An Ocean and The Five Days I Left You

A Story by Michael Howell

This is a short story I wrote. I drew Inspiration from my ex girlfriend and our situation.

The Ocean and the Five Days I Left You

Mike Howell

His sun dried head rolled with the orange waves, aching pain tingling down his spine and into his limbs. The sun seared on every surface of exposed skin, where hot blisters had formed and were now swelling at an alarming rate. He had tried everything, but there was no way of stopping it. He rolled over with enormous pain rested his chin on the inflated yellow plastic of the rim. In all directions he could see there was nothing. Nothing. No hope. Just the birds of no land circling in the distance, occasionally breaking formation to dive for a stray fish in the water. He tongue was sandpaper on his mouth, and he swallowed a dry nothing. He closed his eyes, concentrating on the action of his throat. His throat caught and he coughed, hard, for thirty seconds. Each hack pulsed like a heartbeat in his head. He let go of his position on the raft and slumped to the bottom, his head and left bicep coming to rest on his plastic oar that hadn't been used. His neck was roasting. He tried swallowing again but gave up less than halfway through. His eyes slid open again and his face was so close to the raft he could see every bump and scar. Every blemish. Why, God? He clenched his fists and felt the burns there rub together and with a pain he gasped out the only raspy scream he could. He rose up slowly, ignoring every yell of protest from his tortured body and was on his feet, gripping his oar in hand. He heard a bird squack and he turned. The birds. They were too close. They were coming for him. With a great bellow he raised his arms and threw the oar, eyes snapping shut from the effort. He released and felt a small current of wind blow by as the oar flew out onto the surface of the water. He opened his eyes when he heard the splash. The birds were gone. He did it. He saw the oar bobbing in the water. It made him dizzy and he fell down again. He smiled insanely to himself. It felt good. Too good. Like... bugs were fingering their way over his body. He screamed. I'm not dead yet! He brushed and brushed and brushed his body, but as he did more and more bugs fell in waves over him. The water! He could drown the bugs out! He stripped off what little clothes remained clinging to his body and jumped far into the salty water. The cool rush of water soothed his skin and he stopped fighting to stay above water. He forgot about the bugs. He forgot about everything. He forgot about where he was. He just his skin breathe deeply. He opened his mouth and tasted salt. it tasted so good. Any nutrition would be. His lungs burned for a long while, but it was drowned by the rest of his scorches. He opened his eyes and looked out into the blue green water. Nothing. He smiled and drew in. Water. S**t! He bolted to the surface, breaking just in time to cough up the salt and water. He breathed in, then cried again, a tear pushing its way out of the corner of his eye. It burned as salt. He saw his raft, too far out in the distance. He knew he couldn't make it back. He breathed, stretching his bruised lungs. Tears came more now, lining his eyes in the God forsaken salt of his tomb. One leg stopped kicking. Then another. He was so exhausted. The pain in his body ached every time his arms flailed, his face barely kept above water. Then the pain stopped, and a cool sensation aleviated his burns. The water looked purple, and the sky intensified in blue until it was blinding. His throat released. He could swallom. God, he could swallow! He smiled. His arms stopped treading water. He slipped under. His eyes didn't burn, and he kept them open. The ocean glowed purple. He felt good. For once, five days gone, he felt good. The surface of the water drew farther and farther away from him. Bye, air! Goodbye! God, he was going crazy! And he knew it. He didn't care. He opened his mouth and drew in. Water filled his lungs. Why did it feel so good? His eyelids shut, and he took another breath, and he felt so good.