Resting Amid the Coral Spines

A cluster of calcified pale coral branches rose from the dark sand, forming a rigid cradle just wide enough for my frame. I glided slow and steady along its perimeter, checking each jutting spine with measured patience. When the night current paused, I aligned my body and eased between two sturdy uprights until my flank pressed securely against the petrified ridges. A tiny, luminous speck of plankton drifted past my snout, caught momentarily in the calm vortex behind my flipper. I rested there, perfectly braced against the slow tidal pull.