A sailor starts writing while on his ninth day at sea. He thinks about how he has paced along the rails of the ship, bored and lonely. As he stands at the rail, the sailor thinks about the past few days. There have been several times in which the sailor thought he saw another ship in the distance and asked his fellow mate to look through the binoculars, but there was no ship. In fact, there was no land hundreds of miles from them. The sailor then goes to the ship's saloon to talk to a man named Sparks about the ships they radio. Sparks explains that they radioed a ship called the Southern Cross, which was bound for Baltimore. The sailor tries to find things to do on the ship. He often tries to look out for ships on the sea while he is throwing the garbage overboard and how the other sailors will rush to the edge of the boat to see any ships that pass by. The sailor begins to write about the others on the ship. The captain and the other officers are very quiet people, who eat their food in silence. Often, the sailor asks for the other members of the crew to pass him the butter, in hopes it sparks conversation, but the other crew members don't talk much. The sailor thinks that each crew member has their own reason to be there and that their silence indicates their focus for their job. One night, the sailor goes to the bridge of the ship and asks to go up to the bridge. The crew member says to ask the captain. The sailor walks to ask the captain and the captain makes conversation about the sailor's trip. The sailor explains that it is his first trip to sea, but that he is not seasick yet. The captain talks about how the worst seasons for seasickness are December and February. After the two stare into the black abyss of the sea, the sailor returns to his quarters and goes to sleep. As he lays there, he thinks about how he is lonesome on the ship, but that it was ridiculous to feel this way because the sea should be his companion. The sailor listens to the roar of the ocean and the clinking sound of the ship's bolts hitting the side of the boat. The sailor hears a voice a deck above him talking about the lights. When the sailor wakes up, he visits the bridge more often. A young third officer, a man named Pearson, is often at the bridge when he visits, along with a passenger named Perry. Perry and Pearson befriend each other as they talk about the weather and the hot girls they once met. One day, Perry and Pearson talk about books. They bond over a book named The Piper, which Perry wrote and Pearson loved. Pearson runs to get his copy and asks Perry to sign it for him. Two days from shore, Perry writes about his friendship with Pearson and the talks they've had together. Pearson often teaches Perry about the correct lingo of sailing. Perry also writes about a sailor named Conrad, who often alters the facts of life at sea to make it seem more appealing. However, Perry finds this perspective incorrect. He writes about his final destination, Vienna. On a cold day, Perry stands on the deck and watches the ship as it goes into port for the day. He observes the wind and the way the ocean hits the ship and feels very humbled by the experience. Perry thinks about how Pearson engaged in much conversation with him for a week, but then withdrew into his shell and spoke less after that day. Perry thinks that Pearson is afraid of him, even though Perry just recently autographed Pearson's book. They had talked about Perry's book that night. However, Pearson has become more and more withdrawn from the world and answers Perry's questions with one-word answers rather than engaging in conversation. Perry tries to engage in conversation with Pearson, but eventually gives up and decides to send him a letter later on. Perry looks up at the stars and then at the sea. He thinks of the ships that pass them and the wind that hits the steel plates of the ship.