Out of the Pool

It was a hot summer day and the pool was filled with kids trying to cool off. The sun was shining up above and anyone without sunscreen was bound to be sunburned by the end of the day. But that didn't seem to trouble the hot blond teen up on the lifeguard post. He sat under a prompt umbrella that the other lifeguard-who just got off duty ten minutes ago-left behind.

Sock had waited an hour sitting on the shaded cement waiting for his crush to clock in. Only to wait another twenty minutes to execute his plan. It was a brilliant plan, one that would get him close to Jonathan.

Jonathan, see even his name sounded wonderful. Sock bit his lip trying to calm himself since he didn't have his scarf so he could run his hands over it. Keep it together, you can't back down now.

Taking another deep breath to steady his nerves, Sock pulled his goggles on and walked to the edge of the pool.

Sock, in his green swimming trucks, stared at the rippling water from all the splashing pre-teens. Sock didn't know how to swim and was about to plunge into the deep end of the pool where the older kids or experience swimmers were playing.

Remember, this is all for Jonathan, Sock told himself when he felt his nerve slipping. If Jonathan was good at his job-no, he was good-he would rescue Sock before he actually drowned. "Well, here goes nothing." Sock mumbled under his breath as he ran and cannonball into the pool.

There was a moment of calm as Sock plunged further and further into the chlorine water. He looked up seeing the surface ripple from his jump and he kept sinking deeper and deeper. That's when he began to panic.

What if I hit the bottom and never get back up? What if I don't hit the bottom and get stuck in the middle? What if Jonathan gets distracted by many of the teen girls and he doesn't see me drown?

What if, what if, his mind kept shooting out in his panic state. When Sock noticed he stop going down and hadn't reached the bottom his heart sped up. His option of using his legs and pushing himself up was gone and he didn't know how to get back up again on his own.

Bad idea, bad idea! I didn't think this through. Sock shouted in his head as he started thrashing around letting out a scream which just released precious air bubbles. He stopped his panic scream midway trying to hold onto his air as he felt his lungs start to strain in the lack of moving.

His dilemma was getting back to the surface to get oxygen. But Sock didn't know how and he had to breathe out more bubbles to relieve the pressure on his chest.

Relax, he had to relax.

Easier said than done.

Sock tried to push his arms up like he'd seen swimmers do. But it didn't help and he felt himself slowly sinking to the bottom.

No! No! No! I need to go up! Sock let more precious air bubbles go as his panic seized him when he felt his lungs empty out and held on to nothing. His heart was thumping loudly from the adrenaline his body was producing from the sheer terror he was in into trying to get back to the surface since Jonathan wasn't coming to get him.

Sock kept onto holding his breath as it became painful, all he wanted to do was breath in. His body was screaming at him to do it. He could feel himself starting to fade as the pool started to get darker and darker. Sock was going to lose consciousness in a few seconds from the lack of oxygen to his brain.

Sock closed his eyes accepting his death as he felt himself pass out.

Damn...

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1... 2... 3... 4... 5... 6... 7... 8... 9... 10... Breath.

1... 2... 3... 4... 5... 6... 7... 8... 9... 10... Breath.

Come on, come on. Breath kid, you have to breath.

Jonathan leaned down pressing his lips to the pale-ish blue teen as he breathed into him before getting back up and started chest compression. He couldn't have a drowning here. He only had this job for one month. All that training and it would've been for nothing if he couldn't revive this kid.

Jonathan kept begging in his head for the boy not to die, not on his watch. He didn't even glance up as the girl who distracted him from his job asked if he was alright. Why is she asking him anything? She thought it would've been fun to flirt with him and when that didn't bring the desired affect she faked an injury and kept him away from where he was really needed.

Come on kid. The boy couldn't be more than fourteen years old. Jonathan wouldn't be able to live with himself if this kid who was three fucking years younger than him died.

"I think he's dead," she said behind him.

No one asked you, Jonathan wanted to scream at her. But that would take precious time from performing CPR. Concentrate. He needed to concentrate.

His reward was hearing water-filled lungs cough as he sighed in relief. Thank God, he's alive.

He ordered everyone back to give the kid some breathing room. Lifting the kid's small shoulders up on his arm, Jonathan helped him sit up as he coughed more water up. Jesus, how much water did he breathe in?

That was the wrong question to ask but Jonathan decided not to fret too much on the one he was avoiding. How is he still alive after breathing in that much water? Jonathan was just grateful that someone shouted that someone was drowning to peel himself away from the brunette in the two piece bikini to jump into the pool and save him.

The kid kept coughing but luckily there wasn't anymore water as his breathing came raspy. He blinked those green eyes at him and there was a spark there that threw Jonathan in a loop.

"Thank you for saving me," the young teen rasped as he placed a hand over his chest. Jonathan shook his head trying to tone down the gratitude. He didn't deserve it. It was Jonathan's fault he almost died there. He wasn't at his post.

"You have to be more careful out there," Jonathan said instead and felt like a douche for giving him a lecture to an almost drowned kid.

He nodded in embarrassment, "sorry."

"It's okay, just don't do that again," Jonathan answered trying to be nicer.

The kid just nodded again trying to get up but feeling too weak. Helping him up, Jonathan walked him to his towel under the shade as he sat down. Getting up Jonathan started to walk away before the kid called out, "Jonathan..."

He automatically turned around not questioning until later that the kid knew his name when he never gave it out. "Thank you... for you know... saving me."

"You don't need to thank me. It's my job." There was a sad look that crossed the kid's eyes before he gave him a small sad smile and nodded again letting Jonathan walk off back to his post.