Okay, time for Chapter Nine!
We watched San Diego until it disappeared beneath us, replaced with sparkling blue seawater. The ocean breeze smelled amazing, and it felt wonderful on my face, blowing my hair all around me.
"I love this!" I exclaimed, throwing out my arms and taking in a deep breath of that salty sea air.
Brady smiled, his eyes on my face. "You'd have loved Kinkow," he said softly, stretching out his hand and brushing a strand of hair out of my face.
"I'm sure it was beautiful there," I said, smiling back.
He looked away and said something under his breath that I couldn't make out.
"What?" I asked.
He raised his eyes to my face and repeated what he'd said a bit more loudly. "But not as beautiful as you."
I felt heat rising up in my cheeks, but I didn't feel embarrassed. More like happy. Very, very happy. "Thanks, Brady."
He looked down again and shrugged. "No problem."
I glanced back at my dad, who was thankfully deep in discussion with Dr. Amélie and hadn't heard me and Brady's conversation. Then I lowered my voice and said, "Brady, did you… did you have a girlfriend back on Kinkow?"
He lifted his head and looked at me, mildly confused. "No, I don't. One of my brothers, Boomer, had a girlfriend, but I don't." His eyes swept over the ocean, then throughout the balloon. "I've just never found anyone… special." His gaze lingered on me when he said the word special.
I blushed again and looked down at the dark blue sea.
"What about you?" He asked after about three minutes of silence. "Is one of those doctors at ASSULF your boyfriend?"
I shook my head. "Nope. I haven't found my white knight yet either."
"Well, there's someone out there for everyone," he said, his eyes on the skyline. "You just haven't found them yet."
I started picking at the straw sticking out of the balloon basket. "I guess you're right. I just don't know how I'll know him when I'll find him."
"You'll know," he said, his eyes still far away. "You'll know."
"What if…" I began tentatively.
He turned to me, listening.
"What if someone knew they'd met the one, but they didn't know if that person felt the same way about them?" I asked, avoiding meeting his eyes.
He smiled slightly and said, "If they were really the one, they'd feel the same way."
"Yeah, but does she- I mean, they find out?"
"Well, I think the best way to find out would be to ask," he said, still looking at me.
I nodded and went back to picking at the straw.
"Why all the questions?" He asked finally.
I shrugged. "I don't know… I was just wondering." I did know why, though. But I'd never say it out loud. Never in a million years.
"Okay." He went back to watching the ocean.
"So… we have time now. Can you tell me about your island?"
He nodded and launched into a full description of a place that sounded straight out of my childhood storybook, with mermaids and trolls and creatures called Waka Wakas (giant mosquitos) and Tarantula People and massive razor hawks that could carry away small children to their nests. The way he described it, I felt immediately sucked into the magic of the place and I could practically see it, the picture forming in my mind's eye. Then once he had finished telling me about Kinkow, he went on to depict his two brothers, Boomer and Boz, and his cousin Lanny, and his parents, and many other of his close friends. He recounted story after story of his and his brothers' many, many pranks and adventures (they sometimes happened simultaneously, apparently). As he was doing this, I watched how his eyes lit up as he talked about his home and his family and the life he'd lost. I wanted so much for him to get that life back. I wished we could somehow bring back Kinkow and all it's people, but I knew that was impossible. But if only there was some way… I knew I'd do anything to get that back for him!
"But yeah… That's my island," he finished, grinning.
I smiled. "It certainly sounds like an adventure."
"It is," he said, still grinning. "But I wouldn't want it any different." He leaned forward against the side of the basket and suddenly I saw the weight reappear on his shoulders, weighing him down again, and I knew then that he hadn't been like this, dark and quiet and brooding, back when he still lived on Kinkow. I don't know who he'd been, but not like the person he was now.
I put my hand on his shoulder comfortingly. "Brady, I-"
He pushed my hand away.
I stepped back, surprised at this sudden change in him. "I'm sorry. I'll… I'll talk to you later." And then I walked away, leaving him alone with his thoughts.
~XXX~
"I see it!" I heard Dr. Amélie squeal two days later, as my dad, Brady, and I were finishing up breakfast. She was leaning over the side of the basket, her face all lit up.
Brady and I got to our feet and rushed over to her, where we leaned over the side too.
She was right, it was there! I could see it! It was right there, in the middle of the ocean, a swirl shaped island, just like Brady had said. Except it wasn't lush and beautiful, with dark green jungles and a majestic volcano right in the center. Instead the entire thing looked like a black desert, completely flat and burned, almost like a forest after a forest fire.
Next to me, I felt Brady stiffen.
I put my hand on his arm comfortingly and asked Dr. Amélie if we were going to land on it.
She nodded. "Yes, right away. Mason, come help me land this thing!"
My dad got to his feet.
"Are you ready for this?" I asked Brady hesitantly, unsure of what the answer would be.
He nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm ready." But he didn't sound so sure.
I wasn't so sure either.
Okay, I know this one was just a filler… sorry 'bout that… Please review!