Be My Anchor

Chapter Six

Dad called after me, "We'll be in the theatre!"

I raised my hand to acknowledge him as I made my way back to the room once again.

I was rushing past the cabanas on the opposite side of the deck when I heard a familiar voice call out. "Marjorie!"

I looked over my shoulder to see Gabe's mom, just as beautiful as before and staring at me, laying delicately on a cushioned lounge chair. She had a cocktail in her hand half gone with red lipstick marks along the rim. A streak of light hit the glass and reflected onto her fair skin. A book laid beside her looking unread and forgotten.

She lifted her sunglasses to peer at me. "You're Gabriel's friend, right?"

"Yeah, Marjo," I corrected while trying not to show how out of breath I was.

"I assumed that was short for Marjorie."

"Oh, well....it's not." I cleared my throat. "And you're his mom? Ms..." The words died on my tongue when I realized I didn't know Gabe's last name.

She smiled slightly. "Mrs. Alejos, yes." She set her drink down carefully on the table next to her. "Did you two know each other before the cruise?" she asked.

I shifted uncomfortably. I wanted to get off the deck. More than anything,  I didn't want to have a conversation with her. Didn't she notice how I had been rushing before she stopped me?

I shook my head. "No, we met at the Teens Club actually."

She quirked an eyebrow. "Oh, how odd. I didn't know Gabriel could make friends so quickly. He never brings his friends around. I was starting to think he didn't have any." She laughed and I smiled to fake my amusement. She motioned beside her. "Please, sit down next to me and we can have a chat."

I wanted to refuse, but I didn't even have time to answer before we were interrupted.

Gabe stopped short when he saw me. "Marjo?" He looked to his mother who was still smiling pleasantly. His expression turned cold. "Mother, what are you doing?"

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, relax, Gabriel. I was just asking Marjorie to join us," she said, pointedly getting my name wrong.

I watched Gabe's eyes flicker halfway toward me, watching me in his peripheral but avoiding eye contact. He refocused his gaze on his mother. "I'm sure Marjo has better things to do than sit with us, Mom."

She lifted her hand to silence him. "Hush up. Let the girl speak for herself." She turned her attention toward me. "Will you sit with us? Just for a little bit?"

She stared into my eyes so intensely that I wouldn't have been surprised if she was reading my mind. It was as if her eyes were demanding me to say yes. So...I did.

Come on! I can't say no to a parent! Damn manners.

"Sure, I'll stay," I said, my voice unsteady. I already knew I would regret that decision.

Finally, Gabe looked at me. "You don't have to, Jo. If you have somewhere to be-"

Out of the blue, his mom shouted at him, "Gabriel! Stop trying to push her away!"

He flinched. Barely, but he flinched. His next words were half-heartedly defiant, but submissive nonetheless. "I wasn't..."

Mrs. Alejos beckoned me to come closer. I sat down in the chair next to her, hands tucked between my knees. Why did she want to talk to me? What could we possibly have to talk about?

"So, are you here with your family?"

"Yeah, my brother and my parents."

"That's nice. It's just me and my husband."

I glanced at her son who stood awkwardly at the opening of the cabana. "What about Gabe?" I said quietly.

She stared at me for a second as if she did not recognize the name. Then, she said, "Oh, yes, and Gabriel too."

Gabe sighed audibly.

She snapped her head toward him. "Gabriel, go fetch me a drink."

He hesitated to leave, probably wary of leaving the two of us alone. I wanted him to stay, but I was afraid to say it in front of Mrs. Alejos who was so keen on sending him away. Only a couple of seconds passed when he decided to listen to his mother and leave.

Once he did, she took no time to get back into our conversation. "You know," she said leaning in, "you're the first of Gabriel's friends that I've met. He's very secretive. I bet he doesn't keep secrets from you though."

Her intent was clear, but I played dumb, not wanting to give her anything. Not that I had much to give anyway. I shrugged. "I don't know...we've only known each other for a couple of days."

She suppressed a scowl. "Well, what do you know about him?"

What did I know about him? Honestly, I wouldn't have been able to tell you. I had spent little time in his company and the only fact I knew about him was his name and that he hated his father.

Mrs. Alejos spoke out into my silence. "You've spent time with him, no? What did you do?"

I spoke slowly, thinking as I went. "We talked briefly at the Teens Club, and again on the deck. We ran into each other the other night at the restaurant. And today," I couldn't help but laugh to myself, "he dragged me to the pool because he had turned the heat up so it was like a giant hot tub and-" I abruptly stop talking and look up at Mrs. Alejos.

I said too much. I blabbered and I said too much.

Mrs. Alejos's expression was hard to read. It was like she had no emotion whatsoever. I gulped. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Gabe approaching us, drink in hand.

"Here, I got you water," he said as he offered it to his mom.

She glowered. "Water? Seriously?"

His expression hardened. "I'm seventeen. They're not going to hand me an alcoholic drink, Mom." He sighed. "And you could use some water," he muttered under his breath.

She looked away and waved her hand. "You keep it. I have a cocktail already anyway."

Gabe lowered his outstretched arm and glared at the ground.

I stood up. "I should probably go."

Neither of them said anything nor looked at me. I walked away feeling lucky to have my family. They annoyed me, yes, but now, all I wanted to do was get back to them and apologize for my abrupt behavior. It really wasn't fair to them.

I decided to stop at the bathroom on the way and take a moment to myself.

The first thing I saw when I walked in was a tall woman standing in front of the mirrors, fixing her makeup. Her black hair fell in beautiful curls around her shoulders. It was Rhea. I sighed to myself.

I know we're all stuck in the same place, but this is just getting ridiculous.

I pretended not to see her as I walked to a stall. Hopefully, if I stayed in there long enough, she would be gone when I came back out. I walked up to the first stall and pushed on the door.

Rhea didn't appear to notice I was there. That is, until she spoke, stopping me in my tracks. "He's trying to make you jealous, you know. Tristan isn't into me. He already has eyes for you and he doesn't quite know what to do with himself."

She left without a second glance.

A/N: Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed it, don't forget to vote and add this story to your Reading List. Follow me on Instagram (@reeseiswriting) to see when I update.