'Nothing like a little escapism,' I thought to myself, angling my car down the brick-red cobblestone parkway. My bags were packed, perhaps a bit too much so, in preparation for a short weekend along the eastern coast. This would be my second trip to the ocean in all of my 25 years, and I applauded myself at being brave enough to make the seven hundred plus mile journey with solitary enthusiasm. My psyche had been living all-but abused for months, and I was ready to reinvent who I was becoming.

The sky opened up around the sun, as the brilliant rays cooked the entire contents of my vehicle-myself included. I slapped at the broken air-conditioning controls, not actually minding that all four car windows were rolled down well into the doors. I scanned the massive parking lot, surprised by the lack of crowded annoyance I had been expecting as I had gotten off of the exit ramp to the beach just ten minutes previously. I'd earned this vacation time, having put in tiresome hours at a loathsome bill-collecting job in the city. I wanted to view nothing in the shape of a cubicle while I was away. So far, things seemed to be going my way, with light traffic and ample parking.

I hopped eagerly out of the sedan, and pulled open the creaking back driver's side door to grab an overflowing green duffle bag of supplies. It was early in the day, sometime before noon, and I breathed in the thick salt smell of the air and pulled the heavy bag to my shoulder. The walk down to the seaside was quite a stretch, and I curled my toes in my sandals in anticipation for the hike. I made my way, a smile stretching understandably larger with every step. Finally, I could see the sand just over the small hill, after taking the winding wooden boardwalk down for what seemed like a half of a mile. Less than two dozen people occupied the beach-perfect for the soul-searching and sunning I had been counting on. A tan-skinned couple, I guessed to be in their early thirties, tossed a neon pink Frisbee for a wet and shining chocolate Labrador a few yards in front of me. The typical giant umbrellas sat stuffed far into the sand, sleepy beachcombers huddled underneath. I scanned the area for my own hideaway spot and settled on a sunny patch far to the left of the rest of humanity.

Sleep found me easily, as I let the UV rays soak into my body. The continuous lapping of the oceanic waves was near-deafening, though strangely akin to a natural lullaby. An easy hour stretched by before I chose to brave the chill of the water. I stood, slightly dizzy from the heat, and kicked up sand with each step on my way down to the surf. I stretched my arms high above my head, thinking ecstatically that I should like to live like this each and every day of existence.

Perhaps that would be true.

Fine drops of sea spray attacked my body, sending me back a few steps and laughing loudly. I was determined to enjoy the waves, and began to skip into the water, smelling and smiling until running became difficult. The water crept up upon my waist, and with a rolling wave, submerged me to shoulder-depth. With a full lung-capacity breath, I dove under the liquid ice. I began to feel a pull at my limbs, slight at first though growing stronger rapidly. My arms flailed in vain as I realized that finding the surface was becoming a bit of a labyrinth. My legs were being hauled backward, deep into the tide and I felt my body rush through cold, heavy water pressure.

But the feeling that was capturing my full attention, was that I did not seem to need to take a breath. I pondered that within a fraction of a second, before the view around me turned black, and the sea pulled me farther and farther away from the earth.