19
Day twenty at sea
“A kiss!”
My head snapped up from the pages of the same book I had been reading for twenty days, my eyes blinked adjusting to the sudden loudness in our small cabin.
I was perched in the top bunk, legs folded under me, surrounded by the quiet of my reading, until the door slammed shut and Ela burst in like a storm.
“A kiss?” I echoed, closing the book carefully and setting it aside. I leaned forward, peeking over the edge of the bunk to look down at Ela, who stood in the middle of the cabin with her arms crossed, cheeks flushed. “You have all my attention.”
Ela’s mouth opened, then closed, and she threw her hands up in exasperation.
“He gave me a kiss!” Her voice was incredulous, like she could hardly believe the words coming out of her own mouth .
I slid off the bunk, my bare feet landing softly on the floor as I stepped towards her with wide eyes and a big smile. “Raaq?”
“Raaq!” Ela spat the name like it felt a bad taste in her mouth. “He—out of nowhere—he just grabbed me and kissed me!”
My eyebrows shot up, I put my hands over my mouth to contain a little scream of excitement.
“On the mouth, Donna!”
“I know where kisses go!”
“Well, sometimes they don’t go there!”
I couldn’t suppress the grin creeping across my face. “And what did you do?”
“I pushed him off!” Ela snapped, pacing the room with the kind of energy that I knew only came when she didn’t feel in control over something.
“Gods, Donna. Who the hell does he think he is? Kissing me!”
“I know!”
“Me!”
“I know!”
“Of all people!”
“Isn’t it wonderful?”
“I hate men!”
I chuckled, leaning against the wall as I watched Ela’s collapse unfold.
“I can't believe this just happened,” she said with her hands in her head.
“I can! Please, tell me everything about it. Were you both fighting? Screaming at each other? Did he smile? ”
Ela groaned, throwing herself onto the lower bunk, staring up at the wooden slats above her. “We were.”
I gasped softly. “Fighting?”
“When are we not?” She looked at me then, and said, “Stop smiling.”
“Did you like it?”
“Donna!”
We stood there staring at each other, I couldn't stop smiling, and little by little she gave in. I could see how her cheeks were slowly turning red and a smile began to appear on her lips.
I gasped. “You did!”
“Stop! I hate him!”
“Maybe you hate him a little less now?” I said, amusement surely dancing in my eyes.
Ela shot me a glare from her position on the bed. “Don’t start with that look.”
I couldn’t help but laugh.
“I’m serious!” Ela protested, but her voice lacked its usual sharp edge. “I don’t know why he did it. Or why I didn’t punch him harder.”
“Punch him? Ela! You said you pushed him off!”
“And then I punched him in the face, of course.”
I sat down beside her. “I’m sure he’s not as bad as you think,” I said gently. “Or maybe he’s just as confused as you are.”
Ela groaned again, throwing her arm over her eyes. “I am not confused. I hate him.”
I smiled softly and removed the arm that was covering her eyes. “Well?…” I asked, looking at her. “Did he smile or not?”
Suddenly, a knock sounded on the door and we moved our heads at the same time. I smiled, very, very, wide.
“Go.” I hissed in a loud whisper, and she shook her head.
I sighed, getting up from the bed, and went to open the door to meet a bloody-nosed Raaq. Ouch. I winced.
“Pink Arrow. Hi.” Raaq cleared his throat. “Is Treasures here?”
From the corner of my eye I could see Ela shaking her head very hard and mouthing a big “NO.”
“Umm… She is indisposed.”
“Oh.”
“For the moment!” I said quickly, noticing the disappointed tone of his voice. “She will surely attend dinner. On deck. With you—with everyone! Everyone will be there. We all will. Be there, that is. She will be there, and you will be there. Correct?”
He looked at me a bit confused. “Sure.” He cleared his throat, again. “I just wanted to give her this.” Raaq handed me her hat. “Could you?”
“Of course. Thank you.” I took the hat and he nodded. And when he turned to leave, I yelled from the door, “See you at dinner!”
And the moment I closed it, Ela was immediately up, screaming at me. “What have you done!”
“Did he take your hat off? To kiss you?”
She pressed her lips into a thin line and said nothing as she ripped her hat from my hands .
“He took your hat off to kiss you and came to give it to you! Ela!”
“Don’t.”
“And he wants to do it again!”
“Donna. Lower your voice,” she said through her teeth.
“I’m sorry.”
“You mustn’t tell. What will everyone say?”
“I won’t, of course,” I said softly. “And I truly think that what everyone would say would be something like finally.”
We both laughed.
“It’s not a matter of mockery, this is serious!”
“You are laughing too!”
“Because I’m nervous! What is going to happen next? I can’t look at him in the eyes. Or worse what if anyone—Oh no.”
“What's wrong?” I asked, my confusion growing at her change of tone.
“Gods, no!”
“What!”
“The damn parrot!”
“Coco?”
“She saw us.”
I immediately laughed at the thought. “Coco saw you and Raaq kissing?”
“Coco saw Raaq kissing me . There’s a big, big difference.”
I couldn’t stop laughing. “Do you truly believe that Coco is going to say something?”
“I truly believe that a parrot who talks, and saw Raaq kissing me, could definitely say something.”
“Ela.” I tried to calm her between laughs.
“And don’t forget the fact that she hates Raaq, she could use it against him.”
“She does not.”
“She does.”
“Coco doesn’t hate anyone.”
She groaned and moved her hand to her mouth. “Something terrible is going to happen tonight.”
I laughed. “I’m sure we will have a remarkable dinner.”
We stood in silence for a moment, when suddenly Ela dared to whisper, “He did, by the way.”
The corners of my mouth began to lift, because I knew exactly what she was talking about.
And then, she said it, “He did smile.”
???
The night was calm, the sea a gentle, rolling backdrop to the laughter that floated across the deck. Candles flickered in the lanterns, casting soft light over the long, weathered floor where we gather for dinner. Overhead, the stars hung like jewels in the black sky, their reflection shimmering on the water.
The kind of night I had come to cherish—peaceful, lighthearted, with a sense of family I always wished to find at sea. A moment I had learned to love so much that sometimes my heart ached, thinking that maybe, in the future, I wouldn't be able to have it anymore.
I sat between Efren and Ela, my fingers tracing the rim of my cup as I watched the others joke and talk.
“Ceol, you had outdone yourself tonight,” I said, smiling at him.
The captain smirked. “Is the same as every night, love.”
“Well, he still did it for us, didn’t he?” I faced Ceol again with a smile. “Thank you.”
“Ah, what will I do without you, Pink Arrow.” He smiled. “I really could get used to these compliments every night. She’s the only one who appreciates. We should keep her forever, Cap’n.”
When I heard that last sentence, my heart sank, and I felt how Calico’s eyes fell on me. Suddenly, the night dressed in silence for a moment. I could only hear the sea, like always.
I kept feeling his eyes on me so I looked up, in his gaze was something that I couldn't decipher, like need and want but also sadness.
Ela quickly cleared her throat and I faced her. She was already waiting for me with a smile.
Without meaning to, my gaze drifted to Raaq, who sat a bit too quietly, swirling his drink with one hand, his other hand suspiciously covering his nose. But I knew that behind it, was a bloody nose. And I almost laughed thinking about my conversation with Ela earlier .
On instinct, I looked at Coco who was perched on a barrel nearby, watching the scene with quiet judgment.
Ela, meanwhile, was shifting in the floor beside me, nervously picking at her food.
I couldn’t help but stifle a smile.
“Mate, what happened to your face?” Efren piped up, leaning a little, a smirk playing on his lips. “You look like you’ve been in a fight with a cannonball.”
Raaq shrugged, not meeting anyone’s eyes. “You could say that I did.”
“I think I may have an idea of who that cannonball could be,” Efren said, smiling.
“It was nothing, all right? Just… took a hit earlier. It’s nothing, mate.”
Captain Pierce raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced. “From what? A rouge seagull?”
Jonah laughed and I bit my lip, trying to hold back a laugh as I remembered Ela’s words from a couple of hours ago.
Raaq shifted from his seat on the floor, looking far too uncomfortable for someone usually so confident.
“It was something minor. Let’s leave it at that.”
I glanced at Ela, who was doing everything in her power to look uninterested in the conversation, although her twitchy hand gave her away.
Everyone else seemed intent on figuring out what had happened, and I smiled a little knowing only Coco and I knew .
“Maybe you tripped and fell into someone’s fist,” Duke teased, taking a long sip of rum.
“Or someone didn’t like the way you were looking at them,” Efren added, winking as he shot Raaq a look.
Captain Pierce sighed. “I don't like not knowing what's going on aboard my own ship. Someone needs to start talking.”
Raaq groaned under his breath, clearly wishing the topic would die. I leaned back, my eyes flicking to Coco, who seemed to be watching the whole scene with far too much interest.
And suddenly, she fluffed her pink feathers, and squawked, “Kiss!”
We all went silent.
I froze, biting the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing out loud.
My eyes flicked to Ela, whose face had gone pale as the moon, then to Raaq, who was staring daggers at the bird.
“Did that parrot just say ‘kiss’?” Captain Pierce asked, his brows knitting together as he glanced at Coco.
Efren snorted, and Jonah nearly chocked on his drink.
“She’s only said ‘Coco’ until now.” Jonah said, his voice half-surprised, half-amused.
Ela was practically sinking into the floor, her eyes glued to her food. “I knew it,” she muttered under her breath.
She looked mortified, so trying to ease the tension, I blurted, “I’ve been teaching her new words!”
Captain Pierce laughed softly. “Words like ‘kiss’? Who have you been thinking of kissing, love? ”
My cheeks went immediately red, I could tell. “I’ve been reading her a book.”
“My book doesn't have kisses in it,” said Alastair with that deep serious voice of his.
“Looks like Coco’s been paying attention to something we haven’t,” said Efren lightly, throwing a teasing glance at Raaq, who shot him a sharp look. “And who, oh pray tell, has Coco been watching?”
“Kiss!” Coco shouted, louder this time.
Raaq shifted uncomfortably in his seat, his eyes narrowing at the bird. “She’ a stupid parrot. Doesn’t mean anything.”
When I glanced at Ela, she was shaking her head. “You owe me big,” she whispered to me.
“Me? But I—”
“Kiss!”
Ela’s fork clattered onto her plate, Raaq slammed his cup down on the floor, and both stood up at the same time, knives still in hand, their movements sharp, synchronized in a way that surprised everyone.
“Enough!” they both shouted, their voices overlapping as they reached for their pistols, pointing them at Coco.
It all erupted into chaos suddenly.
“Not with my knives!” Ceol bellowed from behind, rising his hands in mock surrender. His apron was still on, flour dusting his cheek, and his eyes were wide with alarm.
“I think we have an answer,” Efren half-shouted, leaning back as if trying to dodge the tension, while Jonah looked between Ela and Raaq, wide-eyed. Alastair and Duke exchanged amused glances, already too deep in their rum to take the situation seriously.
But the captain? Calico was just watching, with his brows raised and that smirk that was always dancing on his lips.
I shot up from my seat on the floor. “Put the guns down!” I darted between them and poor Coco, arms spread wide.
Ela’s pistol wavered for a second, but Raaq’s hand was still steady, his jaw clenched.
“I've been wanting to kill that bird for years,” he muttered, his voice thick with frustration.
“She’s just a parrot!” I pleaded, my eyes wide as I looked between them. “She doesn’t know what she’s saying!”
“Kiss!” Coco squawked again, clearly enjoying the attention.
Ela groaned, running a hand through her hair but keeping her pistol aimed at the bird. “I knew this would happen.”
I turned to Ela, my voice softening. “Ela. Please put the pistol down. You know Coco will forget by tomorrow.”
Raaq’s eyes were blazing as he glared at the parrot. “If I hear that word one more time—”
“You’ll what?” I stepped closer to Raaq, my hands resting on his gun hand to lower it. “Really? She’s a bird, Raaq.”
By now the rest of the crew was watching with varying degrees of amusement and confusion.
Efren nudge Jonah, whispering something that made him stifle a laugh, while Alastair leaned back, taking a long, lazy sip of rum as if this was all part of the evening’s entertainment .
“From now on, I want everyone to know that I answer for Coco, if you do something to her, you do it to me,” I said, facing them. “Savvy?”
Captain Pierce was looking at me with a smile, like he seemed to find it all the most amusing. And finally, with a voice rich with humor but also truth, he said, “What a beautiful family.”
He gestured at the scene, as if presenting some masterpiece of domestic chaos or a renaissance painting. “Dinner, secrets, and a pair of pistols aimed at a pink bird.”
I shot him a look, my lips twitching despite myself, and then, he winked at me.
“Kiss!” Coco shouted again, her wings flapping a little now.
Both Raaq and Ela groaned in unison, lowering their pistols but not looking any less annoyed.
I sighed in relief, stepping back from the line of fire, although I kept myself positioned between the two and Coco, just in case.
“Thank you,” I muttered, sending a quick, grateful smile to both of them. “Let’s not shoot anyone tonight, shall we?”
Raaq grumbled something under his breath, holstering his pistol, while Ela sat down on the floor heavily, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring at Coco.
The captain, still smiling, said with a voice filled with amusement, “To family.”
“To family,” the rest of the crew muttered raising their cups, with a hint of laughter in their voices.
I shook my head, biting back a smile as I returned to the floor with them .
The night had descended into chaos, Ela was right after all, but in its own way, it felt… perfect.
Chaotic, messy, and somehow filled with love. Always love.
I looked around at the faces of the crew—family—and couldn’t help but think that, despite everything, I wouldn’t trade this feeling for anything.
I wouldn’t trade day twenty at sea for anything.