Sunrise in paradise!
There was nothing in the world more calming to Nathan’s jangled nerves than the serenity that lay before him at Ala Moana Beach. While most of the world was still in shades of black and white, a thin sliver of yellow began rising over the mountains.
Nathan zipped his wetsuit as he watched the waves coming in, hearing the roar of the ocean as it crept up the sand. The perpetual heartbeat of the earth, the rhythmic lull of the sea that lured this haole into its embrace.
His wife, or rather ex-wife, Tonya, had refused to accompany him in this move to Hawaii. At first, he couldn’t understand how anyone would turn down the opportunity to live in paradise, but as the months passed, everything became known. The affair she had been having with their neighbor, Tom, and the web of lies slowly unraveled. Two months after his arrival on the island, she wanted a divorce. As more facts surfaced, he filed. When she failed to either bring or send their daughters to stay with him, he ended up contacting her parents with whom he still shared a relationship. She had relocated with Tom to Nebraska, lying to her parents that he had signed over custody to her. She’d forced his hand, leaving him no choice but to file abduction charges and pursue full custody.
Nate had a new job in new surroundings to adjust to, and now this business. Stress mounted in great waves from all of it and there was only one way to solve it–the Hawaiian way–out on the open water. The ocean had become his solace.
Kai, Nate’s cousin, wasn’t due to arrive for another forty minutes. He had been taking surfing lessons from Kai since arriving. Some might call his new hobby an obsession by the number of hours he’d spent learning, but if anyone wanted to be good at something, it took practice.
Surfing helped take his mind off everything else and worked wonders for his PTSD. Since moving here, Nate had yet to visit the military base for counseling. He was hoping that things would work themselves out. After all, he'd never been so at ease as he had since taking up surfing. He viewed his leash as his lifeline in more ways than one.
With his chin jutted forward, a gesture he unconsciously made when he had a firm determination, Nathan strode with confidence toward the beckoning waves.
“I got this! I survived Kuwait City, I can catch a wave on my own.”
It was magic. The soothing calm of the cool water contrasted to the building heat in his muscles. The combination created a euphoria that was addictive as he paddled out to the beach break.
He hadn’t managed his PTSD well back in Oklahoma City. It may have been that he’d only swapped one addiction for another, but he rationalized that surfing was a whole lot healthier than taking the cocktail of anti-anxiety meds that he’d been prescribed. The PTSD seemed to vanish in the waves. Surfing was his therapy of choice. It calmed him to be in the water, to feel the rush of power in his body that he’d gained since first getting on a board. It was a thrill like no other.
The sun rose behind him, casting a golden glow over the water. Nathan breathed in deeply, absorbing the bit of warmth the sun offered to his face. As he munched on his protein bar, his oxygen leveled out. He had dreamed of this life since he was a child.
Now he had the perfect job at the University of Hawaii as a professor, living in paradise, and reconnecting with his mother’s family. As soon as the paperwork went through, he’d have his daughters with him, and it would be perfect. Oklahoma was nice, but he was glad to get out of there. There were simply too many painful memories and too many stressors.
He stuffed the wrapper inside his wetsuit, turned toward shore, and paddled to catch the clean wave that was coming up behind him. He could do this! Kai would see that he was ready to graduate.
‘I got this,’ he thought as he jumped up, his feet tucked under him in a crouching position, his hands still on the board.
Suddenly, his entire body rocked on the board. He tried his best to hang on, but inevitably, he wiped out and sank beneath the waves. A deep burning pain radiated from the center of his left thigh.
‘What the hell?’ He felt like a Mack truck had hit him.
Nathan came up gasping for air, pulling on the leash attached to his board. When he grabbed his board, there was a huge chunk gone. Perfectly round teeth marks around the missing part of the board. Instant fear gripped his chest.
The sun was high enough now to see colors, and Nathan was in a deep crimson pool. He reached down to what was left of his leg, his heart pounding as he saw the torn flesh.
‘Got to get to shore.’ He struggled to pull himself on top of the board and paddle toward the beach as another wave crashed over him. He came up gasping. Every second was crucial. With every ounce of strength he had, he hauled his body on his board, focusing on the back of his SUV. Nathan stroked his arms toward shore.
He saw a fin, then another. His heart pounded in his chest.
‘Don’t panic, just swim.’ He swallowed hard. No! He couldn’t go out like this! He survived combat. He survived twelve firestorms, sniper’s bullets, and landmines.
He had to make it to shore.
Left, right. He was losing strength.
Left, Right. Left, right. He felt weak and cold. Nate could barely move his arms. Another wave, he clasped tightly to the board, just a little further. He forced himself forward.
Left, right . . . blackness overtook Nathan Fletcher.