Castaway

Chapter 1 - The Cruise

    I breathed in the salty ocean air, relaxing my senses. My friend and I had decided to get away for the summer on a calm holiday, and what better way to do it than a cruise. We could visit different countries and see the different cultures and ways of live. I've always wanted to travel the world and this was finally my chance. Along with the ship we were provided luxury travel. Excitement coursed through my veins as I walked the ship and basked in the morning sunlight. The ship looked remarkable from the outside, but the inside looked like another world! It was filled with hundreds of corridors and many decks to explore, and a great number of stores filled with books, clothes, and jewelry - every girls paradise - but the best thing about being on the boat was being able to lounge by the pool and read an interesting book.

     I spent all of my first day on the boat by the pool with Evangeline. We left our rooms early in the morning to get ourselves good loungers at the edge of the pool. Our day started our peaceful, just a few older couples roaming the boat hand in hand. 

     "Electra, are you coming for a dip in the pool?" Evangeline questioned me as she slipped off her tank top and shorts, which were over her bikini. 

     "No thanks, I'm just gonna read this." I gestured to the book in my hand. I wasn't one for going swimming as I'm not comfortable with wearing swimming costumes or bikinis. Evangeline nodded to me and slid into the pool and began swimming lengths across the pool. I turned onto my stomach and continued my new book, Exodus by Julie Bertagna. The day continued peacefully I barely left my lounger, except from when we went for dinner.

     Looking up I saw Evangeline folding up her towel and piling her magazines on top. "It's getting late, I'm going back to the room. Bye." Grabbing her things she spun and around and headed towards the room.

     I had been completely oblivious to the time. As I looked up to the sky I noticed the stars beginning to reveal themselves. It was spectacular to watch them glistening against the dark background. This was most definitely something you could not experiance from looking out your window or laying in your garden. Placing my book on the ground beside me I watched the stars. My mother had always told me when I was younger that each star represents somebodies guardian angel. Sadly logic and science ruined that, but the feelings remain. To feel as though somebody is watching over you and guiding you to be the best you can be would always make me feel better. I walked to the edge of the boat leaning over the railings. The water reflected the night sky. The wavering stars seemed to sparkle more so than in the sky. As I focused on the wave I noticed they were rather more violent. Associating it with the slight breeze I dismissed it and returned to my lounger.

    Coming to the end of my novel, my eyes glued to the pages, I began to hear noise coming from the other side on the ship, presuming it was one of the clubs I tried to bring my attention back to the book. The option however failed me so I packed my things back into my beach bag to head back to my room. My watch said it was five minutes to ten, I was completely shocked at how much time I had spent sitting on the deck. Finally I started walking back to my room, when the noise I had be hearing previously registered in my mind. The wailing siren broke into my train of thought. I was suddenly panic stricken. I didn't know where to go first. Should I find Evangeline? Should I look for a crew member? Should I run to my room? As the possibilities raced through my mind the waves got rougher. Dropping my bag I ran towards the railings again to see how bad the waves were. As I got closer I saw the large wave heading towards the boat. My feet were glued to the ground as the enormous tsunami made its way closer and closer to the boat. The churning water became deafening. I wanted to run, but what good would that have done. I was trapped on the ship. I looked around the possibility to be alone on a horrible incident like this would be worse than the tsunami itself. Nobody was around. I felt...deserted. Alone. Scared. I watched the red lights from the corner of my eyes as the wave towered over the boat. It crashed down on me. All turned black. Darkness surrounded me.