Turn of the Tide | ONC 2023

[8] Hard Truths

    Following the lurching motions of the sea's surface exhausted Sally's eyes, yet she looked on regardless. It was not the surging waves, whose staggering scale marked the lighthouse's rust-flecked walls in shadow, or the bleak beauty wrapped up in the boats quivering under Nature's mercy that captivated her. What she watched was the black abyss beneath the waves, a shifting mirror image of the steel sky overhead that only got darker the further she searched. Drizzle already fell around her, and occasionally the short shock of a perfect rain droplet splashed over her cheek. Tension crept into the air as Porthdruro held its breath.

    "Fancy seeing you here, stranger."

    Suddenly, the moment's grip on Sally's nerves dissipated, and even the largest raindrops bounced off her skin unnoticed. The days since she had last seen Flick had stretched into weeks in her mind, yet as soon as she laid eyes on the girl it was like she had never left her side. Nothing shone through the gloom her sharp, shimmering dark hair, and nothing painted the grey village walls in bold colours like the flash of her vibrant shirt as it swayed in the wind. Sally let the image of her girl standing in her home village sink in, forgetting for a second that the two could not last together beyond a picture's frame.

    "Ouch. I know I was a few minutes late, but I didn't think that'd get me the silent treatment!" Flick snatched off her sunglasses and tucked them into her shirt, her hazel eyes bright with her usual boundless energy. "Was it something I said? Did the whisky make you sick? The whisky made you sick, didn't it?"

    Air rushed into Sally's lungs as she sparked herself back to life and shot to her feet. "No! Not at all. It's just..." Though Sally sought a way to vocalise the whirlpool that raged in the core of her waters, she only found the words for the finest dot of spray that arced from the margins. The rest of her reserved strength crumbled at the gentle nudge of Flick's sniggering. "I've missed you, Flick. A lot."

    Laying her hands on Sally's shoulders, Flick winked and grinned. "Duh, what's not to miss?" she said as her thumb grazed Sally's neck. The pair settled on the bench facing the sea, Flick pointing out the camera bag on the ground between them. "And taking care of Miri for me? You sure know how to snag a girl's heart, Sal!"

    "It was no trouble." The narrow bench yoked the girls together, yet Sally would have rested her head on Flick's shoulder on the broadest stretch of Porthdruro's beaches. Basking in the girl's bubbling glow, breathing in her berry-sweet air, and running the locks of her soft side-plait between her fingers had dominated Sally's mind during their separation. Now she had Flick within reach again, she would not let such comforting closeness slip away. Not until she had to, that was.

    Flick's fingertips ran along Sally's arm, then her waist, then her side until it soared high enough on her body to summon a sigh of anticipation. "So, how much longer before you tell me why you called me down here?" she said, hooking Sally's hair out of her face. The breeze cooled the exposed skin, but the soothing warmth of Flick's lips on her forehead banished any discomfort far beyond Sally's notice. "Unless you're waiting for a real thank you for bringing Miri back to me..."

    Sally's body quaked. "Flick, I..." The realisation of how much she missed Flick's touch, combined with the girl's willingness to dispense it, led her to the cusp of giving in. She watched Flick's gaze drift down her face, and it took all of her strength to press her finger against the girl's lips before they closed the gap to her own. "I need to talk to you. It's about Miri."

    "Miri?" Leaning back, Flick raised an eyebrow at Sally, then shrugged. "I didn't see that coming, but fine by me. We can bring Miri into this, get some good shots of each other's –"

    "That's not what I meant," Sally said, prising herself away from Flick's side and biting her tongue to fight the ache that followed. "Someone stopped me today and asked about her. He said his name was Damien."