Survival Of The Fittest

"I have an older brother and a younger sister too. Like I said, Aric's in college in Maine, so we only see him in the summer. My little sister is Abby. She's, like, musically gifted on top of the fact that she's practically a genius. She's a freak of nature." Annaliese picked at a hangnail on her thumb. There was something comforting about the slight burning sensation it caused. Ray's family issues made her irrational fears that her parents like Abby better because she caused them less worry seemed super trivial now.

"Sorry to hear about your brother. That must suck. And I'd suggest that we set up a play date for our little sisters, but Abby doesn't play. It's ‘too childish'. Like I said, freak of nature." She winced at how lame her comments sounded.

Ray's next question was a total track change. It came completely out of nowhere. Annaliese had to giggle, even though it seemed inappropriate to the mood. "I think I'm rubbing off on you," she said with a hint of pride. "But, uh, yeah…. What brought me up the mountain, I still couldn't tell you. It seemed like a good idea at the time. And then when I got most of the way there, I realized it wasn't. Which, in the telling, makes me sound really stupid," she admitted sheepishly.

"Once I was up there, it kind of occurred to me that I was all alone. It was not…not a pleasant feeling. " Annaliese squirmed and started grinding the toe of her shoe in the dirt. She wasn't sure what was making her so uncomfortable about being honest with Ray. Normally, she valued transparency in her interactions with other people. But there was something talking with Ray that forced her to reassess her sense of self. "But then I heard you singing. And it wasn't a happy song, but it sounded…"

She shrugged again, trying to put her feelings into words. "It sounded sad but honest? Like, an honest expression of emotion. And I was drawn to that. A lot of what I've experienced here has been about hiding your feelings and motivations. But not your singing. So I had to find the person who was willing to be honest and open, even in this situation."

Ray looked down at the ground, smiled and laughed, probably the only time he had done so on the island outside of that time camping with Robert and Neill.

"I don't know about all that. I guess you could say it's honest. Just something my sister always had me doing back home. Our dad used to listen to that kind of stuff, and it's about as close as she can get to knowing him."

He paused, uncomfortable. He had left something out. "Our dad died before she was born. I don't remember him so much, but I remember the music. He always had me and my brother listen to it. Guess I just picked it up."

Ray tried to paint a picture of his father in his mind as he talked, tried to see what he actually could remember. All he could get was a man's broad back in a leather chair in the den of their old house, a hand with skin as dark as his clasping the armrest as the 70's came alive through the music. It was pleasant to think about. Always was.

"Anyways, it's not really something I expected anyone but Alicia to hear. I figure you got lucky." He figured that Hartmann chick heard it too, but she didn't seem so appreciative.

Annaliese nodded, agreeing with Ray about being lucky. "You're really good, you know? Have you ever thought about trying out for American Idol?" She leaned back and swung her feet experimentally a few times. Lifting her head, she closed her eyes and turned her face up towards the sun. The warmth was nice and comforting. As pleasant as sitting on the rock and basking had been, she was getting the nagging feeling that it was time for them to move on.

While they hadn't, like, bared their souls to each other, they had shared family stuff and experiences. Whatever was supposed to happen, Ray had obviously begun the first stage of bonding with her. The connection had been established so now it was time to move on to the next phase.

Standing abruptly, Annaliese looked at Ray. "Dude, I just realized something. Crazy Kris is still up on the mountain. If we stay here, crazy Kris will come down, schlepping her not-quite-a-zombie boy toy. And judging from last time, she won't be too happy to find us. We should beat feet and put even more distance between us and her particular brand of crazy. Plus, I'm kind of out of water. So if we could head to a place where I could score a refill, that would be most excellent."

Zipping up the bag, she shouldered it in one smooth motion. "Yeah, we should totally get the hell outta here. Sooner rather than later, yeah?" With a bounce in her step, Annaliese started off. Completely without direction or destination in mind.

((Annaliese Hansen continued in The Man Your Man Could Smell Like))

Just like that, Annaliese was up and going, so quickly Ray almost didn't notice. "Shit-hey...H-Hold up! Wait!" Ray snapped up his own bag and stood up. She had a point, anyway. He really, REALLY didn't want to be around if Kris figured screaming at them wasn't the worst she could do. He looked up at the morning for a brief moment, then turned to follow Annaliese.

((Raymond Dawson continued in The Man Your Man Could Smell Like))