The small child wraps her stubby arms tighter around her grandfather, snuggling closer against the warmth of his body. A briny, ocean breeze flits through her chestnut hair, filling the old man’s nose with her summery scent. His open face, creased with thousands of wrinkles that make hollow gorges in his cheeks, breaks into a smile. This causes his warm features to crinkle, from his soft blue eyes to the edges of his paper-thin lips. Each moment with this child, Annah, precious and valuable, makes the old man happy beyond compare. The past five years had gone by fast----too fast for his liking. The treasure within his arms, his sweet little granddaughter, had no replacement. A special section of his heart stayed full with her love, an emotion he had missed dearly after his wife passed away, seven years ago. The empty, desolate two years before Annah’s birth had taken their toll, for this man had almost forgotten the value of family and loved ones in that time.

            Now, nestled back against the rickety, white porch swing, he need not worry, nor remember, those lonely days. Now, not one person mattered more than Annah, beloved and delicate beside him, resting, watching sea gulls swoop across the open sky, their melodic calls echoing against the high banks of the white sand beach. The prominent promise that another day has come and gone slowly sinks down the spotted horizon. The vibrantly scarlet circle slowly makes its way to the water, lovingly saying goodbye to the sky by sending it pink, orange, and purple clouds streaked across the darkening blue.

            Silvery gray, streaked with incandescent lines marking crests of waves, the ocean shines in its beauty before them. Life bubbles beneath the surf, underneath the glassy reflection of the sky, some creatures going to sleep while others awake. “The only piece unchanged throughout the entire history of the earth,” he describes it, gazing down upon his “little one”. She mumbles incoherently against his chest, but he knows she caught his double meaning. Even in her youth, Annah understands most of her grandfather’s intelligent speech, ever since he had become the only adult figure in her life. Like her grandmother, her parents had died in a hurricane that flooded this very spot next to the vast sea. It had occurred on Annah’s third week of life.

            “Tell a story,” Annah murmurs, tucking one of the many wild strands of honey-tinted hair behind her ear. Shocking sapphire eyes blink up at Grandfather, dark eyelashes pleading with their feathery movements. Grandfather cannot resist such an endearing face; Annah sees her victory, clapping and giggling with sugar-coated mirth, breaking the silence of the evening. Complete joy spreads across her face with a full-fledge grin that Grandfather cannot help but return, the excitement mirrored in his own gleeful expression.

            “Once upon a time . . .” he begins as Annah snuggles close, burrowing farther into the nook of his arm, ready for story time. Amusement flickers across the old man’s wizened face, in awe at her apparent love for his silly, made-on-the-spot productions. “A bright orange, delightful giraffe lived in Africa, the land of hot days and cool nights, of foreign, grassland animals, and the bright, red sun. Its glow spread across the entire lot, warming the long neck of the giraffe. He loved this best.” Annah sighs, a lovely sound, and relaxes, her little mouth opening in a pink “O.” Perfect timing. Grandfather, not sure exactly how the story would continue, makes the plot run short when he notices her weakness. “Every day and every evening, the bright-colored giraffe would sing his favorite tune to the fiery sun, and it went like this.” He begins humming an ancient folk-tale song from his own childhood, rhythmically putting his little one to sleep. “Dum, dum, dee dum, doh, dum, dum, dee dum.” Her chubby little chin droops, curls bouncing, the soft cadence of her breathing in sync with the melody, lulling Grandfather into his own stupor.

            The setting sun kisses the ocean goodnight before disappearing along the horizon, one last beam of crimson light illuminating the grandfather and grandchild, heads slanted toward one another, calm in their slumber, sharing the day’s last moment of intimacy with a companion.

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