Sea Sick: A Horror Novel(17)
Day 102
Jack had spent the entire previous evening trying to locate the brunette waitress, but he had failed to find her anywhere. Asking other members of staff where he could find her had been no help; they were cagey and distrustful of him. But today he would have longer to look.
Jack had awoken at 1400hr as usual. The seagull was at the window and the shower was freezing cold until it warmed up a couple minutes later. Everything was the same as it always was – an endless loop of October 14th. The only thing that ever changed was him.
Every day Jack was more depressed than the last. He had longed every day for death, all his hope evaporated. But now things were finally different. There was someone else on the ship who was like him; someone who was not fixed in place or stuck in time.
Jack got dressed quickly and headed outside. He decided to go and take the sun lounger next to Claire and wait for one hour to see if the waitress turned up. It was probably the best place to start – the one place he knew she was at least supposed to be.
Jack threw aside the green beach towel and sat down on the sun lounger. Claire, as always, said hello.
“Hey,” he said back to her, glancing around the deck for the waitress. “How you doing today?”
“Good, thanks. The sun has been out most of the day, but I think it’s going in soon. Should have come earlier in the year.”
“Why didn’t you?” Jack asked, glancing around the deck again.
“Why do you think? Money. I’m only a hairdresser. I could barely afford to come in October, let alone during peak time.”
“What about your boyfriend? You should have made him treat you.”
“Conner? How did you know I came with my boyfriend?”
“I, er…saw you together. We boarded at the same time.”
“You couldn’t have. We arrived separately.” The girl seemed a little freaked out for a moment, but then she shrugged.“You must have seen us somewhere else. Anyway, Conner doesn’t earn that much more than me. He’s a mechanic at a place his dad owns, but he doesn’t get paid a lot.”
“How long you two been going out?”
“Six months or so. How about you? Are you with anyone?”
Jack thought about the last time he had kissed a woman and shook his head. “I’ve been single for a long time now. Not really interested in being with anyone.”
“Bad break up?”
“Something like that,” he said.
Jack looked around the deck once more, becoming more and more anxious that the waitress wasn’t going to turn up. If she didn’t, then he would have to resume his wild goose chase from the previous evening. Before he got going, though, he wanted to ask Claire one last question.
“Does Conner make you happy?”
Claire raised her eyebrows at him. “What? That’s a bit of a nosey question.”
“I know,” said Jack. “You just seem like a nice girl, that’s all. I hope he treats you well.”
“He does. Well…most of the time. To be honest, I-”
“Hey babe, who’s this?” Conner stood in the gap between Jack and Claire’s sun loungers. He glared down at Jack with an accusing look.
“My name is Jack. I was just having a chat with Claire. Is there a problem with that?”
Conner’s eyes narrowed. “Depends. If you’re on the pull, old man, then you and me have got a problem for sure. She’s half your age, innit.”
“Yes, she is,” Jack agreed. “Thankfully there are no laws against chatting to someone, regardless of their age.”
Conner snarled at him like a kicked dog. “You cheeking me, mate? Because that would be a mistake.”
Jack couldn’t help but smile. The threats meant nothing to him. He knew Conner’s fate, after all, and it wasn’t at all good. “You sure you want to start something, son?” Jack goaded the lad. “Because you’re not looking so hot, to be honest.”
“Yeah,” Claire butted in, trying to stop the back and forth between them. “You look bad. How are you feeling, babe?”
Conner turned his attention from Jack toward his girlfriend. “I’m fine. Just a cold.”
“Okay,” said Claire. “Let’s go get some food in you. This guy wasn’t doing anything except talking to me, so it’s not worth causing trouble over. You know I only love you.”
“You better,” said Conner. There was a slight edge to his voice that suggested it wasn’t just a joke.
The two of them started to walk away, but Jack shouted after them. “Hey, Conner.”
Conner turned around and said, “What?”
“It seems like a lot of people onboard have a cold. Do you have any idea where you caught yours?”
Conner shrugged. “I was fine until I got on this bloody ship. Probably just some bug brought on board by a greasy Spaniard.”
Nice, thought Jack. He’s a racist to boot. The lad’s a real catch. “Maybe you should go to your room and lie down,” Jack said.“It might make you feel better.”
Conner huffed. “I don’t need advice from you, mate. I don’t even know you, innit. There’s a doctor on the bottom deck. I’ll go see him if I need to, but you can mind your own bloody business.”