AN:/ Hello all! This is my first actual story i've developed a plot and scene for and i'm somewhat proud of it. This is told from Annie's POV, and while i know she's never mentioned - only implied - i hope it doesn't bother anyone! Excuse the ambiguity, but all will be explained and enlightened as the story progresses. If you could please leave back feedback, i'd really appreciate it!
Down by the reef, the silver minnows bobbed and weaved through bushels of kelp, their school swaying between its leaves as the tide pushed them to and fro. They shot through the reef well below the shore, waking a family of clown fish out of their anemone, disturbing other life as the day began. The school rushed to the beach, letting the tide push them to the grain of shore, munching on the growing plankton as the sun broke over the horizon, taunting them with its light. Higher on the beach, sea crabs popped their little heads from their sand coves, flexing their claws as they scuttled to the seaweed build up, taking their pickings for their little crab families, pausing as the crunch of shells interrupted their scavenge. At the mouth of the beach, the sand shifted beneath heavily booted feet, they trampled all along the shore, the stranger on his way to his morning, unknown to the sea crabs beneath the heap of shored seaweed, and the silver minnows who watched beneath the shallow break of the waves, much like the other strangers afar in the sand dunes. A mother and her young child, hands clasped, watched her husband slowly disappear beyond the dunes as he made his way to the docks, an early work day, The child's eyes dropped shut as the woman raised her free hand in silent salute, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth before she scooped up her daughter, tucking her head into her shoulder and reluctantly turned her back to the sea and started the trek back to her house just as the sea crabs scuttled home and the silver minnows shot through the stretch of beach.
False dawn finally broke, the sun steadily climbing up over the horizon, claiming the earth as his own as he lit up the heavens with his spirit. I felt its warmth, sensing it but never really absorbing it as i lay coiled beneath the mass of blankets, shivering myself into waking. The pillows beneath me smelled of seasalt and wicker and as i stretched away the sleep, i buried myself deeper in the covers, half on my stomach as i breathed in the scent of home, exhaling my love for all things the sea brought to me. When i finally opened my eyes, cheek pressed to the cotton and fingers curled tight around the blanket, the first thing i saw was the glint of the sun catching on the ambitious swell of a small wave waiting anxiously to break and meet the shore.
I never understood how his eyes could hold the vast qualities of the sea; they were never-ending in it's story-telling and his moods were much of the moods of the sea. My lips quivered up in a small smile, watching closely as the sun's hands fiddled with the strands of his hair, making them shimmer as if he ran his fingers through them. He returned the smile, knocking the breath out of me i could only give willingly.
"Finn..."
He nodded, shifting slowly as he lay his hand atop the covers, surprising me with how much they looked warm. I slowly pulled out my arm from the tangle of bed covers, dragging my fingertips along the seaming of the embroidered blanket, inching closer to his hand. His fingers twitched as i slowly slipped my hand into his, twining my fingers with his, enjoying the small chaffe of his callouses that tickled my palm. As he held on tightly but comfortably, i felt as if the tug of the tide was bringing me under, my eyes dropping as i caught the shimmer of the still bank of ocean i love so much in his eyes, and i let sleep overcome me. Like that, hands clasped and buried beneath the palette of covers, we slumbered together. As i was slipping away, i caught the tender remorseful murmur of my name just as the current of sleep took me away from him,
The whiskers of high sunlight tickled my forehead. It's warmth brought me back to the waking world, a small rested smile on my face before i opened my eyes. The high noon sun filled my room with bronzed light, shimmering reflections playing against the walls in time to the sound of breaking waves outside my window. Home, i thought fleetingly before an earlier memory niggled at my mind. I turned my head, my hand in place and curled around air as the other side of the bed lay empty. My lip trembled softly, my fingers pressing into the place his hand laid, the frayed threads of the embroidered blanket catching in my calloused fingertips and bitten nails. My mouth parted to call out but my throat rasped tiredly, rubbing my eyes as i delicately unwrapped the covers from around me, sitting up against the mall wicker headboard. The room glowed gold with reflective sunlight, the room dancing as it came alive.. With an unsettling in my stomack i glanced at the empty bedside.
I could see the knotting in the covers as if he'd slowly disentangled himself, the pillow still sporting an uncanny resemblance to the shape of his head. My uncomfortable feeling ebbed slightly as i smiled quietly, climbing out of the high bed, my weight making the driftwood floors creak in discomfort. I wrapped myself in the embroidered blanket, sighing in its warmth, content to sit in the window seat and feel the salted wind cool my face, until i noticed something peek out from the opposite bedside floor. Curious, i knelt beside the bed, grabbing it gingerly, before smiling brightly as i held it up to the light: it was his work socks. Worn, threadbare, but still thick and long enough to fit just above his wading boots; the pair was still knotted together. I gripped the blanket tighter around me, reaching to slowly open the door, the wistful smile on my face seemingly lighting up the hall. I watched the tendrils of sunlight fill the threshold and cascade down the stairs, leading me the way i needed to go. Still, i slowed, expecting his large, downy arms to circle my waist but i didn't want to keep him waiting. i floated down the stairs, taking them one at a time before i noticed the sunlight end. I glanced up, seeing the cold light of the kitchen spill into the hall.
Gently toppling off that last step, i scuttled to the kitchen, my cheeks tight with an excited grin, hopping into the doorway of the kitchen. I caught the glint of side swept bronzed hair and eyes as torrid as the sea, my throat catching as i call his name.
"F-"
I felt my face fall, my heart stopping suddenly, the heat building in my chest as i find it hard to breathe. My fingers tightening around the blanket, taking a half-step back as he runs to me, wrapping his little arms around my thighs, laying his cheek on my stomach. My throat went dry as i heard his voice tinkle like a sea breeze through a conch shell chime, numbing my mind with its echo.
"Good morning, Mommy," his giggle shot a jolt through my heart.