On the Island

I opened my eyes and stretched. T.J. was leaning back against the headboard with the T.V. on low, eating a Slim Jim.

“That was a good nap.” I kissed him and swung my legs out of bed. “I have to pee. Do you know what I love the most about this bathroom?” I said, looking over my shoulder as I walked toward the door.

“Toilet paper?”

“Yep.”

When I got back from the bathroom, T.J. made me try a bite of his Slim Jim.

“Admit it. It’s not bad,” he said.

“It’s okay, but I’m a lot less picky than I used to be. Where did I leave those Sweet Tarts?”

I found them on the dresser. I wasn’t used to air conditioning so I wrapped my robe tighter around my body and snuggled back under the covers next to T.J.’s body. I was stiff and sore, more than I’d been when they first pulled me from the water, and I was thankful for such a soft bed.

At 10:00 p.m. I tried Sarah. It was 9:00 a.m. in Chicago, but I got a busy signal on her cell phone. “I still can’t get through,” I said. I called her home number but it just rang. “Her machine isn’t picking up either.”

“I’ll try my dad. Maybe he’s talked to her.” T.J. dialed his home number and waited. He shook his head. “Their line’s busy, too. I guess they’re both getting a lot of calls. We can try again in the morning.”

T.J. put the phone back and stroked my hair. “I don’t know how I’m going to get used to not sharing a bed with you every night.”

“Then let’s not get used to it,” I said. I propped myself up on my elbow and looked down at him. I wasn’t ready to let him go, no matter how selfish it made me feel.

He sat up. “Do you mean that?”

“Yes.” My heart pounded and my brain screamed that it was a bad idea, but I didn’t care. “We’ll be apart for a while. You need to be with your family and I do, too. But after that, if you want to come back, I’ll be waiting.”

He exhaled, a relieved expression on his face. He pulled me into his arms and kissed my forehead. “Of course I want that.”

“It won’t be easy, T.J. People won’t understand. There will be lots of questions.” A knot formed in my stomach just thinking about it. “You might want to mention you were almost nineteen before anything happened between us.”

“You think someone will ask?”

“I think everyone will ask.”

***

I woke up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. We had fallen asleep with the T.V. on and when I crawled back into bed, I picked up the remote and scrolled through the cha

I sat straight up when CNN a

I reached over and gently shook T.J.’s shoulder.

“What, what is it?” he asked, still half asleep.

“Look at the T.V.”

T.J. sat up, blinked, and stared at the screen.

I turned the volume up just in time to hear Larry King say, “I think I speak for everyone when I say there’s a story there.”

“Holy shit,” T.J. said.

Here we go.

Chapter 42 – T.J.

I woke up before A

She opened her eyes. “I smell coffee.”

I poured her a cup. She took a drink and sighed. “Oh, that’s good.”

We ate breakfast in bed and then A

“You shaved.”

She rubbed the back of her hand against my skin.

I laughed. “You told me if we were ever rescued I’d have to do it myself.”

“I didn’t really mean it.”

The phone rang at 11:00 a.m. My dad had chartered a plane and said we needed to be at the airport in one hour.

“Other than refueling, you’ll fly straight through. We’ll be waiting for you at O’Hare.”

“Dad, A

“I got through to her twice. Her line has been busy, but ours has been, too, T.J. The news spread fast. The airport made special arrangements, and they’re allowing us to be at the gate when you land, but the media will be there too. I’ll do what I can to keep them at a reasonable distance.”

“Okay. I better go so we can get to the airport.”

“I love you, T.J.”

“I love you too, Dad.”

I dressed in the T-shirt and shorts we bought in the gift shop. A

After checking out, we took the hotel shuttle to the airport. A

“You’re wired.”

“I know. I’m excited and I drank a lot of coffee.”

The shuttle slowed to a stop at the airport entrance and A

“You ready to get out of here?” I asked, taking her hand.

She smiled and said, “Absolutely.”

The flight crew – pilot, co-pilot, and one flight attendant – cheered and clapped when A

I checked out the cabin. There were seven seats; five single seats separated by a narrow aisle and two attached seats. A narrow couch stretched along the wall. I couldn’t imagine what this must have cost my dad.

“What kind of plane is this?” I asked.

“It’s a Lear 55,” the pilot said. “It’s a mid-sized jet. We’ll have to stop several times to refuel but we should be in Chicago in about eighteen hours.”

A

The flight attendant walked over to us as soon as we buckled our seat belts.

“Hi. My name is Susan. What would you like to drink? I have soft drinks, beer, wine, cocktails, bottled water, juice, and champagne.”

“Go ahead, A

“I’ll have water, champagne, and juice, please,” she said.

“Would you like me to make that a mimosa? I have fresh orange juice.”

A

“I’ll take water, beer, and a coke,” I said. “Thanks.”

“Certainly. I’ll be right back.”

We had zero tolerance for alcohol, and we got kind of hammered. A

When it got dark, Susan brought over blankets and pillows.

“Oh, good,” A

I spread the blankets over us and slipped my hands under A

“Stop that,” she said, trying to deflect my hands. “Susan is right over there.”