In my Blood

CHAPTER 66 - Endless Possibilities

The water sloshes against the wooden surface of the small lifeboat transporting us from the large ship to the beach of the island. 

No one can contain their excitement as we all sit, huddled and squashed, in this little lifeboat. Onboard is Brenda, Fry, Gally, Aris, Sonya, Harriet and myself, with Newt and Minho waiting behind to go in a boat with Thomas in a stretcher, still very much unconscious. Gally and Sonya are on rowing duty, propelling us forward so we're getting closer and closer to the beach each second. The air is humid, yet not as muggy and suffocating as it was in the dunes of the Scorch; the water, a deep, royal blue, yet not so dark that I cannot see the bottom of the ocean. I can see sealife below us, small and large fish of all colours meandering around corals and reefs, even a small pink jellyfish tagging behind the fish. 

"Where exactly are we?" I ask curiously. 

Harriet laughs. "Paradise, that's where!"

I'll accept that answer, for now. She isn't lying. However, I do know my curiosity will continue to gnaw away at me, yet I suppose I've had a great deal of unanswered questions in my life - I can live with one more. 

"My God, have you seen the colours of this water? I've never seen anything like it!" Fry exclaims. As we reach the beach further, the colour changes to a blend of calming turquoise, vivid cerulean and soft baby blues. The beach quickly approaches, golden sands waiting for us, as well as Vince and some other adults who are already setting up tables and overheard canopies. I can see little orange crabs scuttling around the beach, quickly scampering when they see us approaching their shores. The seagulls squawk and screech louder as we swing our legs out of the lifeboat, almost as if they're telling us, "Go away! Life is too peaceful for humans here!", or, contrarily, as if they're welcoming us to coexist with them in a life on this island.  

While the boat isn't even close to touching the sands, the water isn't too deep, so we all tentatively dip our feet in the water. Surprisingly, it isn't too cold, nor too hot; it is just right. I gladly let my body go from the boat and wade, waist-deep, to the shores of the beach, hoisting my rucksack well above my head. 

"I'll row the boat back to the ship for the others," Gally calls out, helping Aris out of the boat. When everyone's off the boat and wading through the water, Gally turns back. From a distance, I can see Newt and Minho waving to us from the ship, so I grin and wave back. 

***

That first day on the island passes rapidly. Once everyone was off the boat, we all sorted into groups, given our tasks for when everything is in full swing tomorrow. Newt, Minho and I are on mapping; Frypan, Brenda and Aris cooking; Sonya and Gally working as med-jacks (as us Gladers named them nostalgically, a term which others seemed to have adopted and is now a regular phrase on the island), and Jorge working with Vince as a leader. Rather than going straight into those jobs today, though, we simply set up a temporary liveable area at the edge of the beach, next to the shaded woodlands. Everyone pitched in to set up tents, canopies and huts, with hammocks tied across tress and clear pathways established in order to navigate the woodlands freely. Small lanterns have been hung from the branches, shimmering as they glow. The little settlement looks almost homely and comfortable. My back aches from a long day of work, my palms swollen with callouses, yet I feel immensely rewarded upon gazing at our work, our new little village. 

The only one missing from the action: Thomas. I wander from the woodlands and down to the beach, passing small gatherings of people sitting on large chunks of driftwood, chattering and munching on snacks, about to set up campfires as the sun begins to go down. I bite my thumbnail as I stare at Thomas' hut at the edge of the 'village,' standing in miserable isolation by itself, no one going in or out. I think about going in, before I stop myself. I linger, hesitantly, my mind going back and forth.