The Running Tide

Every night at midnight, the purple clouds came out to dance with the blushing sky. She usually fell asleep before their arrival, but tonight she was out on a date. She loved watching them dance, it made her heart sing. John and his hand in hers, she soon forgot about the nightly occurrence. She turned her attention to her date.

He gave her a kiss when they reached her house. She did not melt under his touch. It seemed to her that it was just his routine. She walked into her dwelling and removed his name from her phone log.

The screen showed the happenings of the city for the day. She was not that interested so she pulled up her calendar. Tomorrow she would go to the new Chai shop and write a review. They were open from 9 am to 8 pm. She had all day to write and earn her income, so she decided to stay up and watch the screen. The screen had several possible movies. Despite all her desires to watch, she fell asleep before the movie was over.

The chai shop was sparse but it seemed to be popular. The walls were decorated, but bare of artwork. She set up her computer and drank her chai. She scanned the menu into her computer. She usually had coffee but this chai was actually better. Her low table was next to pillows on the floor. She loved this. It was like the historical Japanese eating arrangement. She looked around the restaurant. Most people were working. She noticed a young man watching her. She was wondering if he recognized her from her articles. His gaze pulled her from her work. He was good-looking. Her heart jumped, but she didn't know how to approach him and start a conversation. She thought that maybe she should come back at this time tomorrow. He was dressed as a designer, his clothes were bright and inspiring. She looked down at her outfit, she was dressed like a counselor. She never dressed like a writer when she went out on her assignments. She did not want to advertise who she was. She wanted to give a fair review.

She was shocked when that night she looked at the screen and saw who her next potential date was. Of course, she had the option to decline the date. But it was the man from the chai shop. He was the head designer at a furniture design firm. He was a year older than her. Her heart skipped as she pressed the button to accept the date. It would be for an early dinner. She couldn't help but have high expectations. She did not read the complete description of the date. She knew she wanted to go. It would just be a surprise.

The next evening at 6 pm his image appeared on her screen. She checked out his outfit and sighed in relief he was dressed casually. She quickly slipped on sneakers and ran down to the door.

They both smiled when they saw each other. She talked first. "I saw you in the coffee shop. I am not a counselor. I don't know how we got matched, but it was a pleasant surprise." He did not answer but reached over to help her with her sweater. She thanked him and then continued "I didn't read the date description, I just accepted the date. He chuckled, but this time he answered. " Today is a magical evening. It is one of three evenings of the year when the tides run and the clouds shine." He pulled out of his bag, a camera, "I borrowed a camera for you from the design firm" Now it was her turn to be silent. This date sounded too good to be real.

She could actually see the water running. The pictures she took, made the water look like it had folds in it. The glowing clouds also reflected in the water. They radiated light as they glowed. He helped her with the camera setting. The intense light flow from the glowing clouds played games with the camera meter. But finally, she got it.

She was having so much fun that she forgot dinner. " I don't want to leave but I am hungry" He responded " There is a place nearby, we can come back after we eat. You should see how it looks at midnight when the purple clouds glow"

When they returned from dinner they were no longer alone. The news cameras were lined along the water's edge. A few scientists also lined the edge of the water.

At midnight she was in awe. He had to remind her of her camera, she was so busy staring.

Tonight when she reached her front door, she actually wanted a kiss. He did not ask for a good night kiss, instead, he showed her how to copy her photos onto her home screen. There was a button on the camera that transferred them. He also gave her a disc that held the photos so that she could do it manually if she needed. She took his hand and thanked him. He squeezed her hand and told her that he had a good time. Then he left.