Corvus (Stars and Sails, Book 1)

Thirty-three (Part 3 of 3)

The galley cabinet was broken. Apparently, the door had fallen off when Dav was cooking that morning, but it looked a lot worse for wear. It was the cabin boy's job to fix this. It was actually the cabin boy's job to do anything that no one else wanted to do.

Amelia Rose had luckily read all about doors in her encyclopedias. Not a fun topic, but Amelia Rose had spent many a boring evening at one of Holden's garden parties reading her encyclopedia cover to cover in the water closet to avoid socialization. For a while longer, at least, she could pretend that she were qualified.

She opened the cupboard under the sink, took out all the food stores, and laid down, so that she was wedged in the cabinet on her side, looking at where the hinge broke off the cabinet. This was never what she had in mind as her job on a ship. She grumbled and tried to remember the diagram from the encyclopedia. She reached into her pocket and took out a new hinge piece.

The hatch creaked open and someone descended the ladder into the room. Amelia Rose peeked her head out, only to realize that it was Aiden. She stuck her head back in the cabinet, her heart pounding so loud, she could have sworn it echoed in the space. He said nothing, only walked over to the counter and took something from the cupboard.

"Haworth wanted a tomato," he said, his footsteps getting farther away. With a burst of frustration, Amelia Rose pried the door completely off. Sawdust fluttered around the small space. She wrinkled her nose. Without leaving the safety of the cupboard, she set the door on the ground. She didn't want to give Aiden a chance to recognize her.

"What's your name?" he asked. Amelia Rose dropped her arms and laid in the dank space, confused.

Aiden cleared his throat. "I mean your last name," he said, his voice dropping to a quieter tone. "Wagner or Holden?"

Amelia Rose sat up, snapping her head on the counter. She spun in the space behind her eyes. Aiden pulled her out of the cupboard and ran his hand over her forehead. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have—"

"No you—" She coughed. She hadn't spoken in days. She pulled her voice back up. "Are you insane?"

With one hand still pressed to her forehead, he quirked a smile. "You're uh, You're kidding right?"

"Of course I'm not joking," she whispered, darting her eyes around. "We've been here for a week and you're just noticing me now?" She swatted his hand away and he scratched the back of his head.

"Did you want me to notice you before?"

She paused, running her fingers across the rim of her hat. "No, I didn't."

"I was giving you space."

"Holden."

He looked up. "Excuse me?"

"I married him." She pulled off her hat and untied her hair, showing him her new appearance. "I wish I got the nerve to leave beforehand, though."

"I didn't think you'd do it."

"How could I live in that town?" she paused. "After everything that happened there?"

"I mean," he sighed, standing up and setting the tomato onto the counter. Amelia Rose watched him move across the cabin. "We're kind of in the same boat."

Amelia Rose smiled, laughing. Aiden's eyes lit up and he laughed too.

"I didn't mean to make a joke," he said.

She looked back at the floor, setting the wrench down. "Things just got worse after I said goodbye." she bit her cheek. "And then I realized that this was my only chance to change."

"I didn't expect to see you here at all," He ran his hand across his jaw and swallowed. "I'm glad, just surprised."

Amelia Rose pressed her hand against the rough wood floor. "If you think I came here for you—"

"Oh, no I—"

"I came here to run away. Because I thought I might become a navigator. Because I thought I might find my mother," she said, her voice shrinking to a hush.

"Don't whisper like that," he said. "Like you're stupid for saying it. Because then I'm just as stupid for thinking that I can find myself out here." He tapped his fingers against the counter, sighing.

"Don't tell anyone about me," she spoke quickly. Her throat was tightening. "I just. I'm comfortable like this. Right now."

He looked her over, not showing his thoughts on his face. "You know they're not going to throw you off if you just—."

"I don't care." Amelia Rose tied back her hair and donned her cap. She pulled her bandanna up, which was an effective way of saying that she was done talking. But truth was, she wasn't comfortable. She didn't love being Dirty Jim either, and her chest had been hurting after wrapping herself up with the same sweaty bandages day-after-day. Sometimes they made it hard to breathe altogether. Maybe she'd find out who she was supposed to be soon.

"Well." Aiden tossed the tomato into the air before catching it in his hands. "I'll just go bring this to Haworth. He's hungry."

Amelia Rose nodded. When he left, she quickly fixed the cupboard door back on. She hadn't done it quite right. The door hung crooked, but she hadn't the energy to fix it again.