Off off and away
Peter was a really good swimmer.
His dad taught him how to swim every summer when they went to Malibu with Pepper so he knew how to swim from a young age. His dad even told him he was a good swimmer, the best he’d ever seen and it always made Peter so proud to hear that compliment but now, his dad wasn’t letting him swim out to the boat to work on it so Peter had to watch from the rocks.
Tony gave him chopped up fruit to eat in case he got hungry so he didn’t have to wander away by himself into the jungle and with the promise that he would stay still and wouldn’t leave Tony’s line of sight, his dad promised he would fix the boat.
Peter didn’t know how long it was supposed to take. They have been coming out there for the past three weeks.
It felt like a lot longer but at least they had something to do. They would both sleep in and then after breakfast of banana and mangos, they would gather their stuff and hike off to the bay to work on the boat. Tony would jump in and swim out to it while Peter stayed on the rocks by himself. It was boring but he knew it was necessary.
Peter didn’t mind too much although it was scary at times.
He looked out at the boat, having been distracted playing with the rocks he found in the jungle a few days ago. The sun was just above them which meant it was lunch time. “Daddy!” Peter called to his dad. “Lunch time!”
On the boat, Tony wiped the sweat from his forehead. “Give me five minutes!” He yelled back.
It was a lot of work. Harder than he expected it to be but if it gave them a chance of getting off the island and getting rescued, it was worth it. He looked up at the sun to tell the time. He’s been working on the boat for five hours now then he had an hour or two lunch with Peter and went back to work on it for a few more hours before heading home… well, back to the beach.
They’ve been on the island so long that they have started to call the beach home where all their stuff was. Tony supposed it was now. It had everything. Well, not everything.
He jumped into the water and swam over to the lower part of the rocks then climbed up and made his way over to Peter. “Hey, baby. You hungry?”
Peter jumped up and nodded. “Yes! I want coconut, mango and blueberries!”
They found a blueberry tree in the jungle near the rocks. The only blueberry tree they found on the entire island so far.
Once they grabbed their lunch, they sat down in the shade and began eating. “So,” Tony began, taking a bite of the mango. “I think we’ll be ready to leave the island soon. The boats almost done.”
Peter squealed. “Really?”
“Yep.” Tony took another bite. “If I can get it started today and see if it runs, we can leave tomorrow.”
It was about time. They’ve been on the island for a month now, give or take a few days, and no one has come. Tony gave up hope on rescue on the second week here. They had to save themselves now.
Peter stood up to do a happy dance. “Yay! I’m so excited. We get to go home.”
“Yeah, baby. Only once we get out onto the water, it might be a few days or even weeks before we find anyone. We just gotta be patient.” Tony explained to Peter. He knew Peter didn’t fully understand what it was going to be like, Tony was going to have to keep a very close eye on him.
Peter sat back down and nodded seriously. “I know. I’ll be a good boy, I promise.”
Tony loved Peter so much.
They finished lunch and then Tony swam back out to the boat. He had to fix a few wires down below and then he was able to start it. He could see Peter cheering on the rocks and his heart swelled.
God, he hoped this worked.
.
.
.
Peter splashed some water at his dad, giggling like crazy.
Tony was trying to give Peter a bath in the ocean but it was hard with no soap and not really having clean water but they made do. “I got you!”
“Oh yeah?” Tony splashed Peter back, getting a giggle fit out of his boy from it so he splashed him again. “Okay, no more silliness. Finish washing.”
Peter grabbed some sand and wiped it over his stomach like cream, giggling at the action. Tony was sitting in the water that was just about his waist. The sun was just starting to set so they still had some time before Peter’s bed time.
“Like Pepper’s homemade cream.” Peter started laughing which caused Tony to start laughing.
That was a funny night. Pepper had made this weird homemade cream that was supposed to take off dead skin and it looked exactly like the sand Peter rubbed on his belly. “It kinda does.”
Peter squatted down in the water to rinse off and then crawled his way onto his dad’s lap, resting his head on his chest. “Do you think we’ll leave the island tomorrow?”
Tony rubbed at his back. He didn’t know how he managed to keep Peter sunburn free for the whole month they were there. Besides for the small sunburn on Peter’s face, he was still pale, just the way Tony liked him.
“I think so. Let’s hope so.”
Peter tried to move closer to his dad. “I’m gonna miss it here a bit I think. Just because I had you with me all the time and-and I like looking for fruit in the jungle with you.”
“Aw, baby. That’s not gonna change. Well, maybe the looking for fruit in the jungle part will change but I’m not leaving you. We’re gonna go home, eat ten cheeseburgers and sleep in my bed for days.” Tony wanted that more than anything.
Peter giggled. “And chicken nuggets.”
“Yeah, and chicken nuggets.”
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.
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Tony let Peter sleep in for as long as possible but he wanted to get to the boat before it got too late so they could get a good day in of sailing before the night hits.
He could tell Peter was scared and he didn’t blame him. Tony was scared too. There were only two options; they sail until they come across a shipping lane or hit land and get rescued or they sail and find nothing, eventually getting lost at sea which is much worse than being stranded on an island that apparently had monsters and strange ghost people on it.
Tony needed to take the chance. He needed to get Peter home.
They got to the rocks and the only way to get in the boat was to jump into the water and swim over so Tony brought over some fruit for them to eat and their stuff, which all got wet but it would dry.
He climbed back onto the rocks for Peter but Peter sat down and crossed his arms. “I don’t wanna go.”
Tony expected this. He sat down next to Peter. “It’s going to be okay. We’re gonna find a boat or some land soon. Maybe in five days. Maybe sooner.”
“Or maybe later.” Peter said, looking up at his dad.
Tony looked away. That was an option too. One Tony hoped didn’t happen. “It’ll be okay. We’ll be together.”
Peter leaned against him. “I’m scared.”
“It’s okay to be scared but as long as you don’t let that fear hold you back.” Tony stood up and held his hand out for Peter. “We’re gonna jump into the water and swim to the boat together then I’ll help you climb on.”
Peter reluctantly walked down to the edge of the rocks. “I’m scared, daddy.”
“It’s okay. I’m gonna jump in first and you jump in after me.” Tony waited for Peter to nod then he jumped in. He swam to the surface and turned around to wait for Peter. “Jump in. I’m right here.”
Peter looked towards the boat. He was so scared. He knew he had to though so he plugged his nose and jumped in. His dad was immediately pulling him to the surface and pointing towards the boat.
“Good job, baby. Swim to the boat.” Tony swam next to Peter, making sure he got to the boat safely. Peter was a good swimmer but in pools and lakes, not the open ocean in this situation. He still amazed Tony.
Once they got to the boat, Tony grabbed onto the rope and pulled Peter towards him. He got a better grip on Peter’s arm and lifted him onto the boat before lifting himself on it.
Peter turned and looked towards the island. He was feeling a mixture of emotions having to leave it.
“Come put this on.” Tony grabbed a life jacket he found on the boat before and helped Peter get it on. He then put all their stuff down below, it wasn’t everything they had, most of it was still on the beach since they couldn’t bring it all.
Peter walked over to the wheel and grabbed onto it. “Woah. This looks cool. Do you even know how to sail?”
Tony chuckled. “Well, we’re about to find out.” Peter gasped so Tony ruffled his hair. “Just kidding. My dad took me sailing every summer when I was little and I went to some boat sailing camp when I was eleven.”
Peter thought that sounded like fun. “Can I go to a boat sailing camp when I’m eleven?”
“After we get home, you can have whatever you want.” Tony promised him and started the boat. It roared to life, rumbling under their feet.
Peter jumped up and down in excitement. “It works! Yay!”
Tony was so relieved it hadn’t stopped working overnight since it was only the second time he had started the boat. He put it into drive and pushed forward. It began moving so he grabbed onto Peter’s hand. “Don’t go too close to the edge and stay near me.”
Peter nodded seriously. “Okay, daddy.”
The boat sailed away from the island. They were finally getting out of there. Tony was too busy looking straight ahead that he hadn’t realized just how far they had sailed away from the island.
“Daddy!” Peter tugged desperately on his arm and pointed behind them. “Look!”
Tony turned around and saw it. The island was massive. It was bigger than some of the islands they travelled to on vacation before. “How does a place this big never get found?”
Peter shrugged. “Maybe it’s hidden behind the clouds.”
“Maybe, baby. Maybe.” Tony was not going to miss that place. He never wanted to see it again. He just wanted to get the hell out of there and get Peter home.
They sailed straight ahead for the next two hours, hoping to bump into any ships but they didn’t. Tony wasn’t surprised or disappointed because he didn’t expect to bump into anything for at least a few days, maybe longer.
The sun was brighter than ever, the only shade they had was under the boat, down below but Tony couldn’t go down there yet, at least not until night time because he had to keep his eyes out for anything.
Peter was sitting on the deck in front of him, playing with some of the rocks he brought from the island as toys.
The island was no longer behind them so now all there was for miles was water. It made it so much more real for them. “Hey, Pete. Come here for a sec, I wanna show you something.”
Peter put his rocks into a pile and stood up, approaching his dad. “What is it?”
Tony stepped aside. “Grab them wheel. I want you to try.”
Peter gasped and didn’t hesitate to grab a hold of the wheel. “Woah. Okay, this is really cool!”
“Yeah?” Tony was so proud of his baby. After a month on the island, Peter was tough through it all. He didn’t complain about their circumstances and Tony knew one thing for sure, once they got home, he was going to spoil Peter rotten. “I love you so much, Peter, and I am so so proud of you, baby boy.”
Peter grinned. He liked to hear that. “I love you too, daddy.”
Soon, they would return home. Tony hoped so.
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Later that night, the sun had long set and the stars were out. Tony could see that Peter was getting tired and he didn’t blame him. It had been a long and hard day. Emotional too, for the both of them.
It was the first night on the boat so Tony planned on stopping sailing for today then going down below deck to sleep with Peter. That was the plan. That was supposed to be the plan but there was a sound in the distance.
Peter sat up, looking out into the water. They couldn’t see anything since it was pitch black out. “What’s that, daddy?”
Tony tried to listen. It sounded like… the water was moving. “I don’t know, baby.”
They both listened harder. The sound was getting louder. Peter stood up and walked to his dad’s side. “Is it a shark? Can he eat us from up here?”
Tony wrapped an arm around Peter. “No, baby. He can’t eat us if we’re on the boat but… I don’t think it’s a shark.” He focused on the dark waters in front of him, Tony was terrified to say the least.
The sound was getting louder and louder and now it sounded like… like an engine. “I think it’s a boat.”
Peter gasped. “Really?!”
“... Yeah.” Tony wasn’t sure. He was about to grab a flashlight from the seat across the boat but then there was a sudden bang and a football stadium light was being shined on them. Tony pulled Peter tighter against his side.
When his eyes adjusted to the light, he looked at the boat in front of them and a huge smile was breaking out across his face. “Oh my god!”
It was a rather small boat, it was old looking and orange. A fisherman’s boat. Tony examined it, something didn’t feel right…
“What are you boys doing all the way out here?” One of the men in the boat asked. He had a raspy voice and a long, grey beard, looking around fifty years old. There were two other men on the boat as well.
Tony pulled Peter closer. “We were on an island. Our plane crashed over a month ago.”
Peter was bouncing next to him, excited at bumping into a boat. “Yeah, now we found you!”
The man smiled at Peter. “Well… is that so.”
“Man, I didn’t expect to bump into anyone for days.” Tony said, still holding Peter impossibly close.
The man with the long grey beard smiled. It looked forced. “You’re pretty far out, are you sure you came from an island you say?”
Tony nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, we were in a plane crash. Our plane crashed on this island. We waited for rescue but it never came.”
The bearded man was silent for a few long seconds, sending chills down Tony’s spine. “Wow. There’s only one thing, we’re gonna have to take the boy.”
Tony felt all the life drain from his body. “What- what did you say?” Tony asked because he’s convinced he misheard him. There was no possible way this was happening.
The man pointed to Peter. “Your boy, we’re gonna have to take him.”
Peter wrapped his arms around his waist, whimpering.
“No. You’re not taking anybody. Who the fuck are you?” Tony narrowed his eyes at the three men, absolutely petrified at what they wanted his son for. “Who are you people?!”
They didn’t say anything. The light shut off and two men jumped onto their boat, one punched Tony in the face and tried to grab his arms but Tony was punching him back and grabbing his wrist, snapping it.
At that moment, the other man grabbed Peter from him. “Daddy! Daddy! Help me! Noooo!”
Tony tried to grab Peter from them, he held his hand out, trying to reach Peter’s outstretched hand but the men were too quick. They already had Peter.
The two men jumped back onto their boat with Peter. “DADDY! DADDY!”
Tony went to jump on after them but there was a bottle with a cloth shoved down the hole being thrown onto his boat and he knew what that was. He jumped into the water and forced himself to go under as the boat blew up, chucks of the boat flying up and landing into the water.
He swam back to the surface and screamed. “PETER! PETER! NO! PETER!”
The boat was moving further and further away, into the dark open waters. He could still hear Peter screaming his name and he felt like he was dying.
This was worse than dying. Someone had taken his baby and he had no way of getting him back.
“PETER!”