Real Mermaids Don't Wear Toe Rings (4 page)

…4 days Post-Tail

I
NEARLY FELL OUT OF
bed when a high-pitched ring pierced through my dream. I fumbled through the bedside table and whacked the snooze button on my alarm clock.

No relief.

What was that noise? That horrible noise? Demons from the underworld? Tortured feral cats? Wild, screaming banshees?

My hand finally found the phone. Without thinking, I pressed
TALK
.

“Hellumph?” I mumbled and rubbed my eyes.

“Jade! Are you okay? I’ve been trying to call you for days. Did your dad give you my messages?”

I sat up in bed and was instantly awake.

“Cori! Oh, um, yeah. Sorry. Been a bit sick. Why are you calling so early on a Saturday?” I wriggled my toes under the covers, relieved that the change from mermaid to girl had stuck for one more day.

“It’s after one.”

I turned to the window. The sun filtered through the blinds, cascading rippled lines of light across my blankets. I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and looked at the clock.

One fifteen.

“Are you feeling any better?” Cori continued.

“Um. Yeah. I guess.”

“Rough week?” she asked.

“You could say that again.” I fell back into my pillows and cradled the phone to my ear.

“Sounds like more than just the flu. What’s up?” she asked.

“Oh, just stuff.” I paused and considered what to say. I hadn’t exactly been in the right headspace to tell Cori the truth about my period since the mall, but that was nothing compared to everything else weighing on my mind.

But where to begin? The beginning seemed like a good place.

“I guess seeing my mom’s name in that bathing suit the other day kind of weirded me out.”

“Yeah, I can imagine. But it looks really amazing on you.”

A strange chill crept along my skin.

“You think?” I brought the comforter around my neck to warm myself.

“Trust me,” Cori said.

I sighed. “Thanks, Cori. But there’s something else…”

“What?”

“Well…” I stammered. I had to at least admit to the Lie. That would be a start. “I know you think I got my period a couple of years ago, but…”

“But what?”

“Well, you know when I came out with the bathing suit on and we hugged and stuff? That’s actually when it happened.”

“Your first period? You mean…”

“Yeah, and I didn’t know how to tell you ’cause I’d been kinda lying to you all this time.”

Cori didn’t answer. I pressed on. There was no turning back now.

“So I had to stuff a wad of Super Sonic Slurpee napkins in my underwear until I got to Dooley’s.”

I could hear a muffled sound on the other end of the line. Was she upset? Oh, great! Did I make her
cry?

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“I’m sorry…” Cori laughed out loud. “Super… Slurpee…” She sputtered out the words.

I smiled with relief.

“Yeah, and then my dad packed the shopping cart full of about a zillion different kinds of maxi pads and tampons…”

By then, we were both trying to talk between fits of giggles.

“You…you had to go to the drugstore with your Dad?” More laughing. “That’s…the funniest thing…ever.”

We finally caught our breath. It was time for me to apologize.

“I’m happy to be a source of amusement but I’m really sorry I lied.”

“You dope,” Cori said. “You know you can tell me anything, right?”

“I know.” But could I?

“So let that trip to Dooley’s with your dad be a lesson to you: no more secrets. From now on, full disclosure, okay?”

“Okay,” I said quietly, considering the other very big secret I had to tell. But I couldn’t tell Cori I was part mermaid just then. Not like that. Not on the phone.

Cori continued. “Oh, I just got a text from Lainey. She wants to grab a burger at Bridget’s. You feeling up to it?”

“Lainey, huh?” Not that I had anything against Lainey Chamberlain, but ever since Cori bonded with her over pashminas at Lainey’s mom’s boutique, it seemed like our duo was quickly becoming a trio. Besides, I kinda wanted Cori to myself that day. We still had a lot more to talk about.

“Yeah, and guess what?” Cori continued. “Mrs. Chamberlain liked a few of my dress designs and said I might be able to do my co-op mentorship with her next year!”

“That’s amazing!” I could imagine the smile on Cori’s face. “But promise me that when you get to be a big famous clothing designer, you’ll never design anything with green metallic sequins.”

She laughed. “Don’t worry. I think we can both agree that green metallic sequins are a crime against humanity.”

“And never, ever appliqué the word jiggy on anyone’s butt.”

We were laughing hysterically again.

“So, are you gonna come? There’s a Bridget Burger with your name on it,” Cori said.

“Mm…Bridget Burger…tempting.”

“And waffle fries,” she reminded me.

Then I remembered my leg status. Sure, nothing had happened since Tuesday night but I’d stayed in the house since then. What if I merma-cized again in the middle of Bridget’s Diner?

“You know?” My voice turned shaky. “I’m just getting up and I’m not sure how I feel yet. If you don’t see me at Bridget’s in an hour, just go ahead and order without me.”

“All right,” Cori paused, “but are you sure you’re okay? You still sound a bit strung out.”

Strung out pretty much covered it.

“Um, no, I’m fine. Really.” I faked a laugh.

“Okay…if you’re sure,” Cori said.

But I wasn’t sure. Lying about my period was one thing, but now I was keeping another secret, an even
bigger
secret from her. But later. I’d tell her later when we were alone. Actually, it would be good to have Cori to talk to.

“Well, there is something else, but we can talk about it when I see you, okay?”

“Sure,” Cori said slowly, “but call me if you can’t make it. I’ll get you some waffle fries to go.”

“You rock. Thanks, Cori.”

We said our good-byes and I hung up the phone. Cori really was the best friend ever. I smiled and thought of all the times she had listened to me talk about Mom that past year. She’d been amazing through it all. Yeah, she’d freak
when I told her what had happened, but Cori was like a sister to me. It would feel good to be totally honest with her again.

No secrets. Full disclosure.

“Hey, Jade. You feeling okay?” The door squeaked as Dad opened it a crack.

“Mmm-hmm, yeah, I think so. You can come in.” I scraped my mess of curls into a hair tie from my bedside table.

Dad entered, carrying a laundry basket. He set it down on my dresser.

“I checked on you a little earlier, but you were still comatose. Did you have a good sleep?”

“Yeah, thanks.” I smiled then noticed the shadow of stubble lining Dad’s jaw. His hair poked out at all angles. “You, on the other hand, look like you’ve seen better days. Although, if you’re going for the aging, burnt-out rocker look, you’ve totally nailed it.”

“Insolent child.” Dad laughed and tossed a pair of bundled-up socks my way. I ducked.

“I’m just saying.” I swung my legs over the side of the bed and tested my verticalness. So far, so good. Maybe I’d meet Cori and Lainey after all.

“Can I be useful over here?” I grabbed a bunch of T-shirts and added them to the teetering pile on top of my dresser.

“See these things?” Dad smirked and pulled open a drawer. He lined up my socks like little cotton soldiers. “It’s a scientific breakthrough. They call it: the drawer.”

“Wow. I must have missed that last Obsessive Compulsives Anonymous meeting,” I joked.

I helped pick up the rest of the clothes. Soon, only the Michaela tankini was left at the bottom of the laundry basket. We both reached for it at once.

Dad pulled his hand away and smiled. “Good as new.” He nodded to the suit.

“Thanks, Dad.” I took both pieces and refolded them slowly.

“Your mom would have loved it, by the way.” Dad piled the clothes from my hamper into the empty laundry basket.

“You saw the tag?”

Dad straightened and squeezed his eyes shut. He brought his hands to his face and soon, his shoulders shook.

“Oh, Dad. I’m sorry. I should have warned you.” I hugged him.

“It’s okay…I’m okay.” Dad pulled himself together and plucked one of my pink, jasmine-scented tissues from the box on my side table. He blew his nose and forced a smile. “I just haven’t been getting much sleep lately.”

“That’s my fault, sorry.”

“It’s nobody’s fault, just a rough week all round. Hey, you want some breakfast?”

“Thanks, Dad. But if it’s okay, I think I might be ready to venture out into the real world again. I’m going to catch up with Cori and Lainey at Bridget’s. I could use a bit of girl talk, you know?” I set the bathing suit down at the foot of my bed.

“You really think that’s a good idea?” Dad’s face hardened into an expression I couldn’t read.

“What do you mean?”

“It’s just, well, we should decide where we go from here.”

“And we will, I just thought if I got to talk to Cori…”

“Jade,” Dad interrupted. His voice had an urgency that caught my breath. “Sweetie, you have to listen to me. I don’t know what you were planning, but you can’t tell
anyone
about what happened the other day. Do you understand?”

“Well, I wasn’t planning on taking out a full page ad in the
Port Toulouse
Herald
, but…”

“No!”

I flinched.

“I’m sorry.” Dad’s voice softened. “I’m sure Cori would be a great comfort right now, but it’s too risky. No one can know what’s happening with you.”

I shook my head, trying to understand. “You mean I have to live with this big secret hanging over me?”

Dad paced the room.

“Look.” He rubbed his hand through his hair. Again. “This is all new to both of us and without your mom here, we’re kind of in a strange place right now. Maybe it’ll happen again, maybe not, but if this ever gets out…”

“You mean you think I’ll change into a mermaid again?” But I knew the answer from the look on his face. Dad had no idea.

“The only things we know for sure are that Micci was a mermaid and the gene doesn’t seem to be recessive.”

“No kidding.” I fought to keep the edge out of my voice.

“I’ve been researching this on the web for days, looking for some sort of scientific solution, but I came up with nothing. There must be some precedent, buried deep in the folklore.”

“What am I supposed to do until then?” I remembered the promise I’d just made to Cori. Could I really keep lying to her again?

“Let me just do a bit more research to see what I can come up with before we tell anyone. Okay, Jade?”

“But I promise, Cori won’t say anything. Not if I swear her to secrecy.”

Dad rested a hand on my dresser.

“What you don’t understand is if this gets out, your whole life will change.”

“More than it has already?” I practically screamed.

“Jade, sweetie.” He sighed. “I’ve worked as an engineer long enough to know that the scientific community would be all over you if they found out. They’d want to explore this phenomenon fully and I’m not ready for that to happen.”

My jaw dropped. “Like experiments and lab tests?” A ripple of dread ran through me. Could it be true? Would scientists want to poke and prod at me like some kind of lab rat?

“Maybe. Let’s just give this a bit more time before we decide who to confide in. But it’s important that you don’t tell anyone for now. Not Cori, not your other friends, not even Gran. Please, Jade. You have to promise.”

Finally, I could read the expression on Dad’s face. It was the same one he’d had when Mom slipped underwater that day at Gran’s cottage the summer before. The day both our lives changed forever.

Dad was terrified. And so was I.

“I promise,” I whispered.

The reality of the situation slammed into me. This huge, unbelievable thing that had happened could turn into something even more bizarre and horrible if I didn’t keep my mouth shut.

“And please,” Dad continued, “if anything’s bothering you, please talk to me. I’ll help any way I can.”

Something
had
nagged at me ever since Dad admitted Mom’s real identity to me.

“I do have one more question.” My voice was barely a whisper.

“What’s that?”

“Well, if Mom was once a mermaid…how could she have drowned?”

“Ah, honey.” Dad closed his eyes. “That’s a question I’ve asked myself about a hundred million times.”

I
MARCHED DOWN
M
AIN STREET
on my way to Bridget’s Diner, my flip-flops flicking to the beat of the cheer-leading chant running through my head.

You can do it.

You can do it.

Get on up.

And get down to it…

Not like I was trying out for the pep squad any time soon, but I needed to get my game face on if I wanted to get through lunch without spilling my guts. Dad was right; I couldn’t tell anyone what had happened. Not that I didn’t trust Cori, but if this secret ever got out, it could change my life forever.

The storefront windows blurred past as I kept my focus straight ahead. A town maintenance guy was watering the flowers, but he stepped off the sidewalk to let me pass. The mounting tempo of my flip-flops must have tipped him off. He obviously recognized a girl on a mission.

I stopped on the bridge at the boat lock to gather my
thoughts and gazed down the mile-long canal from the lake to the ocean, welcoming the warm June sun on my legs.

Ah, legs! Standing upright was highly underrated.

The good news was that I’d
had
legs for four days so far and my first period was now behind me. I’d even managed a couple of showers in the meantime. Dad had waited by the bathroom door, just in case, but I’d been fine. No scales, no fins. Not a gill in sight.

So what was the difference between the shower and the bath? Did a mermaid gene get tripped off when I slipped underwater in the tub? Did it have anything to do with the fact I’d just gotten my first period? Or maybe the Epsom salt triggered something. Dad and I went around and around in circles, trying to figure it out. One thing was for sure: I planned on laying off the Epsom salt even if it
was
the miracle cure for cramps.

I leaned against the bridge’s railing and stared into the water. Weird. The ringing in my ears was back. I guess I should have listened to Dad all those times he’d told me to turn down the volume on my MP3 player.

A lungful of ocean air cleared my head. Okay, no use stalling anymore. I stepped off the bridge and headed to Bridget’s Diner.

I
could
do this. It was just lunch. I
excelled
at lunch. The waffle fries alone were motivation enough to pull me through.

“Ja…” The ringing in my ears changed and I thought I heard my name.

Was it Cori? Was she running late? I looked up the street.

No. Nobody there.

Huh. Well, there was nothing stopping me now. Besides, I’d been stuck in the house long enough. Lunch at Bridget’s was just what I needed. I was actually feeling pretty good by the time I stomped up the front steps of the diner.

Until some idiot slammed into me as I reached for the door.

“Hey, watch it!” I yelled.

“Oh, sorry.”

My cheeks went from chilled to grilled in about 0.7 seconds when I realized who it was.

“Luke!”

Note to self: refresh supply of moron sticks.

“Jade!” He dropped his skateboard. Right on my toe.

“Sugarplum! Fiddlesticks! Pickle juice!” I channeled all of Gran’s semi-satisfying phony curse words to take the edge off the crushing pain.

“Oh, crap!” Luke kneeled to pick up his skateboard and hesitated.

I looked down and cringed. That tail transformation had done a number on my toe nail polish, judging by the Cotton Candy Pink hanging off my nails in chipped bits. And where the heck was my toe ring, anyway?

“I’m so sorry. I, uh…” Luke stood, no doubt stunned by the shocking state of my feet. He hugged his skateboard to his chest to let me by.

“No, no, really, it was my fault,” I stammered. “I wasn’t watching where I was going.” Dissecting the evidence, that was probably closest to the truth.

“Well, I’ll own up to the broken toe.” Luke held the door for me. “So let’s call it even?”

Then, he did it. He smiled that adorable, beaming smile, turning my brain to goo.

“Uh…y’um.”
Geesh!
They really should invent a brain implant with a drop-down menu of witty comebacks because right then, I had nothing.

“You going in?” Luke asked, still holding the door.

I worked to engage my gross motor skills, which must have looked strange, because Cori and Lainey glanced up from their booth and stared at me, wide-eyed. I turned to Luke once we were inside the diner.

“Me. Thank you.” As soon as the words left my mouth, I gave myself twenty mental lashings.

Pronouns. Must grasp correct use of pronouns.

“You. Welcome,” Luke said in his best robotic voice.

I snorted. Not the cute little sniffle-snort Lainey was so good at, but at that point, it didn’t seem to matter.

“Oh, and sorry about that ‘crap’ thing,” he continued.

“Next time, try
pickle juice
. It’s surprisingly satisfying.”

Luke pressed his lips together in a curvy, trying-not-to-laugh smile.

“What?” I asked.

“It’s just…” A chuckle escaped from his lips. “Don’t take this the wrong way…”

I put a hand on my hip. “Spit it out.”

Luke looked at me and seemed to consider what to say. “You’re…just different from the last time I remember you.”

“Likewise.” Ha! Give him a taste of his own medicine.

“Is that good, bad, or indifferent?” he asked.

“I haven’t decided yet.” I smirked.

Luke laughed. “I guess I deserved that.” He waved and continued to the counter to chat with his grandfather, Shaky Eddie, before joining his brother at the booth in the front.

Okay. So maybe Luke wasn’t the evil sixth grader I remembered. Even though I was sure I hadn’t managed to wow him with my conversational skills, at least he didn’t seem to be carrying a grudge over the spin-the-bottle incident. And as long as the Scissor Lips nickname was behind us, maybe it was time for me to bury the hatchet too.

I was still smiling when I slid into Cori and Lainey’s booth. “Sorry I’m late.”

“What was all
that
about?” Cori whispered.

“You mean Luke?” I jabbed my thumb in his direction.

“Shh, they’ll hear us.” She poked her head past me. I turned to see what she was looking at. Aha. Luke’s older brother sat with his back to the window. He played with a paper-covered straw, his arm draped over the back of the seat.

“Still scoping out Trey, huh?” I nudged her.

Cori blushed and smiled. She turned to her sketchbook and concentrated on shading in the design she’d been
working on all spring. A dress. Asymmetric, off the shoulder, and quirky. Just like her.

Lainey pinched her mouth in a sour expression, marring her otherwise perfect face.

“And since when did you become so buddy-buddy with Luke?” The dripping sarcasm in Lainey’s voice had me staring back at her, unblinking, for a full three seconds.

“What do you mean?”

“It just looked like you two were having a bit of a moment over there.”

“I nearly ran the guy over if that’s what you mean. We were just laughing about it.”

What the heck was her problem?

“Oh!” Lainey giggled. She turned to flash her Crest Whitening Strip–enhanced smile Luke’s way. “Well, that makes sense.”

I rewound the last three minutes in my head. How had it seemed to Lainey and Cori, seeing me at the door with Luke like that? Had Lainey actually been jealous? That was a laugh.

I examined the evidence.

Lainey Chamberlain: designer jeans, way-too-cute spaghetti strap tank top, perfectly accessorized, with killer highlights.

Me: scruffy jean skirt, uppermost T-shirt from my teetering pile, and a threadbare hoodie.

Yeah. No wonder Lainey was quaking in her Jimmy Choo knockoffs. As if.

“You gonna have anything?” Cori looked up from her sketchbook. “We already ate.”

“Thinking about it.” I was grateful for the change of subject. Plus, ever since Cori mentioned the Bridget Burger on the phone, I’d been daydreaming about how many toppings I could get before Bridget started charging me extra. “Are you sticking around for a bit?”

“We’ll hang out till you’re done. Right, Lainey?”

“What? Oh, Cori!” Lainey tore her eyes away from the window booth for a quarter of a second, then went back to her ogling. “Maybe you can invite Luke and Trey to your pool party.”

Whether Luke was buying the serious case of eye batting Lainey was aiming at him or not, I couldn’t tell with my back turned. Either way, I had an irresistible urge to reach over and pluck out her plum-tinted eyelashes, one by one, each time she glanced in his direction.

“I’ll go order at the counter,” I muttered. Two more seconds of Lainey’s flirting and I couldn’t be responsible for my actions. I took myself over to the swiveling stools and leaned over the cool linoleum counter.

“Hey there, Hurricane Jade.” Shaky Eddie looked over from his usual spot at the end of the counter, coffee in hand.

I stared back at him, mouth open. How did he know I was named after a hurricane? I’d just found out a few days before.

I waited for him to take a sip of his coffee.

The mocha liquid quivered in Eddie’s cup as he brought
it to his mouth with a trembling hand. Stories ran rampant about his mysterious past. Shell-shocked from a tour in the Gulf? A past career in jack hammering, maybe? From the amount of time he spent at Bridget’s counter, drinking coffee while he waited for boats to show up at the lock, I figured he was just a bit over his recommended daily allowance of caffeine.

He put his mug down and swallowed noisily.

“What did you just say?” I asked.

Eddie just smiled. His hand made a rasping sound as he rubbed it over his whiskered face.

“Did you just call me Hurricane Jade?” I continued.

“You always did blow through here like a wind storm.” Eddie chuckled.

“Oh.” So that’s what he’d meant. Nothing more. Or was it?
Forget it
, I told myself. This whole mermaid thing had me paranoid, big time.

“What’s good today, Eddie?” I spun the little menu Rolodex and scanned the items.

“Bridget’s got those chocolate Wigwags you like.” He nodded to the candy rack next to the till. “Or I hear the special’s good.”

“You just read my mind.” It didn’t matter that “the special” was the same thing every day. Bridget Burger, waffle fries, and coleslaw (but hold the coleslaw if you want extra fries). I placed my order with Bridget and leaned back against the counter to wait.

Cori and Lainey weren’t at the booth. I spotted them
at the door, talking to Luke and Trey. Luke was smiling at something Lainey had just said.

My heart did one of those inside-out numbers, like when you pull off a rubber glove and the fingers get turned the wrong way. What was
that
all about? I wondered. Twenty-four hours before, I thought Luke Martin was the biggest jerk in all of Port Toulouse. So, why did it feel like I just got kicked in the gut, seeing him with Lainey like that?

Cori came over.

“Hey, Luke and Trey are going over to the skate park. You wanna come?” She looked past my shoulder as Bridget set my food on the counter. “Oh, sorry, right.”

A quick glance at Lainey, as she tossed her perfect hair over her slim shoulder, and I was reduced to the same self-doubt I’d been plagued with for my almost-fourteen years. Who was I kidding? Of course Luke would go for someone like Lainey. She waved her hand for Cori to come.

“You guys go ahead. Maybe I’ll go find you once I’m done.”

“You sure? I can wait,” Cori said. “Oh! Actually, I’ll let them know we’ll catch up with them later. That way, we can talk about that thing you mentioned on the phone.”

Oh, you mean the fact that your best friend is a half-girl, half-mermaid circus freak?

“Oh, that? It’s nothing. Seriously. We’ll talk later, okay?” I gave Cori a friendly push and laughed to make sure she wouldn’t object. Thankfully, Luke and Trey were already partway out the door with Lainey. “They’re leaving. Go!”

“Okay, but make sure you come right over once you’re done.” She lowered her voice.
“Can you believe Trey actually touched my arm? Eee!”

I smiled and gave her a thumbs up as she headed outside with the others. I thought I saw Luke glance my way before they all disappeared past the window and out of sight. But no. He probably meant to say good-bye to his grandfather. Or maybe he thought he forgot something.

Shaky Eddie fixed a plastic lid around his takeout coffee and stood to leave. I turned to my lunch and sighed.

“Gotta go, kiddo. I’ve got another customer.” He nodded to the large windows overlooking the boat lock. From the diner’s vantage point, I could see the double-masted sailboat cruise up the canal from the ocean to the lake. “Summer rush is starting early this year, looks like.”

“See ya, Eddie.” I waved.

“Hey. There’s a nice bench by the lake near the bridge. Lovely day for a picnic.” He winked and planted his hat on his head before disappearing out the door.

“Good idea,” I murmured as Bridget came to the register. I nodded to my lunch. “Could I take it to go, please?”

“You got it, honey.” Bridget packed up the Styrofoam container and rustled under the counter for a plastic bag.

I turned back to the window and spotted a cell phone left at the Martins’ booth. I got it from the table and flicked it open.

fluke1019

“Luke’s,” I muttered, snapping the phone shut. That must have been why he’d glanced in the diner, like he’d forgotten something. Of course he hadn’t been looking at me.

“Just leave it with me.” Bridget called over from the short-order window, where she was getting me some plastic cutlery. “I’ll keep it at the counter.”

“Gladly,” I muttered under my breath, placing the cell next to the cash register.

The diner suddenly felt small and suffocating.

I’d practically pushed Cori out the door, avoiding her questions, along with Luke and Lainey. Was this what life was going to be like from now on? Trying to act like a normal teenager while I had this huge secret to hide? Meeting Cori at Bridget’s was supposed to make me feel better. Instead, I felt more off-balance than ever. I had to get out of there and sort out a few things.