Melodie drug herself out of the car and languidly made her way to the imposing brown building that housed the instrument of her happiest torture. As her steps skimmed the pavement she heard her mother's exclamation "Have a good time at swim practice, honey!" Without breaking stride, Melodie blindly waved her arm in the general direction of the parking lot to acknowledge that she'd heard her mother and would try her best, considering her limited enthusiasm for the practice ahead of her.

As she yanked on her baby blue suit one of her teammates darted into the locker room, stood on a bench in the middle of everyone and cleared her throat, like a queen preparing to present a great speech to her subjects. As the words water polo were proclaimed Melodie felt her stomach drop to the floor as a great dread cascaded through her.

Why did it have to be water polo?

Melodie seriously considered going to the coach and faking sick, or maybe she could convince him to let her go out and run ten miles, or perhaps she could sneak out and nobody would notice.

"Hey Mel, you wanna be on my team this time?"

Well, so much for that idea…

"Of course, Nat! I always want to be on your team." Melodie smiled at Natalie, her best friend, and the one person she would do practically anything for, including suffering through a game of water polo.

They walked on deck and to help the cold reality sink in even deeper the coach had to announce that they'd be playing water polo instead of swimming, as if it wasn't already common knowledge. Melodie's eyes roamed the team as the coach reiterated the rules and the process for picking teams, and her gaze fell upon the bane of her existence, Olivia. Olivia had that way about her that just grated against every nerve ending Melodie possessed.

But in spite of Melodie's dislike of the girl she hoped with everything she had that they would be on the same team for the inter-squad water polo match. Olivia had the tendency to become overzealous when it came to these little games to the point of running people over in her desperate attempt to retrieve the ball from the opposing team. And, Melodie had experienced that particular feeling of being a demolished by a human bulldozer one too many times in her short life.

As the teams were chosen Melodie watched as Natalie and Olivia were placed on opposing sides. The dread of what was about to happen built as Natalie leaned over to their "team captain" and whispered Melodie's name in the girl's ear as a last ditch effort to be on the same team as her best friend. As the words "I'll take Melodie," were spoken by the girl Melodie glanced at Olivia who seemed to be laughing at her with the promise of future anguish.

"Isn't it great Mel? I got us on the same team," Natalie whispered to Melodie with a huge smile on her face. Melodie smiled at her friend and nodded her head, without revealing her inner grimace at the thought of that human bulldozer.

The first half of the game went as it normally does, Natalie being the star of their little team and Melodie keeping close to her defender since, she knew that if she never had a chance to get the ball Olivia would have no chance to try and get it back from her.

'CLANG!'

Melodie swung her head around at the loud noise only to discover that it was just the coach rearranging some exercise equipment they'd be using tomorrow in practice.

'SPLASH!'

The ball came out of nowhere and landed right in front of Melodie, whose defender had decided that Natalie was the bigger threat and went to double team her. On reflex, and since she was supposed to be actually trying to play the game, she grabbed the ball and started to swim for the opposing team's goal keeping aware of potential opportunities to pass the ball before Olivia discovered its whereabouts. But it was too late, out of the corner of her eye Melodie saw it, Olivia barreling towards her at full speed.

Oh no, was the only thought that had time to race through her head as she floated there, frozen, like a deer in the headlights with her back to the oncoming storm.

It all happened in a flash. Olivia came up behind Melodie, wrapping her arms around the obstacle that stood in the way of retrieving her prize. In a last ditch effort to keep the ball in her possession Melodie curled her body into the fetal position to engulf the ball with her body and limbs.

The coach will see what's happening and tell her to back off.

Melodie clung to the thought as Olivia pushed her underwater and clawed at her arms to get her to give up her possession. She clung to the thought as she began to realize that she was underwater and was running out of oxygen. She clung to the thought as her lungs began to burn as if someone had lit a bonfire in her chest.

This isn't worth this. She then thought to herself as she unwrapped herself from the ball to give it up to her tormenter.

But as Olivia saw Melodie's limbs loosen she began to claw and fight harder believing that it was her ministrations that had finally won her the prize. And in the clawing and fighting Olivia had managed to position Melodie underneath her own body, with the ball under that, stuck.

Melodie felt the fear wrap around her heart as she realized that she was stuck. She began to struggle in Olivia's grasp as her vision started to go blurry, or was it always that way? She couldn't even remember anymore as the only important thing at the moment was to reach the surface so she could breath. As she struggled it occurred to her that there was a weird object pressing up against her stomach, THE BALL! Melodie quickly took the ball in her hands and threw it to her side and in an instant the weight pressing her down was no longer there.

She quickly rose to the surface, gasping for air and hacking up the water that had slid down her throat in her few moments of terror. She flopped her way to the side of the pool not allowing her head to go back under the water again. When she was safe at the wall she hung her head over the gutter dragging quick gulps of air into her burning lungs and she realized that there were tears rolling down her cheeks in uncontrollable waves.

"Hey Mel, you O.K.?" Natalie swam over to her best friend to see the tears rolling down her face and the look of distress in her eyes. Without saying another word Natalie wrapped her broken friend in a quick hug to reassure her that she was safe now and everything would be alright.

Melodie stayed where she was for the rest of the game, tears still streaming down her face, as Natalie, once again, became the star of the game, and the coach continued to rearrange equipment for tomorrows practice, oblivious to the proceedings of the game.

After practice, in the locker room, Melodie let the warm water from the shower wash away what had happened when she saw Olivia coming up to her on her way to the lockers. And the only words Olivia uttered as she passed her tortured victim were,

"Stop being such a cry baby."

I really hate that girl.