The helm was cold to the touch. Most things were cold in a shipwreck. Aliyah felt around the wheel. Nothing.
“Hey, Allie! I think I found something.” Carlson swam to the broken wall for more natural light. Arlen appeared from the outside of the ship.
“Guys, I saw a rare fish! Oh, hey. Nice ring Carlson.”
“I want to see too!” Aliyah swam over for a closer look.
Carlson handed her the rusty ring. She turned it around in her hand. Hope? What’s Uncle Marvin’s ring doing here covered in rust?
She looked up. “Carl? Arlen? Where’d you guys go?”
She swam deeper into the shipwreck. “Don’t you dare jump out at me, Carl…Guys?”
There was total darkness. How’d she get in a deep ridge? She started swimming up.
Ouch! Suction cups cut into her legs as a large tentacle wrapped around her. Wait, did she have legs or a tail? She was being pulled deeper. No doubt towards a large beak of a squid. “Help!”
Aliyah’s eyes flickered open, her heart racing. She threw off the covers. She knew she had legs and feet…but she could still feel her flukes. She reached over to touch where her fluke would be. Her hand went right “through” it. How bizarre. She wiggled her toes until the sensation went away.
It was still dark out her window. She crawled across her bed to get a better look. Stars shimmered through the trees. She cracked the window and felt the cool air rush in. Waves sang their lullaby in the quiet night. Sky and the Sea. How lovely indeed.
As Aliyah thought about her favorite lyrics once more, her mind wandered back to the night of her solo.
Aliyah could only see one star through the cave’s natural skylight. More would appear before the concert was over. Chatter and laughter filled the auditorium as sea-dwellers started to arrive for the choral warm up. They swam past the chorister’s peak and sat in the shallow water on the other side. Arlen accompanied his mother to the chorister’s position. She spread her music on the rock. She’d call for everyone’s attention soon. Arlen met Aliyah’s eye and swam over to her.
“You nervous?”
Aliyah looked up at the sky again. Her natural spotlight. “Maybe a little.”
“You’re going to do great, Aliyah.” She looked at him. There was a twinkle in his eye when he added, “My mother told me so, and let me tell you, she’s never wrong.”
Aliyah laughed. “I’m glad you’re so confident in your mother’s abilities.”
“Well, yeah! Her choice of soloist proves her competence… Your voice is beautiful.”
“Thanks Arlen. You’re a great friend.”
Back in Aunie Rita’s guest room, Aliyah sighed. She was so far away from her family and friends. So far away from her home… Could life on land ever feel like home? She was giving up a lot to fulfill her destiny with Derek.
The sky started to lighten, scaring the stars away. Aliyah climbed out of bed and changed into her red blouse with white polka dots. She’d spent enough time thinking about home. She needed to focus on Derek. Today was the day he’d kiss her, she was sure of it.
“A kiss? Aliyah’s basing her decision off of a kiss?” Arlen couldn’t believe his ears. Aliyah mentioned that she could decide to come home after three days, but neglected to tell him how she would decide. “Hasn’t she ever heard of NCMO’s?”
Mara handed Arlen a new vial of whale antibiotic paste. “NCMO?”
“Non-committal makeout. My point is it’s not safe to base true love off of a kiss. Maybe if she knew him longer and had some sort of commitment, but just a kiss? You’ve got to be kidding me.” He ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “She’ll be heartbroken for sure.”
“She told me her heart would break if she didn’t go on land.” Mara’s short hair swished as she turned to put vials back on her shelf. “Look, I didn’t want to send her up there in the first place. I bet she won’t be kissed and will return home tonight.”
“But what if she is kissed?”
Mara stopped stocking her shelf and whispered, “Her parents would never forgive me.”
Derek knocked on Rita’s front door. His parents thought he was being funny when he said his date was from the sea. He didn’t blame them. Three weeks ago he was saved by a girl with an angelic voice. He thought he imagined the whole thing… until he heard her singing again the next day. And the next… He saw her out on the waves. He talked with her– two weekends in a row! He touched her tail. Derek had no doubt Aliyah was a mermaid.
Yet here she was. On land. Wearing blue jeans and red flats. Derek remembered when she fell into his arms on the beach. She was so close to him… Would she need help walking to Heber’s car?
He offered her his arm, “Ready to go?”
Aliyah’s stormy eyes looked from Derek’s face to his arm. She smiled and took it. “Ready.”
Derek cleared his throat and led her towards the car. “Heber and Cara have a scavenger hunt planned at Depoe Bay.” He smiled at her. “I hope you are as good at finding things in stores as you are in shipwrecks.”
In and out of shops they weaved. These stores were different from the ones Aliyah saw the day before. Each shop was filled with colorful trinkets. She saw jellyfish sculptures in small domes of glass, tiny crab figurines, towels, jewelry, rocks, kites, and keychains with names on them. Derek searched for her name once. No luck. But one thing they found in every shop was what land-dwellers called a “mermaid.”
And there was another one on top of a jewelry box. Why weren’t they ever wearing tops? Or skirts for that matter. It made Aliyah uncomfortable.
“Hey, jewelry box! Good work, Aliyah.” Derek snapped a picture.
Aliyah pointed to the poorly portrayed sea-dweller. “Aren’t you glad I didn’t dress like that?”
“Uh… Yeah. I guess I hadn’t really thought about it.”
“Why do land-dwellers think we look like this anyway? It doesn’t make sense. The ocean’s cold!”
“Yeah… And your tail didn’t look like that either.”
She looked closer at the mermaid’s tail. It was green and covered in scales. Aliyah made a face. “She looks like a fish.”
Derek laughed. “Maybe we have sea-dwellers all wrong. Honestly most of us don’t believe you exist. We don’t run into you guys often, and if we do… well, no one believes you.”
He reached for her hand. “Come on. That was the last one on the list. Let’s run to the finish line!”
They made it out of the store, across the street, and to a low stone wall looking out to the ocean. Aliah’s heart raced, but not from the running. Derek was holding her hand!
“Whoo! I finally beat Heber.” Derek looked at Aliyah and gave her a huge smile. “He wins everything, Aliyah. Everything.”
Aliyah smiled back. “Nice. Um…” She glanced back at the mobs of land-dwellers across the street and then back at Derek. There were a few couples spaced out along the lookout, but they were far enough away that Alliyah felt practically alone with him. “Now what?” Her hand began to feel sweaty as Derek continued to hold it. She hoped he didn’t notice…
He looked out to sea. “I guess we can whale watch until they get here.”
Aliyah followed his gaze. She saw a puff of seawater in the distance. That must be from a gray whale. She smiled. It felt like months ago when she last swam with a pod, but in fact it was just a few days ago. Aliyah pictured the mother whale with barnacles on her face. A face that understood the longings of her heart. Now Aliyah was here. Pursuing her heart.
There was another spout of seawater. Her mind went back with the whale under the waves. It was so fun swimming with Carlson and Arlen. Could they be swimming with that whale right now? Oh right. Carlson was out visiting another kingdom… Could Arlen be out there by himself?
She looked back at Derek and found him staring at her. Her heart flipped.
His cheeks went pink. “I uh… you look very pretty today.”
Wind played with his light blond hair. How she loved it when it did that.
“Thank you, Derek.” She locked her eyes with his. He swallowed hard.
Could this be it? Aliyah stepped closer.
“Hey! Derek!” Heber ran up with Cara. “How’d you two finish so fast?”
Derek let go of Aliyah’s hand. Their moment was over.
“What can I say? Aliyah is very good.” Derek pulled out his phone. “Here’s all our pictures, if you want to look at them.”
“Oh, you know I’ll look at ‘em. Gotta make sure you got everything. If not, we win.”
Cara shrugged and crossed over to Aliyah. “He gets rather competitive at times.” She pulled out her phone from her leather jacket. “Might as well check our work too, Aliyah. Here. We found some really cool-looking things.”
Aliyah smiled and nodded as Cara talked about each photo, but really her mind was elsewhere. She could still feel the heat on her hand from when Derek held it. Would he have kissed her?
She glanced over at Derek talking with Heber. He looked up at her with those caring blue eyes. This had to be true love. What else could it be?
Derek signaled to turn left. Light rain drizzled on his windshield. He hoped it wouldn’t turn into a downpour. His mother wanted to take pictures outside.
Those pictures would be quite different from what he imagined a few days ago. Derek tried to wrap his mind around it all. He held Aliyah’s hand. It felt so good… but he knew it would be short-lived. She belonged in the ocean with her family. One day she’d go back and leave him behind, Derek reminded himself. Someday he would have to move on–date other girls. But at least that day wasn’t today. Today he could focus on Aliyah, his date to the dance. Today he could give Aliyah flowers, dance with her, and make sure she had a good time.
Derek pulled into a parking slot just as the rain intensified. Oh well. Pictures inside will work just fine. He walked into Coral’s Floral Shop with his suit coat over his head.
At the counter sat a girl with silky ash-brown hair bent over a textbook and notepad. She tucked her hair behind her ear as he approached.
“Ah, the prince has arrived.” She smiled in greeting. “I’ll be right back. The corsages are in the fridge.”
Shouldn’t Rhona be getting ready for the dance? She was up and back before Derek could say a word.
She held out a clear box of blue and pink flowers, revealing a slight scarring on the insides of her middle and ring fingers. He had never noticed that before. “This is yours, is it not?” Rhonda said.
Derek took the box with the form he had filled out. “Uh, yeah… It looks great by the way.”
Rhona smiled. “We aim to please.”
Derek noticed the dark circles under Rhona’s eyes and the smudges of mascara. Had she been crying? She wore a polo shirt and slacks under her white apron. She didn’t look like a girl who had prom that evening, but she said she’d meet them all at dinner…
“So uh, we’ll see you and…” What was her boyfriend’s name again?
“Oh, no. I mean, yes… It’ll be just me. We broke up.” Rhona hugged one arm. “But I promised Cara I’d still go to dinner with you guys.”
What kind of jerk breaks up with his girlfriend right before prom?
“I’m sorry, Rhona.”
She shrugged. “It was coming… I’ll get over it.” She closed her textbook and put it in her backpack behind the counter. “Speaking of dinner, my shift is over and Cara’s expecting me over at her place.” Oh good. Cara will take care of her, Derek thought.
Rhona hung up her apron and waved to someone in the back room. Derek walked with her out of the shop and shielded her from the rain with his suit coat.
“You’re getting all wet, Derek. You don’t need to walk me to my car,” Rhona said.
“But I want to. Can’t have our princess walking in the rain.”
She rubbed her arms. “I’m no princess,” She whispered.
“I beg to differ.” Derek replied. They stopped by her gray beat-up car. “The teachers at Sherman High made you our princess. They don’t choose just anybody, you know. I say you’re made of princess material… even if your ex can’t see it.”
She opened the car door and looked back at him. “Thanks, Derek. You’re a very kind prince.”
Derek draped his soaking suit coat over his shoulder and gave a dramatic bow. She laughed. He smiled at the way her nose crinkled. Rhona gestured to the box in his hand. “Hey, your date is going to love that. Go on and give it to her already.”
Derek nodded and waved before walking away. The corsage really did look nice. He hoped Aliyah would like the pink roses. Rhona’s voice replayed in his mind, “your date is going to love that.” Derek stopped in his tracks. Rhona didn’t take home a box… The thought dawned on him. She worked at the floral shop and watched everyone pick up corsages, knowing she wouldn’t get one tonight.
He turned and walked back into the floral shop. It was too late for an extra corsage, but perhaps if he bought a single rose… and dropped it off to Heber on the way to Aliyah’s. Yes, Heber could give it to Rhona at Cara’s place. That just might work. He smiled to himself. It felt good to help a fellow Sherman Sea Lion.
Aliyah placed a napkin on her lap and admired the light blue fabric of her dress. She loved the way it shimmered in the light. It looked like ocean water hugged her from the top of her cap sleeves to the bottom of her thighs, then crested at her knees, and flowed out to her feet. She thought it went well with Derek’s sky blue tie.
The melody of “Sky and the Sea” drifted through her head again as she turned to look at Derek sitting beside her at the window. His hair was still wet from the rain. He smiled as he showed off his candy bar boutonniere. Uncle Marvin insisted that Derek would appreciate a homemade one. Aliyah was glad he was right. Across the table, Heber turned to Cara and gestured to his own flower boutonniere on his green tux as if to ask why didn’t he get candy. They all laughed, including the girl sitting on the other side of Cara. Aliyah didn’t know who she was.
The nameless girl wearing purple velvet picked up a red rose. “I don’t know, Heber. Roses aren’t all that bad. They aren’t chocolate that’s true, but at least they smell nice.” She lifted the rose to her nose and closed her big brown eyes.
“See, she gets it,” Cara teased Heber. Her leather jacket matched his leather bowtie. The olive green in their color scheme complimented Heber’s dark skin and Cara’s light complexion. The couple looked good together.
He flashed her his brilliant white smile. “Of course Rhona ‘gets it,’ babe. She works at the flower shop with you.”
Rhona. Aliyah tucked the name away for future reference.
“Whatever.” Cara giggled which made her short highlighted curls bounce. Her hair wasn’t that way at Depoe Bay. She must have curled it for the dance. “Anywayyy, who wants to play two truths and a lie?”
Aliyah had played a similar game with the choir back at home. It was a great way to get to know the other sea-dwellers. She hoped it would help her get to know Derek’s friends too.
They all laughed and discussed one with another as they tried to discover each person’s lie. Aliyah couldn’t help much, but enjoyed the game anyway. She found out that Derek won second place in long distance running last year, wants to study exercise physiology, and is in fact not allergic to peanuts, but is allergic to tree nuts.
A waiter returned with clam chowder in a large pot. Rhona served it up into everyone’s individual bowls. Aliyah enjoyed the creamy soup with clams. The occasional bite with sand reminded her of home.
“Alright, Rhona. Your turn.” Cara said.
“Okay… I want to become an astronaut. I have two younger stepsisters. And I was born with webbed fingers.”
What in the five oceans was an astronaut?
“I know you live with your father, and he has no other children…but you never talk about your mother… hmmm.” Cara turned to the group. “She could have stepsisters…”
“No, it’s the webbed fingers, man,” Heber addressed the group. “Look at her fingers. If I had scars like hers, I’d have a different story to share every time.”
Cara tapped her chin. “He has a good point.”
Rhona twirled her red rose and kept a straight face. “Is that your final guess?”
They all agreed and Rhona smiled. “I want to become a nurse. I indeed was born with webbed fingers.”
“No way!” Derek shook his head and nudged Aliyah. “I guess you’re up next.”
“Ummm” why didn’t she think of her three things earlier? “I outswam a mako shark.”
Heber chuckled.
“I found a treasure chest in a shipwreck that was so heavy, we couldn’t carry it home. And…” What else should she share? “And I had a phantom tail this morning.”
Rhona raised an eyebrow.
“Dude, does she know how to play this game?” Heber asked Derek.
“Yeah… I told you she was a mermaid, Heber. She saved me from drowning.”
Heber and Cara studied Aliyah with puzzled faces.
Rhona looked more intrigued than confused. “I didn’t know mermaids could shapeshift.”
Sea-dwellers don’t shapeshift. How should she explain this?
Rhona strummed the table. “I bet you could carry that treasure chest with your friend’s help. That’s the lie.”
Aliyah’s jaw dropped. Not only did Rhona completely accept that she was a sea-dweller, but she guessed the lie correctly. “Yeah… that’s right.”
Rhona smiled in success.
“Aliyah, you outswam a shark? That’s amazing! You must be super fast.” Derek put his arm around Aliyah’s shoulder. Heat rushed to her cheeks.
“Well, I wasn’t trying to race it or anything. Just needed to get to safety.” She looked up at him.
“I’m glad you did… uh…I’m glad you got to safety, not glad that you raced the shark. Well, I don’t know, that’s pretty cool too.”
Aliyah chuckled. She liked sitting this close to him. She glanced at his lips but he turned to contribute to the conversation at the table. Heber and Cara were still trying to understand how Aliyah could be a mermaid.
Aliyah looked at the ocean view through the window. The remaining storm clouds lingered on the horizon. It formed a perfect backdrop for the sunset. Aliyah sighed. She was running out of time.
Derek watched as a crowd formed around Aliyah. She danced mostly with her upper body and arms. It looked like she was a hula dancer underwater. Students at Sherman High found it more interesting than jumping in a mosh pit.
She smiled at him and motioned for him to dance with her. He couldn’t dance like that, but he couldn’t leave his date hanging. So to the center of the circle he went and did his best impression of jumping into a pool. The students cheered. Success. He mimed the back stroke until the music died down.
A voice came over the speakers, “Hey Sherman Sea Lions, how we doin’ tonight?” The students cheered in response. “Alright, it’s that time of evening. Will the senior prince and princess please come forward?” Oh no, he forgot to tell Aliyah about the royal dance. She probably didn’t even know he was senior prince. Oops. Well, she’d soon find out.
“I’ll be right back, Aliyah.”
Derek walked up to the stage at the front of the decorated cafeteria. The senior class president placed a crown on Derek’ head and a tiara on Rhona’s.
“Thank you Derek and Rhona for your exceptional character and academic performance!” The principal led the students in a round of applause. “Our prince and princess will now lead us in the first slow dance of the evening.”
Slow piano music started. Derek turned to Rhona and put his hand on her waist. They clasped hands and swayed back and forth to the beat.
“So uh…” What should he say? A compliment maybe? “That dress looks really nice on you.”
She glanced down. “Oh, thanks. It was very nice of Cara to let me borrow it.”
Could she not afford her own dress?
Rhona smiled. “And I know that rose was from you, too. You all are very good friends. It’s a shame I didn’t hang out with you guys sooner.”
“Well, I hope you’ll continue to hang out with us from now on. It looks like you and Cara are good friends.”
“Yeah. I’m glad she invited me to be a part of the group. Aliyah is pretty cool too.”
Aliyah. Derek looked arround for his date. Oh good, Heber had asked her to dance. Looked like Cara was over at the snack bar. No doubt she purposefully gave up her first dance with Heber. She was always thinking of others. What good people, Derek thought.
“She certainly dances like a sea-dweller,” Rhona said. “Aliyah seems like a fun gal. I can see why you like her.”
Aliyah was pretty great…wait. “Did you just say ‘sea–dweller?’”
“Uh, yeah… sorry. My father calls mermaids sea-dwellers.”
Interesting.
Rhona stepped back as the music died down. “I should let you get back to your date. Thanks for the dance, Derek.” Her long ash-brown hair cascaded down her back as she walked away.
Rhona was considerate and kind. Why would anyone dump her? He cleared his mind as he walked back to Aliyah. She was his beautiful date tonight, not Rhona. And he promised himself that he would help Aliyah have a good time.
Aliyah looked out the car window. Today had been a perfect day with Derek. She didn’t want it to end, but the stars in the night sky were a shining reminder that it would. She didn’t get her kiss. There was no point in waiting until just before sunrise. She would say her goodbyes and then wade out to sea. Her tail would come back. Her days with feet would be just a distant dream and she’d wake up in her underwater bedroom in the morning.
Maybe Auntie Mara was right. Maybe Aliyah didn’t know what true love was… But she still had feelings for Derek. Going home was going to be hard.
“Wearing spikes during the race gives you more traction.” Oh, yeah. She was supposed to be listening to Derek’s explanation of track and field. He had invited her to his track meet next week, but seeing as Aliyah would have a tail, she wouldn’t be able to make it.
“Hey, is something wrong, Aliyah? You’ve gotten awfully quiet.”
“Oh, I guess I’m just tired or something.”
“Alright then… We’re almost there.”
Derek had moved on to explain the high jump by the time he pulled up Rita’s driveway. He opened Aliyah’s door for her and walked with her up the porch steps.
“Hey Aliyah? Thanks for being my date tonight. I had a great time.”
Aliyah liked being called his date. She just wished she could stay long enough to be called his girlfriend. “Thanks for inviting me.”
He wrapped her in a big, strong hug. She laughed in surprise.
Derek’s face beamed. “There’s the smile I was looking for.”
Aliyah’s laughter faded, but her sweet smile remained while in his embrace. She looked at his dark eyebrows. They were a great contrast from his light hair and eyes… And his lips–the lips that failed to touch hers–they looked perfect.
Derek’s face sombered. He leaned in and softly brushed her lips with his.
“Thank you, Aliyah.” He pulled away. “For everything.” He turned and quickly retraced his steps to his car.
Did that really just happen? Aliyah smiled from ear to ear. He liked her. It didn’t matter that she was from the sea. He really liked her. And now she could be with him as a land-dweller forever. No more hiding behind waves. No more moping around the ocean. No more waiting for the weekend to meet. She could walk along the sandy beach with Derek. She could attend his track meet. She could dance with him again and again…
A cricket chirped nearby, interrupting her thoughts. Wind blew through her hair while ocean waves hummed in her ears. It reminded her of Saturday night concerts… How did the concert go tonight? Did they miss her voice in the choir? Aliyah sure missed singing in the choir… She thought of her friends and family. Deep down Aliyah knew her family would miss her more than they would miss her voice. What would her dad think after she became a land-dweller permanently? Would he ever speak to her again?
She looked down at her wrist. Beneath the cluster of pink roses and blue flowers she could see her pearl bracelet. Still white. Why didn’t they want to talk to her? She tapped the smooth beads and waited. She sighed in relief when the pearls turned blue. Someone would talk to her from home… Home. A pain sprung up from her chest from the thought. Would she ever see her home again? What about Sage and Connie? Carlson? Arlen? Little Bella and Asher?
Maybe she should go home. Besides, Auntie Rita said she could come back and visit any time… She thought this decision would be simple. If she was kissed, she would stay with her true love. Now it didn’t seem that simple.
She sank down to the patio floor, leaned against the front door, and pulled her knees to her chest. Her corsage caught her eye. Aliyah gently touched each rose. Derek gave her these beautiful, soft flowers. He was her true love. It was meant to be… She could do this. She could make a home on land. She stood up and took a deep breath. Staying on land was what she was meant to do. She walked inside to tell Auntie Rita the good news.
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