SEVEN: SURPRISE
THE DAYS FOLLOWING Zane's accident that almost cost his life, Sage and Jack had started to spend more and more time together, from smoothie dates to walks on the beach. Some would even say they were inseparable (and by 'some' it meant Rikki, Cleo, and Emma).
"So are you guys like a thing now?" Rikki asked nonchalant.
"I would greatly appreciate it, Rikki," Sage misinterpreted the blonde's words. "If you did not call me, or Jack, a mere 'thing' like an inanimate object."
"No, like are you guys dating?" Rikki rolled her eyes as she stared up at the innocent mermaid a top of Cleo's bed. Emma and Cleo closely examining the brunette. "Has he asked you to be his girlfriend?"
"We are only friends." The mermaid shrugged.
"Sage, have you ever noticed how he stares at you? He sees you like his whole world!" Emma jumped in.
"I wish someone looked at me like he looks at you, Sage." Cleo added.
"But Lewis—" Sage started but was interrupted.
"No, no, no, don't change the subject." Rikki waved her hand making her stop talking. "Has he kissed you? Ya know, lips on lips." She puckered her lips and made a kissing noise which made Sage scrunch her eyebrows in confusion and disgust.
"Why would I ever want that?"
"Never mind." Rikki sighed as she plopped back down to face the ceiling.
Sage traced the outline of Jack's necklace that she was wearing. None of the girl's know it's his, because if they knew they would only jump to conclusions, something the mermaid wasn't capable of handling.
So the brunette kept on thinking about Jack. She had lived over fifteen years without a boy, why should she start now? Sure, Jack was great company, but that was all he was: someone to spend time with. Sage was a mermaid, a living myth, and Jack was a land-boy, the two were never meant to coexist; sooner or later they would back-stab her, and Sage was never going to betray her kind for a simple boy.
However, to Jack, Sage intrigued him. Spending time with her seemed to be the highlight of most of his days. Yet, something in the pit of his stomach told him that she was different, not like most girls. He seemed to enjoy the mystery that she was. Although he didn't know the secrets that lied beneath that beautiful face of hers, he was determined to uncover it at whatever cost. Perhaps it was the background of his parents: Dr. Henry and Katherine Robinson. His older brother, Thomas, was also on his way to become a scientist. It was only natural in Jack's blood to find the answers that polluted his mind.
So when someone dragged Sage from the beach behind some rocks, she was more than scared, that was until her kidnapper revealed his identity: Zane Bennett.
Her mouth was agape, trying to find the right words to say but was left standing like a fish out of water. Zane stared at her state for a few more seconds before speaking first.
"I need your help." He seemed to sincerely ask.
"Help? Help with what?" Sage asked as she stared at the paper he had in between his hands. Before she knew it he trust the piece of paper in her direction. On it was a a sketch of a tail, specifically, her tail. It was black and white but she knew it was hers. She had saved him when he almost drowned and must have seen her, that was the only explanation. "What is it? Some sort of shark?"
"I didn't seem to get a good look when I was, you know, drowning," He mumbled the last part quietly, almost embarrassed. "But it was orange. It was a long orange, scale-y tail."
"Zane, you must have been seeing things." Sage said quickly, as if trying to remember the script she was given from her friends. "You were down there for a long time. Not enough oxygen was going to your brain and it started to conjure up things that were not there. Sorry."
He nodded looking back down at his sketch. She nodded as well and started to retreat back to the beach, but stopped when an idea popped into her head. He was stubborn, she knew that, and he wouldn't stop until he found it, more accurately, he wouldn't stop until he found his mermaid.
"But what do you even call this mysterious creature?" Sage asked with her back towards him. She turned around to face him when he didn't answer. When she faced him she was met with his famous smirk.
"It's some sort of Sea Monster." She motioned for the paper back and looked at it even harder than before. She didn't need her secret out so she needed another way to drive him away. "I have one of your friends helping me out as well, Lewis. With my money, his smarts, and your credibility, it's the dream team."
Sage smiled at him and nodded. "Fine. I will join you."
"Great. Let's meet up at the docks around noon tomorrow, yeah?" Zane looked down at the the brunette as she thought of all the possible ways this could go wrong. However, she ultimately nodded once more.
"Can I keep this?" The Sea Monster that Zane was trying to find, questioned.
"Sure. It's a photocopy, the real one will be worth something someday."
"Okay. See you tomorrow, Zane." Sage then stared to back away, but a hand on her forearm stopped her.
"Hey," The taller boy made her turn back around. "Thank you for believing in me." She nodded and left to go find Lewis.
Unbeknownst to either of them, Jack had seen the last part of their interaction. He watched as the girl walked away with a page in hand and how Zane stared at her as well. He wondered what they were doing together. What an odd pair, he thought.
Before he even knew it his feet led him towards the rich, obnoxious boy.
"What are you doing with Sage?" Jack half asked and half yelled. Zane snapped his attention from the mermaid and back to the land boy.
"And who are you?"
"Look." Jack stooped right in front of Zane. "I know about guys like you. They use nice, innocent girls, like Sage, for their own benefit not caring about the consequences. I need you to back off."
"Are you her boyfriend or something?" Zane was getting annoyed more and more with every word he spoke.
Jack contemplated what to say, "Yes, I am her boyfriend. And as her boyfriend I need you to back off."
Zane smiles seeing as that doing nothing riled this guy up. "Sage has every right to do anything she wants without you having to look out for her. She's a big girl." Being satisfied with his answer he walked away from the conversation, leaving Jack to stare at the ocean's waves.
+
"You got dragged into this as well?" Lewis questioned as him and Sage compared their pictures of he tail that Zane gave them.
"Next time Zane is drowning, just don't save him." Rikki said as she rummaged through Emma's cabinets.
"I denied to help so we're fine." Lewis said as he stared at the marble countertop.
"Wait. You did?" Sage ripped her attention from the two tails to the blonde boy. "I accepted. This way we keep an eye on him. I thought it was smart."
Lewis blinked and straightened his back. "That is a smart idea."
"How is that a smart idea?" Emma asked as she stared at the two who seemed to be taking part on this Sea Monster hunt.
"If we help Zane we can tell him where to look. And we will tell him that Mako Island is a no no." Sage answered.
"Keep your friends close. Keep your enemies in the middle of the ocean." Emma smiled as she leaned back on her counter.
Lewis agreed and proceeded to call Zane that he had changed his mind.
"Wait tomorrow?" Emma asked after Lewis ended the call. "You'll miss Cleo's birthday party."
"Cleo is having a birthday party?" Sage asked at the same time Lewis said "Good!"
"Trust me, Sage, it's not even going to be good." Lewis said which shocked the two blonde girls.
"Lewis! How can you say that?"
"Well it's true. Even Cleo hates her birthday parties. Emma, how long has it been since you've gone to one?"
As Emma thought about it Lewis added, "I've been to all of them..." his voice trailing off at the end.
TOMORROW ARRIVED QUICKLY this time. Sage was making her way to the docks when she was being dragged away again. She turned around to face Jack and let out a relived sigh.
"Hey." Sage smiled as she grabbed his hand in a friendly matter. "I have not seen you in a while."
"Are you going to hang out with Zane today?" He seems almost angry.
"Yeah. How did you—"
"Please don't."
"Excuse you?" Sage asked as she let go of his hand and took a step away from him. "I do not think you have Any right to give me orders. Zane is" she thought if she she thought whether to address him as a friend for the situation. "He is my friend and you have no right to tell me who and who I cannot hang out with."
She gave him a questioning look and continued to Zane's boat where Lewis was analyzing a money bill. With a satisfied nod he put the money in his pocket.
"Sage!" Zane called out to her in a welcoming tone that made Lewis look back to see him actually smiling. The mermaid waved at the two Australian, but was returned one enthusiast wave and another small wave. "Glad you finally arrived. I really thought your boyfriend stopped you from coming."
"Boyfriend?" Both Lewis and Sage questioned out loud.
"Yeah." Zane dragged out the word as he looked from the brunette to the blonde. "Tall guy. Brown hair. Kind of good looking. Told me to stay away from you."
"Oh." The only assumption she had was Jack. "You mean Jack? He is not my boyfriend, he is just a friend who is a boy." She then dropped the conversation and proceeded to aboard the red boat.
Zane gave her a small glance before asking Lewis where to. The blonde looked at the mermaid besides him and back at Zane. "I'll tell you when to stop."
Zane didn't question him as he sped off. Leaving the pier kilometers behind them.
"STOP!" LEWIS DIRECTED once they were in the middle of the ocean.
"Here?" Zane said as he did what he was in instructed to do. "This isn't near anything."
"Exactly!" Lewis' voice got a pitch higher that made Sage almost let out a laugh. "Look this Sea Monster probably doesn't want to be found. So, being here is our best bet."
"Okay... But—"
"Zane!" Sage interrupted his thoughts that caused both boys to look back at her. "Lewis, here, is the only genius on this boat so we should listen to him. He knows what he is doing. Right, Lewis?"
Lewis smiled as she called him a genius, but changed his face as soon as Zane turned his attention towards him. His face showing no emotion as he nodded. "Yeah, Zane, I am the geek here! I know what I'm doing." He pulled out the device that Zane had brought to help them in finding this Sea Monster.
"Now we wait."
After sitting under the sun a good while Zane seemed to be getting a little of its side effects. He turned to the other brunette that was on this boat and started to twirl her hair in his hands. Sage on the other hand didn't know how to react so she just stiffened and let it happen.
"Sage?" Zane called out to the girl who turned to him as he let go of her hair. "That Jack guy really seems into you. How do you feel towards him?"
"Excuse me?"
"A girl like you should be with someone like—"
However, as Zane was about to finish his sentence, a beeping sound interrupted him.
"What was that?" Zane shot up along with Sage.
"What was what?" Lewis acted as he tried to hide the little machine away from the curious boy. "Sometimes these things are wrong. Happens all the time."
Suddenly a strong wave moved the entire boat. Causing Sage to hold onto Zane as she didn't want to fall over the boat. She gave him a shy smile before letting go of him.
Zane went to pull up the anchor and follow the path of the strange water movements. "We're getting ourselves a Sea Monster" the brunette boy whispered to himself.
Sage braced herself for what was about to happen. The speed Zane placed on his boat wasn't as fast he wanted. Zane was very determined to find the sea monster.
Zane stopped them meters away from Mako Island. Unbeknownst to the two boys, Sage had seen Cleo laying a top a giant boulder. Her tail was on full display.
Sage's eyes widen and the only thing she could do to stop Zane from looking behind him was to grab his arms to keep him facing her. She shouted, "Zane! What are we trying to find?" She hoped Lewis would look behind Zane and see their mermaid friend. Soon enough Lewis also started to shout so Cleo would hear the camotion and leave the area. "Zane! Zane!" Sage called out as if his name was a warning.
"What Sage?" Zane grabbed her arms so he could take them off. "This is going to be the greatest thing for mankind, don't you want to be apart of it?"
"It was a false alarm." Lewis quieted down when he was sure Cleo was gone. However the beeping still continued as it sensed the mermaid's movement under the water.
"Give me that!" Zane reached for it but Lewis pulled it away from him. Zane grabbed the blonde boy's arm and they wrestled for the device for a few seconds before it fell into the water. "That costs more than you can imagine, why would you do that?"
Zane took off his shirt and leaped into the water to retrieve the device. Sage placed her hand up so the droplets of water that Zane caused would bounce off her magical forcefield.
When Zane has comeback to the surface, he had suggested that they go to shore. At shore, Lewis said he need to go take care of some business; to Zane and Sage that meant two very things.
With Lewis gone, it was Zane and Sage alone to watch the ocean. Internally, Sage was freaking out. One wrong move and she was in the ocean and her secret would be exposed to the one person that would die trying to find. Zane, on the other hand, was only angry at Lewis for pulling something like ruining his rented equipment.
"You believe me, right, Sage?" Zane asked the shorter girl as he finished drying his hair off with the now soaked towel. "Or do you think I'm just chasing some fantasy?"
Sage stayed quiet for a moment thinking about her response. What the other girls have told her about Zane were not the nicest things. However, right now, those stories vanished and thoughts about how driven Zane is clouded her mind. "I believe that there is something to uncover, but I don't think it'll be that easy to find."
She was truthful with her words because she was the person that was he was trying to find and she will do anything in her power that he never finds out about her. Therefore, it will not be easy for Zane to find the sea monster that is standing in front of him.
"I don't expect to find whatever it is today or tomorrow, but's it's going to happen, Sage." He looked up from her lips as he was following the words flowing out of her mouth to her eyes. "And I want you to be here to with me when I find that thing that saved me."
"Okay!" Lewis calles out as he emerged from behind the trees not allowing Sage a response to Zane. "Let's go."
Later that evening, Sage couldn't stop thinking about what Zane told her. He would feel so betrayed if he were to find out that she was the one he was looking for. Would he be angry and try to experiment her? What would he do? She had no idea and the mere idea scared her. She had to be really cautious around him. Zane wasn't going to stop searching anything, but Sage wasn't going to stop leading him in the opposite direction.
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