Whispers of the Tides

 

The salty breeze curled through the air, carrying the soft crash of waves against the rugged cliffs. Beneath the pale moonlight, the sleepy coastal town of Evermere basked in a silvery glow, its cobblestone streets quiet except for the occasional flicker of lanterns swaying with the wind. It was here, amidst the whispers of the tides and the scent of rain-soaked earth, that Evelyn Sinclair first saw him.

She had returned to Evermere only a few days ago, after nearly a decade away. The town hadn’t changed much—its wooden cottages still clung to the hillside like memories refusing to fade, the harbor still swayed with the rhythm of the sea, and the lighthouse still stood tall, guarding the shore with its solitary glow. But something felt different. Perhaps it was her, or perhaps it was the way her past beckoned to her, like an old song she had tried to forget.

Evelyn stood at the edge of the cliffs, the hem of her dress fluttering around her ankles. She wasn’t sure why she had wandered here tonight. Maybe it was nostalgia. Maybe it was fate. Either way, she wasn’t alone.

A figure stood a few feet away, his back turned toward her, his gaze locked on the horizon where the ocean met the sky. He was tall, broad-shouldered, with a stillness about him that felt both haunting and familiar.

Evelyn’s breath hitched.

She knew that silhouette. She knew the way his hands tucked into his pockets, the way his dark hair ruffled slightly in the wind.

"Adrian?" The name slipped from her lips before she could stop it.

The man stiffened.

Slowly, he turned.

And there he was—Adrian Hawthorne, the boy she had once loved, the boy she had left behind.

His eyes, a deep stormy blue, locked onto hers. A moment stretched between them, heavy with unspoken words, with memories buried beneath time. He looked the same and yet different—his jawline sharper, his features more defined, as if the years had sculpted him into someone new. But his eyes… those eyes were still the same.

For a long second, neither of them spoke.

Then, with a slow, careful voice, he said, "Evelyn."

It was just her name, yet it held a lifetime within it.

She swallowed, suddenly unsure of what to say. She had imagined this moment before—what she would do if she ever saw him again. But in all those scenarios, she had never accounted for the way her heart would race at the sound of his voice, or how the sight of him would make her feel as if she were seventeen again, standing at this very cliff, promising forever.

"You’re back," Adrian said, his voice unreadable.

Evelyn nodded. "For now."

A flicker of something crossed his face—pain, maybe, or hesitation. She wasn’t sure.

"You look…" He trailed off, his gaze lingering on her as if searching for something.

"So do you," she whispered.

A gust of wind rolled through, carrying the scent of the sea. The moment felt fragile, as if one wrong move could shatter whatever existed between them.

"Why are you here?" he asked at last.

Evelyn hesitated. "I—" She exhaled, glancing at the waves below. "I don’t know. I guess I just… needed to see it again."

Adrian watched her, his gaze guarded. "Evermere hasn’t changed."

She smiled faintly. "No. But I have."

Something in his expression shifted, and for a fleeting second, she saw the boy she used to know—the one who once held her hand beneath the lighthouse, who had whispered secrets into the night, who had loved her with all the reckless intensity of youth.

But that was a long time ago.

And Evelyn wasn’t sure if anything could ever be the same again.

The silence between them stretched like the ocean before them—vast, deep, and filled with things left unsaid. The wind carried the scent of salt and longing, stirring something fragile in Evelyn’s chest. She had spent years running from this town, from this moment, yet now that she was here, she wasn’t sure what to do with it.

Adrian hadn’t looked away. His eyes, dark as the stormy waters below, searched her face as if trying to decipher why she had come back after all this time.

“Are you staying long?” His voice was careful, unreadable.

Evelyn hesitated. “I don’t know yet.”

She could have told him the truth—that her return was temporary, that she had no intention of staying in Evermere longer than necessary. But saying it aloud felt cruel, as if she would be dismissing the weight of this moment, of their history.

Adrian nodded slowly. He didn’t press her for more, and she wasn’t sure if that made things better or worse.

A beat passed before she found the courage to ask, “How have you been?”

His lips curled slightly, though it wasn’t quite a smile. “I manage.”

She studied him, the way his hands clenched at his sides, the way his jaw tightened just so. There was something about the way he said those words that made her chest ache.

“You still live here,” she said, more as an observation than a question.

Adrian turned back toward the ocean. “Someone had to.”

Evelyn frowned. “Had to?”

He was quiet for a moment before he spoke again, his voice softer this time. “My father got sick. I stayed to take care of him. After he passed… well, it didn’t make sense to leave.”

A pang of guilt settled in her stomach. She hadn’t known. She had left Evermere without looking back, severing ties with the life she once had—including Adrian.

“I’m sorry,” she murmured.

He let out a slow breath. “It was a long time ago.”

Still, it didn’t make it any less heavy.

Evelyn looked away, staring out at the vastness of the sea. The waves moved in a rhythm that felt familiar, like the beating of a heart she had once known.

“I never thought I’d see you again,” Adrian admitted quietly.

She turned to him then, her eyes searching his. “Did you want to?”

The question lingered between them, a whisper in the wind. Adrian’s gaze darkened, and for a moment, she thought he might say no. But then, he spoke, and his words were something else entirely.

“I don’t know.”

Evelyn swallowed hard. It wasn’t the answer she had expected, but maybe it was the one she deserved. She had left, after all. She had walked away from him, from their love, without looking back.

And yet, standing here now, she felt as though no time had passed at all.

A sudden gust of wind rushed through, and she shivered slightly. Adrian noticed. Without thinking, he shrugged off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders, the warmth of it seeping into her skin.

She looked up at him, startled. “You don’t have to—”

“Old habits,” he murmured, his fingers brushing her arm for the briefest of moments.

Evelyn’s breath caught. How many times had he done this before? On cold nights beneath the lighthouse, on long walks through the cliffs? It was a small thing, but it carried the weight of a thousand memories.

She clutched the jacket tighter around herself. “Thank you.”

Adrian didn’t say anything. He only nodded.

A part of her wanted to ask if he had moved on. If there had been someone else. If he still thought about her the way she had thought about him in the quiet moments between her busy city life. But she didn’t. She wasn’t sure she was ready for the answer.

Instead, she said, “I should go.”

Adrian’s expression didn’t change. “Will I see you again?”

It was a simple question, yet it felt like so much more.

Evelyn hesitated, the weight of the past and present colliding in her chest.

“Maybe,” she whispered.

And with that, she turned and walked away, the warmth of his jacket still wrapped around her like a lingering touch.

She didn’t look back.

But she wanted to.