WHO ARE YOU?|ATEEZ FANFIC (In Editing Progress)

Chapter 14|Utopia

The waves pressed Yunho defenselessly deeper beneath the water’s surface, deeper into the dark, cold nothingness where he couldn’t breathe. Desperately, he held his breath and splashed wildly with his arms and legs, hoping to find his way back to the surface, but he felt like he was swimming even deeper.

Where are the others??

Yunho thought in fear, trying to look around but he could hardly see his own hand right infront of his face, yet alone his friends who were somewhere in the water with him. He couldn’t see them. He tried to swim further and further towards the air. His lungs were beginning to resist holding his breath, but if Yunho tried to gasp for air now, he would drown. The throbbing pain in his chest grew stronger the closer he seemed to get to the surface. Halfway through, his limbs gave way, as if paralyzed by the cold of the water, and Yunho felt his body sinking deeper into the darkness again. Tears formed in his eyes and instantly mixed with the lake water around him. Was that it? Would he die here, alone, surrounded by darkness and cold, not knowing if at least his friends were okay? He desperately clung to the last bit of air that filled his lungs, until he could no longer hold it. Against his will, his body reflexively opened his mouth. The air he was holding back burst out and bubbled to the surface, leaving Yunho without it. He breathed in and felt the water enter his mouth, down his throat and into his lungs. He winced in fear. The cold filled his chest and ran through his limbs. It hurt. And there was nothing he could do about it. His head began to feel strangely numb and he became dizzy. His eyelids became weak and just before he closed them he could see a shadow approaching him quickly. A hand grabbed his wrist and he felt his body rush through the water. Then he closed his eyes and everything around him went completely black.

“Yunho…”

A voice rang in Yunho’s ears, calling his name over and over. It was a familiar voice. Deep and warm. The voice sounded almost like himself. As if he was trying to wake himself up.

“Come on, Yunho…” The voice said and Yunho felt two hands repeatedly pressing on his chest in a rhythm with a lot of pressure. He could feel the water in his lungs being forced out by the pressure. It rose into his throat and up into his oral cavity until it shot out of his mouth and Yunho gasped for air. His eyes widened in shock as the air filled his lungs again. Panting and coughing, Yunho turned onto his side, curling up like an embryo while water continued to run from his mouth. He had really swallowed a lot of water. Next to him he heard a faint sigh of relief and out of the corner of his eye Yunho could see a black silhouette in the sunlight, sitting right next to him in the sand. It took Yunho a few minutes for his lungs to calm down again. It burned and hurt terribly, but all the water was out again and he could breathe easily again. Relieved, he laid his head down in the sand and took a deep breath. His fingers dug into the soft, warm sand that clung to his wet clothes and hair. The sun shone down on him and the warm embrace of its light made Yunho shiver. His whole body was shaking. Fear was still deep in his bones and he was afraid that if he opened his eyes he would be under water again. Had he really been saved? But by whom? He carefully tried to pull himself up and just managed to sit down. His circulation didn’t like it at all. He felt dizzy, but he managed to concentrate and stay upright. As he felt his circulation slowly getting used to the upright position and his dizziness also disappearing, he coughed and laughed it off.

“That was close, wasn’t it?” he asked, turning his head to the side and opening his eyes to look at the person who had saved him from miserably drowning in the cold of the lake. But there was no one there.

“Huh?” Confused, Yunho raised his eyebrows and looked to his other side, but there was no one there either. But… Someone had just saved him. Not even two minutes ago, someone had sat next to him and brought him back among the living. He could still feel the feeling of his hands on his chest. With an unpleasant feeling in his stomach, he placed his hand on his chest where his mysterious savior had previously had his hands and a shiver ran down his spine. He hadn’t dreamed that, had he? He was sure that someone had been here. Confusion spread through him as his gaze suddenly wandered towards the water. Yunho sat in silence for a moment, staring at the water. It glittered in the sunlight. It looked so peaceful and so harmless. As Yunho glanced to his left, along the beach, he gasped in shock when he suddenly saw remnants of the illusion scattered on the sand not far away from him.