Whispering waves

The reef

My parents did not speak to me after my act. I stayed in my room for hours, with Doris beside me. She tried her best to cheer me up, but without succeding.
I, once again, felt a bit stupid for what I had done at the meeting with Damianos; deep down I knew that nothing I could have ever done would have worked. Even if Damianos did hate me, he would marry me all the same. He wanted the alliance with my father, after all.
No one came looking for me, not even to call me for dinner, and Doris had to leave eventually, so I was left alone.
I wasn't hungry, and I could not present myself at dinner anyway.
After considering for a bit, I took a cloak and my sandals and sneaked out of the house.
Trying not to make too much noise, I paced trough the red painted corridors; no one noticed me, except Doris, whom I saw carrying an amphora to the dining hall. She glanced at me and nodded, and I felt incredibly relieved, knowing that I had an ally after all.
I walked out of the house trying not to look suspicious (and probably failed) but either way, there was no one around.
When I was out of sight, shielded from the tall trees of the garden, I started running.
The air was a bit chilly, for the sun had just set. I ran and ran, dust lifting each time my feet struck the ground.
As always, I was directed to the sea.
I usually just walked along the beach, but today, I wanted to sit quietly and pretend I was someone else, somewhere else.
At the far left of the beach there was a reef; when I was little I always went there to dive into the deep water, or to find crabs to play with.
I took my sandals and cloak off, laid them on a flat rock, and climbed onto the reef. The rocks were slippery, but not too sharp. I kept walking and stumbling, the waves spraying drops on my feet and legs, getting my light blue dress wet.
I sat onto the last rock, and stared at the swirling water and powerful waves.
This was where the water was the deepest, and the waves the most powerful.
It had always fascinated me, how the sea could be so intimidating and calming at the same time.
For me, at least.
I loved the sea because it was just like humans: it could be calm, warm and welcoming just like it could be violent and dark.

A small crab peeked from a hole in the rock beside me. I tried to catch it between my fingers, but the crab was faster than me and went back to hiding in his hole.
"I wish I could hide too..."
A tear escaped my eye. It slid down my cheek and I let it fall onto the rock, to mix with the saltwater.
Just then, a movement under the surface caught my eye.
A flash of green disappeared under the reef.
I was confused, because I had never seen such a thing before. And I had lived here my entire life. At first I thought I must have been mistaken because of the dim light, but when I saw it for a second time, I istinctively
withdrew, and went to sit onto the rock behind me, a bit farther from the water. Still, I did not want to leave and go back home.
Truth be told, I never wanted to go back...
I came here because I wanted to forget about the trouble I was in, but I couldn't stop worrying.
Before I knew it, I was crying again. It was strange, because I rarely cried, but in the last days, the tears just came and came.
I just wanted to let all my fear and distress out.
"I wish he would just leave... why can't he leave and find another wife? I hate him already. I don't want to go...
Gods, please, don't make me marry that man..."
Now I was sobbing. I felt weak, and ashamed for being weak. My parents must be so disappointed in me... They had chosen my future husband carefully, and now here I was, behaving like a child.
The small crab came once again out of his rock. He stood still for a while, then ran towards the sea. This time, I didn't try to catch it.
Before it could disappear though, a pale hand came out of the waves and caught it quickly.
A voice said, from behind the reef: "Here. Do not cry, please."

[Hii, thank you so much for reading! If you notice mistakes please tell me! I hope you're enjoying this story so far!
-Emma]