“Looks like paradise to me,” he said staring out to the horizon.

I looked at him sideways before turning my attention back to the ocean. It was a beautiful day, a perfect blue sky after the threat of rain, palm trees swayed in the breeze that sprayed droplets of saltwater into our faces. I hadn’t caught his name or I didn’t remember it. Didn’t really matter.

“Looks can be deceiving.” I adjusted my hat so the gust of wind wouldn’t blow it away, over the rocks and into the shallows that were sacred, and be lost forever.

He turned towards me as he laughed. “Sometimes.” He wiped his eyes and slapped me on the back as he began walking down the road. “But I still call it Paradise. Let’s go see what else’s along this beach.”

I watched him go, but knew it was useless not to follow. He’d find out soon enough the cost of so-called Paradise. They always did and I then I’d be left looking for another soul who could someday set me free.