Vera and the Octopus

1 - VERA

I've always lived in a submarine.

I grew up here but moved to the city when I turned 18 to study marine biology. However, when my parents retired 2 years ago, they offered me my childhood home. I gladly accepted, and I returned as soon as my studies had ended.

I had always lived by the sea, and I loved it. I loved the fresh smell of the sea every morning, the feel of the warm sand between my toes, the beauty of the creatures in the ocean every time I went swimming, and how quiet it was compared to the city. But I was awfully bored. I longed for an adventure! A change in my monotonous day-to-day life.

❊

It was a warm, sunny day, with very few clouds. On the horizon, the sweet blue of the sky met with the rich azure blue of the sea. I revelled in the scenery as I walked along the shore, breathing in the salt sea air. I glanced toward my garden, where I grew a wide variety of vegetables, fruits and herbs. Everything looked healthy and strong, which brought a proud smile to my face.

However, the state of my living quarters was a different matter entirely. The protective yellow paint on the outside of the submarine began chipping off months ago and was now getting to the point of needing to be repainted. The stone slab stairs leading to my front door were becoming a safety hazard, as the weather had worn them down, as well as my constant use of them. In addition to this, the fence surrounding my garden had become old and unstable because of the high winds and fierce storms. I knew I needed to address these issues, but I would need help, and I wasn't going to let these details spoil my day.

I decided I wanted to go for a swim to see what kind of creatures I could find. I went to my bedroom, a decently sized room with a large double-sized bed that had one side pushed up against a wall. I had filled the gap between the headboard and the curved wall with a bespoke block of wood two years ago when I returned. I headed towards my wardrobe, got out a light yellow swimsuit, and put it on. I then got out a pair of goggles so I could see underwater. After that, I put on some sandals and went out.

I walked past my garden and onto the multicoloured dock that I had built with my father many years ago. I settled on the edge, taking in the scenery while I removed my sandals. Moments after putting on my goggles, I took a deep breath and dived down into the warm, blue sea. Whilst swimming deeper, I saw just how alluring the coral reefs were.

After I had been swimming around for a little while, an orangey-brown octopus darted past me. Its eight tentacles were curled up like cinnamon rolls before they stretched out to dash away through the water. It looked as if it was trying to get away from something, and as I turned around, I saw why. A shark that looked approximately two years of age, judging from its size, was headed towards the octopus.

For a moment, I was stunned with surprise, but I quickly decided to take off my goggles and use them as a distraction. As soon as I had taken them off, I closed my eyes and waved them around blindly, hoping to either distract the shark or scare it. I waved the goggles around for a couple of minutes, during which time the shark got confused and swam away.

Just before I put the goggles on again, I felt something clinging to my leg. I very quickly put my goggles on again and looked down to see the little octopus attached to me.

I soon realised how long I had been underwater, and I quickly swam to the surface to take a deep breath. The little octopus stayed firmly attached to my leg as I gulped in the fresh air and then floated so that I could take a good look at my new companion. I gently moved my hand down next to the octopus to see if he would willingly move himself closer. After a couple of seconds, he crept up onto my arm and from there sat comfortably in my palm. Once he had settled, I carefully lifted him close enough so that I could see my new friend, but low enough that he was still submerged.

"Hello there, little one," I said softly. "It's nice to meet you. That encounter with the shark was close. I don't think we'll want another one for quite some time".

Its tentacles, once again, curled up like cinnamon rolls. I gasped slightly. "I know, that's what I'll call you. I'll call you Cinnamon!" I exclaimed.

As a response to his new name, his tentacles took turns rising and falling, eventually completing a mini-Mexican wave.

In the weeks following, Cinnamon and I spent a lot of time together: swimming around by the coral; diving down to the bottom of the ocean and looking for limpets on the rocks.

Cinnamon always swam very close to me, and I loved having my ocean friend by my side.

But one day, when I went to look for Cinnamon, I couldn't find him. I started to panic as I knew the shark that we had encountered many weeks ago was still lurking around. I started looking in all of Cinnamon's favourite spots, sometimes double-checking. I was looking for hours before I saw what looked to be a new cave that I hadn't come across before. I slowly made my way towards it, being cautious, as I didn't know what was in there. Once I got close enough and the light had made its way into the miniature cave, I saw Cinnamon hiding in a far corner of the area.

As soon as Cinnamon saw me, he leapt onto my arm and held on tightly, as if he'd had another encounter with the shark. I looked around anxiously, and as I was almost done, I saw our enemy gaining distance on us. I rapidly swam around the rock on which the miniature cave was located. I needed to think fast. I decided to make my way to the surface, knowing the shark wouldn't be able to follow us, but first, I needed to distract it.

I saw a school of fish in the distance, and I thought it would be the perfect distraction. I knew the shark would chase the fish, so I caught the shark's attention and started swimming towards them. I made a few strange turns, but eventually, the shark was going after the underwater herd of sheep. I then darted up to the surface and made my way to land.

As soon as we were on land, I grabbed a bucket, filled it with seawater, and put Cinnamon in it. I walked past my garden and into my submarine home. I walked past my kitchen, into my living room, where my big fish tank was, and gently lowered Cinnamon into the tank, leaving the bucket in there so he could come out in his own time.

I went into my kitchen to make myself some egg-fried rice and to get myself a cup of tea. I walked back into the living room and saw that Cinnamon had left the bucket and was now exploring. I sat down on my sofa and ate my food while reading the next chapter of my book. Once I had finished my food, I added it to the small pile of dishes next to the sink, waiting to be washed up. I would deal with them later in the day, after my dinner.