The water was freezing cold. I had thought it would be smart to take up swimming lessons in november, right. In an outdoor pool. Of course.

The water was oddly salty. I wondered how many people had relieved themselves in the pool, and the thought of it made me gag -- I swallowed some water. Something touched my foot at that moment, sending shivers up and down my spine. It was squishy. Someone had taken a dump in a public swimming pool.

I tried to reach for the edge of the swimming pool, deciding that I would leave, go home and take a nice, long, steamy shower. I should never had applied for swimming lessons on a whim.

I must be right in the middle of the water: I could not seem to grab the edge. I stopped swimming, rose my head, removed my goggles and took a look at my surroundings.

Why was the pool suddenly bigger than when I had dived? My swimmates were nowhere to be seen. And why was it raining?

My heart skipped a beat. The absolutely irrational idea that I was not in the swimming pool anymore made its way inside my mind.

"Oh hell no," I yelled. No one heard me. I'm in the middle of the ocean.

"No. No. What the hell am I doing in the fucking ocean?" I uttered under my breath, but salt water filled my mouth, and I found myself coughing my heart out. At this rate, I was actually going to drown.

Lying on my back would be the safer option for now. I needed to spare myself if I wanted to figure out a way out of... the water. My muscles hurt from the cold and the constant swimming and my lungs were weighted down by my swimsuit, as if a sheet of iron was wrapped around my body and prevented me from breathing. Tears rolled down my face (maybe it was the rain. I could not feel the difference anyway) and I ws soon sobbing uncontrollably.

Maybe it was a dream. It would make sense. Not that dreams made sense, of course; but it would have made sense that it did not make sense.

If I was dreaming, just knowing that it was a dream would have woken me up in seconds, so I had to rule out that possibility. Maybe I had had an accident and I was now unconscious, or in a coma. That could be it, I had read many stories about people in comas dreaming they went to different world or having a life of their own in their coma. Maybe I had almost drowned in the pool. Maybe I had not aimed right when I had dived and I had jumped head first on the solid ground. Endless possibilities. I could go on forever so it had to be one of these.

The gentle washes of the waves were sending shivers down my spine. My swimsuit was obviously soaked, and the last threads of what could have been called heat had left my body. My teeth chattered and I felt my body hair rising as goosebumps covered my skin. My lashes also felt oddly heavy, and in a last-ditch effort, I managed to reach them with the tip of my fingers. They were covered in thin ice crystals. I had not realised it was that cold, and now that I did not have much to think about, I couldn't focus on anything but the cold water paralysing my body. Coma or not, I was about to die right here and now.

It was only when a gigantic shadow covered me that I realised I was not alone. For some reason, I had not been able to hear anything, but when I lifted my gaze, a ship bigger than any I had ever seen was about to pass me by. Maybe they had not seen me? I hoped they had, whoever were on that boat.

When my eyes forced themselves closed, I heard shouts and water splashing sounds. Then I wasn't cold anymore.

I opened my eyes to a ceiling of wood and golden candelabrum. I could not move any limb of my body, but it was not because of the cold. Dozens of blankets -- one, two, seven actually -- were restraining me in a delightful heat. The room smelled of hazelnut. I sighed and reached for the second skin that my bathing suit created. I did not find it. I jolted forward and sat back.

"Where the fuck am I?"

"You're awake? Finally. I was starting to think you were dead."

In the corner of my vision, something dark moved. I leaned against the wall and lifted up a blanket to shield myself. Someone chuckled and then coughed.

"Trust me, that won't protect you against us."

Something rattled on the floor and a chair appeared in front of me. Someone sat on the chair, an arm laid back on the back. It was a man with dark blue eyes -- wasn't it just black at this point? -- and black and white hair.

"You almost drowned. Or died of hypothermia. Or eaten by some sea monster. Or..."

"Who are you and where am I?" I cut him sharply.

My hands were shaking. I hid them behind my back and tried to look at the man with the angriest stare I could make. He snorted.

"You're so funny. Anyways, I said you almost died, but thanks to us, you didn't. So now that you're indebted to us, why don't you start paying it off by telling me your name?"

"Tell me yours first," I muttered. He stopped smiling and stared at me for three long seconds.

"Fair. I am Phaeto Callista, and you are on my ship. My crew rescued you. Oh, but..."

He etched a smile and showed his teeth, white and straight. Maybe it was the light.

"I think you will know me better if I tell you the name people give me. After all, I am the pirate king."