It had been days since they had been stuck on the island.
The ship they were originally on was heading for Costa Rica. A rather large cruise line; carrying every sort of passengers from families filled with children to singles looking for their soul mate.
Penny walked down one of the hallways inside the large cruise liner. Her thong-sandals flopped against the red carpet lining the hall. The mood lighting made her feel like she was in the wealthiest place she would ever be. Also that she was probably out of sorts in a place like this, dressed as she was.
She wore a white tank that hugged her body, the collar outlined with yellow flowers made from sewn yarn. Paired with a pair of knee-length khaki shorts and a pair of plain white flip-flops. Her blonde hair was up in a messy ponytail matched with a pair of large sunglasses sitting on top of her head.
She felt like an tropical island tourist among a royal palace. She saw other passengers, but they looked at least a bit more elegant than her. The women in sundresses and the men neatly dressed down. None wearing something you would find on a fat tourist who takes pictures of everything.
She was exploring, trying to find what there was to do on this tanker. She found her way outside, through a large glass door at the end of the hallway.
The bright sun shown down on her and she moved her darkly tinted sunglasses over her brown eyes. She took a look around.
It was crowded out here. Probably because outside was were the pool was at. A large pool sat in the middle of the deck, right in front of her. It had three slides going into it, along with a multitude of people of all shapes and sizes. The ship came packed with three outdoor pools and one indoor pool. The one in front of her was the largest, and probably, the most crowded.
She sighed. She was a horrible swimmer, so it was best to stay away from the pools. She could barely float. It would be best not to make a fool of herself by trying to commit suicide and drown.
She walked around the pool, getting pushed by people she passed.
"Get back here!" shouted a kid.
"Hey, I told you not to run, you kids!" a lifeguard shouted.
Two little boys raced past Penny, knocking into her. She lost her balance, trying not to hurt the younger
boys. Problem was, she was close to the pool because it was the easiest route and was about to fall in.
Suddenly a hand grabbed her by her arm and pulled her back up before she splashed into the 5-and-a-half feet of water.
"Careful now," said the owner of the hand.
Penny looked to the person and realized it was a boy, no older than her. He was quiet attractive. His shaggy brown hair combed to frame his sharp and chisled face. His bright blue eyes were perfectly almond shaped. He must have been there to swim, because all he was wearing were a pair of navy blue swim trunks. Because of this wardrobe, Penny waas able to see his thin, yet muscular, body.
She could almost blush.
"Of all days to meet someone this hot, I have to look like a complete dork," she thought.
She was able to regain her voice.
"Thank you," she thanked him.
He let go of her and turned around.
"Watch were you are going and what is happening around you next time," he said, nonchalantly.
"What''s with that response?!" she thought. "His appearance is almost god-like, yet that attitude takes him down a whole lot of notches."
She shook of the encounter and continued to walk.
"It doesn't matter," she continued in her thoughts. "It's a big ship. I probably won't run into him again."
She ended up walking down some steps to another deck. This one was a lot less crowded. It housed a bunch of tables covered by coloured umbrellas; a sea of red, blue, yellow, orange, and pink spheres. There was also a small kiosk near one corner that appeared to be selling smoothies.
Penny dug into her pocket and pulled out a five. She decided to get a smoothie. Once she got her drink, she sat down at an empty table took off her sunglasses. It was nicely shaded, so no need for them.
She took a sip.
"Strawberry apricot, huh?" she murmured. "Tasty."
She was happy with her decision.
She looked around the deck, observing the other people. Opposite side of the deck from her were two teens fighting. Two girls, one was obviously older than the other. The older one had vivid red, most likely dyed, hair that fell down her back in long, luscious curls. She stood taller than the other girl. The younger girl had brown hair, cut into a short pixie-bob. She appeared to be still in middle-school; Penny figured based on her build.
"I don't care if mom and dad said I had to take you with me!" shouted the red-head.
The younger girl looked embarrassed from all the attention the other was getting from shouting.
"It is your fault you can't make friends," the red-head continued. "Get lost!"
She began to walk away. The younger one hesitated, but ended up calling out, "Sister", and soon followed her.
Penny wondered why someone would put up with that sort of embarrassment. That girl's "sister" was absolutely cruel, especially shouting and insulting her in front of people.
But it wasn't her business. And no matter how badly Penny wanted to butt in, which she truly wanted to, she kept sipping her smoothie and watching the other people.
Another set of people, a family, sat much closer to her. The parents were chatting about their vacation and how amazing everything is.
"We should go to the pool next," suggested the dad.
The youngest kid, a little boy with brown bowl-cut hair, replied with such zest.
"Yeah! Yeah!" he cheered.
The two other brothers, an elementary school boy (at least he appeared to be one) and a boy Penny's age, didn't have the same enthusiasm. The younger of the two just nodded, while his elbow was on the table and his head was resting in his hand. The eldest one didn't even make an attempt to respond. He just looked around, trying not to make contact with his family.
His eyes traveled around, and ended up locking with Penny's, who had been listening in out of curiosity. Though she quickly turned her head away and went back to drinking, the boy continued to watch her.
"Got a crush?" whispered the mom to him.
She sat right beside him and was able to whisper into his ear without the others hearing.
He quickly turned red and turned his attention to something else.
"It isn't a crush. I was curious why she was staring at me," he thought to himself.
The mom just nodded with a smile and went back to eating.
"That was awkward getting caught staring," thought Penny.
Once she was done with her smoothie, she got up and threw it away. She decided to head back to her cabin. Her mom was probably gone, enjoying the cruise. So it would be empty and relaxing.
It isn't that she hated her mom, but boy was her mom a talker. She loved to go on and on and wouldn't even realize she was rambling. She even talked in her sleep. It was enough to make you go crazy.
Once she finally reached her cabin, she plopped on her small bed and grabbed the book that lay on her night stand.
A Sunrise's Gift
A romance novel she had been reading since before the cruise, she was almost done. It was about a girl, abandoned by her family, who had given up hope in the world. One day she suddenly met a wealthy entrepreneur who ended up turning her life upside down.
It was a sweet novel, making Penny cry a lot of times at the sugary moments.
"Why can't my life be this?" she thought.
Just as the thought passed through her head, a booming voice came over the intercom.
"This is your captain speaking. Would all passengers please report back to their cabins and all employees pack their stations quickly and report to the employee lounge. We are approaching a storm and would like everyone to be a safe place," the voice explained.
Penny looked up from her book and looked out the small circular window in the upper, middle portion of her wall. It didn't look bad. But then again, she didn't have a good, large view. Just a view about the size of a basketball.
She shrugged. The boat should hold up against a simple storm. It was a towering golieth. She went back to reading her book.
She should have worried more. Then should could have been prepared for what happened next.
The rocking. The constant rocking. It was quick and made people run into everything, from walls to pillars to other people. People were screaming. Babies and toddlers were crying. The lights flickered, while red lights shot on in order for passengers to be able to see.
Everyone was rushing. Rushing to the outside of the boat to the life boats. The ship was sinking and everyone wanted to be saved.
Penny wasn't ready for this. She tied to stay close to her mom as much as possible. Even going as far as to hold on to the back of her shirt so not to be separated.
It was nighttime and most people were asleep. Penny was. She wore a nightgown that reached her knees. It was short-sleeved, frilly, and pastel-coloured. Before they ran out of the room, Penny threw a blue housecoat on and grabbed an overnight bag she had recently packed. It was supposed to be used for the first night in Costa Rica, just in case she didn't want to go through her was all very fast though, she was surprised she was able to even do that it the short-amount of time.
Outside was chaotic. People were being shoved into life boats and the boats were dropping into the water below. Rain was pouring down and thunder cracked loudly.
Penny could feel the ship going down faster and faster as she stood, looking for a space.
Penny's mom grabbed her by the hand and threw her into a nearby boat.
"I'll grab the next boat!" her mom shouted over the screaming. "Get safe!"
Before Penny could argue, the boat dropped. A loud splash surrounded her and soon the boat started to move away from the lowering ship. Penny believed in her mom and that she would make it to safety.
Penny closed her eyes and huddled in her seat. She wanted it to be over. She didn't want to look at her surrounding. She felt water splashing onto her. Waves were pouring inside the boat. It was dangerous. She hugged her hands around the edges of the seat, trying not to be pushed by the waves. But soon a large wave came past and knocked into Penny, sending her with it, back into the ocean.
Her eyes shot open. She flailed around. She couldn't seem to reach the top. She couldn't reach air, safety. After a couple of seconds, her body started to go nub and limp. Her arms and legs stopped and soon she was just floating there, in the middle of the emptiness.
But suddenly, she felt a pair of arms wrap around under her arms and began to pull her up.
"Is she okay?" asked a voice.
A familiar voice, but Penny couldn't place it. She coughed up water, but soon was breathing normal again.
"She's good," said another voice. "We need to get out of here."
She feel the boat she was in tip and nod as it balanced on the waves, gliding across them. She also felt herself begin to nod off. She was asleep when the boat started to sink, so she was still tired from that. But that mixed in with that fact she almost drowned, she was completely lacking in energy to keep herself awake.
Soon she was out.