The Water Goddess

Chapter 3, Part 1: Two worlds collide

"Prove it to me."

Then I will.

The scene when Atalanta challenged Felipe, kept on playing back on his mind.

The soft sea wind was caressing him as he laid his back on the hammock that was tied to two coconut trees. He could see the dark blue eating out the whiteness of the sky, indicating that it was already dusk.

The sun was nowhere to be seen but the stars had replaced it as beacons of light for the night ahead.

Some of the resort staff had lit the wooden torches in the shores. The fire danced as Felipe observed it, and the light from the fires played as it became shadows in the sand.

As the sun had finally set, Felipe felt the cradling motion of the hammock to be relaxing. And it was also making him feel sleepy.

It had been a long and tiring day for him. Even though he didn't got the result he wanted, he was somehow contented.

75% contented maybe... He thought to himself.

Somehow it didn't felt complete for him. He wanted to see Atalanta, but to his dismay, he didn't. But he had ran it over and over again into his mind that there might be reasons why he didn't see her today.

Maybe because she didn't wanted to be seen by other people, or maybe she felt shy to show herself. But the number one reason that Atalanta might have, that Felipe believes, is that maybe he would never ever see her again.

Just once, and after that, nothing more.

He felt his chest heave as he still felt the longing that he has for her. It could be that he misses her.

But why? Why would I miss her? That goddess... What has she done to me?

This time Felipe let his mind wander, and placed the thought of Atalanta at the back of his mind. He looked out into the moon rising at the east.

Everything that the moonlight touched seemed to have come to life, the empty coconut husks, the stones and pebbles on the sand and even the little crabs that digs out the sand for shelter.

But before his eyelids could drop, he reached for his phone on his pocket and read his Dad's text. Armand was asking for him to come back inside for it was dinner time, but he was too sleepy, he hadn't realized, he had fallen asleep.

As he slept, he dreamed of Atalanta, that she was standing right in front of him and watching him. Her hair was shiny and platinum-blonde as her feet touched the sand.

But she took his phone and started walking away.

This time, Felipe had woken up, almost falling over from the hammock.

"Gah! Man, that was weird..." He sighed to himself.

But as he stepped down the hammock, he noticed that his phone was indeed missing. Felipe's eyes widened in surprise. His dream was no dream at all.

Felipe bolted right up and felt his heart jump right off in his chest. As he stood up, he noticed footprints in the sand, and he could tell it was Atalanta's.

"She's here!" he excitedly billowed to himself.

He helplessly followed the footprints even though he was still groggy from his nap. The other footprints was about to be washed off by the waves, so he walked fast as he followed it.

The footprints lead him at the other side of the tall arc of rock, past by the hut of Señor Manuel. As he passed by the hut, there seemed to be no one at home, but it gave Felipe the tingles as he looked at the dark and empty looking hut so he went faster his way to follow the footprints.