Sylphie's Reality Side Story, Part Six

When we arrived at the seaside, the sun had just begun to rise.

I spoke.

"Want to take a look at the beach?"

"Yeah."

Holding hands, we walked toward the beach.

The sky was still somewhat dim... but the sun was clearly about to rise.

Feeling his warmth, feeling the roughness of his palm.

Our hands never once came apart.

As we headed toward the beach, he spoke.

"Aisha often says that a lot of worries disappear after seeing the ocean and the universe."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. She thinks both the ocean and the universe are romantic, even though she's never seen either with her own eyes."

"What do you think?"

He looked out at the sea.

At that moment, the sea was pitch-black. All we could feel was the sea breeze and the salty scent.

"I can't feel it..."

"Why not take another look in a while? You'll feel it."

"Yeah."

The closer we got to the sea, the more we could smell the scent that belonged to it.

I smiled and spoke.

"Let's leave our shoes here, okay? If we go any closer, we'll have to step in the water."

"Yeah."

We took off our shoes and approached the shore.

The sand beneath our feet still held the dampness left behind by the night, and every step left a shallow footprint.

The waves kept rolling closer before slowly receding.

The icy seawater occasionally touched our feet, making us pause without thinking.

He stared at the sea ahead without saying anything.

I didn't rush him. I simply held his hand and stood there with him.

The sun slowly rose from the far end of the horizon.

At first, there was only a faint touch of gold on the water.

Then, little by little, the light spread, dyeing the