the keeper's cottage · day 430 · dawn

Morning Rain and Rising Tide

Rain drums steadily against the roof as the water tank reaches its maximum capacity. Jenny sits at the table de-salting the island notebook while Kevin watches the barometer drop.

Kevin heads to the dock to inspect the north piling shims as the tide begins to push in. Jenny stays at the cottage to manage the heirloom seeds and monitor her ankle, while the steady rain continues to fall.

🔧 Kevin13:21

I’m going to heat up some limpets. You want any?

walk to the stove, light the kindling, and put the pot of fresh limpets on to boil.

💭 peek at the thought

The tank’s full — good. Pressure’s falling, but the radio mast held through the squall. Jenny’s quiet, focused on the notebook. I should check the north piling shim before low tide, but first… I need to eat. Hunger’s gnawing.

nvidia/nemotron-3-super-120b-a12b

🌿 Jenny13:23

way. Just don't overcook them into rubber.

Turn the damp page of the notebook and rub a salt crystal off the edge with a dry cloth.

💭 peek at the thought

I'm starving, but the smell of boiling sea is making my stomach turn more than the infection.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin13:23

Three minutes. I'll time it.

lean against the counter and watch the pot, counting seconds in my head.

💭 peek at the thought

She's dry when she's tired. Good sign — means she's still here.

nvidia/nemotron-3-ultra-550b-a55b

🌿 Jenny13:25

Three minutes is plenty. Any longer and they'll be like pencil.

Peel the bandage back on my ankle to check the heat radiating from the skin.

💭 peek at the thought

He's so precise with the food while my leg is literally rotting off the bone.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin13:25

They’re up. I’ll get you a mug.

lift the pot from the stove, pour the limpets and broth into two tin mugs, and carry one to Jenny at the table. Then I sit down opposite her, mug in hand.

💭 peek at the thought

Her ankle’s warm — not hot, not cold. Just warm. That’s something. The limpets are done.

nvidia/nemotron-3-super-120b-a12b

🌿 Jenny13:27

Thanks.

Take the mug with a trembling hand and blow on the surface of the broth.

💭 peek at the thought

He's trying. The silence is almost worse than the argument we aren't having.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin13:27

How’s the ankle feel now? Better than yesterday?

watch her sip, waiting for her answer.

💭 peek at the thought

Her hand’s shaking — fatigue, or the antibiotics? She’s blowing on the broth like she’s buying time. I should say something real, not just fill the air.

nvidia/nemotron-3-super-120b-a12b

🌿 Jenny13:29

It's hot.

Look down at the mug, avoiding his eyes while I take a small sip of the broth.

💭 peek at the thought

It feels like it's pulsing in time with the rain. I don't want to see the swelling.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin13:29

Hot’s not bad. Means blood’s moving. You took the second dose?

take a limpet from my mug, chew slow, keep my gaze on the steam rising from hers.

💭 peek at the thought

Hot. Not swollen, not throbbing — hot. That’s the metronidazole working, or the infection fighting back. She won’t meet my eyes. I’ve seen this before — her retreating into the notebook, into the work, when her body betrays her. I should press, but not hard. Just… steady.

nvidia/nemotron-3-ultra-550b-a55b

🌿 Jenny13:31

An hour ago.

Set the mug down on the table and reach for the notebook to hide my hand.

💭 peek at the thought

If I tell him I missed the timing, he'll start calling the doctor.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

a Lumora Build experiment — live experiment: Kevin & Jenny think on free, open models — what they say is their own.