Page 48 of Hate Wrecked

“You gonna go chase him again?” I ask.

“No. You were right. I need to let him come to me,” Riley says as she sits down, watching me start a fire and set up a makeshift grill.

The smell of the fish cooking brings the cat closer. Riley doesn’t notice, and I don’t mention it as I see her pull out her mother’s manuscript.

* * *

After lunch, Riley and I pull mattresses out of the Hilton. It’s filthy, and just as I thought, spiders are everywhere. Riley is disgusted and terrified and grabs my arm more than once as she shrieks.

I enjoy it.

It appears Gerald didn’t care for this structure when he lived here. I read he lived wild, often going days without clothing. Becoming an animal. Howling into the sky. I wonder if I would become him if I spent enough time out here.

Would Riley let herself become wild with me? I look over at her as she eyes the mattress we just dropped on the ground. She observes it with disgust.Maybe not.But that’s okay. That’s just who she is.

I smile as she wipes her hands on her shorts, then brings them up to her face with disgust.“You okay over there?” I ask.

She looks at me. “I’m disgusting. I feel disgusting. I need a shower. I smell. IsmellRowan.”

I think she looks beautiful. Her hair, ordinarily straight, is wild and curly. The red is visible in the sun. Her skin is tan, and her face is flushed from the workout.

“Take a bath then,” I offer, walking toward the Hilton.

She follows. “Where?”

I glance at the lagoon. “The ocean.”

“My skin will just feel like salt when I’m done.”

“You have something in your suitcase to clean yourself with?” I ask as I enter the Hilton, eyeing another mattress.

“Yeah. But I wanted to save it.”

“For?”

“I don’t know.”

“I don’t know how long we will be here, Riley. Rescue could show up any day, or it could be weeks. I don’t know. Without a way to radio home, we are at the mercy of whenever your parents get clued into you being gone. How long did you say you would be here with me?”

“Weeks?” she whispers, before looking at me. “What about your mother?”

I turn to Riley, hand on my hips, avoiding her question. “We should be done here soon.” My skin feels warm from the sun, and I need to put a shirt on, but Riley’s eyes move over me, greedy, and a part of me likes how that feels. “We can catch dinner, and you can take a bath in the lagoon. Be modest with the soap. Clean...” I hesitate. “The important parts. You’ll feel better.”

Riley nods. “I will tonight. No use doing it now if we’re just going to get filthy again.” She looks down at her dirty shorts.

We get back to work, pulling all of the mattresses out. There is a broom in the building, and Riley grabs it and then walks on the beds, cleaning them off. I hear her yell and jump around, dodging spiders as she goes. She glares at me each time as if I sent them after her.

While she’s busy with her task, I go through the supplies left by Gerald again. I find plenty of useful items: a Swiss Army knife, rope, buckets, and a tarp. And more soap, which will make Riley very happy.

Riley takes off into the woods once, screaming, and I see a giant rat run off in the other direction.

Her hands are in her hair when she walks back, and she is mumbling to herself.

I can’t imagine being here without her.

She always livened a space up, always kept me entertained.

I shake my head and get back to work.

---