Not once. But the signs grew harder to ignore. And slowly, a thought crept into his mind, one that tightened his chest: when he was gone, someone was here. Arthur began shortening his fishing trips.
At first, it was only an hour less, then half a morning, until finally he stopped going altogether. He told himself it was age, that the walk to the river was getting longer, the sun hotter. But the truth gnawed at him: he couldn’t relax knowing someone might be using the pool while he was away.