He wasn’t included.
And Sawyer had to sit there and think about whatthatmeant. Apparently he had to sit there and think about that for quite some time. Think about why he wanted to be a part of a cliquey group when he’d never wanted to be a part of any group in his life. Think about why all thoughts led back to Ciaran as if they were roads and he was Rome. Think about why his body reacted to the man in ways unfamiliar to him. He’d never wanted to get railed so hard by anyone before, but god, how he wanted all of that with Ciaran.
He could imagine so vividly the feel of Ciaran’s arms around him.
Sawyer wasn’t sure why he couldn’t get that damn impossible man out of his mind. The more he tried to not think about him, the more intense it became. As if his subconscious was trying to tell him something.
If Ricky Carpenter’s experience in Tenebrae was what made him decide to leave and get as far away as possible, Sawyer’s was the opposite.
Instead, he felt drawn to this town. A pull to be exactly where Ciaran was.
To never be anywhere else.
Which was confusing, given that it was so freaking weird here.
Like the water. Why was it so damn dark? It moved like shadows, layered and swirling. It was water, no doubt about that, but the way it seemed to move on itself was... not very waterlike.
Sawyer could have sworn something was down there, looking up and watching him.
He couldn’t see anything, of course.
He wasn’t sure how long he sat there, exactly, but long enough that his arse was numb and his face was so cold, it kinda hurt. He couldn’t tell if it was getting dark, or if it was the clouds getting lower, or if his eyes were playing tricks on him. He didn’t get a single bite on his rod. He’d almost forgotten he was even fishing; he was actually a little surprised he still had the rod in his hands.
Yeah, time to go in.
He brought his legs up and stood, but something glinted in the water. He stopped, startled, then leaned over to get a closer look. The dark water was impossible to see into. It made Sawyer think of glittery black jelly.
So strange....
Sawyer wasn’t sure what happened next.
Suddenly dizzy, his head felt as if it was on a rollercoaster while his feet were cemented to the pier. He tried to step back, to lift his head and get away from the edge, but his vision went dark, and he knew he was falling in.
He knew he was going into the water and was unable to stop it.
The shock of cold water almost stopped his heart, and the logical part of his brain screamed at him not to sink, to get to the surface. He needed air, of course he knew that, but the water was so quiet, deep and dark and lovely.
He wanted to stay.
He felt... peace.
The darkness seemed to swirl around him, caress him. He could see the surface way above his head, and he considered trying to push up toward it, but he wanted to stay, just for a moment...
Then darkness wrapped its arms around him, slick and winding, gentle and so encompassing. All over him, around him, so many arms....
Then human hands grabbed him, rough and violent, yanking him up to the surface. Then he was dragged onto the pier, coughing, gasping, freezing.
Faces looked down at him, Otis and... someone he didn’t recognise.
Wait. Yes, he did.
Holy shit.
They were talking, frantic, but Sawyer couldn’t hear the words, his ears and head so full of water. Then he was being carried, and he didn’t even mind. He just wanted to sleep.
He wanted to sleep in the water.
He wanted to go back....
