Along all the coast of Rio, there is a great number of small archipelagos that aren't inhabited, though frequented by tourists in boat excursions looking for the untouched tropical beauty present on them and a good view of the city from the sea. However, the islands also have a great deal of marine life on their shores, which was the prime reason Prof. Fukuda chose them for our dive.
On a day of high temperatures soaring well over 30 °C, at the navy port in downtown, our pack was anxiously waiting for the arrival of the boat that would lead us to the dive spot. As I was still unaccustomed to the constant high temperatures of the city, being exposed to the sun for long periods of time did not have any positive impact on me, but rather gave me some serious headaches and the beginning of a dehydration. Trying to relieve the heat I was feeling, Maria was fanning her hat for me and pouring water on my head occasionally. I just wasn't feeling that well….
Am I fit for diving today? Maybe I should just return home and go diving by myself on whatever excursion there is on a less hot day….
"Hey, Miyuki." - In the midst of the intense heat, I heard a strange voice calling for me. It wasn't from Maria or from any other of the group.
Hum?
"Are you feeling alright?" - Extending his arm toward me and holding an energy drink. A surprising figure showed up that Sunday morning
"Wait, what!? Carlos!? What are you doing here?"
"Ah! The weird journal guy!!!" - Maria shouted.
"Hey, take the drink already" - He threw the bottle in my direction, just for me to catch it in the air. - "And yeah, thanks for the comment, Maria. You're also a lovely person."
"Uh… Thanks" - I responded, while he turned his back to us to face the ocean.
"Sorry, but it was just a bit unexpected. Can I ask you why you are here?"
"Well…. It's my grandma."
"What about it?"
"She asked me to come here and take some photos of you guys" - Indeed, he had his top tier camera wrapped around his neck.
"But why the sudden interest in us?"
"It is not every day that a university group gets to be sponsored by the navy, and she thought that the story could be sold to a journal in order to become a headline."
"Well, that's what she thinks, I couldn't care much for this journal" - Why the need to make such a mean comment? - "But I owe her, so I didn't complain. And actually, I do think I can make some great shots out of this trip..."
"That kinda makes sense… I think. Indeed, it is a unique event" - I agreed.
That moment, Prof. Fukuda, realizing the arrival of Carlos, and the awkwardness of the situation, intervened and presented him to the rest of the group.
"Ah! Guys! Come closer! Let me introduce our official photographer for this excursion. This is Carlos, he is from the journalism course and is looking forward to getting some good shots of our trip" - The boys gave Carlos a timid smile, but also couldn't care less; they, like Maria, were just too excited for the dive.
"Uh… Yeah, thank you guys for having me on this trip."
"Anyway, shall we go? The captain is waiting for us!"
"Yay!" - Everybody shouted together.
I've never been in a military vessel, and although this was no big destroyer but more of a high-tech motorboat, it was still pretty cool to see the sailors with their neat uniforms and the boat with its gray colored hull that was characteristic of military ships. Oliver and Ricardo in particular were very interested in the sonar and radar apparatus that the boat had, while Maria and I were just enjoying the much-appreciated refreshing breeze, which prompted Maria (in my view something crazy) to pull and wear a jacket as she was "getting cold from the wind." I don't know how you can get cold with a 33 °C temperature, but I guess I'm less used to a hot climate than they are.
Carlos maintained his distance and didn't start any conversations with us. He indeed was an awkward fellow, and so far, has been a real ass in my opinion. I wasn't comfortable being with him in the same space, but... While we were travelling, I noticed that there was something different about him that day. Opposite to his normally uneasy way, while he observed the calm sea waves, there was something about him that just transmitted a more peaceful aura, with his usually defensive and aggressive attitude not being apparent. His serene expression was clear, as the wind agitated his blond curls and the sun highlighting his hazel eyes, passing a totally different impression from what I perceived of him when we first met last month. It was…. Strangely beautiful. I wonder what makes him hide in his everyday life this beautiful expression that he presented at that moment. He seemed a much more approachable person now than ever.
Staring at him a bit longer than one would expect, Carlos noticed me checking him out, which prompted me to suddenly turn my head away, blushing a bit. He didn't seem to care that much, but it sure got me embarrassed as I didn't want him to make any wrong assumptions.
Maria, a carefree person and unaware of the situation, right after it, shouted to Carlos:
"Heeeey, weird camera guy, come here."
No need to be that harsh, right, Maria?
"Uh?" - Carlos Just mumbled. He was back to his old grumpy and unapproachable self. That serene aura faded in an instant. Maybe he didn't like social interaction that much?
"Come here! We want to be your models!"
"Models? You think a bit high of yourself."
"Tch, you're no fun. Just come here and take a picture of us, I want to have a photo from this day."
"Well, whatever" - Carlos came closer to take the picture, while Maria passed her arms around my shoulder, pulling me closer to her
"Whenever you are ready."
SNAP
"See here on the camera if you liked it…."
"Wow! That's a pretty good one huh? But what can you do, with such good models? Ha-ha" - Maria laughed out loud. Carlos only sighed and didn't respond.
"Heeeey, Maria! Come here!" - It was Oliver shouting out for her
"What's up, Oliver?"
"Come here, I think you will like this hardware!"
"Okaaay, hold on" - And just like that, Maria left me alone with the awkward Carlos.
Maria, you traitor!
Despite being an intense person occasionally, Carlos didn't seem much of a social interaction guy but more of a direct person, this has been made very clear during the storage incident, but he surely wasn't in for small talk. I didn't feel very comfortable being alone and in total silence with someone who wasn't from my circle. So, I decided to then start a conversation to light up the mood just a bit.
"V-very hot today, isn't it?"
He did not respond. In fact, he didn't even turn his head in my direction.
Well, whatever, it's not like I cared...
"Thank you" - Responded Carlos, in an unexpected way.
That took me by surprise; I didn't respond immediately but turned my head toward him to understand the reason for this unusual remark coming from someone that was usually very rude.
"I, uh…. You know. Thanks for praising my photos back that day."
Oh, he must be talking about the photos from that incident. Well, they did look good, so I just stated what I thought.
"O-oh, you don't need to, actually it was partially because of me that you lost that opportunity, right? Despite that, they really looked cool. I mean, I don't understand that much about photography, but you could feel something more sensitive coming from them."
"Do you really think so!?" - His tone was louder and showed excitement. Again, very unusual. He changed the pacing of the conversation very quickly.
"Y-yes, I think so."
"Happy to hear it!" - A smile.
A big and sincere smile that completely changed his aura. It was so unexpected but so honest that it made me blush again. For a moment it seemed that I've never met that sour and bitter person, but a likeable, enjoyable, and…
…. Attractive one.
A-anyway! I guess Carlos was just a person surrounded by an aura of mystery, right!?
"Have a nice dive down there!"
"T-thanks."
He is indeed a very peculiar person and can be likeable when he tries. I wonder why he chooses to be so distant from other people?