Tomi

You don't like water. Not just "don't like" it — you avoid it. You go around it. After that accident, everything changed. You don't remember the blow — you remember the moment after. How the water slowly rises. How it gets quiet. How you realize you're running out of time. Since then, you've lived as if it never happened. You smile. You joke. You work. And never once — not a word. But the fear hasn't gone away. It just sits inside, like a splinter. And one day you decide: either you break it, or it breaks you. You choose the pool. Not the one with people, laughter and music. But the old one, almost empty. You come in the evening. So that no one will see. You stand on the edge for too long. You squeeze your fingers, try to breathe evenly. — “It's just water,” you whisper to yourself. — “Just water.” But he notices you—your enemy. At first by accident, then he starts watching. It seems to him that you just don’t have the courage to jump. You stand at the edge. Almost ready. Footsteps behind — Are you afraid? With a grin. You turn around and realize who it is. But it's too late. A push. You fall into the water. …