My Weird Secret Life

Chapter 5: The Boy

      The boy had hit me so hard I fell backward on a rock from the impact and passed out. I didn't remember much but I did remember one thing, we collided, him holding me, I think.
      When consciousness snuck back into me, I stirred. I opened my eyes to a mix of colors as a ceiling. I gingerly reached my hand back to touch my tender head but immediately snatched my hand back from the stinging and throbbing pain.
    I stretched then trying to sound my fiercest, I muttered,"What? Where am I? Who are you people?" The blue boy was there, mostly a blur though. He grabbed me a cup of something and swam up,"Hey, you woke up." "You don't say," I snapped sarcastically, playing with my tail scales. "Uh yeah, sorry I bumped you. I'm Kai." At the sound of his low voice, I looked up at the blue boy and paled. He was at the very least to say, handsome. Dark blue eyes sparkled and sharp features, like his chiseled chin and structured face, enchanted me. He scratched the back of his head shyly, and I couldn't help but notice (*cough* stare *cough, cough*) his muscly biceps flex as he raised his arm. He wore a midnight blue sleeveless shirt unlike the images of shirtless boys and men that had been advertised in movies since the beginning of time.
No! Since when do I look at boys like that? Am I crazy? Have I gone mad? I just vowed to never fall in love. But technically, this wasn't love. It was just admiration for the charm and muscles Blue Boy possessed.
    "It's ok, I guess," I said trying not to be rude while resting the cup aside on a coffee table. "I'm Zayana, sorry I didn't move." He looked at me oddly. "So um, I could be mistaking you for someone else, but you look so familiar," he said in the kind of voice trying to identify me. Did he recognize me as the princess? I simply nodded in response. "I just have that face." We both looked at each other oddly then I managed a smile to stop the weird "vibes" as Auntie A would say.
      "I'm sorry if I'm being a bit nosy but," Kai interrupted before I could finish asking. "I was running from a guard, a palace guard. I kinda got into trouble again at the castle." He was running from guards. The boy was running from palace guards. Maybe I should rethink asking him for directions. Or anything at all. And like, leave. Immediately. "And this is my home." "Oh," I didn't look around. I glanced up at him and saw a single sparkle in his dark eyes like the first star at night.
      He broke the silence saying,"You're cute, you haven't been here long then?" "Why would you think that?" I asked trying to hide my deep blush. Me? Cute? I mean, I'd realized this obvious fact long ago but, wasn't it a bit badly timed to try flirting with me? "Because you were alone when I saw you," he answered casually. "I know I haven't known you long-" I couldn't help but interrupt. "You don't know me at all," I snapped for the second time. Kai shrugged,"How you look and act, I get the gist." How does he somehow already know about me! Maybe he's bluffing. "Anyway, you would have already met someone. An immediate friend. A boy or someone like Rylie, my sister. So what were you doing?" I looked around nervously,"Nothing, I was just . . ." After a moment of silence I guess he let my half answer slide.
      Then I started wondering if I should ask him where the castle was but I also didn't want to seem clueless. I thought out my words carefully,"Do you know where the castle is? I'm not from around here and I wanted to explore. You seem to know . . . things." Boys made me nervous, especially the handsome ones. Kai observed me and finally answered,"Sure it's like fifteen minutes away from here. Are you leaving now, I could come to help?" "Thanks, I'll need it anyway I don't know much about the ocean," I said without thinking. Complete idiot, I thought to myself. Kai looked up from his hands and asked,"What did you say?" "Nothing, we can leave now," I said trying to change the subject. "I'll meet you outside." "Ok."
      I didn't want to seem rude studying his home so I kept my head down as I slowly made my way out the door rubbing my delicate head. My eyes swept across the landscape around me and pointed out a black blob. I squinted and made sense of a castle. My hand swept along a piece of flowing seaweed and a familiar sting made me wince. My eyes darted down to my hand and I saw the cut from the crystal still there. I shivered from the memory and the cold wind that bit at the open wound. Then as if on command, Kai came swimming out the door with cloaks. "Thank you," I said quietly.
    As soon as I rested the hood on my head, a black wolf with blue features and lightning eyes showed up in front me. I gasped and gripped my head squeezing my eyes shut in pain. "Are you ok?" Kai asked resting a hand on my shoulder. The wolf slowly faded away and I nodded,"Just my head, it stills hurts. I'm fine. Where are we again?" Kai still looked unsure,"In Atlantic City." A pause. "Are you sure you're alright?" I nodded,"Why wouldn't I be."
      We swam for a while. I tried not to look at anyone or anything. Until a sign caught my attention. Unfortunately the language down here was foreign and unknown to me. I willed myself to understand. This kingdom was my birthplace, I had to understand. Slowly the letters started coming to me to form words then sentences and I was able to read out,"Anniversary of Royal Pacific Family. You know, I'm not amazing with faces but does that kid look a bit familiar to you?" A little baby boy lied asleep in a smiling woman's arms. The woman had the same blue hair as the boy and the smiling maroon hair colored man next to her, smiled proudly at the camera with the woman and boy held protectively in his grasp. I looked at Kai and he seemed to grimace then looked away and said in a flat tone,"No, I don't think so." I could feel Kai not wanting to talk about this specific subject and let it slide. It wasn't my business anyway. I stole one last glance at the poster and started swimming on. Kai lingered for a bit then caught up to me.
      We finally had made it to the castle. I marveled at it and floated speechless. Surrounding the castle was Atlantic City. Overflowing with lights, merpeople, and noise. And even though we were still a few minutes from the castle, it was so huge I could see it clearly as if I were right in front of it. The towers were so tall I wondered if you could see it from the surface.
"No one can see the castle from the surface of the water?" I asked Kai. He looked at me funny. "You obviously didn't pay attention in school. There's a bubble around the whole city that obscures us from the sight of humans. You don't feel it when you enter the city, but it's there." I thought up a quick answer,"I never went to school, not even homeschooled. I just observe things." "That's odd." "My parents didn't believe in education," I answered quickly. That could not have been farther from the truth, Auntie A firmly believed everyone should go to school, follow their dreams, and never stop learning. "Where are they?" Kai asked. This time I answered truthfully,"Most likely dead. Left and never came home." Kai's eyes dropped from me down to his tail. "Fought in the war too, huh?" I looked away from him,"Mine too." He wiped his eyes,"So is there a specific place you're going, because the queen doesn't like visitors unless they're royalty." A queen? Well, I guess that makes sense. Who else would watch over the kingdom and it's citizens. So a queen makes sense. But a voice spoke up from behind before I could think up another lie. "You are under arrest for assumed stealing."