I jumped over the rocks to where I had dropped my mask. As I ran back to Jennifer I pulled off the rubber strap that holds the mask on. I told Jennifer to let go of her foot and hold out her leg. Jennifer did what I said, and I loved her more than ever for trusting me. I found the pressure point behind her knee. I picked up a big mussel shell that was lying next to where her pool of blood was, and I told her to hold the shell round side down in the hollow behind her knee. Then I tied the rubber strap around her knee and it pressed the round part of the shell into the back of her leg. I looked at her foot and sure enough, the blood was only oozing now, not pouring out as if it was water from a tap.

I stood up and pulled off my shorts, and ripped them up the side where the seam was on both sides, and I wrapped them tight around her foot. I took the strap from her mask, which was back behind the rock she had hidden behind, and I used it to tie my torn khaki shorts tight around her foot. No blood soaked through.

Then I put my arm around Jennifer. I wanted to stroke her hair but my hands were bloody so I didn’t. She lay her head against my chest and we sat still for a second or two and she said, “Thank you!” And I didn’t know what to say, so I said, “It’s my fault for chasing you. Forgive me.”

“Don’t keep talking nonsense. I was the one who made you. I’m sorry. And I’m sorry I behaved in such a beastly way before.”

It was so unusual for her to be so polite now I really couldn’t think what to say. I helped her up and she held on to me while she hopped back to the air mattress. I got in the water and held it against the rock while Jennifer lowered herself onto it. She was very brave; she winced in pain but never said a thing. Even though her hair was all plastered around her face and she had blood smeared on her nose and mouth and cheek and her eyes were red from crying, she looked even more beautiful than she had in the moonlight and I felt a sort of flopping around in my stomach and chest and I wished I could die for her because I loved her so much it hurt.

She lay on the air mattress and I swam behind and paddled but I was careful not to upset it by going too fast. When we got near the beach Mr. Bazlinton waded out to meet us because he had seen us coming back and saw that something was wrong.