Nightmares - A Short Story

"The first thing she felt was cold. Then she felt as though her lungs were on fire. As she opened her mouth to breathe, water invaded her throat instead. Harley opened her eyes and realized she was underwater. She swam upwards as fast as she could until she found the surface of the salty water. She let out a hoarse cough, expelling the water from her throat that scratched its way out. She inhaled hard as if just now discovering how good oxygen felt inside her shriveled lungs. There was still water in her throat and as she took more breaths, she started to choke on it and had a coughing spree. Once she calmed down, she noticed that the water was calm tonight and it had only small waves that moved her occasionally. She looked around and saw a pier to her left, the one with the broken boardwalk that no one ever visited anymore. Feeling more swallowed water trying to make another appearance, Harley swam to the shore until she was sloshing in her pajama pants on the beach. What the hell am I doing here? She had no memory of ever leaving her apartment. All she remembered was getting in bed and falling asleep to the TV's latest infomercials."