Rip Tide by Ally Kennen Page 2

Now we’re walking along Hotwells road and the river has widened. The SS Great Britain looms up over the water. It’s decorated with hundreds of spotlights and lamps that light up the whole river. I think of the ship, crashing through the waves in the ocean, and now it’s marooned forever in the centre of this little city, strung up with fairy lights and with school children swarming all over it every day.
 ‘I thought it was an attack… you know...’ I say to Moz.
‘I know,’ interrupts Moz. ‘So did I. Only no-one else was panicking like you did. Some bloke had let off a canister of CS gas in the doorway. The police use it all the time apparently. It’s not very nice stuff but it’s not long-lasting.’
 ‘I couldn’t help panicking,’ I say. ‘I was scared for my life.’
 ‘You made everyone else scared,’ says Moz, wrapping her cardigan round her. ‘You frightened everyone almost as much as the gas. I was on my way over to you. You should have waited.’
We walk in silence after that. There are lots of things I want to say to her, but I know she’s right, I did make the situation worse but she doesn’t have to rub my nose in it.
 I remember shoving aside the bouncer and screaming that I had to get out now! He pushed me back, saying if I waited it would clear and if I wanted to panic the crowd and really cause some trouble then I was going the right way about it. But I couldn’t help shouting, ‘let me out!’ And I scrabbled at the door. Other people were looking at me now, and coughing. ‘Let her out,’ ‘How do you know it’s nothing deadly?’ ‘Let US out.’ And before I knew it, I was in the middle of a tightly packed, sweating, shouting crowd, pushing down the stairs. I stumbled and thought I was going to get trampled but a red-haired girl grabbed my arm and yanked me up and then we were swept apart. The bouncer was right, the gas was much worse down here and I could hardly breathe but the door got kicked open and I was propelled out into the night.
 I pushed out of the crowd and slumped on a wall, trying to slow my breathing. I was aware that people were looking at me. I’d really lost it back there, like a frightened child. And what about Moz? She was still in there. I’d left her. I’d broken the golden rule. I watched more people spilling out. Where was she? I couldn’t go back in there to look for her. I just couldn’t. The air was poison. I must be the world’s worst best friend. But my mobile rang and it was Moz shouting where was I? And pretty soon I saw her standing on the steps, looking small and lost and I ran over and hugged her.

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