The Pool

It was dark.

The rain was getting heavier and heavier.

I ran as fast as I could through the wet streets.

I ran, looking for shelter.

I reached my apartment, soaked.

I lay down in my bed and slept.

I woke up.

It felt like I had been hit by a truck.

My alarm was about to ring, but I turned it off before it could.

The rain kept falling.

Nothing seemed to have changed.

The bed was dry.

Was I dreaming?

My face was wet.

My eyes were burning.

I looked at the date.

Today is Monday.

Maybe I’m just tired.

I should go get ready.

***

I arrived at work.

Everything was the same.

Same elevator.

Same dark gray carpet.

Same good morning.

Same coffee I didn’t even like to drink.

Same old white computer.

Same papers.

Same numbers.

It was as if the walls were grayer than normal.

One thing was different.

Laura wasn’t there.

Her desk looked empty.

“Has anyone seen Laura?” I asked out loud to my coworkers beside me.

No one answered me.

“Tsk,” I said, annoyed.

I got up and went to where her desk was.

She always came to mine.

But I had never gone to hers.

From far away, it looked like a normal desk.

Inside the cubicle, there were several post-it notes spread across the walls.

All colorful, with different drawings.

Completely different from the rest of the environment.

I saw one with our initials inside a drawn heart.

Laura really doesn’t belong in this place.

Her plant needed water.

I grabbed a cup.

Stopped.

Would that help anything?

Well, if her things are still here, it means they didn’t fire her.

She’ll show up eventually.

While I was going back to my desk, I noticed a leak.

It was dripping near the elevator.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

Slowly, drop after drop.

No one seemed to care.

I sat down.

I turned on the computer.

I watched slowly as the water accumulated on the floor.

Drop after drop.

I blinked and shook my head.

I need to get back to work.

I started typing.

Number after number.

Drop after drop.

***

The next day, the sound continued.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

I looked at the floor.

The carpet was darker.

I stepped on it.

It was soaked.

I kept walking.

“Good morning,” I waved.

“Good morning.” Again.

When I sat in the chair, I felt the hem of my pants cold.

I looked down.

Part of it was wet.

I stared at it for a few seconds.

I tapped my feet in the puddle at my feet.

Splash.

Splash.

Splash.

I turned my attention back to the screen.

I typed.

The office light flickered.

Once.

Twice.

A person passed by me.

They seemed to be dragging themselves.

Then another one passed.

I kept working.

The walls were strange.

Water ran down them.

A thin layer.

Almost imperceptible.

I continued.

People didn’t talk.

The only sound came from the keyboards.

Dry.

Repetitive.

Empty.

Boring.

Lifeless.

I glanced at the people around me.

I couldn’t see their faces properly.

Their expressions.

Their feelings.

I looked away.

I went back to the screen.

The water already covered the entire floor.

My shoes were being covered.

I looked down and saw a reflection.

It reflected the light.

It reflected everything.

Even my worn-out face.

I kept typing without stopping.

I needed to finish that.

I don’t remember when the water reached my ankles.

Much less when it reached my shins.

I felt the cold.

A strong smell.

Paper boxes floated open.

Sheets of paper were falling apart.

The supervisor appeared at the front of the room.

I looked at the empty desk.

I stood up.

I walked to the supervisor.

The water was at my knees.

Each step was more and more difficult.

“Do you know where Laura is?”

He didn’t look at me.

I looked down.

I turned my back.

I walked slowly back to my computer.

“You didn’t want to know. You ran away,” he said.

I turned back.

He wasn’t there anymore.

It’s true… I ran away.

I went back to my desk.

I sat down.

The water was already covering my hips.

The chair seemed lighter.

The desk seemed to be moving away from me.

The leaks seemed to increase.

The water rose higher.

My body was cold.

I was trembling.

My clothes were heavy.

No one moved.

Not a word was said.

And I continued.

I couldn’t hear the sound of the keyboard anymore.

The water was rising and was at my mouth.

Breathing became difficult.

I submerged.

I looked at Laura’s desk.

Empty.

My body became heavy.

For a second—

I stopped.

I just let the water rise.

I was running out of air.

No.

I didn’t want to die.

I got scared and ended up choking.

I swam to the surface, looking for air.

My head was almost hitting the ceiling.

There was little space to breathe.

Now what?

Now what?

The water was rising faster with each minute.

Desperate, I looked around.

I saw several people floating upside down in the water.

I couldn’t see any exit.

I heard a noise.

The elevator door opened.

How did the door open?

The elevator wasn’t there.

The water started flowing toward it.

A strong current formed toward the hole.

I swam with all my strength against the current.

The water was lowering.

I was making it.

Until the heavy desk hit me, and I fell backward into the bottom of the elevator shaft, hitting my back against the water.

The adrenaline worked like a shock.

It felt like I had been hit by a defibrillator.

The shock made me pull in air.

I looked at the top of the water while I fell slowly.

I swam upward, but the walls were too high.

The water fell slowly.

I looked down.

I couldn’t see anything.

I dove. I saw something hidden at the bottom.

Maybe there was a way out.

I swam and found a trapdoor with chains.

It seemed to open downward.

If it opened—

Maybe…

I pulled the chains with all my strength, but it wouldn’t open at all.

I was running out of air.

I swam to the surface, breathed, and dove again.

Maybe there was a way to open it without moving the chains.

I searched around and found a padlock with the number three.

My lungs started to hurt.

I took the aluminum key from my pocket.

It was hard to use the key.

The key kept slipping.

My fingers were trembling.

It wouldn’t fit.

The air was running out.

My strength was running out.

I tried again.

It slipped.

And again.

I managed to fit it in.

I turned the key.

The padlock came off.

The chain fell to the floor.

I was standing.

I looked around me.

I was back.

It was the Room.

I let out an awkward laugh.

I can’t believe it.