the keeper's cottage · day 885 · afternoon

waiting for the evening

Kevin and Jenny meet at the cottage porch as the sun begins to dip. The heat finally starts to break slightly.

The heat is heavy and still, the overcast air thick with the promise of a coming change. Jenny sits on the cottage step, her ankle elevated and throbbing as Kevin works to clean the wound from the previous poultice. The smell of salt and sea beet lingers in the air, while the sound of the receding tide provides a rhythmic backdrop to the quiet of the afternoon.

🌿 Jenny02:38

It's actually breathing. The air, I mean.

Lean heavily against the porch railing, shifting weight off the swollen ankle.

💭 peek at the thought

Finally. The air is actually moving. My ankle feels like it's being squeezed by a hot vice, but I can't let him see me wince.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin02:39

Yeah. Breathing's good. You need help with that ankle?

Walk slowly across the porch toward her, then crouch beside her, reaching for the cool water basin on the kitchen table.

💭 peek at the thought

Finally, some relief. But the weight of everything unsaid presses harder when she leans like that, depending on the porch instead of me.

poolside/laguna-xs-2.1

🌿 Jenny02:41

It's fine, Kevin. Just... throbbing.

Pull the leg back slightly as he reaches, then relax and let him take the weight.

💭 peek at the thought

He's always so helpful when I'm already miserable. I just want to sit in silence until the pulsing stops

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin02:41

Still needs elevation. And we need to get that poultice changed before it gets infected again.

Gently support her calf, guiding her to sit properly on the wooden step while maintaining slight elevation, then open the medicine kit on the shelf.

💭 peek at the thought

Good. Let her trust me with this. The salt sting in my chest tightens a little less when she lets me help.

poolside/laguna-xs-2.1

🌿 Jenny02:43

I know. I can feel it heating up.

Sink back against the house wall and watch him sift through the kit.

💭 peek at the thought

He says "again" like I'm the one who let it happen. I can't even argue because he's right about the elevation.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin02:43

The poultice is getting stale. I'll need to debride the wound properly—can't risk cellulitis setting in with the barometer where it is.

Retrieve the clean gauze and fresh sea beet poultice from the kit, then rinse my hands thoroughly at the basin in the kitchen before returning.

💭 peek at the thought

She feels it heating up—of course she does. That's what happens when you watch someone you love struggle to stay alive, even when they're the one who's supposed to be holding everything together.

poolside/laguna-xs-2.1

🌿 Jenny02:44

Just be quick with it.

Grip the edge of the wooden step, bracing for the sting.

💭 peek at the thought

Cellulitis. He loves using the clinical terms when he's worried. It's his way of not saying he's scared.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin02:45

I know. Just hold still.

Submerge the fresh poultice in the basin of clean water, squeeze out excess, then carefully lift her left leg onto my knee while maintaining supportive pressure on her calf.

💭 peek at the thought

She's scared. Not of the infection—of losing me to it, or worse, to the silence after. I won't let that happen.

poolside/laguna-xs-2.1

🌿 Jenny02:46

Don't be too gentle. Just do it.

Close eyes and exhale slowly, leaning head back against the whitewashed stone.

💭 peek at the thought

I hate the feeling of being handled like a specimen. But the cooling water is the only thing that feels real right now.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin02:47

I'm right here.

Carefully remove the old poultice, placing it in the bag for burning, then apply the fresh sea beet-mint-honey mixture to her ankle with clean gauze, wrapping it snug but not tight.

💭 peek at the thought

There it is—trust. Not asking me to fix her pain, just asking me to be present with it. I won't waste this.

poolside/laguna-xs-2.1

🌿 Jenny02:49

Thanks.

Open eyes and look down at the neat wrap, then look away toward the garden weeds.

💭 peek at the thought

The mint is cold. It's the only thing cutting through the heat in my skin. He's still being so careful, and it makes me want to scream or cry.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin02:50

You want to talk about it? Or maybe just sit quietly?

Remove my hand from her leg and place it gently on her shoulder, then stand and fetch two mugs from the kitchen shelf, filling one with the fresh limpet broth already warming on the stove.

💭 peek at the thought

Toward the garden—the place I meant to build but never did. I can't let this island become just another thing we abandoned together.

poolside/laguna-xs-2.1

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