The school ground buzzed with the kind of chaos that only comes once a year. Parents double-parked along the narrow drive, their sedans and SUVs gleaming in the afternoon sun. Kids hauled duffel bags and called out goodbyes, promising to stay in touch over the summer. Teachers stood by the gates with clipboards, checking names off lists.
Then the Tata pickup rolled in.
It wasn't the vehicle itself that drew attention. Plenty of parents drove older cars. It was the way it coughed black smoke as it lurched to a stop, the rust eating through the wheel wells, the passenger door that didn't quite close right. A few mothers glanced over, then quickly looked away. A couple of fathers smirked.
Inside the cab, Anna pressed her palm against her forehead like she could block out the entire scene. "Look at them staring. We should've rented something. Just for today."
Alfred kept both hands on the wheel even though the engine was off. "We don't have money to throw away on what people think. It's the last day anyway. After this, we're done."
"That's not the point."
"Then what is?"
She didn't answer. Just pushed the door open and stepped out onto the gravel.
Thomas was waiting by the flagpole with his things at his feet. Two bags. That was it. One with clothes, the other stuffed with books, a few plates and cups wrapped in newspaper, some pencils he'd kept from literature class. He saw the truck pull up and felt the familiar twist in his chest, but he smiled anyway. Wide and easy, like none of it mattered.
Anna came around the front of the truck, her sweater hanging loose over a dress that had seen too many washes. Her hair was pulled back tight, a few gray strands catching the light. She looked at Thomas, then past him at the other families loading up their pristine cars.
"Look at you, standing there like everything's fine," she muttered. "I'm going to the office. You two get the bags loaded so we can leave."
"Mom, it's okay. Really."
She ignored him and walked toward the main building, her sandals slapping against the pavement.
Alfred climbed out slower, stretching his back with a grunt. He was thinner than Thomas remembered, his shirt hanging off his shoulders. "She's just tired," he said, reaching for one of the bags. "You know how she gets."
"I know."
They worked in silence for a moment, tossing the bags into the truck bed. Thomas caught a few people looking. Not outright staring, just those quick sideways glances that said enough.
"I really don't care what they think," Thomas said.
"Good. You shouldn't." Alfred tied down the bags with a frayed rope. "But your mom's got a point. Things have been tight. Tighter than usual. You ate through a lot of money here."
"I didn't ask to come here."
"No. We asked. We wanted it." Alfred straightened up and looked at his son. "You're the first one from Vrakos to finish high school. Every other kid goes straight to the boats. We had to do it. Even if it cost us."
Thomas didn't know what to say to that, so he said nothing.
"You're our genius," Alfred added, ruffling Thomas's hair like he was still ten years old.
Thomas pulled away, half smiling. "I'm not a genius. I only did well in swimming because I grew up in the water. And literature classes... everyone says there's few jobs in art studies."
"Then you can fish with me."
"Yeah, and waste all those years." Anna's voice cut in as she returned, a manila folder tucked under her arm. "He'll do what he wants. Art, or whatever. If he's good, it'll work out."
"That's not how it works, Mom."
She climbed into the passenger seat without answering. "Come on, Alfred. Let's go."
Thomas got in the back, squeezing into the narrow bench seat. The door didn't latch right, so Alfred had to slam it twice before it held.
The drive back was long. Over an hour on winding coastal roads, the kind that hugged cliffs and dipped into valleys where the cell signal dropped out. Nobody talked much. Anna stared out the window. Alfred hummed under his breath, some old song Thomas didn't recognize. Thomas watched the trees blur past, the ocean appearing and disappearing between the hills.
When they finally rolled into Vrakos, the sun was starting to dip. The village spread out along the water, a tangle of narrow streets and whitewashed houses with red tile roofs. Fishing nets hung from poles. Boats lined the docks, their paint peeling in the salt air.
And there, outside Thomas's house, a crowd of young kids waited.
"Oh no," Thomas muttered.
"Told you," Anna said.
The truck hadn't even stopped before they swarmed. Mihail, Luca, Stefan, Raina, all of them shouting at once.
"Thomas! You're back!"
"Did you bring anything from the city?"
"Bet you forgot how to dive!"
Thomas climbed out, forcing a grin. "I've been gone a year, not ten."
"Yeah, but city boys go soft," Luca said, crossing his arms. "Tomorrow, will you come with us?"
"Tomorrow," Thomas said. "I just got here. And am not going to the sea with kids."
But they didn't let up. They followed him inside, peppering him with questions about the school, the classes, the other students. Did he have a girlfriend? Did he get in any fights? What's the food like? Do people really dress like that?
It went on for hours. By the time they finally left, the sun had set and Thomas's head was pounding.
Dinner was quiet. Bread, cheese, some leftover fish stew. Anna and Alfred didn't talk much. They looked tired. Thomas went to bed early, climbing the narrow stairs to his old room. It smelled like dust, or maybe he was just used to the better hostels at school. His bed was smaller than he remembered.
He lay there, staring at the ceiling, listening to the waves outside. Tomorrow, he'll show the kids. He was still the village Dolphin. Still the kid who could hold his breath longer than anyone. Still the same Thomas.
He fell asleep there.
***
Morning came with shouting.
"Thomas! Get up!"
Thomas groaned and rolled over. Sunlight streamed through the window. He could hear voices outside, boots on cobblestone.
"Thomas, they're here for you!" Anna called from downstairs.
He dragged himself out of bed and pulled on yesterday's clothes. When he got downstairs, half the village boys were standing in the street.
"Finally," Luca said. "We're going to the rocks. You coming or what?"
"Give me a minute."
"No time. We're leaving now."
Anna shoved a piece of bread into his hand. "Go. Just don't do anything stupid."
Thomas stuffed the bread in his mouth and followed them out.
They walked through the village, past the fish market and the repair docks, down to the southern cliffs where the water ran deep. It was their spot. Always had been. The rocks jutted out over the sea, worn smooth by years of kids jumping and diving.
Luca was already talking. "Bet you can't even hold your breath for a minute anymore. All that soft city living." He was the one closest to Thomas's age atleast.
"I can outlast you any day."
They stripped down to their shorts and lined the edge. Mihail held up a rusted pocket knife. "First one to grab a shell from the bottom wins."
Thomas stepped to the edge. The water below was dark, shifting with the current. Cold. He could already feel it.
The others jumped first, hitting the water with loud slaps. Thomas waited, then dove.
The cold bit into him, sharp and familiar. He opened his eyes. The world turned blue-green, quiet except for the muffled roar of the waves above. He kicked down, deeper, watching the rocks below come into focus. Seaweed swayed. A crab scuttled sideways into a crevice.
There. A scallop shell, wedged between two stones.
He grabbed it and kicked back up, breaking the surface just as the others came up gasping.
"Still got it!" Mihail laughed, slapping the water.
They spent the next hour diving, racing, seeing who could stay under the longest. Thomas won every time. It felt good. Like nothing had changed.
Then Luca pointed out toward the open water. "Let's go past the buoy."
"That's too far," Mihail said.
"You scared?"
"No, but the current—"
Luca was already swimming.
Thomas hesitated, then followed. The others trailed behind, reluctant but not willing to be left out.
The water changed the further they went. The swells grew taller, the surface choppier. Thomas could feel the current now, pulling at his legs, trying to drag him sideways. He looked back. The shore was a thin line.
"Luca, we should turn around," he called.
Luca wasn't listening. He was treading water, looking down. "My uncle said there's a shipwreck out here. We should find it."
"Not today. The current's too strong."
A wave rolled over them, bigger than the rest. Thomas went under, swallowing water. He came up coughing. When he looked around, the others were scattered. Mihail was further back. Luca had drifted left.
"Everyone back to shore!" Thomas yelled.
Another wave. This one pulled him under and held him there, tumbling him like clothes in a wash. He fought his way up, lungs burning.
When he surfaced, he was alone.
"Mihail! Luca!"
Nothing. Just the sound of the waves.
He spun in the water, searching. The shore was barely visible now, a hazy smudge on the horizon. The current had dragged him out, and it wasn't letting go.
Panic crept in, cold and sharp. He forced it down. Breathe. Think.
He started swimming back, pulling hard with each stroke. But the water fought him. Every meter forward felt like two back. His arms burned. His legs cramped.
He kept going.
Minutes passed. Or maybe it was longer. He couldn't tell anymore. The shore wasn't getting closer. His strokes were getting weaker. This part isn't familiar.
Then he saw it.
An island. Or something like one. A dark shape rising from the water, maybe two hundred meters away. Rocks. Trees. Land.
He didn't think. Just swam.
Every stroke was agony. His muscles screamed. His lungs felt like they were full of glass. But the island got closer. Meter by meter.
When his feet finally touched sand, he collapsed. He crawled forward, up the beach, saltwater pouring from his mouth. His vision blurred. The sky above was too bright, spinning.
He tried to stand. His legs buckled.
The last thing he saw was the tree line ahead, thick and tangled, wrong somehow. The trees were too tall, their bark too dark. Nothing like the scrub pines around Vrakos.
Then everything went black.