Below the Surface by Tim Shoemaker

Author:Tim Shoemaker
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: ebook
Publisher: Zonderkidz
Published: 2014-02-01T05:00:00+00:00

Lunk held the wheel steady.

“He’s down,” Mr. MacKinnon said.

Lunk throttled back and spun the wheel to make a U-turn.

“Perfect,” Mr. MacKinnon said. “You learn fast.”

Lunk felt bigger. Stronger. Better about himself. Somehow that simple comment did all of that for him. And he wanted to hear it again.

Gordy bobbed on the surface, his skis floating away in different directions. Coop broke the surface like he’d seen a shark. His arms were swinging; he elbowed Gordy in the face and kept thrashing.

Lunk gripped the wheel.

Mr. MacKinnon sprung into action. “Drop her into neutral and cut the engines.” Without hesitation, he dove over the rail and swam toward Coop.

Lunk killed the motors. The boat drifted closer to his friends. Lunk rushed to the stern.

Coop’s dad was lifting Cooper higher in the water than the lifejacket was already doing. “It’s okay, Cooper. I’ve got you.”

Cooper swung and hit.

What was wrong with him?

His dad didn’t let go. “You’re safe. Dad’s got you.”

One arm around Coop’s chest, Mr. MacKinnon used his free arm to stroke his way to the boat.

Gordy looked scared. Confused. Blood trickled from his nose. He kept his distance from Coop and swam after the drifting skis.

Lunk vaulted over the rail and landed on the swim platform. Cooper wasn’t swinging his arms anymore. He looked limp, like all the fight was gone from him, and let his dad tow him in.

Once they’d pulled him onto the platform, Coop looked dazed. Spent. Scared. It spooked Lunk a little bit.

“Help me get him into the boat,” Mr. MacKinnon said.

“I’m okay,” Coop said. “I got it.” He reached for the rail to pull himself over. His hands were trembling.

What happened to you down there? Lunk wanted to ask — but didn’t dare. He glanced at the water, half expecting to see a shark’s dorsal fin cut the surface.

Coop climbed into the boat, and his dad was right there beside him.

By the time Gordy handed Lunk the skis and joined them at the stern, the color was back in Coop’s cheeks.

“I-I got dizzy. I couldn’t figure up from down. I felt like . . .” Coop’s voice trailed off.

His dad checked Coop’s ears. “Could be a ruptured eardrum from the fall. That would make your equilibrium go berserk. Did you smack hard?”

Cooper shrugged. “I’m not sure.”

His dad frowned. “There’s no blood. If your eardrum ruptured, I’d see a trace.”

“Gordy,” Coop said, “your nose is bleeding.”

Gordy touched it lightly. “Yeah, maybe I ruptured it.”

He didn’t look happy.

Cooper looked confused. “What?”

“You hit me.”

“When I fell?”

He really didn’t know what he’d done. It was like he’d blacked out or something. But it was worse than that, wasn’t it? Instead of being unconscious, he just wasn’t conscious of what he was doing. He’d blanked out.

Coop’s dad took a look at Gordy’s nose. “Doesn’t appear to be broken.”

“When did I hit you?” Coop asked.

Gordy stared at him in disbelief. “It was just like before — except this time you swung your elbows. What are you going to do next — bite me?”

Coop’s dad looked from Cooper to Gordy.

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