Part of a story for your midnight pleasure >>>>>>>>>>>>>>
A Rough Nightmare
He found himself on a beach floating in a large tide pool. Surrounding him on all sides except a narrow passage toward the ocean, were sandstone surfaces, shaped by wind and sea into rippled contours of brown and red stone. He saw small waves breaking softly on the other side of sandstone rocks fifty feet beyond the natural
passageway. Above him were thousands of stars so bright and close, the light rivaled that of a full moon. David knew the tide pool was warm from an underground hot spring but he didn't know how he knew it.
On the other side of the basin, below a canopy of striated rock, was a woman. Her face was very pale, contrasting with long, dark hair. She did a slow breaststroke away from the shadow cast by the shelf into the starlight. He stared at her, amazed at her beauty. Dark eyebrows curved over large, almond-shaped eyes. She had high cheek bones, full lips and a generous mouth that smiled an invitation. Although alarmed and confused, he smiled back. They drifted toward each other.
"Ive been waiting for you."” she said, her voice smooth and soft. Black hair floating in the starlit water spread out from around her head like the arms of an ebony starfish. The sky-mirror of the tide pool shimmered as she swam. Reflected stars vibrated faster the closer they came to each other.
"You called me. It'’s been so long since someone has called me. You did call me, didn't you?"
He couldn'’t think of a reply, so he simply nodded.
"I'’m so glad. What'’s your name?"
"“David."”
"Thank you for telling me your name. Come here a little closer, so I can see you better." She smiled and laughed, and without knowing how he drifted toward her. As he neared, she floated on her back and spread her pale arms and legs. He could see her nipples rise above the water like twin islands and he sensed the dark of her loins waiting just below the pools surface. There was a magnetic pulling and he floated toward her. As he moved over her sex he responded and was ready as she drew him in. Embracing him, she held his arms to his body with a cold, fierce strength. Reflexively he tried to get away but she held him with crushing force. As he struggled, they were sinking to the bottom of the pool. He couldn't breathe. Pulling him closer as they sank, she wrapped her legs around him. As they sank deeper, he could see glee burning in her eyes. She smiled and he could see there were too many teeth in her mouth. She was about to kiss him, when his right arm felt like it was being burned. Everything dissolved and David found himself flopping on the living room floor gasping for air. He brushed a small ember off his forearm. It had popped out of the open door of the wood stove.
Outside, he heard the susurration of the sea. The flashback with its hallucinations was gone. No green and blue tinged patterns. No weird woman on an outlandish beach. It must have been a dream mixed with a flashback? What else could she be, he reasoned, while rubbing his burnt forearm. He listened to the surf for a moment and shivered. Getting up off the floor, he winced. Why the pain in his ribs and upper arms? And that wasn'’t all---his groin ached like he'’d been screwing all night. This called for another drink. He made another trip to his half empty bottle of whiskey.
Pouring more than his typical portion was the only thing he could do.
What doctor would believe him if he called and said, "My flashback fucked me until I was blue, crushed the hell out of my ribs and then tried to drown me?"
If this continued for very long he was destined for the nut farm. The idea of treating his neighbors to a 911 response complete with sheriff, ambulance and fire department rescue didnÂ’t appeal to him at all. No, he would have to get through this by himself. A little self-medication with spirits, some time for the damned drug to wear off, and heÂ’d be just fine. With one hand he rubbed his bruised ribs. The other held whiskey in black coffee.
He spent the night pacing around the house, sitting by the fire or trying to watch TV. When he mustered the courage to lie down and close his eyes he was greeted with more irritating colors. The hours crept by until he could see the beginning of dawn. The daylight helped a little and the colors retreated enough for him to sleep.
After a restless morning on the couch David showered, shaved, put on a clean sweat shirt and jeans then walked down to the beach. He needed to get out of the house. It was a sunny, uncommonly warm September day. Even though the bright sunlight irritated his dilated, bloodshot eyes, he felt reassured. His headache and sour stomach were real. There was no doubt the Pacific Ocean was real. The bright sun and cool wind felt like psychic cleansers washing away dark nightmares.
Walking past cars parked at the turnaround, David put his left hand above his eyes and looked out to see long aquamarine walls of surf, arch and rush forward. The breakers looked like moving snow-capped mountain ranges. When the summits fell forward, a thunderous roar reverberated in the clear morning air. Gulls skimmed along the crests of the rolling surf, riding the offshore updraft, their high keening cries a contrast to the rumble of the Pacific.
In the ocean swells, beyond the curling combers, he could see three surfers and beyond them, near the old quarry, he thought he saw a seal. Looking closer, he could see the seal was really a body surfer. She skillfully caught a wave and rode it to the shallows. Turning around she swam through advancing breakers on her way back for another try, her long hair streaming behind her. He watched her catch another wave. Without fail, she found the perfect moment to get in the curl for a good ride.
About fifty yards away from the body-surfer he recognized Matt Holly. When he saw Matt wading back to shore, David walked down the narrow winding path to the beach. At a fire built in a circle of rocks, on the lee side of a driftwood windbreak, Matt stood close to the blaze. He was vigorously toweling his curly, sun-bleached hair as David approached.
"David! Come on over here. I haven't seen you in months!"” Matt grabbed DavidÂ’s hand and pumped it up and down, laughing, his white teeth contrasting with his sun tanned face. He said, "“Hey, some of our people are getting together at the Bay Zoo tonight. It'’s Sarah's birthday." Looking at David, he raised his eye brows a little. David noticed but didn'’t say anything, he just nodded.
"“We all know about you and Debbie breaking up,"Matt said. "Are you dealing with it ok?" David shrugged, kicked a rock down the beach and said, "“Yeah, I'’ve been packing up her things."
"I knew this would happen. I couldn't tell you though. Even my brothers were surprised Debbie moved in with you." Matt looked sheepish, not sure he had said the right thing.
"You're probably going to tell me I ignored everyone since I started seeing her."
"No, I'’m just glad you'’re in one piece---but you don'’t look too good. If I were honest I'’d say you look like shit. Why don'’t you show up at the Bay Zoo and say hi to Sarah, if you know what I mean?"
"“I guess I can work that into my schedule."
"“Look out girls! The old man of the sea is coming into town!" He laughed and slapped his thigh.
David sighed and said, "Speaking of women, who'’s that body surfer out there?"”
"There aren't any surfing girls out today."
"“Sure there is. I just saw her out by the break near the quarry. Right out there."” David turned around and pointed to the jumble of black rocks far to the right of the remaining surfers and saw nothing except sea gulls and cormorants bobbing in the swells. "That's strange, I saw her just fifteen minutes ago and she was good. You really didn't see her?"
"Nobody i’s out there but Felix and Turtle, and they'’re coming in."
When the salt air hit his face, the memory of the body surfer he saw earlier came back to him. He had never seen anyone move like that in the water. Why didn't Matt see her out there? She was in plain view, but no one saw her except him.
