Beauty and the Wolf

Two. Noah's friend

"Have you seen Noah's latest video?" The libero asked. 

"No, I didn't!" Kelsey, the setter, whined. She sounded so devasted, as if her goldfish just died.  

"I did," gushed one of the left-wing hitters. "He is so good-looking!" 

"What about his friend?" Piped in a middle blocker. 

"Is that his friend? I thought they're brothers or something like that." Said the same left-winger. 

"Maybe their stepbrothers!" The Libero suggested with a giggle. 

"Or that's his boyfriend," Kelsey proposed, sounding hopeful. 

An eruption of giggles and cooing erupted among the team. 

"Silence," Daisy demanded, unable to concentrate as she stretched her hamstring. She stood standing up with her feet flat against the flex sports flooring of Brampton's gym. The floor looked like wood, but without the hassle of the timber material. With her knees straight, she bent over, arms on the floor, forehead lower than her knee. 

A round of 'sorry captain' made its way among the group. Daisy ignored their pathetic apology and moved onto the next stretch, sitting down to stretch her adductors. Her team followed suit. They sat in a circle at one of the corners of the gym as the senior boy's team began their warmups.  

No one dared speak again, and Daisy relished in the stillness. 

Then the overhead clock above the scoreboard hanging on the wall struck even. 

"Practice is over!" The libero declared instantly. She was a short, five-foot-five jackalope in her half form appearing like a human with rabbit ears and antelope antlers. Like a herd of wildebeest, all the girls got up and hurriedly walked together towards the changing room.

"We haven't finished cooldown yet," Daisy pointed out, but her efforts were futile. No one listened, emersed in their conversations about some Noah and his mysterious buddy. 

Only one of her teammates lingered behind. Kelsey Isle sat across from Daisy, mirroring her stretch. Unlike other supernatural and mythical creatures, Kelsey didn't have the option of a half-form because her gills would suffocate. However, the mermaid's mundane form was still striking. Her complexion was perfect, not a single blemish or mole anywhere on her body from what Daisy could see. Her stature was towering, even taller than Daisy's five foot ten stellar height. Her eyes, the colour of the Pacific: a dark, deep blue filled with wonder and alluring secrets. Daisy wished her eyes were of the same shade. 

Her hair was the main attraction. She kept her long waves in a high ponytail, but even such a mediocre hairstyle couldn't hide Kelsey's striking hair colour. Her ombre started with her navy roots and transcended smoothly to turquoise at the ends, making it appear as if Daisy was looking out from a beach. Hypnotic shades of turquoise dancing in the sunlight, gradually darkening to a deep blue on the horizon. Curious humans always asked the mermaid what dyes she used, unaware that the ombre blues were her natural hair colour. 

Kelsey smiled patiently at her captain. "Are we done now?"

Technically, Daisy would've preferred to complete five more stretches, but the risk of receiving a torpedo strike to the face from one of the boys had her reluctantly get up. 

"Finally!" Kelsey bounced to her feet and walked over to Daisy, swinging her arm around the Alpha werewolf. "So, have you seen Noah's latest video?"

Daisy shook off the mermaid's arm. "Who's Noah?" 

"Why am I not surprised?" Kelsey asked herself with a smile, unbothered by Daisy's coldness. "Noah's the newest social media influencer to grace our screens, and he just happens to be based out of Vancouver!"