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CHAPTER ONE — THE BOY WHO DID CLIFF DIVING
( PRESENT TIME. JANUARY, 2006 )
TO EXPLAIN CLAIRE'S NEWTON STORY WAS AN EASY THING. It hadn't actually started the day she met Fred, but the day her father advised her to take Phillip for a walk as he seemed to be especially anxious for a puppy inside their brand new house. Her mother suggested to go to First Beach, in La Push, and it was then when it became one of Claire's favorite places to visit and everything changed. The sky was blue as Mike's eyes, and the ocean waves were of the same color of her very own eyes, according to their mother. She called them blue sky and blue ocean respectively, causing their father to laugh with Mike's objection for it and Claire's giggles.
Phillip was happy to be there too, running through the sand and making Claire to run after him to catch him. He was the one who helped her to discover it, the enormous treasure that La Push kept, buried in the sand. An army of seashells, all of diverse forms and so different and unique that Claire had to call Mike in order to take the biggest amount she could. Her brother accepted, reluctantly, as he had preferred to continue playing in the water but Claire had asked him for the favor so gently that he couldn't resist.
"Why don't you just take those?" he had asked, making a gesture to the ones they already held. "They look enough for me."
"I need more" Claire stated, smiling. "How would I recreate the beach with such a small amount?"
"Recreate the beach?" Mike said with concern. His pretty blue eyes were opened in confusion. "How are you even supposed to do that?"
She shrugged. "I'll figure it out."
"Why are you even doing this?" Mike continued his questions. His blonde hair felt wet in his forehead, leaving a trail of water.
"I like it here" she answered, softly. "I want to take it to our home or stay living here, but I know it's not possible, so I'm trying to take a small piece with me."
Mike looked at her in astonishment. She was not sure if he was going to snot in any minute.
He didn't.
"You're so weird, Claire." Was all he muttered, but he helped her until she announced that they were done.
It was her mother who had the great idea of using an old jar they had in their house when nine years old Claire explained her plans. She couldn't put water in there, but sand and the seashells. Claire decorated the jar too, with some ribbons she found, and after a while it was done. She gifted it to her mother, and since then she hadn't stopped doing them. Mike got one for his first birthday in Forks too, so her father and her mother again. Mr. Stark, the middle-age man professor who gave her extra classes almost every day, received a pretty jar with a brown lace when their first week together had passed and Claire was glad for his kindness and patient.
