Page 14 of Escape To Paradise
“Make yourself at home,” Paul said.
“We’re all family here,” Zofia said as she pulled a chair. She invited me to sit next to her.
I already felt welcomed by the crew. They looked like a really close bunch.
“Hope you like our simple meal. It’s fried fish and beef soup. It’s a simple Filipino meal.” Kathleen beamed. She seemed proud of her dish.
I’d never had Filipino food before. My mom was Moroccan French, living in Chicago, and Benoit was French. So, I was most exposed to American food, Moroccan food, and French food. I had tried other Asian dishes before but stayed with the Thai, Chinese, Japanese, and Vietnamese.
I sat down, and we proceeded to pray. Zofia and Kathleen held my hand—Zofia held my left hand, and Kathleen held the other. Captain Yousef led the prayer, which surprised me. I thought he was an Arab.
Zofia probably saw my questioning eyes, and so she mentioned, “Captain Yousef is Palestinian, but his parents were Moslem and Christian. But he’s a practicing Moslem, but he knows Christian prayers.”
“Right,” I said. I didn’t pretend to know anything about that region. All I know was that three major religions came from there.
“We always pray during meals. I’m Catholic, and so is Kathleen.” Zofia was still holding my hand after our prayer. “Oh, I’m sorry.” Then she let go of my hand.
“Let’s all eat!” Captain Yousef said then.
Zofia handed me a plate of fried fish; I chose the fish’s tail. She gave me a soup bowl for my beef soup. I could taste fish paste and some ginger in it. Although I wasn’t accustomed to the flavor combination, it tasted good. And so was the fried fish with the lemon-lime soy sauce.
“This is very good,” I commented.
“Thank you!” Kathleen said.
“Thank you, Kathleen,” the captain said.
Since I was a newbie, they asked a lot of questions about where I came from and then told me where they came from. Then we talked about the upcoming days with our 12 guests for seven days. It was a very casual talk.
After lunch, some had coffee, and some had tea. Then it was back to being idle again, which I wasn’t used to. The girls and I went to the upper deck to check out the view. We brought iced sodas and sipped them as we watched the ocean view around us.
“This is just amazing,” I told them.
“Yes, this is our view all the time, and I can’t get used to it. We’re so lucky,” Zofia said. She had her hand on her chin as she rested her arm on the side of the boat.
Kathleen chimed in, “This is just the best! I’m excited about our new round of guests!”
“When do I review the menu your colleague prepared?” I asked. I wasn’t used to working on someone else’s menu. It had always been my menu and my ideas that got implemented. It was hard for me to lean back and just allow things to happen.
“You can review it tonight. I’ll show you. For now, let’s enjoy this wonderful moment,” Kathleen said.
The two girls enjoyed the sunlight and their sparkly drinks. I tried to sit there, uncrossing my legs. Whatever this relaxing thing was that they were doing, I had to learn how to do it. I looked at the view of the ocean, the island, and the other boats on the marina; it was a lot to take in. Then I closed my eyes and just listened to the sound of the waves. I felt the warmth of the sun as it hit my face. I just listened to my breathing.
The girls started chatting about their celebrity crushes and other trivial things. It was hard to relate to them. Although they were only a few years younger than I was, it was hard to talk about boys. By the time I was twenty, I was already in a serious relationship with the same guy. Thinking about Benoit sent waves of anxiety and sadness into the pit of my stomach.
When I opened my eyes, the two girls were staring at me.
“I don’t think you heard our question,” Zofia said.
“What was your question?” I asked. I completely zoned out.
“What’s your type of guy?” Kathleen asked in a teasing manner.
“Well, I was with him for eight years. I guess the typical tall, dark, and handsome type.”
Zofia sat next to me and probed, “What happened to your guy?”
“I don’t really like to talk about it. Our relationship just ended.”
