𝑭𝑰𝑵𝑫 𝑴𝑬.

alex used to love swimming. in fact, she basically lived in the water. thanks to midvale being situated near a beach and her father teaching her how to swim at a very young age, alex grew up spending her summers attending surf camps with various other kids. she would spend hours at a time on the sand learning the ins and outs of the sport, and she loved it. turns out, she was actually really good at it as well. the training and the time she spent dedicating herself to the water sport eventually paid off, when she became her district’s surfing champion three years in a row - she would have gone for the fourth if it hadn’t been for the fact that her father had ‘passed away’ and completely turned her world upside down.

after that, alex barely spent any time there and, slowly but surely, completely disappeared from the sporting community she was once such a treasured member of. she, instead, dedicated her time to learning her mother and father’s trade in the hopes that she would follow in their footsteps. he might not be around anymore, but she sure as hell was going to continue the danvers legacy no matter what.

due to this new commitment and the fact she had to keep an eye on her adoptive sister, alex soon found herself moving to national city and away from a surfable ocean. while her confidence in her water abilities remained, she barely did anything to improve nor maintain this. so, when she was kidnapped and placed in a tank that she couldn’t escape, and as time crept on, her mind began to play any and every water related memory over and over again like a stuck record; only able to focus on the subject matter that’s presented to her. happy memories were soon marred by the ever approaching reality that she might not escape this, that she might actually die with the last thing she sees being her father smiling as he watches his young daughter win her first medal.

a happy memory, scarred by the burning emptiness that her lungs could not fill.

although she was saved from this fate, alex still struggles to move past it. she hasn’t been able to be near a swimming pool due to the irrational fear of being trapped underneath it’s surface. she can’t even run a bath without losing her oxygen supply as an approaching panic attack threatens to burst through while the water pours from the taps. it’s the reason she only showers. if she can avoid water filled areas that are confined by walls and / or locks, she won’t go near them. however, it’s not something she openly admits to and has never addressed this problem with anyone - not even kara - nor herself.

after all, ignorance is bliss.

Alex: What?

Kara: “Where’s popcorn?”

Alex: *leaves*