Page 80 of Totally Shipped
“Does Thea want some quality time with Daddy Leander?” I put out my arms, looking hopeful. When I pick up the squirming bundle (who is now swaddled in Killian’s deep vee tee) my brain turns to mush. Why don’t people have dozens of babies? If we were not castaways, I’d be voting for having a ridiculous amount of children.
“Hey, Thea. This is Papa Leander. I’m going to be by your side until you're all grown-up, you understand? I promise you’ll never feel abandoned or unwanted. And I will tell you every single day how much I love you,” I pause and realize I have a lot of eyes on me. “And your Mom and sister Key. You guys are loved forever.”
I cough, thinking of the guy's eyes on me. “You lot are ok, I guess.”
Daisy and Thea are staying cozy in the cave for a while Rex, Gray, Killian, and I are getting to work rebuilding. It’s tough, because I find myself desperate if I am more than a few minutes from the cave. I always want to be within earshot of Daisy and Thea. I’m drawn to them like a magnet. It’s like my previous capacity for love was just a facade; a painted wall and when Kiley—uhh, Thea, was born, the wall was smashed down, and now I see and feel this whole new world of love.
I’m like Truman, escaping to reality at the end ofThe Truman Show. That’s what it feels like.
Mama seems quite content staying where she is, especially now her milk has come in. Every night, when the darkness descends, we sit around the fire, talking softly, enjoying being together.
And during the day, it’s hard labor.
Which is a lot harder than it should be. If we were feeling weak before the cyclone, it’s infinitely worse now.
The first thing we decided is our main abode is going to be in the jungle glade where we found the old crashed airplane. Daisy and Key are not keen on this idea; they love being by the beach, but we compromised by saying we’ll build a beach-house for hanging out during the day, and then have our sleeping quarters on the plane.
A cyclone could easily hit us again, more than once. Rebuilding every few weeks is just too much to comprehend. Yes, the plane is a half-hour walk from the beach, but it’s also a good distance from any storm surges that will head our way.
As we set our plans into motion, the days blend together in a flurry of construction and resource gathering. Rex and Key have been scouring the beach area, trying to find any salvageable materials, and are in charge of fishing. Me, Gray, and Killian have teamed up with fitting out the plane as new lodgings, handling the heavy lifting and clearing the area of dangerous overhanging trees.
The beach house is on the back-burner until the plane glade is done.
“Feck, can we take a break for a day?” Killian says, flopping down on the sand. “I’m wiped.”
We all look at Rex. I’m on team Killian; my muscles are killing me, and I feel like a piece of shit.
“Yeah. Tomorrow we’ll do twenty-four hours of RnR—sound OK?” I see Rex’s hand is shaking.
We are all tapped out. A day of rest sounds like fucking heaven.
Perhaps APRIL
DAISY
The last few weeks all I’ve wanted to do is sleep.
After we all moved into the plane-glade, I settled in the interior of the plane and have barely left since.
I don’t feel like doing anything, I’m just so tired. I know the guys are worried about me, but I don’t have the energy to reassure them.
This morning, Killian and Leander are getting bossy, insisting I get up.
“Let’s all go to the beach? Thea is ready to see the ocean, and I think you’ll feel better to be out and about.”
“Yeah,” Gray runs a hand through his shaggy hair. “It’s not raining today; in fact, there are breaks in the cloud and you can actually see the blue sky. Lovely day for a walk.”
“I’m not sure I’m up to it, love,” I moan.
“Have you completely stopped bleeding?” Killian asks.
I nod. Not bleeding any more is huge. Between me and Thea, the need for cloth is not being met, in any way.
“It’s only a thirty minute walk, Macushla, and we can stop at the pool. You’d love a bath, right?”
I see Gray and Killian exchanging looks. They’d been on me last night for picking at my food.
“It’s time, Daisy,” Gray says, bending down until his face is level with mine. “You need to start moving.”
