Echo Boom

February 23, 2018April 7, 2018 ~ Piece, of the Sky

conceptual construct

The waves were crashing against the shore, with incessant ferocity. The night was colder than the last. That morning, Alli had used the eggs to make omelets, and surprise Xen with breakfast in bed. Yet, here she was, out at night again. She sat on the steps of the cabana, watching the breakers roll in, before getting off the stoop and walking down the beach, in the direction of Mallo’s Mini-Mart.

The dull cacophony of the sea barely registered in her mind anymore. Her brain edited the white noise out. Instead, she focused on the sounds coming from the underbrush: the croaking of frogs, the whine of crickets, constant rustling. The jungle never settled at night.

The moon was making its quiet ascent. The clouds floated out to open water. The lights of the mini-mart twinkled in the distance, opaque orbs of light in the night’s gloom.

She passed the hustle and bustle of the midnight supermarket, with its cluster of clubs jutting out behind it. She could smell a late-night barbecue going. Constant fires in the darkness.

The store disappeared behind her. Ahead of her, the cliffs, limestone, cut open by the ocean, loomed in the distance. The tides would roar through the holes, creating a wind tunnel howl of noise. A fishing boat had crashed, out that way. The boat’s wooden frame clung to the lip of the islet, its hull torn apart on a sandbar. The ship had knelt there ever since, reclaimed by phantom mermaids and kelp.

The sight of a fire made her jump. A figure hunched over a collection of logs. With a start, she realized it was the lionesque, fiery red-head from yesterday. Just at that moment, Ran decided to look up. Their eyes locked, and the other woman noticed her.

Alli sucked in her chest and strode toward her. Ran’s eyes crinkled at the corners, when she smiled.

With a sigh, Alli sat down on the sand, facing in the direction of the surf, with Ran. Alli saw that Ran had a small, handheld cooler and some shish kebobs roasting on a grill over the fire. “Do you come out here often?” she asked.

“No, this is the second time I’ve done this,” Ran said.

“Seems peaceful,” Alli said, looking back at the waves.

“Have you been out to the haunted ship?” Ran asked, with her trademark wolf-like grin.

“No,” Alli said, “I heard you can get sucked out to sea in those tunnels.”

“Not if you go at low tide,” Ran said, raising her eyebrows, “There’s a whole underwater cave system out there too.”

“Do you like caves?” Alli wondered.

“Yes,” Ran said, “I love spelunking, and I’ve gone scuba diving underground.”

“You know, they have urban spelunking tours out where I live,” Alli said, “You could explore condemned buildings and the sewers. Abandoned subway stations.”

“That sounds great!” Ran said, “But promise me you will go with me to see the ship.”

Alli laughed, “Are you sure you want to go? There might be all sorts of metal ribs poking out and sharp wooden planks waiting to impale you.”

“I promise, I won’t let you get impaled,” Ran said, nudging the fire with a stick.

Alli smirked and they went back to watching the waves crash and cascade endlessly.

When the shish kebobs were finished cooking, Ran offered Alli one and they ate in silence, watching the night clouds go by. Nocturnal birds called to one another across the treetops.

Alli got up, brushing the grease off her hands, “Well, this was nice. I should be going though.”

“Should you?” Ran narrowed her eyes.

Alli grinned, “You have no idea of the competition you’re up against.”

“There’s only one way to find out,” Ran said, curling her toes in the sand.

“You’re incredible!’ Alli said, shaking her head.

Ran leaned forward, against her knees, “Come see the ghost ship tomorrow.”

“What if I am occupied elsewhere?” Alli asked.

“You won’t be,” Ran said, digging in the sand with the stick, “Didn’t you have a feeling I might be out here?”

“The spirit moves in mysterious ways,” Alli shrugged.

Ran gave a half-smile, with one corner of her lips, “See you tomorrow.”

“Unbelievable,” Alli said. But she turned and left. Ran watched her walk back down the shore, a tiny figure moving alongside churning, immeasurable depths.

welcome to the future

Soft Girlfriend

February 22, 2018July 23, 2018 ~ Piece, of the Sky

gamecube, yes

The stars poked through the clouds. Alli stepped outside of her seaside cabana, with the thatch roof, and went down the steps to the beach. The gray waves, flecked with foam, reached the beach from some unknown shore. The black ocean of the night held on to its secrets.

Alli walked down the beach in the direction of an assortment of lights. The wind caressed her shoulders. She twirled her key ring around one finger. Mallo’s Mini-Mart on the island was open 24-7. Why not get some eggs for tomorrow? Some soy milk?

The half-moon hung like a silver plate in the sky. The sand, gray in the moonlight, latched onto her toes in the sandals. Hermit crabs curled away, hiding themselves out of sight. This vacation was courtesy of Xen. The plate of bananas, piled high, on the cabana’s glass dining table. The terry cloth bathrobes. The complementary jacuzzi. All of it.

They had barbecued hamburgers and bratwurst that afternoon, at the resort party. People had jet-skied up and down the shore, throwing up white waves of spray.

At night, the jungle was quiet. Occasionally, there was the rustling of leaves and quivering underbrush. The night felt alive, trembling on the edge of a knife.

The mini-mart swam into view, its bright bulbs welcoming in the harsh darkness of the AM. A few late-night party-goers still wandered around, sitting at the tables outside, stewing over mango smoothies constantly stabbed with red straws.

Alli went into the store, a cat’s bell announcing the presence of another shopper. Like a 7-Eleven, off the shoulder of a freeway, the store was still packed. A guy in a leather biker’s jacket, stood flipping through People.

Cartons of eggs lay in the refrigerator aisle, all lined up behind the glass, next to roast turkey and coffee creamer. Alli opened the door and picked up a carton. Just as she was straightening up, to close the door, she caught sight of someone in a lurid Hawaiian shirt and slightly distressed, acid-washed jean shorts, with earlobe-length lionesque orange hair. Her heart jumped for a moment; the woman turned to open an adjacent glass door and get out some milk and Alli’s heart stopped pounding. It wasn’t Nealy. Just a look-alike.

The line was relatively short. Alli stood behind someone in a wife beater and a bike chain necklace, with the eggs and a packet of gum she had also picked up. The cashier, sporting a neckbeard, rang up her items. Back outside in the warmth of the darkness, now holding a plastic bag, Alli let her chest unclench. She strolled over the sand, back toward the cabana, rigged up with cable and super-fast Wi-Fi.

She didn’t notice the person in the Hawaiian shirt until she was right up alongside her and caught her left elbow. Alli looked around, startled.

“I’m sorry to scare you,” the lionesque person said, “We’re on the same cruise.”

Alli laughed, “I only heard the waves; I never heard your footfalls.”

“I take jiu-jitsu and other martial arts,” Lion said, by way of explanation, shrugging her shoulders.

“What’s your name?” Alli said. She was still confused but relaxed her shoulders.

“Ran,” said the lion, putting her hands in her shorts pockets.

Alli rubbed the back of her neck, “Well, you can’t come sneaking up on me like that, Ran. What if I knew judo?”

Ran, grinned, looking more like a wolf than a lion here, “I guess I would have to best you in a fight.”

“Lucky for you, I don’t know how to fight,” Alli said.

“Where is your cabana?” Ran wondered, kicking at the sand.

“It’s in that direction,” Alli gestured with the bag of eggs, “But why do you want to know? What if someone is there already?”

Another wolf-like grin, “If that were so, it wouldn’t explain how you were looking at me in Mallo’s.”

Alli smiled, “You are pretty sure of yourself. I got you mixed up with someone else.”

Ran looked up from scrutinizing her fingernails, “The question is, who?”

“You don’t have to worry about that,” Alli smirked, “I bid you goodnight.”

“OK, take care,” the lion waved. She moseyed off back in the direction of the mini-mart and the clubs.

Alli’s smile faded. The sea breeze ruffled her dress shirt. The sweat on the back of her neck cooled. If she didn’t squint, if the moonlight were coming in at a different angle, she would have sworn it was Nealy, ambling back to the store, meandering back in time.

The white caps broke, pounding the sand. The palm trees stood silently, island sentinels, staring backward, far across the sea.

food to go