What the Sea Returned

Themba comes to the beach to read and sees a woman in a yellow dress at the shoreline instead. He murmurs that with three lives he would marry her in two.

Beach Day

Themba first noticed her because of the yellow dress.

It moved in the evening breeze like a small flame against the blue-grey ocean. One moment, the fabric rested against her legs; the next, the wind lifted its hem and sent it fluttering around her knees. She stood near the shoreline with her sandals dangling from one hand, watching the waves collapse over the sand.

Loose strands of hair kept sweeping across her face. Each time, she tucked them behind her ear. Each time, the wind pulled them free again.

She never appeared irritated.

Themba sat several metres away with an unopened paperback beside him and a bottle of water growing warm in the sand. He had come to the beach to read, or at least that was what he had told himself. In truth, he had spent most of the afternoon staring at the same page while thinking about everything he had been trying not to think about.

Then the woman in yellow appeared, and the noise inside his head became quiet.

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Quick answers about What the Sea Returned

What is What the Sea Returned about?

Themba comes to the beach to read and sees a woman in a yellow dress at the shoreline instead. He murmurs that with three lives he would marry her in two.

Is What the Sea Returned free to read?

Yes. Every story on RapidTale is free to read in the browser, with no sign-up and nothing to install.

How long does it take to read?

This story runs 1 chapter — most readers finish in one sitting, and you can stop and return to any chapter using the contents list.

Who wrote it?

Nimra Khan — original fiction published on RapidTale.