“James, I don’t know… but we’re not supposed to be here,” Greg Chandlers commented. He was always the scared one; the one that talked the others out of anything fun and daring we did. And because he was big, they all listened to him. Sissies, all of them.

But try as much as I wanted to ignore it, the sea called to me; and on this our particular trip to Jamaica, I just couldn’t resist it any longer. It was either they joined me or not—I was jumping in. Pulling off my trousers, I flung my shirt to the crispy white sand that filled the beach. Then with a loud caterwaul, I jumped into the warm water. And immediately felt at home. Water was my element, no matter what anyone said, mother included.

Soon after, the others joined me; they weren’t such scaredy-cats after all. We dove in and splashed water on ourselves, perfectly enjoying the cool Jamaican afternoon. I looked at the endless stretch of water, and again, something in the way the waves crested and fell, in the way the water roared, appealed to me. I would definitely follow mom’s footsteps. At sixteen, I was now sure I would go for marine biology. Just like her.

In a flash, Matt Bates started screaming. I turned and saw him sinking into the water, bubbles escaping from his mouth. The others looked about with frightened eyes, none of them could move. With powerful strokes, I reached him in an instant, and hauled him out of the water. He was unconscious and barely breathing.

With an equanimity I didn’t know I possessed, I applied pressure to his chest, while pumping air through my mouth into his. I repeated this five times, then he coughed out some water and looked bleary-eyed at us.

“Didn’t I warn you guys?” Greg shouted. He was visibly shaken by the incident and while we looked, he ran back to the resort. The rest of us helped Matt to his feet and also went back.

Back at the resort, all eyes were on me; many of the kids around shied away from me. Quietly, I handed Matt over to his parents who glared at me as though I had wanted to kill their only son. Then I headed towards my room. I kept on wondering—what had Greg said about me? Why was everyone cold to me? Even Lilly, who I had a crush on never gave me a second glance.

With these thoughts crisscrossing on my mind, I dozed off. I dreamt of the sea/ocean—I couldn’t tell. In the dream, I was swimming deep underwater with no apparatus and I saw all manner of creatures. There were assorted fishes, both small and large, plants with askew positions, and something else—totally incredible.

I had seen it from a hole on huge rock surrounded by corals. It was quick, but I was also fast enough to have seen a bit of it. I dove inside the hole, wanting to sate my curiosity. I reached the opening of the cave and saw what took my breath away. It was a large group of—

“James!” my mother’s shout roused me from my sleep. I sat up, and was, for some moments, disoriented. Did all that really happen in a dream? It had seemed so vivid. She was wearing a light white gown with no footwear. Her hair was braided with an attachment, and she looked so effortlessly beautiful. She sat on the edge of the bed and looked at me for a long time.

“What’s wrong, Mom?” I asked, feeling very uneasy. She only looked like this whenever I had done something wrong. Had that boy, Greg, said something false about me again?

“Oh James… I thought I’ve warned you against going near the sea. You hardly listen to me, why?” her voice was subdued, making her sound like she was crying.

“But mom, I love the sea. You love the sea. I can’t imagine why you would bar me from going near it. It’s not like I’m in any danger.”

“You—There has to be other things you love. Forget about the sea please,” she pleaded, as she wrapped her hands over mine. She looked into my eyes and there was raw pain in hers.

I had to know why she was adamant in her warning. I pressed her for an answer, and she deftly avoided it. I kept on pushing, until I said that I would not stop going near the sea because I wanted to also study marine biology, her field of research.

At this, a shadow of pure, maniacal terror crept up on her face and then she said, “I don’t want you there because… well because your father is from the sea!”

“Wha—What are you saying?” I asked. This has got to be a joke or another ruse to keep out of the water. She had told me that my father had died with his parents in a plane crash. Which other father was she referring to?

Read more ➡️ https://www.thezenpens.com/2018/12/28/prince-of-an-unknown-land-a-flash-fiction-by-somtoochukwu-benedict-ezioha/