Page 61 of Totally Wrecked
I pick a twig off her butt, then stand up. “Alright then, I’ve decided I now have the will to live. In fact I will be quite happy to live out the rest of my days on this island with you, so let's go get some sleep!”
GRAY
“Let’s do this,” says Rex. The sun has been up for only a few minutes, but we are ready to go. We’ve collected together as many containers of water as possible, and filled our pockets with chunks of coconut.
I try to ignore how fucking stiff my shoulder and arm are, and the fact I have a permanent headache, as we take off toward the second island.
For the first time in a while, I can feel my vertigo creeping back. I just have to focus carefully on what is in front of me. Thankfully, the scramble up the rock slide to the ridge is uneventful. At the top, Killian stops and looks back on our small campsite. I put out a hand and steady myself on his arm.
“What are you looking at?” I ask him.
“I was just wondering if we’d ever come back here. And if not, I was taking a mental photograph.”
Aww, sentimental. I’m just glad to be on the move.
“Are we going or what?” asks Harvey. Killian turns back to the jungle, and with Rex at point, and Harvey behind him, I take rear guard. Then, we start to hike.
We hike for the first hour in silence. The heavy tree canopy shades us from the sun, but the humidity and flies are appalling. It’s slow going; because there are no pathways, we have to push through dense growth the whole time. My feet suck into the damp forest floor, but the melted plastic rope holds together.
Finally someone calls out for a break. It’s Harvey.
We grind to a halt next to a large boulder for a breather. I’ve saved my water bottle until now, but both Harvey and Killian have already drained theirs. Rex and I meet eyes. “We are bound to come across another water source by the time we get to the north point,” he says.
“Shall we eat now?” asks Killian, looking at me.
I shrug. I learned at a too-young age how to put hunger out of your mind. The others, though, are probably suffering. “Yeah, let’s eat.”
I take a couple of coconuts chunks from Rex. Coconut meat is basically fat, so we are getting plenty of energy, but we are also getting the shits, because it’s a natural laxative. I think green bananas can treat diarrhea; it would make life a lot more pleasant if we could find bananas. My preference is for extra-ripe bananas, because that was one of my staple foods growing up.
Mom and Dad didn’t really think much about groceries, or childcare for that matter. They concentrated on the important things, like getting high, or getting money for their next fix. This mostly involved Dad pimping out Mom. There was a steady flow of men in and out of our trailer most days.
The bodega nearest to the trailer park was run by an older man, Mr. Ranasham. He had a front tooth missing and always wore a very dirty ascot. Anyway, this guy sold beer and smokes, glass bongs, and scratch-offs. He also always had bunches of bananas on the counter. Not many people bought them. I mean, who goes to a bodega for a banana? Mr. Ranasham kept getting them, and as soon as they turned spotty, he’d set them outside on the top of the dumpster lid. Not inside, on top. Every day there would be at least one, but sometimes two or three ripe bananas that I’d pick up on my way to school.
For over a year, those bananas, and the free school lunch, kept me alive. I thought I was being sneaky, taking the bananas—but Mr. R was totally leaving them out for me.
We finish the food then start walking again. The terrain is steeper now, with a jagged rock incline in front of us. It stretches wide.
“We’re going up, not around,” decides Rex. “Killian, you go first. You have good shoes. Then Harvey, and I’ll go behind Harvey. Gray, you good at the rear?”
I nod. I’m used to taking this position. When our crew was on duty, we marched in a line through forests and up mountains, and I’d always take the end point. It was the hardest place to be in a line. I don’t know the science behind it, but if a line of twenty people are walking single-file through a forest, the person at the back ends up taking two steps for every one the person at the front takes. You have to walk farther and faster to be the rear guard, but I always chose to be there.
“Test your hand holds,” I tell Killian. “Make sure they are firm before you commit.”
“Copy that,” he replies, “I love a tight grip.” Then he gives me a wink. I grin back at him and shake my head.
Mistake, dizzy again.
Killian scrambles up pretty fast, Harvey tries to match his speed, but without the sureness of foot, he looks unsteady.
“Don’t rush, Harvey,” Rex shouts, then, “How is it, Killian?”
“Not bad,” Killian shouts back. He’s nearly at the top now. Rex starts to climb. After a few minutes it’s my turn to climb. I’m not looking forward to it, my left arm feels dead and heavy.
Killian has disappeared over the peak. “Gimme your hand, I’ll pull you over.” He calls to Harvey.
I start my climb by pulling myself up with my right hand, then try to transfer my weight to my left. Shit. This is not good. I’m trying to figure out my problem, but it’s hard to concentrate because all I can hear is Harvey.
“I can’t do it,” Harvey is panting.
