Dark Price of Paradise

Engaging Talk

Nash arrived at the Cafe, his hands were stained with ink. There was a look of anger and frustration on his face until he saw Teuila sitting at a table with Charlie. He felt the tension ease out of him. Charlie and Teuila waved Nash over to their table.

"We're waiting for Sefina." Teuila explained. "You are just in time. Charlie and I were talking about making a video tape for prosperity."

Nash laughed. A short brief burst. "What? There isn't anyone who has a television on the island to see it."

"It isn't a broadcast, just a recorded interview between Teuila and myself." Charlie explained. "We can record it, then play it later, when there are enough TV's on the island to make broadcasting it worthwhile."

"Charlie, this is the chicken and the egg. You won't have enough TV's on the island to make broadcasting worthwhile, until you are broadcasting, and there is no sense in broadcasting if there are no TV's on the island." Nash said. "It's a catch twenty-two."

"I should expect so many cliches from a newspaper man." Charlie replied. "I'm working on that. I think that we need a television in the Victory Cafe that people can watch while they eat."

"Don't be silly." Teuila shook her head. "People like to talk and socialize when they eat. I was hear earlier today and realized that what I wanted was to share my meal with my friends. I certainly didn't want to watch Television."

Sefina walked up at that moment. "Hey, what happened. Did your press explode or something, you are covered in ink."

"Only my hands, it came from manipulating a lot of parts to get my press running again." Nash had nearly fired his pressmen for allowing the press to continue running after it had begun to show signs of malfunctioning.

"It won't wash off, it'll have to fade out."

"At least it didn't splash onto your face. I don't think I'd appreciate dating a man in blackface." Teuila teased.

"Well, speaking of dating, when are you two getting engaged." Sefina pushed. "You know the whole island has been waiting for you two to agree to marriage."

"I offered." Nash said. "I've offered twice."

"The first time you caught me off guard, I wasn't ready." Teuila lied. She had been afraid that the islanders wouldn't accept Nash as her husband. "The second time he didn't have the ring with him. I bet he still doesn't have it with him, so he can't propose until he does."

"So, I need the ring. To ask for your hand and what else. Bend down on one knee?" Nash grumbled.

"I don't care what you do, as long as it's romantic." Teuila smiled at Nash. "I think I deserve a romantic proposal."

"This is what you get when you try to marry the Chieftess of a tropical paradise." Charlie said. "You should set your sights a little lower if you wanted an easy relationship."

"I never said I wanted an easy relationship." Nash took Teuila's hand. "If romantic is what you want, I'll make it romantic."

Teuila sat in her bed, her back against the headboard. The moon was bright, shining silvery light through the window of her bedroom. Nash was asleep beside her. It was a good thing that Teuila was smaller than Nash, because the bed wouldn't be big enough for the two of them.

Teuila was of purer islander blood. She wasn't sure if there were any islanders of pure blood left. A hundred and fifty years of British occupation had created a great deal of interbreeding. During the war, other races had come through the island besides the whites. Chinese, Aborigines from Australia, Indians from India, even Blacks from America. At one point Japanese Americans came through the American Base.

One of the most interesting groups was a number of men from a American Indian tribe known as the Navahos. They were called 'Wind Talkers' and handled radio communication. They spoke in their native language, which confused the enemy, since there was no way to interpret their language.

Teuila had always thought it fascinating that the Navahos had retained their cultural language. Only a few words of the original islander language survived to day. Most of the words were names like Teuila and Sefina which no longer had any know meaning accept to a very few older islanders.

Teuila looked down at Nash, laying on his side, his back to her. In this profile she saw the strong shoulders, blond hair, but not his face. Teuila took her hand and touched Nash's shoulder. Caressing it. She felt lucky to have such a patient man. When Nash asked again, Teuila would accept the ring. Romantic proposal or not.

"That is not romantic, that is embarrassing. What if she rejects you again, this time in front of all of these tourists." Sefina pointed out what she felt was a flaw in Nasher Spencer's plan.

"How is it embarrassing? Tay said she wanted it to be romantic. How it is so unromantic to announce in front of the entire island that I love her and want to marry here." Nash also felt it would end the rumors that he was just using her for her position and just wanted sex.

"Teuila is not a very public person, despite her position, or because of it." They were sitting in Charlie King's office discussing the situation. Charlie was the closest friend Nasher had on the island. "Teuila is not going to appreciate if you go up on the stage in the market where Sefina does her dancing and announce your proposal from there. She likes to keep her personal life private, even though she is Queen of this island."

"Chieftess." Sefina corrected. "Islands don't have Queens."

"Britain is an island, it has a Queen. As you well know." Charlie pointed out.

Sefina sent Charlie a scalding look. "That is like saying Australia is an island. Waka is a true island. Britain is a overgrown excuse for one."

"I didn't make that judgement call, I'm just reporting it." Charlie replied.

"Can we get back on subject." Nash respected them both. He wanted their opinion as to how to proceed with the whole engagement thing.