Getting Along

Getting Along

It's very hot on this island and there is no really cool place to go when I want to get out from the heat of the sun.  Nemo has told me that there is some cooler weather at times and then he goes and lies down on his bunk inside his hut and leaves me outside to burn.

My shady umbrella can help a little but usually I'm busy when I'm outside and don't notice until too late.

Besides, if I did nothing but stand under an umbrella all day, who would catch the fish for our dinner?  Nemo basically never moves during the heat of the day and I would get bored sitting inside a small hut anyway. 

Nemo is happy to venture out once it gets a little cooler and roast his dinner in the iron cooking pot.  I guess that is a bonus as I'm a little wary of lighting it and I don't fancy raw fish for dinner.  Once Nemo has finished eating he leaves it burning and goes inside his hut again.  So I get my dinner, warm myself by the fire and curl up in my sleeping bag for the night.

Nemo does have hives of bees that he takes care of, usually once it's cooled down a little.  I wouldn't want to go near them as they seem to sting him a fair amount but he glares at me if I get too close anyway..  I would love to be able to taste some of the produce but he never shares with me just drinks it down and tucks any extra away in some hidden cache.

He's still happy to help himself to anything I fish out of the sea or the pond though.

He does occasionally join me in fishing.  He doesn't need to as I catch enough for the both of us but I think that he actually seems to enjoy it.  He rarely speaks to me even if he is fishing right next to me so I'm pretty sure that it's not any desire to speak to another human being.  Nemo doesn't like children at all but he also doesn't seem to like people.  I sometimes think that if I didn't provide him with dinner and respect his privacy as much as I do, he would put me back on my lifeboat and shove me back out to sea!

Nemo's other interest is plants.  The few times he has spoken to me he said that he once tried to make his own little home plot but he kept finding all these odd looking seeds that he didn't have the skill to grow and he gave up.  With me taking over the fishing duties though he does occasionally head out after sunset and looks for something which he might be able to plant.

His little hut is very primitive; it just has his bed and basin that he fills up with water and uses to clean himself with.

Naturally I'm not allowed to use it but I sneak in occasionally when he's asleep and do my best to clean myself up a bit.

So, this is my life.  Stranded on an island with only the company of a strange man who can barely stand having me around.  I should be miserable but for some reason I'm not.  I love this place and I have already decided that I don't want to leave.  For now Nemo and I have come to some sort of understanding.  We aren't friends but we are getting along.