Character #003 ~ Kevin Morgan. 43. Lawyer. Fisherman.
“That? That’s Port, ummm, Port Piratestan… you need to get there in an invisible pirate ship made from magic” Kevin said.
He pointing to the hazy island just past the reef.
The water was dark and looked deep.
This was followed but the almost inevitable barrage of questions.
A trait that reminded Kevin of the boy’s mother.
“Dad, where does the magical boat leave from? And what’s it made of? And how many elephants could visit the island at a time? Is there a school there? Or a cake factory? Is it Sunday there too? Or is is another day already there?”
The kid was so much like his mum.
His bare foot fell onto something cold and slippery. He stopped. Some kind of blue and green plastic disc. It looked like it had traveled halfway around the world.
His arm still hurt. He’d pulled something moving furniture around the lounge room the previous night while making houses with blankets and makeshift things from all four corners of the Airbnb.
“Here. Can you carry this for me buddy? Just until that sand dune.”
The boy pause for a split second before racing to the edge of the water and throwing the driftwood into the water. Walking back satisfied, he took the tackle box with a sense of duty.
Kevin was surprised he did that. The boy had spent ages scratching his initials, BM, into the smooth wood.
“Can we eat lunch on the island tomorrow night? I want pasta again. But not with sand in it like last night. OK Dad?” said the boy.
He should have washed the sand of the wooden spoon before preparing with clams and chilli. The sand really overshadowed the considerable nailed-it-ness of the dish.
The sun had sunk in the sky and the camp was at least a brisk half hour walk along the beach. It had been a good day. No fish but then again, once you catch real fish you need to worry about preparing it. Something Kevin, as a queasy omnivore didn’t particularly look forward to doing in front of his son. He liked his meat to arrive on the plate, abstract from the life it once led.
They walked on holding each others warm hand. Kevin was happy with his place in the world. But he wondered what it would take to believe in the existence of invisible pirate ships.
Perhaps 150 milligrams more a day.
