EVA COUGHED, AND WATER poured out of her mouth onto the sandy beach. It felt like half the lake was coming out of her stomach. Someone rolled her gently over onto her side. She coughed up several more waves of water. Finally, she inhaled, and water didn’t fill her lungs, just fresh, crisp night air. She pushed her body off the wet sand and hacked up the rest of the lake. Her vision was blurred, but she could make out a figure sitting nearby, his arms behind his back, head down, and a boat behind him on the shore.
Iris held her hair and rested a gentle hand on her back. Eva attempted to speak, but only a raspy croak came out.
“Shhhh. Don’t speak. Just breathe for a little bit first. And then never stop breathing again, it was horrible,” Iris said shakily, rubbing Eva’s shivering body and
