Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction 4-7 2019 | Page 230

“I…” She started. “I…uh…want to go where you go,” she finished lamely.
“That’s fair; this is, after all, a foreign land. Stay in groups, everyone!” Tian Jie nodded. “Heng Qi, you
want anything?”
The muscular man next to Guo Yang shook his head.
“Good! For now, meeting ends here. Good night!”
Everyone then evacuated the dining room, in favour of conversing, smoking, and gambling up on the
deck. Ruo Qing followed, but felt hands on her shoulders. The twins grinned at her.
“Hello, I never introduced myself, I’m Ye Nan,” the taller boy started.
“I’m You Peng, you’re new?” the other boy inquired.
“Uh, yes, this is my first. I’m not too sure how this works.” Her voice grew smaller the minute. “I
forgot! I’m–”
“We know that,” Ye Nan patted her, leading her deeper into the corridor.
“And we are going to show you all the fun things, all the hiding places here,” You Peng grinned.
*
Weeks passed in bliss never experienced. You Peng and Ye Nan were great friends and together they
explored everywhere. They lay underneath the stars, singing songs, learning knots and foreign languages. In
the faint illumination of the stars, she swam in a state of unprecedented warmth.
She also got to know the crew. The banter between Yi Ping and Tian Jie; the intense herbal smell Guo
Yang has; Yu Fen’s animated tales and stories; Heng Qi’s strong silent presence; Lei Ning’s wickedly sharp
wit. These details grew on her; she clung onto the familiarity and the newfound belonging.
Thinking of her parents, something wistful grew in her. Her omnipresent frustration gave way to a
watery sadness that sloshed around in her. Thinking of her aunt who despised her and her parents, her heart
hardened at once.
Nothing stopped the liquid melancholy from spilling out her eyes, sliding down, cold against her skin,
colder in the wind.
“Homesick?”
She turned around, wiping her tears. Boys don’t cry.
It was Yu Fen, looking concerned. “It’s normal, for your first voyage. There’s no shame in that.”
He joined her against the sides of the ship, in the biting wind. “When I first sailed, I cried every night,
thinking of my family. It took me too long to realize, while carried away by loss, I didn’t notice my gain. I
left my family; I have also gained another…”
“I don’t come from a happy family,” Rui Qing admitted.
Yu Fen put an arm around her, “Sorry you didn’t have a childhood you deserved, but forget about that
life. You have a new life, a new family, us!”
Rui Qing wiped the last of her tears and nodded.
“The past can no longer hurt you; we are men of the present time.”
Rui Qing glanced at Yu Fen gratefully, “Let’s go back in, the wind is rising.”
True enough, the sea rumbled; waves crashed into each other, growing restless. They fought, and bled,
dotting the black night with white.
*
Morning, an uneasy air penetrated the atmosphere.
“Fix those sails,” Tian Jie barked at the crew.
“Quit the paranoia, Jie, let them breathe,” Yi Ping yawned.
“No,” Tian Jie hissed, “It’s getting cold; don’t you see those clouds? Get to work, Captain , secure the
office and man the wheel.”
Finally realizing the severity of the current state, Yi Ping complied immediately. Soon, the crew members
were running around the deck, trying to be in several places at once.
Time moved slowly, everyone was cotton-limbed, in slow motion; but time moved quickly, the angry
clouds sped towards them, full force, top acceleration. It was surreal, horrendous; their reality.
*
Bullet-like raindrops came with the storm. It fell from the grey, darkening skies, onto the ship, the
floorboards, making loud resounding echoes. The wind pushed them around; toying lazily. The waves were
hungry for destruction, shoving the Ming Yan back, forth; silver blood spilling.
Soaked inside out, Rui Qing couldn’t see properly in this storm. She could only hear the shrieking wind,
and distorted barking from Tian Jie. Fear and anxiety gnawed on her.