triton
long years of training
of studying
of vying for the top grades, the top spot, the top internships,
that he knew would amount to nothing
because no matter what he did
he could not honor his father's legacy
and he would not be the one to tarnish the family name
with his failure.
so one night,
he got up on his desk
up in the high glass tower
and imagined
f
a
l
l
i
n
g
through the air
he imagined
the water in the fountain below smashing his head
like a block of concrete
he imagined
the screams of strangers
seeing him floating there in the water
but the screams seemed too real
and he wondered if, maybe,
it hadn't all been a dream.
how funny, he thought. it turns out mermans can't swim after all.
