JOSH
The waves slapped against the little boat, their rhythm almost hypnotic–almost if it weren’t for the nausea that was starting to rise.
Wait – boat. They found the bout. The journal was right. The scientists did leave a boat here.
Maybe we had a shot at getting off the island after all. I did my best to swallow it down, but it felt like a fog was lingering over my head, making it hard to think–hard to focus.
That and the fact that Luke and Sarah had been at each other’s throats every time I tried to open my eyes and sit upright. They didn’t even notice me struggling.
“I know north is that way,” Luke growled, jabbing a finger at the map spread across the bench between them. His other hand clenched the wheel like he was imagining it was Sarah’s neck.
“No, it’s not! The sun rises in the east, genius, which means north is-” Sarah spun the map around, her voice rising in pitch. as her finger jabbed in the opposite direction.
“It’s cloudy! You can’t even see the fucking sun!” Luke shot back, his exasperation evident as he ran a hand through his salt- crusted hair.
JI tried to ignore them, pressing my head back against the hard bench. My body was still sluggish, weighed down by exhaustion and dehydration. Even so, their bickering drilled into my skull louder than the waves or the groan of the boat’s engine.
“Shut up,” I muttered, my voice scratchy and weak. They didn’t even flinch.
Luke pointed out at the horizon, which was supposed to prove his point. “What do you even know about navigation, huh? Didn’t you fail geography?”
Sarah shot back with a scoff, making me want to grind my teeth. “It’s called sailing and being a fucking flight attendant!”
“For one second–shut up and let me focus. We don’t have the fuel to take a guess.”
“I told you! This island will definitely have people. There’s a resort on it.” Sarah repeated for the hundredth time.
“This one is closer…” Luke countered, and I heard Sarah groan.
“That one might be just like this one. Uninhabited!”
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Letting My Brother's Best Friend Take My V-Card (Jessie and Luke)