Chapter Nine
1192 Words
After eating our meal I relaxed on the "bed" which was actually a bunch of leaves and deadwood. My arms were behind my head, holding them as I looked up at the tree that had turned into my rooftop and I could see the leaves and their shadows very clearly. The sun seemed like a small ball that I could almost grab with the palm of my hands. The only thing I had to do was to pretend that I could reach up to it and take it. I laughed at the thought.
"Are you tired?" Nicholas asked me.
"Not really. I'm just... I don't know. Maybe I'm tired, but not like you think," I replied.
"What do you mean?" He asked me. I sat up.
"Well, let me see, first I'm stranded in this island, second my boyfriend is either dead or lost, then I don't know if my dad's looking for me or not and finally... I don't know..." I said.
"Can I tell you something?" He asked me. It was the first time he seemed interested in me. I was a bit scared, but I nodded.
"You're pretty," he said.
"What?" I asked him surprised. I mean... I knew I was pretty, I just didn't expect him to say that.
"You're pretty," he repeated. I looked at him for a while, studied his eyes, his nose, his lips, and then nodded when I saw that he seemed sincere. He wasn't looking at my shirt or at my panties or my legs, he was looking right at me.
"Thank you," I replied. He nodded.
"I'm sorry about your boyfriend. You must have loved him very much. Were you to be married to him?" He asked me. I shook my head and frowned. I thought that was strange.
"No. I... I wasn't going to marry him. I'm... eighteen," I replied. He nodded.
"I was supposed to be married off with someone, but I couldn't marry her, so I escaped from home," he said.
"Really? How old are you? I mean... if you don't mind me asking," I said.
"Nineteen," he replied.
"Okay... but... you're really young," I replied kind of confused. Why on Earth would his parents force him to marry someone when he was still so young?
"I'm a man," he replied straightening his chest and suddenly standing very straight.
"Oh... I didn't imply that you weren't... what I mean is... that... I don't know, don't you have plans to go to college or something? He frowned at me confused.
"You don't know what college is?" I asked him. He shook his head. I was stunned.
"How long have you been here?" I asked him.
"For a while," he replied. He sat with his legs folded up and touched his knees with his long nose.
"What do you mean when you say a while? Years?" I asked him. He nodded. I felt sorry for him and touched his knee. I didn't have any malicious intent by it. I just wanted him to know that I was sorry for what had happened to him.
"I'm sorry," I said. He looked at my hand on his knee and I immediately moved it away.
"Sorry," I apologized again.
"Why? You had nothing to do with it," he replied.
"I know... I just... wish that didn't happen to you... but at the same time, if you wouldn't have been here, I would have probably been dead, so... your tragedy saved my life. I'm sorry, but at the same time, I'm also grateful that you're here," I said. He stared at me bewildered. The stare became uncomfortable to me, so I tilted my head and looked out at the sea. As I did, I noticed that the clouds were turning darker and I knew what that meant. It was going to rain.
"I think it's going to rain," I said to him pointing out at the sky. He was still staring at me.
"Nicholas-"
"Call me Nick," he said interrupting me.
"Okay... Nick," I said pointing again and emphasizing the dark, grey clouds.
"What did you say?" He asked me.
"I think it's going to rain," I replied.
"It is going to rain," he said nodding.
"Okay, so where's your shelter? I mean... your house? You do have one, right?" I asked him. He shook his head.
"I've never really needed one," he replied. I was surprised.
"How can you live on this island for so long and not have a shelter or something?" I said.
"I shelter myself in a cave. It's not too far away," he said.
"Okay, then I think it would be a good idea if we head over there. Lead the way," I said. He stood up and told me to follow him. I grabbed my clothes, left the bonfire lit, and walked away with him. We walked a few miles and saw the mouth of the cave. As soon as we saw it, the rain began to drizzle on us. I screamed, but with a laugh as I ran into the cave with Nick.
"Hurry," he said as I still grabbed my clothes. He grabbed my arm to help me in. The rain intensified and I couldn't help myself, but laugh.
"I was right," I said.
"Yes, you were," he replied and then started to laugh with me.
"Why are you laughing?" He asked me as I placed my hands on my hips, but then he too was laughing.
"I don't know. Does it really matter?" I asked him. He shook his head.
"No," he replied.
I peered out the view of the cave watched the rain fall on the tropical plants, trees, and shrubs. The sound of the water was deliciously relaxing.
"Well Nick... I don't know why you haven't built a shelter, but that's all over now. Girls can't be living in caves like this, so after it stops raining you're going to build a shelter... for the both of us of course, not just for me," I said.
"Me? What will you do?" He asked me.
"I'll help out, but I am not going to stay in this cave," I said.
"I didn't know girls were so complicated," he said.
"Complicated? I'm not being complicated. I'm being practical," I replied.
"It would be practical to stay here," he said.
"Okay look... I know you've been alone here for a while, but girls have needs. I need a house, even if it's a treehouse. There's no way I'm living in this cave," I complained.
"Okay. I'll build a shelter for you. I want you to feel comfortable," he said.
"Thanks. It doesn't have to be too elaborated and I promise to help you with what I can. Hopefully, I'll be rescued soon," I said. Nick crossed his arms.
"I don't think you'll be rescued soon," he said.
"Why not?" I asked him.
"Because this island... isn't visible from the sky," he replied.
"What are you talking about?" I asked him, but he didn't answer. I didn't push on the subject for him to tell me and I thought that maybe he was just kidding. I wasn't sure.
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