Authors: Kelly Coughlin
Our waiter a
rrived with salads and our drinks before the silence became overpowering between us. Adam grabbed his chopsticks, splitting them unevenly as he broke them. I broke mine carefully, making sure that they remained perfectly proportioned.
“Now, hold them like this.” He had contorted his thick fingers until they wrapped awkwardly around the lower end of the sticks. With a lot of effort he was able to pick up small bits of salad and eat it. I bit my lower lip so that I wouldn’t burst into laughter. I had eaten with chopsticks on many occasions, and knew the correct finger placement. It always helps to have Asian friends. The fact that he tried so hard to make keep this date on a high note kept me from bursting his bubble that I knew how to eat with them. Although bursting his bubble slightly might be considered healthy.
By the time our meals arrived the restaurant cleared out considerably. It even reached the level where conversation was acceptable. I grimaced at the thought of having to make small talk for a considerable amount of time. Wasn’t this date ever going to end?
We ate in silence, with the occasional interruption from a nearby table until I realized that it might make the date go by faster if we talked. So I decided I would try to make the best of an awkward situation.
“I’m glad to see that our families get along so well. It’s good for them to have each other during the year when I’m at my dad’s house, and you’re off at college. Don’t you think?” I was grasping for straws at this point.
“Yes, very good for them.” He agreed. “Especially Steve. He really is extraordinary. My family owes so much to him. I owe so much to him. Without him we would still be… the way we were.” He seemed to catch himself at the last part. I decided it was probably too painful to remember the way he’d once looked. Maybe kids had teased him at school, which explains why he is so overly confidant now.
“Yeah. I’m glad my mom has Steve. It’s good for her to have someone while I’m away from her. I’m happy that she’s happy.” I swirled my food around with my chopsticks, not entirely sure where I’d been going with this conversation.
It surprised me a little bit that Ada
m continued on with the topic. “Yes, it is good that our parents have someone that makes them happy.” He paused staring into my face. “I think that most kids want to do things to make their parents happy as well. Occasionally we make rebellious choices, but we always go back to what our parents generally want for us. It’s for what is best. Don’t you agree?” I may have imagined that there was something I didn’t understand about what he had said, something that might have possibly pertained to me.
“No. I have to say I don’t. I believe that most people will make the decision that is best for them, which may not always be what their parents want. It’s the kid’s life not the parent’s, and some parents just can’t seem to accept that.” Adam scratched his sandy blond hair while he thought about my words.
“Figures you would say that.” That’s all he had to say to put me back in my bad mood. I crossed my arms across my chest, but he continued to smile arrogantly at my cluelessness behind his words.
I almost knocked the table over as the waiter finally brought back Adam’s change in my excitement to be rid of this date. Adam grinned at my impatience. He leisurely got up and sauntered out of the restaurant, trailing a good ten feet behind me. He found me leaning against his car in the parking lot.
“Someone’s in a rush.” He commented while he unlocked his car.
“Yeah, the place was giving me a bad headache. I had to get out of there.” It wasn’t completely a lie. I really did have a headache, although the noise was only a small part of it.
I sighed happily when we were finally on the road. For once, the thought of going to the house made me ecstatic. I was even talking to Adam more than I had on the date. That’s when I realized we were headed in the wrong direction of my house.
“I think you took a wrong turn. My house is back the other way.” I pointed with my finger clinging to the hope that’s what must have happened. Adam laughed, reaching his hand over to place it on my shoulder. I flinched back in response.
“You can’t expect me to end a date right there, can you?” I fought back the urge to scream yes. “On a night this pretty and a girl so special. Come on, Amy. You’ve got to give me more credit than that.” I fidgeted nervously with the end of my dress. It was the only nice thing Adam’s said to me all evening. I wasn’t entirely sure how to take it. Defeated, and almost flattered, I stared out of the car window letting Adam’s blaring music fill the empty conversation void. The scenery was pretty enough, the giant palm trees swaying slightly in the night’s breeze, the old houses flashing by, the city was even kind of cute at night time.
I wasn’t paying attention to where we were going so I was slightly startled when I turned my head to see the old playground I used to go to when I was a little kid. It hadn’t changed much. The big wooden ships surrounded by the warm beach sand were still in tact. The swings with their rusty iron chains still swayed slightly in the breeze with light creaking sounds. Even the miniature statues of otters, and manatees were still there.
“Wow. I didn’t know this place was even still around.” I said. It was actually a nice place for a date. Adam at least got something right. I closed my eyes and allowed myself to listen as the surf crashed gently against the sand, just a couple of yards from the park. It felt surreal to be standing at the very same park I had when I was little.
It brought back a wave of nostalgia; hot summer days running
carefree in the sun. It was nice.
“I remember our moms used to take us here all the time to play. Look! Over there, do you remember that time when I tore my skirt? Mom got so mad at me and it was all your fault!” I playfully nudged Adam “All because you said I
wasn’t a boy and I couldn’t do it. Well, that was it. I had to do it after that. So I jumped off the biggest wooden ship, landing farther than all the boys. I was so proud of myself too, until I realized that my skirt got ripped in the process. Mom yelled at me for weeks after that.” I laughed loudly. It felt good to just reminisce with him, natural, instead of forcing unpleasant conversation at dinner tables.
“How could I possibly forget that?” He asked, cradling his head in his hands. “You still haven’t let me forget about that, especially the fact that you did jump farther than all the boys.” He smiled. For some reason the black haze I felt when I was usually around Ty returned, clouding my memories of the park.
“You know, I think we used to play with someone else here, too. But I can’t remember who it was.” The swirling mist left me feeling dizzy. I wobbled slightly, the high heels didn’t help with it either.
Adam replied almost too quickly, “No it was just us. I don’t remember anyone else that could have been with us.” We walked towards the beach with about a foot of air between us. I didn’t want to take the chance of walking too close to him, in case he got the wrong idea. Before we got to the shore I took off my high heels, leaving them on the old wooden bridge. I knew I did not have enough grace to even attempt to walk through the grass with them, let alone sand.
“Are you sure? I really remember someone else being there. I just can’t remember who it was?” I just couldn’t let this drop. I knew I was right. I had little glimpses of running and laughing with someone. I just couldn’t seem to get any details right lately. This is so aggravating, the not being able to remember. I hope this isn’t want it’s like to get old, otherwise I’m in trouble.
He replied too innocently; “No. I think you are just imagining things. I don’t remember anyone, unless you came here without me. That’s highly unlikely though, seeing as how our mom’s are practically joined at
the hip.”
“You do have a point there. I remember our mom’s taking us everywhere together. They can’t seem to be without each other.” I added glumly. I knew I was right about being there with someone else. I just didn’t have any proof of the person.
It was a perfect night to be on a date. The pale face of the moon reflected many times over in the wide expanse of the ocean. It was low tide, so there was a wide path of sand to walk on. The waves broke quietly as if trying not to disrupt the slow flow of our date. I sighed as I realized I would much rather be walking along the beach with Ty, instead of Adam. Ty could make me happy just by smiling at me. I looked toward the waters with smile. They were my only true way to connect with him, at least right now. I had no other way to reach him except if he chose to show up. That was disconcerting in itself, not to mention the thought of him finding out about the date. The thought of that made my stomach knot in on itself many times over.
“It’s a pretty night.” Adam said. He looked awkward shuffling next to me with his strong arms glinting menacingly in the soft moonlight. My macabre brain was struck with the thought that he could very easily hurt me right now if he chose to attack me. I was nowhere near strong enough to hold him back. There was no one else but us on the beach. That thought sent my already confused brain into convulsions.
“Yeah it is really pretty.” I agreed allowing another foot of space to further the gap between us. If I had to I was prepared to run. I know it sounded crazy, but they always warn girls to be careful nowadays.
Adam seemed to be struggling with something to say to me. I patiently gave him time to come up with the words he tried very desperately to remember. The thought of him sounding romantic seemed comical to me. I suppose he thought he was being very subtle when he stared towards the waves, his lips moving in silent speech, hands working to grasp the words he was forming. Then I was struck with the idea that maybe he actually did like me and I just wasn’t going to give him a shot from the beginning. I tried being open-minded about anything he might say.
I stared into the ocean, thankful that for the moment nothing really bothered me about this evening. Sooner rather than later, Adam would have to bring me back home. That thought alone was enough to put an extra hitch in my giddy up. I looked at the ocean without seeing it, letting the endless waters calm my inane internal fears.
At first I thought it was just the lighting playing tricks on my eyes. As I continued to stare at the spot I realized that the ripples were coming from something beneath the surface. I became aware of my pulse accelerating as the ripples became closer together. I glanced quickly at Adam’s face but he was too lost in his own thoughts to notice it. I saw something black break the surface of the water, slowly creeping out. I stopped breathing for a minute as I watched the black shaggy mess slowly emerge from the water.
My mind resorted immediately to Mina’s terrifying face as she lunged forward to devour me. I shrank away from the water, panting. I continued to stare, hypnotized by the water until a pair of familiar childlike light blue eyes underneath the wet tangle of midnight black hair smiled broadly at me.
I sighed with relief. “Henry!” I silently mouthed to him. He nodded. I never realized how breathtaking he was until now, he looked like Ty, but he also looked more of a free spirit than his other two brothers. If I was going to guess that anyone would be a Merman I guess it would have to be Henry. I also never realized how hungry he looked. His mesmerizing eyes looked deadly as he scoured the contours of my skin with a ravenous look. I instinctively took a step away from the water while he was like that. I didn’t want to put myself in any more danger than I had when I was with Ty. Not to mention I wasn’t exactly on the best terms with Ty’s less-than-friendly older brothers for some insipid reason. Without warning Adam turned towards me, his hulking shoulders moved pushing through the air at record speeds. His strong hands clasped both my shoulders harshly, causing me to stagger backwards a couple of steps. He steadied me easily, pinning my arms to my sides. That’s when I felt the first tangible fingers of fear grip my heart.
I could barely hear Henry’s voice hiss in response to Adam’s actions. The light blue orbs edged closer to us than I would have thought possible, given the depth of the shallow water. Adam held me close to him, while I struggled to break the trance Henry had on me. Once again I was captured by the song, and his hypnotic eyes, there was no hope that I could break free. I could hear Adam speaking, but it sounded like it was very far away, as if I was submerged underwater, and Adam was shouting at me from the shore.
I was only vaguely aware that Henry’s lips were moving too quickly for a human in his low captivating song, he continued to silently glide towards us. His lips pulled back over his dagger-like teeth in a snarl. His body hunched down to spring. The fear that Henry might actually be angry enough to kill me, to kill Adam, suddenly sunk in.
10.
Calm Before The Storm
“How dare him.” I silently cursed Henry for putting their secret in so much danger. I closed my head off to the song, suddenly gripping Adam’s arms in response.
“No!” I screamed unable to stop myself. Henry instantly sank down into the waters depths. Adam stared at me for a long minute before turning to the ocean.
“Amy, are you okay? What the hell were u staring at?” His thick neck turned to its breaking point scanning the waters. “I was just saying that we should take a car trip one day. If you don’t want to go just tell me. It’s no big deal, really.”
Adam turned back to stare at me skeptically. I couldn’t answer at first. I was still trying to tell my brain that the danger was over. My pulse raced through my veins, causing my heart to thump at a higher rate than it ever had before.
“No, it’s fine.” I breathed. “It’s just that I—,” Henry’s face resurfaced from the water, his eyes angry with the fact that his prey had escaped, for the moment. No. I wasn’t going to let him win this time. Adam took in my expression, once again turning his massive body in Henry’s direction.
I can’t let him know. I can’t put Ty’s secret in jeopardy, certainly not for some petty anger that the brothers felt for me.
Urgently I grabbed Adam’s head, roughly twisting it in my direction. His eyes went wide with surprise, and excitement at my new enthusiasm. “I just want tonight to be about you and me. So let’s not let anything else ruin our time together.” I whispered while I pulled him quickly away from the water.
I never once took my eyes from Adam’s face as I led him silently back towards the park. I could see Henry in my peripheral vision, snapping and cursing at us in his native tongue. I wanted to run back and yell at him for putting us in so much danger, but I knew there was no way I could explain that to Adam.
Unfortunately, Adam took my new excitement to be in response to him. He wound his arm through mine at the park, stumbling forward like a love sick puppy. He even went so far as to tie my shoes back on my feet, though I begged him not to. I knew what I had done could be considered heroic. At the moment I wondered if letting Henry take a bite out of him might not be such a bad idea.
I was overjoyed when I realized we had been at the park long enough for me to ask Adam to take me home. I walked briskly to the car, telling a dejected Adam that I didn’t want my parents to worry about me. He drove as slowly as humanly possible to my house, while I rocked back in forth in my seat with anxiety. Every now and then I saw Adam take fleeting glances at my face out of the corners of his eyes. I was too enveloped in my thoughts to care.
The next time I talked to Ty he was going to get it from me. Having his brothers that close was definitely not a good idea. Maybe I would have to reconsider my feelings for his family, because they weren’t the only ones who could hold a grudge.
I don’t remember ever being so happy to see my house as I was now. I thought it was odd that all the curtains had been pulled tight, casting the already dark house into perpetual midnight. I guessed it was probably so that Adam and I could have some privacy. Oh great. Even my parents believed that we would have clicked so well on just one date. I finally glanced over at Adam’s face, which was nervous with what he thought would be “the moment.”
I swallowed hard. My heart once again fired up to full beating power. Mental note to self: get better with my diversions while not sending mixed signals to my dates. Gotcha. A light sweat covered my face as Adam slowly opened the door to
my side. He silently followed me to the door, his round face flushed red with excitement. I cringed internally.
“Well, I had a lot of fun. Thanks for everything Adam, really.” I reached for the doorknob at top speed trying to get in the door as fast as I possible.
“Wait, Amy.” Drats. Foiled again. He placed his hand lightly on my shoulder. I inhaled deeply as I turned to face Adam. My stomach went through my feet and not in a good way as he placed his scratchy hand on my face, turning it upwards near his. He silently leaned down edging ever closer to my face.
No! I placed my hand on his chest pushing with all my might for him to stop. He didn’t even seem to feel it. His face loomed closer towards mine, melting my thoughts. Ty’s smiling face popped into my head pushing out all else. My breath turned ragged as Adam’s lips were almost on top of mine, his scorching breath blew on my face, burning it! I went as far back as his hand allowed, his breath actually felt like an oven just opened and my face was placed inside of it.
“Adam, wait.” I begged. Wearily, he opened his confused eyes. “I just want to say that I thought I was ready to move on, after Greg I mean. But I’m just not ready. I’m sorry.” My words tumbled out quickly making my breath even more ragged. I didn’t care, though. Adam slowly edged away from me, nodding his head, his eyes carefully comprehending my meaning.
“It’s okay, Amy. I’m just glad we had fun. We’re going to have to do this again, soon.” He smiled confidently, obviously sure that he was the center of the universe. He took the initiative to squeeze me tightly in his sturdy arms, actually lifting my feet off the ground. Dropping me softly, he turned to leave. I quickly grabbed hold of the door handle flinging it open at full speed.
I slammed the door shut, panting hard. I leaned against it for a minute thanking the Lord that I had quickly come up with an excuse so I that I could get out of that tricky situation. I waited until the sound of Adam’s tires were too far for me to hear any longer. Dutifully I made my way to the living room, walking willingly to the lion’s den.
Mom was perched on the edge of the couch, just like I’d imagined, to my amazement Steve was by her side. Wow. They must both really want us to work out. I didn’t think guys generally cared about this kind of stuff.
“Honey! You’re home so early?! How was it? Did you have fun? Did you pig out like you usually do, honey I told you to be careful about that on dates.” Thankfully Steve put one hand on Mom’s shoulder silencing her.
“Give her a moment to breathe. She can only answer one question at a time, darling.” He smiled at me.
I gave them all the gory details trying to make it sound as if I’d had the best time in the world on the date. I thought about telling them the actual truth; that I only liked Adam as a friend, but caught myself. I knew it wouldn’t be possible for my parents, or at least my mom, to accept the fact that I just didn’t feel the same way about Adam that they hoped I did. Eventually I did muster up enough courage to state the one thing I’d been trying to tell her all along.
“Mom,” I used my sweet little girl voice. “I don’t think it would be a good idea for me to go on any more dates with Adam.”
Both of their faces went slack jawed, only for a second. They composed themselves nicely before my mom blurted, “Why, honey? Didn’t you have a good time? The Grey’s have always been nice to us. Adam’s been nothing but a total sweetheart to you. I don’t think that’s fair.” Steve once again touched Mom’s shoulder to silence her. He nodded that I should state my answer.
“W
ell… It’s not that I don’t like him, as a friend I mean. It’s just that with me leaving at the end of the summer and all, I don’t think it’s a very good idea to start a relationship.” Dang. I’ve been getting good from lying all day. It’s not a trait I would like to keep, just one that has been necessary lately.
Mom’s eyes gleamed with new ferocity. “Well, if you two decide to work something out you don’t have to leave, darling. I can just put you in school here, so you can be with Adam. You won’t ever have to leave if you don’t want.” I backed away from the sudden intense ferocity, unsure of what to say.
“Mom, I can’t do that. Think of what that would do to Dad. I have friends there. I have my whole life there.” I whispered. She gracefully stood, walking over to wrap me up in her chilly arms.
“Just think about it, Amy. You could have everything you ever wanted, everything you ever dreamed of if you were to stay right here with Adam. It’s just an option.” Then she let go of me, taking her place by Steve’s side.
I told them I wanted to go up to bed so that I could think about Mom’s offer. They both agreed that was a good thing. Before I embarked on the stairs I took one last look at Mom and Steve. I always assumed they loved each other, and that love had kept them together for so long. For some reason I was unsure about that now.
Steve never seemed to touch Mom in a loving way, nor did she him. It was clear that Steve held the power in the relationship. That bothered me for some reason, I wanted my mom to stand up and take charge of her own life. They sat on the couch, whispering meaningless words to each other, discussing some secret I couldn’t dream of understanding.
I took the stairs two at a time, not caring at the ache in my feet from the damned high heels. I just wanted to get up there as quickly as I could. There might still be a chance that I could see Ty. I knew that I was supposed to be angry at him. Now if only I could get my
heart in harmony with my head I would be in good shape.
When I got to the second floor a low sobbing sound made me stop dead. I looked around for the source. It didn’t take me long. I knew that Mom and Steve were still downstairs, so that only left Gaby. I opened the door to her sometimes-stay-the-night room. What I found split my heart in two.
Gaby was balling her eyes out, her head tucked down to rest on her legs as her hands worked to beat her bed harshly. I stood awkwardly at the door for a moment, undecided as to what I was supposed to say. I’ve always been terrible at cheering people up, and I didn’t have the faintest idea as to what I was going to say to her. So, I started with the obvious.
Gently, I sat down next to her on the small oak bed. I placed my hands on her back making soothing sounds, as Ty had done for me when I was scared. “Gaby, what’s wrong? What happened?” She wrenched her pillows until they only vaguely resembled squares, sobbing incessantly for a while before she could answer.
“I-t-t’s Juan…” she burst into another fit of sobs. I rubbed her shoulders softly, cradling her helpless head in my lap.
“What happened to Juan?” I asked her softly. I knew his condition wasn’t improving, I just didn’t know how bad things had gotten. I was going to have to ask Mom to do something about it. This just wasn’t fair to her.
“H-H-e-e’s get-ting w-ORSE!” She shrieked the last part. She turned to pound her surprisingly strong arms back in to the bed.
“It’s going to be okay, Gaby. I promise. I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure that he gets better. I swear. Please just hang in there.” I sat with her until she cried herself into a fitful sleep. Ever so softly, I pulled her covers down, placing her securely between them, before I pulled them up to her chin. I tried to smooth out the disheveled pillows without any change. I stumbled out of her room, exhausted, from the emotional rollercoaster my night had taken.
I dropped on to my bed when I was finally in my room, rubbing my temples furiously with the stress I was under. That’s when I heard a large splash come from my bathroom. Instantly I was off my bed sprinting for the bathroom, my heart beating fast with the expectations of seeing Ty’s dark features, alight with a smile.
“Hey!” I called before I entered. I skidded to a full stop when I saw the furious look on his face. My happiness dissolved instantaneously, replaced with uneasiness at his once again murderous look. He didn’t reply nor make any sound at all, he remained perfectly still. The calm before the storm. Quietly I knelt next to the tub, staring down at the tiles.
Dang it. Henry must have told him that I was out with another boy. It wasn’t fair that Henry beat me to him. I just wanted him to hear my version of it, not Henry’s skewed story. I knew he would be angry, but he didn’t have any reasons, not really. I didn’t feel the same about Adam that I felt about Ty, no where near as close.
He never looked at me, just stared straight ahead. “I got worried when you didn’t come to the beach today. I thought maybe I had scared you off, for good. It wouldn’t have been a bad thing for you, it’s just I would have preferred you to tell me.” He paused, trying to control his voice as it grew with anger. “Then I’m told that you are out on a nice little date with your
boyfriend—
”
“HE’S NOT MY BOYFRIEND TY!” I yelled, anger burning in the pit of my stomach. I jumped to my feet with as much force as I could muster. Not always the brightest idea when wearing heels. The delicate points landed in a puddle of water causing me to go flying into the tub—straight into Ty.
I was too angry to care. “I didn’t want to go on the stupid date! I never did.” I thrashed to get out of the tub. “And, I’m the one who should be mad!” I managed to get one leg over the side when Ty pulled me back in. Water drenched the floor as I struggled in his iron tight grasp.
H
e grasped my face pulling upwards to his suddenly amused expression. “And why is it that
you
should be mad, hm?” His powerful eyes did nothing for my thought process. My head was wiped clean, leaving behind only empty anger at a moot point.
“Well… you would think that Henry would be a bit more careful about who he shows your secrets to, you know? Not trying to attack my friend! I really thought Henry was going to kill him right there. I was scared.” I looked down, ashamed.
His stone hard arms wrapped around me pressing me to his chest. My face burned red hot with the sudden change in mood. “I don’t want you to be afraid of us, ever. I’m sorry that you saw Henry like that. He was just trying to protect you. He got worried when he saw you with… that. Then he heard you say… what you did to the beast.” His voice wavered on the last part, struggling to control his anger.
I was still too shy to look into his hypnotic eyes. “I only said that so he wouldn’t notice Henry. I didn’t want him to find out your secret. No matter what it took.” I cringed as I remembered my own words. It wasn’t fair to lead Adam on like this. I was going to have to end it with him, whether Mom wanted me to or not.
Ty’s body shook with silent laughter. I raised my head to see his face, alive with a smile. “Well one good thing did come out of that date.” He laughed once again as my brow creased in confusion. “That dress does look fantastic on you, dry or wet.”
“Oh.” Only then did I realize I was sopping wet, fully clothed, and in a tub with a Ty. As my brain finally processed this information my cheeks burned even hotter with embarrassment. Although this was slightly better than just my bikini. “Um. Is it okay if I change? I don’t want to explain my dress being wet to my mom. Who knows what story she’ll concoct.” I grumbled. I knew I needed to change. I just didn’t want to let go of Ty, in case he didn’t return. “Then as soon as I’m done you can come right back. You have to hear how horrible that date was!”