A Sunrise Over Bali by Sandy Barker

Author:Sandy Barker [Barker, Sandy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780008536756
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

Chapter Sixteen

I never knew until right this moment that I get seasick.

I mean, I’m from Miami and I’ve been on a boat dozens of times—hell, I was rafting a few days ago, but this is different. The ferry to Gili has us sitting low in the hull and I’m short, so I can’t see out the window and there’s no chance of watching the horizon to quell my churning stomach. I tried standing, but it’s a rough crossing and I was thrown back into my seat the first time the ferry crashed into a wave.

Alistair is drawing slow circles on my back as I lean forward, elbows on my knees, and breathe into a paper bag. It has a dual purpose—it’s helping me regulate my gulping, pre-vomiting breaths and if I don’t get them under control, it will prevent me from throwing up all over him.

God, this sucks.

We did end up booking a room together. I’d guessed right that night at the bar―he wanted us to share a room―and he found a resort on Gili Air where we could get two rooms, one with separate beds for Helena and Peta and one for us.

But there’s a big difference between staying in each other’s rooms at UROP and sharing the same room at a resort. BIG. HUGE! And most of that difference is bathroom-related. I’m going to have to hold off on pooping until we’re at a restaurant or something. Or maybe I can borrow the girls’ bathroom, but then, how do I explain that to Alistair?

This is not what I should be thinking about when I feel like this.

After what seems like an eternity, the boat starts to slow and there’s an announcement that we’re docking at Gili. I take the paper bag away from my face and sit back, capturing Alistair’s hand between me and the seat. He gently pulls it free and trails his fingers up and down my forearm. ‘How are you feeling?’

‘Ugh.’

‘You still look a little green,’ he says. I know he’s trying to help but I want him to shut it.

‘At least we’re here,’ I say taking slow, deliberate breaths.

‘Ah, we’re at Gili T, then we go to Gili Meno, then we get to Gili Air.’

This is terrible news―the worst. Maybe I can get off now and just stay here for the next two days. ‘Here,’ says Peta, ‘drink this.’ She’s standing in the aisle and hands me a Coke—a regular Coke with sugar.

‘Oh, no thanks, I only drink—’

She cuts me off. ‘It’s for the motion sickness. One of the crew gave it to me to give to you. He said the sugar and the carbonation will help.’

I’m so happy I could cry. A solution! I’m saved! I pop the top of the can and take little sips and when we dock, I stand, hoping it will help me feel better. I’m relieved when the shot of sugar hits my veins and the carbonation settles my stomach. Most passengers disembark while crew members throw duffel bags and suitcases out of the hold onto the bow, then toss them in a chain onto the pier.

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