THE ANGELS LAND

ONE

Sixteen-year old, Aiden Weaver, was three feet above the water staring at it as it stared right back at him. Thick, green eyes lay over the calm surface, taking in every inch of the crystal blue tint that taunted him as he taunted it. It teased him; laughed at him.

The audience of viewers silently observed, waiting for the race to begin.

It was the first race of the season and the last race of the day, and Aiden had been ready for this. Though at his last school, swim meets were usually on Fridays. It was strange being here on a Saturday.

Again,  Aiden's eyes wandered around, as they did when he was nervous, until they came to rest on his middle-aged coach.

Coach Daniel was a good guy, but he could be a little harsh at times. But in the end, he was always striving for Aiden to do his best. Not just in swimming, but in school. Especially since his grades had been dropping in Algebra.

"You need to get them grades up if you want to succeed," Coach Daniel would always tell him.

Aiden glanced to the audience and spotted his best friend, Abby, standing with Nick Lewis. A smile formed on her lips when she spotted him looking over at her, and she waved.

Looking back out over the water, he saw a runway and he was the airplane, set to glide down the runway in a few moments, taking off above the water, which mocked him in an evil, twisted sense of humor.

His eyes focused on the tile, making sure to stay in his lane. Standing on the block, his whole body shook. The water could see how nervous he was. But Aiden wasn't letting that stop him. He loved swimming. He wasn't sure why, but he always had.

Memories of when he was a kid flashed through mind of when he would get excited to go swimming with Abby during the summer. But this water was exhausting. It was so calm; so smooth. It beckoned him to dive in.

But in less than a minute, the glassy water would be a churned, white mass as the other bodies wrestled to the end causing mass destruction to the beautiful, clear, smooth water.

It was almost time. Feet wrapped tightly around the edge of the block, Aiden braced himself. He counted silently inside his head, about to explode off the block as the room stood in pure silence.

The silence was almost deafening. It added to his trepidation of failure. The water isn't the issue right now, he thought. The water would only be racing against him. That's not what he feared. Not now. Not this time. What would everyone think if he failed?

The clock was set at 0:00, which made him feel so hollow, but so full. Heart beating like a drum that couldn't be stopped, he shook himself back into reality.

The clock and the pool were buddies, Aiden thought. They were partners in crime, set to destroy him. Mocking him was their hobby.

"This is a 50 yard freestyle. Swimmers take your mark." The voice had only just spoken, but it felt like hours before the loud buzzer sounded and the line of swimmers emerged.

His body released. His legs exploded from under him, which caused him to leave his current position as his eyes darted around in search of a hole to slide his body in. He found it. And when he did, his head was tucked between his arms as he braced himself to dive into the icy, crystal wetness.