Love Tides | ✓

sixteen | the cave of wonders

γυρίστε στο κενό

[ tourner dans le vide ]

☆ ☆ ☆

"Ready?"

Penelope nodded ecstatically as she clapped her hands together. "Yup!"

Quickly, Avery pushed the small boat off from the side of the port, quickly stepping into the water to get inside the boat as well. Laughs escaped their lips once Avery toppled over Penelope on the narrow, canny, fishing boat.

His nose scrunched once he got seated comfortably. "This smells like rotting fish."

"That's because papa uses this boat to find anchovies," Penelope grinned, pulling a small rope that was laying next to them and folding it neatly, tucking it in one of the compartments. "He usually cleans it—when Tata comes over—she's Cordelia's cousin from Seville. She died ten years ago."

"So, Adamos hasn't cleaned this boat in ten years?" Avery gritted his teeth in disgust.

Penelope shook her head. "No, he has. Nonna made him do it because after her back injury, she couldn't do it."

"Then why does it smell so horrible?"

"Papa can get very..." she paused. "Distracted."

Avery chuckled unamused as he reached for his large backpack, opening it and taking out a few containers, passing them to Penelope hastily. "No, I noticed that. A lot."

"Thanks," Penelope smiled as she took the containers. "It's really not surprising. He forgets everything, except two things."

He lifted a curious brow.

"My birthday and our father-daughter day."

An approving smile reached Avery's lips as he sent a grin in Penelope's direction, observing how she quickly opened the container and stuffed a piece of the Feta Me Meli into her mouth, moaning at the delicious balanced out salty feta and the sweet honey delicacy.

"How could you get these?! I haven't eaten these in months! I thought Pablo ran out!" Penelope kept stuffing the pieces of the filo pastry into her mouth, savoring it slowly as if it was the last one on the earth.

Avery shrugged. "I found Okeania eating it—so I went to the market and tried some, a boy named Ezekiel gave them to me."

"Ezekiel!" Penelope silently scolded, her eyes narrowing at the pastry-like entreé.

"You know him?" Avery asked, curiously.

Penelope scoffed, reaching for a napkin and wiping her hands with it furiously. "Of course I know him! Oof, he's a pain in the arse."

Avery chuckled lightly. "Yeah, I didn't want to say anything because I thought I was the only one who thought that."

"No, no, don't worry. The whole Skopelos Town holds an everlasting grudge against him," Penelope assured. "When we were both sixteen, he bought some illegal fireworks from a vendor in main Greece—he then brought it down to Skopelos Town and it exploded after he set them up wrong. Luckily, no one got hurt, but Okeania would kill him at the slightest mention of his name."

"That's harsh," Avery blinked. "Didn't you guys turn him into the police or something."

"That's the thing—his dad, Pablo, is our only security officer. He denied arresting him because he thought it was an accident. Accident my—"

Avery quickly interrupted her. "Okay, okay, okay! I think that's enough of the topic, don't you think so?"

Penelope shrugged, stuffing another piece of the pastry into her mouth munching on it angrily as the boat swayed on the water under them. "Whatever you say, Avery. He's still in my opinion—very hateful. Very, very, very hateful."