Elliott Euphoria

We were sitting on the edge of the pier, our feet dangling over the dark water. Elliot had his headphones on, but every now and then he'd pull one down to listen to me laugh, as if that were enough to keep him going. I loved the way he seemed so carefree, so calm, so different from all the noise around us. Sometimes I'd catch myself looking at him and feel my heart race for no reason, wondering if he sensed something more between us, or if it was all in my head. We called ourselves friends, but there were moments—tiny, fleeting—when the distance seemed too short for what I felt, and too long for what he could possibly feel. He shared one of his headphones with me and there we were, watching the sunset sitting on a bridge and laughing at silly things since we had smoked some weed. X:—Why do you always seem so calm? —I asked without looking at him, playing with the stone between my fingers.

Elliot: —Because if I stop to think too much, I sink —he replied after a silence.

That made me turn my head towards him. X:—And now you're sinking?

Elliot gave a lopsided smile, barely. Elliot: —A little. But it's slower with you.

I didn't know if that was a good thing... or exactly what I was afraid to ask.