Chapter Two
961 Words
"Come back."
The whisper was a gentle one, barely louder than a breath on the crashing waves. But it sent a chilling shiver running down Selene's spine.
She froze.
The breeze blew about her, swirling sand about her ankles, but the wind did not speak. Something else had spoken.
Her heart hammered in her ears. She stopped and turned back, her blonde hair whipping about her face. The beach was deserted.
The tide came in, then receded, a steady and slow beat. The lighthouse beam moved slowly over the cliffs, casting light on nothing but moving water and darkened boulders.
Selene swallowed hard, glancing down at the man who rested against her shoulder. Did he hear it too?
His breathing was strained, his body lax. If he was conscious of anything, he showed no indication.
She cast a final suspicious look at the sea. The whisper had been so believable.
Too real.
Come back.
It had practically sounded like. an order.
Selene pushed her hand against the man and compelled herself to walk. She had to leave the beach.
---
The walk back was agonizing and slow. The man grew heavier and heavier with every step, his weight crushing her as she dragged him up the sidewalk to her apartment.
The house stood at the top of the cliffs, solid but worn, its stone walls creased with the lines of years. Across from it, the lighthouse towered over the dark sky, its golden beam cutting through the darkness. Selene never felt comfortable in its presence.
Her father never mentioned it, but she had heard the whispers—those of the townfolk, those that whispered of mysterious vanishings, of things that ought to have sunk but did not.
She shivered. Not now. Don't think of that now.
She reached the back door and pushed it open with her shoulder, inviting him in.
She was wrapped in warmth, the radiance of the hearth chasing away the icy grip of the sea. The stone walls danced with shadows as firelight flared across the room.
Selene put the man down on a broad chaise by the fire. His soaked clothing left dark blotches on the material, his skin pale, nearly colorless.
She just stared at him for a while.
Who was he?
---
Selene moved quickly, taking up the folded linen from the chair to her side. She dipped it into the hot water basin in the hearth and wrung it out.
When she turned, she saw him staring at her.
Her breath caught.
His dark eyes—**deep, boundless, the color of waves in a storm—**were fixed on hers.
He didn't budge, didn't talk.
Watched just.
Selene swallowed hard and forced herself to look at him. "You're awake."
He blinked, slow and deliberate. "You're helping me."
It wasn't a question. It was a statement with something almost like incredulity.
She wiped his forehead with the damp cloth, rubbing off the salt that had dried there. "Of course I am. You would've drowned if I'd left you there."
His lips opened slightly, but he did not say anything. Just breathed, his body leaning deeper into the cushions.
As if he had assumed otherwise.
---
Selene paused before she asked, "Who are you?"
His gaze flashed to the fire, its glow flickering in his dark eyes.
"I don't know."
The chill returned.
Selene sat up. "You don't remember?"
He shook his head. "I remember the ocean." His voice was far away, as though reciting a dream. "I remember. sinking. Cold water. And then." His fingers twitched against the upholstery of the chaise. "You."
Selene's breath caught.
He remembered her
She placed the cloth aside, observing him intently. The manner in which he said it—as if she had been the sole thing holding him to this reality.
"What were you doing in the water?" she demanded.
His face clenched.
For a second, she believed he would not answer.
And then, softly, he whispered, "Dying."
Selene's hands clenched into the material of her nightgown.
She ought to have known. No one survived the sea that way. No one emerged onto the beach having been devoured whole.
She took slow breaths. Something was wrong.
And the worst part?
A little voice within her already knew it.
---
A wind blast struck the windows suddenly, causing the glass to vibrate within its frame.
The man stiffened.
Selene rushed towards the sound, her heart racing. The wind had picked up again, pounding the wall of the house as though it fought to gain entry.
A shadow cast over the window.
She sprang to her feet, her heart racing.
There was someone out there. Watching.
He then clutched her wrist unexpectedly, his hold weak but tight.
"Don't open the door."
Her breathing caught. The urgency in his voice sent shivers down her back.
"Why?" she gasped.
His dark eyes met hers, and in the firelight, she saw something she hadn’t before.
Fear.
Not of her.
Of whatever lay beyond.
She swallowed. "Who is out there?"
He shut his eyes for an instant, his fingers relaxing their grip on her wrist. His response was barely a whisper.
"Not who."
The wind howled once more, and Selene could feel it—the chill seeping in around the cracks of the door, the breath making its way through the blackness.
A whisper that was not the wind, anyway.
It was the ocean.
And it was continuing to call.
---
Somewhere Beyond the Shore.
The lighthouse tower stood tall above the black sky, its golden beam sweeping the sea. But beneath the waves, the tide strangely turned.
The water churned, restlessly.
The whispers came again.
Come back.
The ocean stretched out, reaching for something—or someone.
It was not finished.
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- Writer
