Amber Writz

Girl of the beach

okay, l just want to say that this story is really weird - it came to me one day as l was staring blankly at this photograph of this girl jumping off a cliff. Hope you like it.

That was when l saw her.
The wind tugged viciously at her hair as she plummeted down the cliff, feet first. Her arms were spread out wide, as if she could flap her hands and fly away. She was facing towards the sea so l couldn’t see her face.
Was she crazy? Was it suicide?
Having lived here for all my life, l know everywhere like the back of my palm, including the beach and from what l know, the grassy cliff that she just jumped off was more than five metres high – she could get seriously hurt.
The thud that l had been awaiting for soon came. Swiftly, l arose from my hiding place in the damp caves and into the blaring light of the outside world. I shielded my eyes from the sun for a few moments as going from darkness to light made me somewhat disorientated.
It was only when l clambered over a large rock half submerged in sand did l see her properly. She was lying in the sand, arms crossed. I saw her chest go up and down and the fact that she was still alive shocked me. Her amber locks were spread out over her face, covering an eye. Lips were curved in unmistakeable glee and looking into her other azure coloured eye, l saw no glint of madness l usually saw in insane people. She seemed conscious and it was as if time itself had frozen in place. She was alive and she saw me, l was sure, yet she made no move to speak.
I was afraid. What was l suppose to do? She was obviously still alive but was she hurt?
I guess l knew what l had to do all along. Before l could stop myself, my mouth stretched open and l whispered, “Are you okay?”
Abruptly, she sat up and started laughing. Startled, thinking she was perhaps mad, l shifted backwards into a small rock which resulted in me falling hard against another. Darkness surrounded me and that time it wasn’t because l was in the caves.

I awoke to see a girl of sixteen years peering curiously at me. I yelled out in fright, only to make her burst into laughter. Slowly, my memory returned. I remembered hiding in the cave from my squirt brother, Stephen. I remembered being bored, shivering due to cold air that whispered before my face. I then remembered the girl. The person who was in front of me… that was her!
The impact of what had occurred came to me sluggishly. When the full force hit me, l yelped and got up, ignoring the dull throbbing of my head which came from the fall. I went to the laughing girl’s side and clutched at her arm. I guess any people who passed would’ve thought this sight was strange as l was but a girl of 13 but my instincts came first. They always had.
The girl stopped her outburst and looked down out me, her grin still printed on her face. She seemed amused at the sight of me, a scrawny mouse haired girl grabbing her arm. I was however, was far from amused.
“Hi, my name is Ella. Ella Hajery”
The simplicity and innocence of that sentence made me baffled. If l were to do that at someone else her age, they would just shrug me off or get irritated and start yelling at me. Never once had anyone introduced themselves to me like that and the only time that had ever happened was when l was only seven years old.
She cocked her head, waiting for my answer.
“Mine’s Alison.” I mumbled.
“That’s a nice name.” She said. “Do you live around here?”
“Yes, just around the corner.”
“That’s nice.” She reached out her hand and suddenly touched my face to smooth back some of my wild hair. The touch was cold, as if she had just dunked it in a bucket of freezing water. It sent shivers down my spine. I flinched. Ella quickly withdrew her hand. Her face was a complex mixture of hurt and sadness. There was also some hint of a hidden emotion.
“I live, or l used to.” She seemed liked she was talking to herself.
Curious, l inquired, “Did you move?”
“Yeah. I did.”
She lifted her head to look at the sea. It was a beautiful greenish blue at this time of day that glimmered like the scales of fish in the rays of the sun. It was a vast lovely creature, a creature that l loved, a creature that was also deadly. The waves crashed noisily on the rocks a few metres a head of us, splashing us with little crystals of water every now and then. A breeze picked up and touched tenderly at our faces, playing with our hair. And so we stood there for a few seconds, a minute, an hour. I didn’t know how long but l was willing to stand there till night and just gaze at the stunning scene and soak it into our memories.
There was something, however, tugging in my mind. It was then did l remember the vision of her falling. It troubled me deeply like a mosquito bite that wouldn’t disappear. It was a question and it could be only answered by her. “Why did you do that?”
She smiled, ever so sweetly. “Do what?”
I then debated within myself whether to tell her or not. She seemed so light and carefree. Would this question disturb that world of hers? Curiosity is sometimes a ruthless and cold being and it drove me into saying, “Why did you jump off the cliff?”
At the mention of that her face became solemn. Immediately l wished that l had taken back that question. Her lips went tight. Her eyes became stony. I had intruded upon something private and she didn’t want to talk about it.
My curiosity overwhelmed me, that and my concern for her. “You could’ve killed yourself!” I cried, waving my hands around. I must have looked like a lunatic as her face grew softer but her eyes were still granite like.
“I don’t want to talk about it.” She said quietly and looked down. Her body was trembling and her anger seemed replaced by fear. I was shocked. It looked like she was going to have a fit! “Go.” she choked, her voice thick with emotions. “Go!”
I was frightened, terrified by her quick change of emotions but l was scared more of the fear her voice held, as if the grim reaper had come to claim her for his collection of dead souls. With one last look at her l bolted across the sand. I scraped my legs amongst rocks a few times but l was death to the pain, the sounds of the waves reaching the shore and the salty smell of the sea.
When l arrived in her sight, my mum took one look at the state l was in and ran towards me, anxiety present on every corner and space on her face. She hugged me, mushing my hair with her hands. Usually l would’ve pushed her gently way as l thought hugs were a bit babyish but this time, l welcomed them. My mum let got of me and looked sternly into my hazel eyes. “Where were you!” she exclaimed. “You’ve been gone for hours and what’s this? Why are you shaking?”
I did my best to look happy. I didn’t want to tell my mum about the girl, at least, not yet. I put on a fake smile. “I was hiding from Stephen; you know, hide and seek. It was quite cold in there so l got well…cold.”
“Stephen gave up the search for you ages ago.” She said, inclining her head towards the figure of my twin brother with his unruly dark hair and blue eyes. “Come on, let’s go home. You ‘re still shivering.”
I was, and it wasn’t because of the cold.
The next day l spent all my time looking for a girl named Ella Hajery. I even went back to that cliff place to see if she was still there but she wasn’t. I roamed the streets, calling out her name and going practically everywhere yet still l couldn’t find her. The weird thing was people kept on staring at me strangely. I ignored their glances and continued my search.
I then had to resort to asking people. This wasn’t exactly my most favourite thing to do as I’m not a very social person. That’s why l left it till last. Lots of people kept on looking at me sadly when l mentioned her name or walk even faster away from me. They knew something l didn’t.
I finally got an answer out of this guy in this coffee shop. Instead of giving me looks he gave me the real deal. He gave me information.
It was a sad story. It turned out that Ella Hajery was like the centre of attention in this town. She grew up in it as l did and she was considered the politest and loveliest person anyone could ever meet. Every time she would go to a shop she would gift people with presents and smiles. Everyone liked her, no loved her. She was called heaven’s gift.
But then, she was brutally murdered. Thirteen years ago. No one knew who killed her and she certainty didn’t commit suicide as a witness saw her cornered on a cliff with a silhouetted person. All they found was her body that was hideously butchered and an unmistakeable grin on her face.
Every year on the day of her death, people have rumoured that they have seen a ghost of her repeating her death every time on the top of the cliff. The man, Douglas McCreed had shaken his head when he said this and added. “It’s all just rumoured of course. Stories to scare children.” Yet when l looked at his eyes, they were restless and heart-broken. It was no rumour, that story about the ghost. It was real, and l saw it. I quickly thanked him and walked. I was miserable, depressed. In those few moments l had with her, l had come to love her like everyone else did.
My legs seemed to have their own mind as they took me somewhere, away from the town and onto…… the beach…and they didn’t stop there. I knew where they were taking me the moment l got onto the crusty sand. I ambled across the rocks and climbed over some. It was tiresome, but my legs were as if they were possessed so l couldn’t stop to rest. I couldn’t even run away. Like it or not, l had to go to the place, the place where l met her.
I had a hope. A tiny little glimmer of hope that she would be there. But when l came in view of the place she wasn’t. Sighing, l perched on a large rock and looked at the sea. Without meaning too, the sight of the beauty made me say my thoughts aloud. “I wish you were here Ella.”
A Sudden gust of wind picked up and l sat up straight, expecting something. Yet again, my hopes were brought down. It was only when l slumped back down did l hear something. Was is a cry? Was it laughter? I then knew that Ella was always here. She was the wind, the sea, the sand, the rocks. She was everything.