A Calm Storm

An impending storm hovers over the beach. Rain-laden clouds kiss the earth while people scamper away with their belongings. A forbidding shadow chokes the last bit of music and laughter that resonate across the deserted beach. As the muffled birds scurry away, a subdued light from the demolished streetlights and lanterns streaks through the thunderous clouds that roll across like slithering snakes eyeing their prey. Transient footsteps and fleeting sandcastles surrounded with moats are now swept away with the ebbing waves.

An infuriated wind mocks and thrusts away the rubbish. Desperate, people refuge in cars, hoping for the storm to die down. Rebelliously, the windscreen wipers defy the torrential rain. Waves roar towards the beach, displacing the sand as they thrash around. Shooting upwards, the plummeting waves spritz the forlorn cafeterias and shops. Yachts undulate with the ripples; they are like an aerialist precariously perched on an icy rope, threatening to slip any moment.

As the trees succumb to the sawing winds, the pier struggles against the waves that seek to submerge it. The birds, usually the masters of their journey, now screech horrifically as they fight against the predator that chokes them relishing. The sky is now blotched with a ghastly indigo that seeps through like an ink blot, perpetually darkening like a fire encroaching through bleached logs. The wrathful clouds growl; the severe weather renders the streets lifeless as the booming thunder reverberates on the desolate beach. 

The briny stench of seaweed encompasses the stale smell of chips and candy floss. The sand storm circles the wind as lightning forks down to strike a boat, like a kingfisher gliding down to capture its prey. As the waves swiftly drown the debris, a wisp of smoke puffs away with the wind. The agonizing weather, while it toys with the seagulls, washes up carcasses of fishes on the shore. Around the grooves in rocks and under the doors, the icy wind wails as it trespasses into the warm houses. Shells crack under the colossal pressure of the swelling waves. Fending for itself, the lighthouse now stands alone on the cliff, its light wasted on the empty sea… the viciousness of the sea scares people away.

The rain drowns down the quieting rumble of thunder. Shining rays of the sun clear away the shadow from the sea. Pebbles stampede as the wind still clutches the sea. Tree roots finally relax after an exhausting battle as birds soar in the sky. Brewing coffee tantalizingly subdued the briny scent as a final shower sprays the coast. Waves gently mist up in the breeze as they press against the sea wall. The shoreline shimmered again as the sun finally peeked out from behind the clouds. Cacophony of laughter and fair-ground melodies once again echoed through the beach as the fares buzz with life.