Summary

Eliana dips into the pool and finds the water warm like a bath, but still cooler than the blistering air outside. She kicks and glides through the pool, diving under the water. She feels weightless when she is in the pool.

Eliana enjoys being called by her nickname, but many of the other children call her some synonym for “whale”. She recalls a pool party when she was younger when she did a jump into the pool and splashed a lot of water out, drawing ridicule. She also wore a whale swimsuit to her Under the Sea-themed party, and the others never let her forget.

Eliana has a list of rules in her diary that she tries to follow to avoid being ridiculed by her peers. She writes that she does not deserve to be seen or heard, and she will make herself...