Splinters: Part One

Part One | 15

She touched my arm. "You'll have fun, okay?"

I nodded slowly, attempting to smile genuinely. "Okay."

"C'mon," she tugged me down towards a wooden deck that stretched out into the water.

The water was blue and a boat swayed next to the deck. Greg was tightening Net's life-jacket when Ursanne and I reached them. Dera, Beau, Eda and Melissa were all sitting in the back of the boat. Daryl was sitting in the passenger seat and Robin was doing something on the floor.

"Is there enough gas, Dad?" Greg asked, looking over his shoulder.

Robin closed something that lead to the inside of the bottom of the boat and stood up. "Sure is. We're gonna go on a long ride."

Ursanne nudged me. "Ready?"

I nodded hesitantly. She stepped into the boat first, making it tip towards her a little. I stepped back and gulped. When she was in, she stretched out her hand for me.

I shook my head.

"C'mon, Brayden. It's not scary, I promise."

Greg looked away from his daughter and his eyes met mine. "Brayden?"

"Brayden, honey, c'mon. Step in," Melissa encouraged.

I stepped a little closer to the edge and shakily attempted lifting my foot onto the boat. When it tipped, I jerked back.

"No."

"Brayden, you're fine," Greg said, opening his arms out. "It won't tip over."

I clenched my fists and grabbed onto Greg's forearm. He pulled me in quickly. The boat swayed as I steadied myself in the middle. Ursanne tugged me toward the front of the boat where there were white leather seats.

"Come sit with me in the front."

I sat hesitantly. Thankfully, the seat didn't burn like I expected it to from the sun's heat.

"Are you okay, Brayden?" Melissa asked from the back.

I nodded slowly, clutching the seat.

"Brayden," Ursanne laughed. "It's okay. You're fine."

I clenched my jaw as the boat suddenly began to vibrate. I jumped.

"Grandpa's just turning it on," she enlightened. "We're fine."

"Yeah, sorry there, Brayden!" Robin shouted from behind the wheel. "She makes a small jerk when we start the boat after not using it for a while."

I just nodded again and sat back down.

Robin turned the wheel and pulled down a lever. He looked behind himself and then the boat began to move backwards. Ursanne looked forward and I just sat awkwardly. The girls in the back were arguing and in result, Melissa began telling them to calm down with Greg next to her.

I looked back at Ursanne. Her eyes were closed as the boat picked up speed away from the deck. We raced down the water. It seemed like it never ended as we passed small houses that looked extremely similar to Robin and Daryl's. At some point, there were no more houses. There was just blue.

If I looked behind me, blurry green of the arm of Massachusetts could be visible. I didn't like looking over there, though. I liked looking at the blue. I felt good, free. I felt like everything was fine. Zech wasn't around making fun of me. Tay wasn't scrutinizing me. Grady wasn't making me feel guilty. Ursanne was being quiet, not making me feel bad about my actions. The only thing that would make this feel even better would be if Collie was here.