Ch. 12
I did not fall asleep until well after I entered my room, and when I did, it was fitful. I woke well before the sun rose, and I did so grumpily and with much cursing in my head. I almost snapped the handle of my wooden brush as I slammed it against my dresser when my hair tangled, and I stubbed my toe trying to find my shoes. I scrubbed my face so hard it turned red, and then I even ripped my shirt as I sat on the wooden stool of my desk.
By the time I left my room, tired, annoyed, and mad at everything, the sun had risen. I did not bother going to the dining area, where everyone would be and no doubt, something would annoy me further. Instead, I went straight to the kitchen and took an apple from its holder. I skipped checking in with Captain as well, because I did not want to accidentally snap at him, and started my rounds early.
My rounds included me going around the ship to my designated areas and making sure everything was still working properly. It usually took me two hours to complete, and that was only if nothing was wrong. When something was wrong, it could take me the whole day to run around the ship to get the material to fix it. Thankfully, today one thing seemed to be going right, and my rounds took me the normal amount of time.
By my guess, it was now nine o'clock. I started fretting with my hands; usually I did not finish my rounds until twelve, because Captain always needed me for something before hand. At least, I always begged for something before I had to do my rounds, for they could get boring and arduous. He would not be mad that I did not check in first this morn; he had other workers to help him, but what about Dr. Jekyll?
…
Henry. What about Henry? I did not know his usual time for waking up, and since I had not been in the dining hall, I did not know if he was yet awake or not. With indecisive bouncing in place, I fretted for a while in the middle of the hallway. Thank Kali no one passed me, or they would think me quite queer. In the end, I decided to just wait until twelve and go below until it was time to reemerge. Then I could teach…Henry, in the warm sun. I grinned at the thought, and felt myself blush. Oh Kali, what was wrong with me?
I opened the door to below find a surprise. Almost every man below had his shirt off. My eyes widened as I stared down at them, what was going on? It was not even hot down here today! I slid down the ladder and stared at everyone awkwardly, and I noticed from the corner of my eye everyone smirking as I passed. I sighed in confusion and set out to find Vishal or Maitreya; maybe they could explain why everyone was imitating Henry's entrance yesterday.
Wait a moment. No, they would not do something like that to me. With shock, I looked left and right, and bolted away from them. How dare they tease me like this? I could feel my cheeks burning in anger as I ran. I knew who would set something like this up, and I would hurt him when I found him!
Maitreya called my name, making me skid to a stop as I turned towards his voice. "Can I borrow your shawl?" he called, and the snickering men finally started to laugh fully. I clenched my fist tightly, and I felt them shaking as I tried to hold them still. I marched myself to Maitreya and glared up at him as he smiled down at me. If I had a voice, I truly would have screamed him deft, and it would be no worse than what he deserved for this.
Without thinking my fist came back to hit his smirking face, and was grabbed from behind from someone. "Oi lass, don't go ruinin the only thing he had going for him! He's doomed without that face'a his," it was Vishal, and he looked as angry as I. I stopped fighting his grip and sighed. Vishal let my hand go and it dropped uselessly to my side. I had never punched Maitreya, now would be a bad time to start.
"Ha-ha, Marina ya don't have to get violent just because the men and I want to tease you a bit for-"what he wanted to tease me for I already knew, but I sure did not give him a chance to say it. My leg shot forward and struck the one sure-fire weakness of a man. Maitreya dropped, and I heard the groans of sympathies from the men around him. I smirked in victory as he huddled there, gasping, and turned to Vishal. "Tell him I forgive him," I signed, before turning on my heel and heading for the staircase. I could hear Vishal yelling at the men to get their clothes back on as they left. They had avoided looking at me as I walked by, and strangely enough, I felt much better…
As I headed for Captain's quarters, my unease returned. Would he tease me too, as the men had? I sighed, it was my fault the men were teasing me anyway. I should not have been so stupid. I should have been able to fight my awkwardness of Henry and taken it in stride, but no! I had to force my shawl on him and blush as if my face was on fire!
I was so flustered with my thought I did not even see whom it was I bumped into. I gasped when I saw Dorian their, staring at my with raised brows. "You really should watch were you're going," he told me, in that monotone voice I hated. Without thinking, I signed, "If you saw me not paying attention, why didn't you just move?" My foul mood was back, thank you for that Gray! I tried to sidestep him but his cane blocked my path. "Perhaps I wasn't paying attention either, or did you not think of that?"
I gasped as he spoke. Gray understood… my signs?! I stared at him with wide eyes, and took a step back. "You know my signs?" I asked in confusion, for signs were not well known to those who were not somehow affected. Gray then did something weird, he smiled at me as he said, "I've had time to learn a lot of things."
I smiled back slightly in disbelief, for it was so unexpected. He chuckled, and pulled his cane back. I stood still as he passed, and felt him pat my head. I turned to watch him disappear down the hall, and when he had, I smiled truly. Dorian knew my signs; I did not have to write with him! I grinned as I headed for Captain's room. True, Dorian was dark and narcissistic, but he knew my signs! I could deal with his attitude, besides, he had smiled, maybe he was starting to like me? Who knows, maybe he could come back to visit too…
I was still smiling when I found Captain with Ishmael, which made me smile even more. I signed my good morning to them and stood beside them. "My rounds are finished, is there anything to do?" I asked them. For some reason they both smiled down at me with the same expression, and it really scared me. "What?" I signed quickly in my bewilderment.
"If your rounds are finished you can have the rest of the day to yourself,"Captain said, and his eyes were laughing. I stared at him suspiciously, but nodded my head in understanding. It was odd, but I would not complain. I waved goodbye and turned to leave. At the door, Ishmael called out to me, and I stopped and looked back at him, leaning in the doorframe. "Tell Dr. Jekyll we say 'hello,' will ya?" he asked, and I felt my face heat. How had he known I was going to Henry's room now? I thought in alarm.
"What makes you think I'll see him?" I asked, and no doubt, they could see through my farce. Ishmael laughed, while Captain answered, "He spoke of you at breakfast, Marina," I felt my face burn. "He wondered where you were so he could ask about the time you would meet him," Captain's eyes were shining with unshed laughter, "You'll be the teacher this time, then?" he asked, and his chuckles began. My face burned so badly it hurt, and I frowned deeply. "Yes, I will!" I signed, before I marched out of the room, my face on fire.
I could hear their laughter follow me…