Like Snow

~Chapter Three~

~Chapter Three~

After knocking and receiving no reply, I decided to just open the door. Keaton had told me the address of the party where he and West would be today. Though I still haven't forgiven West for what happened at his birthday party, I had to talk to him about our lab write-up. I was not going to fail because of him. 

The house was huge and spacious, like West's. After all, it was in his neighborhood. This house belonged to his friend Logan Murphy. I suddenly felt even more out of place than usual in a pair of jeans and a long sleeved shirt while everyone else were in bathing suits. There were tons of people making out and dancing to the music that blared through the speakers. I weaved through the clusters of tipsy people and headed intot he kitchen. Through the window above the sink, I spotted West standing by the pool. He wore a pair of red swim trunks and nothing else. 

I walked outside and leaned against the wall beside the door. When he noticed me, he smirked and nudged his friend in the side. They both sauntered towards me, sly smiles on their faces. Their expressions made me uneasy and I turned my head to look at the exit. Was it too late to bail?

"This is the last place I'd ever think of seeing the Snow Queen," his friend remarked.

Snow Queen. That reminded me of why I was mad at West. 

I kissed my teeth and retorted, "You're right, but West and I have a project to do."

"You," West said, "need to let loose and have some fun. You do know what fun is, don't you?"

I scowled. "Of course I know what fun is!" I hissed angrily.

They gasps simultaniously and feigned shock. "I'm losing my patience, West. Can we please do what I came here for?"

"Hey West?" the friend said all of a sudden.

"Yeah, Dalton?"

"I think someone needs to cool off."

And before I could register what was happening, I was lifted into Dalton's arms and thrown into the pool. 

An intense panic and overwhelming need to get my head above water consumed me. I frantically kicked my legs but kept my hands gripped my the hands on my shoulders that were keeping me submerged. My throat burned in need but my lips remained sealed, refusing to give up any air that I had left. After a couple of minutes, the aching ceased and I realized that I was sinking. All the air had left my lungs. I started to inhale water and it stung as it went down my throat. It felt thick as it began to fill my lungs.

I felt at peace.

I looked up and saw her looking down at me, her eyes filled with distress yet her hold never loosened.

I felt heavy.

I welcomed the darkness. 

"--Erson! Emerson! Emerson look at me!" 

All of a sudden, my eyes snapped open as I felt something thick making its way up my throat. I began coughing up water. Someone grabbed my forearms and propped me up onto my elbows so that the water wouldn't go back down my throat. I looked up to see West, kneeling beside me. He was completely drenched. 

"What?" I asked, my voice hoarse. 

West looked down at me with concern, his jaw clenched. As he was about to respond, another voice interrupted. 

"Em! Oh my god, I thought I almost lost you again," Keaton said, wrapping me up in his arms despite my soaking wet clothes.

"Again?" West questioned. 

Keaton turned to his best friend as if he were just now noticing him. "Yeah, again. I need to take her home. You come with."

When we got home, I didn't feel like taking a bath or a shower for obvious reasons, so I just dried myself off with a towel before getting into a pair of sweats and one of Keats t-shirts. I creeped downstairs and as I approached the living room, I heard voices. 

"What the hell was that, Keaton?" West yelled quietly. 

I heard a sigh, probably from Keaton. "Emerson has PTSD, which is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder."

"Why does she have that?"

"Because last year, our mom tried to drown her."

My body froze as I heard those words. My breaths became shallow but I tried to calm myself. I wanted to shout at Keaton for telling West this but I couldn't trust myself not to cry. 

"W-What?" 

"Yeah. Our mom had persecutory delusion. It's a delusional condition in which an individual believes that harm is occuring or is going to occur. Mom had taken Em out on a walk but then she started acting weird. Apparently, she had led herself to believe that someone was following them and that they wanted to take Emerson. So of course," Keaton chuckled dryly, "she decided that she would hide her. Under a lake."

"Holy..." West trailed off. I'd never seen him so speachless before. 

I couldn't bare to hear anymore so I ran quiety back upstairs and crawled into a little ball beneath my covers. I squeezed my eyes closed and pretended that today never happened. That I didn't remember what happened. That Weston Verbeck didn't know my secret.