It pulled her down.
Rapidly.
Clothes dragging in the current —
blue,
black,
gold light,
and then black again.
So this was it.
She had dreamed these dreams
many times.
Why the surprise?
She was prepared for the darkness,
but not the cold.
The dreams were never like this.
Her skin puckered —
white
in cold defeat.
Then grey
and lifeless
as the moon sprayed her
with its cold stare.
Above her,
the blades of her boat
spun past.
A strange drone
in her ears —
becoming distant now.
Briefly captivating.
Then horrifying.
Then gone.
Alone.
So alone.
Now —
peace.
And they were right.
All those stories
about your life
flashing before your eyes.
But this was no brief flash.
It was a saga
of pain and gloom,
interspersed with loving smiles,
sunny days,
and violent winds
conspiring to blow her away.
Those faces smiling now.
Happy
for her new-found peace?
Or happy
she was gone?
She should know,
shouldn’t she?
After all,
she was so much closer
to the other side.
Didn’t you get to speak to angels?
Unlock the secrets of the cosmos?
Alas,
these secrets still eluded her.
The mystery remained.
Perhaps
that was for the best.
But it was her best friend’s face
that upset her the most.
She too
was smiling.
And that seemed so wrong.
How could she smile at this —
at this indignity?
Perhaps
it was because she was the one
who pushed her
over the rail.
Betrayed
by her closest friend.
Sad.
But isn’t that how
these stories always go?
You are always the last to know
what was really happening
behind that smile.
And slowly now,
you sink.
You watch the tiny bubbles
from your nose —
from air trapped
in your billowing dress.