Out of the Ordinary

Over the weekend, I unfortunately had to deal with the
friends that Noah had made over that one week in school.
He had asked my parents to invite some people over and
they said yes as soon as he ended his question. I wasn't
jealous, even though I wanted to fit in; it was mainly that
he seemed so smug and that I had to put up with him when
he was just so...so...there was no word belittling enough to
describe him.

Sunday we spent the day home alone together; he stayed
in the living room looking out the wide doors at the ocean,
I guessed. Everytime I entered the room he made noises
but made no other gesture to prove my existence. I just
rolled my eyes. He'd be gone by the end of the week, I had
to keep remind myself this. I also had to remind myself that
he might have lost his parents, though either fact barely
helped because he treated me as if I was nothing.

When my family finally returned, without letting me know
where they had run off to, he seemed more relax, happy
even. Probably because he wouldn't have to be alone with
me. We all stayed in the living room and once again,
Noah's friends came over. It was still day light out so they
all went outside to play catch with the football; some just
lay there soaking in the suns rays.

My mother suggested that I go to; Noah didn't make the
disgusted noises infront of my parents. And when I
insisted I'd rather just stay inside she got slightly sad and
so I caved in and followed them all down the stairs towards
the shore. I sat down on the beach; not too close and not
too far from everyone else.

Noah was regretablly closest to me, he kept trying to move
closer to the others, but once they threw the ball he'd
come running about five feet in front of me. I kept seeing
him glance sideways at me; in a disgusted way. It wasn't
my fault my mother made me. No one told him to follow
them home, or at least what was their home on land; their
real home was the sea, just like Noah.

When it was getting darker everyone just sat down, all
talking or sitting silently looking at the stars. I could barely
see, all I saw were shadows and one shadow was walking
over to me; I was now about ten feet from everyone else. I
almost panicked, I didn't know who it was, maybe the
werewolf, or the wizard, was it even a guy? Maybe one girl
felt sorry for me and decided to talk to me.

The figure sat down next to me and sighed. I could tell it
was a guy, he sat with his legs open and his sigh was loud
and rough. And then he finally spoke. "I don't hate you
personally. I appreciate your family and I wish that I could
apologize for my behavior, but my feelings towards
humans remain the same." It was Noah.

I stayed there, I was taken a back. "Humans have always
been and will always be...what ruins my-our world, the
world we really live in. Your father suggested that I tell you
why I haven't been so keen on you. That's why they had
left us most of the day; but I couldn't stand it everytime you
walked in." He stopped, and we stayed quiet; so that was
the reason they left, and humans were the reason he hated
me.

"Exactly what have humans done to the Merworld?" I
asked after a long moment. He sighed again and answered.
"Where to start? Pollution, trying to hunt us done, always
on the look out for my-out kind." If he kept saying it like
that I was going to hit him. I was apart of the world we live
in, but I was no mermaid, I didn't know whether to thank
him or tell him to shove off.

"They create problems for us, they set traps, they kill
creatures that we protect." This surprised me, he had put
an emphasis on 'we'. I looked in his direction, half smiling.
"They even try to trap us, sometimes they succeed but we
are smart enough to get out or call for help just in time. The
worst thing they invented was the submarine; worse for
us. Sometimes our palaces will be spotted, once we are
alarmed we all shield it, almost making it invisible. And
they start thinking it was all in their heads." He stopped to
give a small chuckle. I stayed looking at his dark figure.

"Anyway, your parents noticed I wasn't exactly nice to you,
though I wasn't mean either, and asked me to explain
these things to you. I'm trying not to ha-dislike you, but
you still being a human doesn't help." He touched my
hand, he pulled my hand up from the sand and held it. If he
could see me now he would now how confused and
freaked out I was feeling right about now. "Umm..." was all
that would come out.

"Shh...don't talk." he said. He was like that for a while, all I
heard were the chatter and laughter of his friends. I
couldn't even tell if there was anyone beside me if it
weren't for the fingers now interlaced with mine in mid-air. I
wanted to move, to ask him what was going on, but I just
stayed there. I decided I'd get an answer from him when he
was not being strange.

"I don't think you have to worry. I'm not certain when, but
you will be a part of your family, actually one of them. I was
able to see it in your eyes." He stopped talking, everyone
was getting up and walking over to us. "Well, school
tomorrow, parents want us all well rested." said one tall
muscular shadow and he snorted. We both got up, I started
walking but he caught my arm. "See all of you at school
tomorrow." he simply said as a goodbye, not leading them
back to the house.

"That was pretty rude." I said once everyone was at the
steps; the light from my house bright enough to show the
steps. He sat back down. "I wasn't done talking to you. I'm
a bit more...I don't want to say important, but I have more
powers, more abilities than your family, more than most
merpeople. That's why I'm here now. That's why your
parents are supposed to help me, but you are holding them
back. No offense. They, your family, are the oldest family
to have been protecting the entire ocean." He turned his
body to look up at me and sighed. "Maybe now isn't the
time to explain it all. Go ahead and go in."

I nodded, even though he couldn't see my nod. I turned
and walked quickly up to the house. I showered and
dressed into pajamas. I looked out my window, I was Noah
walking back up the stairs. Did this mean we were on good
terms now? I didn't know, and I didn't have time to figure it
out. Sleep took me before I could think of anything else.