not on the list because he’s a stubborn bastard who insisted he didn’t need to have a hospital plan. The Nurse’s called my workplace and requested I bring his stuff personally. I just want to check he’s okay and get back to my job.” She wasn’t buying it. Not in the slightest. “We need each other, I just... I just don’t know what I’ll do if I don’t see him.” Jack forced his eyes to well up with tears. “I’d be eternally grateful if you could give me the ward number - I’ve been worried senseless about him since my colleagues told me they’d pulled him out the sea last night.”

Her stubborn expression barely faltered as Jack acted before her but the second he mentioned being grateful, she perked up biting down on her bottom lip in such a way Jack thought she resembled a llama, but was probably attempting to be flirty. “How grateful?”

She twisted her hair around her finger, leaning in a little closer to him as she fluttered her eyelashes, and Jack wasn’t going to miss this opportunity. “Grateful enough to take you for coffee?”

He had the green light. The go ahead. The pass to freedom. Whatever you wanted to call it Jack had it in his hand. A slight mistruth about an exquisite café after his visit had the woman handing him a sticky note with the ward details and a few directions. It wasn’t a complete lie, he would take her for coffee – it’d just be the hospital cafeteria, not something fancy… and he’d just be very, very gay while there so she’d get the picture. If he hadn’t been so curious about this Alexander from Baltimore, he’d probably have handed the items to hospital security to save himself the hassle. But no, he wanted to see him. He wanted to check on the stupid boy who didn’t pay attention in Swimmers Ed and nearly drowned as a result. He wanted to see what those pretty brown eyes would look like after a night of rest. He wanted to get this guy off his brain.

After navigating the hallways, Jack eventually saw the ward number up ahead. A pang of worry fluttered through his veins as he read ‘Coronary Care Unit.’ His mind jumped back to being knelt on the wet sand, watching the ECG bounce around at an odd rhythm –they’d put it down to the stress of the situation and exhaustion, but had it been something more? Maybe he’d had something for years and stupidly gone swimming alone? Jack glanced at the ward opposite and noted it was the ICU which didn’t help settle his fears. What if he died? He barely knew the guy and he couldn’t go in there looking like deer caught in headlights. He had to pull himself together. He tightened his grip on the carrier bag and pulled the door open –there was only one way he was going to find out, and that was to talk to him.

That’s if Alexander even wanted to.

Jack awkwardly rubbed the hand sanitiser into his hands and walked cautiously towards the nurse’s station. He felt like he’d been sent to the principal’s office all over again. He stood there awkwardly waiting for someone to come and point him to the right bed, the white board on the wall showed ‘GASKARTH’ was still on the ward, but before he could figure out the numbers and coding a short blonde nurse bounced to his side welcoming him with a bright smile.

“You must be here to see Alex.” Her bubbly personality was relaxing Jack by the second. “Come on, I’ll show you to his bed.”

Alex.

To say he was nervous was the understatement of the year. Jack hadn’t visited anyone he’d rescued before, and he certainly hadn’t been requested. Jack and hospitals didn’t really mix; he’d spent his fair share of time in the emergency room growing up but the last time he’d been in a ward was when his grandmother passed. He was working himself up a bit because he didn’t want to see anyone else on death’s door, but then the nurse stopped in front of a side room and his eyes landed on the pretty brunette boy he’d pulled out of the water.

He didn’t look like he was dying, which was a good start. Compared to last night Jack could describe him as radiant –but he still looked sick or at least a little under the weather. His skin had more colour than last night, but it still had a pale tinge to it. Wires were stuck all over his chest, and a cannula hooked over his ears. Jack was still taking it all in when Alex’s brown eyes met his and lit up as he grinned.

“I’ll leave you two to it.” The nurse walked off, leaving Jack to awkwardly stand in the doorway and smile back at the boy before him.

“Er, hi? I, er, brought your stuff.” Jack held the bag up awkwardly, still standing in the doorway. Not really knowing what to say, he smiled lopsidedly and waited for a reply.

Alex’s smile widened. “Yeah, hi.” He motioned for Jack. “Come in, come in, I don’t bite.”

“I do.” Jack joked, walking over to the bed and fishing out the keys and wallet before passing them over. “I’m Jack, by the way.” He offered his hand for Alex to shake, which he took.

“Nice to meet you Jack, I’m Alex. You already know my name though.” Jack released his grip and stood there feeling a little out of place in the sterile room.

“So, like, how are you? Sorry, stupid question.” Alex looked at him quizzically and Jack felt the embarrassment intensify with every millisecond. Why did I ask that? Why would I say that? Oh god. Jack mentally groaned and hoped he hadn’t set as bad of an impression as he felt he had.

But then Alex surprised him by chuckling and edging himself up to sit up straighter. “I’m getting there, thanks.”

“Getting where?” Jack asked before his brain could catch up. He was so nervous his verbal diarrhea was starting to kick in.

Alex laughed and shook his head, causing a light blush to creep onto Jack’s face. “‘Getting there’ y’know? Like, getting better... Not as bad as I was, but not quite ‘there’ yet though. I mean, I’m nowhere near as bad as I could have been. You can sit there if you want.” He pointed to the chair beside his bed which Jack quickly sat in. “So, you’re the one who got me out?”

Jack nodded. “And Zack, he got the ski.”

Alex appeared to be lost in thought for a moment before he spoke again. “I don’t remember much… to be honest, I just remember not being able to get back to shore and then coughing up water as you yanked me onto your surfboard. Sorry about that by the way.”

“Not a problem, trust me. We’ve always had worse, I’m just glad you’re alive.” The blush was still prominent on his cheekbones. He felt like he’d already embarrassed himself beyond repair, suspecting Alex thought he was a complete idiot. He didn’t know why he cared so much about what Alex thought, but he did. He felt like he had to redeem himself, and so Jack did that the only way he knew how: by rambling. “I only just heard you when you cried out, I wasn’t even meant to be there. Zack had left his phone and we were trying to find it, and the next thing I knew we were packing you off in an ambulance. You do know the beach shuts at seven, right? You’re not meant to swim when we’re not there. Did you not pay any attention in Swimmers Ed?”

He didn’t know if he was being harsh but shit, Alex had scared him and left an impact that kept him wide awake most of the night. There was something about Alex that made Jack feel somehow responsible for his well being, and he really didn’t want to think about what would have happened if they hadn’t been there.

“I never had proper ‘Swimmers Ed’. I went to school in Baltimore and they just told us about the dirty harbour and not to swim in water towers, which we all did anyway.” Alex shrugged awkwardly. “We were young and dumb, what can I say?”

“Do you remember telling me I was from Baltimore?” Alex shook his head. “Well you did, it was the first thing you told me after you’d taken a break from trying to cough up your lungs.”

Alex looked surprised, clearly not recalling his words. “Was I right?”

Jack smiled. “You were. Actually, both Zack and me are from Baltimore. I moved over here when I was fourteen and Zack’s taking a gap year.”

“Cool.” Alex twitched, seemingly holding his tongue on something. The permanent smile etched on his face unaffected.

“How did you even guess where I used to live?” Jack questioned, even if he was from his home state, Jack hadn’t been there in years. “Like, It was creepily specific.”

Alex shrugged looking equally as confused as Jack. “Hell knows. I don’t remember what was going through my head, I thought I was going to die and the next thing I remember is waking up in the ER. I guess your american twang reminded me of home or something.”

“I don’t have an american twang.” Jack pouted childishly. “I’ve been here five years.”

“Sure, you keep telling yourself that.” A smirk danced on Alex’s lips. “Trust me, you sound more american than anyone else i’ve met here. What schools did you go to back home?”

Jack thought about it for a while, his mind completely blank. The shift in conversation leaving his brain scrambling to remember anything he could about his former life in Baltimore. “I honestly don’t remember –I know I went to Dulaney for like two weeks before we moved.”

“No fucking way. You’ve got to be kidding me, I went to Dulaney too.” His laughter filled the room, making Jack smile. He decide at that moment that he liked Alex. He made him feel all warm and fuzzy, but in a good way. “I got enrolled a few weeks late though, because a place only became available after the semester started. Guess it was probably yours.”

“So we only just missed each other, typical.” Jack paused. “But I wasn’t born in Baltimore, I was born in Lebanon.”

“Same, except I was born in England.” Alex fiddled with the thin white blanket over him. “Yet we both ended up here, one way or another.”

Jack agreed, they were both sat here in Sydney, miles away from where they’d started off and somehow winded up crossing paths. It was strange how the world worked.

“It’s Cardiac Arrhythmia.” Jack looked back to Alex not knowing what he was on about. “That’s why I’m in here, if you were wondering. I’ve had it since I was younger but the medication hasn’t been working right and I had a reaction to the last one so they’re gonna give me a pacemaker. I’m gonna be part robot apparently.”

“Did the nearly drowning cause It or...” he trailed off, not wanting to invade Alex’s privacy.

“Oh nah, it just kind of made them realise it needed doing sooner rather than later. Which is pretty good, I’m not even on the waiting list anymore, they’re going to do it on the 21st.” Alex seemed pretty happy with this development, so Jack smiled and nodded. “Once they get you in here, they don’t ever want to let you back out. Not sure my insurance company feels the same way though.”

“Yeah if it was up to them, they’d have you admitted two minutes before and sent home the second it’s over.” Jack joked. “Or even better, you could just not have it done.”

Alex smiled. “I think you might be onto something there. In all honesty, even I’d rather wait a few weeks –I’ve got this composition and essay that have to be in when we get back, and the prof won’t want it late.”

“Composition? You work for an orchestra or some shit?” Jack looked puzzled as Alex frowned slightly.

“No? I’m a music major, my deadlines expanded because I’m working for A–with a band.” Alex cut himself off his smile returning. “I haven’t been in an orchestra since I was a kid.”

Jack was instantly more curious, he wanted to know more about the band he was working with and what sort of composition he was working on. But it was clear Alex wasn’t going to go into more detail. He shuffled in his chair quickly rambling. “I used to think of myself as a musician when I was about 14, I had a banged up guitar and tried to learn it, but I spent more time at the pool than I did with a guitar in my hands. Then we moved here and I left it behind, so it never really worked out.”

He was still a bit nervous, he’d never been excellent at small talk, and Alex was turning out to be more adorable the more time that passed. Cute guys were, and would always be Jack’s weakness –he’d known that since he was ten and developed his first crush on the next door neighbour Frank. Frank was older by a few years, he was 16 at the time and happily taken, but that hadn’t stopped the infatuation the younger boy had had on him. Thank god he’d thought it was funny and sweet that Jack followed him around like a puppy dog. Frank was Jack's older brother figure, and the crush did die off once he went to middle school and met Ben.

“Earth to planet Jack, do you hear me?” Alex waved his hand in front of Jack’s face snapping him out of his daydream. “I said, how did you end up being a lifeguard?”

“Oh sorry.” Jack flushed red realising he’d completely zoned out thinking about how gay he was. “Well like I said, I was a good swimmer back in Baltimore, I was a competitive swimmer so I could already do the miles, and well when we got here I discovered surfing. I’d been surfing before when I was on holiday a couple of times, but now I had chance to practice. I joined the surf club and picked it up really fast. After that I just kept practicing and realised I loved the beach, and that I could do something good with my time. I volunteered in the holidays when I was seventeen, and then the second I was out of school I applied for an actual job. I’ve only worked here 2 years, but I’ve never looked back.”

Alex seemed genuinely impressed as his smile widened. “That’s so cool dude, I’m glad you haven’t looked back- My mom will be too.”

“I bet.” He laughed. “What about you, what made you come to the land of Aus and study music?”

“I feel like we’re interviewing each other.” Alex laughed, relaxing back into his pillows. “I was always into music, when I was a kid I listened to anything I could get my hands on and my mum made sure to nurture that side of me I guess. Learnt a lot of instruments and theory, and started up a recording studio when I was fifteen. It practically exploded and industry people saw me and my makeshift studio picking up new talent, it got better as I got older. Then about a year ago, I got an offer to come down here and work with some great people, and they offered me a chance to study music while I was working, so I did.”

“You set up your own studio when you were fifteen?” Jack’s eyes widened and his jaw hung slack, how could a kid set up something like that?

Alex nodded. “I have my mum and dad to thank for that. It wasn’t anything special at first, but I’ve got people working for me now, so I’m glad they got me set up.”

Jack was struggling to comprehend what he was hearing; he was absolutely amazed at this man he’d pulled out of the sea the night before. “Well count me as jealous, that’s just the dream right there. If you’re not in a band on stage you might as well be the one signing them.”

“That’s what I always say.” Alex made eye contact with Jack again making Jack’s heart sing. “I’m just naturally very lucky.”

“I could’ve guessed that, buddy.” Jack couldn’t help but feel butterflies in his tummy as Alex’s smile lit up the room. He was such a sucker for cute boys with pretty smiles, and laughs that made the world seem brighter. Alex happened to be a winning combination.

Alex looked up at the wall behind Jack, and his expression sank. “I guess you’ll have to be going soon.”

Jack whipped round looking up at the clock that read ‘20:02’ his expression quickly matched Alex’s. “Yeah, I guess I will. I’ve got work in the morning.”

“I wish you didn’t have to go, it’s nice to hear a bit of home.” Alex pouted letting out a small sigh. He was definitely hinting that he wanted Jack to come back –and Jack was a gentleman, so of course he’d volunteer.

“I can drop by after my shift tomorrow if you’d like. You can tell me more about how lucky you are and what music you like.”

Alex instantly smiled warming Jack’s heart and making him feel that little bit better about going home. “I’d love that, if you wouldn’t mind that is…”

“Of course I don’t mind – I wouldn’t have offered if I did.” Jack started to get up. “I’ll stop by for the afternoon visiting time so about 2?”

“Sounds great to me.” Alex watched as Jack made his way to the door “Oh, and Jack…”

Jack looked back at Alex as he reached the door and the sincere words reached his ears. “Thank you, for everything.”

“I’d do it again in a heartbeat.” Jack smiled. “Get some rest Alex, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Goodnight Jack.”

Jack was on cloud nine as he made his way down towards reception. Alex was amazing –a beautiful, talented man from a place he used to call home. And he was going to see him again, tomorrow. Jack could barely contain his excitement - so much for getting Alex off his mind.