Final answer:
Billy may have resented rescue due to exhaustion and a resigned acceptance of his fate, feeling indifferent to his potential drowning and possibly finding strange peace in the cessation of struggle.
Step-by-step explanation:
Billy might have resented being rescued from the bottom of the swimming pool due to a complex mixture of emotions and physical exhaustion. His mind, overwhelmed by the tiredness of his muscles, was in a state where he didn't care about his potential drowning—suggesting he might have reached a level of despair or resignation.
It is as though he had accepted his fate and did not want the interference of a rescue to disrupt this acceptance. The provided excerpts point to characters experiencing extreme situations where thoughts of mortal danger or the end of life seem to bring about a strange peace or indifference—like being too tired to grapple with the fact of danger or even finding comfort in the cessation of struggle.
This psychological state could be part of why Billy may have resented the interruption of rescue, which pulled him back into the very struggle he had mentally escaped from.