A wave of self-loathing surged in my stomach, causing bile to rise in my throat as I tore off my shirt and condemned the fabric to ruin. I undid my belt and pulled off my pants in one swift move. And soon, I was diving, head first into the clear waters of the lake.
The cold was biting, but the relief was instantaneous.
My body hit the water with the force of a meteor falling from space, and the pain from the impact was austere but that was exactly what I wanted.
Pain.
It was always a good reminder that I was in control.
I swam back up and broke through the water surface, inhaling a gasp of air as my eyes rose to meet the setting sun, perched far away in the distance between two tall, oak trees.
And then I was no longer alone. I felt the presence before I saw who it was.
A disturbance. A familiar, cynical disturbance of darkness had joined me.
"Oh! How I missed this glorious sight!"
