The night air lifts softly, then settles on their skin. They are sitting on the small island of rock at the end of the beach, arms close together, her hand a warm shell on his. In front of them the sea glints darkly.

Her attention shifts. She separates from him, moves forward. Silently she eases herself in, disappears.

She resurfaces, in a long steady sigh of outgoing breath, her head dark and sleek.

He is still hovering on the edge. It is her world, her element.

‘Are you waiting for an introduction?’ she teases. ‘The sea isn’t polite. Just come in.’

He takes a breath, steps into the shock of liquid cold. The sea swarms all over him. It is alive. He can feel it sliding through his hair, his ears, pressing for entry into his nose and mouth. It leaves no part of him unexamined. Then, release. He closes his eyes, succumbs to the gentle rhythms. He has dreamed of this.

‘Did you see?’

‘What?’

‘The sea lanterns. Move your arms.’

From beneath the surface come thousands of pinpoints of light, showers of firef lies.

He is laughing, euphoric, invigorated. He is here with her, in the sea. They make patterns with their limbs, playing with streams of phosphorescence, bringing it into being. Every time their bodies move, light follows them. He wants it never to end.