"Ah, why am I here? I should be the one in charge. It's my map". Jim grumbled beneath his breath as he scrubbed the iron pot ferociously. He sat alone in a damp and dim room that was lined with piles and piles of tableware and barrels. Everything moved with the soft sway of the boat as it sailed across space.
Jim sighed heavily and rested his arms over the half cleaned pot.
"This is stupid," he muttered, as he buried his head into his arms. he rustle within the mess of objects. He quietened his breathing and remained still to listen for the noise. After a minute, he heard it again. It was definitely coming from one of the barrels on the right.
Slowly, to not make any sound, he placed the pot down beside him and crept towards the barrels. The rustling had stopped completely. Cautiously, he removed the barrel's lid. He peered over the barrel and looked down into the heap of cheese that was crammed into it. The stench of the long expired cheese instantly choked Jim as he pushed himself away, gasping for air.
He began to dash out of the toxic room when he heard a crash from behind him. He turned around and saw the barrel next to the cheese one had fallen over, revealing a young girl who had been hiding inside. She was coughing and spluttering, but when she saw that she was discovered, she tried to crawl back into the barrel.
Jim ran over to her, surprised to see someone hitchhiking on the boat and that it was another human. Using his hand as a gas mask, he crouched in front of the girl in the barrel.
"Are you okay?" he managed to say while trying not to breathe. The girl hesitated then nodded slowly, not taking her eyes off of jim's.
Jim reached out his hand to her. "C'mon" he said, eager to leave the stinky room. As she cautiously extended her hand, jim grabbed it and pulled her out of the barrel and out of the room. He slammed the door shut behind them. He took a deep breath of fresher air as the girl cleared her throat.
They were in the kitchen storage room. It was a small, tight room filled with jars, sacks and wooden crates that were filled with semi-fresh food. At the end opposite the door hung a single hammock. Jim lifted some heavy sacks of flour and placed them at the foot of the door.