16 Chapter 16: Barry lake, Part 3

Clueless to the ends of oblivion, Shirley called out the general coaching to a pool filled with several sets of brothers.Even if she intended to focus her poor parental instructions toward her children, she seemed to neglect the fact that she had two boys.So which brother was supposed to be nice to the other- a fact that fell on the deaf ears of her children?

The pointless direction was ignored and the twins continued to pull on the goggles whose fate was not to last a day further on this cruise, let alone another five minutes.

The ship swayed side to side as the Atlantic waves crashed into the port side.Clouds thickened in the distance.

Barry sunk deep into the lounge chair and the patch of white curled hair on his chest twirled in the breeze.Two ice cubes remained in his water glass beside him and held on to their shape the best they could as beads of cool sweat raced down the glass, quickly absorbing into the white cocktail napkin just under the glass.

The intercom blared two loud beeps and the ship's captain spouted on about their current position, wind speed, something about knots in relation to the arrival time at the next port and a thank you for sailing with them.His speech ended with a gentle reminder that crew was available at the reservations desk on deck four for anyone interested in booking their next cruise now to take advantage of steep discounts and the ability to earn a stateroom credit of up to four-hundred dollars.

As the sun slid across the sky, the shadow from Barry's sandals became longer and longer.Almost half past four, the few older couples, including Adalai and Earl who valiantly stayed their ground against the onslaught of endless antics of children, made their way toward the mid-ship elevators to shower and change for the early dinner seating.Adalai continued her rant about the ship's menu options.As a steadfast vegan who also avoided sugar at any cost, her menu options had been limited.She was by far not a happy camper when the afternoon tea just the day before, served finger sandwiches of egg salad, cucumber with cream cheese with a variety of crème puffs, chocolate cakes and fruit tarts with lemon cream.

The main dining room would soon be filled with white pants, tropical shirts, and the whirling sound of motorized mini-scooters as the seniors rushed, like sloths moving through the jungles of Madagascar, to their assigned tables.The wide array of matching couple outfits ranged from Elvis-inspired rhinestone collars with glittery belt buckles to attire that could cause any of the senior crowd to be confused for being Colonel Sanders leading a sermon on a humid Savannah Sunday morning.Fine dining or not, the older crowd would be sure to get their money's worth by ordering several first course and second course items- nibbling at each one and ordering water, iced-tea and lemonade- drinks included in the price of admission.Hard liquor drinks from the well of the bar were to be consumed only during happy hour and bouts of good fortune at the slots and roulette tables.Coffee or tea was the drink of choice during the intense Mahjong tournaments.

The sun had begun to set on the horizon and could be seen through the windows of the Lido deck.It no longer shined down from above but now seemed like a beacon from a distant lighthouse.

Barry remained still in his lounge chair as more and more guests exited the pool area.Shelby called out to her twins again as she wanted them out of the pool to change for dinner.Pruned like a pack of yogurt-covered raisins, the red-headed twins raced from the water.One eye lens from a pair of green goggles lay on the deck while the rest of the pair lay at the bottom of the pool.

One of the twins sat down on a chair beside Barry to slip on his sandals.His wet body dripped everywhere and he shook his head back and forth like a dog stuck in the eye wall of a tornado, flicking the water into the air in every direction.Barry didn't move as the brief toddler shower rained down on him.Beads of water soaked into the pages of his book.

Soon, the attire on the Lido deck transformed from bathing suits that did their best to cover up failed diets, sagging effects of parenthood and aging, and even suits that barely covered up body parts that most of the children wouldn't learn about until middle school health class into freshly bathed and showered children, parents and seniors dressed to the nines.On their way to the main dining room, the Lido deck buffet or off to sign their children in at the kid's club on deck 9, the guests had their fill of the day from the overly chlorinated pool water with just a hint of toddler urine that escaped from generic pool diapers purchased at a shopper's megastore.

Barry remained in his lounge chair until he was the last person lying by the pool.The sky had changed from blue, to shades of pink and purple to finally a royal blue as stars began to peak down toward the Heaven on the Seas.

The doors slid open by the mid-ship elevators and Chloe stepped out, empty tray in hand.She quickly surveyed the deck for any last-minute bar takers after another ordinary day at sea when she eyed Barry still in his chair.By now, he was typically down in his suite, waiting to have dinner on his private patio.She stepped closer to him and noticed the Chocolate Monkey sat untouched on the side table.The mint garnish had slid off the glass and lay wilted, nearly drowning in the sea of chocolate and melted ice.The water glass was also untouched and the cubes of ice had melted.

"Mr. Lake," she called out.He didn't respond."Mr. Lake.I think you fell asleep and it's almost dinner time," she said as she reached out to tap his shoulder.He didn't move.