She watched him,
callously,
as she treaded water safely.
He was drowning.
She watched him as he drowned,
and she wanted to save him
but she knew that
if she came too close
he would clutch at her
and she would drown, too.
So there she stayed
watching calmly from a distance
as salt water burned his throat
because, though she did not plan
to help rescue him
she could not leave
until she knew that
he was no longer drowning.
