Waves

I was staying at a hotel on the coast with my brother, his wife and my girlfriend. The hotel's entrance to the beach opened on a long corridor of sand with tall beach grass on either side. At the end of this corridor, right where the beach starts, a tall dark wall of rock stretched as far as the eye could see into the sky. This wall went along the edge of the beach for about 100 feet before turning at a right angle on both sides and running straight out into the ocean. The only entrance or exit to this enclosure was through a very small door which the hotel corridor led to.

We all went to the beach for the day and I started to dig a hole in the sand. We were all laughing and talking and the beach enclosure was filled with other people, all enjoying the day. After a while though, the sky grew dark and the waves increased in strength. Within just a few minutes, the tide had come up and the waves were pushing us back towards the enclosure wall. People began to panic and get as close to the wall as possible, but it seemed like most of them were not aware of the door. Maybe too panicked to think clearly.

We ran back to the wall with everyone, but we had been in the middle of the enclosure, so the door was directly in front of us. The waves were incredibly high, at least 100 feet, and they were smashing down not far from where we were. People were crying and clutching each other, scrambling at the wall in a desperate attempt to climb it.

I knew that not everyone would get out of there, so I stayed at the door and started yelling over the noise at the people to the left of the door. I screamed at them to come with me, waving them towards the door and shouting that they needed to get out as quickly as possible. A few people looked at me, horror plastered on their faces and started to head towards the door. Most of them were too panicked to think.

I shouted over to my brother to do the same with the people on the right side of the door. We started ushering people towards the door together. The more people who listened and stopped panicking, the easier it was until only a few people were left, most of them clustered at the far ends of the wall. The waves had increased in strength and proximity until now they were staying put, feet from us. We were all drenched and tired. My girlfriend and my brother's wife were no where to be seen; they'd been the first couple that we'd pushed through the doors.

All at once, the tide drew away from us and the sky began to lighten.



Everything faded away and now I was at my apartment with my girlfriend. Instead of the apartments opening onto the main hallway with closed doors, now there were glass storefronts. The apartment next to ours had been renovated into an open bar, with a counter facing right out into the hallway. As I walked by, the man who lived there was polishing a mug with a towel over his shoulder. He smiled as I passed.

Our apartment door was glass, with big store windows on either side. The rest of the apartment was the same as in reality, but the first room was now a store, with counters and tables piled high with containers of cookies, candies and cakes. We'd lived there for a few months already and had already looked around at everything. We had assumed the food was all fake, just there for show until we bought enough real food to open the shop.

As I walked in the door, I saw the shop room and decided to go in a have a look, seeing as I hadn't been inside it since we'd moved in. There was a lot of color, just as you'd imagine a candy store, and a pie counter was near the door. I moved over to it and picked up a fake cookie. As I picked it up, I noticed crumbs falling from it and took a bite. It was real, and very tasty.

Excited, I ate the whole thing and then called my girlfriend to come and look. She screamed out in joy and we both scanned the pie counter, my eyes searching for a chocolate cheesecake.

Looking over at the sour candies, I almost died, saying, "This is just like winning a million dollars!"


With cookie crumbs in the corners of my mouth, a chocolate cheesecake in my hand, I said to my girlfriend, "Remember though, everything in moderation."

I wake up, extremely disappointed and hungry.