Depthless(NaNoWrimo2014)

Chapter 1

There's an old saying in the Aquarius Isles that says, "If you're suffering from heartache, you should never visit the ocean." There were things out there that came to you when you were most vulnerable, so Marjani couldn't explain why she was in the one place she shouldn't be when she was clearly suffering. Maybe she hoped a mermaid would succeed in dragging her under this time, but she knew only fools played with fate. She may have been devastated, but she didn't have such intentions. No, she came here because it gave her the best view of the sunset.

She'd always been dazzled by the way the sherbet skies melted in the ocean and it brought her a sense of calm.
The sea also gave hints to the other islands that laid beyond her home,places she weren't allowed to visit and never thought about until now. Did women there have to be married in their early twenties? It was a requirement here and though she had a full year before she even had to worry about such things, she at least had an idea of the man she wanted to be with.

Taj was one of the most handsome on the island. He came from a family of carpenters and because he was strong, athletic, and charming, he started courting when he was just thirteen.There was a girl always on his arm or someone vying for his attention. He even saved her from a fatal situation when they were kids and that made her admire him even more. She hoped he would one day return her feelings, but now it was too late.
Taj had already proposed to another.
The lucky woman was her best frined.

Digging her toes in the grainy sand, she hoped it would keep her from remembering,but her mind went back anyway to Cleo's grand announcement.
***
Marjani dug her fingers in the cool rich soil as she pulled up a weed that lodged itself in the middle of her grandfather's herbal garden. She was hoping to surprise her grandparents when they returned. She knew it was hard on them to bend down in the dirt nowadays and she wanted to make things easier for them. She was engaged in her work until she heard the back gate slam. Looking up, she saw her friend, Cleo Ngilu racing towards her with a grin plastered to her face, her breathing coming short in excited huffs, ans her dark braids slapping against her shoulders as she ran. Marjani couldn't help but smile at the sight of her friend's own giddiness.
"What's got you all lit up?" She asked.

Without a word, Cleo held out her left hand with a dramatic flourish. Marjani gasped at the sight of the jewelry on her friend's finger. The light casted a rainbow sheen on the pearl ring and the small crystals on the flower design next to it sparkled.
"He proposed," Cleo squeaked.
Marjani blinked at her friend. It was one thing to see her best friend with an engagement ring, but to find out she had been seeing someone without her knowledge was another shock entirely. Of course seeing the ring gave it away now, but who was this mysterious suitor?
"Who proposed?"
"You know, THE he and he proposed to me!"
Marjani frowned. There was only one guy she herself would think of as being so special he had to be emphasized, but she doubted they were thinking of the same person. At least she hoped they weren't.
"Sorry Cleo, but you're going to have to come right out and tell me."
"Taj Karumi!"
Marjani felt her breath leave her body. Her heart constricted in her chest and she stumbled on her feet. Cleo's grabbed her forearm and led her to the stone bench in the backyard, chattering away about how it happened. Her voice was like white noise in Marjani's ears as she tried to come to terms with the name that just escaped from her friend's lips.
"When I saw the ring I thought 'there is no way he's about to ask me what I think he's about to ask me' But he-"
Marjani somehow found her voice. "D-did you say Taj Karumi."
Cleo stopped in the middle of her story, narrowing her eyes at her friend, annoyed that she interrupted the retelling of the greatest moment in her life, but then when she took in her friend's shocked expression, she went from annoyed to smug.
"Yes, I did."
Why...why didn't you tell me you were seeing him?" She felt tears burning in her eyes, but she willed them not to fall, she wouldn't show Cleo how deep her disappointment went.
"I knew you would be a bit upset that I didn't tell you, but Taj and I wanted to keep our relationship a secret. He knew how the other girls could be and didn't want that kind of attention on me. Besides, sneaking around to see each other was fun." She gave her friend a wink. "I was going to tell you eventually, but time got away from us." She sighed.
Marjani wanted to scream, "But I'm your best friend. You couldn't have trusted me?" Maybe this meant that Cleo thought she was like the other girls. She didn't know which she was more offended by, the prospect of knowing Cleo's secret sooner or feeling untrustworthy. Or maybe it was like she said and she forgot to mention it in the first place.
She felt her stomach turn with envy, wishing she was the one with the wistful look in her eyes, thinking of Taj and knowing he thought of her too, but now she knew it was impossible. She also couldn't help but feel disgusted with herself that she felt this way towards her best friend, her only friend that was around her age.
She felt Cleo's soft hands grasp her rough ones. "I know the news is overwhelming, but I promise to explain everything to you soon. You don't know how hard it was to keep our relationship to myself, but once I explain, you'll see it was all for the best-oh- and I want you to be my Maid of Honor."
"Your Maid of Honor?"
The words sounded foreign to Marjani as she said it. Of course she knew what a Maid of Honor was and what their duties entailed. She and Cleo talked about being each other's Maid of Honor since they were kids-even talked about a double wedding- but Marjani didn't know if she had the strength to go through with that now.
"Yes, don't you remember how we used to talk about it?"
"W-when is the wedding?" She didn't really want to know, but she forced herself to ask anyway.
"We didn't want to wait, so we're planning a small ceremony a month from now."
"A month from now?' Marjani repeated, practically hysterical. "Do the elders even know? Would they think that...that..."
Cleo hushed her and whispered, "Well we have done that, but the situation isn't like that at all-and don't you dare say we were possessed by Papa Ghe. We just can't stand being away from each other. A lot of young couples get married before their twenties if they are serious enough. Besides, what's one year earlier than what's expected?"
Papa Ghe was the god of death and human corruption. He was one of the many gods that the Aquarians worshiped and if a couple decided to show their love for each other before they were bonded in the eyes of the public, It was a taboo matter. Unless, the female ended up pregnant, than in that case, everyone knew and the couple would have to go to the temple for repentance and be married right away.
Marjani was speechless.
"Maybe I shouldn't have unloaded all of that on you." Cleo noted, noticing Marjani's stoic expression. "Do you need some water or something?"
Marjani shook her head and gestured for Cleo to leave.
"You're not mad at me are you?"
She forced herself to shake her head, her eyes burning with tears once more. Please let me hold it together until she leaves.
"I know you're upset with me, but it's just like you to keep from telling me how you feel."
You have no idea. Marjani thought.
"Well at least fix yourself some chamomile tea or something. You're losing the color in your face. Promise me you'll think about becoming my Maid of Honor."
Once again Marjani couldn't say a thing.
Cleo stood up. "Well I have to go. Taj and I were planning on breaking the news to our parents, but I just had to see you first. I'll talk to you later so we can plan okay?"
She wrapped her arms around Marjani in a hug and Marjani couldn't bring herself to return the gesture. Instead, she hoped Cleo would see it as shock instead of resentment.
As soon as Cleo was gone, Marjani ran off to the shore to be alone and share her laments with the sea, hoping the sound of the crashing waves would cover the sound of her broken heart.
***
She had a back-up plan. If she couldn't have Taj, then she wouldn't have anyone else. He was the only one she looked at with infatuation and all the others boys never elicited such a feeling from her. She would keep her best friend happy and not tell her of her feelings. She would ask the gods for forgiveness for her resentment and make sure that Cleo had the type of wedding Marjani would have dreamed of for herself. With her new-found resolution, she returned home, knowing no matter how enchanted the sea appeared, it was still more dangerous at nightfall.