Rocky Topaz

Chapter Twenty - Arrival

The ferry boat cut through the heavy mist as it guides across the ocean. I was able to hear birds squawking, but unable to see them. The atmosphere had almost an erie feeling to it, but also a sense of depression. I leaned against the guardrail of the ship, with my head pointed to the curling water below me. I was looking at the blurry reflection in the water, wondering to myself if I'm ready to see my dad again. It's been such a long time since we last met.
In the blurred reflection of the water I notice a figure lean against the guardrail beside me. I look over, it's Josh. He is staring at his own reflection too. He seemed to look nervous. I pat Josh on the shoulder.
"Almost there... huh... it's pretty out here"
Josh says to me, it sounded like he was struggling to talk.
"It's okay if you're nervous... I'm nervous too"
Josh glances up at me and smiles, but then soon drops his head back down. I put my arm around him and pull him against me.
The boats horn blasted, notifying us that we are close to getting off. I couldn't see land anywhere, the fog was way to thick. The boat begun slowing down when a dark outline of land slowly approached the ship. As we got closer, the land slowly began to reveal itself from the fog. First there was the boarding dock, then a grey empty parking lot, followed by buildings that seemed almost abandoned. Everything was surrounded by thick groups of trees.
The ferry came to a halt. Soon after, they began to let furs leave. Josh and I got in our car and drove off the boat. We drove pass the parking lot and entered the small city. It was empty. Last time I was here it felt so much more alive, and happy. Now it feels... forgotten.
I pulled out of the city onto a highway. It was sketchy driving, because the thick fog made the road hardly visible to me. My eyes scanned the road. Josh placed his hand on my lap, rubbing back and forth. He made me feel so comfortable. My eyes catch my attention of an oncoming sign on the side of the road.
"Waterside drive" the sign read. I mumbled the words to myself as I signaled into the turnoff. I turned the car onto the new street. Miles of tall moss covered trees stretched along the sides of the road, with colors of brown and dark green. The fog surrounded the trees and drifted along the road. I felt like the road was never going to end. The darkness of night began to consume the area. The brightness of the moon and the stars cut through the heavy fog. Down the road from us approached yellow blobs of lights. An outline of a town began to form, and soon after buildings appeared. A sign peirced through the fog that read "The Town of Waterside"
The building were all the same size as a small cottage and were all made from logs. On the right side of the road is a short grocery store, it almost looked abandoned like many of the other buildings. To the left is a bar/strip club. It's looked so run down. It was kinda sad in a way. These building just left in the fog, being forgotten. I shook the feeling off and kept driving forward. We soon drove by a motel. An old fur was leaned against the wall smoking from a pipe. He looked homeless. The fur stared at my car as we drove by, he looked as if he has seen nobody new in a long, long time. I did my best not to stare back. The small town soon began to fade away as we drove on. The road curved right and led to an intersection with no lights. I'm guessing they couldn't afford lights. We drove straight and then turned off onto a dirt road. A sign nailed to a tree read "No trespassing", indicating that we are at my dad's property. A small cabin appeared from the fog. It had a door in the bottom center of it, and two small windows beside it. The small cabin also had a brick chimney with smoke floating from it. The property wasn't to big, it was connected to the ocean. I park in his dirt driveway. I take a deep breath and turn off the car. I drop my head against the steering wheel and begin to stutter my breathing. Josh reaches over and rubs my back. I lift my head and look deep into his soothing eyes.
"Let's get through this together"
Josh said with a strong and loving tone. I nod my head and give him a hug.
"Thank you... I love you..."