Kimberly

The party on the main deck was a fun one. There were drinks and lots of dancing. People took turns joining a conga line that stretched the whole length of the deck almost. Andrea joined in while I elected to guard our drinks. The DJ played music for a couple hours before announcing he would be heading inside to the main dining room to provide more entertainment during dinner. People began to head back to the other parts of the ship then, some remaining out here to hang out in the pool and on the deck chairs. When Andrea found her way back to me, we decided to head back to our rooms to get freshened up before dinner. There were a lot of choices on the ship of where to eat but we thought it would be best to stick to the fancier dining for the first night since we had the time. Tomorrow, we both had picked an on shore excursion of Atlantis, an all inclusive resort in the Bahamas. I was looking forward to spending way too much time on the white sandy beaches while sipping tropical drinks. We'd be eating dinner there as well, trying out some of the local food.

In my room, I pulled on a white cardigan over my summer dress to be a little bit more formal for the dining room. I slid my feet into a pair of white sandals before heading out into the hallway to meet Andrea. In the room next to me, I heard some movement along with laughter. I hadn't seen the person on the other side of the wall yet, leaving me to wonder if it was another teacher. I had only assumed though due to the sign on the wall above my head. Andrea's door opened a few minutes later and she emerged with freshly curled hair.

"Ready to go?" She asked. I nodded, both of us heading up the hallway. "I saw a guy in the room next to yours. Super cute!" I looked at her confused.

"You did?" She nodded, reaching over and pressing the button for the elevator.

"Yeah. He was out on the balcony when I opened mine for some air. I'm kinda hoping I can see them later. I think I might have caught his eye."

"Well, I wouldn't doubt that one." I said, grinning at her. The elevator opened up and we stepped in, an older couple making room for us on board. We rode down in silence until the doors opened again on the main deck. Walking out, we headed to the right where we had seen the signs for the dining room. People were slowly making their way in that direction, couples holding hands as they looked at the artwork that was hanging on the walls. We entered through a set of double doors, seeing a beautifully decorated dining room in front of us. The far wall was made entirely of floor to ceiling windows, allowing me to see the ocean. The floor was covered in a carpet made of brilliantly bright colors. The walls that weren't windows were covered in a soft mahogany toned paneling that made them feel warm with the help of the orange and yellow globe lights above our heads. Near the door, there was a glass sculpture made of handblown glass of blue and green hues. There was a hostess stand in front of us, tables and chairs with white linens and red napkins set up behind it. A woman in a white uniform stood at the podium. She had shorter grey hair that was feathered around her head. She smiled when she saw us enter.

"Hello, ladies!" She said brightly, her brilliantly white teeth shining against the tan tones of her skin. "Just two of you?"

"Yes, please." Andrea said.

"I just need to see your cards." She replied. We both held out our key cards. She scanned them with the same kind of device they had used to get us onto the ship. It beeped loudly and she read the screen. "Oh! You're with our teacher union group. Would you like to be seated with the rest of the teachers? Most of them are in a group right now." Andrea looked at me.

"Sure." I said. "It gives us a chance to meet some new people." I wasn't exactly thrilled at the idea of sitting with a table of strangers but I knew Andrea wanted to mingle with others. She smiled at me before nodding at the hostess who grabbed two menus in her arms before stepping out from behind the stand.

"Follow me." The woman said, gesturing to the right. She headed through the tables with us behind her, weaving around tables that were beginning to fill up with other people. She led us deep into the dining room until she came across a long table that could easily fit twenty people itself. There were six women sitting at one portion of it, all of them looking up as we approached. "Hi, ladies. Seems like we have a couple more people coming to join you."

"The more the merrier!" One woman said with a thick southern accent, moving her bag from the chair next to her. Andrea slid into the seat while I elected to sit across from Andrea. The hostess left us with our menus before walking away. "I'm Kathy." The woman reached out her hand to Andrea. She had long red hair and a round face that made her look friendly. "I'm the art teacher for Cedarville Academy in Nashville."

"I'm Andrea." Andrea replied, shaking her hand. "This is Kimberly. We're both music teachers from Janesville, Florida." Kathy reached out and shook my hand too.

"Nice to meet you both!" Kathy said. The woman next to her reached her hand out as well. She was shorter with curly blonde hair and blue eyes.

"I'm Crystal. I'm a math teacher from Pasadena." We shook her hand and I did my best to take mental notes. Next to her was Bethany, a gym teacher from Tombstone, Jennifer the chemistry teacher from Brooklyn, Carmen, a Spanish teacher from Idaho, and Dakota, the English teacher from Phoenix. I had a sense that these teachers had known each other prior to the trip from the way they were talking to each other.

"So, how are you girls liking the cruise so far?" Bethany asked, her long black hair pulled back into a braid down her back.

"It's wonderful! I've never been on a cruise before so I am excited to see what happens." Andrea said. I nodded as the waiter walked over to the table. He had two bottles of chilled wine in his hands.

"Looks like you girls are making more friends while I am gone!" He said, smiling over at Andrea and me. "What would you ladies care to drink?"

"You're free to have some of our wine!" Kathy said, pointing at the bottles as he set them down between the six of them.

"That would be great." I said. The waiter nodded, grabbing two more glasses of wine from an adjoining table. He set them next to Andrea and I before beginning to pour the white wine into our glasses.

"I've put in an order of our specialty cheese and meat plate for you lovely ladies. Are there any other appetizers I can get started with before placing your order?" He asked, finishing off one bottle and grabbing another.

"Could we get a few shrimp cocktails?" Carmen asked, her thick accent sounding exotic.

"I think I can make that happen. Now, I do have to let you folks know we are featuring our prime rib and our crab legs tonight. Each is complimentary. We also have other options on our menu to choose from. Let me run these empty bottles back and I will come back for your order." He grabbed the empty wine bottles and docked out of view. I glanced down at my menu and saw that it was a rather fancy food selection. I wasn't sure what I was expecting but this wasn't it. There were several dishes that were in French, something I only knew from my short visit to Paris to see my mom. Others were staples at any fancy eatery in Miami. I was delighted to see that they had so many choices. I wasn't quite sure where to even begin.

"If you girls would like, we usually order something different for everyone and then share it. Kinda like a family buffet style." Kathy said. "That way, you can try a little bit of everything."

"What a great idea! This must not be your first rodeo." Andrea said.

"It is for Jenny and Dakota. This is our fifth year for Bethany, Carmen, Crystal and I. We won awards so now we are presenting them! We help do the fundraising for the union so we can provide funding to schools and teachers across the country."

"Wow. This whole trip is such a wonderful privilege. We are so happy to be asked to come." I said. "How did the whole cruise tradition start?"

"It was an idea from one of our previous presidents after they met a teacher who taught school on a cruise ships. They just loved the relationship between the teacher and the students. So, they wanted to explore it more. They started having the union yearly meetings onboard the ship. Then as the organization grew, our trip did as well. When they started to recognize teachers from across the country, our awards ceremony ended up taking place on our yearly cruises." Kathy explained.

"So, you guys work the whole cruise?" Andrea asked. "That must be awful."

"It's not that bad. It's usually just meetings in the morning with our own private breakfast buffet." Bethany answered, grinning. "Then we get the rest of the day. Once the award dinner is over, we get the rest of the cruise to fully enjoy ourselves."

"I'm back!" The waiter announced, walking back over. "Did everyone get time to look over the menu?" Everyone nodded and took their turns, ordering something to share. I picked an order of a seafood pasta dish that sounded good. He quickly took our orders and then our menus, promising two more bottles of wine as he left.

"Are you guys all the teachers there are?" Andrea asked. Carmen shook her head.

"No. This is only about a fourth of us. The others are probably eating dinner later or somewhere else. I know a lot of people choose to eat at the burger place on the top deck the first night rather down here. I'm sure you'll get the chance to meet everyone as the cruise goes on. You might even run into them in the hallway. You're all right there clumped together."

"Yes. I believe I saw one of the male teachers earlier." Andrea said, grinning at me. I fought the urge to roll my eyes by sipping my wine.

"Oh, yes. We only have a few of them this year. I think there's a gym teacher, maybe a math teacher, three history teachers and then two science teachers. They are going to be doing a small presentation on their club they formed. It's incredible! They take underprivileged kids to different parts of the world to learn about history and science. Their school nominated them because of it. I'm hoping they will be able to meet a few people that will be willing to sponsor some of their kids. I believe their goal is to head to Egypt this upcoming school year."

"I'm so jealous." I said. "I've always wanted to go there. The whole idea of pharaohs, pyramids, and their history has always been fascinating to me. I can't even tell you how many times I've seen those Mummy movies with Brendan Fraser because of it."

"Oh, that Brendan Fraser is quite handsome." Bethany said, sipping her wine. "Those boys with the club aren't that bad either."

"Bethany!" Carmen said, grinning at her colleague. "Get two drinks in her and she's a new person."

"Amen to that!" Andrea said, holding up her glass in a toast. We all did the same, clinking them together around the table.

Our food came and we all shared our plates, getting to enjoy a little taste of everything. It had been the best idea and my favorite had been the prime rib, the meat melting right in my mouth. I ate so much that I felt like I wasn't going to be able to eat another bite. But then the waiter came around with the desert cart and we had to try the different options as well. By then, I knew that I would pop if I ate anything else. We sat with the group of teachers for a while, going through a few more glasses of wine. I did like these girls. They were seasoned as well as fun, telling stories from previous cruises. I was almost in stitches from one Kathy told about a hairy chest contest.

"Well ladies, this was fun. Hopefully, we will get to do this another time." Andrea said as we stood up.

"We're here every night around the same time! Feel free to join us. We also do tea time around 2pm in the Atrium. You should come! It's a lovely time." Carmen said. I nodded.

"I think we will have to take you up on that offer." I replied.

"It was nice meeting you girls." Kathy said, waving as we walked away. We returned the motion before weaving our way to the door again.

"That was so much fun!" Andrea said. "I think I could get used to being on a cruise every year."

"Me too. What do you want to do now?" I asked, coming to a stop outside of the dining room. She glanced at her watch.

"Want to head to that little bar we saw earlier? We could get a couple of drinks and see where that leads up." I nodded.

"Works for me."

We walked up the hallway until we came across the Piano Bar. The name was above the door in blue neon lights. The doors of the bar were painted to look like piano keys, something I found charming. I could hear singing coming from inside before we opened the door. The entire place was decorated with piano keys; from the chairs, table tops, and floors. Even the bar was set up like a long keyboard. People were sitting in chairs around the room while someone sang into a microphone on stage, a guitar in hand. I found that amusing given the emphasis on the piano part of the bar. Andrea and I walked over to the bar where there was a man filling drink orders. Over the music, Andrea ordered us two mixed drinks. He made them quickly, handing them over to us. I pointed at a table that was free in the far corner. She nodded and we walked over to it. Sitting down, I looked over the room. It was very loud, edging to almost too loud for my comfort. Andrea sipped her drink.

"What do you want to do after this?" She asked over the music.

"We could check out that Serenity Deck they were talking about at dinner." I replied. Kathy and Bethany had told us about a part of the ship that was quieter than other spots. It sounded like heaven at the moment.

"Sure." Andrea replied but I knew she wasn't too excited. Her eyes scanned the room for a moment. "I'm going to go to the bathroom quickly, okay?" She said, I nodded. Grabbing her bag, she slid out of her chair and disappeared into the group of people. I continued to sip my drink, that nice foggy feeling of tipsy coming over my brain. I was having a great time, something I really didn't expect to happen. I was glad I had come and that we had been given this chance. I was excited to see what the Bahamas was going to bring. The idea of being at the private resort felt heavenly as well.

After a few minutes, I started to worry about where Andrea had gone. I looked around the room but didn't see her, her blonde hair not popping out anywhere. At the half an hour mark, slight panic was beginning to creep in. Relief hit me when she reappeared, a smile on her face. "Where were you?" I asked. "I was getting worried."

"I found him." She said.

"Who?" I asked, confused.

"One of the guy teachers! He was by the bathrooms when I came out."

"Well, that sounds charming." I said. She gave me a pleading look. "What?"

"He wants to know if I want to get a drink at the club on the eighth deck."

"I'm not really in the mood to go to a club though." I said. She gave me a big smile. "Andrea…"

"C'mon, Kim! He's really cute. And he's a science teacher! Those are the smartest guys you can find at a school."

"Look, I don't feel up to it. You can go though. But you better check in with me. I don't want some strange guy throwing you overboard."

"Yes, mom." She said, giving me a quick hug. "I'll knock on your door to let you know when I'm back."

"Be careful!" I called out as she walked away. She disappeared again, leaving me alone. Sighing, I finished my drink and left the bar. I thought about heading back to my room but it was still kinda early. Instead, I decided to head out to the main deck to see if I could find this Serenity Deck. People were still out here around the pool, some of them sleeping in the deck chairs. Tomorrow night, they would be showing a movie on the big screen for those who weren't getting off the boat. For now though, it was showing pictures from the day's events. Slowly, I walked towards the back of the boat. People were walking around, couples whispering to one another as they walked hand in hand. I frowned as I passed one couple, the man's arm around his girl in a comforting way. I felt something in my chest hurt a little and I realized I was lonely. Maybe it was the alcohol or the fact Andrea had left me but I suddenly felt very alone.

Shaking the thought away, I continue walking. I came across a section of the boat that seemed to be clear of people. There were deck chairs set up here as well as large poolside cabanas with beds on them. They were made with blankets of towel materials and pillows. There were four hot tubs along the edge of the deck and a smaller swimming pool in the middle of the area. There was also a shelf filled with towels that were rolled neatly. Kicking off my shoes, I walked over to the edge of the pool and stuck my feet into the warm water. Gazing up, I was surprised by how many stars I could see. It looked like a painting, swirls of different colors mixed with the twinkling lights. It was beautiful. I suddenly wished there was someone here to enjoy it with me. I was excited for Andrea. I was really hoping that she was having fun and that she would meet someone. I just didn't think it would be the very first day on the cruise. Maybe it would be a one night thing and we'd be able to hang out tomorrow. Sighing, I kicked my feet in the water.

Letting out a yawn, I realized I was getting sleepy. Deciding to head in, I slid backwards and stood up. As I did, my heel slipped on the edge of the pool and lost its footing. I tried to regain it because the alcohol in my system slowed my reaction time down. Before I realized it, I was tumbling into the pool. My head bounced off the railing next to me, sending me into darkness as I crashed into the water.