Ocean Spirits

By Rei Rosenquist

Kai means "ocean," but Kai hates the sea. No one talks about why. But, the mystery floats just below the surface of Kai's life. A sneaker wave. A coast guard's report. And years of silence. When faced with the ocean again, will the truth come floating to the surface? And if so, what form will it take?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Rei Rosenquist
• Release date: Aug 13, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223179160

Rei Rosenquist

Rei Rosenquist first remembers life as seen out the high window of a hotel balcony. Down below is a courtyard, swarms of brightly dressed tourists, the beach. The memory is nothing but a blue-green washed image. Warmth and sunlight. Here, they are three years old, and this is the beginning of a nomadic story-teller’s life. Over the years, they have traveled to many countries, engaged many peoples, picked up new habits, and learned new languages. But, some things never change. For them, these are stories, food service, and traveling. These three passions have bloomed from hobbies, studies, and jobs into a way of life. These days, Rei can be found in between Tokyo, Kailua, and Bellingham, Washington pouring beautiful latte art, baking off a batch of famous savory scones, and cozying up with a laptop to obsessively write mountains of dark speculative fiction. You can find Rei’s stories and blog at reirosenquist.com. You can also reach them via email at [e-mail] or connect via Facebook (Rei Rosenquist), Twitter (rylrosenquist) and Instagram (rylrosenquist).

Book preview

Ocean Spirits

Ocean Spirits

A SHORT FANTASY STORY

REI ROSENQUIST

Weathered Ocean Feathered Sky Press

Copyright © 2023 by Rei Rosenquist

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

Contents

Why

When

How

About the Author

Also by Rei Rosenquist

Why

My name is Kai, which means ocean in the Hawai'ian language.

The single most important thing anyone need know about me is that I am not Hawai'ian.

The second most important thing is that I hate the ocean.

My preposterously pretentious father, a computer engineer from Cal Poly in Southern California, moved to Hawai'i at twenty on contract with the military. My slightly less preposterous but still pretentious second father was a traveling nurse, graduated from UCLA and moved to Hawai'i when he was eighteen to live in paradise. The two of them met on the last beach on the west side of O'ahu called the Waianae coast by tourists and Yokohamas by locals.

One year later, my parents got married on the same beach. Sixteen years after that, my dad ran off with a big hairy rich white sailor from California who owned a big hairy rich white yacht that sailed him away from the islands in big hairy rich white style. After the divorce, my second dad (mom at the time) came out as a trans-man and did his best raising me.

It was a rough road for both of us.

I try not to hold stuff against Dad One. I try not to blame Dad Two for my problems. But, I do hold my name against both of them. It’s so cliche. Oh, and, I most certainly blame them for