15

Also ending my horrid week was the largest catch I’d ever had with my crew. When we finally got back to the docks and hitched the boat up, it was almost four in the afternoon. I was worried that Ondine may be concerned about rehearsing, but she seemed very carefree and adrift in her thoughts. I brought her with me in my truck (that I hardly ever drove) to the convenience store to go get ice. She didn’t talk very much, but had a very faint smile as she looked out at the world around her. She trailed me into the store, and watched as I loaded the truck with bags of ice.

               As soon as we arrived with the ice, the men began to pack the crates. I told Ondine she could go if she wanted, but she insisted that she wanted to stay. I shrugged her off and helped packing the fish. Once the boat was clear, we loaded Ryan’s truck with as many crates as we could, then Jason’s with the rest. The two drove off to sell the fish to various restaurants and grocers, and I sent the rest of my crew home. I looked over to Ondine, exasperated.

               “How are you?” I asked.

               “I’m good,” she answered, smiling widely at me.

               “I’m sorry that I smell like fish,” I muttered, looking down at my feet and running my fingers through my hair. The next thing I knew, Ondine was clinging to my torso, her face buried in the chest of my overalls.

               “It’s okay,” she murmured, looking up at me.

               I smiled back at her and hugged her back gently. “Didn’t you want to rehearse?” I asked quietly.

               “I think I’ll be okay today,” she whispered, laying her head against my chest. “I’m just glad to be right here, right now.”

               I had no words. My mind had drawn a blank. I had spent weeks pining over this woman, longing for her. And now I had her, so easily. Just like that – my feelings were reciprocated. I found it hard to wrap my mind around. It was all so sudden. So sweet, but so sudden. I was afraid. I was falling into something I could not control, but I wanted it so badly. I wanted her so badly. And I told myself in that moment that I would sail the world over and over just to show her how much I wanted her here – next to me.

               She pulled away from me and looked away suddenly, as if embarrassed. I reached out to her, but then pulled my hand back. She pulled away for a reason, I scolded myself.

               “I don’t want to go back to the school,” she admitted softly.

               I tilted my head. “But you’re a lead in a ballet put on by a prestigious school,” I told her, “and you’re going to go on tour.”

               “But I’m so alone there,” she retorted, turning back to me. A defeated look had crossed her face. “I’m only happy when I dance. The rest of the time is just monotonous filler.”

               I grimaced. “Let me clean the boat. Then I’m taking you for a drink.”

               “No, you don’t have to,” she said, shaking her head.

               “I know. But I’m still taking you.” She rolled her eyes at me and walked to the end of pier and sat down, staring out at the ocean. I smiled at her before heading back over to the boat. I folded the net and put it away in its box, then locked up the storage and the cabin and hosed the deck off. I gave it a final once-over, then rolled up the hose and joined Ondine at the end of the pier.

               “Would you be mad if I pushed you in the water?” I asked. She snapped her head towards me with an intense glare.

               “Would you be mad if I stole your money and ran away with your best friend?” she asked, cocking an eyebrow.

               “A bit.” She grinned at me, then got to her feet and skipped ahead of me to my truck. We clambered in and I drove to The Oyster, where we had first met. I shed my overalls, since I was wearing jeans and a hoodie underneath, and left it in the cab. Ondine and I walked into the bar, greeted by the uproar of the football fans watching the game.

               “Hey, Adam!” Herman, the bartender called. “I’d never think to see you with such a beaut!”

               I turned to Ondine and smiled at her blushing face. “Now I don’t think that’s quite fair, Herman. Don’t you think I’m pretty, too?”

               “So you want a margarita, is that right, Adam?” He guffawed at me.

               “Nope,” I replied. “Can we get a pair of beers?”

               “I got ya.”

               Ondine and I took a seat at the bar. She was always so silent after the moment in which she had chosen to open up with me. It bothered me why she was so often taking two steps back whenever I finally thought she was here to stay. Herman gave us our beers, and we drank them in silence. I noticed a film take over Ondine’s eyes, and I left money at the bar for our beers, then took her outside. She was so fragile. I was afraid to lay a hand on her to begin with.

               “Are you okay?” I asked her as soon as we got outside.

               “I-I’m fine,” she muttered, leaning against the wall and sliding down to sit. I sat beside her and put my arm over her shoulders. She leaned her head on my shoulder. “I shouldn’t have had that drink,” she mumbled, putting a hand over her face.

               “What’s wrong?” I asked.

               “Nothing… I’m just lightheaded. I guess.”

               “Do you want me to take you back to the manor?”

               “No!” she retorted with a jerk. “No, I don’t want to go back.”

               “Well don’t you have to be there tomorrow?” She was worrying me.

               “I do, don’t I?” she mumbled, shaking her head. “I’m sorry. Yes. You should take me back.” I helped her up and into the truck, tossing my fishy overalls into the trunk before joining her. The ride home was mostly silent, broken up by a few remarks about a passing landmark that struck interest in one of us. I occasionally stole glances over at Ondine. She was staring out the window, her forehead resting against the glass. I wished I knew what was going through her mind. I wanted to make her smile like she had earlier today, but I couldn’t and I didn’t know why.

               We pulled up to the manor, and I felt extremely out of place in my old, battered up truck and my putrid clothes. Ondine still looked impeccable, which didn’t come as too much of a surprise to me by this point. I watched her slide out of the truck onto the gravel before following suit. We walked up the steps to the mansion before she turned back to me and met my gaze.

               “Thank you for today, Adam,” she said with a tilt of the head.

               “It was my pleasure,” I replied hesitantly.

               “Keep your schedule open,” she ordered. “I’m not sure when I’ll be able to come to town this week, but when I do, I want to meet with you.”

               “I can do that,” I told her. “It’s not like I really have any other plans anyway.”

               “I’d prefer if you did,” she said, crossing her arms. “Then you could cancel them for me.”   

               I chuckled at her, shaking my head. I found myself pulling her close to me. I found her on her toes, face closer to mine. I found myself locked in another kiss with the most beautiful woman I had ever met.

               I didn’t mind being lost. It meant that I could find myself in the most unexpected of places.