Water is lapping between your chin and neck, each wave colliding to the beat of your heart.

The warm water every few seconds passes over your lips sending a strong taste of the salt on your tongue.

This is where you go when life is too much to deal with. It’s better than making choices you’d later regret.

Your mind intrusively falls back to memories of the event leading you here this time in the most peaceful place you could go. The words said, rapidly fired back and forth with your Aunt, unable to be taken back. Hurtful words. Ones you can’t seem to control.

You didn’t want to fight, but it really wasn’t up to you. Something else took over, a frustrated person inside, angry at the world. Angry with the people who said they would be there for you. But you didn’t mean it. Your Aunt has taken care of you since your distressed mother dropped your bundled little body at her door 18 years ago. She is not your enemy, but just happened to be in the path of your unrestrained rage today.

You remember the story of your birth mother. Drugs, a strain of poor decisions, and now jail for life. You’d never meet her because well…it’s just too painful to meet the woman who abandoned you. You have enough drama to last you a life time…

You wave your arms in the water in a flowing motion. You’re not in that deep. You’re not here to swim a marathon. Technically it would be a great way to exert the energy, but for you it isn’t your style.

You flip your legs up to the water’s surface taking in a deep breath. You relax your body, and float, bobbing up and down with the rhythm of the waves. The sun already is setting over the horizon. You stare up at the sky darkening by the minute, a faint batch of stars peeking through the clouds.

You say to yourself, “Tomorrow I will make this right with my aunt. But for now, this is the best place I could be.”