Embracing the Ruby

Excerpt from Embracing the Ruby

He sometimes got the feeling of nonexistence. Now that he thought about it, the feeling swept over him. His heart thumped in his throat, and his body felt like nothing. The sand and water didn’t seem real; not even their mixture of sound, liquid seeping into solid. The fabric on his skin seemed alien. He kept walking willing the feeling to release him. He tried to think of something tangible to bring him back. The image of Brianna’s bright red blanket with its quilted diamonds and crimson stitches, reached him.

The feeling broke, and he realized that he had walked to the other side of a large cliff face. No one was around. He could hear distant shouts but most were drowned out by the call of gulls. He gazed along the beach and could see a white silhouette in the distance. A rare feeling of curiosity overwhelmed him. Ian had never felt such a strong pull towards a figure. Except for the first time he had seen Brianna. She had been sitting on a bench in the park with legs crossed, and a sports equipment catalogue. At that moment he had decided to become brave and approach her. Her sweet “hello” had filled him with joy.

“Hi.” He had waved as if he was twenty feet away instead of sitting next to her. “Um…what you looking to buy?”

“Oh, nothing really. I prefer to get it in the store,” she said.

“Right…easier to try things on and…uh…out.”

She laughed, and her brown eyes stared at him.

She sat with her legs crossed towards him and her left arm slung over the back of the bench. Before he had anytime to think, he blurted out, “Would you go out with me?”

She looked shocked for a moment but laughed, “Sure and I’m Brianna.”

Ian had the same feeling of boldness looking at the distant figure. A line of wet rocks stood in his way and his bravery wavered. He again stared at the silhouette, and before he could contemplate further, he leapt out onto the first rock.

The figure grew closer as he jumped to each rock. His strategy was to get across as fast as he could to avoid a panic attack. As he reached the last rock, he discovered the figure was a woman. She wore a long, white, plain gown, and had stringy, dark and damp hair. A white ribbon was tied over her eyes. The ribbon ends were as long as her jet black hair, and they both flapped gently in the light wind. She sat perfectly still with a sword in each hand. The weapons crossed in an X over her frail body. The silver sword blades curved drastically, and the hilts were gold. One had a ruby set in it and the other a sapphire. Ian thought she could have been a statue.

He could see his reflection in the sword blades, and he unconsciously reached out to touch one.

“Be careful which one you choose.”

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