ZZZMMM Illustrations - страница 2
The dolphins paid no mind to their audience. They were busy hunting. Around them, schools of tiny fish darted like sparks in sunlight – plunging deep, leaping clear of the water, startling swimmers. For these fish, the world had become a frantic dance of survival, every moment potentially their last.
Then, as if wiped away by a hand, Anna’s drowsiness vanished. She, who had always dreamed of seeing dolphins, realized she’d missed the most thrilling moment.
"What now?" flashed through her mind.
Her heart pounded against her ribs, its pulse throbbing in her left temple as her legs carried her after the retreating pod. She barely noticed scrambling over a rocky outcrop until she found herself on a ledge overlooking a picturesque lagoon. The dolphins had used it masterfully – herding fish into this natural trap before feasting. Their ingenuity was breathtaking. Then, as suddenly as they’d appeared, they were gone.
Anna inhaled deeply, as if trying to hold the fading magic inside, and turned slowly toward her belongings. That’s when she saw him: a young man sitting in a crevice on the same ledge, still gazing at the now-empty stage where nature’s drama had unfolded.
The intrusion of a stranger during such a private moment struck her like a slap. The indignant words "Aren’t you ashamed to spy?!" nearly escaped her lips – until she understood. He’d been there all along. She’d missed him entirely, her eyes fixed seaward, chasing dolphins.
The lagoon was encircled by steep, inaccessible cliffs, which explained both the absence of other people and the strange stillness of the air.
"How did you get here?" Anna asked the young man, who had risen to his feet. She felt a flutter of embarrassment – he was taller than she’d expected.
"Same way you did," he said, almost apologetically, gesturing toward a narrow crevice in the rock. "It’s hidden – you can’t see it from the beach, or even up close. I’ve been coming here for a week, escaping the crowds. Seems no one else knows about it. And the dolphins…" He spoke quickly, as if afraid he’d be interrupted. "They arrive like clockwork, same time every day. Like they’ve got some built-in chronometer."
They stared at each other, the silence teetering on awkward – then suddenly, they laughed.
"Misha,"