Coffeh's G/t Short Stories

Sinking Ships Chapter 1

...

Warm temperature of 77 degrees Fahrenheit. A soft breeze by the sea, no sign of storm in sight. No prediction of wild waves today either.

Today, Caytlin would go cruising.

She shot up from her seat at yet another cell development class, huffing as she shoved things inside her bag before waving bye to her friends and hurrying outside. Pushing her strands of light brown, shoulder-length wavy hair aside and fixing the collar of her white and blue stripped shirt, Caytlin searched for her house's keys in her jean shorts pockets. Her hand curled around a cute dolphin keychan and she sighed in relief. Putting her keys away safely in her pocket, Caytlin walked out of the university with wide steps.

She walked, no, dashed away from the building, saying hello here and there to the people she knew in her hurried way, until arriving at the bus stop. She recovered her breath as she waited anxiously, pacing left and right, and celebrated when her bus finally arrived.

A few minutes later and Caytlin was close to her home by the harbor. She walked on the sidewalk, glancing to the calming sea to her right, the view of its gentle waves and its deep blue color filling her excitable heart with absolute joy. There it was, in the distance, anchored by the harbor: her, oops- their, well-kept cabin cruiser.

'Dad is definitely not home today. Soo, I will definitely come back before he arrives!' She thought, a mischievous smile on her face.

Caytlin checked the inside of her house, which was on the way to the port, to confirm her suspicions. Yep, he wasn't home. The winds were sure favorable today.

Passing by her house to pick some lost supplies, which she piled on her arms with hurry, Caytlin strode towards the awaiting ship she and her father had for over ten years already. He had taught her everything about the ocean, from how to maneuver the cruiser to curious facts about sea animals, all of which cultivated her deep passion for marine life to begin with.

Loading the ship with supplies, Caytlin boarded it and steered out of the port, giggling with excitement.

And off she went, towards the open sea.

...

It's jammed.

The engine is jammed.

Caytlin pushed the lever again. Nothing. She tried kicking the engine. No results. She tried opening it with a screwdriver and seeing the inside, and her body ran cold.

The wires were burnt. Completely burnt.

And she had forgotten to bring the reserve components.

"W-well, it was an old boat, after all..."

Caytlin's heart hammered full swing. She's in the middle of nowhere, for she cruised too far away from shore, way ahead of the safety margin she and her father had stablished. There's no land in sight, no signal on her phone and no way of returning back safely.