“I’m thirty years old, and I clean people’s houses.”
“There’s no shame in that.” Andrew shrugged. “You look younger by the way.”
Julie looked at Andrew with a stiff and artificial smile.
“How about you, Jack?”
“I’m forty-two, and I’m currently unemployed,” Jack said. “But I used to drive a truck.”
“I thought all truck drivers were fat and out of shape. I figured you for a bouncer or something,” Andrew said. “How about you, Nancy? What you do for a living?”
“I do some modeling,” Nancy mumbled, and bowed her head.
“I bet you do,” Andrew said.
Nancy looked suspiciously at Andrew. “What do you mean by that?”
“I mean, you look hot,” Andrew responded. “Hot enough to be a model.”
Jack looked at Andrew as if annoyed.
“What?” Andrew mumbled and looked at Jack. “It’s a compliment.”
“Do you remember how old you are, Nancy?” Jack asked.
Nancy took her time before answering. “I’m not sure…”
“You look no more than twenty-five,” Jack said. “Were you born in ninety-two perhaps? Does that sound right?”
“I was born the same year as Nelson Mandela,” Nancy blurted out.
Andrew chuckled. “That makes sense.”
“She means the election,” Julie said in a ridiculing tone.
“Oh, yeah,” Andrew mumbled. “When was that? Mid-nineties? Ninety-five?”
“Ninety-four,” Nancy quickly responded. “Ninety-four was a good year, I’ve been told.”
“Do you remember when your birthday is?” Jack asked. “Is it summer or winter?”
“It’s Christmas,” Nancy said. “I always got fewer presents on my birthday.”
“Well, there you go, you’re twenty-two years old then,” Jack said. “Do you remember my name?”
“You’re Jack.” Nancy hesitated.
“And do you remember seeing me boarding the plane?”
“What plane?” Nancy looked confused.
Jack explain in details to Nancy about the accident, and then the group didn’t speak much after that. Nancy slept on and off.
Afternoon
“Where are they?” Julie asked without addressing anyone in particular. “It’s been hours.”
Jack suddenly twitched. “Wait a minute, didn’t you have a phone, Andrew?”
“Oh, yeah.” Andrew took his phone out of his front pants pocket. “I forgot to tell you guys. I turned the phone on this morning, and it started up just fine. But when I tried to get a signal, the screen suddenly turned all blue, and shortly after that, it turned black, and I couldn’t get it going.”
Julie rose to her feet, and slowly limped away from the group; seemingly in pain.
“Where are you going, Julie?” Jack asked.
“I have to go to the ladies’ room.”
Jake stood up. “I’ll carry you, Julie. You shouldn’t walk on your ankle.”
“No, I’m fine,” Julie said. “Just stay there, please.”
“I won’t look, Julie. I just want to help you.”
“No, just stay there, please,” Julie said once more. “I do not want you to see what I’m about to do.”
“It’s nothing to be embarrassed about,” Jack said, and took a step closer to Julie.
“I said no!” Julie yelled.
“Okay.” Jack put his palms up in the air.
Just then, Nancy woke up. “Is she leaving?”
“No, she has to… pee,” Jack hesitated.
“So, what’s your name?” Nancy looked at Andrew.
Andrew didn’t answer either; instead, he tilted his head and looked at Jack.
“His name is Andrew, and I’m Jack.”
Eventually, Julie emerged from the nearby bushes, and limped slowly, as she made her way back under the sloping tree. She glanced at Jack, but when their eyes met, she quickly trained her eyes toward the ground.
“Any sign of the cavalry?” Julie asked and looked at Jack’s chest.
“No, I’m afraid not.”
“You’re sure there was a transmitter on the plane?” Julie asked.
“Yes, I’m sure of it,” Jack responded.
“Can it transmit through water? I mean, the plane is at the bottom of the lake.”
“They would have thought of that,” Jack said. “Don’t worry, Julie. They’ll come for us sooner or later.”
Jack stood up and began pacing randomly toward the lake. Andrew shook his head a few times, then he walked the short distance to the lakeside, and joined Jack down by the water.
Julie squinted and focused on the two men standing by the lakeside.
“Do you have a headache or something? Is that why we’re just sitting here?”
“I lost my contacts,” Julie answered hesitantly.
“So, are you going to fuck those guys or what?” Nancy asked casually.
“Excuse me?” Julie looked astonished.
“The tall one is kind of hot. I like a man with muscles. But the short one is cuter,” Nancy said. “Wouldn’t it be great if you could put the little guy’s face on the big guy’s body. You know what I’m saying?” Nancy smiled, and winked at Julie.
“I’m not going to have sex with either of them.”
Nancy smiled and brushed up against Julie. “Yeah, me neither.”
Then Julie squinted again. “Are they fighting?”
Nancy looked at the men by the lakeside. “The big guy is grabbing the little one by the neck. But I think they’re just playing around. Guys do that all the time,” Nancy said. “Guys are weird that way.”
Julie kept squinting.
“So, do you want to get out of here or what?”
“Of course, I…” Julie trailed off, and then looked cautiously at Nancy. “Do you know where you are, Nancy?”
Nancy face plummeted; suddenly she looked furious. “What did you call me?”
“I thought your name was Nancy?”
“Who told you that?” Nancy yelled.
“Jack called you Nancy.” Julie sounded startled.
“He told you my real name?” Nancy muttered, and looked toward the lake. “He shouldn’t have done that.”
“Do you know where you are right now?”
Nancy looked confused and blinked a few times before answering. “No, where are we?”
“The plane crashed in the lake, and we’re waiting for help.”
“What plane?”
Julie took her time and explained what had happened. Nancy seemed confused by all the information, and eventually she fell asleep. Shortly after that, Andrew joined them.
Julie squinted toward the lake. “What happened to Jack?”
“He got pissed off, and said he’d walk home.”
“What?” Julie looked terrified. “What happened between you two?”
Andrew’s face shifted. Now, he looked surprised. “I was just kidding, Julie.”
“So, where is he?”
“He thought he saw some movement on the other side of the lake,” Andrew claimed. “So he went there to check it out.”
“But the sun is about to set. It’ll be dark soon.”
“That’s exactly what I said, but he wouldn’t listen.” Andrew shook his head, and then said. “The shadows are moving.” It sounded like a quote.
“He thought it might be other survivors?” Julie asked. “That doesn’t make any sense. They would’ve seen us. We’re out in the open.”
“Maybe they can’t see us.” Andrew shrugged. “I lost my glasses in the crash. I can’t see across the lake.”
“I know what you mean. I lost my contacts when I swam to shore.”
“Well, there you go, “Andrew said. “Other survivors might be sitting there, right in front of us.”
“But why didn’t he just yell?”
“Oh yeah.” Andrew suddenly looked concerned. “Why didn’t he yell?”
Julie’s posture dropped. “You don’t think he left, do you?”