unknowing

The opalescent waters glistened in the setting sun, its hues of cobalt and cerulean inviting me to take a step closer to its alluring beauty. Little did I know that this very ocean, the one which at that moment seemed to be heaven on earth, would steal my life from my grasp on one fateful day...

The icy seawater slid over my face, stinging my eyes and leaving me spluttering and breathless.

"L-Lester! Lester!" Amy let loose a hysterical shriek.

The quicksand sucked me in, tugging and pulling me towards the earth's core. I lay still, motionless, even when my lungs were bursting and heart beating at a frenzied pace. It thumped unrelentingly against my chest.

My eyes were squeezed shut, but even then, the penetrating saltwater seeped through the gaps. Instantaneously, they seemed to be on fire, sending messages of pain and torture through my nerves, to my brain.

No, I thought to myself. No. I will not die. Those words resounded as clear as day, never stopping, again and again, as if it was a broken tape recorder. I must survive. For the sake of the children. For Nellie. For Grandma.

I could take it no longer. I opened my mouth, hoping against hope that air, and not water, would enter my mouth. A foul tasting liquid filled my agape mouth instantaneously. I grimaced, for that which entered my mouth was a mixture of briny sea water, sand, and nauseating mud.

I suddenly realized that I would not be escaping from this predicament soon, for every second that passed, I was drawn lower and lower into the quicksand. Fear gripped my heart. Blood roared in my ears. My entire body pulsated, and this caused me to be drawn into the quicksand even more quickly.

My body could take it no longer. It had seemed to give up, there and then, for the seawater chilled me. The cool respite of the sea that I normally embraced seemed to have mutated and become a merciless monster overnight. The cold pierced through my skin, penetrated my body, and reached my heart.

I had no longer any feeling in the tips of my fingers, or my toes. Yet, I wriggled them, in hope that I would "float" out of the quicksand, and into the cerulean waters.

Every second spent in the water was living hell. My life seemed to be in the balance between the land of the living and the dead. Stars swam before my eyes. My limbs had lost their function. Miraculously, I floated off the patch of quicksand, only to be greeter by a never-ending sea of turquoise.

I had no sense of direction. Up, down, left or right. In which direction I had been swimming that fateful day, I will never know. Panic soon set in. Until then, I had barely enough time to comprehend anything that was going on. Only then, did I realize the gravity of the situation. Only then, did I realize that my life was in grave danger.

Is it really worth it? To die for people I met a few hours ago, no matter how much they need it? Is it? Something nagged at the back of my mind. But... I reminded myself of the absurdity of their predicament. Is it possible? I questioned yet again.

"Lester, Lester... I promise you, that your death is not for nothing. We will avenge your death, and take it to the end. May you rest in peace..." I heard it clearly in my mind, yet was not sure of whether anyone had actually said this. Either way, these words were the ones that I longed to hear from Amy and Dan.

I blacked out, seeming to have spiraled into a daunting sea of darkness. I felt a strange sense of calmness. I seemed to be in the water, yet I could breathe. The entire feeling was surreal. A gentle warmth enveloped me and I embraced it. All the pain, the suffering, the torture, was over, instead replaced by and inexplicable feeling of joy. Where am I? Am I dead? Questions surfaced in my mind, yet I had no answers.

Clasping my hands together, I shut my eyes. Please, let them be safe...

I knew that I had died for a worthy cause, whatever it was.