by Jordan Rivet
When they reached the dining hall, they joined Esther and Frank at their usual table. Judith was easing herself into her chair when Michael walked up, managing to saunter despite his limp. He addressed himself directly to Simon.
“Is it okay if I sit with you and your family, sir?”
“Of course, Michael. You know Judith,” Simon said. What’s that grin on his face about? “And this is our resident engineer, Frank Fordham, and Esther, my daughter.”
Simon
Simon wondered if he’d misjudged whether something was going on between Judith and Michael after all. They looked like a couple, both young and good looking, wearing clothes borrowed from the same plaza shop. Michael angled himself toward Judith and looked over at her often as he chatted with Frank about his engineering work.
But Judith barely said a word, answering Michael’s questions with one-word answers whenever possible. Her natural confidence that had first caught Simon’s attention was temporarily suspended. Simon had rather liked the prospect of young love amid these circumstances, but it didn’t look like that was on Judith’s mind. Maybe her injuries were distracting her. Or perhaps she was shy.
Esther wasn’t shy though.
“Are you from a battleship?” she asked Michael.
“Nope,” he said. “I worked on a destroyer. The navy doesn’t have battleships anymore.”
“Really? Why?”
“They’re too big and old,” Michael said. “We—they—use destroyers, cruisers, and frigates now.”
“But those are still warships, right?”
“Yes, they are,” Michael said. “You know a lot about ships.”
Esther grinned gleefully and tugged on Judith’s sleeve to make sure she had heard. Judith winced, probably at the pain, but she always had a smile for Esther.
When everyone was mostly finished eating, Reggie came over to their table. He carried a large black guitar case.
“Found this down in the theater,” he said. “Want to jam, Mike? It might help cheer people up a bit. It’s like a funeral in here.”
“Sure,” Michael said. He jumped up, glancing at Judith before following Reggie to the center of the dining hall.
Reggie climbed onto a chair and shouted to get everyone’s attention.
“Yo, hope you folks don’t mind. This here is Mikey, and he was telling me earlier that he used to play a bit of guitar. I happen to have a few hidden talents myself, so I thought we’d try something out. It’s getting gloomy around here.”
Reggie climbed down to confer with Michael for a few minutes as people turned their chairs to listen. Simon glanced at Judith and noticed she was looking intently at Michael. She kept almost smiling and then quickly schooling her features back to neutral.
After a moment Reggie said, “Right, here’s an oldie we both know. It seems about right for today.”
He climbed back onto the chair, and Michael drew up another one beside him. He took out the guitar and strummed it a few times. Then he began to play.
Simon didn’t recognize the song, but a few others around the room did. They started tapping their feet. Michael was very good. Then Reggie sang in a raspy, soulful baritone.
Seabird
See pretty bird
Seabird blue
Seabird
See pretty pretty
Seabird blue
My girl is a pretty bird
Seabird blue
The sea sings
Pretty bird
Seabird blue
Alone with pretty bird
Seabird blue
Michael joined in, adding a bit of harmony. The young men held their audience captive. As they played and sang, more people around the dining hall began to smile and tap their feet. The rhythm drummed around the room like gentle rain. On the next chorus, Willow Weathers, the lounge singer, who had just arrived, sang along.
Seabird
See pretty bird
Seabird blue
Seabird
See pretty pretty
Seabird blue
Blue sea is a pretty song
Sea song blue
My girl sings
Pretty song
Seabird blue
With me sings pretty bird
Sea song blue
Judith had stopped trying to maintain an indifferent expression. She stared at Michael, mouth slightly open. Michael looked up at her and missed two notes because of it. After his second mistake, Judith started to smile. Simon grinned. They’d be all right.
Come home, sweet pretty bird
Blue sea blue
I miss my
Pretty bird
Seabird blue
Seabird
See pretty bird
Seabird blue
Seabird
See pretty pretty
Seabird blue
Come home, sweet pretty bird
Seabird blue
When the song finished, Reggie took a bow and everyone in the dining hall applauded. Willow joined them by the table, along with a handful of others. Simon thought he heard mention of drums and maybe a violin. In addition to the eager musicians, a group of younger women crowded around Reggie and Michael. Reggie leaned jauntily against the table, enjoying the attention, but Michael squeezed through and returned to their table.
Judith leapt out of her chair as if she’d received an electric shock. “I’m going to get some air on deck,” she said.
“I can walk you,” Michael offered.
“No need. I can find my own way.”
Judith turned and walked gingerly away. She looked back at the table before disappearing through the far door, but Michael didn’t see it. He sat down, looking dejected.
“Young man, you’re in trouble.” Frank chuckled deeply.
“What?”
“You’re trying too hard with that girl—and not hard enough!”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Michael said, bending over his empty plate.
“Yeah, what are you talking about, Frank?” Esther asked. “Why is Michael in trouble?”
Frank leaned toward her conspiratorially. “He has a crush on Judith.”
“A crush. Ewwwww!” Esther hopped down from her chair. “I’m going to see if Ana will give me some more shrimp. A crush. Gross.”
She darted away, pigtails swinging.
“So, how about it, Michael?” Simon said. He leaned his elbows on the table, and Frank mimicked him.
Michael stared between the two older men, looking cornered.
“We know Judith’s something special,” Frank said. “If you’re man enough for her, I’ve got a lot of respect for you, but you have to be careful with a woman like that.”
Michael coughed theatrically. “No idea what you’re talking about.”
“Don’t let her push you around,” Frank said, “but don’t try so hard to help her all the time. Women don’t like that. She can take care of her own damn self.”
“She was hurt,” Michael protested.
“Yes, and it’s nice for you to play knight in shining armor, but she won’t be hurt forever. You’ve got to have more to offer.” Frank was now jabbing his fork at Michael to emphasize each point.
“I—”
“For starters, you should be chasing after her!” Frank said. “Don’t let her walk off by herself just because she says she doesn’t need help. Damn right she doesn’t need help, but I bet you she wants company. If she didn’t, she’d have gone back to her room, not mentioned something as romantic as fresh air.” Frank jabbed the fork at Michael again. “Learn to read the hints, son, especially when they’re written all over her face!”
Michael looked to Simon for help, but he just shrugged. Michael seemed to take that as agreement, because he tipped back his last gulp of water and stood.
“Thanks.”
Frank chuckled as Michael limped for the door, looking over his shoulder as if he expected Frank to chase after him with the fork.
“They make ’em more
clueless every year,” Frank muttered. “You’d have followed her right away, wouldn’t you, Simon?”
“Yes,” Simon said quietly. “If she was Nina, I’d have followed her across the world.”
Judith
It was cold on deck. Judith walked slowly, trailing her fingers along the chilled rail. She’d have expected it to be warmer here, even at night. They weren’t far from the equator by their last reckoning, but it got colder every day. Maybe the crops really would fail. She wondered if sea life would be more resilient.
The sky was dark, and she prayed for the moon to pierce the sullen night clouds. It had been calm since the last storm, but the skies wouldn’t clear. The water was black and still as obsidian. The deck barely moved beneath her feet.
Uneven footfalls sounded behind her. She continued her slow walk along the promenade.
“Judith?”
That deep Oklahoma voice sent a thrill right through the bottom of her toes. It’s about time! She waited for a few heartbeats. She didn’t want to seem too happy to see him.
Michael didn’t speak again until he was almost close enough to touch her.
“Judith?” he repeated.
She kept her face turned toward the sea, but she could sense him. She wrapped her fingers around the railing.
“Thought you might want some company,” he said.
“I’m fine,” she said briskly. She wished she could take some of the sharpness out of her tone. Did he have to talk to her like she might break?
He was silent for a moment. The Catalina creaked in the darkness.
“Well, I want company,” Michael said, “if you don’t mind. I’m new around here and all. It’d be nice to have someone to talk to.”
“What do you want to talk about?” Judith said.
“Oh, I don’t know. Movies . . . the weather . . . whatever you normally talk about when you’re getting to know someone. Politics, religion, the meaning of life. You name it.”
This was silly. What was the point of getting to know anyone in these circumstances? What did she expect to happen? She’d lose him like she’d lost Nora, or push him away like she was doing to Ren if she let this continue. Then words were tumbling out of her, harsh ones that she couldn’t keep back.
“Why don’t we talk about how everyone we know is dead? How we can’t find a safe harbor and our own people have sent us away. How we aren’t going to last another week.”
Instead of being taken aback at her tone, Michael just nodded. “That works,” he said. “It sucks. It’s okay to talk about how much this sucks.” He put a hand on her shoulder. The weight of it anchored her to the deck. “With all the shit that’s going on right now, it’s okay to be angry.”
“That’s not—”
“Yes, it is. It’s okay,” Michael said. “Hell, I’m angry too. I walked away from my naval career on the slim chance that my family might be alive somewhere. I swore to be loyal and to sacrifice everything for my country, but it turns out I didn’t mean it. I couldn’t be loyal to superiors who’d give up their honor like that.”
“So we should, what, shout about it?” Judith said. “That won’t do any good.”
“I don’t know,” Michael said. “Maybe just acknowledge it. Say, ‘Dude, this is the pits’ or something. I’m sure you’ve got a more sophisticated line. I don’t want to pretend it all didn’t happen.”
Judith let out a long breath. “I’m sorry for snapping at you,” she said. “Everything’s just catching up to me. But seriously, you say you want to get to know me. But do you honestly think anything will come of it? Is that why you followed me outside?”
“I don’t know, Judith. I’m going straight to the States to search for my family first chance I get. You know that. I just thought we could be friends, maybe be there for each other a bit.”
“I don’t need—”
“I need you just as much as you need me.”
Michael removed his hand from Judith’s shoulder and turned toward the ocean. She felt colder immediately. She ached where his hand had been, as if some precious lifeline had been torn away. She had to grasp it before it was gone. She wrapped her long, thin fingers around his wrist. His pulse beat in time to the lapping of the waves.
“I’ll tell you something about me,” she whispered. “I’m scared all the time. I’m sad and scared, and I feel like the world will collapse the rest of the way if I lose control for one minute. And my best friend just died. I only knew her for a week, and she was still my best friend. Maybe I just shouldn’t make any more friends.”
“It’s okay.” Michael took her face in his hands. He ran his thumbs over her cheekbones, tracing their shape. Then he leaned down and kissed her, touching his lips to hers for the briefest moment. “It’ll be okay,” he whispered.
Judith stepped into the circle of Michael’s arms and put her head on his chest. She still felt sad and scared, but she let herself lean into him. His heartbeat quickened against her ear, unbearably sweet.
She pulled back. “Look, I’m not sure it’s a good idea to start something here,” she said. “This’ll all be over soon. I don’t want you to get any ideas.”
Michael would search for his family. She would find some way back into the life she’d been about to start. There were no prospects for a relationship here. To entertain the idea would be admitting that their world had truly changed forever.
“Hey, don’t worry,” Michael said. “I won’t follow you home. Maybe something not serious is just what we need.” He tapped her on the nose and grinned.
“Yes,” Judith said, pretending not to notice the way his thumb brushed her face when he dropped his hand, the way his warmth lingered on her lips.
“We’ve had enough seriousness lately. Race you back to the dining hall?”
“With your scraped side and my smashed foot, it’ll be a contest for the ages. You’re on.”
Chapter 18—Contact
Simon
For three days the Catalina sailed west. Simon roamed the ship, checking on the progress of the cleanup effort, monitoring the new rations stations, and making sure people knew their duties. There was a sense of industry and purpose on the ship that was even better than he had hoped. The melancholy and tension of previous days began to subside.
It made Simon proud to see everyone working hard and following his advice. It felt like when a recalcitrant student turned in a truly excellent research paper. The closer they got to making landfall, the more sure he was that they would be okay, even if they had to stay offshore for a little while before disembarking.
Esther thrived. She kept getting underfoot in the engine room until Reggie and the crew gave her tasks like sorting through bolts and oiling pumps. She had the run of the ship by now, and she’d taken her young friend Neal and some of the other children on tours of the lower reaches of the Catalina.
More and more debris floated on the water the closer they got to Asia. They salvaged anything they could, even if they didn’t know how it could be used yet. Metal. Plastic. Fabric. The items often came wrapped in seaweed, and they saved this too, spreading it out on the deck, coaxing it to dry in the occasional weak sunlight. Ana and her team invented new ways to prepare the seaweed, adding it to their diminishing diet of nonperishable food items.
They stored the salvage in the shops around the plaza and sorted through the remaining merchandise. They began working out a system so that everyone would have the same number of outfits. Those who still had their luggage donated their excess clothes, or at least some did. Simon was pretty sure others were still holding back. The porters raided the hotel supply for uniforms, towels, and sheets and distributed them evenly. Manny discovered a windfall in the form of bowling shoes. Some people had boarded the ship with nothing more than flip-flops. Soon the hard-toed orange and blue shoes could be seen tramping about the deck on people of all ages.
Simon visited the bridge regularly, but there was little news. No one had been able to connect to the Internet since
the last storm. It was as if Nora had taken their last hope of contact with her to the bottom of the sea. They were cut off from the rest of the world. Vinny and Kim tried to find out more information on the radio, but so far they’d only managed to reach a lone Japanese speaker and once heard a barrage of shouts in a language no one recognized. They were alone.
To compensate for the lack of communication with the outside world, people began gathering each night to mingle and chat. They told stories and sang a cappella—everything from campfire songs to sea chanties to Christmas carols. Sometimes Michael would bring out the guitar and others would join him, Reggie, and Willow Weathers in entertaining their fellow Catalinans. The divisions between the passengers, runners, and crew became less distinct the more people pitched in. When everyone was working and eating and sorting through salvage, it was easier for them to forget how they had ended up at sea.
There were arguments, of course, but they were sent to the council whenever possible. Simon tried hard to remain impartial. Decisions were put to a vote, a practice he hoped would stave off politicking and hard feelings. He considered how the council’s operations could be made even fairer. Maybe serving on the council should become a rotating duty too.
The high morale and general industriousness lasted until they reached the waters around the Philippines and saw the first bodies.
Judith
Judith flipped over a clump of damp seaweed. Manny worked beside her, spreading the dark, oily plants across the foredeck. Michael came over to them and dumped another pile onto the deck from a laundry basket.
“How’s it looking?” he asked.
“It takes forever to dry,” Judith said.
“We are thinking it will need two more days,” Manny said. He scratched at the scab that was peeling away from the cut above his eye. He might have a scar.
“Let’s hope we’ll be back on land in two days,” Michael said. He knelt beside Judith and began spreading out the new seaweed load.
“Yes, but like Simon says, people might not just hand us food right away.” Judith moved on to the next pile, putting a hand on Michael’s shoulder as she shifted around. Her rope burn was healing well. It itched more than hurt now.
