Ashamed

It all begins in a boat. Uncle Sam and Aunt Jean were quite wealthy and as every rich person, they adhered to the unspoken rule that every rich person had to have a boat stored in their garage and it is with that boat that they, cousin Claud and Alicia herself decided to cruise the seas. It was summer, the water sparkled so bright, it hurt their eyes. Birds flew in the windless air, the sky was so blue and cloudless that no-one thought it would ever change. Out of the two of them, not a single person dared to check the weather, the temperature or pressure. It was hot, and that's all they thought they needed to know.

But then clouds gathered.

But then the temperature dropped.

But then the rain started falling;

Soft drizzle at first,

Fat heavy droplets at last,

But then they were stuck in the storm.

The waves cascaded and the wind, the wind was terrific, tossing their little boat to and fro endlessly. The worst part, Alicia found, was the darkness. Where there was light and brightness and heat minutes prior, there was darkness and more darkness. And then the inevitable happen.

The boat wrecked.

And Alicia couldn't swim to save her life. So she held on to a piece of plank as if it was her life line, and it was indeed, and she hoped and prayed that her life jacket wouldn't deflate, what with all the debris. Blackness gathered at the corner of her eyes and she welcomed it, as passed out, half submerged in the ocean and she never saw her cousin again. She hated thinking about it and she hated having to relive the pain.

"But you knew that already." Alicia said as she broke a piece of her syrup-drenched waffle.

"I never heard the full story. You never told me." Lucian said quietly.

"I know, I'm sorry. It's just that...it was all so scary and endless, you know. We were floating there for hours. I meant to tell you eventually. Just not so soon."

Lucian smiled sadly. "I know. Carry on."

"And when I wake up. I'm still still holding onto this little piece of wood; I was hanging onto it really and the first thing I notice is that I've lost a shoe. I miss those boots. The next thing I notice is that I'm still in the water but there's an island in less than a kilometer away and the last thing I notice is that, my goodness, finally the storm has passed."

"And where was Claud?"

"I don't know, Lucian. I couldn't see him and I couldn't bring myself to actually care because that's what people do when they're in trouble. They try to get themselves out first. I had to get out of that water and I had to keep moving, so I did. "

"Always so mature and capable," Lucian admired. Alicia was a little taken back as she thought that he would call her out and even hate her for being selfish and uncaring at the time. What she had done still made her feel fiercely ashamed and regretful.
"But how does that relate to why you're sneaking out? Are you getting secret swim lessons every morning or is it theatre practice? I mean that could be the only valid reason,"

Alicia gave him an annoyed look for interrupting her.

"Okay," Rocky said as he lifted up his hands in defense "Carry on, carry on." and muttered "women."

"So yeah. I get to the island and there's an English man, fishing with his pants folded to his calves. He looks at me, with his jaw down, but I still don't know if that was because I looked like something the cat dragged in, what with my ripped clothes or because you know, a shipwreck victim."

"Why an Englishman? Are you making this up? Didn't you tell the doctor you don't know what happened after the storm?"

"I had to. You'll see why."

"But---"

"---if you want me to tell this story you'll need to shut the hell up." Alicia said flatly.

Rocky pretended to lock his lips and threw away the imaginary key.

"So this English guy, an old man really, rushes to me and asks me if I was okay, which I obviously wasn't but bless him for asking. He gives me a some water, checks for any cuts and bruises on my arms and legs and he offers to take me to a place of rest."

"And you went with him?! He could have been a serial killer! Geez Alicia."

Rocky protested. Alicia raised her eyebrows in warning and Rocky quickly whispered "Sorry, sorry."

"Obviously I went with him. I was exhausted and I needed to get to a phone so I could get 911 to find Claud. We walked through these trees, which I did in a sore and tired stupor, and he led me to his home, a little house by the forest, which had no weapons of mass destruction and sacrilege by the way, but instead his nice wife whom I thought sounded quite Australian. Her name was Margret and she took one look at me and ushered me to bed, which was super kind of her." Alicia said gently, a look of reverence on her face as she glanced through the window for a few minutes.

"And then what happened?" Lucian asked, breaking her pondering after a short while.

"And then, I'm woken up by a pair of hands. That still ticks me very much, even today by the way. Anyway, I see Margret and her English husband and the King's Royal Advisor,"

"He tells me I'm their new queen."

~~~~

I hope that answers any questions.
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