Rambling

02

There have been many times in my life where I have been told that you cannot control fate, that fate will take you down the path it wants you to go down no matter what you do, the outcome will remain the same. It only takes a second for your entire life to change, for better or for worse. All it takes is a simple decision; turning left instead of right down a path, sending a text instead of calling, a car crash, picking up an extra shift, staying home- anything could happen at any moment that would forever change your life. So, when people try and control fate, they are often upset with the results they get. No one is really in control over every aspect in their life, but you are in charge of how you react to your life changing moment.

For me, this was my moment, this was fate interfering in my life to change it, for better and for the worse. This altered my life forever, and I decided to act upon the choice. This was how I found...him.

"Oh shit!" Civil cried out, leaping up from the sand onto his feet, rushing towards the rapid waves.

He didn't even have time to think about it what he was doing, he just responded to the pumping adrenaline that rushed into his veins. When his feet hit the icy water, it sent shocking chills up his nervous system, forcing him to gasp in shock. However, his feet were in full motion and there was no stopping, so he trudged into the water, now waste deep, pushing himself towards the splashing hand. He was panting, not only from his anxiety but from the cold sleeping into his bones. Once his feet could no longer touch the sand, he pushed off and swam out against the waves that tried to thrash him around like the body in front of him, surfacing and being forced under again by another angry wave. It felt like seconds until he was upon the stranger, grabbing them as the next wave crashed into both of their bodies, sending them both under.

Civil had swam against waves before, so instead of letting his body tangle up, he pushed himself up with two strong powerful kicks, forcing himself above the water. With the wind picking up, the waves became more and more harsh. This would normally be great for surfers if it wasn't for the bitterly snapping wind that kicked up debris from the shallows beneath. Another wave was coming at them, but it was pushing them closer to shore. His hand was still strongly grasped around the stranger, pulling himself backwards as he hauled the thrashing weight with him, using the waves as leverage to guide them backwards to the shore. Their body went under again, tangling up as the waves got angry, but Mother Nature was on their side and the tide rolled into a gentle wave as the wind shifted directions.

After a few more minutes of struggling, the stranger managed to find their feet and gathered themselves up right. They were now waste deep, both breathing hard as the stranger came to his senses and let out a surprised gasp.

"My board!" he cried.

Civil stood dumbfounded, confused at the stranger's outburst. Instead of gasping in pain or fear, he had cried out over a surf board instead of his life. He looked out of the waves with a grumble, before turning around back to Civil, squinting against the dying light, trying to get a better idea of who he was. Civil took a second to look at the person in front of him; he had a thick head of messy brown hair, pressed down heavily by the dripping water that ran down his defined face. Even in the dim light, Civil would vividly see his eyes, they were petrifyingly blue like the water around them, his eyes wide in surprise.

"Your....what?" Civil responded, taking in deep breaths to steady his rapid beating heart.

"My board! Shit! The waves took my by surprise and took me under, I think my cord got caught on something and I went under the wave..." he trailed off, his words jumbling together as his teeth chattered against the cold.

Civil stood waist deep in water, staring at the guy in awe, only because everything he was saying was going straight over his head. If Civil were to guess, the guy was around his age, yet he did not recognize him in the slightest. Civil would have remember those eyes, they bore into him as the stranger continued to talk. The waves started to press against their torsos, the waves picking up against when the abrasive wind hit their wet bodies. Civil wasn't good at small talk, nor drowning talk, so he quickly turned away from the stranger. Moving out of the water in his sopping wet clothes, he made his wave back towards the sand- hoping for an escape.