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“I am helping you lot, though be it regrettably,” he shrugged, now fully dressed in a pair of loose pants tucked into boots and a loose hanging open-front tunic.
“Yes,” I blinked, “And we’re grateful, but…” I couldn’t continue. As if on cue, Bellamy held up a hand as he squinted to see who’d called his name from the other side of the ship.
“Later,” he uttered, walking away to deal with whatever matter it was. “Just stay out of my crew’s way for now.” Then he turned around and called out to me while still walking backwards and pointing at a crew member in the distance. “Except Tristan. See Tristan there about some clothes that actually fit.”
I turned to see the boyish sailor Tristan lugging a crate in his arms near the stern of the ship. He was stacking them with others on board and looked like he’d rather do anything other than interact with me. But with an encouraging look from McKenzie, I approached and found myself handed a pair of small burgundy pants and a white tunic that looked to be much closer to my size. Taking the clothes belowdecks with McKenzie, I put on the new outfit I wrapped a brown sash of cloth over the seams at my waist, tucking in my tunic and pulling on the leather boots I’d found close to my size.
“You look like a pirate yourself now,” McKenzie noted.
“Maybe you should put together something a little more century-appropriate, too.” I suggested. “You know, it’s probably best we blend in once we get to land.”
“That’s probably true.” McKenzie uncrossed her arms and rummaged through the crate of clothing. “Though I just don’t feel like any of these are my color.” We both giggled at her comment.
“It feels good to laugh,” I said. “Every moment feels like hell here.”
“It’s hard to see the bright side, I’ll admit. But try to stop shutting us out so much. We’re your friends, and we’re just as much trapped here as you are.”
“I think Noah would love nothing more than for me to shut him out.”
“Well, who can blame him?” McKenzie’s tone rose a bit. “Think about what’s happened to him. To us. This is a literal impossible nightmare. Noah can be blunt, but he’s just stressed. He’s scared. And to be honest, I am, too.” The air between us hung heavy for a moment, before McKenzie spoke again. “I’m so worried about what my parents must think happened to me. I wish...I wish I had listened to you when you told me not to get on the boat.”
I looked down. She was right. I already hated myself for having caused all this for them. I just wanted to get them home, and to make sure there was even a home to go back to.
“I can’t tell you how sorry I am that I’ve dragged you here. Trust me. I’m scared, too. Actually, I’m terrified. But we’re going to figure it out. If we got here somehow, there has to be a way to get back.”
“Well, we have a lot better chance of figuring it out if we’re not all pissed at each other.” She nudged me, but her voice was anything but playful.
“Maybe I was a little harsh with Noah. I’m just not myself here.” I played with a piece of fraying thread on one of the shirts as McKenzie pieced together her own outfit.
“I’ve noticed.” McKenzie’s soft voice was barely audible over the creaking sound of the ship. “None of us are. We’re just trying to survive.” She sighed, holding up a pair of pants against her waist for comparison. “I just want to be back in our dorm drinking coffee and doing our makeup.”
“What, you don’t like playing dress up on a pirate ship?” I chuckled. “Don’t tell me this ruffly shirt doesn’t match my eyes." I batted my lashes dramatically.
McKenzie’s lips formed the slightest smile for just a moment, but it quickly faded as her gaze met mine.
“What?”
“I’m just making sure I know what color your eyes actually are,” she said gently. “When you yelled at Noah, I could’ve sworn they flashed blue. Like a deep blue. But now they’re back to brown. Like I thought. I guess the sun is getting to me.”
“Blue?” I glanced up. She nodded confidently.
“Hmm…” I said, mentally adding yet something else to my list of things to worry about. “That’s…weird.”
“Maybe it was just a trick of the light, but I don’t know.” McKenzie flicked her head to the side.
“Well, whatever it was, it’s the least of our problems right now.” I grabbed a pair of pants and shirt with a vest and tossed them to McKenzie. “Tell Noah to put these on. He’ll do it if you ask him. If I try, he’ll probably just throw them overboard.”
McKenzie nodded and began to walk away. But she stopped at the steps leading up to the deck and looked back at me. “Hey Katrina,” she said softly. “What if we never make it back?”
I looked her over in her loose flowing skirt and billowy tunic and cracked a small smile. “Then at least we’ll look the part.” I chuckled, but it wasn’t enough to hide the worry in my voice.
With a half smile and another nod, she made her way back up top. I sat in silence in the darkness of the ship’s innermost space. The smell of fish and salt toyed with my senses, and the muffled sounds of the crew above deck sounded distant, like a far-off dream. I thought of the last thing’s I’d said to Milo. Was it something I said that made me lose him? Was this fate’s cruel way of giving me what I deserved?
And Bellamy…What was I feeling when I was lying next to him? Something I didn’t want to feel. Something I refused to acknowledge.
As I sat there, staring into the shadows and rat-chewed burlap sacks of grains on the floor, the sound of rushing footsteps above made me stand alert. Next came yelling, and before I knew it pirates were sprinting down the steps to get past me, running to the cannons lining the inside of the ship.
“Man the cannons! All hands!” A voice cried.
