The Sea Prince's Love

Chapter 3

As the sun rose over the shining ocean nearly two weeks later, Kosrae surfaced and gazed at the beautiful display of colors that painted the sky vibrant hues of yellow, orange and pink. Never had he seen such a beautiful sunrise. He shifted his gaze to the beach and the forest beyond, which was about half a mile off. "What would Father say if he saw me this close to shore?" He murmured to nobody in particular. He shifted his gaze to the land, first the beach, which he thought was just like the ocean floor, but dry, then he studied the forest beyond. He had always thought it very strange; a forest made of trees instead of kelp. He viewed the mountains behind the forest; not unlike underwater mountains, he thought.

Kosrae shook himself out of his reverie and prepared to jump. If the dolphins can do it, so can I. He dived deeply beneath the still waters, fanning his fishtail rapidly.
Once he got deep enough, he stopped, turned around, and powered towards the surface. "Okay. Slightly at an angle... faster is higher... Ready..." He reminded himself for the hundredth time as he neared the surface. The silence of the early morning was broken by the cries of exhilaration he could not suppress as he sailed through the air successfully for the first time. Just like a dolphin, he went for a double jump, then a triple. "Yes! Perfect!" He cried. "Well, almost," He corrected himself.

"No, it was just shy of acceptable." A voice said behind him. Kosrae spun around and saw his best friend, Nadin, treading water nearby, grinning. "I can out-jump you any day."

"I'd like to see you try!"

"All right, then. Let's have a go, shall we? Triple jump! Ladies first," he said jokingly. Kosrae splashed him. "I was just about to say the same thing about you," he replied. "Let's race!" They both dived at the same time, racing toward the ocean floor. At the last second they both turned up suddenly, barely scraping against the sand. Then they both rocketed towards the surface. The broke the surface and shot high though the air three times in a row. Nadin pulled in front, and then Kosrae took the lead. Nadin just barely finished his three jumps first and laughed triumphantly. "I told you I can out-jump you!"

Kosrae made a mock angry face. "Only by an inch or maybe less, And I just did my first successful triple jump this morning."

"Oh, I beat you by a mile. Come on; I'll race you home!" and he shot off. Kosrae yelled as he raced after him, "Hey, no fair! Head start!"