Hazel Eyes: A SUMMER WAYHAUGHT

You're safe now

A wave of saltwater entered her lips and froze her throat. Her lungs burned with distress as she stopped breathing, and the seawater filled her stomach. Strangely she was no longer afraid, she could finally sleep peacefully, she could finally breathe without seeing the blood and alcohol-injected pupils of the empty shell that was once her fiancé. Of course, Waverly didn't want to die, she was young, talented and still had her family, her sister...Wy, Wynonna, WYNONNA! Waverly screamed but nothing came out of her mouth, she swallowed another swig of water, her muscles began to give way to the force of the ocean current.

In a last surge of life, in the last reflex of her body, Waverly kicked one foot in the water, then another, and another. Her muscles tightened, and with all her strength she began to move up a little more. She opened her eyes, but the salt burned her pupil. Yet she saw her, like a siren controlling the waves, she swam as if she was the one guiding the current, she laughed at the current, she was not under its control and she was coming her way. Waverly released her body, she felt her last stream of life, giving up, it was over. She felt two hands slipping under her arms, she felt herself being pulled against the stream, her skin touched her saviour's body. And she felt nothing more. Only the feeling of having finally arrived where she should have always been: in the arms of her angel.

Nicole was out of breath. Yet she had learned to stop paying attention to her exhaustion or her burning lungs. The icy sea was testing her nerves, but she held on. She dove, fortunately, she had had time to put on her diving mask before jumping, and the extremely powerful lights of the boat illuminated the water. She saw her, slowly moving away to the bottom of the ocean, her hair floating around her like a golden and brown halo. She saw her give it one last kick in the water and this increased her energy tenfold. The rule was simple, grab Waverly under her arms and bring her back against her chest so that she would be the first to get oxygen. Then swim, on her back, continuing to support the weight of her body. One, two, three, four, breathe. One two three four, dive, deeper and deeper.

And their bodies finally touched. Nicole shivered at the feeling of her icy skin. But despite her best efforts, she couldn't get her back up. Her clothes, shoes and the camera tied around her neck were far too heavy. In one last effort, feeling the stars rising to her head due to lack of oxygen, Nicole ripped off Waverly's blouse, slid her shorts and boots down her legs and ankles, and untied the camera from her neck. For a second she watched all these objects slowly sink to the bottom of the ocean, aware that she had just taken away perhaps some very dear memories from Waverly, but nothing is worth more than a living. Nicole felt relieved to finally be able to hold her, and her lightweight allowed her to surface the next second.

Nicole, finally, let air into her lungs, and reflex tears rolled down her cheeks and mixed with the waves of the ocean. Waverly did not react. Nicole's heart broke in fear before she finally felt the very weak pulse emanating from Waverly's heart now resting against hers. Someone screamed from the boat and a thrown buoy finally surrounded them, letting Nicole lean back and spare her body that she no longer felt.

But Waverly was there, faintly alive, but finally right there, in her arms and it's all that mattered. Nicole felt her cold breath on her skin since her face rested on her shoulder and in the crook of her neck. Waverly's long brown hair was scattered over both their bodies. Nicole had unintentionally left one of the brunette salt-water-soaked locks against her lips, she didn't take it off, she just squeezed Waverly's body tighter against her and sighed for a long time, feeling gently guided towards the boat. They felt their two bodies finally lift out of the water, and Nicole held on tightly to the buoy. She slid a harness along both of their bodies, being careful to keep Waverly pressed against her skin.

Within a minute, they were finally on board, thanks to the strength of all the employees who had pulled the ropes from the buoy with all their energy. Two of her colleagues finally carried them to the cabin below and guided them to a bed, Waverly half-conscious and Nicole slowly regaining the feeling of her muscles and skin. The priority was not to separate them, knowing that the main source of heat was themselves. Finally, the crew covered them with a rain of survival blankets and wool, went outside and let them rest, their priority being to sail back to port as quickly as possible.