Beneath the Waves

Questions and Answers

Days passed quickly, Brock and the crew working to recover from the hurricane. Damaged supports had been fixed, welders sealing holes and fixing bent structures. Mechanics fixed machinery, engineers making plans to fix the drills and cranes.

Brock was exhausted, barely having time to eat and shower, getting only a few hours rest before getting right back at it. He wanted to find time to talk to Brian and the others again, his friends agreeing, but they refused to do it when others were around.

Finally, after 8 long days of non stop work, they finally had a break. The bosses told Brock and his shift to take a few hours off, knowing Brock had been working his crew the most.

So that night, after a few hour much needed nap, Brock and his friends hurried out to the railing where no one would see them and stood against the metal, looking out over the water.

"How long do we need to wait?" Tyler asked curiously, eyes trailing the water impatiently. "They didn't say. But I doubt it'll be too long," Brock mused, also eyeing the water.

Sure enough, they only bad to wait about 15 minutes before Brian's head was popping up out of the water, the others not too far behind him. "Hi!" Brian said cheerfully, waving a hand at them.

Brock perked up, waving back. "Hi! I'm so sorry it took us so long, we've had a lot to do after the storm," he apologized and Brian waved a hand carelessly. "We saw. You're a leader of some sorts then, right?" He asked and Brock shrugged.

"He's a senior member, he's been here the longest of all of us except Tyler, and there's only a handful of guys on this rig who've been here longer than him," Jon explained and Brian nodded impressed.

"I've seen many deaths and injuries come from working these pipes, why do you do it?" He asked curiously and Brock shrugged.

"Pays good, I get to live out here in the middle of the ocean for weeks at a time, I've got these guys, and it's hard, satisfying work. Being here to also help the ocean is a plus," he said and Brian tilted his head interested.

"You live here weeks at a time, do you not miss wherever you live otherwise?" He asked and Brock shrugged. "I've got nothing going for me at home, I just sit around, go to the gym, and wait until I can come back. I get to live out here 6 weeks every 3 months, and it's all I look forward to," he said calmly and Tyler placed a hand on his shoulder.

Tyler understood, having lost his fiancée a year after he'd been hired here. His parents were there, but they lived several states away from him and they kept his dogs when he was gone.

Brian hummed, tilting his head before looking at his friends around him. "You guys are good at swimming, yeah?" Evan asked and Brock shrugged. "Not professionals or anything, but we get by," he said and Evan grinned.

"Why don't you guys go get into some better swimming clothes and come join us?" He asked and Brock's eyes widened. "Really?" Tyler asked surprised and the green guy, Daithi, nodded.

"Really. We want to get to know you better and honestly, looking up like this and shouting is kind of bullshit," he said and Tyler grinned at him, Brock laughing.

"Alright, give us like 15 minutes," Brock said and they nodded, slipping under the waves. The group rushed off to get changed, just some basketball shorts and form fitting t shirts except Chrissy who put on spandex shorts and a regular t shirt.

Brock made sure to slip a pocket knife into his pocket, in case they came across any animals that needed to be cut free from netting or anything.

They hurried back outside, avoiding the nightshift workers eyes and reached the railing again. A minute later Brian reappeared, waving for them to join.