20 Days In His Bedroom

Chapter Five

I think of the things I left on the airplane—my clothes, toothbrush, pajamas, phone. But more importantly, my mom and dad.
God, please help me find them. I can't live without them. I don't care about my things—I can replace those. But not my parents. Never.

"Dinner... everyone, come for dinner!" a man calls from downstairs.
I wonder if Nial is still outside with that girl.
I'm actually starving, but I don't know if I should go or not.

I step outside the room but don't see Nial anywhere.
What should I do now?

Finally, I see Nial coming up the stairs, holding two bags.
"I brought dinner for both of us," he says casually.

Oh. For both of us?

"Thank you. I'm actually starving. I wasn't going to go downstairs anyway," I say with a small smile as he sets the bags on the table.

He places one in front of me and opens his own.

"Wouldn't you tell me what happened?" he asks while unwrapping his food.

"Nothing really important," I say, taking a bite. "I didn't find my parents among all those people... and a man harassed me."

"Harassed you how?" he asks, eyes fixed on mine even while he chews a piece of grilled chicken.

"He offered me a drink, and when I said no, he grabbed my arm and offered... a bed." I say the last part bitterly as I open my salad. It's chicken salad. Wow.

"A bed?" His eyes widen.

"Yes," I roll my eyes and eat hungrily, surprised I lasted this long without food.

"Asshole," he mutters under his breath.

Suddenly, the girl I saw earlier joins us, holding her own food.

"Mind if I sit here?" she asks, smiling sweetly.

"Sure, you can," I reply between bites.

"I'm Alex. From Brazil."

"Nice to meet you." I smile. "Uh—I'm Twyla, from the States."

I notice Nial looking at me. He already knew my name and where I was from.

"Twyla? Pretty name," Alex says.

"You can call me Twi, though."

"Where in the States?"

"Washington," I reply, sipping some milk. "Do you know where we're going? I mean... do you know what happened to us?"

"Oh yeah. Where were you headed?"

"Florida. I was going to visit... well, never mind. Where are we now?"

"We're not sure yet," she says, finally opening her food. "They'll drop us off at the nearest port, probably somewhere near New York."

"Us?" I raise an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I was lost too. In the ocean. But I was in a boat."

"Oh." That's all I can say. I don't want to get into details.

"But I still can't find my mom or dad." Tears slip down my cheek again.

"Don't worry. No one's dead—if that's what you're afraid of," she rubs my shoulder.

"How do you know?"

"Everyone here says that. You can check for yourself if you don't believe me."

"I believe you. Why wouldn't I?"
She just smiles. She's honestly... really sweet.

"I just hope I find them soon. I don't have anywhere else to go."
"You will. If not now, then soon." She gives my shoulder another reassuring rub.

"Thank you." I force a smile.

I get up and throw my empty food bag away.
"I need to sleep," I say.
"And thank you, Nial, for bringing me dinner."

He frowns, probably wondering how I know his name. Then he chuckles. I'm not sure why, and neither is Alex.

"There's a party tonight. Want to come?" Alex asks.

"Oh, no. I'm too tired."
Truth is, I'm not in the mood for a party—not when I'm lost and can't find my parents. I don't understand how they're partying like nothing happened. Maybe they're all heartless like Nial.

I lie down and fall asleep.

⸻

I wake up early the next morning. It's quiet. I step outside and see Nial staring at the ocean.

"Good morning," I say, standing beside him.

"Morning," he replies, still staring ahead.

"No one here has a phone?" I ask.

"Why?"

"To call my mom and dad." I roll my eyes, already knowing the answer.

He laughs.

"What?"

"Do you think they have their phones with them?" he smirks.

"Of course not. But do I have any other choice?"
I know they probably wouldn't answer, but I want to try every way I can.

"Even if you found a phone, there's no signal out here."

I sigh and look away, embarrassed.

"It's cold," I mumble, wrapping my arms around myself.

He takes off his shirt, revealing his chest and tattoos. I try to look away, but my eyes don't cooperate.

"Here. Take it."

"Oh—but you'll freeze. At least I already have a shirt on."

"Don't worry." He winks.
God, why did he have to wink like that?

I put the shirt on. It smells like him. It feels... strange. Comforting.

"Thank you." I smile.

A guy comes up from below deck, laughing like he just heard the best joke ever.

"Guys! We'll land soon. Just one more day!"

"One more day?" I blink. "I thought we'd be somewhere in a few hours."

"Hours? You should be grateful we're going anywhere," he says.

"Thank God," I mutter.

"The lucky ones are those who saved money for a hotel," he adds. "At least until we figure out how to get back home."

I laugh a little. "I have the worst luck. My mom says that all the time. I didn't save anything."

"Don't say that. I didn't either—and I still have hope," he says.

"Do you have a phone?" I ask, desperate.

"No, sorry. There's no signal anyway."

I nod, trying not to cry again.

"Why didn't you come to the party last night?" he asks.

"I was tired," I lie.

"Your man here did great," he says, winking at Nial.

Nial just gives a faint smile.

What did he do at the party?