Chapter 25 - Emily stops fearing pools
Emily did not swim for almost a year.
Not even clean pools.
She had loved swimming before.
The green water.
The bags.
Derek’s threat.
They combined.
Her therapist did not force exposure.
She watched friends swim.
Sat with feet in water.
Then one summer afternoon at my brother’s house, she said:
“Can you come in?”
I changed into shorts.
No dramatic swimwear preparation.
We went.
Waist-deep.
She held my hand.
Then:
“Do you think there’s bags?”
“No.”
“How do you know?”
“Because we can see the bottom.”
She looked.
Clear water.
Blue liner.
One plastic dive toy.
She let go of my hand.
Swam three feet.
Then five.
No applause.
She would have hated that.
Later, while eating watermelon, she said:
“Derek lied about people in the pool.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“To scare you.”
“He was stupid.”
I smiled.
“He made dangerous choices.”
May you like
“Still stupid.”
Fair.
