This is my first time writing something creative in about a decade. I hope you enjoy it!
The brightness of the sun pierces my eyes through the lids that were meant to protect them. The rays sting my eyes and cause a cascade of tears as i try my best to open them against the will of the fiery star. As they slowly adjust with each pathetic blink i can slowly start to see the shapes of the clouds that float above me as I lay on my back. Slowly dragging myself to a seated position with what feels like all the strength i have left, I search thoroughly to see if i can make out anything that i could call a savior lingering in the ocean that i’ve been forced to call home. I don’t know if or when i will find rescue but i do know that this bottle of water and the deflating raft that have saved my life will eventually seem less compassionate the emptier they become. Each time i fall asleep i allow more air to escape from the puncture wound of this doomed vessel and with every sunrise i drink more water than i had hoped. It is only day three, but i fear that day four seems unreachable as the only two possessions that I have begin to wither away.
At the peak of day the theft of my breath by the sultry air is the only thing the distracts me from the sun vandalizing my skin. My mouth so deprived of liquid that my lips become as tacky as the blacktop of the Mississippi roads that we walked as kids. Where the winds danced through the swamp foliage and the local reptiles would bask in the sun. Never before had i considered eating one of those reptiles or drinking from the bacteria infested marshes that i once took for granted. Now as i soak up the sun like a serpent on the pavement i can only think about how such a disease ridden creature could ease the cramping of my stomach. A pain that feels as if i am being eaten from within. I cautiously sip from the steaming plastic bottle that contains approximately four more sips of tolerable life. I take a sip and that leaves me with only three more sips. Three more sips… such a scary thought as i’ve never been more desperate to see another human being in my entire life.
Hours pass and night has fallen, such a relief after a day of grueling heat that caused me to unwisely use my last three sips of water in one over indulgent gulp. I know that i cannot survive another day under the scorching sun. My skin has already begun to blister. Patches of skin have become so burnt that they look as if they are about to bleed. After a day of agony i’ve decided that my time is up, i can no longer rely on fate to come to my rescue. The odds were not in my favor when my father’s sailboat capsized in the middle of the night leaving me stranded on the unforgiving water, with nothing but hope and the vision of my drowning father in my head, as he was unable to free himself from the sails he had been tangled in. Something had punctured the bottom of the boat as we slept and we had awoken to the water blanketing our bodies. I was able to flee on the raft that had been damaged but now It looks like we are meant to suffer the same demise, as i remove my grasp from the hole in my vessel that i have been holding shut for days. I should have enough time to fall asleep, but before that i will pray to the god that i’ve always denied. I will pray not to be saved, not for the golden gates to appear before me, but i will pray that i do not wake from my slumber to feel the burning pain of the water the will soon fill my lungs.
I am startled awake by the sound of a whistle. The light of the moon off of the water illuminates the sky, enough for me to see that my raft had only minutes of life left in it. Now i was going to be faced with my worst fear, floating in a dark ocean with nothing but the thoughts in my head, waiting for the moment in which i have to give myself to the sea. I hear a whistle again. I look suddenly to see where it came from just to realize that behind me sat a large boat peacefully floating on the water that was now so calm that it looked like glass. Overwhelming emotions take over me as i begin to express my excitement in a laugh that somehow turned into a sobbing noise. How did this happen? How is it that in what seems like an endless ocean, in the middle of the night, this boat was able to happen across me. A floatation device lands next to me in the water. “go ahead son, grab onto it,” says an older man in a soft voice. As the moonlight kisses his face i can see that he has an unkempt gray beard and hair to match. Next to him, a tall skinny man who sits back just far enough that i am unable to notice any distinguishing features. A couple of minutes ago i had less energy than i have had in my entire existence, but with safety and a long life in front of me i have never grabbed anything as tightly as i am holding that floating ring that will lead me to freedom.
As i make it onto the boat i am greeted with water and a peanut butter sandwich. My mouth is so dry that i can barely chew it. Despite the difficulty, it was the best that food has ever tasted. It overwhelmed my taste buds. I felt a flutter in my stomach and my heart was struck with a rush of adrenaline. It felt as though i had just fallen in love for the first time. I could tell it was Peter Pan, the only flavor that i ever ate back home. Before my father and i had set sail for the summer my mother had snuck a jar into my pack and wrote me note on the lid that had said “Dean, miss me lots! love mom.” Before i realized it, i had finished my sandwich and collapsed into a chair that was sitting on the deck. “ Have some more food boy, there’s plenty left.” says the old man who came to my rescue. I looked around as a total of six quiet masculine figures stared me down as if i was a new creature they had just discovered. The old man reaches out to me with two pieces of bread and a jar of peanut butter.
“How did you find my out here?” i asked in a quivering voice, still shaken from the surprising rescue.
“We were out hunting.” casually answers the old man.
“Hunting what?”
“Don’t you worry about that boy, eat up!” snapped the old man. I twist the top of the peanut butter and set the lid on my knee. As i remove my hand i notice a familiar script that says “Dean, miss me lots! love mom.” My heart sinks into my stomach. I’m so scared that i no longer feel the hunger, or thirst, or the burns that cover my body. I want to know where they found this, but i am too afraid of what the answer might be.
“Boss, there’s another one” as that tall skinny figure points towards a small boat in the distance.
“ You know the drill boys, see what and who is worth taking then drop that son of a bitch for the fishes to do with as they please.”
“Yes sir!”
“And take this damn kid to his quarters, i don’t know why you passed on him the first time. Dubai will pay a pretty penny for this one… assuming those burn scars heal up nicely.” The tall skinny man grabs me by the wrist. too frightened and tired to fight, i follow him to the bottom of the stairs. He fiddles with keys for a moment then stops on the one he seems to have been searching for. As he opens the door he shoves me in with at least a dozen young boys and girls that were huddled against the wall in fear.
“Don’t worry little buddy, maybe you’ll get real lucky and someone will just want you as their cute little pet.” He fiddles his keys around a bit and slowly pulls the door shut. “Or maybe one of them nice cannibals will get ya.” As the door clasps shut and nothing is left but darkness and the sound of kids crying as their lives have just been taken to be sold to someone else.
