Shark Bait [H.S.]

Chapter Nine.

Killing a man tonight was not on my list of things to do, especially one of Joseph's men.

It was supposed to be an easy day, a small party at Shark Bait and a way to let loose instead of being all uptight about work all the time. Of course, things don't always go to plan. I just wish it didn't involve blood on our hands.

Having it involve Indigo just makes things ten times worse. As much as I've come to really like her, she has a habit of getting herself into trouble. Trouble with a capital T.

It's funny though because the more she does shit like this, the more it annoys Harry. I've never seen someone be able to get under his skin the way she does and she hardly even has to try. She might just become my new best friend.

Sorry Harry.

Despite my growing fondness towards her though, what happened tonight at the party shouldn't have happened.

If only Harry didn't act like a bratty little kid, we would have been long gone before Indigo stumbled upon us. I get where he was coming from but we both knew it was a losing battle. One look at me and he knew what my eyes were telling him, that is, until the asshole insulted the way Harry runs Shark Bait. As soon as he slandered Harry's work ethic, I knew Harry would be a loose cannon.

He...has a problem with that. You can insult anything about him — his clothes, his scar, his attitude — but what he won't stand to hear is when someone has something to say about the way he handles his aquarium. And his fish.

It's not even that Shark Bait is just work to him, it's more than that. This place holds significant value in his life and he'll never let someone talk shit about it or tell him how he should be running it, not even me. Shark Bait means a lot to the both of us really, but I know my love for it will never compare to the one Harry holds.

These fish are his life, he'll protect them until the day he dies.

I've known Harry for a long fucking time, and it's come to a point where I understand him better than anyone else. The same goes for him to me, we're practically brothers. We've spent a lot of time in the comfort of one another and even though it became something that just ended up happening because we were pushed together, I'm grateful for it. He's my best friend.

I fell in love with fish because of him, I became an aquatic veterinarian because of him, I'm still alive because of him. Putting myself through school was extremely difficult at times. Not only was I feeling pressure from the school, but I was putting a lot of pressure on myself. I wanted to do this not only for me, but for Harry. I wanted him to be proud of me. I hope he is.

I honestly wouldn't have gotten through school without him, letting me lean on him for whatever I needed. Whether he quizzed me on anatomy or let me label parts of him as if he were a common goldfish, Harry let me do it, but not without a few curses and complaints.