My Short Short for the Day

Sue yawned and stretched until her joints popped. She breathed in the scent of frying fish and fruit tea. Her stomach growled in response. She deftly rolled up her sleeping mat and packed her bag. Then she carefully made her way down to the lake. She splashed the ice cold water in her face and lost her breath for a moment. As she opened her eyes the blur in front of her knocked her onto her butt.

“Gerry. Gerry!” Her voice was pitched higher than normal.

“Sue? Are you ok?” Gerry so the fear in her stiff pose. “What's wrong?”

“Gerry.” Sue turned to Gerry. “I...I...can see.”

“What? How? What do you mean?” Gerry knelt by Sue taking her head in his hands and staring straight into her eyes. “Can you see me?”

Sue smiled and gently eased Gerry back. “Everything is blurry but I can make out shapes and colors. Nothing clear, though.”
“Oh, Sue. I...I can't believe it.” Gerry sat back hard on his butt. “How did this happen?”

“I don't know. I woke up like normal and walked down here to wash up before breakfast. I splashed my face and...” Sue stopped and stared toward the lake. “The water. It must be the water.”
“But it's not the right place. Edgar said it was farther along. Didn't he?” Gerry rose and briskly walked to the edge of the lake. He leaned over staring into the water before dipping his hand in. The water slid through his fingers. He tasted the water and sniffed it. “Seems like normal water.”

“Test it Gerry. That's the only way to know. Test it.” Sue crawled to the edge and leaned over. Staring into the clear blue until she could almost see the pebbles at the bottom. Time passed unnoticed as she marveled at the blueness of the water and the shine of the sun glinted off it.

“It's it! The water! This is it! I don't know how but we found it!” Gerry all but danced back to the lake. “I can't believe it!”

Sue turned to get her very first look at Gerry, the man she had loved her whole life. Her best friend, her companion, her husband. The man she would spend eternity with. Her heart pounded as she looked up at his face. That beautiful, strong, kind face she had imagined didn't compare to the reality. Her smile warmed his heart.