Saudade (Published under Indie Pop)

Chapter 22: The Stormy Sea

Chapter 22: The Stormy Sea

Night time finally came. I knew that the pirates were already having dinner at the dining area in the hold of the ship. I decided to stay on the forecastle deck and looked out through the darkness. There were no stars or moon at the moment and the wind was gaining its strength little by little. I had heard that a storm was catching up with us and the pirates would be working all night. I didn't know much about this Pirate City and I was wondering how it was worth leaving home and facing the storm. I had been on some bad weathers in the sea during my captivity but I knew that a storm was a different case. Would it be so scary? Would a sea monster come out of the sea and eat our ship? Of all the things that happened to me, I didn't know which one was scarier or less scary anymore.

"Hey, Jonah of the Obsidian," a voice suddenly called from behind me.

I turned to see Owain walking towards my direction. I thought of running to the other side of the deck away from him but the sea waves were already gaining its strength and if I wouldn't be careful, I would probably just fall hard on the floor. Aside from that, I didn't think I could run away far enough from him. My leg was still hurting and if I force it, it might just bleed. So I stayed where I was and waited for him to approach me.

"What do you want?" I asked when he was already few steps from me. He leaned on the railing and looked at me, particularly on my bandaged wounds. Maybe he was thinking that it would be easier to attack me in my condition. I looked around and saw some pirates in their posts. There was probably someone at the crow's nest who could be of help just in case he would try to do something against me.

"My mother packed lots of cocoa and asked me to give them to you. I can't believe you can be so rude, leaving without saying goodbye to her," he said.

And that was when I remembered talking with Imara in the morning. I wasn't able to say my farewell to her. She was probably saddened by her husband and sons leaving, and I couldn't believe I just added up to her disappointment.

"Oh, no," I gasped biting on my finger. "I wasn't able to get back to her this morning," I said.

Owain didn't seem to be mad, but he still had this antagonistic expression. Maybe he was always wearing that look. It was probably something this pirate life gave to him – to look hostile in every situation.

"It was in the storage. You can ask Alon to get them for you if you want to have it. It's good during a stormy weather like this," and he stared into the darkness of the sea.

He didn't do anything against me, and somehow, it made me feel uncomfortable. Of course, I didn't like it when Owain was being a bully towards me but it was the normalcy of things with him. And now I was wondering what made things change?

"Thank you," I said instead. Maybe I was thanking him for bringing the cocoa for me. Maybe I was thanking him for not being rude at a moment like this.

"Don't thank me. I still don't like you. You're still the Jonah of the Obsidian. It's just that my mother is really worried about you and I don't know what you did to make her care for you. Maybe you are a witch and you took my family under your spell. Yes! That's right! You do not belong in the sea. You're a witch."