Bubbles

Fins circle the surfboard twenty feet away from me.

I stay still.

Sharks love a desperate meal.

But the moment I see them, they’re gone.

Then, a bigger one emerges.

Jagged, taller, faster.

It glides closer.

A mountain of black bends into view.

My heart pounds like an underwater tracking device.

Our eyes meet.

It’s staring at me.

Dead, black eyes.

Rows of serrated teeth hang from its gaping jaw.

The water erupts.

Teeth sink into my chest; water floods my lungs.

My limbs flail in the undertow.

Blue fades to black.

It jerks me and my eardrums burst.

Bubbles.