TW

by the sea

mid april, a cautiously sunny afternoon (outfit inspo)

The day is clearer than most, milder than most. The gentle breeze flying through comes to mess with her hair as she walks along the streets. Some people try their best to move around the peacekeepers, Taeri does not. She knows most of the older ones, proves respectful to the younger ones. As she moves north, she follows the path which has become hers ever since the path opened. But today, she does not carry her work with her, nor does she need to journey through to the open fields. Today she turns left instead of turning right, makes her way down some of the less travelled paths of the district. She continues until she reaches the bottom of one of the walls, until she meets the eyes of a woman whose wedding she attended. They exchange pleasantries, casual conversations which flow with such ease. Anything to mask the small package Taeri passes her, containing a small amount of pills even peacekeeper rations cannot buy easily. A child is ill and Taeri is a doctor, it is her duty to help – for a favour.

It is the guard’s eyes, moving away from her traits to something behind her, that tell her the person she is meeting is arriving. Solveig, she calls gently once she too catches sight of the woman. The day’s perfect, isn’t it? Whilst the skies are clouded, they remain bright, some sunshine daring to slip through. Without wasting any time, the two women are led to stairs within the wall. They climb up until the daylight returns, until they find something of a watch tower. The peacekeeper moves along the wall, gives them the privacy Taeri’s bride has bought. What a day, she cannot help to repeat under her breath as she moves in closer to the edge. She could smell it in the air from the other side of the wall. But here… here, the sea breeze is clear. Below them, concrete melts into sand, sand melts into waves. Shimmering here and there when the sun dares to meet the waters, the waves come crashing down playfully. For a while, there is nothing but the sound of the ocean, nothing but the reverence for this world she has always been fascinated by. Do you think we’ll see any dolphins today? she finally asks with an almost childish tone. Far are her worries, for there are only the seas. Those moments have been shared before, though not as often as she would have liked. For all the times she spends with Solveig cannot be preceded by bribery, but she swears she can breathe better up here. She has never told anyone of those excursions, not even Locke. It is almost a secret she holds dear, one she shares with a friend. Her eyes close gently as some sun comes to warm her face. I needed this. A moment to get away, forget about everything else which has been plaguing the district. Clouds hide the light and so she opens her eyes, turns to Solveig. Maybe one day we’ll get to swim down there.

by the sea

mid april, a cautiously sunny afternoon (outfit inspo)

She left early, and yet it didn’t feel early enough.
Solveig had few pleasures in life, and fewer she truly enjoyed enough to drop everything for.
The sea was one of those very rare things.

She arrived while Taeri was still making conversation with the peacekeeper that would grant them access to the stairs, up the wall, where they would get a glimpse of that infinite blue. Even though she had met the guard before, knew her and her family somewhat, Solveig stayed behind, only smiling in return of Taeri’s warm welcome. It wasn’t like her to barge in a conversation, not when she didn’t need to: she knew Taeri would take care of everything, and she did. Solveig did not care to know how.

They made their way up, and while her friend kept commenting on the weather, Solveig climbed the stairs two by two, not really paying attention. Sure, it was a great day. They had plenty of great days. But not many views like these.
The blond nodded soberly at the guard as a thankful gesture for her help, but did not watch her walk away, her eyes already scanning the horizon with hunger, as if she was scared she would miss some, that it would be taken away.

She took one deep breath. Tasting the salt breeze on her tongue, filling her lungs with ocean spray. Only then did she turn her attention to Taeri: her friend. Her friend?

Solveig did not really know what to call Taeri, even though the pediatrician was kind enough to treat her as a friend. They’d had similar jobs, similar families. They’d lived close by for parts of their lives. They’d grown together, and yet apart.
Solveig had reconnected with her only recently, a few years ago. She’d realized just how much she had distanced herself from everyone and everything, and Taeri had felt like the easiest path back to a normal life. They shared so much.

But Solveig was conflicted. She felt guilty for distancing herself. She felt like an alien next to a woman like her. A loving mother, a wife, well-dressed, put together, unafraid. She had lived a life Solveig had never found the strength to even think about, and it intimidated her. But she was happy to share a passion with someone like her.

These outings were the best parts of their friendship, by far. Rares, but precious.
When Taeri asked about dolphins, Solveig came back to reality, realizing she was lost in thoughts. She snapped her head back towards the horizon line, as if she realized she was missing the show.

The blond laughed, pressing herself more against the side of the wall. “I don’t know about dolphins, but I really hope we see whales.” She squinted, bringing her hand up to shelter her eyes from the sunrays. “Killer whales are my favorites.” She added, unable to tear the smile off her face, hopeful. Did Taeri really need to know that? “You know their pods are ruled by matriarchs?” She gave a side-glance to her friend with a sardonic smile. “Pretty much like us.” She opened her mouth to speak, ready to cite once again the well-loved ocean encyclopedia book resting on her coffee table, before changing her mind.

Sunrays pierced through the clouds, covering them, warming their cheeks reddened by the cold sea wind. As Taeri bathed in it, Solveig kept looking at the horizon, trying to discern movement between the waves. She was never a hopeful person except up here.

Her friend evoked the idea of going down, which made Solveig detach her eyes from her goal. She turned to the pediatrician with a mixed expression on her face, ranging between skepticism and horror. Even for the sea, Solveig could not imagine leaving these walls. She stared at Taeri for a moment, trying to analyze how serious she was, before turning her gaze back to her absent whales.
“I wouldn’t count on it.” she said softly, barely audible with the crashing of the waves below them. She let a long silence take place, which little birds filled with their chants. “The path has made people too hopeful.”
This was the life she had always known.
This was the life she would always live.