Lost Island

  It was the beginning of the summer, my boyfriend and I wanted to go on a trip this break. We had talked about many places we wanted to explore and this summer we wanted to explore as many as possible. That leads us to decide to go on a cruise. This was very last minute so we knew we wouldn’t be able to get on a fancy cruise. We looked at available options and finally, we found one called Lost Island. It was going to leave from Florida and we live in Nebraska so we had to fly down there. We thought the ship name sounded great. It sounded like a ship that would take us to a lost island that hasn’t been explored. We looked for reviews before booking it, but for some reason, there wasn’t any. The ship was fairly small so there was a maximum of only fifty guests stated on their website. We were booked to leave June 1st and get back July 1st. It was going to be a month-long trip so we had to pack a lot.

It was now the night before the plane ride to Florida and we had everything packed and ready. We went to bed that night and couldn’t wait to leave Nebraska for Florida. We woke up the next morning and we packed all of our last minute things before we left before the airport. Our plan was set to arrive in Florida the day before we left for the cruise, so we ended up booking a cheap hotel room since it was only for one night. Once we had got to the airport we went through security and all that and made it to our gate on time. When we got in Florida we took a Uber to our hotel and went straight to bed.

It’s now the morning we get up early and do a quick morning routine. After that, we walk to a near Starbucks and get our coffee because we know it’s going to be a long day. We get our coffee then call an Uber to come to pick us up and bring us to the loading dock. Once we got in the Uber and he asked to wear we told him to the loading dock. He asked us what cruise we were going on and we told him. He said that he knew someone that went on that cruise but never made it back. We laughed because we thought he was joking, but we would learn he wasn’t. He drops us off and says good luck and has a nice trip. We said thank you and got our stuff and got out. When we got to the loading dock there weren’t very many people there, only like ten which surprised me because on the website it said they were about booked. I thought it was weird, but I ignored it. We thought maybe everyone else was running late. My first impression of the ship was that it looked sketchy. It was a semi-decent sized ship but it just looked old. We talked to the others that were waiting with us and they agreed. They were all older men and women and we were the only young couple.  We started to load on the ship. Someone took us to our room so we could bring our stuff there. After that, we had to head back to the main part because they had to do safety stuff. After that, we headed back to our rooms to unpack. The room was a decent size. It had a bathroom with a shower/bath, sink, and toilet. The room had a king-size bed and a forty-two-inch t.v. As you can tell it was a regular room like you would get when staying at a hotel. There were two dressers so I got one and my boyfriend got one. We started to unpack all of our stuff. We then heard that we were getting ready to leave so we laid in our bed and watched out our window while we started to take off. We were excited about this trip and to see the adventures it takes us on. The only thing we were worried about is what our Uber driver had said in the car. We kept brushing it off, but it always came back to our minds. This was going to take one week to get to our destination. 

It was now a couple of hours into the trip. We had many more long and boring hours. To go. We had been in our room unpacking when over the loudspeaker they called us to the main part of the ship. We got shoes on and headed out there with the other people. All of the rooms were right by each other so we all walked together. Once we got there they asked how it was going and if we liked it so far. Everyone said yes. They just wanted to talk to us about a few more things including meal times, what time we should go back to our rooms, and some of the activities. They had a personal chef on board and he looked nice and like he could cook all of us agreed. He had shown us some of the foods he had made and asked us if we had any allergies and the things we liked and disliked.  The food looked super good and my boyfriend and I were so excited to get to eat. After the food discussion, the main person talked about some activities. He showed us around the ship showing us the pool, hot tub, pool table, etc. That took about an hour, then we headed to the main dining room to eat breakfast. My boyfriend and I had got the same thing which was a steak and cheese omelet and hashbrowns with coffee. It was delicious. After that, we just went back to our rooms. 

Four days later and we were over halfway there. The food so far had been amazing. The hot tub was hot and the pool felt nice when we were getting too hot. We had played some pool but mostly spent time in our room because we were very bored and things got repetitive after the third day. We watched t.v, read some books we brought, played some board games we had also brought, and done some crafts. 

On the seventh night, we went to bed hoping that when we woke up we would have arrived at our destination. Its morning and we were woken up by someone talking over the loudspeaker saying we had arrived. We were pumped and ready to go explore. The ship would park at a dock so we would still be able to sleep on it each night, but we were allowed t go anywhere on this island because it wasn’t super big. The island looked pretty nice overall. It was tropical looking. There were places to eat, animals to explore, and much more. My boyfriend and I got our stuff ready and the passengers and I unloaded the ship. While we were gone we were told that the maids onboard were going to be cleaning our rooms and the entire ship. We all said okay and started to explore. 

The first place my boyfriend and I went was to get some food. There was a restaurant called the Lost restaurant and it seemed good. There were other places to eat, but that was the first one that caught my eye. We walked over there and ordered food. All of their food was tropical. We then sat down and ate. After we ate we went and explored the island for the rest of the day. Around 7:00 pm we went back to the ship and started to get ready for bed. We played some games until we fell asleep at around 10:00 pm.

The next morning we woke up around 9:00 am and got ready for the day. The crew had told us there were some pretty cool waterfalls on the other side of the island, but it was a 3-hour walk there and a three-hour walk back. There was nothing to bring us back there so our only option was to walk. There were no places to eat so the chefs on the ship made us easy food we could bring with us and eat when we got hungry. All of the passengers including my boyfriend and I decided we were going to go see the waterfalls. We were told we were allowed to swim where the waterfalls went down so we had to make sure we had our bathing suits and dry clothes. Once again the crew members were all going to stay back to clean up the ship and get everything ready for when we got back. We were all excited to go see the waterfalls. We start our journey to the other side of the island. After about halfway there we stopped and took a break because we were getting tired and had a snack break. After the break, we got back up and finished our walk to the waterfalls. After three hours we finally arrived at the waterfalls. They were absolutely beautiful and crystal clear. We all had our bathing suits on under our clothes so we took off our dry clothes and hopped in the water. The water was 70 degrees so it wasn't too hot or too cold. It felt amazing especially after our three-hour walk there. We stayed there for about two hours until we decided we should probably head back. We got out of the water, dried off, and ate some food before starting the three-hour walk back. There was a trail we followed on the way to the waterfall so all we had to do was follow it back to get back to the ship. On the way back we didn't take any breaks because we were all tired and just wanted to get back to the ship so we could take a nap.

Once we had arrived back to where the ship was supposed to be we couldn't find the ship. We started looking around to see if maybe we got lost. We realized we hadn't got lost because my boyfriend and I had seen the restaurant we had eaten at the day before. The ship and all of the crew members were gone. They had put all of our items on the beach and put some food on there as well before they left. The only people on the island were us, passengers, the ship, and the restaurant workers. We had gone and asked the workers if they had seen where the ship went but they all said it must have left when they were taking their nap. We started getting worried and looking around. Eventually, we found a paper nailed to a tree saying that they had left and they weren't coming back. It also said to ask the restaurant workers how they got there because they experienced the same thing.

We walked up to the restaurant workers and asked them why they were there. They all said that years prior they had gone on that ship for a vacation and the ship left them here. They tried to find a way back but eventually gave up and decided to make the most out of it. They built their restaurants because they knew the ship was going to keep on doing this to the people that decided to join. The restaurant workers were told that if they let any of the visitors know what was going to happen before the ship had left, the crew members were going to have to kill them. 

Fast forward about a week. They should have been leaving the island for their way back home, but they were still stuck on the island. They had asked the workers and people before them to help them build shelters and little houses to stay in while they tried to find a way back.

Now another week goes by, they are still stuck on the island. This is the day they should be arriving back in Florida where they would be getting picked up by their parents. Their parents had arrived and seen the ship but none of the passengers were anywhere to be found. The parents and family members of all of the passengers were all starting to worry where they all were. They asked and asked the crew members where they were but they just kept saying they didn't know. Eventually, after a couple of hours, the crew members say that they must have forgotten them on an island so if they wanted to see their family and children they would have to board the ship and take the week-long journey out there to see them. They thought and thought about it when the family of the missing passengers decided they would go on the ship because they just wanted to find everyone. They all got on the ship without anything. They didn't bring anything because they never expected to be going on a cruise in the first place.

One week later... The families had arrived they saw in the sand writing that said help. They started yelling their names until finally all of the passengers heard it and went to the beach. They saw their family members standing there. They all ran crying and jumping into their arms because they missed them. The crew members said to the passengers that were already there that they should take their families to see the waterfalls. They agreed. They all acted like they were going to show them, but about ten minutes into their walk where the crew couldn't see them they stop. They tell their families this is how they trick us into staying on the island and they leave us and they won't come back for us. They all came up with an excellent plan. They got the workers of the restaurants involved in it also. The plan was to act as they went to the waterfalls. Then while the crew members were not paying attention they would sneak back onto the boat so they could get back home. Their plan was set and stone.

About ten minutes later they heard the boat get ready to leave and the crew members boarding. They started heading to the boat. There was a secret passage on the side that the passengers had found when in their rooms, so they all used that and got on. Now that the recent passengers, their families, and the workers were all aboard they were ready to be back home. They had to be super quiet because if they were heard they didn't know what was going to happen to them. They had the food and water that the crew members recently gave them when they were supposed to be going to the waterfalls. They somehow had to make that last them a week. They were just determined to make it back home because they deeply missed their families.

Now a week later… They were finally back in Flordia. Once the boat was on the dock and locked up they got out through the secret passage on the side of the boat. The crew members were very shocked because they never expected them to be there. Other passengers were waiting to board the ship but the people that had just gotten off yelled to call the cops and told them not to get on. They all got ahold of their families while the cops were on their way. The cops showed up one minute later and were told the stories. The crew members were all arrested and put into jail. That ship is no longer running. All of the passengers made it back safely home and to their families

-t swifty