100 one-shots

Sinking

760/750 words written.

The gentle sound of the water surrounding me, although deadly and morbid, made me feel strangely safe. I felt my eyes sting as I attempted to open them, and my heart clenched in my chest as I realized – I was alone. Nobody would come to my rescue that time, as the only person who had ever saved me before was the reason I'd found myself in that lethal situation. I felt abandoned, betrayed and broken. I knew I could give in at any moment to this nagging urge in my lungs. It was a sharp desire that grew every second that passed, driving me insane with every breath that I wished I could take. Time passed, and I couldn't hold my breath any longer. As I sunk down into what was soon to be my grave, I attempted to inhale. Immediately, things around me got darker, and I regretted giving in. The water I'd respired into my lungs had made my body heavier, causing me to sink faster to the bottom. One last time, I struggled, hoping I could manage to swim back up to the surface – but alas. I felt my head fall onto the soft sand at the bottom of the ocean, and I knew this would be the place where I would lie to hear my heart beating for the last time, although, the sound of it was muffled by the noises of the water flowing softly inside my ears. I closed my eyes, it was over for me.

It was all a color, a color I could never forget. That color you would always call your favorite had been the cause of all the hurt I'd ever had to deal with. Your eyes were the only reason I held onto my miserable life, the mere thought of being able to look into them one more time was enough motivation for me to live on for another excruciating day. Those same eyes I got to see one last time before I fell into this ocean of despair. Those eyes... they were dull, almost drained of all life. But if they were so monotone, why did they always seem so vibrant in my mind when I thought of you? Blake had always been there for me, but why did it have to be you I pictured in my last few moments? Why did it always have to be you?

The sound of the water faded into the back of my mind. I opened my eyes and everything was far too bright; but you stood out right away. You were there, right in front of me. All I had to do was reach forward, and I could touch you, but why couldn't I? You were so close, but it felt like you weren't truly there. You weren't looking at me, you wouldn't face me, and you wouldn't let me look in your eyes. I spoke your name so quietly that even I couldn't hear it. Everything about this moment felt unreal, and I knew it was. I was simply imagining all this in order to forget the agonizing pain caused by suffocation.
"Leptir," I heard. That voice was so familiar, yet so foreign... And I inhaled, causing you to disappear from my line of sight. Was it air I had just breathed in? I was too lost in self-pity at the thought of not seeing you to even notice.

Blake was lying down next to me, my heart skipped a beat in excitement. I was alive. His fur was soaking wet, and he was looking at me with a lot of concern shining in his eyes.
"Finally." He spoke.
Gently, he tied by bandana back around my neck. He didn't rush me to get back on my feet, I felt weak and depressed, but Blake's presence made it all better. I wished you were here too, I was sure if you had been, you'd have found something to laugh about in this depressing, humiliating moment.
"You, when you were passed out..." he said, obviously not acting much like himself. He seemed troubled, and tired. "You said something... I didn't quite catch it."
What a strange reason to act so distant, you would have thought that after I'd endured such a traumatizing experience, I'd be the one who would need reassurance. Besides, Blake had never acted so strange. He would usually get pretty cocky whenever he did me a favor, but that time he seemed deeply lost in thought – like he used to always be, back when we first met.