backwards as her body jerked awake. She shot up in a flash and coughed some more. Benjamin sat back in a startle. I had almost splashed into the water due to the sheer surprise. But I regained my balance, both physically and emotionally, and placed my arm around her to steady her. She coughed for a long time before it was finally quiet. Benjamin and I said nothing. We needed that time to become ourselves again. In a way, we were all coming back to life. The two of us, nervous and overwhelemed, watched carefully as the color began slowly returning to Jess' face. Eventually, she acknowledged her surroundings. I recognized the shocked, startled look of disbelief. It was the very same confusion I felt when I discovered the interminable length of this sandbar. The same confusion I still felt, to some degree. She finall...

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