Sinking || Solby ||

🌊 Chapter 1 🌊

It's always been an exciting thing, the idea of a vacation.

Just the chance to escape everything you know and hold dear temporarily; find your own little hideaway, so far away from everything considered normal.

Anyone would give anything to be in that situation--those poor sad sacks who work in office jobs often zone out and just daydream of a location so far from their occupation.

Naturally, I, Colby Brock, am like anyone else. I jumped at the 'opportunity of a lifetime' with a group of friends who, coincidentally, were also my roommates at our mansion home in California. We'd all agreed at the beginning of a long-winding, disorderly set of events known as 'pranks' that by the end of it, the winner would go on a magnificent cruise ship as a sort of reward for pranking the others.

Well, long story short, my friends and I all came to the agreement that it was a mutual win, and with that came the realization that we were all about to go on the trip of a lifetime as a group, meaning parties and cheer until the week that we finally landed on the giant boat.

Sure, the cruise was a ton of fun--the activities, the group bonding and so on, but there was one thing that continued to hold me back.

Here I was stood, backed up into a rather large beam at the club, watching all my friends laugh and dance with their partners--and hook-ups--that they'd brought along with them on the trip as the DJ and event managers cheered them on, laughs all around from the crowds of couples that eagerly took part.

Meanwhile, my hands were most occupied with the space in my black hoodie's pockets, my blue eyes darkened under the lack of light that refused to shine in this particular area--

Here I was.

Alone in a crowded room, once again.

I sighed out all of the oxygen I didn't know my lungs were holding onto, shakily, finding my eyes drawn to my best friend, Brennen, and one of the two gorgeous girls he'd picked up like it was no big deal during the first few hours of the trip.

He was laughing, smile wide as his ears were filled with her joyous giggle while he spun her around and dipped her in his arms and I had this sincere moment of wondering--why wasn't that me doing that to her instead?

Maybe it hurt me most because I had to force a dry laugh with my bros as they nudged me playfully, then left me there to join in with the couples evening, leaving me with a tearing heart.

I shook my head of my lonesome thoughts and instead trained my eyes to my other friends.

There was Corey, who was with Devyn, Elton, who was with Ginger, Aaron with Tori, Jake with some girl I'd never seen in my life--even Reggie had somehow picked up a chick in the time it took me to adjust my position.

They were all smiling. Laughing. Having so much fun with their significant others...

... and I was just me, alone, dark and brooding, leaning against a large, marble pillar with the whole of my slumped back, a safe distance from the disco lights and the action.

I inhaled in hopes of the air filling my chest and bringing my heart back up instead of letting it stay at a sunken state, but to no avail--it still felt as though there was a gaping nothingness leading from my torso, and with that I stood at my tallest, stretching my lips into false, insincere smiles as I murmured my apologies to people I pried apart whilst shuffling through the crowd.

My sights were set on a door--the door clearly marked as 'exit' among darkness on the other side of the room, which led out onto one of the viewing decks of the ship, closest to the back decks with the outdoor pools and whatever else.