Andrew woke me up early in the morning so we could eat breakfast and then get on the ship.
I stumbled over a stone as we walked to the ship, carrying our stuff. A sailor looked at our papers and nodded. He handed our stuff up on deck and then easily lifted me up too. My eyes widened as I landed on the deck, Andrew scrambling after me. Everyone I saw was a man. They were all running around doing some kind of chore before the ship set off. The captain came over to tell us where our cabin was, we got the biggest one besides him since I was the only woman passenger on this long voyage. Some men whistled as I walked by, following Andrew, who was glaring, to our cabin.
He pushed the door open, revealing a small room with a medium-sized bed, a window with a small window seat, two chairs, a tiny table, and a heater stove. He set the chest down at the foot of the bed and turned around. He looked big in the small room.
"Nice, for a ship," he commented.
I shrugged, not knowing if this was nice for a ship or not. Some man knocked on the door to tell us when dinner was and where. He looked past Andrew at me, and nodded, "Ma'am."
His voice has a slight twang to it. "Sir." Then he left, closing the door behind him.
"Where is he from?" I asked.
"Probably somewhere around where I used to live," he said, sitting back down on the bed.
"You're voice doesn't sound like that though."
"I've been away from home for a long time," he sighed.
"Are we going to see your house?"
"No!" he said a little too quickly, panicky.
"Why not?" I asked, my curiosity sinking in.
"I don't want to go back there."
"Why not?" I repeated.
"Too many bad memories."
"Maybe you need to go back and let them go," I suggested, "I'm sure people miss you."
"If they remember me," he snorted.
"No one could forget you," I said, walking over and putting my hand on his shoulder in a comforting gesture. He looked up at me with a solemn look, then looked down at his large, slim hands. He stood up and walked over to the window, looking out at the sky and water.
"It's going to get cold soon," he mumbled to no one in particular. He looked back at me, "Unbearably cold."
"I can handle the cold," I said, thinking about the freezing nights in the barn.
He shook his head, "It gets colder out here on the ocean. Especially at night."
He wandered around, looking in a small chest in the corner of the room. He pulled out two extra blankets and set them on the bed, "That'll do for now, but in a month, it'll be very cold."
"What're we going to do?" I asked, looking up at him.
He shrugged, then smiled, "We have a month to think about it."
I stared at him, "Are you always so optimistic in unpleasant situations?"
He blinked, "Am I?"
I nodded.
He sighed, "I just find it easier to go into something cheerfully instead of dreading it. There's always a solution. I'm sure we can think of something between the two of us."
"Surely," I answered.
"Well, I think it's about time for dinner," he said, heading for the door. He turned around, waiting for me. I stood up, straightening my dress, and followed him down the slim corridor. We ended up in a room with a few men who were already eating, even though people were still getting the ship ready to sail. When we walked in, everyman who was in there stood up, watching me. I blushed, not wanting to be the center of attention. Andrew led me past them to the end of the table, where we would be sitting. Andrew made sure I was in the corner, farthest away from anyone. A few men trickled in, sitting down, and eying me like the rest of them had.
A tiny man came in and served us some food. I ate slowly, watching my plate so I wouldn't have to see the stares trained on me. I could see Andrew's hand, it was in his lap and balled up in a fist. I could tell he was extremely tense. I reached down and took it, opening it up and running my thumb across the back in a reassuring motion. He looked over at me, his dark hair falling into his gray eyes. My heart clenched in an unrecognizable way when we looked at each other. I quickly looked away and looked out the window at the stormy sky. The sky was the same colour as Andrew's eyes. I looked back down at my now empty plate, still holding Andrew's hand. His thumb started to move across the back of my hand, making tiny relaxing circles on it.
I stood up, every man turned to look at me, jumping to their feet. I could feel their gazes on me as I made my way to the door. I felt heat rising to my face as I went around the table and left the room. I heard Andrew behind me as I made my way back to our room. I opened the door and walked to the window, looking out at the wild sea. It was getting darker outside. I turned around, looking up at Andrew. His eyes shone in the darkness. They were looking right into mine.
"Why?" I asked.
"Why what?" he asked, sounding confused.
"Why do men act like that when I'm around them. I'm not pretty, I'm not rich, I'm not outstandingly beautiful and tall and round. Why do they stare after me? Am I that ugly?"
Andrew frowned down at me, "You're wrong."
"About what?"
"About everything you just said."
I squinted my eyes up at him, waiting for an explanation.
"I've already told you, you're beautiful and irresistible. Every man wants you for himself because you're so 'outstandingly beautiful.' There's not an ugly inch on you," he said.
"Is that their opinion, or yours?"
He hesitated for a minute, then whispered, "Both."
"Everything you just said, you think about me?" I asked, stepping up closer to him.
"Yes," he said softly.
"Even about you wanting me for yourself?"
"Yes," he said so softly I had to strain to hear him.
We stared at each other for a moment, sizing each other up, then I said, "That's nice to know."
I headed past him to the bed. He turned around and gawked at me, "That's all you have to say?!"
I looked up at him, my hair falling into my eyes, "I don't know what to say. I've never been in this situation in my entire life. You say you want me, but I'm being forced to marry another man. You say you want me because you think I'm beautiful."
He kneeled down in front of me and took my hands, "It's much more than that. You're brilliant, funny, kind. I also feel like I need to protect you against the bad things of this world. You're so vulnerable and innocent and sweet, and I don't want that to change. I don't want you to get married to the nephew of those horrible men. I've met him and he's just as horrible."
"You've met him?" I asked, my eyes widening.
He sighed, "Yes, I know him. His name's George, and he's just as mean and ugly and fat as Bill and Mark are. That's how I found them actually. I was dropping off some game for him and he was talking about them, and you. He said you were a petty thing, but gorgeous."
"I've never met him in my entire life," I said, "How does he know what I look like?"
"Apparently Bill and Mark described you to him, and he found you appealing. But not because you're kind and caring and the sweetest person who has ever walked the planet, but because he wanted to sleep with you and show you off like a trophy," he said, bitterness in his voice, his hands clenching around mine, "I traveled here and found that miserable hut. You were outside singing to that cow. You're voice was hauntingly beautiful. You turned around and I knew George hadn't given you justice. You were more that gorgeous. Every lovely word in the world described you. Your dark hair was down in a braid, and you had white lilies in your hair. Your blue eyes shone in the sun happily. Although, I didn't know why you were happy. But, if I ever had to describe a perfect person, I would've described you. I went up and spoke to Bill and Mark. They agreed if I hunted and brought home food, I could live there. I saw the way they treated you and couldn't believe it. I wanted to stay around and watch over you, apparently, I didn't do a good job."
I titled my head, "You didn't do a good job?"
"Well, apparently, you never had any food, a bed, or baths," he mumbled, looking down, his hair falling down into his eyes. I pushed his hair back, it fell back down.
After a moment of silence I said, "I'm glad it's you, and not someone else, who wants me." He looked up and smiled a small smile. He stood up, "I expect you're tired. Get some rest."
He left the room for a minute so I could get changed. I tucked myself into the bed when he came back in. He sat beside me and silently brushed my hair. My eyes started to fall shut as he brushed.
"That's right, go to sleep, Cassandra," he murmured, lightly kissing the top of my head before I went completely to sleep.
∞ ∞ ∞
I opened my eyes up groggily. It was dark and cold in the tiny room. I heard wind howling and shouts from above me. I sat up quickly, hitting my head on a board.
"Ow," I muttered, rubbing my head. I looked around the room and saw Andrew sitting by the window, looking out it. There was a mighty storm brewing out there. I felt the waves hit the boat and I thought it was going to shatter. A bright flash of lightning lit up the room and I saw that Andrew was looking back at me, his silver eyes shining. A deafening crash of thunder made me jump and throw my hands over my ears. Andrew stood up and walked over to me, sitting down next to me. He put his arms around me and I put my head against his chest.
"It's just a storm, Cassandra," he murmured in my ear reassuringly, "I've seen worse."
I jumped again when there was a loud knock on the door. Andrew slid off the bed, letting me go, and went to open the door. There was a drenched sailor standing there.
"We need your help," he said gruffly, taking Andrew's arm and leading him away.
"I'll be right back," Andrew said to me as he disappeared around the corner. I huddled in my blankets, all alone. Another peal of thunder sounded in the sky, louder than the first. I heard a loud thump above me. My head snapped up when I heard a low laugh. There was someone standing by the door, watching me. He was medium height, but he made up for that by being very broad. My eyes widened and I slipped off the bed, taking the blankets with me. The man set at a crouch, like something hunting. I realized he was hunting me. I heart started to beat quickly. He came closer, I skittered to the far side of the room. He ran at me suddenly. I let out a scream and threw the blankets at him, then ran out the door. The blankets had stopped him for a moment, but he was gaining on me. I ran down the hallway and up the steps, while he pounded after me. I flew up another flight of steps and found myself on the deck.
It was total chaos. Men were everywhere, working and yelling and running. It was dark, the only light was the flash of the lightning. The rain soaked me immediately and the wind whipped around me. I glanced back and saw that the man was still following me, close enough to grab me. I ran faster, slipping on the wet surface, almost falling. I slid under a board then scrambled back up. I screamed Andrew's name while I ran. I heard the panic and fear in my voice while I searched for him wildly. The wind made my hair fly around, like a flag of death. This is exactly how I felt when I felt strong arms go around me. They spun me around and I was looking up at my chaser. He smiled cruelly. I whimpered as he squeezed me until I heard something snap. I screamed in pain and thrashed out at him. He started dragging me away. I screamed for Andrew again, but the man slapped his hand over my mouth. I bit down hard until I tasted blood. The mad yelled furiously and dropped me. I hit the deck in a pile and started to crawl away, my sides burning with pain. The man looked like he was going to kick me until several hands pulled him away. Andrew and five sailors were dragging him away from me. He roared and fought back, getting away. His eyes locked on mine and he came forward, wrapping his large hands around my neck. He squeezed until I couldn't breathe.
I'm going to die, I thought, then blacked out.
************************************************************************************************
O.O Nooooo! Depression!! I feel like sleeping and blacking out can be related!!!!
Abrielle: *shakes Cassandra* Stop being in a state of unconsciouness!!!!
Andrew: No!!!! Cassandra! *spins around and glares at me* How dare you write that!
Abrielle: *crosses arms* It's needs more drama!
Hailey-side of Abrielle: WHEEEEEE! Pretty guy! *hugs Andrew*
Rachel-side of Abrielle: What! Get out of here! This is MY story!!!
Andrew: *groans* Two of them?
Rachel-side of Abrielle: *throws cookie* Go get the cookie!
Hailey-side of Abrielle: SSSSSSSUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGGGGAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *jumps after it*
Rachel-side of Abrielle: *turns to readers* O.O Wow