Note: Picture Young K from the “When You Love Someone” era

Author’s note: I’m sorry this update took so long, but I’ll strive for more frequent updates from now on!

Warnings: Mentions of drowning, cursing

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Each step felt like a dreaded eternity. 

The fear of your imminent fate made your heart thunder wildly in your chest, the sudden surge of activity in your body rapidly depleting your energy. Your hands start to feel clammy with cold sweat, your throat was turning dry and the rapid beating of your heart in your ears was much too loud for your liking. Well aware that everyone was staring at you as you make your way up to the podium, the heat began to rush to your face, making your face and ears burn from the attention. Your physical discomfort only made the entire situation worse, and you unconsciously scraped the tip of your forefinger with your nail till the skin was red and bleeding. Instinct made you want to scratch and claw at your neck but you firmly clench your fists by your side, doing your best to not flinch under their gaze. 

I can’t show signs of weakness now. Not in front of the whole school, and especially not in front of Im Jaebum. I will not give him that power or sick satisfaction.  

You were full of spite, and spite was what made you climb to reach the podium to stand on top of the dunking machine. Yet, despite your earlier bravery, all of that dissolved in the face of your worst enemy and most hellish nightmare. Any step closer and you’d be able to see the deadly water from your line of sight, and your fear of the water far outweighed the fear of being scorned by the school population, or the anger of letting Im Jaebum have the last laugh at your sorry state. You can hear the sniggers and insulting remarks from the audience, and from the corner of your eye, you can see Im Jaebum smirk at your pathetic form, taking his time to enjoy the way he gets to humiliate you again in public. Anger overtakes your senses in a moment of folly and you take a step further up onto the podium. 

That’s when you get a first glimpse of the swirling water, and the memories come crashing back like a tsunami wave slamming into you at full force. The force nearly knocks you off your feet, and it leaves you gasping for breath. 

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“Rachel, come to Mummy!”

The water felt warm against your skin, the salty taste of the water making you gag and cough for a short while. Blinking rapidly as seawater splashed into your eye, you rubbed your eyes as you tried to focus on the blurry figure of your mother floating at a distance, just her head and arms visible above the surface of the water as she beckoned you towards her. To her right, your father was also mimicking her actions; a competition to see which parent you would pick. You swam with all your might, kicking your legs with power and pushing back the water with your cupped palms to reach your parents. 

But why weren’t you getting closer to them?

Cold rain started p