SoKeefe One-Shots

Lighthouse

Sophie gave him a smile, "Yes! Will you please give her some attention so I can run my errands?"

Dex gave Sophie an exaggerated sigh and a sarcastic I'll do what I can look before waving goodbye.

The rest of the day ran rather smoothly. Sophie went grocery shopping and picked up some extra food in case the storm ran long and she couldn't leave the lighthouse for a while. After that, she walked up the path to her beloved home and got to work on her storm itinerary.

She had just gotten a kettle going for some tea when the storm began to rage hard, a little earlier than she had predicted. The clouds had enough cover for the lighthouse to be in full service long before dinner. She looked at the small painting she kept above her fireplace. The peaceful garden looking back at her gave her pause as she allowed herself to take a deep breath before going to watch for sailors.

She grabbed her tea and headed towards the big window at the edge of her bedroom on the third floor. While most lighthouses had living quarters only on the top of the tower with a spiral staircase leading up, Sophie's home was set up in three sections within the tower itself. The first floor was her living area, the second floor provided her kitchen and dining, and the third was her bedroom, each floor connected to the other with a ladder system. While getting the furniture inside had been a pain she was grateful for the extra space, even if it meant having round walls.

She glanced at the sky and saw the storm had progressed into a heavy onslaught of violent rain. Shifting nervously from foot to foot she decided that it was time to go into full keeper mode. She grabbed her handbook and changed into her uniform to get into her usual storm station. Lighthouse keepers were required to keep watch and be on standby not only to signal ships but to be an emergency response to any shipwrecks or strandings that may occur.

She sat in her chair and watched, hoping her services would be limited to keeping an eye out and nothing more. While most lighthouses of this size had more than one Keeper, this lighthouse was built when the town had been the main port for delivering goods to the area. When a town down the way became a city filled with innovation and schools, the traders all moved down to the city ports leaving Sophie and her town with no need for such a large lighthouse. Nevertheless, she knew her job was important. While there might not be a bustling city beneath her she loved her town and the little boats that still sailed through. She made sure that she kept them safe when the sea couldn't and knew that they counted on her for light in the darkness.

Hours passed and she started her third cup of tea to keep herself awake. She hadn't expected the storm to block out the light so early in the day so she was unprepared to stay on duty for so long. A yawn escaped her as she watched the black waves swell. A while ago she bought a book about constellations to keep her mind sharp while she was up late on nights like this, of course, she hadn't thought this plan through as the stars were only visible when the sky was clear but she read the book anyways without the stars.

Suddenly the storm-ravaged against her window and caught her undivided attention as she watched the water pound down. She stood up but even with the light emitting from her home she couldn't see very far. This concerned her as she lost visibility. When the rain started to die down she took out her binoculars and searched the beach. Winds like this often brought debris onto the beach and Sophie made sure to clean it up so none of the locals got hurt when going to the beach in the morning, though most of them had enough sense not to go to the beach after days like this.

Something blue caught her sight as she tried to adjust her binoculars for a clearer view. The light blue was startling against the dark stormy background. It took a moment for her eyes to realize what they were seeing.

The little blue boat!

She rushed down her stairs and grabbed her coat as she headed for her phone. Quickly dialing the number she put her rain boots on while she listened to the ring. She informed the coast guard of the situation but knew they were busy with a cargo ship that had crashed into a city dock. She made sure it was safe to go into the storm, it had died down a little, and she raced towards the beach.