Bubbles

• Matilda Wilson, Grade 5, Swansea Primary School -
• Short Story
• 2018

Finalist in the 'Horizon of Dreams 2018' competition

The ship swerves, plunging to starboard. I am terrified. The Captain has made it clear we would perish if we stayed on board. My family hurdles into the rising waves. I can’t. My legs are like lumps of steel. A man shouts to jump. I won’t. I’ll die. The boat tips…
I open my eyes. Bubbles whooshing around me. Dark, dark blue. Makes me think of sunken ships from times gone by. I am calling, but no sound comes out. One thought; up. I kick my legs, propelling towards the surface. Bubbles encouraging around me.
A wave. A terrible god. Poseidon? A crash of power pushes me down, the air squeezed out of me. I am forced towards the bottom. I was being trampled down by a giant white horse of sea spray. It was my desperate hope to reach the surface. Bubbles fizzing around me.
But then, a song, like no other. It calmed me. It made me come to my senses. I relaxed. Where is the song coming from? I didn’t have to go far. It was guiding me. Following me. All around me.
Dark, dark blue water turns to soft, soft water. A creature. Moving towards me. I forget everything. Slowly, I open my eyes. A Swoosh. A glow. A sign of hope. Bubbles enclosing around me.
A beautiful, life-filled face. Long hair tickling my skin. The song, louder now playing around in my eardrums. Bubbles forming around me. A sleek green tail. Green with passion, green with soul. A picture of perfection, a model of magic. And the eyes. Those clear sky blue eyes, will I ever see the same colour again? Bubbles swishing around me.
It pulls me up to it. A webbed hand. Extended from a long, smooth arm. A piece of seaweed. Green, black, and full of shells. A wreath. A scarf. A necklace. Bubbles laughing around me. The Seaweed string placed around my neck.
A silence. A voice. It was the sound of dreams. The creature stares at me. Her pink lips do not move. She looks sorry for me, sorry for my life, sorry for my death… which one am I? Bubbles reflecting around me.
A feeling. A warm, warm feeling. I can’t open my eyes. Wanting, waiting, listening for the song. Bubbles sailing around me. All this time I haven’t taken a breath. The thought shoots into my mind like a bullet. Automatically I breathe in, forgetting where I am. I breathe in! Or maybe I breathed out?
The air felt warm and thick. The atmosphere humid. I see an island. Coming closer, closer. There is no hesitation, there is no knowledge to be known. I am safe, for now. Bubbles drifting around me.
But…where is the creature? The song? The light? The seaweed string? The eyes? Bright, blue eyes. Looking at me. Somewhere. Can she hear me? I’ll never know.
Bubbles eternally inside me.