You're going for an afternoon swim in the warm waters of your favourite beach, relaxing and alone with yourself and lulled by the sunlight-bathed turquoise water... But then you see a shadowy blue form circling far under your feet, rising up closer from between your flippers.

A stranger finds you, gliding up to you from underneath and tugging you down beneath the surface -- you're caught by surprise! You barely get enough of a breath to "Mmf!" in surprised protest, but when the fizzing cloud of bubbles clears enough for you to see him, he takes off his mask and beckons you reassuringly. A hyena. A freediver. What does he want? Your gazes meet and he tenderly puts his hands on your unsure body, calming your legs of their kicking while he smiles at you. He lets himself sink, bubbles trickling from his teeth and nose in a playful giggle, and he pulls you with him.

You feel a little unsure as the surface shrinks away above you, the cooling and dimming water around you reminds you that you're not a strong swimmer, and you know you're going to need air soon since you barely got a full breath. But, you can't help but feel tempted, feel allured... butterflies rise in your stomach, you allow yourself to give up control and be taken along for whatever kind of ride this is, there's a first time for everything after all.

Fingers of kelp and towering green weeds sway in the water far below you. Through blurry eyes gazing between your lazily-kicking flippers you seek out sunken driftwoods, corals and then find an inviting sight: a flat sandy spot among the seascape of mud, plants and shells of the lagoon floor. Letting go of some bubbles with a gurgle, the burn of airlessness returns and hits you again a little harder, the cool hug of water pressure all around you reminding you of exactly where you are; sunken down, far down, deep below the safety of the shimmering surface you're used to. In unknown territory, pushing the limits you didn't know you could break. But your timid "hmmng" doesn't go unnoticed, the stranger squeezes your hand, and floats his way around you until he's above you.

A hand reaches out to your tensed-up chest and rubs it, slowly and gently... Massaging. Telling you that it's okay. Fingers with the wear and callouses of a regular undersea explorer gently caress over your straining ribs, giving flight to the worry that was building up in you and soothing your needy lungs. It doesn't feel so bad. Your body feels cheated and your mind is calmed by the supportive gesture, in the back of your mind you feel a little more confident and the increasing need for oxygen that's taking hold of you feels a little less urgent.

Gulping your anxieties away, your eyes drift upwards to nervously smile at the hyena. The sunlight throws a dreamy corona around your new diving partner as he lets bubbles go once again and smiles at you with a wide grin, and then you feel a flutter in your chest... A realisation. What you're doing right now is a fantasy. You've always loved the ocean, been infatuated with what beauty and treasures it hides. You've had a crush on the water ever since you can remember, wondered what it would be like to sink far below it and frolic, with trained lungs and the confidence to help you. But, you've always been too scared to push yourself, to take diving lessons, or to practice. Now you're being taken on an adventure into something you've only had daydreams about and seen art & stories of. You're excited, you're nervous. You're... Captivated. Enthralled. You see those hyena's eyes gazing back at you and see what you wish you could be; free in the water, playful and happy in the depths, and those eyes are silently telling you everything you need to know; you're safe with him.

The bubbles that you've both let go drift away far above you both, wobbling and glittering like stars. The water is cold and heavy down here, deafening you and making you swallow to equalise the pressure inside your ears again like you've had to on the way down a few times. Looking around, the realisation hits of just how deep you are. The burning returns, worry comes back, your ears grow hot with anxiety. But...

You're afloat there so far beneath the surface, and yet... nothing is happening. You're not drowning, you're not panicking. Your lungs throb with urgency and your diaphragm flutters, but you feel gentle hands holding onto you, and remember you're in experienced company. You're safe. You lift your hands and touch his face, you lean close to eachother. The freediver had looked away in the time your mind was wandering, but he sensed the feelings that were making you restless and you find your eyes meeting again with the help of your hand. This time, you finally smile back at him, and warmth surges in your belly when the smile is returned, obscuring your body's yells for oxygen.

Your heart feels enchanted, that's all you care about. Like some kind of magnetic attraction is pulling you up towards him against the protests of your biology, you lift upwards and kiss this stranger from the blue deep, happily mmmng-ing and bubbling away your air without care, your lips both drowned in silvery bubbles.

When you pull away you find yourself feeling happy, warm and soothed. This fantasy is happening. You're in love with it. Your concerns about how deep down you are now have evaporated, now you're okay with sinking, okay with being far beyond your limits. You don't care about the consequences -- you want to go with him, play and frolic under the sea like in your daydreams for as long as you can, airless and far below the surface, you want to see what comes next. With a convulsing chest and tingling lips, you pull yourself up to him again, giving him a gurgly smooch, gleeful and without restraint, kicking your flippers to make you both sink further.

You find him doing the same -- he wants to have fun.

You do too.


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A lovely piece of art from of my boyfriend and I.