Submerge

F A C A D E

Hi! yeah i know double update yay !  I'll try to update as much as i can this week since it will be my last week of vacation :( 

sooo enjoy!

M A S O N

Returning to school felt like stepping into a world where I no longer belonged. Nathan, always concerned about the future and keeping life on track, insisted I go back. But for me, the future had become a distant, meaningless concept. The bustling corridors of the school, filled with laughter and chatter, felt like an alien landscape, a stark reminder of the void inside me.

Moving through the day, I felt like a specter among the living. The classes and faces blurred together, the teachers' words and students' conversations fading into a distant hum that couldn't penetrate the fog enveloping my mind.

The suffocating atmosphere of the classrooms became unbearable, driving me to seek refuge in the one place that held both cherished memories and deep pain – the school swimming pool. This was where I had felt most alive, most myself. Now, it was a place of conflict, evoking a longing for a past that was forever out of reach.

The pool lay deserted, its still waters a silent invitation. Standing at the edge, my heart raced with a mixture of fear and longing. Part of me yearned to dive in, to lose myself in the familiar rhythm of swimming, to pretend, just for a fleeting moment, that life was as it used to be.

Torn, I sat at the water's edge, my feet dangling in the coolness of the pool. The sensation against my skin brought a brief respite, a momentary escape from the relentless thoughts and memories that haunted me.

Lost in my own world, the sound of the door creaking open startled me. I looked up, half expecting to see a custodian. Instead, a guy about my age entered, his confident walk and athletic build immediately marking him as a swimmer.

"Hey," he greeted casually, interrupting the silence. He walked to the edge of the pool, placing his swim bag down. "Didn't expect anyone else to be here this late."

I hesitated, caught off guard by his presence. "Yeah, just needed some quiet," I mumbled, my voice subdued.

He began prepping for his swim, stretching with a fluidity that spoke of routine and discipline. "I'm Noah," he introduced himself, offering a quick but genuine smile.

"Mason," I replied, managing a faint smile in return.

"Noah, captain of the school's swimming team," he added with a hint of pride. "I haven't seen you around before. You new to swimming?"

I glanced at the pool, the water reflecting my inner turmoil. "Yeah, something like that," I said, my voice barely above a whisper.

A comfortable yet loaded silence followed. Noah, sensing the unspoken words, spoke again. "You know, the team could always use more swimmers. You've got the look of someone who knows his way around the pool."

The offer tightened my chest, memories of swimming with Emma surfacing painfully. "Thanks, but I don't think I'm ready for that. Not yet," I admitted.

Noah nodded, understandingly, before diving into the pool. I watched him swim, admiring his skill yet feeling a deep sense of loss. Here I was, once a champion in these waters, now just a bystander on the sidelines.

Leaving the pool area, I felt an ironic twist in my heart. The irony of being a former champion swimmer, standing at the edge of a world where I used to reign, now feeling like an outsider, wasn't lost on me. It was a cruel reminder of how drastically life had changed.