Six Days to the Sea

Ines is eleven. She has never seen the sea. Her grandfather Matteo is seventy-three. "I will show you the sea," he says. They ride an old bicycle with two seats. The way is long. It rains. A tire goes flat. Matteo's knee hurts, but Ines pedals for both. On the sixth day she hears a sound like a big breath. "Listen, Grandpa!" They see the sea. "I have never seen it either," says Matteo. They laugh.