Dan Evensen stood in the crisp, fall Montana wind, feeling its sting on his face. He didn’t care. He was confused. Very confused. He was probably the most confused that he had
ever been. You see, Dan, age 12, had just moved from his home in Rosholt, Wisconsin to Cross, Montana. He had moved because his mother, who is an emergency room nurse, was transferred from her hospital in Weston, Wisconsin to Cross Memorial Hospital. Cross is a nice sized town of 13,987 people. Though it was bigger than Rosholt by a long shot, Dan felt an odd homeliness in this strange town.

He was walking down Main Street of Cross, contemplating the last ten minutes. He also contemplated upon the horrible dreams that he had of this town. He had just run out of his house after yelling at his mom and dad.

¨I don’t know why we had to move to this stupid town. I think you just brought me here to ruin my life. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Goodbye!¨ With those words he stormed out of the house.

As he trudged down Main Street, he quickly glanced at the stores on either side of him. Nice architecture he thought. Lost in thought, he walked down Park Street and looked out at Flathead Lake, his wispy, brown hair getting in his eyes. He took a pebble and tossed it into the water. He enjoyed hearing the ‘kurplunk’ that it made. Then, still lost in thought, he aimlessly strode down the street and walked down to Mill Pond Avenue. He went to the dock of the Old Mill Pond, sat down on the rough wood and watched the sunset.

It sure was beautiful, with its shimmering red, orange and yellow colors reflecting off the surface of the water. It sure was different from Rosholt. He watched it sink behind the mountains. For a moment he just sat there, facing the water. He then looked at his watch and saw that it was 7:00. His parents must be worried about him by now, plus he was getting cold and his thick wool jacket didn’t seem to help against the cold Montana wind. He got up to leave but stopped abruptly. He heard screaming. It came from the dark, cold water.

Dan quickly ran to the edge of the dock and surveyed the scene. With aid of a lit street lamp, he was able to see that there was a boy floundering in the water next to an overturned canoe. Without hesitation, Dan quickly removed his jacket, his shoes, watch and  socks, and dove into the dark water.

The icy water hit Dan harder than a northbound truck hitting a southbound train. The  icy water sucked the breath out of him for a moment, but he quickly recovered and surfaced. The water was icier than he originally thought it was, stinging his face and eyes.

He mentally kicked himself for not keeping his jacket on. Then again, the heavy jacket may have weighed him down more than he needed. He located the floundering boy, only to see his head quickly duck below the surface. Dan sucked in a breath of air and down he went.

Dan was sure that the time he spent under the water was equal to eternity. He blindly groped around the place where he last remembered the boy being. After an eternity, (which was actually 1.5 minutes) his numb hands found the body of the boy. The boys heart was still beating, but the beat was quickly decreasing. The boys head broke the surface first, followed by Dan.

Dan started kicking and paddling with all his might. He was quickly tiring. Then after what seemed like yet another eternity, he and the boy reached the shore. After dragging the boy to shore, Dan made sure to check that he was still breathing.  Instantly, Dan fainted.  The last noise he heard was an ambulance siren and someone lifting him onto a stretcher.

Upon awakening, Dan found that he was in a bed that was not his own. Surrounding objects and smells indicated that he was in a hospital bed in a hospital room at Cross Memorial.  Suddenly there was a gentle knock at the door, and a middle-aged man with brown-blonde hair and glasses walked in.

¨Dad!¨ yelled Dan as Dad sat on the bed and wrapped Dan up in a warm hug.
Dan started to gently sob into his father's arm.

¨I am so sorry I yelled at you and Mom like I did. It was rude and disrespectful of me. I won’t ever do it again. Will you forgive me?¨

Dad looked at Dan and smiled. ¨Of course I will, Buddy. Your mother and I got worried when you disappeared. I am going to tell you that, for being the new kid in town, you have certainly stirred up pandemonium. The rescue workers were in a tizzy trying to get you on the stretcher and beat the clock before your clock ran down.¨

Dad smiled and gently tapped his sons chest. Dad continued. ¨In fact, he stopped by here to say thanks to you.¨

¨Ẅho found us?¨ asked Dan.

Dad just smiled. ¨That person wants to remain anonymous. He was taking a night stroll when he saw you.¨ Dad kissed Dan gently on the head.

Without another word, Dad got up and went to the door. He ushered in a tall, blonde kid who appeared to be Dan’s height, age and size. Dad left the room as the boy sat in a chair next to the bed.

¨Hi. My name is Johnny Elwood. I am very sorry about last night.¨

Dan weakly smiled ¨It’s okay. I just can’t remember what happened. Do you mind filling me in? How did you recover faster than me?¨

Johnny nodded and continued.

¨I was fishing in my canoe when I dropped some tackle. I leaned in and fell. You see, I can’t swim. I was lucky you came when you did, otherwise I would be a goner. It just happened that it was your dad who saw you save me. He was actually out looking for you. He probably already told you this. He didn’t know it was you until he found us on the shore. The only reason I recovered quicker than you was because I kept moving and didn’t go through as much shock as you. Now, I suppose I had better let you rest now. See you later.¨

Johnny turned to leave when Dan stopped him. ¨Johnny, when I get better, and if it warms up, would you like me to teach you how to swim?¨ 

Johnny smiled and replied. ¨Yeah. That would be great. Thank you.¨

Dan just layed there, thinking about the love that his dad had displayed in trying to find him. As soon as Johnny left, Dan layed down his head on his pillow and fell asleep, and instead of the nightmares of Cross, he dreamt of the wonderful life that he would have in Cross, Montana.