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“Why do you want to move?” Kayla asks from the row of seats behind us.
“I’m not talking to you,” Gregory snaps at her.
“We’ll talk about it later tonight, okay? When there isn’t anyone else around,” he adds.
Gregory frowns, but nods. Brent looks at me, seeming to mirror what I feel. Why does Gregory want to move in? He doesn’t complain about living with his mom as far as I know. Why ask in the middle of a cruise? Or while on a bus during an excursion? Has he been wanting to ask that question this entire trip? I’ll be curious to know everything they discuss.
Once we return to Skagway, we have time to shop before we need to return to the ship. This area seems to be nice and cute. There is plenty of shopping that can be done too. Brent and I pick up a few things before helping Gregory find the perfect souvenir for his girlfriend. He ultimately decides on a dreamcatcher and a necklace.
We sit on a nearby bench, waiting for Logan and Kayla to finish shopping. Gregory turns a little to face us and says, “I want to move in, Dad.”
“You mind telling me why?” Brent asks.
It feels a bit awkward to sit in between the two of them while they talk about this. “Do you want me to give you two some privacy?” I ask Gregory.
“You’re fine, Jamie.” To his dad, he says, “Well, I don’t want to hurt Mom or anything, but when y’all were getting the divorce, no one asked me where I wanted to live. Mom just declared that I would stay with her and you didn’t fight her on it. If someone had asked me, I might have picked Mom at first because I worry about her, but I’d rather live with you.”
“You want to live with me because no one asked you when we got divorced?” Brent asks, seemingly wanting clarification.
“Yeah. And because Mom hovers too much. Not that I don’t think you won’t, you know, parent me, but Mom still treats me like I’m a baby. You remember how she thought Kayla should have stayed home with me when she spent the night at Glenn’s. That’s ridiculous. I’m sixteen. So, can I?”
Brent squeezes my hand, causing me to look at him. His gaze is only on mine for a second before he looks back at Gregory. “You know I don’t mind if you want to live with me, but we’re going to have to talk to your mother first.” Gregory groans and Brent says, “Exactly.”
“She won’t be happy, I assume?”
Both of them look at me and say, “No.”
“But if we’re lucky, she won’t mind as much because she has Glenn keeping her occupied,” Gregory tells me.
Logan and Kayla walk up to us, finished with their shopping, so we stand to walk back to the ship.
Our dinner tonight is in a different dining room because we opted to have a bucket of seafood. And Jamie waits until the very second after we’ve been seated by the window to lean over and whisper, “The salmon today is the first time I’ve ever had seafood.”
She’s known about this dinner ever since she paid for the cruise. Why didn’t she say anything? What if she’s allergic to something we’re served? Now isn’t the best time to discover an allergic reaction. What if she hates everything? She’s going to be hungry afterward, not that she can’t order some room service or find where she can get a slice of pizza or a burger.
“Honey,” I whisper in a chide.
“I’m sorry. Everyone wanted to go and I figured it would be a good time to try something new, but now I’m nervous.”
“Did you like the salmon?” I ask.
“It was okay.”
Oh boy. “It’ll be fine,” I tell her, hoping it will be. How does one manage to go their entire life without at least trying seafood once? Maybe she was adamant about not trying it or maybe her parents don’t like seafood, so she didn’t really have the opportunity. Today will be the day though.
She nods and peers out the window. A moment later, she grabs my arm and yanks me so hard, she practically pulls me into her lap. “Look, y’all! It’s a baby orca!”
Sure enough, swimming alongside the ship is a baby orca. He looks like he couldn’t be bigger than a medium-sized dog, but we’re high up, so he’s more than likely bigger than that. Our entire table peers out of the window and the excitement rises when a second and third baby orca appear. Unfortunately, they lead the first orca away.
“Wow. That might just be the best thing about the trip,” Jamie says with awe in her voice.
“I agree,” Kayla tells her.
Our food is delivered to the table, but Jamie and Kayla keep their gaze primarily on the water, hoping to spot more wildlife. When Jamie isn’t looking, she tries some seafood or watches me for how to crack open a crab leg. I’m watching for signs of an allergic reaction. Everything appears to be fine, though.
“Oh! Is that a whale out there? Did you see the water shoot up, Kayla?”
“I think so! Oh my god!” she exclaims as a large tail emerges from the water only to disappear a second or so later. “Did you see that?”
