Page 61 of The Hitchhiker in Panama
“Yeah.”
“Do you want some more?”
“No, I’m okay now.”
“Do you want to stay up here or go to bed?”
I sat up further and looked around.Eiksailed along peacefully, and the moon approached the horizon. “I think I’ll stay up here with you.”
“Good. We put your headlamp over here.” He pointed to a strap dangling out of a cup holder. “And this is your water. Can I check your harness?”
I sat up and let Eivind tug the straps and check the belts.
“Looks good. Come sit in the corner here with me. You can lean back here and look forward. That will help too.”
Eivind and Jonas finished the handover, and I settled into the corner of the cockpit. I could stretch my legs out in front of me and, because the boat was slightly heeled over, I could see the horizon beyond the deck.
Jonas said good night and went down below with his stuff. Eivind came to sit next to me, where he could see the chartplotter comfortably. The smell of coffee, roasted dark, flowed over to me from his thermos.
We sat in silence for a while, our headlamps off. My eyes had adjusted to the night, and I could see surprisingly well over the boat. The moon cast sharp shadows against the deck.
I enjoyed the quiet, and Eivind did too, relaxing beside me. I let my mind wander, daydreaming a little, trying to imagine what the next few weeks would be like.
Eventually Eivind put one headphone in and music played quietly. I tilted my head back and gazed up at the stars, relaxing into the seat.
* * *
Eivind had woken me up at the end of his shift and guided me downstairs. I fell asleep quickly but had more trouble staying asleep this time. The noises of the sea and the boat kept jarring me awake.
Once, I had woken up in the pitch dark. Above me, something groaned and then stuttered, a sharp staccato noise.
“Eivind,” I whispered. I poked his side and he grunted and rolled toward me. “What’s that noise?”
He blinked a few times and listened, but all was quiet. He yawned. “I do not know. But you have to trust your crew. If there is a problem and they need us, they will wake us up.”
He slipped quickly back to sleep. I lay awake, listening to someone take steps around the cockpit and make more noises, but I must have fallen asleep again; when I rolled over next, Eivind was gone.
I tried to motivate myself to rise for breakfast. The boat rocked as we sailed along and voices came from the salon. Eivind was out there, possibly on watch again.
What finally chased me out of bed was my wicked morning breath. As lazy as I felt, I could not go another minute without remedying the situation.
Dressing quickly, I stumbled out of our room and found Jonas on his laptop and Marcella in the galley. Marcella immediately poured a thermos of coffee for me.
“Thank you.” I sipped and, finding the temperature just right, gulped in a mouthful and swished it around.
I looked up to find Jonas staring at me.
I shrugged. “Morning breath’s best cure is coffee. How are we doing?” I leaned over the table to look at his screen, where he had a chart open. I could see a little boat icon; I presumed that was where we were.
“We are doing good, sailing well so far. The wind is supposed to shift this afternoon, maybe during your watch.”
I hummed and nodded. After putting my harness on, I climbed up the companionway. Marcella kindly handed me my thermos again.
“Hey, darling,” Eivind said. He was drinking coffee too and tilted his head up for a kiss. I leaned down and pressed my lips to his, and then settled into the corner again.
The day was bright, with a few clouds on the horizon. “How is your watch?” I asked.
“Good. I have not touched the sails. I did see a few boats, though. Still plenty of activity out here.”
