CONTEST: "The Keyword of the Week" - The secret of the waterfall

Image from Pixabay

Gino and Albert walked along the path that wound through the trees, the sound of the waterfall in the distance warning them they were close. They had wanted to take this trip for a long time, and Albert had been very insistent. When they finally reached the waterfall, they sat on a rock to admire this natural wonder.

Until Albert looked at Gino with a serious expression, unusual for him. “I have to tell you something, my friend,” he said, “But you have to promise it will stay between us.”

Gino nodded, and his friend continued.

“Last year, when I came here alone… I saw something. Something I can't explain. A figure, in the middle of the waterfall. It looked… human. It looked at me. And then it vanished.”

Gino laughed. “A figure? Like a ghost?”

Albert didn't smile. “I don't know. But since then, every time I dream, I hear the sound of the water. And that figure speaks to me. It says I have to come back.”

Gino turned toward the waterfall. He'd never seen his friend so serious, but perhaps he was playing a prank on him. "Let's go see!" he said, standing up.

Albert stared at him. "I don't know if this is a good idea. I don't feel like it."

Gino insisted, "Let's go see what's wrong. If you're right, then there's nothing to worry about. Otherwise, you'll see it's nothing and you can sleep soundly. But if you're playing a prank on me, I'll make you pay dearly!"

Reluctantly, Albert stood up. They left their backpacks on the ground and dove into the water. It wasn't easy to walk in the fast-flowing water, and at a certain point the bottom became deeper and they had to swim. The two friends reached the waterfall and entered it.

Behind the waterfall was a small cave, which they began to explore. After a few minutes, Gino noticed something: in a crevice were old measuring instruments, pipes, and a rusty metal box.

Albert opened it and found some documents: they were notes from a geologist who had studied the area in the 1960s. His research indicated the presence of a rare optical phenomenon caused by the refraction of water and sunlight at certain times of the day.

Albert understood, and felt stupid. The "figure" he had seen was nothing more than an optical illusion: the combination of reflected light, humidity, and the shape of the rock created the image of a human silhouette. The geologist had documented it, but the project had been abandoned and forgotten.

Gino remained silent for a moment, then smiled at his friend. "So it wasn't a ghost. It was... science. Are you calmer?"

Albert laughed. "Science is scary, sometimes."

The two friends left the cave, carrying the small treasure trove of documents with them. The waterfall was no longer a mysterious place!

Once dry, they retrieved their cell phones from their backpacks and searched the internet for the name of the geologist written on the documents. Henry Deville. The young geologist had disappeared in 1962 on an expedition in that very area. They searched for him for months, finally abandoning the search.
Albert felt a pang of grief. No one knew he was going to the waterfall, and who knows how long they'd been looking for him, without knowing exactly where to go.

Gino and Albert decided to take the documents with them and try to locate his family to return them. Who knows if his remains were still at the bottom of the water, perhaps stuck between some rocks?
Perhaps the search would resume thanks to their discovery.

As the two friends left, they turned toward the waterfall, and there it was, the dark, distinct figure suspended above the water, raising an arm to wave.