CELESTINA

Chapter 13: The Girl On The Beach

The night out went a little longer than I thought, after I returned home, I received a message from Thomas. He wanted to know if I would be willing to read one of his recent works, a short story.

'Wow... that is a big change in him!' I thought as I typed an enthusiastic “YES!” in response.

It is very strange that I spent six months of Coalesce with Thomas and we had hardly even exchanged pleasantries. A “hello” here and there and a few head nods had been the extent of our communications. But after spending one night away from the Protectors, trainers, and instructors, he decided to speak to me... whole sentences and one goodbye. I am quite intrigued.

My mind eventually wandered back to the missing book on my tablet. It pissed me that the title had been removed before I had the time to read until the end.

Although I could easily put my mind to the task of imagining my own ending, that book had been different from the others I have read so far. It had not been as predictable as the usual books that I got to read until now.

The story did not seem like it was trying to reaffirm my trust in Committee. It was simply telling me a story… a story that I found intriguing and got me interested greatly.

I pulled out my tablet and opened the library in order to search for a new story to read until Thomas sent the file over and I was able to read his story. As I scrolled through the book cover images, waiting for one to catch my eye, a notification appeared on my tablet. Download Complete.

But I had not selected any title to download.

I switched screens to check my download folder and found that the missing book, The Girl on the Beach, was back on my tablet. I smiled with delight thinking that there must have been a glitch in the system that caused the book to disappear.

I am only glad that it is back, and I would be able to finish it. This is one story that I am eagerly looking forward to reading all the way to the end. Not having any idea of what would happen to that girl has been killing me… and I wanted to know the ending more than anything!

I clicked on the file and to my luck, it opened up right where I had left it off. My page had been bookmarked. Snuggling back into the pillows and covers on my bed, I began to read, letting myself be lost in her world.

The girl urged herself to move faster, wishing that her short little legs could keep up and help her move faster. She needed to find a place at the beach, somewhere where no one would disturb her as she watched the sunset. The ferry would reach the shore soon and the beach would be filled with the tourists which in turn means loss of the silence and the calm surrounding her. She had been warned by her mother to not wander off as the twilight spread its darkness giving way for the moon to shine. The window of time was a small one.

The girl quickened her pace knowing that she would not wait for more than ten minutes and if she saw anything suspicious, she would leave immediately. She just had to get herself to the beach. This was her only chance as she was to be married at dawn and move away from this place that has been her home for years. She would be taken away from here soon. The girl on the beach would be gone and all would be lost.

She ran through the thick forest not knowing how long it would be until her absence was noticed. She was not allowed to go out for more than an hour or two at a time, definitely not at twilight. Even though she was known to all as the free-spirited soul, she always had someone watching her. She felt that it had been a mistake to agree to this marriage, she felt that she was being caged and her wings being cut off. She hoped to sneak away and break free from the impeding shackles.

I placed the tablet on my lap and just closed my eyes, trying to picture the scene I was just reading. To me, reading a story has always been just as good as watching a movie… maybe even better than watching a movie, because I could imagine the scene the way I want it to play out. That girl was stuck right there in my head, running from one thing, toward something else. I could see the desperation in the girl's face, the fight she is fighting with herself. I imagined the restless energy traveling down her body and flowing into the girl.

The girl must have felt so conflicted at the urgency of the situation that she was in. She probably did not know how important the beach was to her. With the freeness of the tides rolling up the shore, she was not even aware that the beach was a replication of her freedom.

I wracked through my brain and tried to remember if I had ever read anything earlier in the story about the girl wanting to break away from the norm of being a girl and that is when the beginning of the story came flooding back to me. The girl was only told that she is to be a good woman and perform her duties.

Her character resonated with me and left a lasting impression on me.

My tablet beeped notifying me that Thomas had sent his story. I closed the book and downloaded the file sent by Thomas but when I went back to The Girl on The Beach book a minute later, it was gone... again “Arghhhh!” I half sighed and half groaned in frustration.

I could not help but wonder if it was worth getting myself invested so much in a book that is just going to disappear and reappear with no warning. I pushed that story out of my mind and opened Thomas’s. I was determined to give him my feedback as soon as possible.