The three children got through the nettle patch and they sat down on the boulders bordering the river, which was now starting to break its banks. They searched around for dock leaves to soften the intense pain of the nettle stings. When they eventually found them they returned to the boulders and tended to their burning limbs. When they could no longer feel the stings they realised that they were bored, and looked for something to do. One of them, Harry, saw something sparkle amid the foam in the river, and started out to get it. The other two, Chris and Matthew, noticed what Harry was after and chased after him frantically. As Chris and Matthew drew closer to Harry, an immense, sudden gush of water knocked the three kids flat on their faces. Chris, who was quite tubby, and the worst swimmer, couldn’t fight the current, and was swept downstream screaming in terror. Matthew and Harry however, fought their way back to the banks of the river, petrified at the thought of what might happen to their friend.
While all of this was happening, the torrential rain persisted. So much so, that the teacher decided to take the class - as quickly as possible - to some form of shelter. They ran towards a small, deserted house about a hundred yards from the path, and waited there panting for the rain to stop. Still, no-one realised that three of the children had disappeared. Everyone was having too much fun to notice, and the teacher was having enough problems arranging for someone to pick them up from school. At last, the rain stopped, and the teacher led the now subdued and tired children towards the bus that awaited them. The children had had enough of this outing; they were caked in mud, dripping with water, and they wanted to go home.
As the children waited outside the bus, the teacher eventually decided to check that everybody was there. He counted the children off as they entered the bus, and sat down on the warm, dry seats that they had all been longing for. As the number of children inside the bus grew, and number outside became less, the teacher became aware that there were maybe some children missing. As the last child entered the bus he knew for sure that three children were absent. He alerted the driver, who immediately hurried outside, locking the bus doors, ordering the children to stay where they were.
The two adults hurried back along the path that they had taken, calling out the names of the three children. There was no response. They eventually came to the start of the walk, having found nothing, apart from a wallet that had been carelessly mislaid and trampled into the mud. They slowly retraced their steps, searching for anything that could shed some light on the boy’s whereabouts. As they neared the spot where the boys had left the path, the driver noticed the broken nettle branches, and the footsteps leading down towards the bank. Again, both men shouted the boy’s names hoping for some response. At first none came, but once again the driver’s sharpened senses heard the snapping of twigs, and the crackling of leaves, and sure enough both boys appeared in front of the men. There was no sign of Chris. The teacher asked the boys where Chris was, they were both shaking with fright, but Harry plucked up the courage to tell of everything that had happened.
As soon as the teacher heard of all that had happened, he immediately dived through the nettle bush, without a care for the pain that he would have to endure. As he burst through the other side he began frantically searching for Chris. He looked everywhere for the young child. He could find nothing around where Chris had fallen, so he ran along beside the now quieter river scanning the opposite bank for any sign of the boy. As he was searching for Chris he heard a hoarse whisper, a plea for help. It came from around the corner of the river, the teacher ran as fast as his weak, feeble limbs could carry him, and found the almost lifeless body of the young boy. All the colour had gone from his cheeks and his breath was faint. When the driver and the other two boys caught up, he ordered them back to the bus immediately. He then picked up the limp body of the child, and carried it up towards the bus, where everyone was waiting.
As soon as he arrived there, he instructed the bus driver to return to the school and to deliver the children to their anxious parents. When they left, he immediately called an ambulance for the young child, and sat down waiting for the help to come. He covered the child with his jacket hoping to restore some life into him, but Chris was still inert and motionless. When the ambulance eventually came he informed the paramedics of what had happened and they helped the boy onto a stretcher and into the van, and gave the teacher a jacket, and told him to accompany the driver in the front. It was a short journey to the hospital, and when they got there the teacher was unaware of what was happening. They rushed the pair into an emergency ward and connected the child up to various tubes that would hopefully resuscitate him. The teacher however, was made to sit beside the bed, and ponder over the course of action which was to be taken. He thought with dread at the impending phone call that he would have to make to the boy's parents, informing them about their child's state and telling them that it was down to his lack of control that they may have lost their only child.
