Chapter 3
Bob groaned as he felt something nudge against his cheek. He opened his eyes to see a blurry black figure above him. He could faintly hear the waves crashing on the beach where he lay. His eyes closed as a cold sensation pressed against his cheek and blackness over came him. Blackness lifted slowly as sensation brought him out. He could feel the cold cloth on his forehead before it disappeared. He opened his eyes when it came back. The blurriness disappeared as he greeted a pair of eyes.
Startled, he jumped up and the person scrambled away, the cloth falling to his lap. He groaned when his head pounded from the motion and he pressed a hand to his forehead, closing his eyes. He felt the cloth pressed against his hand and he opened to his eyes to see a young girl holding it. Bob took it from her with a nod of thanks and the girl backed away. He shifted slowly so he was sitting with his legs on the floor. He looked around his surroundings.
The walls were made of branches and leaves from trees. The walls were plastered with papers filled with small words and drawings that crudely resembled maps. His eyes landed on the girl. Grey eyes greeted his with apprehension and fear. Her black hair was matted and dirty, in need of a wash. Her clothing was small and dark, with patches all over.
"Where am I?" Bob asked.
The girl's eyes shifted quickly to his lips and shook her head.
"Can you understand me?"
She nodded quickly. She pointed to her ears and shook her head.
Understanding dawned on him and he spoke, "You're deaf? You can't hear?"
She nodded her head in response.
"So how can you understand me?" He asked curiously.
The girl pointed to her eyes, to her lips, and then to his lips.
"You're reading my lips?"
She nodded.
"Can you talk?"
She frowned and nodded as she covered her mouth. Bob creased his forehead in confusion.
"You can talk…but you won't?" He asked hesitantly.
She nodded and pulled her hand away.
"Okay, I can deal with that. What's your name?"
She brought up her hand and her fingers moved to form letters.
"I can't understand sign language. Can you write it?"
The girl stood up from her spot and he watched as she took a piece of paper from the wall and went to him. She stood less than two steps away from him, unsure if she should get any closer to the man that was a stranger.
"It's okay, I won't hurt you," Bob said as he brought up a hand towards her.
She relented and sat next to him. She had a piece of black coal in her hand and she wrote on the paper. He watched as she wrote. She looked up at him and gave it to him.
"Kiera?" He read out loud.
She nodded and then pointed to him with a questioning look on her face.
"I'm Bob," He smiled.
She gave him a small one in turn. She pointed to him and gestured to the paper with her fingers going up and down in the air. He understood her silent plea and he wrote his name on the paper. Kiera took the paper from him and read the word. She mouthed the name. Looking at him she mouthed it again.
"Yea," he said with a nod, "Bob."
She mouthed it again and gave him a smile. She took the paper and stuck it back on the wall. Kiera looked back at him.
"Do you know where I am?" He asked her, making sure she could read his lips carefully.
She nodded and pointed to a map beside her. He got up from the makeshift bed and stood next to her. He looked at the map.
"I'm on an island?"
She nodded and brought up her hands; one formed a fist while the other had a pinky finger out. She rubbed the finger over the fist. He copied her.
"Island?"
She nodded and showed him the sign again, then pointed to a tiny spot close to the beach and then pointed to the floor.
"That's where we are now?"
She nodded again. She laid her arm flat in the air and set the elbow of her other arm on her hand. She wriggled her hand back and forth and mouthed the word to the sign.
He widened his eyes, "We're in a tree?"
She nodded and went to the center of the floor. She bent down and pulled at something. Bob widened his eyes again when the floor came up. It was a door. He went over to it and looked down.
"We're in a tree house? How did you get me up here?" He asked astonished.
She let the door closed and pointed to herself. Then she pointed to him and patted her back.
"You carried me up here?" He asked incredulously. "You must be a Super to be able to do that."
Kiera frowned at him with confusion.
"You don't know what a Super is?"
She shook her head.
"A Super is someone who have powers, something that other people don't have," Bob explained. "A Superhero."
Her eyes widened with realization. She pointed to him with a questioning look on her face and with the other hand pulled her shirt. Bob looked at his bright red uniform and nodded.
"Yea, I'm a superhero. That's why I have this uniform. It tells people who I am so they won't be afraid of me and so they can recognize me. My family and I are superheroes," Bob explained before realization dawned on him. "My family! They're here on the island. I've got to find them!"
He grabbed the handle to the door and Kiera smacked it away. He looked at her and she shook her head.
"I need to find them," Bob insisted.
She shook her head furiously. She started moving her hands in the air, forming words he couldn't understand. He watched her dizzily.
"Whoa stop!" He said as he grabbed her hands.
She wrenched her hands away from his and growled. He cocked an eyebrow and gave a smirk.
"Did you just growl at me?"
She shrugged her shoulders.
"Okay…I'm sorry I grabbed you, but I couldn't understand what you were saying," He said with an apologetic look.
She nodded, accepting his apology. She pointed to him and then to the floor.
"You want me to stay? Why?"
She pointed to her lips and mouthed several words.
"There are bad people here?"
She nodded then pointed to herself and the door.
"If there's bad people here, then you can't go out there by yourself. I can help you," Bob pleaded with her.
Kiera shook her head and pointed to his forehead and picked up the cloth that had landed on the floor. She handed it to him.
"I don't get it, why are you giving this to me?"
She frowned, took the cloth, and pressed it against his forehead. He let out a pained cry.
"Okay!" Bob said as he grabbed her wrist and pulled away. "I get it, I'm hurt. I'll stay."
She nodded once; pleased she got him to listen to her. He looked at her.
"How are you gonna find them?"
She tapped her nose in response.
"You're gonna smell them?"
She nodded, opened the door, and jumped. He looked in time to see her land on her feet and look up. She gave him a smile and turned away. She sniffed the air and headed towards the direction it came from. He stuck his head out to see a tail disappear into the leafy bushes. His eyes widened and he pulled back into the tree house.
He pressed the cloth against his forehead and muttered, "I must be hallucinating."
