“A man searching for paradise lost can seem a fool to those who never sought the other world.” ― James Douglas Morrison
The pear wine caught the last of the light, turning gold in David’s glass as the sailboat eased along at three steady knots. The sea murmured against the hull—soft, rhythmic, almost like it was breathing with them. Evening had settled gently, not with darkness but with color, the sky outside the open cabin windows burning in shades of molten orange and rose.
Renate leaned back on the cushioned bench, her bare feet braced against a padded footstool, her glass cradled loosely in her hands. “You picked a good night for this,” she said, her voice warm and low, softened by the wine and the slow roll of the waves.
David smiled. “I’d like to take credit, but I think the universe just felt generous.”
Through the windows, the horizon glowed like a forge. Beneath the sinking sun stretched the dark silhouette of an uninhabited island—long, low, and untouched. Waves raced to the shore as if called. The sailboat followed close behind.
Renate followed his gaze. “Hard to believe places like that still exist.”
“Hard to believe we made it out here,” David said.
She glanced at him, amused. “We’ve crossed worse seas.”
“Not talking about the water.”
She didn’t answer right away. The boat creaked softly, the mast humming with the wind. Pear wine perfumed the air between them.
David took a slow sip, letting the sweetness linger. “Do you remember that winter in Paris? When the heater broke, and we spent a week living under every blanket we owned?”
Renate laughed, the sound bright in the dim cabin. “You mean when you insisted we could fix it ourselves?”
“I maintain we almost did.”
“We nearly set the apartment on fire.”
“Details,” he said, waving a hand.
Her smile softened. “Yeah. I remember.”
He watched her in the fading light—her hair pulled back loosely, her face touched by years but made more beautiful by them. Time had etched its own story there, one he’d been lucky enough to read as it unfolded.
“You ever think about how far we’ve come?” he asked.
Renate tilted her head. “From where?”
“From everything,” he said. “From our careers, South America in our Piper Cub, and the balloon ride across Southeast Asia. What about that crazy flight in the ultralight to Capistrano with all those swallows? Our time in Paris on the Seine and London. The nights we didn’t know what came next. I mean, look at us now.”
She looked around the cabin—the warm wood, the gentle sway, the open windows framing a sky on fire. “Yeah,” she said quietly. “We did alright.”
For a moment, neither spoke. The world outside was too beautiful to interrupt. The sun sank lower, brushing the island’s outline with a thin rim of gold. The sea caught the colors and scattered them in ripples.
David set his glass down. “Renate?”
She turned toward him, eyebrows raised.
He hesitated—not out of fear, but because some moments deserved care. “I don’t say it enough,” he began. “But I’m glad you’re here. With me. On this boat. On this… whatever this life is.”
Her expression softened, the kind of softness that comes from years of knowing someone deeply. “I’m glad too,” she said. “More than you know.”
He stood, bracing himself against the boat’s sway, and crossed the small space between them. The cabin light flickered across his face as he leaned down slightly.
“Come see the sunset from the deck,” he said. “It’s too good to waste from inside.”
But before she could rise, he paused—just long enough to say her name.
“Renate.”
She looked up.
Her eyes lit with recognition so warm it felt like stepping into a memory they’d both been carrying. A spark. A welcome. A doorway back through all the years they’d weathered together.
She reached for his hand.
“Let’s go,” she said.
Together, they climbed into the glow of the dying sun, the sailboat gliding toward the dark, untouched island as the sky burned brilliantly above them.
***
This series is dedicated to House of Heart’s Sad Cafe (downloadable on Hyperion’s Library, see the link in the menu) and poetry collection. Check out Holly’s blog for more.
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