Fiolee: A Thousand Years in the Making

Chapter 4: The Big Date

     The carriage pulled to a stop on a pink sandy beach. Gumball got out first and opened my door.

    Then we walked over to a picnic blanket near the ocean. I suddenly felt a pain in my stomach that I always got when I was near the ocean.

I never told this to Gumball and nobody but Cake knew this, but I was afraid of the ocean.

It started when I was twelve...

(Fionna's flashback, four years ago)

"Come back here you butts!" I yelled, chasing some goblin thieves to a beach. They were headed to an escape boat on this huge lake.

"Let's get them Cake!" I yelled. "They're trying to escape across that huge lake!"

"That's not a lake baby, that's an ocean," Cake explained to me.

"Ocean or lake, what does it matter? They're getting away!" I yelled.

"Alight then Adventure Time!" She yelled running into the water.

I was about to get in the water when suddenly I stopped and looked at the ocean.

I just looked at it.

That's all.

No big deal.

But suddenly, I felt scared for some reason. Then I just stood there for a while until I heard Cake call me.

"Fionna, why are you just standing there? I could use a little help here!"

"Oh right, coming Cake," I said, trying to snap out of it. I thought my shoes were the problem so I took them off.

But as soon as the rushing water touched my feet, I just lost it.

"Fionna baby, what's wrong with you?" Cake asked concerned.

I felt this panic rise inside of me, like the ocean was physically strangling me.

I tried to snap out of it, but then there was this breeze that went by and just this tiny drop of water hit my face and I screamed.

"I...I'm...I'm afraid!" I yelled.

I had to get out of it!

I just had to!

"Fionna!" Cake yelled. "Tell me what's wrong!"

"Get me out of the water Cake! Now Cake! Now!" I yelled, jumping on her head over and over again...

***
  I don't know why I never told Gumball about my fear. Maybe it's because deep down I'm worried that he'll think less of me and not want to be with me anymore.

"You're going to love what I packed for us," Gumball said taking food out of the picnic basket and ending my train of thought.

"It looks delicious," I said.

"Maybe later after we eat, we can go swimming," He said.

I felt that pain in my stomach again.

He's my boyfriend, I thought. I'm supposed to trust him with my heart. He'll understand. I mean, we've been dating two years for Glob's sake!

I was about to finally say something about it, when suddenly, the strawberry that Gumball was about to eat had turned gray.

***