“That was beautiful,” she sighed, snuggling closer to him. “The lights were amazing and the flowers were perfect. I couldn’t have wished for lovelier guests.”
“You’re beautiful,” he said, shifting across the sand to nuzzle her lightly. “I’m just glad it’s over. I like having you all to myself.”
She swiveled around a bit so that she could look into his eyes.
“I love you so much,” she told him.
“I love you, too,” he whispered to her.
He murmured softly to her, telling her that he’d never met anyone like her, reciting how much he loved her and how precious she was to him. His crooning voice made a quiet accompaniment to the roaring waves, which pounded the sand just a few yards away.
Hidden by beach grass, they embraced, relieved to finally escape their wedding guests. His poetic whispers suddenly ceased as he leaned back and said, "There's something I need to tell you..."
“What is it, darling?”
His tone set her on edge. He’d never kept any secrets from her. His words worried her and she pulled away from him just a little, inching her way across the sand.
He seemed nervous and his words didn’t want to come out.
“Sweetheart,” he began. “I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. And I know what we decided earlier… but I don’t want to live with your parents.
“What?”
She squeaked indignantly.
“I know we agreed that it would be less expensive,” he said. “But there’s so much of the world we haven’t seen yet … so much I want to show you. I’ve heard Bali is beautiful. I’m tired of hearing about it. I want to see it. And I want you to see it with me.”
“Wouldn’t it be nice?” he asked. “Just you and me, floating around the big blue ocean?”
“You promised.” She spat the words at him. “We move in with them and save money. Soon we’ll have enough for our own place… And I like it here. My mother loves you. She’s already picked the wall-paper for our room. What’s wrong with staying here?”
“Nothing’s wrong with staying here,” he admitted grudgingly. “I just want to see what else is out there. There’s a big, wide world. And I want to know what’s in it.
“And I hate that wall-paper,” he muttered under his breath. “Stupid pink roses.”
“A place of our own. A family. A home. What’s so wrong with wanting that?” she asked.
“There’s nothing wrong with it,” he answered. “Someday, we’ll have it. Why do we have to rush?”
She drew a deep breath, not certain what she was going to say to her husband. She scooted away from him, turning her back, trying to gather her words. After what felt like eternity, she turned to face him again.
“I don’t want…” she began, but that’s as far as she got.
The sand, which had been cool and still a moment ago, began to shake and shudder. It thumped and jarred, making their bodies quiver with the beat.
The distance between them, which had seemed manageable a moment ago, stretched like a desert. She trembled with fear as the sand beneath her continued to shake with a strange, unstoppable, palpitating beat. He ran, moving as fast as he could across the sand, trying to prevent disaster.
The night had been bright, with moonlight spilling across the sand, but a black shadow fell across them as the quake continued. She was too frightened to look but he gazed upward to see something huge and pale descending upon them. A fleshy creature, standing tall and terrifying above them, preparing to crush them.
He looked into her beautiful eyes for a moment and knew that he would do anything to protect his love. Gathering his strength, he leapt upward, reaching for the pale, enormous shape that was swiftly descending on them. Closing his eyes, he pinched the beast with all of the force he could muster and heard a scream of pain as he fell back to the ground. He didn’t stop to see what happened, didn’t pause to think. He just grabbed her and ran for the water, pulling her behind him. They scuttled as fast as they could, not stopping until they found the cool relief of the ocean.
Among the rushing waves, they watched as the creature grabbed at his wounded limb, pulling it close and hopping up and down in some sort of strange dance. From this vantage point, they saw another creature not far behind the first, this one smaller, but no less dangerous.
“Honey!” the larger one called out, still hopping in pain. “Something bit me! I think it was some kind of crab!”
“I told you to wear shoes,” the smaller one replied, moving closer to help the first. “But you never listen to me.”
“I think we’re safe,” he told her, laying a comforting claw around her trembling form.
She snuggled into him, taking comfort.
“Maybe,” he said, gazing down at her. “We should just move in with your parents.”
“I’m not sure,” she said, running a claw over his carapace. “I’ve heard Bali is pretty nice this time of year.”
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