The key here is not to panic.
Rationally speaking, he knew he would be fine. He had to be.
Peter and Diana had seen him jump into the water, and after a few minutes of not resurfacing, they would realize he was stuck.
It had been at least a few minutes, right?
Or had it been twenty seconds?
Had it even been a minute?
Neal struggled, though it was futile. He was running out of energy, losing his momentum, and it was hard to work in the dark and against the exhaustion. His lungs were burning, and it was all he could do not to breathe in the murky lake water.
While Neal had never drowned before, he'd had a classmate who had drowned on a school trip once, when he was in fourth grade. Tommy Johnson. Tommy had been the class clown, and on a field trip to the beach, he'd rushed into the water. The teacher had tried to get him out, but it wasn't until his little body floated to the top of the water, face down, that they were able to scoop him out. His lungs had been full of ocean water.
No, don't breathe in.
Neal struggled against the anklet, but with his body lurking forward, towards the elusive surface, it was hard to bend at the waist to work whatever it was that was stuck. A bit of water crept into his nostrils, and Neal jerked. Don't panic. Don't panic. Don't breathe in. He fought his instincts as much as he could.
He thought he heard a voice calling him, but he wasn't certain. He blinked slowly as he could feel himself fading. Peter?
Neal cursed mentally. It was growing harder to form rational thoughts, and he knew that he was on the verge of blacking out. Once he blacked out, his odds decreased dramatically. He gave another weak kick. Peter, now….would….be…..a….fantastic….time….
Without thinking, he raised his hand and reached towards the surface, towards his life. He didn't notice the jelly bracelet (the one that June's granddaughter had given him, the one that Peter, Jones, and Diana had made fun of, the one that he'd forgotten to take off) fall off his hand and lazily rise to the surface.
Neal blinked slowly, swaying under the water. Grey tinged his vision. Help…..