I do not own H2O: Just Add Water or any of the characters.
Chapter 27: Sink or Swim (part 2)
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[Byron stood waiting by the pool when Rikki walks up to him. He turns to her and smiles.]
Byron: "Hey Rikki! Where's Emma?"
"He still expected you to train him after he just insulted you? Unbelievable!" Bella scoffed, crossing her arms. "What an idiot," Zane said, shaking his head.
"Does he have memory loss or something or is he just that dumb," Kim commented, causing Rikki to smirk. "Lay off him guys," Emma said, chuckling to herself, though she was surprised that Rikki was there. What did she want?
Rikki: "I don't appreciate you calling my friend names. Emma may seem tough but she's easily hurt."
"You confronted him?" Emma asked in surprise, a blush rising into her cheeks. "You didn't tell me that part!" "Whoops, must've slipped," Rikki said, rubbing her neck while laughing lightly.
"And once again you used her own words too," Lewis pointed out. "Shut up," Rikki said, rolling her eyes.
Byron: tilts his head in confusion, glancing down. "I was just telling her –."
"That she was being too hard on you? That you were too lazy to accomplish your goal? That she was a 'heavy training dragon?'" Kim mocked, using air quotes on the last sentence. Everyone nods in agreement, except for Emma who just sighed. He's still a good friend. They shouldn't worry about it. he already apologized! Several times!
Rikki: "Don't you realize she cares about you?"
Byron: a small smile forms. "Really? Sh-she cares?" Rikki's eyes widen as she realizes her mistake.
"Oooh, letting secrets slip, aren't ya Rikki?" Lewis teased as Emma's face pales. "You're about as bad as Byron," Kim joked.
"You told him that?!" Emma yelled, slapping her hands on the top of her head in shock. "Sorry?" Rikki sheepishly replied. "You just basically told him that I liked him!" Emma said, waving to the screen. "Well think of it like this! You needed the push anyways," Rikki shrugged, running out of excuses. "Ugh!" Emma groaned, hiding her face in her knees as she brought them up closer to her.
Byron: "How much?"
Rikki: "I didn't say really likes you, she just cares about you."
"No, but you definitely meant it that way," Cleo smiled, making Emma groan in frustration even more. "Sorry, Em. But it needed to be done," Rikki said, patting Emma's back in moral support.
Byron: "I care about Emma too. I really care. And I would never do anything to hurt her on purpose."
The room goes quiet as they process what Byron just said. He likes her too. Maybe they shouldn't be too harsh on him. Maybe they judged too quickly. Okay so he wasn't much on the bright side, but he was still a good person.
A squeal erupts from Cleo as she jumps up and down in her seat with excitement and hugs Emma tightly, who was still in her cocoon form. Fortunately, she heard his statement and slowly got up from her little shell and looks at the screen with a hopeful smile, which slowly began to form. Which remains mutual as she reminds herself that they were still just friends.
Lisa looks at the screen happily, when she hears Neil scowl next to her and hits him on the arm to get him to stop. "Hush. This might be good for her," Lisa whispered to him. He just sat there silently, thinking it over as he stayed slouched over, leaning against his hand.
Rikki: a quick smile slips onto her face before she puts her mask back on and glances away for a second. "Oh. Well – just, don't do it again." She walks off and Byron smiles, grinning from ear to ear as he thought of what Rikki just said to him.
"Guess he isn't that slow after all. He's finally using his brain to think," Zane said, waving his arms around.
Emma couldn't help but smile at seeing Byron smile, it was so contagious to her.
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[Later on, back at the pool, Emma walks along the side of it as she watches the timer while Byron swims a lap. He hits the end of the pool and Emma stops the timer and sighs. She leans over the ladder as Byron paddles over to her.]
Emma: "A lot slower than yesterday, but you're kicking much better."
"You're still coaching him? I'm surprised after what he called you," Ash said. "I couldn't just let a few negative comments get in the way of helping him achieve his goal," Emma shrugged. "He needed all the help he could get." "Especially since he is such a slacker," Elliot muttered, but utterly proud of his sister for keeping her promise to help him.
Byron: holding onto one of the lines. "Silver lining in every wave."
Emma: "So I've been thinking, rather than just obsessing on winning, maybe you should concentrate on whatever feels right."
Byron: smiles at her and nods. "I like it. The Zen Approach. Getting on the same level now."
"At least they're getting along better," Lisa told Neil. "Hmm, I still think he should apologize," Neil grumbled in reply.
Emma: "Right! So, how about a few more laps?"
Byron: "I think I need a rest. I'm seriously pooped."
"I can see this is probably not going to end well already," Annette sighed.
"He needs to push harder anyways. The jerk deserves it for insulting her earlier," Don said, crossing his arms.
"He said pooped," Elliot giggled, Emma rolled her eyes at his childish behavior, but still smiled at him.
Emma: "Ok. That's good too." She stood up straight as Byron got out of the pool.
"Don't give in. You're the coach, he should listen to you, not the other way around," Sam said.
"He asked for your advice, not his," Ash commented.
Will shook his head at the guy. He should keep trying to push himself further in order to achieve his goal. After all, that's why he came to her in the first place, right? Wow, he's really starting to sound like his sister. He shuttered at the thought.
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[After drying off and changing clothes, they both walk away from the pool. Emma holds her towel by her side as they go down the sidewalk.]
Byron: "I really need to apologize for saying what I did."
Emma: "This is the fifth time you've said sorry. I forgave you the first time."
"It's about time," Neil huffed.
"Wow, he either felt really bad or really liked you to apologize that much," Bella said with a small smile. "I believe it was both," Rikki grinned. "Definitely both," Cleo agreed.
Byron: "I know you seem tough, but you're easily hurt." They stop walking as Emma looks at him in surprise, facing him.
Emma: "How do you know that?"
"A little birdie told him," Charlotte smirked as they all looked at Rikki. She looks all around her and waves them off. "I didn't think he would go and say that." I believe a little fishy is what told him, Will chuckled silently to himself, thinking of Charlotte's comment.
"It almost sounds like an insult now, coming from him," Sam said, tilting her head.
Byron: smiles widely at her, then shuffles his feet around, ignoring her question. "I really enjoyed training today."
"Yeah, I'm sure that's what you enjoyed," Zane smirked, before rubbing his ribcage from the elbow he just received from Rikki.
Emma: smiles, forgetting his comment from before. "So did I." They stare at each other for a moment before Emma looks away and takes a breath, turning back to him sadly. "Look, Byron, I'm, not an ordinary girl."
Byron: takes a step closer. "I know that."
"You could say that again," Elliot laughed as Lisa tries to hush him. Neil lets a small smile form on his face as he sees them interact. He could really tell that they liked each other. If Byron thought she was different, in a good way, to the other girls, then that's just what she needs. Even if he didn't know the true meaning of her not being 'an ordinary girl.' He better not hurt his little girl again.
"No, you don't know that. Because you don't know her secret," Denman muttered. "But he saw her different than others anyways, and that's all that mattered," Max whispered, thinking of his Gracie for a second. He thought the same thing before he discovered their secret.
[They smile at each other, then close the distance between them and kiss, staying there like that for a minute. They smile even wider at each other, then face forward again and continue their walk.]
"Finally!" Kim yelled, startling a few others around her.
"They kissed before that, you know," Cleo said, stating the obvious. "Yes, but that was when she was moon spelled as you called it and couldn't remember it," Kim shot back with a duh tone.
Emma smiled, glad to be able to see the kiss from another point of view. Lisa smiled as well, happy that her daughter was happy, she never got to see it much during that time.
Neil scowled, earning another hit to the arm by his wife. He looks at her then gestures to the screen. "What? She's still my little girl. I just, don't like her growing up so fast," he quickly replied. "I'm sure that's why," Lisa said, giving him a look.
Ash sighed, feeling a little disappointed before frowning, still not understanding why he felt like that.
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[At the Juicenet café, Rikki was sitting at their booth, on Lewis's laptop. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Cleo push Emma inside and over to the window behind her. She turns to them then back at the computer.]
Cleo: "I want to know everything. Did he – did he close his eyes? Did he have nice breath? Did he open his mouth for you?"
Emma: leans against the window frame. "Cleo!"
They burst out laughing at Cleo's detailed questions, the two girls blushing from their private conversation being shown.
Don looks at her in shock, never knowing that his daughter would ask such personal questions like that.
After the laughter died down, Kim decided to ask. "Did he?" "Kim!" Bev scolded, looking at her in shock. She's too young to be asking those questions. Cleo shouldn't either, but at least she's a bit older to understand! "What? It's just a simple question?" "It's not that simple," Emma muttered under her breath, trying to get the redness in her cheeks to go away.
Emma: "This is not good. I tried being nice, and this is what happens."
"Guess you were too nice," Lewis snorted, earning a laugh from Zane next to him.
"You call yelling at him, then kissing him being nice?" Charlotte asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Please don't be nice to me then," Zane mumbled, keeping from breaking into another round of laughter, although he wasn't as quiet as he thought when he made that remark. "Allow me," Harrison said as he saw Emma's eyes narrow at him and he slaps the back of Zane's head, who rubs it and pouts.
"How is it not good?" Sam asked. "Because I'm supposed to be his coach, not his girlfriend or anything. He could get distracted from his training and lose. Which by the way, before you say, 'what if,' yes he did get distracted, and it did cause him to lose once," Emma raised her finger up to stop anyone from asking any further questions, as Bella closed her mouth when her 'what if' question got shut down.
Cleo: ignores her and tilts her head, thinking. "I bet his swimming's improved."
Emma: shakes her head as Rikki looks over their way, curious about their conversation before turning back to the screen. "No. It's worse. What's the point of being all soft and supportive if it doesn't actually make him swim better?" Walks away from the conversation as Cleo walks back to the booth and sits on the other side of it with Lewis, who just came from the counter with Rikki's drink in hand.
"See what I mean?" Emma said, the others nodding in agreement.
"Being soft and supportive is what a friend is supposed to do. But a coach is supposed to be tough, always trying to make you work harder," Bev nodded. "He needs a coach when he's training, but outside of that, he needs a friend."
"Why didn't you join the conversation, Rikki? You kept turning around towards them," Zane asked curiously. "Because I was busy, but still wanted to know what was going on," Rikki explained.
"What were you doing? And who's laptop is that?" Terry asked suspiciously. "Plotting. And it's Lewis's," Rikki grinned. "Uh oh," Charlotte said. "I already don't like where this is going," Terry sighed.
Lewis: sets her smoothie next to the computer in front of her. She looks up at him while Cleo goes through a magazine. "There you go, Rikki! Apple mango, an extra strawberry, one spoonful of yogurt, and a dash of ginger. Just as you ordered."
"Wow, that's a long order. Surprised you remembered the whole thing," Max said in surprise. "I had to write it down," Lewis sighed, glancing sideways towards Rikki, who was still beaming with pride.
Rikki: frowns and cuts him off, shaking her head as she looked at the drink. "Wait. That's not what I ordered. I said half a spoon of yogurt. I can't drink this. You better order me another one." She pushes the drink back towards him with a disgusted look on his face.
"Does it matter about the amount?" Annette asked, she knew for some recipes it would. But for yogurt in a smoothie? It should be fine. "For my plan it did."
"Rikki, don't make him go through all that trouble. You're not even lactose intolerant. You should be fine," Terry sighed, rubbing his forehead, trying to figure out what she is playing at. "I was only trying to figure out what could make him mad," Rikki shrugged. "Still, you should've just left him alone."
Cleo: looks up at her, squinting her eyes in suspicion as she shakes her head. "Rikki, I – I don't remember you asking for just a half a spoon." Looks at Lewis.
Lewis: still facing Rikki, showing no emotion. "Oh no Cleo, that's fine. I can get another drink." About to stand up, when Rikki taps something on the computer and her eyes widen in fake surprise, and he sits back down.
"Lewis you shouldn't. You ought to know by now that she's up to something," Charlotte said worriedly. He leans over and whispers in her ear, making her heart beat a little faster than normal as he got closer. "Oh I did. Cleo told me what was going on. But I wanted to see how far she would go." He leaned back as she pouted. Of course he would mention Cleo's name in that sentence.
Rikki: "Oh no! What have I done?" He gets up quickly and looks over at the computer screen as she watches him. "I accidentally just wiped your, uh, hard drive." Cleo looks at her in shock as Rikki closes the screen, waiting for some sort of reaction.
"Rikki!" Terry shouted. "Yes?" she asked looking over at her dad as if she did nothing wrong. "This is going too far," he yelled, staring daggers at her.
"You did that on purpose!" Charlotte yelled. "Maybe I have, maybe I haven't," Rikki shrugged smugly, making Charlotte huff and cross her arms.
"Why did you let her do that?" Emma asked, looking at Cleo. "I didn't know she was," Cleo said, defending herself. "She's Rikki, always expect the unexpected whenever she's around," Emma nodded. "She's not wrong," Lewis said, overhearing the conversation.
"Maybe you should stop," Harrison suggested. "Before things get worse." "I'll stop when I want to stop. Besides, this was the past. Can't control it." Not if I have a say so in this, Terry thought, getting a little upset with his daughter's actions.
Lewis: "That's fine." Leans forward and pulls a flash drive out of the computer, shaking it in Rikki's face. "Backup memory stick. Problem solved." Cleo nods and goes back to her magazine as he sets the stick down on the table and gets back in his seat, smiling.
"Oh thank goodness," Terry sighed in relief, thinking he was going to have to pay for the computer, thinking how he could possibly afford him a new one.
"And that's where I made my mistake," Lewis said to himself. "What do you mean?" Bella frowned. "I laid the stick next to her, and the drink," Lewis replied. Bella looks at the screen, trying to understand where he was getting at with this before her eyes widen in shock, and started shaking her head. "Oh no." "Oh yes," he nodded, still not proud of his and her actions.
"What is on the computer that was so important?" Denman asked. "Everything I learned so far about them and the details about the DNA sample. And no, you can't have a look at it," Lewis said as he saw her open her mouth to talk.
Rikki: "Um, uh, I'll keep the drink. What's a half spoon of yogurt?" Holds up the flash drive in her hand.
Cleo: they eye her carefully, glancing at Lewis. "Not very much at all."
"Where are you going with this?" Will asked. "You're about to see," Lewis said, pointing to the screen.
Rikki: "Ah, I can be such a clumsy klutz sometimes." Cleo nods in agreement as Rikki starts stirring the smoothie around, with the stick, eyeing it carefully. "I really need to start watching what I'm doing." They tense up as they notice her put the stick in the drink.
They gasp in horror at the screen, as all of Lewis's work goes to waste. "Rikki! That's it! You're going to buy him a new computer once we get out of here. And you're going to apologize to him!" Terry hollered at her, outraged that she would damage such an important and clearly expensive piece of technology.
"What? Dad! Wh-where am I supposed to get the money?" Rikki exclaimed, staring at him in shock for not being on her side about this. "Guess you'll have to get a job. Just not one that's illegal this time," he said, shaking his head furiously, trying to calm down. "It's alright Mr. Chadwick, I was able to recover everything from it. There's no need for a new computer," Lewis said, reassuring the older man, who sighed in relief and nodded to him in response. He didn't want her to get in trouble for his mistake. Even if she did it on purpose. "See? Everything's fine," Rikki said, waving her hand around.
"I still haven't heard an apology," Terry told her, not looking at her. "What? Why?" "For trying to destroy his property, even though he let you use his laptop and for purposely trying to make him upset," Terry said angrily, looking at her. Seeing the anger in his eyes, she knew not to mess around this time. She leaned back in her seat, and lowered herself, looking anywhere but at her father and Lewis. "Fine. I'm sorry, Lewis. I guess I did go a little too far," she said quietly.
Lewis gave her a small smile, glad that she was finally apologizing about the whole incident. "It's alright. Thank you, Rikki. And you too, Mr. Chadwick. And don't worry about the laptop, like I said, everything is alright." They nodded at each other before looking back at the screen.
Rikki: looks at the drink, where she was still stirring it with the stick, and widens her eyes in fake surprise once more. "Oh no! What've I done?" Cleo looks at her in shock, then glances at Lewis who had his eyes closed in annoyance before looking back at Rikki. She holds up the stick, which was now covered in the messy drink. "I did it again! I hope this doesn't destroy anything."
"I'm sure you do," Cleo muttered, still upset by what Rikki was trying to do to Lewis.
Lewis: "I have a mirror site set up in Amsterdam. I can retrieve it all in less than a minute." He gets up and leaves at that instance to the computers at the counter.
Terry sighed once more in relief, glad that Lewis was telling him the truth.
"Thank goodness you had a backup plan," Charlotte said, letting out a breath, glad that all his hard work wasn't ruined.
Rikki: pouts and drops the stick onto the table. "Lucky."
Cleo: leans forward, looking angry at her. "Rikki, this mission of yours is stupid and its mean and I won't have anything else to do with it." She gets up and walks off in anger as Lewis watches her go while Rikki slouches down in her seat, arms crossed.
"I'm surprised you had anything to do with it in the first place," Kim commented.
"Why did you have anything to do with it?" Emma asked, looking at her best friend. "I might have been a little curious as to see what would set him off. But I didn't know she would go that far," Cleo explained. "Again, it's Rikki we're talking about," Emma chuckled, the girl in question looks over at them and nods. "She's right. It's me," she laughed along with them.
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[The next day at the pool, Emma sits down on the edge by the diving boards, watching the other swimmers. She sees Byron walk up and they smile at each other as he sits down next to her, goggles in hand.]
Byron: "I'm late again, aren't I? You wouldn't believe what happened –."
"Ugh. Again with the excuses?" Cleo complained, rolling her head back.
"What's the point of training him if he's not even trying to get better?" Will asked. "He might've kept showing up late and not training as much, but he was getting better, some at least," Emma answered half-heartedly. Plus, that was pretty much the only time we've ever hanged out and it was kind of nice. I wanted to keep that going.
"You're a little close to the edge for comfort, Em," Rikki said, noticing how close she was to the water and the other swimmers, who were splashing water around.
Emma: "We need to talk. This 'nice' policy isn't working."
Byron: places a hand on her back. "I thought we were cooking."
"No, you were training," Annette corrected. "That's not what he meant mom," Charlotte muttered to her.
"You're right. He did a lot better when you were being bossier," Elliot chuckled when he sees the small glare coming from his sister. "Sorry."
Emma: "The funny thing is, I like how you chilled out and laid back. But it isn't going to win races. If you want me to be your coach, I'm gonna have to get tough again." Zane and Nate came near the pool, watching them in the distance.
"He needed to hear it," Lisa told her. "Good for you, sweetie."
"Why are you two spying on them?" Harrison asked his son. "We weren't. We were coming up to practice for the race when we saw them," Zane said.
Byron: leans closer. "I want you to be my coach."
Emma: "I believe you can win, if you push yourself." They lean in closer, about to kiss, when Zane decides to interrupt them.
"I believe he could too if you two would stop making out every five minutes," Rikki commented. Emma blushed, her eyes going wide as several others around her try to hold in their laughter but fail.
Zane: comes up closer, still a ways away with Nate by his side. "Working on your breathing technique?"
[The couple back up from each other and sigh as they turn to Zane and Nate.]
Emma: "We were just, talking."
"You just had to disrupt their privacy," Harrison sighed. "They were out in public. If they wanted privacy, they could get a room," Zane commented but quiets down once he sees both his dad and Neil's glare.
"That's one way to talk," Cleo grinned, as Emma's face reddened even more from Zane's comment. Ash couldn't help but smile on the inside, glad that he didn't have to see that again.
Zane: they walk around the pool, nearing them, with Nate a few feet behind him. "Yeah. Right." Emma and Byron look down avoiding each other's gaze. "Up for a race, Byron?"
Emma: "He isn't interested."
Byron: perks up, looking determined. "Yes I am."
"Why were you making the decision for him?" Bev asked. "Because I knew he wasn't ready. I've trained him enough to be able to tell he wasn't up to Zane's level," Emma replied. "Was that a compliment I just heard?" Zane smirked. "In your dreams," Emma scoffed. "I'll still take it as one."
Emma: turns to him, shaking her head. "Byron, don't do this. You're not ready."
Byron: puts on his signature smile. "I'm always ready. When you're feeling good and relaxed. It's cool, you can win. That's my motto." Looks up to Zane, grabbing his goggles. "Ready when you are."
"That's not what I meant!" Emma shouted at the screen, facepalming.
"He really is an idiot," Rikki said, shaking her head in disappointment. "A hot idiot," Cleo muttered, not quiet enough though as Lewis heard this and pouted.
"You might can feel good for a race, but definitely not relaxed. You need to be ready and prepared for it," Will said. "Thank you! That's what the training is for," Emma said exhaustedly.
"That is not a good motto for this kind of thing. He's going to lose," Bella said.
[A few minutes later, Byron is in his swimsuit along with Zane, goggles on, and in position on the diving board. They lean over, arms at the ready, waiting for the signal from Nate to dive in. Zane gives Byron a quick look over before they start the race.]
Nate: "Go!"
[They dive into the water, Zane a little quicker than Byron was as he was able to make a splash first once he entered the water. Emma watches the two for a second, upset that Byron didn't listen to her as she saw the late start he did and walked off with her towel in hand. Zane turns over and hits the wall with his feet, beating Byron by a couple of seconds, who does the same thing, as they swim towards the other end of the pool to the finish line. They paddle as quick as they can, but eventually, Zane was just too fast for Byron. Zane hits the wall with his hand, coming up for air, and watches as Byron comes up next to him and does the same thing while Nate claps for him.]
"I told you," Bella said.
"I tried to warn him. But, nope, he had to do it cool and relaxed," Emma grumbled, looking at the screen in anger, also upset that she wasn't holding her emotions in like she said she would. "Calm down, Em. I'm sure he learned his lesson," Neil told her. "Not exactly. I had to teach it for him," she muttered.
Zane let a small smile slip on his face. He knew he won, but it felt good to be able to watch it from a different point of view, instead of being in it himself. Besides, it was the last race he won against Byron.
Zane: a wicked grin spreads on his face as he watches Byron, both taking off their goggles. "You're dead meat, Byron." Nate holds a hand out to help him out of the pool and Zane accepts it and climbs out.
Byron: sighs and looks around, realizing his coach was gone. "Emma?"
"Why'd you leave?" Cleo asked her. "I didn't want to watch him lose. It felt like all my efforts went to waste. Which it did at that time," Emma explained.
"You've got a winning attitude like me," Harrison chuckled.
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[Later that day, Emma is at her house on the couch in the living room, flipping through the channels on the television; with a furious look on her face.]
"Ah yep, she's mad," Elliot winced.
"Now that's the Emma I know," Rikki teased, earning a nudge from Emma.
[There's a knock on the door, but Emma ignores it. Mrs. Gilbert opens the door and welcomes Byron in.]
Lisa: "Hello, Byron. How lovely to see you! Come in!" Byron walks in and gives her a small smile as she closes the door. They walk over to the living room, and she points at Emma but notices her ignoring them. "I'll just, uh, leave you to it." Lisa leaves the room. Byron walks over to the couch and sits down on the armrest looking at her, while she continues glaring at the TV screen.
"Mom, if you knew I was mad at him, then why did you let him in?" Emma asked, turning to her. "Because you two needed to make up. You couldn't stay mad forever," Lisa replied. "But we didn't make up until later after he won. This only made it worse, even if it did somehow work," Emma remarked.
Byron: "Yell at me if you want to, keep me swimming laps until my skin wrinkles up, whatever it takes."
"Reminds me of when you complained about your moisturizer," Emma joked at Cleo.
Emma: still not looking at him. "I told you not to race. You should've listened to me." Byron looks down, feeling bad. "You've given Zane a huge psychological advantage."
Byron: "Ok, I'll listen from now on."
"You should've listened in the first place," Don said, crossing his arms.
Emma: shakes her head, still not looking at him. "I'm finished with it. It's not gonna work. Too many conflicts of interest." Finally glances at him for a second before looking back at the screen.
"Good for you. He seemed like a handful to deal with anyways," Sam nodded. Emma smirked, but let it fade away. That's not what I meant.
Byron: scrunches his face up in confusion. "What conflicts?"
Emma: hesitates before facing him. "We crossed the line. Serious competitors don't usually kiss their coaches." Rikki and Cleo walk in, stopping at the door as they leave it open and see them. They glance at each other before looking back at the two, listening to their conversation.
"Will you two stop listening in like that? Seriously, no privacy," Emma complained. "There is no such thing as privacy when you know your best friends' every secret," Cleo chimed in. Rikki remained silent as she thought of the one secret she hasn't told them yet: her dating Zane, again.
Byron: "Well, coaches don't usually kiss back unless they want to."
Emma: "Maybe I was feeling sorry for you." She turns back to the TV as she hears the door close, knowing that her two friends had entered and were hearing their every word.
"Sorry for what?" Elliot asked, not realizing the tension that was forming on the screen. "For his training. For the way he kept staying chilled out about everything. I felt, sorry for him because I knew he was going to lose," Emma sighed. That was a lie.
Of course she wanted to kiss him! But, she felt conflicted about it as she realized it was messing up his training and interfering with his goal. That's why she chose to break it off with him. So he could have a chance at winning then. And have a chance at a regular life, instead of with a girl with too many secrets.
Byron: looks at her angrily. "Well, maybe I was just feeling sorry for you." Gets up to leave and begins walking away when Emma speaks up again.
Emma: "It's times like these when you really see what people are made of."
Byron: "You sure do." Turns away before looking back at her. "I don't want you as my coach anymore. You're fired."
Emma: "Good." Byron walks past the two girls and opens the door, leaving the house.
The room stayed quiet as they watched the two bicker, feeling bad for her, for being mistreated like that. She might've acted cold about it, but they knew it needed to be done. How is that guy even in high school? She just told you that she was finished coaching you. And then you say she's fired? Unbelievable! Kim wanted to say but knew that it was not the right time to bring it up.
Lisa felt bad for letting him in. She had left the room to give them some privacy to talk, but she didn't know it was going to take that big of a turn. She looked at Emma worriedly, wondering if this was making her have negative thoughts.
Surprisingly though, she seemed as if she were fine. Guess because she done lived through it once, it must've not have been as bad the second time for her to see it now.
On the inside though, Emma felt guilt rising for leaving Byron hanging like that. For making him angry, but she knew he needed a change of emotion in order to win. It was the right thing to do, right? To break a chance of having a relationship with him?
Rikki: she and Cleo walk over to Emma once Byron left and Cleo sat down next to Emma. Rikki walks behind the couch and sat on the backing of it. "That was extreme."
Cleo: "Are you ok?" Emma remains quiet, not speaking a word, as she glances at her two friends. Suddenly, she gets up and heads upstairs, not even saying goodbye to them. They watch her go. Cleo sighs and looks over at Rikki, who gives her a look as if she were saying, 'give her some time.'
Cleo sighed, like she did on screen, and shook her head, wishing she could've helped, went after her to talk or make her feel better, to do something. But she didn't. She knew that Rikki was right, Emma needed some time to figure things out for herself.
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[Upstairs, in Emma's room, she walks in and lets the door close behind her as she climbs onto her bed and grabs a pillow. She lays onto the pillow slowly, and closes her eyes, wiping the tears away.]
It was Rikki's turn to feel bad now, as she sat there with a small frown on her face. Maybe Cleo was right, maybe they should have gone after her. But, would she accept the company, the help? Would she be okay with her friends there? Maybe she wanted the alone time, to think things through. Some people want alone time after all, to be able to let their emotions out.
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[The next day, the day of the race, Rikki, Cleo, and Lewis hang out at the café. They decide to get a drink before heading over to watch Byron's race. Cleo and Lewis are at the table while Rikki gets their drinks at the counter.]
Lewis: "Based on the law of probability, Byron has no chance of beating Zane today."
Cleo: "I still think Byron can win." Rikki heads over with their tray of drinks and sits it on the table between the two.
"You were wrong about that, Lewis," Emma smiled, forgetting about the past few minutes of the screen. "Well magic has always been trying to prove me wrong. Guess it was another one of those days," Lewis chuckled, making Max smile as he was reminded of all the times he tried to prove magic wrong and it didn't work.
Rikki: "You'd better drink these quickly if you want to get good seats at the race." She sits down in her chair next to Lewis as they grab their drinks.
Lewis: "Thanks Rikki."
"You're really going to trust a drink from her after all she did to you?" Charlotte asked, raising an eyebrow at him. "It probably wasn't a good idea. But I needed to for my plan to work," Lewis pointed out with a smile on his face. "What plan?" Rikki asked in confusion. "Oh, you're about to find out," Lewis smirked, making Cleo giggle.
[Lewis takes a sip of the drink, and his smile immediately falters. Anger rising into his eyes. He lifts the drink up and glares at the contents inside, before setting the drink down and looking at Rikki.]
Lewis: gets louder as his tone gets angrier. "That is disgusting. This has got wheat germ in it. I hate wheat germ." Rikki gives the drink a strange look as Cleo watches the two. "Rikki, how many times have I tried to tell you that?"
Rikki: "I dunno."
"You hate wheat germ that much?" Zane whispered to Lewis. "Nope," Lewis whispered back with a smug look, a smile forming on Zane's face as he starts getting the idea.
Lewis: gives her a hateful look and starts overreacting as Rikki looks at Cleo in slight shock. "What is your problem? Get this straight. I never, never have wheat germ. I never want to have wheat germ. Not only that, I just don't want to look at this glass." Cleo hears some people coming in through the curtains, that they were sitting nearby, and hides her face in her hands and looks away to avoid their gazes. Rikki begins to smile, thinking that her plan worked. "It makes me want to, spew!" He quiets down and pinches the bridge of his nose as he leans against the table. "Rikki, go get another drink."
Rikki: smile quickly falls as she tries to hide it and Cleo looks at her from up under her hand. "Ok. Coming right up. No need to get, mad." She wiggles her eyebrows at them as she grabs his drink and gets up from the table. Behind his back, she holds her fist up slightly in victory.
"Wow, Lewis. Now I know what not to put in your drinks," Charlotte said in amusement, gawking at what just happened along with everyone else. "Oh, don't worry about it. Wheat germ is actually my favorite," Lewis chirped up. "Wait what? But you just said you hated it!" Rikki said, leaning forward in her seat, turning to him. "Oh, keep watching Rikki. It gets better," Lewis grinned widely.
Lewis: smiles as he sees her walk away and leans in closer to Cleo and whispers. "Convincing enough?"
Cleo: smiles back. "Perfect. Thanks, Lewis. She's been driving me mad all week."
"You guys planned this?!" Rikki asked in shock. "Yup. The same way that you planned to find out what made him mad," Cleo grinned, giving Lewis a high-five. "I can't believe I fell for it," Rikki said, leaning back in her seat, going pale as if she saw a ghost. "I can't believe it worked," Lewis laughed, along with everyone else; even Zane was laughing, but cut it short when Rikki shot him a look.
"I'm just glad it was over. It was making me feel insane," Cleo giggled.
"I can't believe you told him," Rikki shot at her. "And I can't believe you went as far as to destroy his property," Terry interrupted her, making Rikki flush with embarrassment. "I told you, I've never seen him get mad before. He never was going to, so I told him about it so you wouldn't continue with it for the rest of your life," Cleo complained. "It wasn't going to be for the rest of my life. Maybe a month at the most," Rikki grumbled as they turned back to the screen.
Lewis: "Yeah, I've sort of enjoyed driving her mad. And there is one catch though."
"And what would that be?" Annette asked. "It's kind of obvious mom," Charlotte said, laughing quietly. She was proud of Lewis for outsmarting Rikki. It was a clever move.
Lewis: starts playing with Rikki's straw, smiling to himself. "I'll never be able to drink wheat germ again."
"He played that part of it so well; he never did drink one ever again. That's what made it so believable," Rikki said, pouting. "Oh, I did, just only when you weren't around," Lewis said smugly.
"You do realize I'm going to have to try that little experience out again, right?" Rikki said, glaring at him, a little angry that he made her a joke. "Oh, I don't think so. If I find out you are pulling that stuff on him again after we leave here, you will be buying him a new laptop and replacing everything else that you destroyed. I don't care if his stuff was saved, you will still do it," Terry said, glaring at her. This was apparently where he drew the line. "Understand?"
Rikki looks at him in shock, before leaning back in her seat and putting her head in her arm, sighing as she realized her defeat. "Yes dad." "Good," Terry said, glad that he was able to get her to stop this nonsense.
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[At the swimming pool, a judge places the trophies on the table while everyone else is sitting down on the bleachers or gathered around the pool. Rikki and Cleo sit on the top bleachers to get a good view, but also to keep themselves from getting in the splash zone.]
Rikki: notices Byron walking by, getting ready for his race, and shouts to get his attention. "Hey, Byron! Have you seen Emma?"
Byron: shakes his head. "She's not coming."
"Why not?" Ash asked. "After the fight we went through, would you?" Emma asked. "Good point. But I would've still went for moral support. After all, you two were still friends. Right?" he asked, hoping she would say they were just friends. "Yeah," she replied, not noticing the smile of relief that formed on his face.
"I did go though, thanks to Cleo. She talked me into it." "You're welcome for that by the way," Cleo smiled, Emma returning it.
Byron: turns around and notices someone using his towel and gets upset about it. "Hey man, do you need glasses? That's my towel." He yanks it off the other competitor and walks off, with Rikki and Cleo giving him weird looks.
"And now he has anger issues," Kim sighed. "He has a lot of problems." "Relax Kim, I'm sure it's because he was still thinking of the fight. He was just stressed over everything that happened, which he needed instead of being so relaxed. And plus the race was going to start soon, he might've been anxious," Cleo told her.
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[Back at Emma's house, Emma was cleaning through every single detail of her room. She was on the floor scrubbing her shoes when her phone rings. She grabs her phone off the stand behind her and looks at the caller ID before flipping it open and holding it up to her ear.]
"Why are you cleaning your shoes?" Will asked, a little amused at how much effort she was putting into cleaning. "Well they did need cleaning, but also it was just to keep my mind occupied from thinking about, him," Emma admitted.
Cleo: on the phone. "Why aren't you at the pool to support Byron?"
Emma: "I wish I could come, but I really need to clean my shoes."
"Excuses, excuses," Elliot waved it off. Lisa shushes him.
Cleo: leaning against a tree, her back to the stands as she talks to Emma on the phone. "You hate cleaning your shoes."
Emma: changes subject. "I shouldn't have kissed him. Now I've gone and ruined a friendship and I didn't even teach him how to swim better."
"As much as I hate to say it, you did teach him to swim better. After all, he did beat me," Zane reluctantly admitted. "Is that a compliment?" Emma tilted her head, smiling smugly at him. "Nope," Zane smirked, knowing where this was going. "I'll still take it as one," she mocked playfully. Rikki smiled, glad that they were getting along better.
"If you want to teach him better, you could show him how you actually do it," Will suggested, winking at her. "Will you quit with the mermaid ideas?" Rikki huffed. "Never!"
Cleo: "You're just worried about what kind of a girlfriend you could be as a – a mermaid."
"... She was right about that one too," Emma quietly admitted, as she saw all the people turning to look at her.
Lisa and Neil look at each other, knowing that this was another reason that Emma kept everyone shut out. For fear of her new life and how she would handle it with more new stuff being thrown her way. She was afraid to try out normal things when she knew she had a tail she was dragging around. They only hoped that she wouldn't be afraid of it forever. Especially since there seems to be no cure for it. Or so they think.
Emma: sighs. "Maybe I should just accept that, I'm more mermaid than human."
"What are you talking about? You look human right now," Ash said, facing her. That's because they got rid of it, Denman thought bitterly but decided to say nothing so she wouldn't cause a fight or something. "That's only because I'm not a mermaid at the moment," Emma said, stating the obviousness.
"Exactly! Ash is right. You're still human, even if you have a bit of an 'upgrade' than us. But you're no different than us really. You still think, eat, sleep, and all that like a person. There's nothing wrong with that," Charlotte reassured her, surprising the three (four) girls that she was defending them. "The tail changes nothing." They stay quiet as they listen to what she said, especially Emma.
She looks her in the eyes and can tell that she was telling them the truth. And she did believe it too, but she was glad that someone else believed it to be true too. A small smile forms on her face as she believed a new friend might be in the making. "Thanks, Charlotte." Charlotte nods in response with a small smile and they all turn back to the screen.
"Did not expect that from her," Cleo muttered, Emma hushing her. "It's a good thing, isn't it?" "I suppose," Cleo nodded. "Good job sweetie," Annette said, proud of her daughter, who smiled even bigger.
Cleo: "You're just making excuses! This is who we are now, and we've got to try to live as normally as we can. He's still your friend. Besides, there's a chance he might still beat Zane. Do you want to miss that?" Emma smiles from the other end of the line.
"That's what I've been trying to tell you guys," Sam chuckled, shaking her head.
"She's right, Em. Just because you're a mermaid now doesn't mean you still can't try to live normally," Lisa nodded in approval. "I know, mom," Emma responded, a smile on her face.
"Of course it was him trying to beat me that got you to change your mind," Zane chuckled.
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[The racers climb up on the diving boards, getting ready to start. Zane and Byron were at the end of the line of racers, looking at the crowd.]
Zane: "Looks like your coach isn't coming." Byron ignores him and puts on his goggles. "Cheer up. Some people were just born to come second." He puts his goggles on.
Just like me, right next to my father, Zane thought, sighing inwardly.
"You did," Emma grinned.
[The lifeguard readies his airhorn as the racers get set on the board, bending down into position. He blows the horn and immediately everyone jumps off the boards, diving into the water. This time, however, Byron was able to match Zane into diving in the water first and swam off as fast as he could. The crowd cheers for them as they watch their favorite racers go.]
Emma smiled. She missed that part since she didn't make it in time, but she was glad that he was able to match Zane in the diving part of the race. She knew then that he was a champion in the making.
[Emma walks up and climbs through the crowded bleachers and sits next to her two best friends. They laugh at each other as they go back to watching the race, cheering them on. Once again, Byron was able to match Zane as they both flipped over and kicked off the wall, ahead of the other racers. They swim as quick as they can to the finish line; Emma watches in anticipation, as she sees that Byron was taking the lead now, passing Zane. They both hit the wall, but Byron was able to touch it first, before Zane did, beating him and getting first place in the race. The crowd cheers louder than ever and Emma stands up in excitement and claps for him. They take off their goggles, Byron in excitement, while Cleo gives Emma a victory hug. Byron climbs onto the concrete and Zane looks around in defeat, seeing the three girls, along with the rest of the crowd, standing up, cheering for Byron, and not him. Byron sees Emma and she continues clapping for him. He smiles at her.]
"Wow, that was one heck of a race," Will said. He was sitting there jumping up and down cheering for Byron through the whole thing. He might not know him and already knew that he was going to win, but the excitement was still there.
The rest nod in agreement. Zane shrugs. Even though he lost, he did have to admit it was a good race between him and Byron. At least he got him a new competitor to go against now. It would be fun to keep racing with him.
Lisa smiled as she saw Emma in the stands cheering him on. Proud that she was able to put her emotions away over her mermaid fears in order to support a friend. She just hoped they could stay away for a little longer in these past showings. She missed seeing her brave little girl.
[Emma climbs down the stands as Byron walks over to her.]
Byron: "I did what you told me about hitting the wall as hard as I could. I imagined there was a door I was going through, and I just went for it and it really worked." He tries to go in for a hug, but Emma notices how he was still wet from the race and backs up a bit.
Emma: "Right. Stay back." He looks down, feeling a little sadden.
Emma flinched. She couldn't get wet, due to the tail, but thought she could've said it a little better than that. It sounded almost like she didn't want to be anywhere near him. Cleo pats her shoulder, knowing what she was thinking. She was able to support a friend this time.
Emma: "I knew you could win. You just needed to be fired up."
Byron: nods. "I was. Is that what you did? Plan the fight, so that I'd get angry enough to win?"
Emma: shakes her head. "Of course not." He looks down again, feeling bad.
Emma flinched again. Is that what he was thinking the whole time? She felt bad for making him think that. But the truth is, she realized how different they were. Even though they both loved to swim, it just felt different. They lived differently. They couldn't work together like that.
Byron: "So, I guess we're just like colleagues, then, whatever that means." Cleo and Rikki stay behind him, listening in to make sure everything goes alright.
Emma: leans forward. "And we're friends."
Byron: smiles and nods. "Yeah. We're friends. Thanks for helping me." He walks away to go get changed. Cleo and Rikki walk closer to her afterward.
Emma sighed, kind of glad that this was almost over with. She hated letting everyone see her emotional self like this. It made her feel, weak, vulnerable. Like they would attack her at any moment. She silently cursed herself for not keeping her emotions in check through this whole thing. At least it was almost done.
Rikki: "You ok?"
Emma: puts her walls back up. "Everything's fine."
Cleo: "Let's go down to the juice bar. My shot."
Emma: "I feel like a swim."
"Swimming can make anyone feel better. It always did for me," Will commented.
Rikki: "Well, we'll come with you."
Emma: turns her down, shaking her head. "Alone." She walks off, leaving the two with a sad look, knowing that she needs the space.
Cleo and Rikki look at each other and nod, as their worried frowns turn into a sincere apologetic look as they wrap Emma into a group hug, which she graciously accepted. She felt okay showing them her emotions. Because of the secret, they felt so close to one another now. Like they were sisters. She gave them a small smile as if she were saying thank you and they returned it, facing the screen once again.
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[Emma walks along the beach in a swimsuit that was covered up by a jacket, her towel flying behind her. She looks at the water determined and takes off her jacket and runs into the water in her swimsuit, wiping the tears away as she dives into the water and swims deeper into the blue, her tail guiding through the water.]
Lisa and Neil look toward their daughter. They never knew how much emotions she kept built inside of her. It was rare to see a negative side of her. Such like when they first talked together as a family about the big secret; she decided to let it flow then. And it was a whole other side of her that they've never seen before.
They, along with everyone else in the room, were giving her sympathetic looks. And Emma for sure didn't like that, as she looked at her mom and signaled her for the remote. Lisa knew what this meant. She didn't want to talk about it anymore. She wanted to forget about it and move on. So, respecting her daughter's wishes, Lisa handed the remote to Emma, who took it with a small smile on her face. Lisa returned the smile as Emma turned back around and pressed play.