The bottle rolled onto the beach, waves pushing it further ashore. High tide receded as fast as it came, leaving remnants and the bottle behind. Crusted over with barnacles and coquinas, the bottle waited to be found in the powder.

A lone woman strolled along at sunrise enjoying the quiet morning and the birds. The sea left a smattering of treasures for her to comb through as the beach came to life.

She paused as she saw the familiar shape reminiscent of an olden bottle of rum. She scooped up her treasure from the depths, brown glass and aged to a dull patina, and she admired it.

She settled on a nearby fallen palm, and inspected the bottle further. She noticed a cork tightly wedge in its mouth.

Could it be the ubiquitous message in a bottle?

Gently she pried it open and looked inside. A parchment rolled up and a couple coins were stowed inside. She tilted the bottle and pulled out the parchment.

In shaky calligraphy, the note read:

To the sea I cast my wish,

With a letter and two six-pence,

One day my true love, let her find,

And bring my face to her mind,

See me in this life or the next.

And do not let our love be vexed.

Forever more yours,

The last line had blurred, making the name unrecognizable. The woman smiled to herself.

What a find, indeed!

She stood up and gently placed her find in a tote. She looked forward to discovering more from her treasure’s history.

Suzy woke to the sound of her phone’s alarm. She looked over, expecting to see Steve, but he was long gone.

She sat up and sighed, then looked around her suite from the bed, then reached to pick up her phone. As she did, she saw a note on the dresser.

Dear Suzy,

Tonight’s my last night here. I hope you can join me for dinner downstairs just before sunset.

See you then,

Steve

Suzy smiled to herself. Of course she’d have dinner with him.

Just as she laid the note down, a knock pounded from the door. She jumped from the bed, startled, and grabbed her robe as the rapping continued.

She hollered out, “Just a minute!”

The knocking stopped as she opened the door. Mark pushed into her room. “Is he here?”

Suzy looked at Mark with a glare. “What do you think you are doing?” She growled at him. “Get out!”

Mark, satisfied Steve wasn’t in the room, walked back to her. “You need to watch what you’re doing.”

Suzy pointed to the door. “Out!”

Mark stormed out of her room. She locked the door behind him, then broke down. When will he let go? she thought to herself.

After a few minutes, she gathered herself and started getting ready for the day. It was going to be a long day at this rate. At least she had the evening to look forward to.

The team was gathered around. Mark was mysteriously missing. Suzy was relieved she was getting a brief breather from him.

Melissa looked up with an odd look on her face. “Mark bowed out; said something came up. Are we ready to head up the coast?” Her tone was flat and the team looked tense.

Suzy shook her head along with the rest of the team. They piled into the two vehicles and drove to an expansive stretch of beach dotted with boulders and steep cliffs.

The beach was not too crowded so the team set out to get filler footage and photographs. Suzy pulled out a collapsible chair and sat down, working on a script. Words were not coming to her, so she paused and stared at the ocean.

“Hey! Earth to Sooz!” Melissa waved her hand in front of Suzy’s face. “You in there?”

Suzy jumped then shook her head. “Yeah, just having a time with this.”

“Mark got to you this morning, didn’t he?” Melissa stated. “I told him not to go; he wouldn’t listen.”

Suzy closed her tablet and looked at Melissa. “He needs to stop. This is the last job I will work with him on. Why does he feel he needs to oversee all the women? It’s not like we ever had any kind of relationship or anything,” she rambled.

Melissa gently laid her hand on Suzy’s arm, “He’s protective…and you remind him too much of his own daughter.”

Suzy shrugged her shoulders in resignation. “But, I’m not…” and her voice trailed off.

A little girl played among the wildflowers on the hill by the sea. Dressed in a white babydoll dress and black patent leather shoes, she looked fresh from church in her Sunday best. Her brown curly hair floated on the onshore winds. Her smile brightened up the area and her giggle was light and infectious as butterflies floated around her head.

On the lane, coming down the hill, rode a young boy on his bicycle. He wore an old tam hat, a white buttoned down shirt, and blue broadcloth pants. His blue eyes sparkled in the sun. He lifted his legs from the pedals as the bike gained speed down the slope. And hollered, “Wheeee!”

The little girl looked up just in time to see the boy’s bike catch on a rock. The boy desperately held on, trying to remain in control. The little girl jumped up and started to run as the bike barreled toward her.

The boy finally found his brakes and squealed to a stop. “Whew! That was close!” And he let out a chuckle.

The girl walked back to where she had been seated, right where the boy stopped, and looked at the ground. A small flower pile sat mere inches from his front tire.

“That was close! At least my flowers weren’t crushed!”

They both surveyed the spot, then the boy piped up. “Whatcha’ you doin’ with those flowers?”

She sat back down in the grass. “Oh, making my crown!” Then, she giggled. “No princess is complete without her crown.”

The boy scoffed. “Princesses are blond, blue-eyed, and boooorrring.” He waved his hand in the air.

“No they’re not! Take that back!” Her brown eyes looked sad as she crossed her arms. Her scowl made the boy stand back. “They are strong, beautiful, and can kick your butt!” Then she stuck her tongue out at him.

The boy smirked and realized how cute this little brown-haired girl looked. “Well then! You must be a princess.”

The little girl stopped and then blushed.

The boy continued, “Can I be your prince?”

A little flustered, the girl didn’t know what to say at first. She thought for a moment. “Well, you’ll need a crown…” and she motioned to the ground for him to take a seat.

The boy jumped off his bike, letting it fall into the grass, and joined her there, among the wildflowers on the hill by the sea.