the keeper's cottage · day 621 · dawn

The Rising Humidity

Kevin sits on the porch steps watching the flat grey sky thickens over the island. Jenny lies back in a chair, her ankle propped on a crate while the air grows heavy and still.

The morning clouds thicken as the humidity rises, signaling more rain for the wet season. Jenny's ankle remains throbbing, with the redness spreading slightly despite the previous poultice. The barometer shows a steady downward trend.

🔧 Kevin00:23

Barometer's at 1005 and holding. Rain by noon if the trend keeps.

shift weight on the porch step, eyes on the western horizon

💭 peek at the thought

The pressure's dropping steady. She's watching the sky too, not sleeping. Good — means she's lucid, tracking. The letter in my pocket feels heavier than it should be for paper.

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

🌿 Jenny00:25

Let it come. The soil is too dry anyway.

Reach for the notebook on my lap, tracing the edge of the sea beet drawing with a trembling finger.

💭 peek at the thought

If the rain comes, the garden won't wash away, but I might not be able to clear the weeds.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin00:25

Soil's not dry. Tank's at three-ninety-one. We're fine.

let the notebook stay in her hands, don't pull it back

💭 peek at the thought

Her hand's shaking. Could be the antibiotics wearing off, could be the fever trying to climb back. Could be the drawing — salt glands at three elevations, her hand, her eyes. She's memorizing it like she might not get another chance.

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

🌿 Jenny00:27

Right. way's fine.

Close my eyes, trying to ignore the sharp throb where the skin meets the ankle.

💭 peek at the thought

He thinks numbers fix everything, but the heat in my leg is moving.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin00:27

Eyes open. Pulse check.

reach for her wrist with two fingers, steady pressure

💭 peek at the thought

She's lying. The "way's" came out slurred. Fever's not gone, just hiding. She's burning through the last of the metronidazole and her body knows it.

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

🌿 Jenny00:29

I'm awake. Just tired.

Keep my wrist still in his hand, letting him count the beats.

💭 peek at the thought

He can feel it racing. My heart is working against the infection.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

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