The day was as black as night as the clouds blocked out the sun. I cursed a bit as the wind blew against my face, making it difficult to breathe. I fought against the wind and rain as the ship below me rocked and swooned above the bumpy sea. I'd stayed out a bit later than normal during this night on the cruise. But I had not been aware that our ship was going to be hitting some very rough weather. Had I known that, I would have tucked in early. But because I had decided to stay out later, do a little drinking, play some games with other passengers, I found myself battling near-hurricane force winds and torrential rain. I'm surprised I had not been stopped on my way out. There wasn't a guard to tell me it was unsafe or anything. Perhaps he had not yet gotten to his station or whatnot. I was starting to really regret setting foot out here, because it was absolutely deserted. It was dark, and it was wet.
The rain cascaded off my hair like a waterfall, despite the hood of my hoodie being up, but little help that did as my clothes were thoroughly soaked, and so was I. My glasses were useless, and dotted with rain droplets. I was worried about my phone, and headphones which were wrapped around my neck, but I had an idea that at least the phone would be okay as it was marketed for being water resistant. The headphones however...probably not so much. Even the backpack I held probably did little to protect my belongings as I battled the rain. I cursed as I battled the rain and winds, as the lightning flashed and thunder roared. I don't know why I had come out here. There was likely some other way of getting to my room that didn't involve me going outside, but it was quicker this way, and I guess my head was bigger than my thinking mind at the moment. Now I was asking myself why I had come out here in the first place.
The ship rocked, and it got harder to keep balance as waves battered the ship left and right. The ship, being state of the art, likely was in no real danger of sinking. The passengers might have an uncomfortable rest, or something, but they would be safe. Me on the other hand, well, the waves were washing over my feet, crashing against my knees, and I was already saying it was time to turn back and go the long way. It was stupid of me to come out here, and it was stupid to think that I could take on this weather.
I turned around, but as that happened, a large wave washed over the side crashing into my waist, knocking me down. The ship lurched to the side as it felt the wave, and I rolled along with it, no longer on my feet. I tried grasping for anything that could keep me from just rolling free all over the deck, but if there was anything loose, it had long been washed away, and the secured furniture was already beyond reach. I felt my back hit the guard railing, and I felt myself turn to get back on my feet. The lightning flashed however, and illuminated the sea. There was another big wave just inches from me, and as it washed over the side, I lost my grip. The ship protested a bit at the amount of water now on the deck, but corrected itself as she straightened out. The water however carried me to the other side. I was struggling to breathe, and I didn't realize that I was now being washed over the guard rail, into the clutches of the merciless sea below.
I hit the rough and churning seas below, and immediately moved to surface. The water was freezing, and I could barely think as I moved to surface. As I surfaced, I was given a little relief in sight as the droplets on my glasses were washed away by the ocean, but I had to act fast. I immediately began to shout for help. I already knew that was in vain. I was the only one crazy enough to have gone out here. And even if there was somebody, there was wind, rain, thunder and just the ocean that would easily drown out my calls for help. The ship sailed on without one person on deck glancing in my direction. I continued to kick and stay afloat, while waving my arms, calling for help, but no one heard me.
I felt the waves wash over me, the salty water forcing its way into my mouth. I continued to shout despite knowing no one heard me, before I just began to tread the water to the best of my ability. I wasn't a bad swimmer, but I knew there was no way out of this. My clothes were heavy and saturated with the water, and my shoes weren't easy to kick off. They were actually boots, and I would have had to untie them to get them off. The only thing I could do to lessen my burden, was reluctantly let my backpack sink into the depths. I did my best to stay above the water, though the waves would wash over me constantly.
I looked around, there were no lights of other ships in sight, and the ship I had been on was already out of sight. I wondered how they would react when they would eventually realize they had lost someone. I wouldn't know. There was no way I was going to survive this. Fear began to take hold of my body. I was in open water, getting tired, there was no touchable bottom, no land, nothing at all to grab hold of. And the weather was horrible. I could already begin to feel weak to the cold waters, and my movements began to cease. I felt my body begin to slowly sink beneath the water. I didn't even bother to take in much of a breath as my head submerged followed shortly, by my hands that were still clawing the surface, trying to keep me afloat.
Time seemed to slow at that moment. I guess what they say is true, that before you die, your life just reflects before you. I looked back on the good times, and the people who were close in my life...the people I would never see again. I think I even smiled at a few humorous memories that drifted past my mind. Here I was, about to drown and be forgotten in life, and I was smiling at an old school memory. Smiling at some old prank my friends played on me. Just smiling at the good times. Life got hard, and right now it couldn't be harder. Didn't mean that there wasn't something to smile at.
My lungs kicked my air out, and as I floated there, slowly sinking, lost in the moment, I just instinctively breathed in, and felt my body convulse a bit, bringing me back to reality. The frigid salty water rushed into my lungs, and it felt awful. The salt stung my lungs and throat, and burned my nose. I barely paid much attention to it. My mind was acting so slow that I almost completely forgot that I was in the midst of drowning. I was drowning, and just not piecing together that this was it. I coughed a few times, as my body tried to get some sort of oxygen to my body, but there was nothing. It was just me, coughing up bubbles, and sinking a bit faster as the water filled my body.
I coughed a couple more times as the last air bubbles left me, just leaving my body to try and take weak and desperate watery gasps, and I felt myself sinking lower and lower. The surface of the water was barely visible to the occasional flash of lightning up above. Despite everything, I clung to consciousness for as long as I could, my feelings and senses already beginning to fade as I sank in the cold water...just trying to get that last thought across my mind. What I thought of life, how I felt I lived it, who I would miss, but each thought was harder and harder, to the point where all I could think about was how peaceful it was down here. There was no commotion, no noise...I truly was alone.
Or so it seemed. I didn't know who this was, but above me, I could make out the outline of some female figure. I didn't know who it was, and as it was, I couldn't really see in the darkness of the water anyway, but I didn't think too hard on it. Maybe it was a figment of my imagination, or some spirit here to guide me to the afterlife? I really didn't know what to say. But she got close as I felt the darkness finally starting to take hold of my body. She got close, and kissed me. It was the sweetest thing I'd ever felt...and it was something I was thankful to experience before I drifted into total unconsciousness...
...
I don't know how much time had passed, but I felt so strange right there. I'd never felt so strange before. Breathing was difficult, a bit, and I felt pleasantly warm. I was laying on my back, and the ground beneath me was very soft. I was feeling a little weak, yet could feel my strength slowly returning. I was still sleeping, but was starting to piece together what had happened. I remembered going out on deck of the ship. I remembered the rough seas, the wind, the rain, and I remembered being washed overboard. Wait...I had drowned! I felt the need to open my eyes, because I still felt wet. I felt like I was submerged. Did I still have some life in my body? Was there a chance I could survive? Was there a chance that I was already being rescued? I opened my eyes slowly.
No way...
