Chapter 58

~Grace~

Thunder cracked through the sky, and I had to cover my ears, squinting my eyes as a sudden burst of wind sprayed ocean water into my face.

I had only been standing out here for a few minutes when the clouds suddenly darkened, rolling in right over my head. I had stared at them, thinking they were beautiful, until the rain droplets started to fall.

They were large and painful, like bullets being shot from the sky.

Everyone else that was on the deck also sought shelter inside, quickly scooping up their things and hurrying in through the glass doors.

People stumbled as the boat rocked with more ferocity, holding onto each other and the walls for support.

I managed my way inside as well, holding onto a table to keep myself steady. Rain water dripped down my forehead, my hair absolutely soaked.

Wow, where did that storm come from?!

I could feel the boat rising and falling on the waves, and out through the windows I could see the water shoot into the air each time it fell.

My heart pounded nervously. I had never been on a boat before this, and it was easy enough to enjoy when games and food was there to distract you, but now, nothing could drown out the noise of the whistling wind and the feeling of the boat rocking.

Looking around at the other worried faces of the cruise ship’s guests, I took a deep breath. If it was anything really serious, the crew would have alerted us.

Yes, everything was fine…

I started to feel the stress leave my shoulders when an announcement kicked on over the intercom.

“We apologize for the rough waters. An unexpected storm has arisen, and is predicted to continue for several hours. For your safety, please make your way to your cabins and wait there until we announce that the storm is clear,” a female voice spoke with a chipper tone.

My heart froze.

Oh, so it was serious.

The people in the room began murmuring to each other, and some held onto each other, others cried out in fear.

The boat crashed into the water in a downward motion, and I gripped tightly onto the edge of the table as I watched cabinets with rows of glasses open, and spilled the glasses onto the floor. They crashed with a loud noise, sending glass flying.

People began screaming.

“Please bear in mind that the deck is unavailable at this time, and all services will be closed until the temporary lockdown is lifted,” the intercom continued.

I looked outside. Water had washed up over the deck, splashing between the railings, and now drained back out into the ocean.

Of course the deck was closed. Who would want to be outside in that anyway?

Taking a staggering step forward, I started my way to the room. It might be better to sleep through all of this, anyway.

I reached into my purse and pulled out the card Christopher gave me. 311. Wherever that was.

Navigating the ship wasn’t as hard as I thought, there were signs everywhere and staff helping to direct the panicked crowd.

When I asked a crewmember where my room was located, she gave me a free drink voucher. I thanked her and headed the way she directed.

Squeezing past other people, I made my way through the hall until I reached the end. Here it was, room 311.

I pressed my ear up to the door to see if I could hear Christopher inside.

Should I knock? Would it be weird to just walk in?

I raised my first to the door, about to knock, but hesitated.

What if he was sleeping? Would it be rude to wake him up? I guessed I didn’t need to wake him up just to get in the room…

I put the keycard in the slot, and I heard the door unlatch. Opening the door slowly, I gasped at the incredible view.

He must have booked the most expensive room on this whole boat, there was no way they all looked like this!

A large, glass window took up one wall of the room, displaying the angry, grey ocean outside. It was a bit frightening, watching water shoot up the sides, hitting the window as the boat fell, and then watching the water shrink away as the boat lifted.

There was quite a bit of space in the room, and… oh, thank god.

Two beds sat on opposite sides of the room.

See? He’s not so bad, after all. I mean, this room had to be incredibly expensive, so it would make sense that he couldn’t book two rooms like this.

Maybe I was the selfish one for wanting that.

Christopher lay on one of the beds, still dressed up in his suit, eyes closed. His platinum blonde hair fell over his forehead and out onto the pillow. He lay on top of the covers.

I couldn’t help but laugh to myself. He looked… kind of cute this way.

Not romantic cute, like… a dog or a cat cute. I smiled to myself.

I shouldn’t wake him up. I didn’t know how he felt about being in a giant metal box sitting in the middle of a raging storm in the ocean, left to the mercy of the elements, but I figured he might be better off sleeping through it.

Going into the bathroom, I decided to take off my clothes. I can only stand to be in fancy attire for so long, and I did not look forward to sleeping in it.

Slipping into some comfortable pajamas, I put my wet hair up in a bun. My makeup had smeared across my face, from the ocean spray, and I washed my face.

Suddenly, I remembered my phone. I wonder… Would I even get a signal out here?

Pulling it out, I looked at it. My heart sank.

Alex had sent me message after message, right after I ran off. I quickly shut off my phone, my chest stinging with fresh grief.

I did not want to think about him right now.

I had finally begun feeling normal again, and I did not have time or space to process my feelings about him. I’d rather just put my mistakes in the past where I no longer have to look at them.

Stepping back out into the room, I went over to the window, staring out at the grey ocean. I shivered. It was honestly terrifying.

Finding a string next to the window, I pulled it, drawing curtains over the glass. I doubt I could sleep, knowing what terror was happening just once glance away. At least this way, I’d only have to hear it, not look at it.

Slipping into bed, I settled into the pillow, nice and soft.

I had been in so many different beds these last couple nights… God, would I ever get a break?

What was I going to do after I got off of this cruise ship?

Christopher had been extremely accommodating, and I’d be lying if I didn’t think I owed him something for all of his help.

After all, he did take me in when I had nowhere else to go.

I still didn’t know where I had to go.

And he took me on this wonderful, very expensive trip… Of course I owed him something.

But what could I give him? I had nothing left.