Tom stared at the sky, his heart
beating hard. He could suddenly sense…something. He felt like he could drown in
the air, even though it also made him feel somewhat in control. He hoped he
wasn’t getting ill again. He walked over to the side of the ship and looked
down into the water. It was calming, somehow.
He wondered if the water felt like the air did now. It was so damp, and
yet he wasn’t wet. There must be water in the air…it dawned on him then. It was
going to rain. He looked up, and as if on cue, a downpour started. His
classmates on the deck groaned, and started heading under, their break for
fresh air interrupted.
Tom didn’t mind the rain, though. He had
before, when Nathan had cruelly left him out as a prank, but now it was
different. It was peaceful, and it made him feel strong, for some reason. He
wondered briefly if he could catch the raindrops and throw them like a bucket of
water.
“Tom, what are you standing there for? It’s
pouring, let’s go!” One of his classmates pulled him away from the edge of the
ship, and he broke out of his daydream.
He followed the others below deck, and he
watched while those who had gotten caught in the rain attempted to dry off.
They had taken some of the dampness in the air with them, and Tom noted how the
wooden planks of the ship absorbed the excess water. That was probably bad for
the wood, Tom figured.
“Don’t you want to dry off?” someone asked. Tom didn’t really want to,
but agreed anyway, running his hands through his hair to shake off some of the
water. He had never noticed before how nice rain was.
“Cruddy weather,” someone said. Tom frowned.
“I hope it lets up before the
holiday,” someone else said next to him.
“Holiday? As in, days off?” Tom perked up
when the speaker nodded. He hadn’t realized it was near the Ship Lord’s holiday
again. He couldn’t wait for the festivities. There would undoubtedly be food,
and often they met up with other of Ruthen’s ships to exchange goods. He could
meet new people, maybe explore another ship, and best of all, not have to worry
about class for three days. Once he got through this one, he could eat and then
have time to himself, and hopefully plan with Nathan what to do to celebrate. Nathan
had been strange lately, but surely he would have time over the break to spend
with Tom. Tom spent most of the lesson that afternoon pondering what he could
do over the break from classes.
***
Once
classes were over that evening, Tom’s stomach growling with hunger, the
navigator pulled Tom aside. Tom jumped in surprise. Was he being punished for
something?
It turned out that was far from the case.
“Tom, I heard you were ill from a friend of the captain.”
Tom tilted his head. He didn’t know anyone
that was at all close to the captain, and he had no parents on the ship that
would have such connections. It was true, though, so he simply nodded.
“Well, if you ever need to take time off,
that’s fine.” The navigator looked as if she was sharing some secret with him. Was
she telling him that he could cut class…whenever he wanted? He tried to
suppress a grin.
“Uh, sure.” He replied, and quickly ran out
after the rest of the class. That had been odd, but he figured the teacher was
just worried about his health. How sick had he been, anyway? He didn’t know,
but he was happy with all the benefits it had given him.
Tom headed to the
mess hall next, sitting alone at a table and enjoying his meal. He started when
he saw the same strange man he had run into earlier that morning in the hall,
sitting at one of the head tables. As if sensing Tom’s attention, the stranger put
his head up and stared back at him, his eyes glittering. Tom’s heart jumped. He
remembered his conversation with the man, suddenly. The guy’s name was
Archibald, and he wanted Tom to tell Nathan about clash, or something. Tom
figured he would, just to get an explanation of some sort for all the odd
events of the day. Assuming, of course, that Nathan knew anything. Tom frowned.
He couldn’t decide yet if today had been good or bad.
He should
probably go find Nathan. Where he would be, Tom had no idea.
As he
headed down the hall, he could hear the drumming of the rain against the ship.
He stopped, cocking his head. Had he always been able to hear that when it
rained?
He headed
down the hallway, his skin buzzing with a strange sensation, like the feeling
he got before a storm but…deeper. More obvious. He stopped by the door to the deck,
staring at the wood. He could hear the rain pounding outside.
This was
stupid, he knew. But he pushed open the door anyway.
The rain hit him with force, soaking him in
seconds, but Tom didn’t. He felt invigorated by it, and dashed to the edge of
the deck, looking over the water. The spray of the ocean mixed with the rain
from the sky, and he realized that they were different. He grinned into the
storm, his face and hair already soaked. He felt powerful, out in the heavy
rain like this. He wondered if anyone else felt the same way.
He jumped when the door to the inside
of the ship banged open. Tom peered through the rain as a figure walked to the
edge of the ship, looking out over the water into the rain. Tom almost called
out, but then closed his mouth. It was Nathan.
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