Meanwhile, I’ve got to add that Phelon pampered us daily. He brought us treats, like chocolate cookies and chocolate dipped strawberries, and he made sure that we had all the sparkling water we wanted. The last item was such a simple thing, but nothing tasted better after time in the sun and having warn out muscles from the gym or the pool than an icy sparkling water.
Phelon also brought us fresh towels and changed our sheets every day. And he took away our dirty laundry and brought us clean robes, jeans, and etc. If we weren’t in the suite, he even hung the things up or put them in our drawers.
I wanted to know more about such a kind and hard-working guy, but Phelon said that he wasn’t allowed to talk to us about his life, not even where he was from. He wouldn’t tell us if he had a wife or children, or even about his brothers and sisters, if he had any. I thought it was a strange rule that would force someone to remain silent about their personal life, but I guess the ship had its reasons.
***
French lessons, swimming, playing shuffleboard, which isn’t only for old people as Bob had told us, dancing lessons, big shows in the auditorium . . . A week quickly passed.
We were by that time somewhere in the middle of the ocean, no land on the horizon in any direction. Kind of scary if you think about the Titanic, however, there were definitely no icebergs around, so I figured we were probably safe from collisions like that one.
Sometimes, Daniel and Ben spent time with us in our suite. We played a couple of board games and some activities with cards. Other times, it was only the werewolves. There was some kind of rotation going on. I never understood the pattern. Maybe there wasn’t one, and they just scheduled guard duty among the four of them.
One time we all got together in the suite and watched a movie. It was a comedy, so the fun part was everyone laughing at different things. The delay in getting the joke would start us all cracking up again. Especially Bob. He was always great fun, although I sometimes thought that Timothy didn’t appreciate him.
But, in spite of the spat Timothy and I had engaged in over my desire for freedom, I was always guarded. Overly guarded, if you asked me. Until, the day when it wasn’t enough.