Part 257: One Problem After . . . .

Charlie and Seth rested under the shade of one of the many tall trees in the jungle area near the beach. The bassist leaned forward and spit out his last remnant of blood swirling in his mouth. The singer reclined against the tree with his eyes closed. The bandage on his nose pulsated with his heart beat. He slowly raised his right hand, looking at the bandage of his aching knuckles. “That guy had some hard teeth.” He whispered.

“Yeah.” Charlie said, massaging his own hands.

“You okay, broheem?” Seth asked him.

“I am. Thanks, Seth . . .for helping me out.”

“I should have jumped in sooner. I figured it was your fight but it didn’t don on me quickly that he had an advantage over you.”

“What sodding advantage?” Charlie responded, slightly insulted.

“C’mon, Charlie. The guy’s like, twice your size! There is no shame in admitting it.”

“All right, fine! I bit off more than I could chew!” the musician grunted.

The friend shared a momentary pause; allowing the wind to kick up a small amount of sand near their feet. Seth brought his foot up and scratched it. Charlie finally leaned back against the tree. “Tony chew you out?” he whispered.

“No more than he normally does,” Seth chuckled.

“He probably didn’t cause technically it was my fault.”

“Technically . . .you’re right,” the singer smiled at him.

“CHARLIE PACE!!!!” a female voice screamed in the distance.

Charlie leaned up to see Claire storming toward him. She had her fists clinched to her sides as she walked up from the distance of the beach. “Oh, Bollocks.” Charlie whispered.

“She looks mad.” Seth said, stating the obvious.

“Seth, you mind if I have a moment alone with him.” Claire said, as she finally reached them.

“Good luck, bro,” the singer patted him on the arm as he stood up and walked away.

Claire stared at Charlie with her arms crossed. She squished up her lower lip and stomped her foot rapidly on the ground near him. The musician felt it was a bit of irony that she was almost copying the movements of his stern mother, when he and Liam got in trouble. Charlie slowly raised his head and sighed. “I’m sorry, Claire.” He moaned.

“Why are you apologizing to me, Charlie?” she said, gritting her teeth, “You should be apologizing to Clay!”

“I AM NOT GOING TO APOLOGIZE TO THAT SODDING WANKER!!!” Charlie screamed.

“What the hell did he say to make you hit him?”

“He insulted me, Claire. Not only did he insult me, he insulted my heritage.”

“And that justified HITTING him?”

Charlie paused, rubbing his cheeks. “Not really but it felt bloody good.” He whispered.

“Charlie, I can’t believe you would do that! I thought you were better than that! I mean, Clay is a nice man, why-“

The musician then immediately stood up. “Clay is not a nice man, Claire,” he grunted, “He’s a bloody tosser and this whole beach knows it! Talk to Ana-Lucia, talk to Kellye, and they will verify what I am saying. The only reason Clay is being nice to you is to get closer to you.”

Claire blinked, still angry. “And exactly why would you have a problem with that, Charlie?” she hissed.

“What?” he stumbled.

“If I want to get to know Clay, that is my business. I am not some prize to be fought over.”

Charlie started to feel the blood boil in his chest. “No, you are not,” he got closer to her, “But Clay has only been on this bloody beach for a few days. I’ve been with you since the beginning, Claire, and everything with Ethan, your memory loss and rescuing Aaron, I would have thought I proved myself.”

“Charlie, you-“

“And all it takes for tall, dark and bloody handsome to get in your good graces, is a comment about your LEGS!!”

“Charlie!” the blonde woman gasped.

The musician then turned and stormed off down the beach; smashing a nearby branch sticking out from a tree. Claire sighed, feeling slightly hurt from his comments. However, he did prove himself. She wanted to tell him but she thought she should leave him alone for a while. She liked Charlie; even adored how he looked after her and Aaron. But after her last breakup, was she ready to get into another relationship?

Did her hesitation cost her Charlie?



Down by the beach, Jilly rested and watched the waves caress the beachline. The cool wind caressed her arm, making her hug herself for warmth. She then saw something out of the corner of her eye as Barbara sat down next to her. “How are you doing?” the older woman said, making sure her deaf friend could see her lips.

“I’m fine,” she smiled, “Just enjoying the sights.”

“I understand,” the redheaded woman smiled.

“I was just thinking of Tony. He can hear but he can’t see. I can see but I can’t hear. I don’t know which one of us is better off.”

“It doesn’t matter what you can see or hear, Jilly. It’s what inside that counts.”

“I know that, Barbara.”

“I wanted to thank you,” she said, facing her, “You have easily bonded with my son. He likes you a lot.”

“Eddie is adorable,” Jilly giggled, “I think he noticed that you and I bonded, so that is why he took up with me.”

“Eddie is an only child. He always wanted a brother or a sister. It does my heart good to see he had chosen you.”

Jilly smiled. The fact that Eddie looked to her as a sister, made her feel warm in her heart. It had indeed been a long time she was “ a sister”. “Have you told him . . .about what happened to my sister?” she whispered.

“Only if you want him to know such a thing.” Barbara sighed.

“I don’t want him to know. He’s too young, too innocent.”

“Thanks to this Island, my son has seen more than he should have every seen,” the older woman wisped, “But he’s come through it with a brave heart and a kind smile. Don’t ever doubt my son’s strength, Jilly. Something tells me he can handle more than we think.”

Then Eddie came up and sat between them. Barbara reached over and put her arm around her son, kissing him on the top of the head. The little boy looked up at Jilly and smiled. “What you ladies talking about?” he grinned.

“Ladies?” Jilly giggled.

“Tony had rubbed off well on my son,” Barbara smiled.

“We aren’t talking about anything in particular, Eddie. Just . . .stuff.” the deaf girl smiled.

“Mom, can Jilly come and live with us when we get back home?” the little boy said, still looking at the deaf woman so she could read his lips.

“Eddie, I am sure Jilly would want to live in her own place.” The older woman replied.

“But she needs a family mommy. Jilly really shouldn’t live by herself.” The little boy said, finally facing his mother.

“Why do you think she needs a family?” Barbara said, making sure Jilly could read her lips.

Eddie shrugged his shoulders. “I just know.” He whispered.

Jilly was almost moved to tears. Eddie had not been told about her past and the past of her sister but yet he could tell she was missing something in her life. He was very intuitive. Jilly then leaned up and spotted someone out in the ocean. When she squinted her eyes, she was able to tell it was Karleigh. She was out there doing the back stroke, having the sunlight flicker off her sunglasses. “Karleigh seems to be enjoying the beach a lot.” The deaf girl mentioned.

Barbara tapped her on the shoulder so she could read her lips. “For a New Yorker, she really must like the water.” The older woman mused.

Jilly giggled and then looked back, only to spot an odd shape emerging from the water about 15 feet from Karleigh. The deaf girl looked again and to her horror, realized it was a shark fin. “Oh, My God,” she gulped.

“Jilly, what-“ Barbara tried to ask.

“KARLEIGH!!!!” Jilly abruptly jumped up and ran toward the water, “GET OUT OF THE WATER!!! KARLEIGH!!!!!”