Boneca [Doll]

Chapter 12: Amusingly Arrogant

As a shirtless tribesman pedaled toward the lake, a group of naked children dashed past Jona's left side. On his right, Professor Smit's voice resonated as he called for Ethan. Emerging from the tent, Ethan rushed over just before they could enter the chief's house.

Professor Smit, for all his faults and ego, had a charming side if one chose to overlook his arrogance. He certainly knew how to engage socially when he wanted to. Despite his less desirable traits, he was quite likable. It was funny how he claimed to detest interacting with people, yet he was more talkative than not. Maybe it was his role as a lecturer that compelled him? Or perhaps a natural gift for conversation? He seemed to have a camaraderie with Dr. Chen, another intellectual. Birds of a feather, Jona guessed. Over breakfast this morning, they had been engrossed in a deep discussion about the German occupation of the Netherlands during World War II (both clearly harbored a strong dislike for the Germans, based on their candid comments).

Word had it that the Dutch people took pride in their straightforwardness and "tell-it-as-it-is" attitude. From what Jona observed, the rumors were quite accurate. Professor Smit indeed embodied that quality quite well.

Jona's attention shifted as five half-naked tribeswomen strolled by, each carrying a basket.

"Hey. Deixe-me ir com você...?" [Let me come with you?] he asked, gesturing toward the basket and the cassava farm. Though the villagers might not understand official Portuguese, they'd grasp the message conveyed by his actions.

Amused giggles filled the air as the women nodded, inviting him to follow. Together, they traversed a path that led to a vast cassava farm and orchard at the village's outskirts—a journey that took about fifteen minutes. Scarlet branches of waist-high shrubs extended in all directions, adding a burst of color to the surrounding lushness. Nostalgia washed over Jona; in his teenage years, there was a cassava shrub in his backyard. His mother would harvest the tubers and steam them, and they would enjoy the tender flesh with a sprinkle of sugar.

After an hour, they returned to the village and began preparing lunch. Several tribesmen brought fish, and the women expertly grilled them over an open fire. Alicia and Zack joined the group half an hour later.

"I assume we're stuck with this dried-up bread every day?" Zack grumbled, flipping the bread on a large pan. His furrowed eyebrows gave him a perpetually displeased appearance. A thin, vertical scar on his right eyebrow added to his tough demeanor.

"Oh, come on, Zack. That's kind of rude. Eat what they offer or don't eat at all," Alicia chided.

"They have other snacks here too, in case you get tired of this... I can see you already are." Ethan playfully slapped Zack's shoulder, then seated himself between Zack and Alicia.

"Snacks? Seriously? Like what?" Zack's eyes squinted skeptically.

"I saw the kids roasting grasshoppers like s'mores yesterday," Alicia mentioned.

"And big ants," Ethan added, engrossed in adjusting the camera's viewfinder towards the heating pan. "They seemed to be really enjoying them."

"You could build your own food pyramid with those," Jona joked, eliciting laughter from the others. Inside, he cringed at the mental image of grilled grasshoppers.

"Forget it. I'll cherish this tough bread now," Zack mumbled, stuffing a handful of the warm bread into his mouth and then grimacing in agony.

Jona tossed his water bottle to Zack, who guzzled down the water to alleviate the heat.

"Are you out of your mind?" Alicia chuckled, clutching her stomach amidst her laughter. "Oh, my goodness. Your expression is priceless. Ethan, did you capture that on camera?"