Chapter Three, Part Two
Sam’s hair was standing on end as she turned around, she raised her arms behind her and let Tamara guide the jacket around her, she shivered as her bare skin brushed against the jacket. Tamara pulled the jacket over her shoulders and turned her around to face her. Sam had been in a trance watching Tamara buckle Ava into the jacket, she had hoped to be told to wear it, she had never dreamed that Ava would end up in one as well, or that Tamara would strap them in herself. Tamara was kneeling in front of her now; she felt the jacket tighten as she zipped it up.
“There we go, just barely but you’re small enough”
Tamara moved on the chest strap, as with Ava she had to lengthen it and then snug it down once it was buckled.
The experience of having someone else buckle her in was new to Sam, this was more or less the same jacket she had tried on before but the setting was vastly different, she was being strapped into it by her instructor, and her best friend was also strapped into a matching jacket, there would be like this for the day, not allowed to remove them, it was overwhelming.
Tamara checked the tightness at the shoulders neck and waist as she had with Ava. Then she reached between Sam’s legs and pulled the long strap hanging from the back of her jacket through to the front, it was set longer than the one on Ava’s and reached the buckle without Tamara having to lengthen it, she took a moment to snug it down before pulling the drawstring at Sam’s waist tight and tying it in a double knot.
“Alrighty then” Tamara rose to her feet again. She turned Sam around again and suddenly Sam was struck by the same sensation she had been hit by when her father lifted her from the water. Tamara was lifting her by the shoulders of her jacket, ensuring that the jacket wouldn’t ride up. The jacket pulled up on her under her arms and between her legs “That’s a far cry better than those horseshoe rings, I’m glad we could squeeze you guys into those, honestly I didn’t even know we had them, assuming they hold you properly there a lot better than the standard vest too, it’s a shame we don’t have many of them.”
Ava squirmed around in her jacket and pulled at the strap between her legs,
“Is this strap really necessary?”
Tamara misunderstood the question “It’s called a crotch strap, it's designed to prevent the jacket from riding up on the wearer, I don’t know why most jackets don’t have it, it really makes a big improvement. “See how Sam’s jacket doesn’t slide down on her at all” Tamara demonstrated by lifting Sam to her tiptoes again by the shoulders of her jacket. Sam gave an “ummph” at the second unexpected lift.
“Ok, let’s just try these in the water really quick tho, just to make sure they take your weight before we get out there.”
Ava looked skeptical but followed Tamera and Sam across the yard to the dock and down its length. They were in plain view of the other 13 students now but no one seemed to take particular notice, Sam was glad of that but Ava was relieved beyond belief.
Tamara led them to the end of the dock. “Ok so turn around backwards and cross your arms in front of you like this” she demonstrated, crossing her arms across her chest. The two girls mimicked her standing side by side with their backs to the water on the end of the dock, arms crossed on their chests.
“Ok ready? No kicking or flailing, just stay limp for me and leave your arms like that. Ok fall back for me.” Tamara helped them along with a gentle but firm push on the front of each girl’s lifejacket.
Sam fell back through space and plunged into the water, she slammed her eyes shut. For a moment she was hanging below the surface as tho weightless then the jacket yanked her upwards and she broke the surface, remaining limp and letting the jacket support her, her legs hung down below her but the long strap between her legs held the jacket tightly against her shoulders, her head was resting on the collar on the jacket. It was amazingly comfortable, just floating and letting the jacket take her weight. She rotated her head to the right, looking over at Ava. Her friend was floating on her back looking straight up at the sky, her legs dangling below her like Sam’s. She looked like she was in a trance; she was kicking her legs but slowly, not even consciously, her mouth was open slightly as if distracted by something.
“Great! I was a little worried they wouldn’t take your weight but they work perfectly, go ahead and climb out now, you girls are in the CL16 with Liz”
Sam looked over at Ava as they climbed up onto the dock, she looked as though she was torn between wanting to tear the jacket off, and jumping back into the water, Sam could sympathize, she really didn’t want to get out either, no one was looking. Sam grabbed the loop on the back on Ava’s jacket as she “slipped”
Sam hit the water with the same crash she had a moment before, but just as the jacket began to lift her upwards she was struck by a tremendous weight as Ava crashed down on top of her, driving her much deeper underwater. The jacket pulled up on her again, dragging her body upwards, and she broke the surface a moment later. Ava lunged at her as soon as she was floating on top of the water, but it was half hearted, Tamara was telling them to hurry up so the two girls started to swim in to the beach where the sailboats were sitting, opting not to try the ladder a second time.
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