When we returned from the whale expedition, everyone at Paradise City helped to restock our supplies. We wouldn't be heading back to the mainland for a few days, so as long as we had enough to survive, we'd be fine.
As fun as water soup was, it wasn't exactly a meal. Brett now had a few more ingredients at his disposal.
But the one thing I asked for, a few house plants, was noticeably missing from the items Toby bought, but he got coffee.
Poor Logan (or perhaps, poor me).
After several long days of whale searching and a few peer mediation sessions for Jia and Darrell, we all sat down together for a meal that Brett had been preparing all day while I was at sea and everyone else was working on their projects.
Carter's project was one that I found particularly interesting since whales ate krill and other microscopic organisms, but he never spoke a word about it (which wasn't different than usual, I supposed).
That pattern continued through dinner, and after Logan got up to do his seal watch, he turned to me.
"Let's go, Rea," he said.
But before I could even reply, Jia spoke instead. "Sorry, dude. She's stuck with us right now. She has whales and blubber samples she needs to analyze."
At least I didn't have to disappoint Logan then.
"Right, I forgot about that. No problem," he replied, then headed out the door.
"Okay, big announcement here, so don't go anywhere. Tomorrow's Logan's birthday, so we're getting off this damn island and heading into the city. The real city. On real land. And getting real drunk," Jia said.
"Like, on a real boat?" I asked.
Jia rolled her eyes. "No, we're gonna walk. Channel your inner Jesus lizard, everyone."
"I didn't mean it like that. It's just that Logan doesn't like boats at all. He tends to get rather pukey," I said.
Brett laughed. "Poor dude."
"Hm. I hadn't really thought about that, but you're right. What kind of seasickness remedies do we have here?" Jia asked.
"Or we could just stay here since believe it or not, there's no law that says you have to party on your birthday," Darrell said.
"Oh, fuck no. I'm getting off this island if it kills me. We've been stuck here for a month, and if I don't see a real person within the next twenty-four hours, I might actually take that sword sitting in the game room and disembowel myself in front of all of you," Jia said.
"Are—are we not real people?" Brett asked.
Jia shook her head. "I'm pretty sure I just made all of you up to cope with loneliness."
"Shit, I'm not real. Fuck," Brett muttered.
"Would it help you feel more real if I gave you a citation for swearing again?" Darrell asked.
Brett nodded. "I'd really appreciate that. At least someone else sees and hears me too."
I looked up at an imaginary camera.
Country roads, take me home.
"And just to be clear, you all notice Carter, right? I didn't make him up, right?" Jia asked, emphasizing each right.
"Who's Carter?" I asked, and Brett did his best to hold in a laugh.
"Oh, hell no. See Toby? This is why we need to get off this island. I'm going crazy," Jia said. "I'll look up seasickness cures right now."
"Jia—" Toby began, but Jia left to do some research. Toby chuckled. "Well, I've seen people lose their minds even more than she has."
"She's being absolutely ridiculous right now, since we didn't need to leave Paradise City last year due to mental instability," Darrell said.
Toby gave him a quick stare. "Really?"
"Well, it wasn't because I was an absolute psycho. I certainly had a valid reason for my decision," Darrell justified.
"Including, but not limited to, being an absolute psycho," Toby said.
Darrell left Paradise City last year?
Jia would certainly love to have that information for future arguments. I stored that knowledge away in my mind to share it with her that night.
Dragging me away from my evil master plan, Carter tapped me on the shoulder. "You were being sarcastic, weren't you? About me?"
"I'm sorry. I was just messing with Jia. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings," I said.
A small smile spread across his face. "You're funny."
I didn't really get that compliment too often, so it didn't seem true, but I smiled back at him. "Thank you. You're interesting."
He seemed to have a similar thought process as I did, but he didn't say thanks. A bit rude, perhaps, but that was Carter.
***
"Ginger," Jia read off her list of remedies for seasickness.
Brett held up a Ziploc baggie. "Check."
"Peppermint gum."
"Check."
"Saltine crackers."
"Check."
"With peanut butter?" Jia asked.
"Is there any other way to eat them?" Brett laughed.
"You keep me sane. Thank you."
Logan wandered into the kitchen. "Why the fuck are you guys yelling? I'm pretty sure they can hear you in Canada."
"Happy birthday," I said.
"Dammit, Reagan! I wanted to be the first to say it." Jia sighed. "Happy birthday, I guess. Whoopee."
Logan smiled. "Thanks, but it's not my birthday."
I looked over at Jia. Now we just looked stupid.
She smiled. "Nice try. It's written on the calendar."
There's a calendar? Since when?
I really needed to start paying attention to things, since I wasn't blessed with the ability to just know everything.
"Okay, fine. It's my birthday, but we're stuck here, so it doesn't really mean that much," Logan said.
"That's not true. We've packed you a special picnic for the boat ride to Bar Harbor, and we're going to finally see something besides rain and loneliness," Jia said.
"The issue isn't loneliness. The issue is that I'm forced to spend all my time with you people," Logan said.
"And if we got off this island, you could get away from us people for a little while."
Logan thought for a moment. "You have solid reasoning skills, but my stubbornness is enough to override it. I'm not getting on a boat. I'd rather throw myself into the ocean."
"Then we'll celebrate your birthday without you. We put together some remedies, so you wouldn't get motion sickness, but just forget it. Robbie's gonna be here in an hour, and I'm not going to waste his time or mine," Jia said.
That was the most aggressively kind gesture I had seen in a while, and I didn't know what to do besides remain silent.
Logan sighed. "Do you really want me there?"
"It's your birthday, dumbass," Jia said.
"Fine."
Jia hesitated. "What?"
"I said fine."
My heart fluttered inside my chest, and I let myself smile. Any excuse to see some grass would suffice, and who didn't love birthdays?
"I win," Jia said with a smile. "It's always a good day when I get my way."
"You're pretty spoiled, aren't you?" Brett asked.
Jia nodded. "I really am, and I know it."
An hour later, we party animals climbed aboard the Millennium Osprey, but this time, Logan was absolutely not going to throw up. I promised myself that I'd keep it from happening as long as he bothered to listen to me.
"Before you get all irritable—" I began, but Logan interrupted me.
"I don't get irritable."
"It's a common symptom of motion sickness, along with yawning, nausea, dizziness, drowsiness—"
"Is being a know-it-all a symptom as well?" he asked.
I stared back at him for a moment, and despite my attempts to help him, he still wanted to push me.
"It was a joke, Rea. No need to get worked up about it," Logan said.
Then he really needed to work on making his jokes funny.
Confrontation wasn't my thing, since I preferred riding the waves of life more than making my own, but if there was one thing I hated, it was people making comments about things they didn't know about. Perhaps I was a know-it-all, but he was a know-nothing-at-all.
"Well, I'd appreciate it if you didn't call me that again," I said. "Especially if you'd like what I know to help you."
"Sorry. Please continue," he said.
I wasn't quite sure if he was being completely serious (When did I ever?), but I continued anyway. "The best way to keep yourself from getting sick is to have something in your stomach. It seems counterintuitive, but just trust me. Second, face forward and focus on a fixed point so the motion doesn't confuse your brain. And if that doesn't work, we can always resort to ginger and peppermint."
"And then I won't throw up?" he asked.
"Hopefully not, because it's a little gross," I said.
"You're telling me. And how will alcohol affect me on the way back?"
"I can't help you there. It's gonna suck, frankly."
"Thank you for the honesty. It pisses me off when you skirt around the truth," he said.
It pissed me off when he gave me an unsolicited truth, but I kept that to myself. There were times the complete truth wasn't necessary.
Robbie fired up the boat, and soon after, we coasted across the surface of the ocean back towards civilization. I didn't think I'd miss anything from the real world, but it was the simple pleasures that drew me back to normal life. The people didn't mean much to me, but nothing could replace laying in the itchy grass, watching chipmunks and squirrels and ants run to and fro. Sometimes it was clear that they searched for food, but other times, I liked to make up stories in my mind about what they were doing.
I looked over to Logan, who had his eyes shut.
"What are you doing? I thought I told you to watch the water or horizon," I said.
"Fuck that. I'm gonna throw up no matter what," Logan replied.
I shook my head. Sometimes I didn't even know why I bothered with Puke Boy's stubborn ass.
Getting up to my feet, I headed inside the cabin where Robbie, Brett, and Jia sat and chatted, but I didn't contribute much. My mind found other topics to focus on, ones that were significantly more fascinating.
My heart was the size of a whale, and I could fit a love for all creatures in it, including the small critters I used to watch for hours back in West Virginia when I was little. Even though I fell in love with the ocean, land plants and animals were still pretty freaking cool too.
Except for humans. Seven billion was just too many for my heart to take.
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Hey everyone! Thank you so much for reading, commenting, and voting! You're pretty much the best thing ever!
To be honest, I wrote this entire chapter in a day, so my proofreading is limited, and mistakes are probably there. Just let me know if you caught one.
So for today's question, are there any ideas you'd like to read in the story? I love to incorporate all sorts of little details, so I'd love to hear any ideas you may have. I have a big one coming up, but after that, I'm not quite sure what I'll do, so any suggestions would help!