The Cruise: Chapter 1, Eno and Naya
Eno laid down in the bed with a huff. He was flat on his face. He pulled his arms up and wrapped them over the top of his head. He felt sick and they’d only been on the sea for an hour or so. Naya pulled her hair up into a bun and sat on the chair across from him. She stuck her bottom lip out, teasing him. He peeked at her and then groaned again, hiding his face in the pillow.
“Don’t say it,” he said. He did not want her to gloat about how right she was that cruises were different than surfboards, and that he would probably get sick if he didn’t take the motion sickness patches she’d bought for the cruise. She smiled and rubbed her hand up his spine. He groaned.
“You’re gonna make me puke,” he said. She laughed at him. He grumbled.
“Oh, my fault, right?” she laughed. He pushed the pillow off the bed towards her. She kissed the top of his head.
“I won’t say it, but I will go see if I can find you some medicine or patches… I won’t even call you a brat or a baby.”
He swallowed, rolling onto his back and sinking down into the pillows.
“It’s not even so bad,” he lied.
“Oh, great, Keri texted and said there’s a dance party on the lido deck. We should go join,” she called his bluff. He pulled a pitiful face and let out a deep breath.
“No, that’s okay. A patch would be great. You were right,” he whined.
Amused, she rubbed a gentle hand over his face and pushed his hair back. “I know, baby,” she whispered. She kissed him and then left him to his own devices.
Naya stepped onto the elevator, heading up to the top floor deck where the smoking section was. She knew where Max would be, anyways. She was surprised to find the rest of the crew laying around together on the deck chairs.
“Hey guys,” she smiled. Keri cleared off a deck chair beside her, but Naya waved her hand. “No thanks, Eno is… well, he’s not feeling great.”
Ira burst out laughing. “You should not have told me that,” he said. Ever since he had found out he was .1% more Pacific Islander on a DNA test kit their mom had gifted them for Christmas, he’d been looking for ways to rub it in.
“This man comes from a long line of wayfinders and gets sea sick on hour one of a cruise?” he scoffed. Keri rolled her eyes at Ira and Naya chuckled.
“Well, don’t be too mean to him, I’ve already given him a little bit of a hard time,” she said. Ozzy and Julian were asleep beside them on the deck chairs. She tilted her head towards them.
“How’s Oz been?” she whispered. Keri shrugged.
“He’s getting around fine… He doesn’t seem confused or anything. Julian’s been hovering, but you know how protective he’s been ever since…” she said. “Seems like they’re happy for a break, but they keep whispering and seems like they’ve got other stuff on their minds. I’m glad they coordinated all of this, they needed to get out of town,” she said with a smile.
“If only Jules would chill the fuck out,” Ira said.
Keri pulled a face, “Ira, they’ve been through a lot, he can be a little overprotective for a while if he wants.”
Ira frowned, closing his eyes once more in the heat of the sun. “Fair.”
Naya hummed. “Well, hopefully they’re refreshed by the trip. Do you guys know where there’s a convenience shop or something? I need to grab some medicine or something for E,” she said.
“I think Porter found one on the third floor,” Keri said, pulling her bikini straps over so she could see her tan’s progress. She grabbed the tanning oil off the table and rubbed more over her belly.
The bar boy passed through in his white uniform with a tray. He couldn’t move fast enough to slip past those two.
“Oh, hey! Could we grab two more of those hurricane cocktails? And one of the kolsch beer that was on tap please,” Ira said, and the bar boy smiled a customer service approved smile. He collected the tumblers on the table, evidence that they had been enjoying their bottomless drink package so far.
“Got it, anything for you, ma’am?” he asked Naya. She shook her head, “All good, thanks!”
The bar boy took off and Naya laughed. “Looks like you guys have made a friend.”
Keri scoffed, “Or an enemy. But Ira is determined to win him over by the third day.”
Naya stood, her sun dress falling over her hips. She slipped her sandals back on.
“Alright, let me not leave him suffering too long. We’ll see you guys for dinner?” she asked, and Keri nodded. “Porter said he would meet us there, too. I think everyone will be there.”
“Cool, I will text you about E. Not sure he’ll be up to it, but we’ll see if the patch helps,” she said.
It only took her a few minutes to find the convenience store on the third floor. And right there, at the front of the store was a rack of various treatments for sun burns, sea sickness, and cuts and scrapes. She found patches she’d paid 10.99 for back home, marked up to 19.99 on the ship. She sighed but couldn’t help but laugh. She also grabbed a tiny container of motion sickness tablets that would kick in quicker. She took them to the front and paid for them and a water bottle before returning to the cabin.
She found Eno sitting on the floor of the bathroom and she grimaced. He was so big in such a small space that his legs spilled out into the room. He leaned his head back onto the sink base and sighed.
“Oh, babe, I’m sorry,” she said. The jokes had subsided when she saw how pitiful he looked. He kept his eyes closed.
“‘I haven’t thrown up,” he muttered, “I just feel so dizzy.”
She frowned. She opened the bag and grabbed a patch for him, pulling the adhesive backing from it before holding it out to him. He opened his eyes slightly before squeezing them tight again. He nodded.
She crouched down, pushing his hair up gently behind his ear and sticking the patch onto the skin. She kissed his forehead. “You wanna lay down for a bit or do you think you need to stay here?”
He shrugged, “I’m sorry, I should’ve listened to you,” he sighed.
She smirked. “I’ll rub it in when you’re feeling better, don’t worry. C’mon, let’s go sit on the deck for a bit. They say you’re supposed to keep an eye on the horizon, right?”
It sounded terrible to him, she could tell by the grimace he pulled, but ultimately he agreed. He wasn’t in any position to pretend he knew better than Naya. He hoisted himself up and splashed cold water on his face in the sink. It seemed to help. He wiped a rough towel over his face and hiccupped into it. He let his shoulders drop finally and opened his eyes. Naya led the way to the deck and slid open the door. She handed him a tablet and the bottle of water and he swallowed roughly, wiping the back of his hand over his mouth.
They walked out onto the deck and sat. The ocean breeze did feel comforting to Eno and he melted into the chair, stretching his legs out.
He smiled at her, embarrassed, “I’m sorry babe, we should be enjoying the cruise.”
She squeezed his hand. “It’ll kick in soon. We have plenty of time to enjoy the cruise.”
He nodded, taking another swig of the water. “I guess we’ll see everyone at dinner?”
She nodded, “Yeah, everyone’s heading there so we’ll be able to catch up then. At least you have a few hours. I bet you’ll be fine after a nap.”
He hummed, “When is zip-lining again?”
“Six in the morning,” she laughed, and he raised a brow.
“How many tablets can I take?” he groaned.
Naya smiled and held his hand. He laid his head back and tried to pretend the waves were not chopping below. After a few moments of quiet, Eno took a deep breath and opened his eyes.
“I’m really grateful for you,” he said to her, “I love you.”
“I really love you,” she said back, “I’m grateful for you too. Even when you are stubborn.”
