Floating in the Abyss ✔️

Chapter 47

"Don't tell her that I heard them arguing though." I asked.

"I think its best she knows." She looked at me. "I don't have to tell her but communication of times like these is important."

"Okay. You can tell her. But just briefly." I told her, before hurrying out.

"Dr Brooks wants to talk to you." I told mum.

"You can go wait in the car with Chris if you'd like." She smiled before walking off.

I left the building and searched for our car. It took me a while to find, but I eventually did. I tapped on the window for Chris to open the door and then climbed up into the car. It was still difficult to get into.

"Hey kiddo." He grinned. "Where's mum?"

"Talking to Ella." I said nonchalantly.

"You don't seem too happy about that." I shrugged. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." I sighed. "What time do the boys finish school?" I asked.

"Around 3, although I don't think any of them are coming home until much later."

"Why not?"

"Nick's gone with a friend to their house for the weekend, which is a few hours away. River and Ryan are both with their friends and Austin and Jonah have gone to Sean's because they're having a pool party."

"Oh, okay." I sighed. The days were getting longer without them there. Mum and dad both worked or were busy during the day, and I was healthy enough to not sleep during the day now.

"I've heated the pool, though, so you could have a swim with me. We might even be able to convince mum to get in!" I didn't say anything. "Ash?"

"I can't swim." I mumbled.

"That's okay." He told me, without missing a beat. "I can teach you!"

"Really?" I grinned, feeling better.

"Yeah, for sure." He chuckled. Before we could plan anything else, mum arrived back at the car.

"I'm so sorry, honey." She started, all worried and panicky. "We thought you were asleep."

"What happened?" Dad asked.

"Last night." Mum muttered.

"Why were you up?" He asked, concerned.

"I was getting water."

"How long were you there for?"

"Not long, Ryan came and made me go to bed."

"What was Ryan doing up?" Mum asked, confused.

"He was dressed, and I think he was going somewhere."

"That little sneak." She chuckled.

"He's going to be in so much trouble later." Chris mumbled. I hadn't fully started calling him dad yet. Even subconsciously I was flipping between the two.

"Are you okay?" Mum asked me.

"I'm fine now. Ryan helped me."

"We're really sorry Ash. We weren't fighting about you; you should know that." I nodded at them.

They explained to me repeatedly that there was just an issue and they were worried about me, but I wasn't causing a problem. They went over things about family and trust and love, which got boring after a while. I knew what I felt, and it was Ryan's word that stuck with me the most.

Mum and Dad aren't fighting each other, Ash. They're fighting the problem. And that's just part of loving someone. Sometimes there are days where it won't go perfectly. That's just how life works.

"Ash and I are going to go for a swim when we get home, right ash?" He peeked at me through his mirror.

"Sounds fun. You'll get to wear the bathers we bought when we went shopping!"

"I think there's going to be more actual swimming than lounging going on, honey." Chris laughed. "I'm going to teach her how to swim."

"Can you swim Ash?"

"No." I shook my head.

"I don't think you should teach her Chris. We should get lessons and do this properly."

"Oh, c'mon! I'm a great teacher and a great swimmer. What could go wrong?"

"A lot, Chris." Mum glared at him.

"Mum it's fine. The pools not that deep is it?" I checked.

"You sound like the boys." She smiled.

"No, it's not very deep Ash. You'll probably be able to stand up."

"See Mum." I grinned, helping to convince her.

When we got home, I rushed to change into my bathers, but mum insisted I eat lunch first, even though I wasn't hungry. She reheated pasta from a dinner beforehand, which I tried to eat quickly but then I got indigestion and had to slow down.

Finally, after I'd finished eating, I went and got changed into my bathers. They were a pink bikini and I loved them.

I looked at myself in the mirror and felt happy. I could barely see any scars and there wasn't a single bruise on my body.

"Mum?" I called. "Could I please have a towel?"

"Use the one in your bathroom!" She called from her office. "I'm going to wash it tomorrow anyway. Come here so I can see you in your bathers!" I ran to her office, doing a little twirl.

"My beautiful little girl." She smiled.

"Ready?" Dad asked.

"Ready."

We went out to the pool area, hung our towels over the glass panels and dipped our toes in the water.

"You need to be comfortable in the water and remember not to panic." I sat on the edge as he walked into the water, letting it go all the way up to his chest. "Hold on to the edge and slide in. You'll be able to stand up there." I slowly dipped myself further into the water and felt it encase me. It was warmer than I had expected. "There we go."

Once I was comfortable enough and had walked around a little bit, just where I could stand up and hold the edge, he continued.

"You're going to need to learn how to float on your back. Knowing how to float is the most important skill."

He came closer to me and gave a few demonstrations. He showed me the best way to breathe whilst you float and to stick your tummy up to the sky. When it was my turn, he put one hand on the back of my head and one on my back. I stayed holding onto the edge but carefully moved to the top of the water and lay flat.

"There we go, you're doing it!" He grinned proudly. "Stayed relaxed and keep breathing." He slowly took his hand off my head and let me hold it there by myself. Slowly, he moved his hand off my back so that I was floating there on my own. It was working until I let my tummy fall and my entire body fell underwater.

Before I could even process what had been happening, a strong arm came around my waist and I was pulled back up to the surface.

I gasped for air then smiled.

"That was kind of fun."