Long Live the King

Sixteen

Adrienne's eyes flashed open. For a brief moment she was left without a clue of who or where she was. As her senses returned she became aware that her t-shirt was soaked through with a cold sweat. She sat up straight on the sofa, hoping to ease her heavy breathing or calm her fast beating heart.

She looked left. Regina was sprawled across the recliner, limbs flung over every end. Out the window the sky was just beginning to brighten, a soft pink hue creeping up from the horizon.

Adrienne wouldn't have been able to sleep again if she tired and with daylight arriving already there was little point in making that fruitless effort. Pushing off the damp blankets, she stood up and and quietly moved over to her bag. She fished out a pair of jeans and faded brown shirt.

Fifteen minutes later, with her hair still wet from the shower, Adrienne slipped out the front door. She'd left a note on the counter, knowing that Marshall might worry if he woke up and she was missing. She walked into town, past the shops that were opening their windows as well as the ones that were still sleeping. As she reached the diner she pulled on the door handle and entered the warm building.

She headed straight for the back, to a peeling table in the back corner that people rarely sat at because of the faulty light overhead that after all these years still managed to work only half of the time. It was nestled away from most of the patrons who chose the better lit areas of the diner. A tired waitress spotted Adrienne sitting there in the back corner and shuffled over.

After the waitress had scribbled down the simple order and gone, Adrienne moved closer to the wall. She leaned over, her hand diving under the table and feeling around the wall. As her fingers hit a spot of unevenness, she gently jostled the wood panel until a piece popped off. She set this piece on the bench beside her then blindly reached into the depression left behind. Her fingers closed around the items there and transferred them to her pocket.

The panel was replaced with a firm punch into place. Moments later, the waitress returned with a cup of hot water, a tea bag, and small bowl of oatmeal. Adrienne thanked her, calmly ate her meal, and then slipped out of the diner as quietly as she had wandered in.

#

Once back on the beautiful island of Ropton, Adrienne began to wonder if she had temporarily lost her mind when she told Marshall that he should give Regina a shot. Since then, Regina had kicked her annoying personality into high gear. She laughed about everything and understood nothing. For her part, Adrienne thought she deserved a gold medal for putting up with it all. The three of them were out on the beach, Adrienne shooting pictures and the other two lounging on beach towels and discussing various topics. At the moment, Regina was giving a lecture on the Mellow Isles that no one requested.

"There are five main isles," she said. "You have the big daddy over there that the ferry goes to, known as the Mellow Isle. Then you have Ropton, Shelling--that has the cheaper hotel, Whisper Isle--has a campground and lots of hiking trails, and Baby Isle which is the smallest and doesn't really have much going on. So those five are all public but then you have assorted private isles out there. Most of them are mapped out but it's rumored that a few of them have been kept off of most maps by their owners. Guess they don't want unsolicited visitors."

"That was a very detailed answer," Marshall said, "although you didn't really answer the question."

"Whoops!" Regina clapped a hand over her mouth and giggled. "What was the question again?"

"Which isle is that over there?" He pointed across the water at a small patch of green, rocky land.

"Baby Isle."

"Well, I'm done," Adrienne said, packing up her equipment. "Are you two ready to head back or are you gonna stay down here awhile?"

"You're leaving?" Marshall asked. "Don't want to swim?"

"I wasn't planning on it... I only put the suit on in case I changed my mind."

"Ohhh, you should stay," Regina said. "We were just talking about getting in the water and you could so use a swim."

No, you weren't, Adrienne thought to herself but on the outside she smiled and nodded.

"I really should take my camera up though," she said. "Maybe I'll just run up and come back."

"Don't be silly. Marshy can take it up."

Marshall put a hand out. Admitting defeat, Adrienne handed over the bag of her equipment. Had it been anyone else she would have reminded him to be careful, but by now he knew how fragile her things were. The girls watched him walk up the beach. As soon as Marshall was out of earshot, Regina turned to Adrienne.

"Can I ask you something?"

"I'd rather you didn't..."

"Right." She paused but then forged on anyways, a hand planted on one hip and her head tipped ridiculously far to the side. "What is the deal with Marshall?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I figured he might be a little bit hung up on you but he seemed game to move on, you know? Like, he's definitely receptive to my flirting. Thing is, I asked him out a few times and he didn't agree... but he didn't say no either. He just keeps vaguely tell me that he isn't sure. So, you know him well. What's his deal? Am I wasting my time?"

"I'm not his keeper." Adrienne looked bored, but she found the fact that Marshall still hadn't given this girl a green light to be interesting. "He makes his own decisions."

"Of course he does, I'm just trying to figure out if this is futile."

"I don't know. You're gonna have to ask him." Adrienne yawned, shedding her t-shirt and shorts. "I'm going swimming."