As I promised, another update. Hope to have a little more time to write this week, so hopefully will have at least one, if not two, more updates in the next few days. Hope you all are enjoying the story still. Please review to tell me what you think! :)
Sam and Matt sat in the wheelhouse as they drove to the beginning of their first string they were going to pull. The pots that they had set before leaving town had some very good numbers on them, and it was as if God had decided to give them a break after everything they had been through.
"What do you think about the chick?" Sam asked, smiling at Matt.
"She does keep up with us in a way, but she's no Joelle. I'd rather have Joelle back."
"I know you guys do. She's your family. We just need to know if we have to dump her or not when we get back to town." Sam said, getting straight to the point.
"Can we do that, with the contract with Discovery?"
"You guys didn't sign shit. The Time Bandit did."
Matt nodded.
"We will test her out through the whole trip. At least her cooking isn't horrible. Get's me out of that chore at least."
"Well, get the guys rounded up. We're almost there."
Matt walked downstairs to the galley where everyone was trying to catch a few minutes of sleep, but Matt brought them back to reality.
"Time to get back out there girls." Matt said, smiling at them.
Everyone drug themselves towards the wet room and got their rain gear on before heading outside. Nobody was into the season anymore, and wanted it all to just end, and Katrina wasn't helping their mood at all.
"Can I try to throw the hook at all?" Katrina asked.
"No time." Matt said, lighting a cigarette before heading towards the side of the boat.
"How do you figure there is no time?" She asked. "We have all the time in the world out here."
"I don't know about you, but we want nothing to do with anything out here. We want to finish and get home, and slowing down to let you 'attempt' the hook is absurd. It's not happening." Matt spat out, getting angry.
"How did Joelle learn? You guys are way too easy on her. Why am I getting shit on here?"
"Joelle earned her spot on this boat. You got on this boat because we were desperate. No way, in a million years, would you be allowed on this boat under normal circumstances."
"Joelle earned her spot because of who her uncles are. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been given a chance either. You guys have her up on this pedestal and don't see the real her."
"What do you mean by that?" Nick asked, confused as to what she was saying.
"Would you have even given her a chance if she wasn't related to the Hansen's? No. She would have been just another chick, and would have been considered bad luck on a boat. I know how it is. I wouldn't have been on this boat if it weren't for my uncle."
"You're uncle?"
"Yes, my uncle. Thom Beers."
"I get it now. No way that the producers would have done this if it was any normal chick."
"No, my uncle wouldn't have put me on here if I didn't deserve to be here. I have worked my ass off to get here. I have worked out, practiced, and everything to prove to you guys that I deserve to be here, and all that I have heard was 'Joelle is better'. I don't give a shit about that bitch. She only got here because of who her uncles are."
"Get off my deck!" Nick yelled, angry at this point.
"It's not your deck to throw me off of. The only guys that can throw me off aren't even on this boat."
"When they are gone, us three are boss. Get the fuck off our deck." Matt said, advancing towards her.
"You guys are just pissed because you know it is true."
"The hell it is! That girl can outrun this boat against you any day. If she was awake, and well, she would show you up in a heartbeat."
"Yeah, well, lucky for me, she is on her deathbed, huh?" She said with a smirk.
Jake threw something at her, hitting her upside her head. It caught her off guard, and the anger in Jake's face made Katrina know to not say a word.
"Get off the deck." Jake said through his teeth as he clenched his jaw.
Katrina walked off deck quietly. The guys were shaking with anger at that point, not even able to focus when Sam told them the first pot was upon them.
"Guys!" Sam yelled through the hailer. "Ignore her, and let's get this shit going so we can get back to Joelle, got it?"
The guys reluctantly went to work, Matt throwing the hook without even paying attention to where the pot was really at, and missing it horribly. He was just angry, and threw the hook to get his frustration out. When he got it back in his hand, he threw the hook and brought the pot in successfully.
The three guys worked slowly, but they didn't care. The mood on deck was better than when Katrina was on deck, and they didn't care how long it took them to work as a three man crew. After a few hours, Sam called for them to come up to the wheelhouse.
The three guys went inside, walking through the galley where Katrina was making them dinner, and headed straight up to the wheelhouse.
"What's up?" Jake asked, leaning against the counter.
Sam held the SAT phone up, and they heard Sig say, "Hey guys."
"Hey Sig." Everyone said, immediately anxious as to what Sig was calling for.
"How is she?" Matt asked, not wanting to drag the conversation out. He wanted to know only one thing, how Joelle was doing.
"I got something for you to listen too." He said.
The guys looked at each other, confused. Not one of them were expecting to hear what was going to be said on the phone next.
"Hey guys." Joelle said softly. Her voice was soft, and scratchy, but they knew immediately it was her.
"Joelle!" They all said in unison, all relieved to hear her voice.
"You catching the crab while I'm not there?" She asked.
"Yes, we are, but we certainly do miss you." Nick said, tears in his eyes by that point.
"I miss you guys too. I'm ready to be out there now."
The guys laughed.
"You just focus on getting your energy back, and getting better. That's all we want out of you now." Jake said.
The phone was silent at that point.
"Joelle, you okay?" Matt asked.
"Who was that?" She asked.
"It was Junior."
"Who's Junior?" She asked. They could tell she wasn't asking them, but to Sig who was sitting not far from her.
The guys in the wheelhouse looked at each other, confused as to what was going on.
"Hey guys." Sig said on the phone.
"What's going on?" Matt asked.
"She has lost her memory. She doesn't have any recollection as to what has gone on the past four to five years."
"But she remembers fishing?" Nick asked. "She was just starting out about that time."
"Yeah, she does remember that." He said. "However, she doesn't remember a lot of things."
"I guess that can be expected…" Jake said, trailing off.
"But it's improvement. She was almost considered brain dead a couple days ago. Now, she's awake and talking. We don't know the extent of her brain damage yet, but she is lucid. More than the doctor was ever expecting out of her. We are taking one day at a time, but we are all definitely relieved."
"A huge weight has been lifted off our shoulders. You have no idea." Nick said, smiling.
"Just tell her to get her ass out of bed and start kicking this shits ass so she can be back on this boat with us." Matt jokingly said to Sig.
"I will definitely give her that message." Sig said with a smile.
The guys hung up the phone, and the spirit on the boat was almost immediately lifted. They all headed back outside, walking through the galley. Katrina watched the guys walk through, keeping as quiet as possible.
Jake stopped at the edge of the counter, then turned to Katrina.
"I guess you didn't get what you wished for." Jake said, a smirk on his face.
"What do you mean?" She asked, watching him with a weary eye.
"Joelle is awake, and knowing her, as soon as she hears that you are on this boat, she will be here to kick your ass out of here, and put you right where you belong."
Jake left at that moment, and Katrina made a face. It was the exact opposite of what she had hoped she would hear.
There you have it. Again, please review! :)