CHAPTER NINE:
At first, everything felt perfect.
Zack was back, and the night was filled with heat, laughter, and whispered promises. Vanessa found herself smiling at work, her colleagues noticing the glow in her cheeks. The separation had made their reunion intoxicating, every moment together carrying the sweetness of something hard-earned.
But soon, reality crept in.
Zack was restless on land. While Vanessa thrived on her steady hours at the dockyard, Zack struggled with stillness. He paced, grew impatient, and spoke often of the sea, his words carrying a longing she couldn't ignore.
One evening, over dinner at her apartment, it spilled over.
"You're already thinking about leaving again, aren't you?" Vanessa asked, setting her fork down.
Zack frowned. "It's not like that."
"Then what is it like, Zack? Because I can see it in your eyes. The harbor call, and you'll go. And I'll be here waiting, wondering if this is all we'll ever be, me waiting, you leaving."
He leaned back, his jaw tightening. "Sailing isn't something I can just turn off, Vanessa. It's my life."
"And what am I?" she snapped. The question cut the air between them, raw and trembling. "A pause between voyages? A warm bed until the sea calls you again?"
His eyes flashed, hurt and anger tangled together. "Don't you dare think you mean that little to me."
Then prove it, she said, her voice breaking. "Prove I'm more than just another port."
The silence that followed was heavier than any storm. Zack stood, running a hand through his hair, frustration written across his face. For the first time, he looked lost.
"I don't know how to be anything else." He admitted. "The sea made me who I am."
"And I don't know how to love a man who's always halfway gone," Vanessa whispered.
Neither spoke after that. He left shortly after, the slam of the door echoing through the quiet apartment. Vanessa sat alone at the table, her chest tight, wondering if love as wild as theirs could ever be tamed into something that lasted.