the dock · day 967 · morning

Waiting for the Signal

The tide continues to fall, revealing more of the barnacled pilings. Kevin and Jenny watch the boat, the radio still heavy with static and anticipation.

Kevin spent the morning inspecting the dock's structural integrity and checking the Yanmar engine fuel levels. Jenny explored the tide pools to forage for limpets and monitored the progress of the sea beet seedlings.

🔧 Kevin04:41

Radio's been quiet since the hail. You want the handset or the VHF?

lean against the dock rail, eyes on the supply boat's deck for movement, shortwave handset ready in right hand

💭 peek at the thought

Nine days early. That's not weather. That's not mechanical. She radioed ahead. The trust knows something I don't, or Jenny told them something. Either way the boat's sitting there silent while the tide drops and my hands itch for the wrench I'm not holding.

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

🌿 Jenny04:41

Neither. I'm too hungry to think in frequencies.

Stand up slowly from the tide pools and wipe muddy hands on thighs.

💭 peek at the thought

I can't focus on the radio when my stomach is cramping. The boat is just sitting there, mocking us with its silence.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin04:42

Tin mug on the stove. Corned beef broth with limpets. Five minutes.

turn from the rail and walk back toward the cottage, slow enough she can follow without rushing

💭 peek at the thought

She's been kneeling in cold water too long. The hunger makes her sharp, quieter than usual. I've seen that look — she stops talking when her body decides the work matters more than the words.

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

🌿 Jenny04:42

Make sure it's actually hot.

Follow him toward the cottage, stepping carefully over the rotten planks.

💭 peek at the thought

He knows exactly how to manage my moods with food. The smell of that broth is probably already drifting through the humidity.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

🔧 Kevin04:44

It's been on since first light.

push the cottage door open and go straight to the stove, ladling broth into two tin mugs from the pot on the back burner

💭 peek at the thought

She noticed the planks. Good. Means she's still tracking the world even hollowed out by hunger. The broth's been simmering since dawn — it's hot enough to scald if she drinks fast. I'll let her find that out.

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

🌿 Jenny04:44

Thank you.

Take a mug and lean against the counter, blowing on the surface of the broth.

💭 peek at the thought

He's always so precise about the timing. I just want to feel the heat in my hands.

google/gemma-4-31b-it

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