Poison-H.S.

Chapter 42.

I feel much more relaxed now.

I can almost still feel the pads of his fingers on me, his soft, warm touch carefully rubbing over my skin. As if his touch was a kind of soothing medicine on my body. Every time he touches me, I feel my muscles relax and lighten up.

"Swimmers ready!" The referee shouts from the side of my left ear.

I stretch my legs and rest my hands on the edge of the pool. I pray that Four isn't sitting directly behind me, if so he would see my ass perfectly.

"On your marks", They take a short pause while speaking.

"Get set", I look at the blue water at my feet. It's so clear and still. Watching the motionless water makes my head spin.

The crowd becomes noisier and it becomes difficult to focus on the water. When I focus on the water, small circles move in waves.

"Ready!" the referee shouts.

My legs seem to be melting under my body. The room is blurred a little and my head seems to lose all its thought.

"Go!" I try to throw myself into the pool, but my foot slips in a small puddle of water and I rush into the water. My head hits something hard and when I open my eyes, all I see are black patches covering most of my vision until there comes a time when it is all I see.

Ice water surrounds my body and my mind starts to move away from consciousness. The last thing I feel before fainting is someone's arm around me and then everything else disappears.

****

I feel a pressure pumping in my chest. Something hits the bone next to my heart, squeezing hard.

"Come on Hunter, come on," someone says.

I feel a warm liquid rise up my throat. It rises and reaches my mouth, causing me to cough violently. My chest moves up and down as I cough and put my head to the side trying to help the remaining contents out of my mouth.

More clear liquid comes out of my mouth and I do my best to get everything that is left.

When I finally open my eyes, there is a circle of people around me, but the first face I recognize is Four's face. His eyebrows are together, and he is leaning over me soaked, with water scurrying from his hair over his face. There is red liquid on his forehead, but he doesn't seem to mind.

A pain comes from my head, and when I bring my hand to the point where it hurts, I feel more hot liquid. I bring my hand back and I see that there is red liquid, just like the one on Four's forehead. I use my arms to get up and rub my eyes.

The faces of all appear in view and the next I see are those of my father and Matt. The two are smiling.

"Oh, Hunter, what happened down there? Are you okay? Does your head hurt?" My father rushes to my side and hooks his arms around me tightly. Matt finds his way pushing Four and stands next to me. Four gets up and moves away.

His eyebrows are still furrowed, forming a wrinkle between his eyebrows and his lips are slightly separated. His wet black shirt is stuck to his skin, exposing every muscle in his body. The water falls from his separate lips and moves away from the crowd before turning around and walking to the doors.

I look at Four until he leaves, keeping my eyes on the door through which he just left. His worn bandana is floating in the water only a couple of centimeters from where I'm sitting. I reach out my arm and grab her from the pool.

The dark material drips more water on me, but the subject tightly against my chest.

"We should help you up, Matt can you pick her up?" asks my father, turning to Matt. "I'm a little older to carry her around"