Chapter 33: Waiting

After Nora was settled into another hospital room, the doctor left her and Tristan alone. Nora was sitting in a hospital bed and Tristan was standing near the door awkwardly. The two of them stared at each other for a few minutes, neither one with anything to say. Tristan rubbed the back of his neck and looked away from Nora before he finally spoke.

“So…I guess I’ll just go, then…” Tristan said slowly.

“No!” Nora exclaimed, reaching a hand out towards him. Tristan stared at her, a baffled expression on his face. Nora slowly pulled her hand back and smiled sheepishly.

“I mean…um… Don’t go. I…I don’t like hospitals. I don’t want to be alone.” she said softly. Tristan stood there for a moment longer, still not sure as to what he should say. He fiddled his fingers before he spoke again.

“Okay…I guess I’ll just stay, then…” he said with a shrug. Nora smiled a little. There was another pause between them. Nora pointed to the chair beside the bed.

“If you’re going to stay, you might as well sit down.” she said politely. Tristan chuckled.

“No, thanks. I’ve sat on hospital chairs long enough to make my…uh, rear…go numb. I think I’ll stand for a while.” he said with a soft smile. Nora let out a small laugh.

“So, what did it feel like inside the chamber?” Tristan asked suddenly. Nora’s expression darkened and she turned away.

“Cold…lonely…cramped…” she replied softly. Tristan watched her as her frown grew larger. “Scary.” she added in a voice just above a whisper. He saw tears gathering in her eyes and he wondered what he should do. He took a step forward then hesitated. He slowly reached out his hand towards Nora, but stopped when she suddenly looked over at him. Her eyes had cleared and she looked happy again.

“But I’m not in there anymore, so it doesn’t matter.” she said quickly. Tristan stared at her for a moment, confused.

“Um, yeah, right…” he said slowly, lowering his hand and letting it dangle at his side.

“What do you think of that doctor?” Nora asked softly, a little smile on her face. Tristan scoffed and rolled his eyes.

“Well, the guy is totally impersonal, and he’s arrogant and impatient…” Tristan’s list of complaints went on and on, and Nora listened patiently, just happy to have something to talk about.

A few hours later, Nora was cleared to leave the hospital. The doctor determined that Nora had fully healed and that the decompression sickness would not return. Nora and Tristan walked out of the hospital hand in hand, both of them very relieved to have the experience behind them.

“So, where do you want to go?” Tristan asked Nora as they walked to his car.

“Well, I don’t really want to go back to the marina, but I kind of have to…” Nora replied.

“What? Why?” Tristan asked, surprised. Nora looked up at him and raised an eyebrow in an incredulous manner. Tristan noticed a light smile on her face.

“I left my car there, goofball.” she said quickly.

“Oooooh, right…” Tristan said slowly. Nora laughed and rolled her eyes, shaking her head. They reached Tristan’s car and the two of them climbed in.

“Do you want to go grab some lunch or something before we go back to the marina?” Tristan asked as he started the car.

“Um, more like dinner.” Nora said. “In case you haven’t noticed, Tristan, the sun is setting.” Tristan looked out the windshield and studied the sky intently.

“Oh…yeah…it is.” he said softly. Nora laughed. “So, do you want to go get dinner, then?” Tristan asked, smiling at Nora. Nora returned his smile.

“I’d love to.” she said.

“Okay, but I’ll warn you now, we’re going some place cheap and casual. I don’t have a lot of money, I’m currently wearing my nicest clothes, and I most definitely do not want to wait in a line to get seated. I don’t know about you, but I’m starving.” Tristan said quickly. Nora threw her head back and laughed.

“Sounds good to me, Tristan.” she said between laughs. “Sounds good to me.” And with that, Tristan pulled out of the parking lot and drove off to find some place cheap and casual. He hoped that dinner would go over better than the scuba diving had.

Chapter 27: Sprouts

Tristan arrived at the diving instructor’s shack twenty minutes early. The little building was located right on the edge of a marina. Most of the people who frequented the marina were rich tourists and locals. Because of this rich atmosphere, Tristan looked oddly out of place with his common demeanor.

Tristan walked into the shack and spoke to the instructor, Ron, for a while before he rented some equipment for himself and Nora. Tristan had taken lessons before, so he remembered what to get and how to get it. He waited impatiently for the next few minutes. Then, he began to pace. Then, he walked around outside the shack, waiting nervously for Nora.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Nora’s car appeared in the driveway of the marina. Tristan tried not to look too excited as he ducked back into the building. He took a few deep breaths, checked his hair in the glass window, then turned around, pretending to look at a diving mask with great interest. The little bell above the door of the shop rang and Nora entered, breathing heavily. She walked over to Tristan to see what he was looking at.

“Oh, hi,” Tristan said, smiling casually.

“Hey,” Nora began as she returned his smile. “So, is that a good mask?” she asked.

“Oh, yeah, it’s great--”

“You figured that out in the five seconds you were looking at it?” Nora asked, glancing up at Tristan slyly. Tristan blushed.

“Well…it’s…it’s all in the brand name, you know…” Tristan mumbled. Nora giggled. Just then, Ron walked over to the two of them and clapped his hands down on their shoulders.

“You must be Nora! Pleased to meet you!” Ron exclaimed, reaching out a hand to Nora. Nora was surprised to hear that he spoke with an Australian accent. She shook his hand and smiled pleasantly. “Tristan here has told me a lot about you!”

“All good, I hope.” Nora said with a small laugh. Ron stopped shaking her hand and a light frown came over his face.

“Actually, no. But it’s all worked out for good, eh?” he said, chuckling. Nora laughed nervously, not accustomed to such an exuberant person. She supposed that he had to be this way to keep people coming back to his shop.

“Yeah, I guess it has…” Nora said softly. Ron, Nora, and Tristan all stood there silently for a moment, staring at each other awkwardly. Just then, Ron clapped his hands loudly. Nora and Tristan jumped.

“Well! Let’s get started! Shall we?” Ron said, turning around and heading out the door. Nora and Tristan lingered behind for a moment.

“He’s a seasoned instructor, right?” Nora asked nervously. Tristan nodded.

“I’ve been told he’s good.” He replied softly. Nora thought for a moment.

“The people who told you this were sober, right?” she asked, looking up at him. Tristan laughed. He took Nora’s hand and the two of them followed after Ron.

Ron led the two of them out to a boat which was nice, but definitely not as high-end as most of the other boats in the marina. The three of them crawled out into the boat and Ron started the engine.

“All right, we’re going to go out and get close to the reefs. Best place to learn how to dive is out there. Well, really, any place with deep water is a good place to learn to dive, but the reefs are one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen, so we like to take people out there. It’s good for business.” Ron explained over the roar of the engine. Nora and Tristan glanced up at each other with bewildered expressions on their faces.

“How long will it take to get there?” Tristan asked, leaning forward towards Ron.

“Oh, not more than half an hour, I’d say.” Ron replied. “Sometimes when the weather’s choppy it takes longer, but today is a perfect day for being out on the water. The breeze is light and the waves are small—huh…I guess it’s not such a great day to be out here in a sail boat!” Ron laughed again and Tristan chuckled. He glanced back at Nora, who laughed awkwardly. Tristan sat down next to her again and raised an eyebrow.

“Are you okay?” Tristan asked, speaking as softly as he could while still being heard over the engine of the boat.

“Yeah…it’s just that the casual attitude of this guy is kind of freaking me out. I mean, I’m a little nervous about this whole thing, and he’s acting kind of…” Nora paused and glanced up at Ron to see if he was paying attention to them. He wasn’t. “Unprofessional.” Nora finished in a voice that Tristan could barely hear. His eyes flashed over to Ron, who seemed to be bouncing to the beat of the music in his head. Tristan turned back to Nora and nodded a little.

“He’s throwing me off a little, too. But I’ve gone diving before, so I’ll help you out if he doesn’t. You’ve got nothing to worry about.” Tristan said, smiling. Nora sighed, still looking a little worried. Tristan took her hand gently but remained silent. He had a feeling that he couldn’t say anything else that would cheer her up or ease her fears. She just needed him to be there for her.

The three of them road in silence for a while. Ron bounced to the beat of his own drum while Nora and Tristan sat in the back, neither of them really thinking about anything in particular. Their thoughts drifted to and fro, going where the current willed them to go. Tristan didn’t let go of Nora’s hand, and she didn’t make any motion to pull it away. They sat there, completely content with just being with each other.

Finally, Ron turned to them. “We’re almost there!” he called over the sound of the engine and the wind in their ears. “I’m gonna slow her down so that it’s not such an abrupt stop when we get there!” he said.

“Okay!” Tristan blurted out the only response that came to mind for a comment like that. Nora took a deep breath, clenching and unclenching her free hand. Tristan gave her an encouraging smile and she attempted to smile back. He could see she was nervous, though.

“It’s going to be fine…” Tristan said softly. Nora nodded but didn’t look him in the eyes. The boat slowly came to a stop and Ron turned off the engine. He stood up and turned around to face the couple.

“All right! Are you two ready to dive?” he asked, beaming. Tristan glanced over at Nora. This was where the hard part began.

“Are you ready?” Tristan asked gently. Nora swallowed hard and nodded, forcing herself not to look at the water.

“You said you’ve gone diving before, right?” she asked, looking over at him worriedly. Tristan nodded. Nora took a deep breath and squared up her shoulders. “Then I’m ready.” She said, sounding much more confident than she was. Ron smiled wide and rubbed his hands together.

“Then let’s get this party started!” he exclaimed happily. Ron turned around and Tristan smiled at Nora again.

“You’re going to do great.” Tristan said softly.

“If you say so…” Nora muttered, standing up. Tristan stood up with her, not letting go of her hand. He knew she needed him for moral support, but he didn’t realize how much she needed him until later…

Chapter 23: Assistance

David tapped his foot impatiently against the ground, waiting outside the zoo’s gift shop. It felt like he had been standing there for three hours, when in actuality it had been no more than three minutes. Tristan walked out casually and made his way towards him.

“What took you so long?” David snapped. Tristan looked surprised.

“Um…I didn’t realize I had taken that long at all…” Tristan replied slowly.

“You are--” David glanced down at his large, electronic watch, “--three minutes late! Do you know how long three minutes is when you’re a twelve year old boy?” David asked, standing on his tiptoes to get closer to Tristan. Tristan stared at the boy like he was insane.

“Actually, no, I don’t know how long three minutes is to twelve year old boys.” he finally replied.

“It’s an eternity!” David exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air. Tristan held up his hands, trying to get the child to quiet down.

“Okay, okay, David, it’s okay. I’m here now, so you don’t need to freak out.” Tristan said calmly. David sighed.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right. I’m sorry for blowing up at you like that…” David mumbled. “I probably shouldn’t have had that extra glass of chocolate milk…” Tristan smirked then placed a hand on David’s shoulder, turning him around and leading him away.

“So, where’s your mom?” Tristan asked as the two of them made their way towards the welcome center.

“Shopping, as usual.” David replied.

“When are you guys going to have lunch?” Tristan continued as the two of them entered into the welcome center. Tristan slipped David into the employee’s only room before David replied.

“Mom told us to just go and find lunch if we got hungry and she wasn’t out yet. So, we all split up and I figure I’ll just grab something from a vendor.” David said with a shrug.

“You could share my lunch with me.” Tristan suggested. David crinkled his nose in disgust.

“Bologna on rye? Thanks, but I’ll pass.” he said quickly. Tristan rolled his eyes. He grabbed his lunchbox from his locker then closed the locker door before turning back to David. He stared at David for a moment before asking another question.

“So, where’s your dad?” he asked softly. David’s eyes clouded over with look of sadness and he glanced down at his feet.

“He, uh…he left us a couple of years ago…” David mumbled quietly. Tristan looked at David with pity.

“Oh, I’m sorry…” he said quickly. David shrugged.

“It’s nothing you need to apologize for…” the boy’s voice faded and Tristan saw him swallow hard. After a moment, David looked up at Tristan, his eyes clear and cheery again.

“Do you wanna go have lunch now?” David asked with a smile. Tristan nodded then quickly sneaked David out the door, still amazed by the personality of this little boy.

The pair walked along the paved path, passing brightly colored tourists and various vendors as they went. David would briefly inspect the vendor’s cart as they passed it before shaking his head.

“Okay, you have to get something to eat. If you don’t buy something, I’m going to force feed you my sandwich.” Tristan finally said as they passed the fourth vendor’s cart.

“I’m really in the mood for pizza. Does anyone sell pizza around here?” David mused.

“I don’t know. That’s a question for Nora.” Tristan replied quickly.

“Speaking of Nora, how did it go?” David asked, looking up at Tristan. Tristan shrugged.

“All right, I guess…” he replied slowly.

“All right? You guess? What is the meaning of these words?” David asked sharply.

“I don’t know… She seems a little…weird around me…” Tristan said, shoving his hands in his pockets.

“Define ‘weird’.” David said dryly. Tristan sighed.

“Like…hesitant, I guess. Or, maybe 'wary' is a better word? She just seems kind of tense and worried around me, like she’s freaked out about something.”

“Perhaps your sudden change of character?” David suggested.

“Hey, you’re the one who told me to be nice.” Tristan pointed out quickly, a scowl on his face.

“I know, I know. It’s a big change for her, though. You just need to be patient. She’ll come around eventually.” David said confidently.

“Are you sure?” Tristan asked, giving David a skeptical look.

“Positive.” David said with a nod. “What did you say to her today?”

“I told her that she looked nice.” Tristan replied. “I really don’t have much else in my repertoire.”

“Well, you have to find something else. If you just say ‘you like nice’ every day, she’s just going to get annoyed with you.” David said.

“What else am I supposed to say? ‘You look hot’?”

“In this weather, even you look hot, Tristan.” David replied softly. Tristan rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t hide a small smile.

“Anyhoo, I’ll think about what else you could say to her. Maybe I’ll ask my mom about what things girls like to hear.” David said, circling back to their original topic.

“That’s actually a good idea.” Tristan said thoughtfully.

“Have I ever had a bad one?” David asked. Tristan thought for a moment before he replied.

“That extra glass of chocolate milk this morning was probably a bad idea. You said so yourself.” he replied with a nod. David smiled then lightly punched Tristan in the arm. The two of them laughed as they walked along. Suddenly, David gasped. He stared straight ahead with his mouth hanging open.

“What is it?” Tristan asked, concerned that something was wrong. David pointed ahead as a smile grew across his face.

“Pizza…” he breathed. Tristan stared at him for a minute before the boy dashed forward towards the vendor with the pizza. Tristan chuckled and shook his head before he walked over by the boy. He was glad that he had David around to help him. He was pretty sure he wouldn’t be able to make amends with Nora without this little boy’s assistance.