GHOST SHIP
by Sharon Jones
Chapter 3 The next morning Dorian told Alvar what he saw last night and Alvar said in reply, “I told you boy. Don't snicker at it. This isn't a game or a trick. This is real.” “Alvar, common sense will tell you that it was probably a dream. And the ship was imagined.” “Go believe what you want Dorian. Just don't say I didn't warn you.” That evening, Dorian awoke to the same cheerful noise. He went to check on it again. He was smart enough to bring a telescope with him. On the bow of the ship Dorian saw this Ghost Ship once more. Only this time it was closer to him. It was so close he could see the people dancing on it without the telescope. With the telescope he saw this young, beautiful, girl with curly blond hair that framed her face just right, fair delicate skin, blue eyes that sparkled like gems, and this lovely, pink dress with lace and intricate stitching on it. The girl was dancing with a young man about twenty-five years old with light brown hair and green eyes. The man was dressed in fancy clothes from the early seventeen hundreds. Dorian was envious of the man who the lady was dancing with. Even though he knew she was from a rich family, he wished that he could see her and dance just one dance with her. That would give him such satisfaction to have danced one dance with an angel. When the song ended the gentleman whom the lady was dancing with had escorted her to the port side of the ship and the two of them stood next to the railing. “Did you enjoy yourself tonight?” the man asked the lady. “Oh I did, Reginald. I just can't believe that we're going to the Colonies,” answered the lady. “Which will be our new home,” reminded Reginald. A look of dismay came over her face. “What's wrong Lark? Don't you like the idea?” “I don't think I could stand being away from England for so long,” replied Lark. “Oh, Lark. You know we'll visit England frequently. Also it's getting too crowded in England.” “I heard the Colonies are uncivilized in some parts.” “I'll protect you, ad we'll live as we always have lived, with only the best.” The ship faded off into the horizon. “Lark,” Dorian said to himself. “What a beautiful name for a beautiful lady.” Coincidentally, that was the same trip that they were planning on, but they would return to England after the United States. Dorian wondered about why they called the United States the Colonies. Also why did they dress in old fashioned clothes that he had seen only in a painting one time. The painting had dated back to the early seventeen hundreds. It was of a rich man's party. Dorian remembered all of the men and women beautifully dressed and dancing in a ball. More and more, Alvar’s story seemed to make sense, but he couldn't bring himself to believe it. Dorian didn't want to hear Alvar’s crazy story again, so he decided not to tell anyone about tonight. Chapter 4 All day Dorian thought of Lark. He longed for it to be night when he'd see her on the ship again. He went about doing his chores the way one does when they're in love. That far away look in their eyes, always humming a song, and going about as if nothing in the world really mattered. “Looks like Dorian’s in love,” said Gavin a fellow young crew member. “Who's the girl?” asked Austin another fellow crew member. Dorian sighed and said with a dreamy tone in his voice, “Lark.” “The boy's gone crazy,” said Troy who had been listening in on the conversation. “There's no Lark on this ship. Let alone a woman.” “She's not a woman. She's an angel,” said Dorian in his dreamy tone. “Where? From heaven?” asked Gavin sarcastically. “No. From another ship” “Another ship?” Austin laughed. “Yes. I saw her last night for the first time. She's gorgeous and delicate. With these eyes that sparkled and this hair that was the color of the golden sun. And the way it curled and framed her face.” “Hey guys, let's make sure to drop Dorian off at an asylum in America,” remarked Troy jokingly. “I am not mad I tell you! I'm in love. The ship was so close you could see people dancing without a telescope, and you could hear their conversations. And with a telescope you could see an angel in a fancy, pink, dress,” protested Dorian. “What do you mean by you're in love?” asked Alvar. “I am, Alvar. She's this beautiful angel from another ship,” replied Dorian sounding on top of the world. “Another ship? You do know as well as I do that there's no ship for miles.” “But there is Alvar, at night.” “What does the ship look like?” “It's unlike anything you've ever seen before. It's made out of wood and it's very exquisite.” “What does this girl look like?” “She's wearing this beautiful, pink and lace dress. And…” “Did you hear her speak?” asked Alvar interrupting Dorian. “Yes.” “What'd she say?” “She talked about the colonies,” he said confused. “Did she have blond hair and blue eyes and dance with a gentleman?” “How'd you know?” “Another sailor I knew had seen and fell in love with the same girl twenty years ago. He had the gift too. One night it grew into an obsession and he tried to jump from our ship to the Ghost Ship. He drowned to death.” “Does anyone with this “gift” die at sea?” “Out of twelve men, three have lived to be old men. I must warn ya boy. That gift is powerful. That one captain I told you about, that was his first time hearing those voices. He had been a sailor for seventeen years. You see, everyone is different. Some hear it at a young age. One man had sailed the seas for nearly forty five years before he learned. He's another one that couldn't handle the voices. Some lucky ones who have the gift never experience the Ghost Ships. But it does exist all the same.” “Do you know about the ship I see at night?”
WHAT WILL HAPPEN IN THE NEXT CHAPTER? WILL DORIAN DROWN JUST LIKE MANY OF THE OTHER SAILORS
WITH THE SPECIAL TALENT? WILL HE TRY TO TALK TO LARK? FIND OUT IN OUR NEXT ISSUE.