1. In a semi-dream state, Brian vividly recalls every detail of the incident in which he discovers "The Secret." He had been riding his bike with his friend Terry when he saw his mother in a strange car, kissing a man with short blond hair. The hatred, anger, and astonishment that had swept over him at that moment return to him anew. Becoming conscious once again, Brian slowly absorbs the surrounding wilderness as the details of the plane crash rush back into his mind. His entire body aching from the injuries he has sustained during the crash, he falls quickly asleep. Awakening in a haze, Brian finds his survival of the plane crash almost unbelievable and quickly remembers the pilot's less fortunate fate. The mosquitoes in the area swarm around him and leave him with painful bites on every part of his exposed skin. Brian feels lucky to have survived the crash, and upon looking at the surrounding area, realizes how close a call it had been; he had just barely avoided a huge rock nearby. Contemplating the scenery and listening to the many sounds of nature surrounding him, he falls asleep once again.
2. In his unconscious state, Brian remembers the event he now calls the Secret. He and his friend, Terry, had been riding bikes past the Amber Mall when he saw his mother sitting in a station wagon with a strange man with blonde hair. There is more to the memory, but now he only recalls the bikes, the station wagon, the man with his mother, and his hot hate. Then, he opens his eyes and screams. His legs are still in the water. and he feels pain hammering into him. However, he also feels the best part about such an ordeal: he is alive. He blacks out again and doesn't awaken again until evening. He is able to pull himself out of the water to a small stand of brush where he lays down again and falls into a dreamless sleep.
He awakens again at early morning in a panic, because it seems so dark. It's only when he turns over that he sees the sky beginning to lighten across the lake. He is in pain all over, bruised and cramping with a sharp throb in his head. However, nothing seems shattered or broken or even sprained that badly. Even the swollen knot on his head seems to be merely bruised. He thinks for a moment about the pilot still strapped in his seat at the bottom of the lake, but his thoughts continue to be disjointed. It takes him an hour or two to adjust to where he is, but he comes vividly awake when the mosquitoes begin to attack. They attack in such masses that his eyes are soon swollen shut, and he can only protect himself with his torn windbreaker. Only when the sun is fully up and making his damp clothes steam do the mosquitoes disappear.
Brian finally stands up and looks at the lake where he sees the reflection of a large bird flying from the top of the real forest. The trees are large with some low brush around them, and everything is so green that the color seems to go into him. He realizes that if he had come down just a little to the left, he would have hit the rocks along the lake, and he would have been destroyed. He wonders if it was just good luck, but reflects that if he had good luck, his parents wouldn't have divorced, the pilot wouldn't have died, and he wouldn't have crashed. He can only shake his head and try not to think about the bad luck. He finds a tall pine, leans up against it, and falls asleep again.
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