I was walking along the shore when I saw her. She stood facing the sea, ribbons of her raven black hair being tossed every which way by the wind. Her shoulders were hunched, as though she were nestling something very close to her chest.

I longed to call out to her, but she did not yet realize I was there. We had both drifted away from the rest of our group, the others laughing and carrying on at the other side of the beach. Somehow my steps had found their way here, near her.

I stood rooted to the spot, just watching her. It made me sad that she did not feel my presence. I always knew somehow when she entered a room, even before my eyes found her. She carried a certain vitality within her, something that reached out to you even before her step sounded in the hall.

Suddenly, she turned around, her brilliant eyes shining in the moonlight. There was a question in her eyes. I stepped forward to answer it.