"The most I can give you is eight hours, and after that, I need to shut down the portal."
Tina turned to Gianna. "So, wanna go get our stuff?"
"But we're coming back."
Tina nodded. "We can come back."
"You know I'm going to drag you back, kicking and screaming if I have to."
"I know."
"So, you'd better be prepared."
"I am," she said. Because she was. If she could say goodbye to her family, then she would be okay with being gone. She may not be able to tell the truth to most people, she at least didn't want to lie to her grandparents.
"Okay, let's do this."
* * *
Tina landedhard in the water and swallowed a mouthful before she realized the trip back through the portal was over. She spat out the water and climbed to her feet.
"That is seriously no fun," Gianna said as she rose. Both were soaked, and Tina felt a headache starting. At least she knew what to expect this time.
As she oriented, she glanced at the water line.
Creeping up the wall. The level of the water was going up.
"How long did she say that we had?" Gianna asked.
"Eight hours."
They both looked at the level of the water. "The tide's coming in," Tina said, taking a few steps toward the mouth of the cave.
Gianna nodded. "I am guessing at this rate, in eight hours, it'll just be going back. There's a good chance this cave will be under water."
Tina shook her head. "It shouldn't be that bad. We should be able to get through it." The sun was going down and the water was coming in--a common occurrence on this beach.
Gianna shook her head. "So, either we need to run and get back here as fast as possible so we can go through before the tide gets all the way in, or we need to wait until the absolute last minute when the tide goes out, before we try again."
They started making their way out of the cave.
"Basically."
Gianna groaned. "Okay, I'm going. I have to figure out how I'm going to waterproof all my stuff."
Tina got out of the cave. "Sounds good. Keep in contact." She said that as he cell phone, the only thing she'd taken with her and brought back, literally blew up as it connected with the signal.
"I'll text you soon," Gianna said.
They hugged and the two of them went off in different directions.
Gianna toward her house.
Tina toward her grandparent's house.
Tons of voicemail and texts. She took a few minutes to scroll through everything--people calling and looking for her. Voicemail from various family members.
Lots of missed calls and texts.
