Legend of Alvaro #featured

Chapter 11 - Settling in

He grabbed the light and climbed down the ladder again, waiting every few steps to check if I'm following. We walked around the tree house onto a path that lead us to a stream. The water was crystal clear. I fell onto my knees and filled my hands with water and brought it to my mouth to drink. The cold water soothed my burning throat. Alvaro blew the torch dead and it became dark instantly. I looked around and saw small fireflies over the whole stream. There was fluorescent dust everywhere on the ground and on the vines that hung from the tree tops.

"Wow! It's magical. I never knew the jungle could be such a beautiful place." I said out loud and I could feel my heart feeling admiration for the first time again in a very long time.

"It's the most beautiful sight I have ever seen." Alvaro said and I glanced over to find him looking at me with a smile on his face.

"I will make a bed for myself in the other room so you can sleep in my bed, or if you don't feel comfortable I can make a bed for you elsewhere." He said and started walking towards the tree house again. I rubbed my hands on both arms while I followed him. I agreed to sleep in the living room because I didn't wanted to invade his space. He threw a bag of shavings that he brought from his room and threw them on a heap on the floor following with a blanket.

"The shavings helps for the cold and is very soft to sleep on." Alvaro said as he set a pillow on the self made bed. I thanked him and climbed under the top blanket. He was right, my body felt warmer instantly and I didn't feel the hard floor underneath me either. Should I leave the light on for you ?" He asked me.

"Is it safe?" I asked thinking of the house burning down .

"Yes. I have done it a thousand of times." Alvaro answered with a smile.

"Then yes, please." I said and watched as he turned around and walked into his room.

What if the house burns down? Will this be how I die?

I lied there thinking about his situation. He was only a young boy when his parents died. He probably never thought about the consequences of leaving a fire burning during the night in a wooden house because nobody was there to teach him that. I admire his determination to look after himself alone in the middle of the jungle on a deserted island. I blew out the candle before I could fall asleep to the sounds of frogs and crickets singing in a midnight choir.

I opened my eyes to an unfamiliar roof. It took me a few minutes to realize where I was and that I was still stranded and inside Alvaro's tree house. I sat upright and looked around. There was sunlight shining in everywhere inside the house. Alvaro was nowhere to be seen. I stood up. My dress smelled stuffy, but I had no other choice but to wear it because I had no other clothes with me. Moments later Alvaro came through the front door.

"Morning." He said surprised to see me awake.

"Morning." I said with a shy smile, suddenly self conscious about myself smelling bad and tucked on the ends of my dress.

"I brought you coffee. I will show you where to take a bath when you are done." He said and handed me half a coconut filled with black liquid.

"Where do you get coffee?" I asked when I smelled caffeine which was so familiar to me back home.

"My mom planted everything she could that we might need while we stayed here." He said and took a sip of his own coffee.

It did not taste like normal coffee we had back home, it left my mouth feeling dry. After I finished it, I thanked him and handed the coconut back to him. He took them and threw it out the window. I raised my eyebrows at him in disgust from his uncivilized act but he didn't seem to notice.

"I'll show you where to clean yourself. I think I have some of my mother's clothes somewhere." He said and walked into his bedroom. After a few minutes he returned with a faded purple skirt and a white cotton shirt. He dusted them off and gave them to me.