Three

 

Chapter 3

    

     “What…exactly is this?” Hazel said in a confused tone as she tried lifting a big, white cylindrical device. She gave up and flopped the attached, skinny, blue tube around.

     There was laughter in the air. “That would be the tank vacuum.” Luke ‘s voice said as he pulled on a blue wetsuit from behind the boxes of equipment.

     “Oh. It kind of looks like a gasoline tank,” Hazel paused as Luke emerged from behind the boxes with a concerned and confused expression. “You know, the ones you use at barbeques under the grill.” She finished, using hand motions to help her failure of a comparison.

     Her blond haired friend fixed the tights sleeves and replied, “Yeah Hazel, cause that’s exactly something we keep lying around here at the aquarium.” His sarcastic remark rubbed her dumb comment into her face even more.

She smiled. “How do you use it?” She asked, ignoring his mocking reply.

     “Your about to find out.” He replied as he zipped the cold, rubbery material up from the side.

     They were in a back room filled with all sorts of devices. There were wetsuits hanging by the window, sponge devices in the buckets, long sweepers leaning in the corners, large complicated looking machines, and cardboard boxes with who knows what inside of them. The door suddenly opened and a man with short, black hair stepped through with his backpack. He set it down on the table near the doorway.

     “Good afternoon,” the man said with a wave. He was wearing a plain grey shirt and had a slight hint of stubble.

     “Hi Jonas,” Luke replied, stretching out the wetsuit on his legs. Hazel was now sitting on the stool besides him.

     “Hey, who’s this?” Jonas said and looked curiously at Hazel. He was going through his bag for something and saw Hazel sitting there idly.

     Luke stopped fidgeting with his suit and straightened up to a tall stretch upwards. “This is Hazel, our new trainee.” He held a hand towards her, introducing them. “And this is Jonas, my supervisor…boss, person,” he told Hazel.

     Hazel stood up and got off her stool. “Nice to meet you,” she shook hands with Jonas, who had reached his hands out.

     “Same to you,” he replied with a smile. “Are you working us?” he asked.

     She nodded, “Yes, it was Eva’s idea. She thought that Luke and I would work well together,” she replied.

     Jonas nodded in response. “Okay, sounds good to me. We can always use an extra hand around here,” he said and went back to his bag. He pulled out a peanut butter flavored energy bar along with a water bottle and started eating his quick afternoon snack.

     “You know, when Eva first told me that I would be working with you and the sharks, I was surprised,” Hazel said to Luke.

     “I know right? I assumed you would have been assigned to the seals or something,” he replied casually with a smirk. He was peeling an orange, and the sweet scent drifted throughout the room.

     She nudged him hard in the arm and he nearly dropped his fruity snack. “Just an observation,” he justified, still smiling and looking down. Hazel just shook her head and crossed her arms.

     “Is this your first week on the job Hazel?” Jonas asked and turned around from the table.

     “No, this is my second,” she replied. “I started last Monday.” She remembered her disappointing yet funny start. Only someone like Eva would do something like that to her, and she smiled as she thought back. “What are we going to be doing today?” She asked, curious and excited.

     “Well, I was thinking Luke could teach you how to clean the shark tank.” He replied and chewed on a chunk of energy bar. “He needs some practice in teaching anyways. One day, he’ll be doing what I’m doing,” he said and smiled at Luke, who was listening in on the conversation off to the side. He smiled slightly as he heard this.

     “I have to finish college first though,” Luke cut in with a reminder.

     “Ah, no need to rush. Be thankful you are still young,” Jonas sighed and crossed his arms after throwing away his wrapper.

     “True,” Luke said, “I can still lay in bed until 3pm and get up when I want to go play video games for the rest of the day.” He said with a grin on his face.

     Jonas looked at the floor and shook his head. “Oh how youth is wasted on the young.” His face showed the faintest of smiles.

     Hazel gave Luke a weird look and scoffed. “Boys…” she muttered to herself. “How long have you been working here, Jonas?” She asked, changing the subject.

     He pulled up a stool to join them and re-crossed his muscular arms. “I’ve been working here for about,” he looked up at the ceiling, mentally counting in his head. “Seven years,” he finally said.

     “Oh wow, that’s a long time,” she said and looked at her shoes. Her black laces were neatly double laced and in their place.

     “Yeah, before that, I worked in South America for three years. I finally came over here and settled down when I turned twenty-five. I applied for the job and have been here ever since.”

     “Sounds adventurous,” Hazel commented with a smile. She thought about what it would be like working in South American or even Australia.

     “Yeah, it was for a while. I loved having the field experience and free lifestyle, but it got a little tiring after a while. I wanted a home to go back to every night, so I came here,” he said.

     “Yeah, I know what you mean,” Hazel said, looking down again. She fidgeted in her stool, as if she had just felt the uncomfortable position she was sitting in. She re-crossed her legs and then uncrossed them.

     Luke sensed her shifting mood and spoke up. “So, what’s my job today? Am I just teaching Hazel how to clean the tank?” He yawned and stretched again. It was only four in the afternoon and everyone was already getting tired.

     “Yeah, you can teach her anything else that comes to mind that might be convenient to know. I have to go talk to Eva about the shark checkup dates,” he said in a boring tone. “Paper work and all…” he trailed off as Hazel and Luke caught the drift.

     “Okay, you have fun with that,” Luke said with a big enthusiastic smile on his face. His voice was filled with sarcasm.     Jonas stared back at his young assistance and shook his head, “Get to work you two.” He trudged towards the door and closed it behind him.

     Hazel laughed after Jonas had left. “Am I actually to help you clean the tank?” She asked, not sure what she was supposed to be doing. It was a fresh start, however, after feeding animals for a whole week.

     “What else did you have in mind? Watch me as I do all the work?” Luke smiled, “It gets tiring after a while,” he said matter-of-factly.

     “Okay, I’ll help you,” she replied back.

     Luke raised an eyebrow. “You make it sound like I was begging you or something,” he went behind some boxes again to get another wetsuit. He came back after a few seconds, holding a slick, black one-piece.

     “Is it scary?” Hazel replied, curious yet cautious of going into a tank-full of sharks.

     “It was a little at first, but you get used to it.” He replied. “Why, are you scared?” He teased her with a smirk.

     She immediately furrowed her eyebrows. “No,” she denied and snatched the suit from him in one motion. Hazel went to the restrooms for a quick change. It was a small room, so she had trouble moving around. At one point, she nearly tripped but caught herself against the wall and rattled around some brooms and mops that were stashed in the corner of the room. She opened the door again and enjoyed the large space around her.

     Luke was sitting on the table with his arms crossed. He wore an amused expression on his face. “Did you…have fun in there?” He asked with a smile.

     Hazel rolled her eyes, “I had a blast, thank you.” She put her clothes in the employee lockers and snapped her lock together with a click.

     “All ready to go?” Luke said, getting off the table and walking over to some heavy looking gear. Hazel nodded and followed behind him, grabbing whatever he was getting. They went out a blue door and Hazel found herself on a railing that overlooked a pool of water. The smell of ocean was overwhelming since the air circulated in the room. Luke noticed it too and opened the slide- able, large windows. A burst of cool, fresh air came in and Hazel breathe it all in with a small smile.

     “Okay, so we will be wearing air tanks and mouth pieces for the whole time, basically, scuba gear.” Hazel nodded and he continued. “We wear fins to help us swim around faster and there are several types of ways to clean.”

     Luke reached into a big bucket that was sitting off to the side held up a long stick with a flat end attached that looked like a modern floor sweeper. “This is a window cleaner, its self explanatory,” he said with a simple expression. “We use sponges as well for more detailed cleaning.”

     “Will we be using the vacuum?” Hazel pointed to the large device that she asked about earlier. Luke nodded and went over to it.

     “It’s connected to an air vent up here, and all we have to do is turn the on switch on when we’re under water. After that, we can aim it at the ground and vacuum the ground.” Hazel nodded and made a mental note of everything.

     “Are you ready?” He asked again, making sure she wasn’t having second thoughts.

     Hazel nodded confidently and put on her air tank. Luke handed her a pair of scuba goggles and she put her hair up in a cap to keep it from flowing everywhere.

     “Oh right, one more thing that might be important.” Luke remembered all of a sudden. He reached into the bucket again and pulled up a small, round device that looked like a plunger. “If you want to hang on to the glass while you clean, it might be easier if you use this to grip onto the wall,” he said, handing it to her. “Right, just follow behind me and you’ll be okay. Just tell me if you get scared.” He looked at her again.

     She smiled back, “That’s sweet Luke, but I’m telling you, I’m not scared,” she insisted and attached her breathing tube. He shrugged an ‘alright,’ and started going down from the ladder. He put on his fins as he floated on the surface.

     Hazel hesitated for a fraction of a second, but went in after him. The cold water hit her like a hard slap in the face and a sharp shiver crawled down her back. Her fingers were starting to turn numb but she swam around to bring warmth into her body.

     “We can start with the glass today and then work our way down.” Luke said and reached for the cleaning devices.

     “Okay,” Hazel said and took the sponge that Luke handed her. She had put her fins on already and was treading water easily.

     “When you swim around under there, you want to make slow, easy movements. The sharks and fishes aren’t used to humans with strange gear swimming with them, so you don’t want to startle them with a sudden or hectic movement,” Luke informed her and pulled his big goggles on. His blonde hair was already wet from the salty water, turning it a light brown.

     “They won’t attack me or anything will they?” Hazel asked, starting to sound a little worried since their dive was imminent. She felt her heart racing, but was not sure if it was with excitement or fear.

     “Not if you don’t do anything stupid,” he said with a finger raised. “So, just don’t do anything stupid.”

     She looked back at him, “Sounds easy enough,” she muttered.

     “It’s easier said than done,” he said, apparently hearing her. “Trust me.” With that, Luke sunk under the calm, cool liquid and disappeared from sight.

     Hazel put her mouthpiece in and closed her eyes to sink under after him. The water temperature was already starting to be surrender as Hazel got used to the chilly feeling. It was completely silent underwater except for the slight sound of bubbles coming from the slow movements of the animals.

     She opened her eyes after being submerged for a few seconds. She breathed in a breath of surprise but wound up feeling clogged up since her nose was in the same goggles as her eyes. She remembered her breathing piece and manually took in a breath through her mouth. Damp air filled her lungs as she inhaled, but the oxygen brought her mind back to life. She noticed the schools of fish swimming around under her feet. It was like being in a whole different world.

     Luke motioned for her to come deeper under with him and she followed his instructions. Slowly, she sunk deeper in and noticed the details in the coral that was attached to the wall. There were fish swimming back and forth around her in curiosity and she stretched her mouth into somewhat of a smile as they did so. It was so much more of a colorful world than the one she lived in that she couldn’t help looking around for a couple of minutes. Luke was floating besides her, pointing to interesting fish that were passing by.

     She could see the shiny silver scales against a big fish that swam past her. Its eyes followed her as she moved around in the large tank. The light and blissful feeling in her heart completely vanished when Hazel caught sight of a blacktip reef shark that came slowly towards them. Its massive body weaved gracefully over, and Hazel felt her heart drop to the bottom of her stomach. She inched towards Luke and grabbed on to his arm. He looked at her with an amused expression through his goggles but didn’t argue, seeing the seven-foot animal swimming towards them.

     He poked her shoulder and she looked up, just in time to see its snout a few feet before her face. Before it came any further, however, it turned away, rearing off to the left. Its round eyes inspected them as it swam away. Luke pointed to the self-explanatory harmlessness and then motioned to his arm. Hazel immediately let go and floated a couple feet away from him.

     They both swam to the large glass that looked like a mirror from their perspective. On the other side, people were enjoying the beautiful view of an underwater scene of bliss.

     Hazel pulled out her plunger device and planted it on the glass in front of her. She used her right hand to start rubbing with the sponge, as Luke had shown her a couple seconds beforehand. It was easy at first, but a few minutes into it, no-gravity cleaning was hard work. Hazel’s arm soon grew tired and her hand holding her up with the plunger was throbbing.

A while later, she decided to take a quick break and removed her hand from the window. She immediately felt the blood rush back into her arms as she floated next to the glass.

     Luke was a couple of feet away from her, tirelessly scrubbing the hazy glass in front of him. She admired his hard work and smiled slightly. The only sound Hazel could hear now was her manual breathing. Her breath was going steadily in and out, sounding heavy from the tube.

     She turned around to look around the large tank and immediately regretted it when she saw a huge shark swimming towards her. Her hazel eyes grew wide and her heart started racing. Her hearing started to fade as the blood rushed to her face. Hazel was about to swim away when she remembered Luke’s words of advice. Instead of reacting and flinching away, she remained still, holding her ground.

     The massive body came looming over her head and she cautiously looked up at the shadow that it had created on her. She estimated it to be around fourteen feet. Once it swam by, she let out a sigh of relief, but the breath caught in her throat as she watched the shark turn back around. It’s faded black stripes on its side showed as it made a u-turn.

     Hazel peeked a look over at Luke, who was still cleaning around the same area. There must be an intense smudge over there… She thought in her head. Her attention came jumping back to the situation she was in and she gripped her sponge tighter. The shark’s flat and edgy snout pointed its way towards her and came slithering through the water with great speed.

     A few water bubbles escaped from her mouth as she forgot how to breathe correctly from the scuba gear. It’s going to be okay, she thought in her head and tried smothering her other depressing thoughts. For some inappropriate reason, the jaws theme song popped into her head and she pushed it out with a shake of her head.

     Luke was now turned around and watching the whole scene from behind. He made a motion to Hazel not to move. She silently agreed and stayed where she was, waiting for the tiger shark to come to her. It was now only a few feet away from her and she anticipated for what was unavoidable. However, she did not feel the impact and looked up from her mental cowering. The shark bumped her a fraction of an inch and swam off to the far end of the tank. There was tightness in her lungs and she suddenly remembered to breath. Luke swam over swiftly and signaled to go up.

     The air on the surface felt so fresh compared to the underwater, pressured oxygen. Hazel spit her mouthpiece out and inhaled deeply through her nose. Luke removed his goggles from his face and he swam up close to her. He was panting from swimming around.

     “Are you okay?” He asked, sounding extremely worried. He observed Hazel for any sign of injury.

     “Yeah, I think I’m fine,” she replied. She shivered as a chill ran up her spine at thought of what could have happened.

     “Are you sure?” Luke asked, reaching out for her but not knowing where to place his hand. “Let’s take a break, yeah?” He insisted, judging by her face color.

     Surprisingly, Hazel shook her head. “No, I’m fine Luke.” She smiled at him. “Let’s go again.”

     He looked at her as if she were speaking French. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?” He asked her. “I was thinking maybe we could…” he trailed off in hesitation. “You know, get something to drink?”

     He caught her attention now and Hazel looked at him and felt warm in the icy cold water. She couldn’t stop the smile from forming on her face and she found herself nodding before she could say anything else. She followed him out of the water and took his hand when he offered to pull her up.

     It was already six in the evening and Hazel could feel herself getting sleepy from her afternoon training. They had another hour and a half to go. They both quickly dried off and put their uniforms over their semi-dry wetsuits.

     “We’re going to take a break,” Luke said to Eva as they passed by her near the front information desk. She nodded with a knowing smile and got back to organizing some papers on the table. There were still some people at the aquarium, lingering after a long day of walking.

     “What are you in the mood for?” He asked as they strolled down the block in the evening sun. His hair was nearly dry now, giving it the scruffy look.

     Hazel shrugged. “How about some smoothies?” She suggested and looked up at him.

     He looked back down at her with his clear, blue eyes. “Sounds good to me,” he replied back with a smile. “I know this great smoothie place just down the block.”

     Hazel nodded back in response and continued walking next to her friend. She listened to their different footsteps for a few seconds and then looked over at the beach. The water slowly inched towards the shore, pulling back the bits of sand. She had a picture of a similar looking beach in her room on her nightstand. Eva had bought her a picture frame to put it in. It was the only visual thing she had on her, so she kept it as a treasure. Every morning she would take a long look at it, thinking what her old home was like.

     “So, what went on in your head when we were under?” Luke spoke up after a long moment of silence. His hands were in his pockets as he listened.

     Hazel paused to answer. “I’m not sure.” She replied with a shrug.

     “Were you…” he hesitated in asking the same question again. “Scared?” He looked at her with a curious expression.

     Hazel stared back at him and laughed. Her eyes squinted as her smile formed. “Yeah, I was,” she said honestly. “I kept on saying I wasn’t, but deep down inside, I was a little nervous.”

     He smirked at her. “You just admitted you were scared.” His surprised tone caught her attention.

     “Shut up,” she said returning his smirk with a grin. “I don’t do that often so don’t make me do it again.”

     “Well, if you want to know the truth, I think Tessie likes you.” They crossed the street to the other side and continued walking on the opposite side from the beach.

     “Who’s Tessie?” Hazel asked, confused.    

     “The tiger shark.”

     “Oh.” She looked down at her black shoes again. “How do you know?” She looked back up with an eyebrow raised.

     “It’s my job,” he said simply. When Hazel continued to stare at him bizarrely, he laughed. “She nudged you didn’t she? Don’t think I didn’t see that. I also saw your cowering too,” he teased her.

     Hazel elbowed him in the arm. “And that was not an “I-like-you nudge.” Luke laughed aloud and rubbed his arm. They walked into an orange shop that read ‘Smoothly.’

     “I’m paying, so don’t even worry about it.” Luke told Hazel as he saw her pulling her wallet out. She paused mid-reach and gave him a look.

     “Are you sure you don’t want to split it?” she asked, making sure.

     “Nah, I got it,” he reassured her. “I’m a gentleman.” He pulled out his brown wallet from his shorts and waved it at her. She nodded thankfully and skimmed the colorful menu. They were at the end of the short line and Hazel pinpointed on one flavor.

     “What does it mean if it nudged me?” Hazel brought up the subject again, not understanding his statement from before.

     “It means that she doesn’t see you as something to munch on and the fact that you stood your ground when she was swimming towards you helped out.” He replied with a nod of his head. “You did good,” he said after a slight pause. He flashed a smile and Hazel caught herself smiling back.

     They reached the register and a girl with a brown ponytail took their order.

     “I’ll have the medium Mazing Mango please,” Hazel said over the counter. The girl nodded and typed in some words into the machine. “And you?” She asked Luke.

     “The Berry Blast for me,” he said. “Medium please.” The girl nodded again and ordered with a click of a button. Luke handed over the few bills and they took their drinks to go.

     There was a wooden railing that separated the beach from the concrete and they crossed the street to sit on it. Hazel’s light jacket flapped slightly in the wind and she took a sip of her fruity drink. The taste of mango burst on her tongue and she drank more for the tastiness.

     Luke swung his leg over the railing in one sweeping motion and sat lazily on it, looking at the ocean. Hazel jumped onto the railing and held on with one hand to stop herself from falling.

     “How are you liking it at the aquarium?” Luke asked after a sip of his smoothie.

     “I really like it,” Hazel replied. “I think it’s fun.” She glanced at him from the side. “I actually look forwards to going every time,” she admitted.

     “Really?” He asked. “Do you like me that much?” He joked.

     Hazel’s eyes grew wide, “What are you talking about?”

     Luke looked at her surprised expression and laughed. “I’m just kidding, I’m glad your enjoying your time here.”

     She sighed and smiled at his response. “It feels like a home to me,” she said after some silence.

     “That’s good to hear,” Luke replied and shook his drink around. “What was your home like before?” He asked, sincerely. He looked at her to make sure he didn’t offend or startle her.

     “My home?” She tried keeping her voice calm. There was a long pause as she thought on how to respond. Luke looked at her, slightly worried and regretted his question.

     “You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.” He said and looked away. “Family is kind of hard to talk about sometimes.”

     “Why, did something happen to you?” She asked and wondered what his family was like.

     “No, not mine. My mom and dad have been together since forever. Sure there are fights now and then, but that’s what a marriage is. The important thing is that they’re happy. But some of my other friends weren’t so lucky. There’s so many divorces now a days that it’s almost normal.”

     Hazel nodded in agreement. “Its just sad,” she said softly. He looked up and half-smiled.

     Something reminded her all of a sudden that she needed to ask him a question. “Oh, I almost forgot,” she said, holding her drink carefully in her hand. “My friend Connie and her boyfriend are going out to dinner tonight and wants me to go with them. Would you like to,” she paused and pushed on. “Would you like to come with me?” She asked shyly. “I wouldn’t want to feel like a third wheel with them,” she quickly added in.

     Luke smiled at her and laughed aloud. “Of course I’ll go with you Hazel. It sounds fun,” he replied and put an arm around her. Hazel’s heart beat faster and felt self-conscious. Luke looked at his watch and realized that it was nearly time to get back to work.

     “Okay great,” Hazel said and relaxed since her anticipated rejection had not come.

     “Want to head back? We have one more hour of training,” he said and jumped off the railing, landing on his feet. She nodded and hopped off as well.

     “I want to see if Tessie still likes me,” Hazel said and they started walking back to the aquarium.

***

 

     The smell of juicy, tropical burgers wafted through the open restaurant air. There was a small buzzing of chatter coming from the spread of people enjoying their evenings. The sound of ocean waves washing back and forth on the shore muffled parts of the conversations and a slight breeze blew by the tables. There were candles and torches lit, creating a dim environment. The sun had already set and more people were coming to have dinner.

     “I really like this whole Hawaiian beach theme,” Luke said and looked around, admiring the straw coming down from the ceiling.

     “Yeah, me too,” Connie replied. “Erik found this place a few years ago. I think they opened around then.”

     “I remember we used to come here everyday at the beginning of summer,” Hazel remarked with a smile. She rubbed her arms together as a slight breeze blew by again, ruffling her long brown hair.

     “Oh, here,” Luke said and took his grey jacket off to wrap it around Hazel.

     Hazel smiled with a nod of her head. “Thanks,” she said quietly. Connie gave her an interested look with her eyes and Hazel just smiled back. She started munching on her leftover fries.

     “So Erik,” Luke said, looking across the table at a guy with brown, buzzed hair. “What are you studying in school?”

     Erik leaned forwards from his relaxed posture. “I study film,” he replied and wiped a spot of ketchup off the corner of his black t-shirt. “I’m more into videos and movie making than photography, although that’s where I started out.” He put an arm around Connie. “That’s where I met this beautiful girl.” Connie smiled upwards at him.

     Hazel tilted her head slightly to the left in admiration of the couple. “You guys are just great,” she sighed with a smile.

     “That’s awesome, I’ve always thought that would be a cool job,” he replied and dipped his fries in the white ranch sauce.

     “Yeah, it has its ups and downs, like any other job, but I love it,” Erik said. “What about you? What do you love doing?”

     “I work at the aquarium around the corner,” Luke said, pointing behind him as if they could see it through all the buildings. “I’m studying veterinary science, this fall will be my second year in.”

     “That’s interesting,” he said, nodding his head. “Is that where you met Hazel?” He looked over at her, who was staring back at him, listening to the conversation.

     “Yeah, she started a couple of weeks ago.” Luke looked at Hazel and smiled. She smiled back without saying anything.

     “Sorry, I’m going to the bathroom,” Connie announced and got up. “Hazel, want to come with me?” She asked and Hazel got out of the booth as well, leaving Erik and Luke to continue their conversation.

     Hazel sped walked to catch up with Connie. They made their way to the restrooms, trying to ignore all the chatter in the air.   The swinging doors closed behind them silently and Connie went into the stall. Hazel looked in the mirror and noticed that her cheeks were getting red from the cold, night’s air. There were a few pieces of hair sticking out from her wavy, relaxed hair and she tucked them back into place.

     “I think he’s adorable, by the way,” Connie announced as she stepped up to the silver sinks.

     “Who?” Hazel asked, not sure what Connie was suddenly talking about.

     “Who do you think?” Connie asked, she shook her head as the clueless expression on Hazel’s face remained stationary. “Luke!”

     She made an ‘oh,’ face and nodded. “I didn’t bring him with me to make a move,” Hazel said, looking at her shoes. “He’s just my friend, okay?” She made sure Connie got the idea.

     Her friend shrugged and played with her black hair. “For now,” she said with a smile.

     Hazel shook her head with a small smile. “We’re friends.” She emphasized ‘friends.’ “So stop treating us like a couple when we’re not!”

     “Okay, okay,” Connie replied and fixed her eye makeup. She still found the situation amusing from the smile she still had plastered on her face. “You do like him though, right?”

     Hazel pulled herself onto the counter and shrugged. “I don’t know, maybe?” Her question floated into the open air. Connie stopped looking at herself in the mirror and turned towards Hazel.

     “Hazel, what do you know?” Connie crossed her arms, annoyed with her friend’s uncertainty. She didn’t respond for a few minutes and spent the time starting at her sandals. She bit her lip and thought about it.

     After a while, she looked back up to a waiting Connie. “Okay, I have to admit,” she started. “I do kind of like him,” she said with a small smirk appearing on her lips.

     Immediately, Connie’s face lit up and she started talking. “That’s great Hazel! I feel so happy for you.” She grinned and let her hair down from her bun. “I can tell he really likes you too,” she said happily.

     A warm feeling grew in Hazel’s heart area and a tingle ran up her spine. “What are you guys doing after dinner?” Connie asked.

     “We don’t have anything planned really, it was just dinner,” Hazel replied. “We’ll see. Want to head back?”

     Connie nodded and they shuffled out of the restrooms. Erik and Luke were still talking when they got back. Hazel and Connie resumed their seats and Hazel pulled Luke’s jacket tighter around her as another slight breeze blew by.

     “I think we should do more stuff like this,” Erik said as Connie sat back down.

     “You mean like hanging out at lunch or dinner?” Connie replied, “Yeah, that sounds fun.” She looked at Hazel for her reply.

     Hazel didn’t say anything but looked at Luke, who was sitting besides her. He nodded and looked at her. “I think this was fun,” he said, “Even though you did as me to join so you wouldn’t be a third wheel.” He laughed and scratched his head.

     “Don’t think about it like that,” Hazel said, feeling guilty. “I wouldn’t have invited you if you weren’t fun to be with.” She said with a smile.

     “Alright,” he replied. “Well, if you do ever ask me again, I wouldn’t mind at all tagging along,” his grin grew wide and Hazel’s heart did a somersault. From the corner of her eye, she saw Connie smiling widely like the Grinch on Christmas but without the bad intentions.

     “Sounds like a plan guys,” Erik said. “Sorry for the short ending, but Connie and I have to go do this film project with the night, so we should get going.”

     Hazel nodded understandingly and Connie said, “You guys can stay though. We’ll grab the bill and see you guys later,” she said, standing up.

     “Night shoot huh? Sounds awesome, have fun,” Luke said with a wave as Erik got up too. “Thanks for dinner,” he said politely.

     “Thanks Erik and Connie,” Hazel said as well and waved as they both walked down the steps and disappeared into the darkness. It was just Luke and her now, and she was starting to feel her nervousness.

     “I know this great little café about ten minutes away from here. We can get some drinks or dessert if you want,” Luke said and brushed some blonde hair out of his face as a breeze blew by. “On me, of course,” he added.

     “Yeah, that sounds good,” Hazel replied with a smile. They too, got out of their seats and thanked the waiters and waitresses that were still working hard. Luke and Hazel walked down the steps that lead into the open-spaced restaurant and turned left to walk down the block.

     “I found this place a while ago on a cold winter night.” Luke started to talk as they walked quietly.

     “What were you doing?” Hazel asked. They were going farther and farther away from the beach and it was getting less cold. She loosened the grip on Luke’s jacket.

     Her blonde friend stretched his arms up into the air. “I was feeling a little down after work one day, so I walked around. It got pretty cold and I really wanted something warm to drink. Out of nowhere, I smell something sweet in the air. Call me a dog, I know, but I follow the trail closer and closer and eventually found this little restaurant around the corner.” He answered and thought about the freshly baked pies they made.

     “That’s convenient.” She replied and wondered what kinds of dessert they had. A few minutes later, the small café came into view. The storefront had a lit up sign that read ‘Mittens.’ Luke opened the glass door for Hazel and a warm blast of air had blown into her face. There was a smell of cookies, cakes, and pies all mixed into one. Small booths lined up the walls and couples were cozily sitting in them, enjoying a nice, warm drink.

     “Welcome to Mittens, two people?” A waitress with long black hair asked, holding a bunch of menus in her hand.

     Luke nodded and she led them to an open table. “Here are your menus,” she said as she placed two brown colored books in front of them. “Take your time,” she said and walked away when Hazel nodded with a ‘thank you.’

     They looked through the small, brown menu. “Do you like chocolate?” Hazel asked as she saw a picture of a chocolate mud pie.

     “I love chocolate,” he replied. “What do you have in mind?”

     “I don’t know, want to share a Chocolate Fudge Cake with the Vanilla Ice Cream?” she asked and pointed to the picture.

     “Oh wow, that looks amazing, lets do it,” he said. “Did you want something warm to drink?” he asked. “They have great hot chocolate,” he suggested.

She nodded and they ordered the cake and two hot chocolates as a passing waitress came by a few minutes later.

     “So tell me about yourself,” Hazel asked as they waited for their chocolate endings.

     “What do you want to know?” He asked, thinking of the broadness of the question.

     Hazel thought about it, but said, “Anything.”

     “Well,” he began and leaned forwards in the booth. “I was born and raised up here all my life and haven’t really traveled beyond. My mom’s a children’s book writer, and my dad’s a fisherman. Don’t ask me how they wound up together, because I have no idea how a writer and fisherman would meet,” he smiled and Hazel laughed back and listened on.

     “But they did, and they settled down here I guess.”

     “What made you want to become an aquarist?” Hazel asked curiously.

     “When I was younger,” he started with a small grin. “My dad would take me on his fishing trips. I would sit in the middle of his boat and watch as he reeled in fish after fish. It was a good feeling to be out in the open sea. I felt so free,” he said. His blue eyes looked past the dinner table and into the vast ocean.

     “I always wondered what was under the sea since we were always over it. There had to be something right?” He asked and she nodded in response. “That’s how I got interested in studying animals, and soon it narrowed down to just sea creatures,” he said. “There’s just something about them that just interests me.” He smiled at Hazel, who was listening intently.

     “I know what you mean,” she said.

     “I remember this one time we were out in the ocean,” Luke said with a smirk plastered on his face. “The sea was a little rocky that day and I was having difficulty keeping my balance. Soon enough, I tripped over the seats and fell into the water. When I was under, the waves were somehow gentle compared to what it was doing to the boat. I opened my eyes and I saw a school of fish, swimming about. It was a great moment for me, and I remember it second by second, as if it just happened yesterday. Afterwards, my dad threw me a lifeline and pulled me in. I was fine and actually wanted to go in again,” he admitted.

     “You know what I’ve noticed?” Hazel asked.

     “What’s that?” Luke wondered, curious.

     “You trip and fall a lot,” she told him with a smile. Luke laughed aloud and shook his head in agreement.

Their hot chocolates arrived shortly and the waiter excused himself to get their dessert. Hazel took a cautious sip of her chocolate in a cup but smiled immediately after she tasted it.

     “This is amazing,” she said and went to take another sip. Luke nodded in agreement and said, “Told you so.” He made a face when it got too hot. “I wish I could make it this good,” he said finally after slightly burning his tongue.

     “Same here,” she replied. “What are your plans after college?” She asked.

     He shrugged and set his mug onto the coaster the hot drink came with. “I’m not entirely sure yet, but I don’t know if I want to stay in this town forever,” he said. “Don’t get me wrong, I love it here, but I feel like I would just be missing a lot if I didn’t.”

     Hazel nodded from understanding. “Yeah, I think it would be neat to travel the world someday,” she admitted with a guilty smile.

     “You know what?” He asked, after drinking some hot chocolate. “I’ve always wanted to do that,” he laughed at the idea. She thought about how similar they were and chuckled inwards.

“Here is your extremely chocolaty dessert,” a waiter came by and said. He set down a big plate in front of them. “Enjoy,” he left with a kind smile.

“Wow, this looks delicious!” Hazel exclaimed, looking at the deep, chocolaty cake with hot fudge running down its side. The vanilla ice cream was glistening by its side. She picked up a fork and scooped up a mouthful. Her tongue picked up the sweet taste and immediately smiled and went in for another forkful. “This is better than it looks.”

“How is that even possible?” Luke said and tried it as well. His eyes grew large and savored at the chocolaty sensation. “Okay yeah, its possible,” he gave in. They both ate in silence for a few minutes to enjoy the sweet, chocolaty taste. They took turns scooping the gooey fudged cake with their forks and balancing the flavor with a bite of cool, vanilla ice cream.

“You’ve been asking all the questions so far, is it my turn yet?” Luke asked after a while of eating.

Hazel slowly looked up from the almost-empty plate and didn’t know what to say. “Your turn?” She asked, swallowing her bite of chocolate. Her throat seemed to dry up and she didn’t bother reaching for her hot chocolate.

“Yeah, my turn to ask the questions. It feels like I don’t know anything about you.” He said. He set down his fork and wiped his mouth with a new napkin that was next to his elbow.

Luke’s statement floated around in the air, untouched as Hazel remained silent, thinking about what to say. It wasn’t that she was embarrassed or scared to tell him the truth, but she was disappointed in and ashamed of herself for not remembering the sole things that individuals should remember.

She was just about to open her mouth to fill the silence in the air when a gloomy, grey shadow was cast onto the chocolate-covered white plate.

“Hazel, fancy seeing you here,” a voice said, and she looked up at the sudden interruption. A chill of annoyance and dread rippled through her and she mentally shuttered in response. Luke looked up as well at the intruder.

“Dave…” Hazel started, looking down at the table again. “What are you doing here?” She didn’t want to deal with this right now and didn’t bother reviving her unenthusiastic voice.

“Its funny how alike we are. I was just about to ask you the same thing,” he joked in a serious kind of way with his arms crossed. “You on a date with Roye boy here?”

“Dave, if you have some sort of a problem, take it somewhere else,” Luke replied and sighed. He sensed Hazel’s discomfort and Dave’s quick temper rising.

He completely ignored Luke with a shrug of his shoulder and addressed Hazel directly. “So let me get this straight,” Dave said and pointed at her. “You pick this loser of a nobody here,” and pointed to Luke, “over me?” he asked, looking down at her. His nice and friendly composure Hazel saw a few weeks ago had completely vanished and replaced with red anger and green jealousy. The anger seeped through Hazel’s veins as she sat there, listening to him. She counted her breaths and reminded herself to inhale and exhale slowly.

“What the hell Dave, its not her fault if she doesn’t want to hang out with you. She can do whatever she wants,” Luke argued, standing up now. They were both the same height, neither intimidating the other.

“Enough!” Hazel suddenly said, her annoyance spilling out like how water flows from a broken dam. “I told you no before Dave, and I did it in a nice way. I forgave you for the whole lifeguard deal the other day and that’s that. If I don’t want to get dinner with you, that’s my decision to make.” She was standing up as well with a furious expression on her face. “You think you’re ‘all that,’ and now, come interrupt my dinner with my friend and insult us? That is something I cannot forgive you for doing.”

“That’s not how I see it,” Dave responded. “You reject my dinner offer and a few days later, I find you off at dinner with someone else? I’m taking this a little personally,” he replied. “Why won’t you go out to dinner with me?”

“Come on Hazel, lets just go,” Luke said, already over the whole situation.

“Stay out of this Luke,” Hazel managed to say in the nicest tone she could sum up, even though it was a barking command. She turned back to Dave. “Because I don’t have to if I don’t want to. And I don’t want to. You can’t make me do something I don’t want to. I make my own decisions.” She stressed her point with a slight raise of her voice. People around them started to look over, but it was quiet enough to pass off with a glance.

“Is that why you ran off then?” Dave suddenly said. Hazel’s eyes grew wide with surprise and confusion. “There’s a lot of talk going on here,” he said in response to her reaction. “Is that why you ran off from home? Because you make your own decisions? Are you a big girl now Hazel?” He mocked her and raised his hands into the air. There was deafening silence that surrounded the air as the questions shot out of his mouth. Luke looked nervously at Hazel, who was staring dead at Dave with cold eyes.

“I did not,” she emphasized every word, “run away from home.” And with that, she turned on the spot and marched out of the warm and comfortable restaurant and into the cold, dark night.

***

 

Hazel could feel the liquid hot tears forming in her eyes. She resisted and inhaled a big breath of the cool night air and continued walking, not giving in to her emotions. She had no idea where she was headed, but the main priority on her list right now was to get as far away from the restaurant.

She thought about how selfish, arrogant and rude Dave was and the heat in her anger rose higher. She immediately took a couple breaths to cool herself down and to recollect her calm self. After a few minutes of self-comforting, she breathed easier and slowed down to a stroll. What did Dave mean when he said that I was a runaway? Did everybody think that I ran away from home? She wondered to herself. The anger was slowly melting away and a wave of calmness washed over her. The idea was ridiculous and a hint of humor even appeared on her face as she walked under a streetlamp. She shook the idea out of her head and realized that she was right across from the aquarium. Her hand reached inside of her bag and scrambled around the bottom and paused when she felt the small, cool object in her hands. Eva had left her a spare key for emergencies and she pulled it out of her bag with a small smile.  

The main lights were off in the dark blue building and small, hallway lights were lit instead, creating a dim and calming feeling. The only sound she could hear was her own quiet footsteps as she tiptoed around the corner to her comfort section.

The dark blue water glowed ripples onto the white walls and created a serene and mellow setting. Hazel sat down against a large pole that was partly holding up the ceiling. It was hard and cold but it felt muffled against her back, and she suddenly realized that she was still wearing Luke’s jacket. A sudden wave of guilt flushed through her at the thought of Luke and leaving him there. She regretted storming out and wanted to go back in time to fix everything. She would’ve listened to Luke and followed him out with he suggested they leave, but instead, her stubbornness took over and completely ruined everything.

Her thoughts were interrupted as a great figure floated by in the dark water. A small smile appeared on her face as she watched Tessie swim gracefully by, treading through the water like air. She thought back to her past experience with her. That day she got back into the water, Hazel watched as Tessie circled around her in curiosity. Her gliding body drifted through the water swiftly and dared Hazel to swim along with her. There was no fear in Hazel that day as she dolphin kicked her way over to the large sea creature. Tessie was an old Tiger shark, and actually calm and peaceful even though they were extremely dangerous to humans. Her kind was only misunderstood by fear spread amongst people. They were merely curious creatures that felt their way around the world with their teeth. Swimming alongside with Tessie was one of the greatest feelings that Hazel had ever felt and she remembered how Luke was applauding her afterwards and confirming his earlier theory.

Suddenly again, the thought of Luke brought back the feeling of guilt from earlier. She wondered what had happened after she left. She silently apologized to him in her mind as she regretted her irrational flee. As Hazel sat on the ground, looking at the rippling affects from the water, she realized how arrogant and selfish Dave was. What he said was completely ridiculous. Hazel wondered who in the town actually believed she was a runaway. He didn’t understand how badly she wanted to know where home was to go back. If she really did run away, she was sure she didn’t mean it. Hazel pulled in her legs to her chest and stared as Tessie swam by in another lap. It wasn’t that she wanted to stand at the top stairs of the town hall and yell on top of her lungs the truth, but she didn’t appreciate that people were spreading rumors about her. She almost wished they knew the truth.

Her phone lit up in her pocket and before she could reach to grab it, it started blasting her “Pumped Up Kicks” ringtone. She stretched her legs out straight to get her phone out of her skinny jeans and pressed the silence button. The burst of music had echoed through the building and back towards her and she froze in place, listening for any other noises. Once satisfied with the quiet, Hazel relaxed back into her comfortable, secluded position.

Her heart was pounding from the sudden sound and it slowed to a jog after a while. Eva had called her and left her a voicemail since Hazel ignored the call. It was already midnight, and Eva was probably worried about Hazel’s whereabouts. She was just about to send her a quick text message to reply for the missed call, but the sound of footprints caught Hazel’s attention. She immediately flipped her cell phone shut and scrunched up behind her protective pole. The sound of footsteps continued and the quietness enhanced the sound so that it echoed off every corner of the building.

There was a moment of silence when the footsteps paused to scan around the surroundings. There was a glowing spot of light as a flashlight swept across the floor and walls.

“Hello?” A male voice called out, shattering the silent shield that Hazel was hiding behind. She jumped in startle from the sudden voice and covered her mouth with her hand and remained still. The footsteps continued walking and Hazel noticed that it was to her right hand side now. The light soon switched off and the footsteps faded away into the silence. She waited a few more minutes before finally breathing a sigh of relief. Hazel relaxed her legs and decided it was safe to stand up.

She looked around the pole corner just to make sure the coast was clear, before walking up to the large glass panel that held an alternate life behind it. Tessie was slowly shaking her head through the water, swimming around still. She rested her head against the glass and just looked into the glass, wishing she could go for a swim. Tessie swam closer to the glass and did an emergency turn as she reached the closest she could come. As she did, her yellow and white eyes looked directly at Hazel, who was staring back at her in amazement and fascination.

She backed up a couple feet and decided it was time to leave. Hazel turned around to step on something hard and she immediately screamed. She stumbled forwards and a pair of arms wrapped around her to hold her steady. The sharp shrill rang throughout the building, piercing Hazel’s own ears. There was a face in front of hers and she pushed away to get some space.

“Ouch, you stepped on my foot.” The voice said.

Hazel looked up from her bent over position and panted. “What t�"the hell? You scared me to death!” She stuttered and stepped back a few feet to see whom she was talking to.

A dark-haired boy with a navy blue security guard uniform on was standing in front of her with his flashlight in his hand. He was much taller than Hazel and she was surprised at how young he was. “Your obviously not dead.” He pointed out flatly. Hazel opened her mouth to protest but thought better of it since she had no combat. All that remained on her face was an angry expression.

“My foot is still in pain,” he stated and looked down at his black shoes.

“Suits you for standing right behind me,” Hazel replied, furrowing her eyebrows.

“Well, I was going to ask you what you were doing here,” he stated. His face bore a straightforward expression as he waited for her reply.

“I�"well…” Hazel started, not knowing how to respond. “I work here and I forgot something…” She completely made it up and looked at him.

He gave her a doubtful expression. “Can I see your employee I.D?” He asked simply and held out his hand.

A dumb expression struck Hazel as she realized that her I.D was back at home, hanging on her doorknob. She had accidentally forgot to grab it on the way out since she was in a hurry. “I don’t have it…” She looked down at the ground and prepared for the worst.

There was a chuckle and she looked up to find him snickering at her. He shook his head and said, “You’re a little forgetful aren’t you?” He put his flashlight back in his pocket. “I know you didn’t leave something here, so what are you really doing here? He asked, serious now. His face drained the amused smile away and set an authoritative expression.

Hazel sighed, “I don’t know, I was walking and came across here, so I came in.” She finally said. “I have a key for this place since I work here and live with Eva,” she said and showed him the little gold object that was now warm from her pocket.

“Wait a minute, you’re that new girl aren’t you?” He asked suddenly and Hazel grew uncomfortable. Dave’s accusation haunted her thoughts and she had trouble focusing.

“I do have a name,” she said with an edgy tone, annoyed at the title. She continued as he waited, “It’s Hazel.”

His green eyes examined her in the dim setting. “What kind of a name is that?” He asked with a confused face. The sternness then returned to his voice. “You know your not supposed to be here, it’s my job to see that through.” He told her and crossed his arms.

“Sorry,” she replied in a low tone. Hazel did not have anymore engery to argue and she pulled her bag higher over her shoulder. “I was leaving anyways.” She didn’t look at him and walked around his tall figure, staring at the ground.

“Hold on a second,” he said and grabbed her shoulder. She turned around, wondering what he could ever want.

“Where are you going?” He asked.

“What’s it to you? Your not my mom,” she couldn’t help saying. She just wanted to leave already.

“Yes well, I’m getting close. You have to come with me.” He said and reached for her arm. Hazel immediately drew back from surprise and looked at him with an unbelievable expression.

“What are you doing? Taking me in?” She jerked away and took a few steps back from him.

He squinted his eyes in estimation of the word. “You can                         call it that, yeah,” he said. Hazel’s mouth fell open in amazement and shook her head.

“You can’t do that!” She exclaimed, her anger rising again.

“Yes, I can, it’s my job actually. So, if you don’t mind me asking again, you’re going to have to come with me.” He started walking and she reluctantly followed behind him with an annoyed posture.

There was a navy blue police car parked outside in the parking lot and the tall boy unlocked it with a press of his keys.

“You have got to be kidding me,” Hazel muttered and she got into the passenger seat. “This is just my day.” She shook her head and sighed as she sat down gloomily in the seat.

They drove by a couple of restaurants and cruised along by the dark beach. “Did you want to talk about it?” He suddenly asked. His dark hair was in his eyes and he brushed them away, showing his dark green irises.

She looked at him from the corner of her eye, “I don’t know you, so I pass.” She said slowly and crossed her arms. She looked straight in front of her, wondering how this was going to end.

“Alright, make it awkward,” he replied and looked forwards too. They drove on in silence for a couple of minutes. The police station appeared on the left hand side but instead of turning to park, he continued driving on. Hazel noticed this and turned to face him.

“Where are we going?” She asked. She started to feel a little anxious and fidgeted in her seat.

“Oh now you want to talk,” he said, not taking his eyes off the road.

“Really, where are you taking me?” She asked, sounding worried already.

The young security guard cop sighed. “Like I said, I’m taking you in.” He said.

“Where’s ‘in’?” Hazel asked. “Didn’t we pass the station a while ago?” She pointed backwards.

He looked at her with a raised eyebrow. “You thought I was taking you to jail?” He asked with an amused tone. “Who do you think I work for? The police?”

Her confused face contorted into something of a horrified expression. “You don’t work for the police? Who are you then?” Hazel panicked and looked around the car for something to defend herself with.

He took a glance at what she was doing and smirked. “Calm down, I’m not a kidnapper or anything. This is my dad’s car, I’m taking an order from Eva right now.”

Hazel stopped mid-search and looked at him. “Eva? She put you up to this?” She asked, surprised.

He shrugged, “I guess. For some reason, she gave me specific instructions to bring you back from wherever you were if I spotted you.” They turned onto Hazel’s street and he pulled up to the little house. He switched the car’s engine off and turned towards her.

“But…why…” Hazel started but was interrupted by her mysterious companion.

“Don’t ask me, ask her. Now come on,” he said and he got out of the car. He went onto the other side and got Hazel’s door.

“I can walk myself in,” Hazel said, annoyed at the world. She slammed her own door and started marching up the steps, but the sound of footsteps behind her caught her attention. She turned around to see him following her. “What are you doing?”

“Well, I have to be here when I turn you in,” he said plainly. He rang the doorbell before she could respond. The door opened a couple of seconds later and Eva’s glowing face poked from behind.

“Hazel! There you are. Where have you been?” Eva asked, opening the door widely. Hazel just stared back at her and walked inside.

“Thank you so much Castiel,” Eva said, addressing the tall, black haired boy.

“No problem mam, I found her at the aquarium,” he said happily with a smile.

Eva smiled back, “Oh, should’ve seen that coming,” she laughed. “Well, thanks a lot, I appreciate your help.” Eva said.

“It was my pleasure,” Castiel responded. He looked over Eva’s shoulders and caught Hazel’s light eyes. “It was nice meeting you Hazel.” With that, he waved goodbye and walked down the stairs.

“Castiel…” Hazel muttered to herself. “What kind of a name is that?” She repeated his name and it left a strange feeling on her tongue when she said it.