brackish [leah clearwater]

brackish, "the water where fresh rivers meet the salt of the sea"

Forks is quiet in the way a held breath is quiet. Mist clings to the road like it belongs there, seeping into the seams of jackets, hair, lungs. The trees stand shoulder to shoulder, tall and watchful, dripping rain that never really falls. Out by the cliffs, the ocean moves like something ancient and half-asleep, stirring only when no one's looking.

And tucked neatly into it all is Mitch Keane - picture-perfect grades, picture-perfect smile, picture-perfect life - the kind that looks nothing but smooth from the outside.

Leah Clearwater didn't mean to unravel it with a head first collision. But some collusions don't cause total destruction, rather, some stir the water just enough to show what's been buried beneath - something brackish, and wild, and entirely alive.