Chapter 6
Steve
Steve was right about the ship making a stop at the coral island. But the island is very large and there are a lot of places someone could be. The water is transparent and so shallow, getting closer without being seen by anyone is rather difficult.
But Steve keeps getting lucky. There he is sitting at the edge putting legs in water, all alone as usual. Other people always ignore him. If only Steve could keep him company. This is the closest Steve ever got.
He still has face and most of the body covered. Paleness of whatever skin visible was so contrasting in the brightly lit surround. He did not pay much attention as Steve got closer.
Some part of Steve's brain kept saying this is too dangerous but the bigger part said he would not be any danger to Steve.
If only he could have a better look at his face. What would be the shape of his mouth? He sure should have a nice looking face right? Also those eyes looked so familiar. Steve's brain supplied that those are a set of basic human eyes. Still there is something Steve can't quite place. Would they not look like a cloudy sky all the time?. Could they become bright and shiny like stars?
Steve's mind was lost in thoughts. He put his arms on the surface and raised his body up trying to get closer as possible.
Then the human extended his hand and patted Steve's head!
Just a light touch over Steve's damp hair.
But that's the strangest thing any human has ever done and they do a lot of strange things.
Steve could not quite understand what the purpose of it. But it felt really nice. It gotta be a friendly gesture. The man didn't seem to expect any response.
Steve's hands itched to reach out and touch. Feel the texture of the skin and hair. Maybe try to communicate. He wished he could make those complex sounds humans make. Wished he could do something nice in return.
But what if he gets scared and leave. Steve didn't want to waste the opportunity to stay closer. So he stayed as long as he could.