Rei’s been telling me about the island. It’s original inhabitants supposedly left because their fishing boats weren’t coming back. And like the superstitious seafaring folk that they were, they thought that it was a sign that the island didn’t want them staying here anymore. Well, it’s either that or there was some kind of sea monster or something.
Who knows, really.
Not much else happened.
Though it seems like Rei has taken a liking to drinking. I need to teach him moderation before he drowns himself in everything we have.
Day 15
Rei gets very chatty when he drinks. He actually started talking about how to get to the other side of the island through the cave despite his insistence that I never step in there whenever he's sober. It’s pretty simple. Apparently, I just need to navigate northwards, just keep going north. He also added that I must, “ABSOLUTELY must”, as per his words, make sure that I can’t hear anything when going through the cave. And also to stay “as far away from any puddles or pools of water as possible”.
He didn’t explain why though. He just… fell asleep on me. I wonder if he’ll remember what he said tomorrow morning.
He also gets very touchy when drunk. Hands all over the place. I guess he’s the reason for the weird dream. That might’ve actually been him.
Not that I mind.
Those bits of advice he gives about the caves, they’re rather unusual, aren’t they?
Come to think of it I wanted to ask him about the compass. I’ll need it once the winds work in our favour and we get to leave. He’s agreeable to everything when drunk but it doesn’t feel right to ask him for it when he’s like that. Maybe in the day.
Day 17
Nothing much happened yesterday so, no entry.
We’re just sitting around and waiting for the winds to change now. Food isn’t an issue with Rei’s fishing prowess and the chicken producing eggs for us. I tried asking Rei for tips on spearing fish better. He wasn’t very helpful. He said the fish just happen to turn up for him whenever he needs them.
It sounds ridiculous but there might be some truth to that. I’ve watched him fish. There’s nothing special to his spear throwing and sometimes it doesn’t even land right. But whenever he pulls the stick back in, there’s a fish right there at the end. This man’s got some kind of crazy luck. There’s no other explanation for it.
Rei seemed rather grumpy today though. I think he’s finally experiencing a hangover. He actually declined the rum after dinner. I’ll ask about the compass tomorrow or when he’s in a better mood.
Actually, there was something yesterday. I woke up before daybreak for once and Rei looked like he was leaving. I think him separating himself from me was what woke me up. He didn’t look like he expected to wake me. Rei didn’t say where he was going but he said he’d return soon. I simply went back to sleep.
The next time I woke up he was at the hearth tending to the pot, as usual. It makes me wonder if he’s been heading out every morning. But where is there to go? The cave? That’s the only place I can think of.
There’s another odd thing I noticed though. Rei always wears the same clothes. I don’t know how it never occurred to me earlier. I’ve never seen him take a bath either, or go into the water. He still smells nice
Such a curious man.
4
Sho and Rei were seated on the walkway outside the house again, listening to the waves and watching the stars slowly appear as they sipped on seafood stew. It has barely been a week since Rei decided to stay, but Sho has already settled into this new normal of having someone else around. It was better than being alone after all.
So far, Rei has asked him about a lot of things. He seemed excited about the prospect of leaving, and judging by how curious he was about what things were like in the rest of the world, away from this island, Sho guessed that Rei has probably lived his entire life here. He never did ask though. He decided that as long as Rei didn’t ask about his past, Sho wouldn’t ask about Rei’s either.
Rei held his bowl of stew in his hands with a relaxed expression on his face as he listened to the crashing of the waves. Bringing the bowl to his lips, Rei glanced over at Sho and caught him staring. He raised an eyebrow, amused. What?
Sho hastily looked away, not realising that he had been watching Rei for a tad too long. Mutely, he shook his head and drank his own stew, munching on the shellfish that came with it.
“You’ve been preoccupied, these couple of days,” Rei commented.
“No, I’m not,” Sho muttered. He avoided Rei’s eyes, staring at the undulating waves below them instead. He didn’t quite know how to ask about the compass yet.
“What is it?” Rei probed, turning to face Sho as his robes rustled softly.
Sho glanced at him for a moment. “It’s nothing.”
“So there’s something then,” Rei confirmed. Sho could hear a smile in his voice. There was another rustle as he felt Rei come close. Peering at Sho up close, Rei said, “You want something.”
“Huh?” Sho looked at Rei, hiding his surprise under impassiveness.
Rei put his bowl down. Tracing Sho’s jaw with chilly fingers, Rei looked into Sho’s eyes, as if peering into his consciousness. As Rei smiled, Sho felt his heart skip a beat. He was beginning to struggle with keeping a straight face.
“I know what you want,” Rei whispered as he grinned, inching closer.
“What?” Sho asked, feigning ignorance as he pulled back.
Rei cupped Sho’s face, stopping his retreat. “That compass… and…”
“And?” Sho raised his brows, partly startled by Rei’s guess, partly perplexed by the idea that there was something else. What else was there?
Rei suddenly widened his eyes in surprise and blinked, as if snapping out of a trance. His hand left Sho’s face as he retreated. Picking up his bowl, Rei stood up and walked back into the house without a word.
Sho remained seated on the walkway, startled by Rei’s abrupt departure as he quietly finished the rest of his stew on his own. The whole event was weird, unnerving to say the least. He supposed that Rei could’ve guessed that he wanted the compass since that was what Sho eyed every time he went into the cave. But aside from that…
Just as Sho’s bowl went dry, he heard Rei’s footsteps exiting the house. Fingers tapped on Sho’s shoulder. Looking up, Rei standing behind him with an open palm, wordlessly asking to take the bowl from him. Sho stared at him for a moment, trying to make sense of the strange expression that Rei had on his face
