The Broken Date

×8×: Part 2

Jack's POV:

My arms felt tired and I had a slight cramp in my side. I turned on my back and floated until the cramp began to ease. Back to the real world. Back to the world where I couldn't control both sides of the conversation. Where there was no happy ending.

What was keeping Felix?

Suddenly a shadow appeared across the middle of the pool.

I looked up to the skylight. No clouds had appeared to block the sun.

What was causing it?

I stood and stared into the blue waters. The narrow shadow floated a few yards away from me. It looked like the shadow of a large fish, or of a human.

Startled, I looked under the water. But I quickly realized that no creature could cast a shadow up toward the sunlight.

I looked back up at the skylight, and caught a glimpse of somebody peering down at me from the balcony above the pool. It was a young man. He pulled his head back as I looked up. But I saw black hair, a frowning face.

Black hair?

“Mark?” I called. “Is that you?”

No reply.

The shadow had disappeared from the water.

I thought I hear scraping footsteps up on the balcony.

“Mark? Are you up there?” I was unable to keep the fear from my voice. I had to strain to call loudly enough to be heard. “Who's up there? Come on, is that you?”

Silence.

But I knew someone was up there. Someone had been watching me. I had seen him.

Suddenly feeling very frightened, I began to swim toward the step at the shallow end. As i swam, I turned back looking for someone---anyone---who could help me. But the pool area was still empty.

Terror slowed my strokes, made my arms feel as if they each weighed a ton. I gasped for breath. My heart pounded. I felt so alone, so vulnerable there in the middle of the silent, empty pool.

Finally I reached the steps and pulled myself up. I turned and looked up to the balcony. “Who is up there?”

I stood on the steps, shivering, waiting, listening.

There was no reply.

Then from the balcony I herd unmistakable sound of laughter, laughter soft but menacing.

Word count: 379. Sorry it's so short, I will get all of chapter 9 out tomorrow if I can...god I'm tired...ok I'mma go to bed....night.