Chapter 3

Gary's POV "Get uppppp!" Voices call and the tent shakes. My eyes roll slowly opening. Mark's still snoring fast asleep on my chest leaving drool trails. "Gary! Mark! Get up or we're coming in with a bucket of water!" Howard jokes shaking the tent harder. "Sod off." Mark mumbles still half asleep wrapping his arms tighter around my waist, as we both lay naked. "Jay...Jay get it." Laughter from outside gets a little louder as the sound of the tent unzips. "WAKEY WAKEY!" A big splash of water covers our sleeping bags through to our naked bodies causing both me and Mark to scream out. "What the fuck??" Mark yells trying to get up. Quickly I grab his arm stopping him seeing as its not a good idea to fight whilst naked. Howard and Jason run off laughing leaving me and Mark soaked dripping in our flooded tent. "Arrrgh." I rub my eyes removing the water from them so I can see. "What a pair of knobs!" Mark moans trying to wake himself up. "Good thing our clothes are in the suitcase." He reaches for some clothes and begins to get dressed. Not acting like himself maybe it's because we've just been drenched by ice cold water. That's when it crosses my mind again about what he wanted to tell me last night. "Mark? What was you going to tell me last night?" I ask whilst pulling on my vest top. For a few seconds Mark stands still with a blank expression on his face. "Mark? What is it?" Stroking his leg a little showing him comfort. "Oh...er...that...its erm...nothing..." He continues getting dressed and unzips the tent. "Mark? Come on please tell me? It seemed important please stay and tell me." My stomach begins to churn with worry now. What if he won't tell me because he thinks he can't trust me. "Gaz honestly its fine I need a walk I've got a bit of a headache coming on...just get dressed yeah?" Softly he strokes my wet fringe and walks away. "I'll get us a coffee for when you come back then?" I call after him popping my head out from the tent. Holding his head whilst he walks to the woods he waves his hand backwards. Once I get dressed I sit around the camp fire with two coffees waiting for Mark to get back. He's been gone over an hour now. "He'll be fine Gaz." Jason strokes my back, as I just stare into the roaring fire. Robbie put Howard's hairspray can onto the fire earlier and almost burnt the site down. It doesn't feel right all of us sitting around together without Mark. The coffees are stone cold now so there's not much point of holding them any longer. "You know what Mark's like Gaz...he enjoys going for long walks." Robbie smiles a little at me whilst his arms wrap around Yasmin. For now she's pretending that everything is fine when really its far from it. "I've got to go and find him." Quickly I stand to my feet dropping the two cold coffees into the long grass. "Let me come with you?" Howard stands up stroking my shoulder. "No..no its fine...if I need anyone I'll ring you ok?" Biting my lip a little I look into the pitch black woods. I've got to find him I've got to. "Alright Gaz.. Just be careful please?" Yasmin looks at me worried. "Yes...I will be..." Without standing around much longer I begin to jog towards the abandoned wood calling for Mark. The wood gets darker the further you go into it. "Mark!? Babe where are you? Its Gary!" Using my phone screen light to guide me through the woods this is impossible there's no noise at all. "Mark!!" I call louder walking faster, as soon as I hear a very faint moan I instantly freeze. The hairs on the back of my neck stand up. "Mark??" Running as fast as I can to the direction I heard the moan it has got to be him. All of a sudden I feel myself slip through a pile of mud and falling into a heap of muddy water. "OUCH!" I call holding my back. The moan gets louder. Quickly I rub my eyes whilst searching around the woods something beside me moves. An animal perhaps. "G...Gaz..." My heart races almost bouncing through my chest. "M..Mark?... Is that you?" The muds that thick its almost like I have to swim through it to get to Mark. He just lays there breathing slowly completely covered in mud camoflauged even. I shine my phone light onto his face. Blood drips from his forehead and down his cheeks. "Babe??? Are you ok??" Trying to lift him out of the sinking mud it becomes difficult when the pain in my back begins to burn. "Fuck!" We both fall back into the mud. Slowly his eyes open in a drunk kind of way, they search around the wood looking at the trees then at me. "Mark??" A very small smile appears on his face before he closes his eyes again. "Mark! Stay with me babe!" Tapping his face a little harder trying to wake him up. I need help! Grabbing my mobile from my back pocket quickly. Slightly its damp from the mud which has soaked through my pocket. I'll be surprised if it still works! 'No signal' "NO NO NO! Don't do this to me!" Tears prick my eyes as I look at Mark laying in the mud looking lifeless. He's freezing from the cold mud. I remove my vest wrapping it around him hopefully it'll keep him warm for a little. I'm not leaving him... Fighting with my eyes I try to keep them open as they start to get heavy. What's happening...?