When Life Gives You Fins by Elaina H (classic books to read txt) 📖

because her thoughts make me feel guilty even though I shouldn’t.

            “Oh, I’m sorry.” She says as we change the last two babies.

            “You didn’t do anything wrong! It’s just the fact that you’re right. Haden didn’t have a chance with me, I could have never dated him because we’re too close as friends.”

            Adrianne shares a sad smile, “Well, you can’t make everyone happy.”

            “True that!”

            We continue to work for the last hour in silence.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dancing, Dancing, Dancing, and Falling

 

            After work I go straight to my room. I comb through my hair and climb into my shell bed.

            I immediately fall asleep. Sadly, I have a nightmare.

            I’m standing in my room before the ball and I’m putting my dress on. My hair is in some old fashioned beehive.

            A knock on my door signals that my date is here. I open the door and it’s Zak and Haden. They both chant ‘choose’!

            I dart out of the room with both of them tailing me. Then I’m in the ball room and I’m dancing with Zak. And like any nightmare I fall flat on my face.

            Every one points and laughs. Jennifer grabs Haden around the arm and smiles.

            Where did Haden come from?!

            Zak and Haden begin laughing at me.

            I leave the room and now I’m home. Mom is yelling at me, she’s pointing back at the sea. I turn and the sea is raging.

            Waves twelve feet high crash onto the beach. I look back at my mom, but she’s gone. I scream for her, but the sound from the waves drowns out my voice.

            The sea reaches further up, it grabs me. I feel myself being dragged back to the sea.

            I scream. And thrash beating at hands that are not really there. It’s the water’s grip I’m scared of.

            I wake up in a jolt as I’m pulled under. I hit my head on the top of my shell. I fall out of my shells as I swing the door open.

            I’m breathing heavy, it’s 7:06. Shoot! I brush through my hair and pull it back. Racing out the door, I knock on my professor’s door four minutes later.

            He opens it. “You’re late.”

            “I’m aware. I overslept, sorry.”

            “Come in.”             I follow him into his room. He sits down. “Read!”

            “What?”

            “Sit,” he points to a chair across the room, “read any book you want. I’m very busy. He picks up a notebook that I notice is labeled Sirens.

            The guy is obsessed. I pick up an old worn book and cuddle up in a worn velvet chair.

            I fall asleep, and he never notices.

           

            I wake up fifty minutes later. I look at him, still in the same place.

            “Do you need me to do anything?” I ask him.

            “Leave!”

            “Okay!” I scramble up and I exit through the door.

            Girls line up outside the seamstress’ door. I see a black haired girl leave holding the ugly, yellow navy dress.

            Wow! Wait till the last day why don’t you!

            Yes, the ball is today but, I’m more nervous than anything. And my dream last night didn’t help at all.

            I see Fiona, and walk up to her.

            “Thanks for waiting for someone to arrive yesterday. I’ll try to get there early today to give you some time off.”

            She smiles, “That’d be great, but we don’t have work today.”

            “Because of the ball?”             “Pretty much, if you work at the castle then you don’t have to work, its like a holiday.”

            “Well, that’s nice.”

            “Everyone looks forward to it! I just picked up my lady’s dress.”

            “Who is ‘your lady’?”

            “No one you know, I’m sure. Gabriella Yules.”

            “You’re right I don’t know her.”             Fiona holds up the dress, it’s green. “Yes, her dress matches her tail. Are you picking up your dress?”

            “No I picked mine up yesterday.”

            “Oh, well, I should be on my way.”

            “Me too. Good-bye,” I wave to her as I leave.

            When I enter my room Mira is sitting in a chair waiting. “Hello, she says.”

            “What are you doing here?”

            “Prep time,” she say ‘like’ duh, “If you’re going with the Prince you have to be exquisite. Take your clothes off and get into a robe.”

            I do as she tells me. Mira leads me to the bathroom. She cleans me up and slathers this oily goo all over my body. “Uck!”

            “Deal with it! It gives you smooth skin.”

            “Yeah, well, we’ll see how long that lasts. Why do I have to start prepping at 8:12 in the morning. What time does the ball start?”

            “The ball starts at 6:00, but the royal family and their dates have dinner at 4:30.”

            “Still that’s forever away. Do I just sit here, for two hours?!”

            “Well, if Zak wants to take you anywhere, you’ll be ready,” I roll my eyes.

            “So…, I was thinking maybe some old-fashioned beehive hair-do?”

            “No! No! No! Never in a million year! No!” I scream recalling my dream.

            “Okay, she throws her hands up in defense, “cool down.”

            “Sorry, it’s just not happening.”

            “How about a messy bun with jeweled clips, it’d be stunning.”             “I could deal with that,” I smile at her.

            “Good!”

            After the goo dries to my skin, I can barely move. She starts peeling it away from my skin and scrubbing and rubbing. Ow!

            “Can you stop that!” I ask about half way through.

            “No! Not unless you want to go with wax on your skin!”

            I grumble, but let her continue. Ouch!

            After ten more minutes she actually finishes. And wow, my skin is smooth.

            “We are never doing that again!”

            “I agree.”

            Afterwards she takes me to my vanity, and brushes through my hair, again, ouch.

            “Your hair is really long, I never realized just how long it was.”             “Yeah goes it goes down to the middle of my back. Its annoying, I think I’m going to cut it.”

            “Cut it! No! It’s so pretty.”

            “Why don’t we cut it tonight? Right now! We’ll surprise everyone,” Mira whimpers.

            “Do we have to? I thought we were going to put it in a messy bun?”

            “That was before, this is now. Let’s cut it!” I’m actually excited about it.

            “How short?”

            “To my shoulders or shorter! I don’t know?”

            “Or shorter?!”             “Come on! It’ll be fun! I trust you to cut my hair!”

            “Okay,” she comes back from the bathroom with a pair of scissors.

            “Let’s do this! I’m going to close my eyes, do what you want!” I smile. Mira winces.

            “Are you sure?”

            “Yes!”

            I close my eyes, and I feel her snip away at my hair. She takes her time, that’s for sure.

            After about twenty minutes Mira speaks, “You can look.”

            I open my eyes and gasp. “Oh my God!” I squeal, “I love it!”

            My red hair is shorter than my shoulders it comes about an inch lower than my chin. I have bangs that go straight across. The only negative is it makes me look a little younger. But who cares, I love it!

            “It’s new!” she shrugs.

            “Yes leave it just like this, it’s perfect.”

            “Let me do your make-up! This I know I can do!”

            “Okay,” I close my eyes again as she works her magic.

            After a long time, she tells me to look. I open my eyes and purple and gold eye shadow covers my lids. My mascara is dark and my eyelashes seem extremely long.

            “Wow! I look pretty darn good. It’s a shame I just have to chill in here,” I look for the time, “from 10:00 to 4:30!”

            “Yeah, it’s a long time, but you can sleep, read, do anything you want.”

            “Except leave this room!”

            “None of the other girls leave their room either, so don’t worry, you are not the only one bored.”

            “Not helping!”

            “Sorry, listen, stay here! I have to leave and help out in the kitten for tonight, okay. If you leave I will beat you, seriously.”

            “Whatever!” I flop on my bed.

            “Stay!” she leaves.

            I wait ten minutes to make sure she’s really gone. I look out the door, no one. Yes!

            I swim out into the hall, slowly I make my way down the steps, no one is in the halls.

            As I go up and down the halls, I feel something hit me in the back of the head, “Ouch!” I rub the back of my head and turn around.

            Destin.

            “What’s up? I haven’t seen you in forever. By the way, nice hair!”

            “Destin, are you ever going to stop throwing stuff at me?”

            “Probably not. But don’t you realize you are the only girl out in the hallways. Obviously, you are not supposed to be here.”

            “Why not?!”

            “Because, in ten minutes all the guys come out here and party before the ball.”

            “Why?!”

            He rolls his eyes, “Because! No guy likes all the fancy-schmancy stuff. Its more of a girl thing.”

            “I want to go!” I am so happy I don’t have to sit in my room now.

            “No! Zak would kill me if I let you go. It’s a guys thing!”

            “No, you said it was a thing because you didn’t like all the fancy-schmancy stuff. Lucky for you, I don’t like that either!”

            “Of course you do! Look at you, if you didn’t, you wouldn’t dress and do your make-up!”

            “Not true! I was forced!”

            “You have five minutes to leave! Then thirty guys are going to be down here partying for three hours! Zak is going to kill me if I let you come!”

            “Let’s just say I found the party myself!”

            “No! Leave!” I stick out my bottom lip and pout, “Stop that!”

            “Destin!? Please.”

            “No!”

            “Destin! Where are you?” shouts Zak.

            “Shoot! Shoot! Shoot! Leave, please.”

            “Fine!” I throw up my arms, “I’ll be back,” I point at Destin.

            I turn around and run into Zak. Dang he’s fast!

            “What happened to your hair?! It’s gone!”

            “Why I like it?”

            “You have bangs!”

            “Yeah, I like my hair!”

            “It’s so short!”

            “Is that a bad thing?”

            “No! No! Sorry, I didn’t mean for it to sound like I don’t like it. Because I do!”

            “That’s sure what it sounded like.”

            “Sorry, it’s cute?”

            I shove him, “That’s real convincing,” I roll my eyes.

            “I like it! I promise.”

            “Okay? I hated my long hair anyways.”

            “New question, why are you down here?”

            Destin pipes up now, “I did not bring her down here!”

            Now it’s my turn, “Can I, please, come to your party?”

            Zak’s face is conflicted, I know that look. I really want to say no, but I don’t want her to be mad.

            This is the perfect time to lay it on thick. I usually don’t do this, but I believe it is necessary measures.

            “Please?” I draw it out and put my hand on his chest.

            Destin’s mouth is wide open. I bat my eyelashes, really slowly, and I pout.

            Like I said I don’t usually do this, but I am not staying in that room all day.

            “I don’t know, Celia?”

            “Please?”

            “No!” Destin yells, “She’s tricking you! Look at her!”

            I glare at Destin, I turn off the charm, at least a little, “Please!” I start hopping up and down, “I promise I won’t ruin anything!”

            “That’s not the problem, though, girls usually don’t come.”

            I will not go back to my room, “Fine,” I sniffle, “I’ll just go wait in my room while my date throws a party.”

            I turn around a sniffle again for good measure, “Wait!” he grabs my arm, very soft, “I guess you can stay?”

            “Really! Yeah!” I hop up and down. I give him a quick kiss. Destin is throwing a fit!

            “Yeah! I swim all around the hall hooting and hollering. They both give me a funny look.

            “Come on!” he grabs my hand and takes