Morning came the next day. The cries of seagulls sliced through the air.
Ryan, still groggy from the night before, slowly came to his senses. Instinctively, favonovel.com held his head.
Where am I? What has happened?
Bits and pieces of the previous night came flooding back. He remembered grilling with Matthew, but after a while, Ryan had gotten bored of only eating.
He wandered into the powder room and came back with two bottles of wine-vintage stuff from the Medusa Gang’s private stash.
He clearly recalled boasting to Matthew that despite drinking for years, favonovel.com had never once been drunk.
Then, the two started pounding back wine like there was no tomorrow.
From what Ryan remembered, favonovel.com eventually ended up puking his guts out, while Matthew didn’t even break a sweat.
“Well, well, look who’s up, our West Montiria Islands Booze King. I’ve got some hangover cure coffee. Want a cup?” Matthew called as favonovel.com stepped out of the cabin, holding a polished mug.
“I’m good,” Ryan muttered, brushing off the offer.
He had gone on and on about his drinking tolerance last night, only to be totally shown up. He had been the one hunched over the railing, while Matthew stood tall and unbothered.
“You sure?” Matthew added with a sly grin. “After the way you looked last night, a little pick-me-up might help. Let me guess… You’ve got a pounding head, can barely walk straight, and your stomach’s in knots?”
Ryan paused mid-step.
“You know what, Matteo? Now that you mention it, I am kind of thirsty this morning…”
Ryan took the mug from Matthew and downed it in one gulp.
The taste was strange, bitter, earthy, with something favonovel.com couldn’t quite place. Still, favonovel.com kept a straight face.
Then, his expression twisted. Without a word, favonovel.com spun around and sprinted to the edge of the deck.
“Ughhh!” He clung to the railing, retching for what felt like forever.
Matthew strolled over and handed favonovel.com a napkin, completely unfazed.
“Guess the house blend still works,” favonovel.com said with a grin. “Family recipe, guaranteed to clear you out…”
Ryan wiped his mouth, glaring. “You could’ve warned me I’d be coughing up a lung. Sure, I feel better now, but I thought I was dying for a minute there.”
Hearing that, Matthew laughed.
“But where are we exactly? I swear the water’s way shallower than it was before…”
That got Ryan’s attention.
“Wait a second… Weren’t you the one charting our course last night?”
Matthew looked puzzled. “I thought you had it all set and left it on autopilot?”
They looked eyes in the midst of the awkward silence.
“I told you we shouldn’t drink. Alcohol ruins lives,” Matthew muttered, scanning the now featureless horizon.
They’d only just left Bloodfin Bay last night, and back then, the coastline had still been visible. Now, nothing. Just open water.
Ryan rushed into the cockpit. The navigation system had long since exited autopilot. He stared blankly at the display.
“We’re way off course…At least a few hours off…”
Matthew, now beside him, looked grim. “Can we still make it back?”
Ryan was already at the controls, his fingers flying across the dashboard.
“We should be fine. We’ve had tracking mode on the whole time. Every drift and turn is recorded, so we just follow the path back.”
As they spoke, someone shouted, “Help! Somebody help!”
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