Take My Breath Away

The killer whale disappeared after they had reached the shore. Now it was back.

Carlos got off the rock. The killer whale's bulk was halfway out of the water. When it opened its mouth, Debbie screamed in surprise.

Its mouth was full of marine life such as fish, shrimp, crab, and some other creatures. Many of the creatures were still alive, others were certainly not, or at least unmoving.

"It's bringing us food," Carlos said with a smile.

Debbie threw her arms around the killer whale's head and gave it a big kiss. "Thank you, big guy."

The killer whale opened its mouth and all the fish, crab, and whatnot spilled out onto the rocks. Debbie went to collect what had fallen out, and the orca returned to the sea once more. Carlos gathered an armful and began flinging them onto the beach.

Then Carlos had a better idea. To avoid the fish leaping back into the sea, he decided to dig a hole further inland, and put rocks around the perimeter. Then the fish wouldn't able to "escape." He dug the hole quickly. While he was placing rocks, Debbie saw something odd-looking. "Ugh! This one's scary. Get rid of it, old man," she said, pointing at the offending fish.

Carlos looked at the fish. It was really a hideous-looking little creature. Grey, lumpy, spines around the mouth, huge, black eyes, and just unappetizing in general. "Throw it back into the water," he said. Debbie didn't even think that it would look good cooked. She danced around it, loath to touch it at all.

"You throw it. Hurry before it dies," Debbie said.

Carlos dropped the rock in his hand and came over. He looked at the fish with disgust obvious on his face. Finally, he picked the fish up by its tail fin and threw it back into the water.

The two decided to waste no time building a fire to cook up their catch.

They didn't have a knife to gut the fish, though. While Debbie voiced her concerns, Carlos found a thin rock and a broken shell of a red scallop. He scraped the scales with the shell, holding it nearly flat against the fish, in long, hard swipes. Starting at the tail he scraped his way towards the head. Then he flipped it over and did the same to the other side. He paused for a minute to rest. This wasn't the easiest work, and the hot sun d

that. "Who told you that?"

That hit him like a slap. Hayden told him so.

"Eww. What the hell, Carlos?" Debbie lay on her back and fixed her eyes on the sky again. "I stopped loving him years ago. Besides, he's married. We still talk because he helped me out a lot after I left the city."

Sea breeze blew on their faces, ruffled their hair. After a moment, she continued, "Now, I married Ivan, but it's not what you think. There's a reason, but I can't tell you right now. So, are you gonna marry Stephanie?"

Her eyes sparkled in the dark. Carlos kissed her hair and asked, "Why? Do you want me to?"

"No!"

Debbie answered simply.

Carlos nodded.

He pulled her into his arms and kissed her. "I won't marry Stephanie. But what about Ivan? He doesn't love you."

"Okay, I'll leave him," she muttered. "But it'll have to wait."

Carlos remained silent.

He was thinking about Piggy. So Hayden wasn't the dad? Ivan? Probably not. Then who was her real father?

Suddenly, something dawned on him.

Neither of them said anything else. They immersed themselves in the moment. But Carlos focused on controlling himself. This wasn't the time or place.

Debbie knew why he went quiet. Panting, she cradled his neck and said, "Old man, I..." She wanted to tell him she and Ivan had never slept together.

But Carlos already let her go and waded into the ocean.

He could swim, but his leg was injured. Worried, Debbie sat up and shouted after him, "Hey! Be careful! Watch that leg."