I gasp for air, the icy water clawing at my numb skin. The water is pitch-black, and there’s nothing but ocean for miles around.

“HELP!” I scream. “SOMEBODY—HELP!”

But there’s nobody there. The splashing of waves rings in my ears, echoing in my skull.

I feel as though I have lost all control of my body. My frozen limbs are thrashing and flailing in the water, trying to keep me above the surface.

But every now and then, my head dips underwater, and I can’t see anything.

Just the inky, black sea.

Suddenly, something brushes up against my leg. I can barely feel it, but I know there is something in the water.

In my mind, I try to think about what creature might be near me—but I can’t focus on anything. My arms and legs are tired of moving, and it’s as if the water is so cold that it’s freezing my joints, like rust.

And then I feel it.

Something brushes against my other leg, and for a split second, I feel like I can see spiny fins breaking through the surface of the water, only for them to disappear back down into the icy depths.

My heart racing, I frantically kick my legs with what energy I have left to swim away.

Blood rushes through my ears, reminding me of the sounds a highway makes as cars speed down the roads.

Will I ever see a highway again? Or a car, or road? Suddenly, a tidal wave of fear washes over me.

Will I ever feel warmth again?

Are my family and friends worried about me?

Am I going to die?

Hot tears stream down my face as my legs continuously kick and splash in the water, but I can tell I’m not going anywhere. I’m too weak.

I look around desperately, trying to find something—anything—that might lead me to safety. But all I can see are the same sharp fins I saw earlier, slicing through the water a few feet away from me.

My lip trembles as I watch the fins turn towards me.

I turn around and try to swim away, crying out once more.

“PLEASE, SOMEONE—ANYONE! SAVE ME! PLEASE!…please…”

But I no longer have any hope of being rescued. Still crying, I look over my shoulder.

The last thing I see before being dragged under the water is a pair of black, beady eyes in a blur of spiny fins and scales.

And then my vision goes black.