The sun rose over the horizon, peaking its orange tip over the point where the sky met the calm ocean. It was a clear day, giving the orange sphere no competition as it painted the sky and stretched the shadows around the landscape.
It was here that the reflective plane of the freezing water was shattered, as a blonde teenager frantically bobbed up to the surface, desperately heaving air as the gentle waves caused by his ripples lapped against him.
Tommy was consumed in a wild panic... his bobs constituting more as a thrashing than the action of swimming. Of course, the teen could swim... But he had somehow let himself sink to the bottom again.
A foolish act, really. And he knew that. He knew that he should be more careful, and that diving into the uncertain depths beneath the icy waves would never be a good idea... especially while half asleep...
It was as if he had woken up in the water... the water he could barely remember himself sinking into, even as the bitter chill gnawed at his skin... He was always so tired... So ready...
But then he wasn't, and he would jolt awake as he rested at the sandy seafloor. Desperately trying to claw his way back up to the surface, as the very real possibility that he might drown flooded into his head. The dark thought completely consumed him, eating away at his mind until the only thought remaining was to somehow force himself to the top.
And he was afraid.
He didn't want his final life to be ripped away from him...
...Not like this...
He didn't want to drown.
Tommy coughed violently, before throwing up a mouthful of seawater. Oxygen was finally able to enter his lungs, and his movements became less rash and unhelpful.
After a moment, Tommy relaxed, laying back in the water, carefully floating as he stared up at the sky. The brilliant, vibrant sky.
The sight comforted him... and for a moment, it seemed to relieve him of his aches and pains... all the bruises and cut that the salt water was soaking into... even how he could barely feel his limbs as the usual hypothermia set in. For five minutes, he could just forget all about it. Feeling the tiny waves bat against his head, running through his hair.
But that didn't last forever, and when the uncanny heat began to set in, he knew it was time.
Tommy struggled for a moment, managing to force his stiff limbs to function just long enough to make it back to the sandy shore. And once he did, he only dragged himself a few feet before collapsing in the cool sand.
The sun would be up soon... minimizing the shadows and warming the sand... and even on the cold, winter day, would find a way to get rid of the numbness. For now though, Tommy kept his head on its side, his eyes dull, almost unbothered by how the frosty sand clung to his skin... because right now, his only job was to keep breathing... to stay alive...
...To wait...
...Because Dream would be here soon...
...And Dream... would help him...
...Save him...
Tommy shuddered ever so slightly, and then closed his eyes.
YOU ARE READING
-Rehabilitating a Child Soldier-
FanfictionIn a world of destruction, children are not spared. The youngest of which has been fighting since he was eight years old. the child soldier isn't even a child anymore, but rather a person filled to the brim with unwavering loyalty, as he has been ma...
