Something in the Water

American accent

Maya liked to swim in the sea early every morning. The beach was always empty at this time, and she liked this time alone before work. The water was cold, and she enjoyed the exercise.

One Friday morning, she arrived at the beach, just before 6:30 a.m.

She put her clothes on the sand and walked into the water. It was cold at first, but she kept going. Soon the water was up to her knees, then her neck. She began to swim away from the beach, watching the sun go up.

After some minutes, she stopped and turned onto her back. She looked at the sky and listened to the soft sound of the water around her. Everything felt normal.

Then she felt something touch her foot.

She moved her leg quickly and looked around. No one was near her. The beach was far behind her now. She told herself it was nothing and began to swim again.

A moment later, a hand pulled her leg.

Strong.

Maya went under the water. She came up fast and took a deep breath. A man was next to her. His hair was wet, and his eyes were dark. He did not smile.

“Go away!” Maya said.

He did not answer. He moved closer and grabbed her arm. He pushed her under the water again. Maya kicked and hit him with her hands. She came up and tried to swim, but he grabbed her again.

“Help!” she shouted, but the beach was too far. No one heard her.

The man tried to hold her under the water. Maya felt tired and afraid. She knew she could not fight like this for long.

Then she saw something in his hand. A small knife.

He held it near her face.

Maya stopped moving for one second. The man did not think she was strong. He moved closer.

She hit his arm as hard as she could. The knife fell into the water.

Maya went down and felt around with her hand. She found the knife and came up again. Now it was in her hand.

The man looked surprised, but he moved toward her again.

Maya pushed the knife into his side. Only once.

He cried out and let her go. He tried to grab her, but he was slower now.

Maya turned and swam toward the beach with all her strength. Her arms hurt, and her breath was loud, but she did not stop. She did not look back.

At last she felt sand under her feet. She stood up and ran out of the water. She fell onto the beach and turned around.

The man was still in the sea. He tried to swim, but he could not move well. Two people were walking along the beach. They saw him and ran into the water. They pulled him to the sand.

He tried to stand, but he fell down.

Someone called the police. The police came soon and took the man away.

Later, Maya learned that he had tried to hurt other swimmers that summer. He waited in the water and attacked them when they were alone.

That night, Maya sat in her home and thought about what happened. She was scared, but she also felt strong. She knew she had saved her own life.

Maya still swims every morning, but now she always checks the water first.

📒 Key vocabulary

• empty – without people or things
• sand – small stones that cover a beach
• pulled (pull, pulled, pulled) – move something towards you with force
• breath – a mouthful of air
• grabbed (grab, grabbed, grabbed) – take and hold strongly
• fight – take part in a battle against an enemy
• toward – in the direction of
• strength – power in the body
• hurt – cause harm to
• attacked (attack, attacked, attacked) – hurt someone on purpose

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