The raft rode steadily in the morning sun. Luisito couldn’t tell where the ocean ended and the sky began. He still couldn’t believe this was actually happening to him. He kept thinking that maybe he would wake up soon in his sofa bed. Abuela would joke with him as she prepared his breakfast of water with sugar and some leftover bread. But no . . . even today, his desk at school would be empty. He would be marked absent, and his friends would think he was at home sick. They would never imagine he was floating on a raft in the middle of the ocean!
Luisito wondered if he would ever see his friends again. They had been such an important part of his life until only a few days ago.
Lunch and dinner came and went with nothing but water to drink. Luisito didn’t feel weak, but he was very hungry.
Night fell again, and his father used a small kitchen knife to carve another line on the side of the raft to remind him of how many days they had been at sea. With the night came a steady breeze. They used the sheets to keep out the chill.
“What is that?” Luisito said as he felt a nudge on the side of the raft.
“Is it a shark?” Elena gasped, looking at Miguel.
Suddenly the creature leaped out of the water. It wasn’t a shark. It was a dolphin, and as they looked even more dolphins appeared! They were all swimming in circles around the raft.
“I think they’re protecting us!” Luisito smiled.
“That means there are sharks not so far away,” Elena said wearily.
“Look at them, Papi!” Luisito said in amazement.
“They are really something!” Miguel replied.
After a few hours, the dolphins disappeared and Luisito fell asleep, slumped on the raft next to his mother. He hoped the dolphins were smart enough to know the sharks were gone. What if the next nudge he felt was that of a shark?
When the sun rose the next morning it looked so close Luisito felt he could reach out and touch it from the raft. Everything seemed less frightening in the daylight. He was glad it was another day and he was still alive. They had more sips of water. He was so hungry! Suddenly, a loud screeching sound came from the motor—and then there was silence.
“What was that?” Luisito gasped.
“The motor . . . it’s stopped!” his father said in a worried voice. “¡Que barbaridad!”
“Can we fix it, Papi?”
Miguel leaned over the side of the raft to inspect the motor. After several tense minutes he turned back to Luisito and Elena.
“The motor is very hot and I’m afraid to say it, but the motor oil has leaked out from the corroded drain plug. I see the oil floating in the water. ¡Caramba!” he exclaimed, running his fingers through his hair. “It’s ruined. I can’t get it to work again!”
“¿Ay no qué hacemos?” said Elena. “What are we going to do?”
“Don’t worry, Mami,” Luisito said, holding her by the shoulders.
Miguel placed his hands on his face for a few minutes, as if thinking. Then he took a deep breath.
“Okay, no need to panic,” he said. “Let’s keep rowing. I had hoped the old motor wouldn’t break down, but I’m prepared. I brought the oars, and as soon as there is some wind I will put up the fabric and we can sail.”
Without another word, father and son began to take turns rowing. They wanted to get as far as possible during the day. Luisito rowed fast. He hadn’t known he could row that fast!
“Let’s not panic,” Miguel said. “Slow down so you won’t burn out. Keep it steady and then rest. Then you can row some more.”
The sun was hotter than ever, or maybe it just felt like that because Luisito was rowing. It was burning his fair skin. His feet, too, were getting red and a bit swollen. He felt dizzy and nauseated. They fell into a rhythm of rowing and stopping at intervals to rest. Miguel took off his shirt and wet it. He handed it to Luisito.
“Here, put it on your head so you won’t dehydrate,” he said.
Luisito felt the cool relief of the wet shirt on his hot head. He glanced at his mother. She looked weak.
“Have some water, Mami,” Luisito said, giving her the last of his water.
“No, that is for you, son,” Elena said.
“No, Mami. I’m all right, please!” Luisito pleaded.
Miguel nodded at her. Elena took the water and seemed a little better.
Night fell upon them again and the chilly breeze hit Luisito. He felt sharp pains in his arms from rowing, but the mere thought of sharks and other dangers pushed him to continue.
“Don’t row so fast,” Miguel repeated.
Elena opened and closed her eyes as she rested, huddled on the raft. Father and son took a longer rest from rowing and drifted, letting the waves sway the raft along its way. Finally, Luisito’s eyes closed and he fell asleep.
After what seemed like just a few hours, Luisito awoke to see the sun peeking out from under the clouds. There was a gentle breeze, and Miguel put up the bed sheet to use as a sail. The breeze took them swiftly along.
Then suddenly Miguel spotted something on the horizon.
“¡Mira! A ship!” Miguel exclaimed. They all waved their arms. Elena sat up from her crouched position and waved. The raft almost tipped over. But the ship did not appear to see them.
“¡Aquí! ¡Aquí!” Luisito screamed.
“¡Miren! ¡Miren acá!” Miguel shouted. “Please look this way!
“Over here!” Elena waved frantically.
“Can’t they see us?” Miguel said.
“No! Wait!” Elena cried as the ship moved farther and farther away.
Could the crew not see them or were they ignoring them? A mix of emotions was bubbling inside the Ramirez family. Nobody said what they were all thinking: How much longer can we survive on the open sea with no food and no water? Are we really going to make it?
The tension that had built up inside Miguel finally came out. He buried his hands in his face and cried. Luisito could only see his father’s shoulders moving up and down as he sobbed. Elena and Luisito hugged him and wept as well.
“Maybe we shouldn’t have attempted this trip,” Miguel said as he wiped tears from his eyes. “What have I put my family through?”
“Miguel, this was our decision,” Elena said, very determined. “You know we couldn’t continue living in Cuba in constant fear, at least for Luisito’s sake.”
Her face had more color than a few hours ago. Luisito noticed how much his mom reminded him of Abuela— beautiful and fragile but strong when she needed to be. They all sat in the raft silently, drifting without direction.