In Waves | ✔️

51 | in the dark

We stop at a red light in town, and the sound of Nate's fingers tapping on the wheel keep going. There's no music playing for him to drum along to. He hasn't told me where we're going. He's hardly said a word since we left the party.

A loud group of people in costumes stumble over the crosswalk while we idle. Nate almost clips a Joker when the light turns green. He doesn't react at all. He makes a turn in the direction of the pier, but I still can't figure out exactly where he's headed.

I run my fingers over the white wings in my lap, probing the broken bone of the left one. The feathers are dirty from the floor.

"I'm sorry about Matt earlier. He wasn't really himself tonight."

Nate looks at me carefully, two emeralds catching the streetlights. "Drunk words are sober thoughts. Ever heard that saying? Think it applies to drunk actions, too. You don't have to apologize for him having a problem with me."

"He doesn't have a problem with you."

"Yeah he does." Nate takes another turn, slowing down. "But that's his problem, not mine."

I think about that saying, about his actions... about him pushing my legs apart.

"All right, here we are." Nate pulls into a parking space in a big empty lot.

I've seen this building and the mural of all the sea creatures loads of times, especially on school field trips, but I never would have guessed he was taking me here.

"The aquarium? I'm pretty sure it's not open this late."

"That doesn't mean it's closed."

I go along with his vague mysteriousness, following him as he paces to the side of the building. To a clearly marked restricted area. He pats along a rusty chain link fence until he reaches a dip, peeling open a hole.

"Ladies first."

"What? I'm not going in there."

"Really thought we had some level of trust between us at this point, DeMarco."

"You know I trust you," I say, eyeing the fence. "But I'm not going in there. Not first, anyway."

"Fine, I'll go first. Stay close. And don't get cut, otherwise I'll have to take you to the hospital so my mom can give you a tetanus shot and it'll be a whole thing."

"Gosh, I'll try my best. Wouldn't want to inconvenience you."

He cracks the first smile I've seen since we left the party, ducking down to squeeze through the fence. I carefully follow, but he's holding the fence higher so I have more space. My hesitation only grows when we reach a steel door, 'Restricted Access' emblazoned in red. Nate strides right up and punches a code into the glowing keypad next to the handle. A loud click sounds and he opens it, peering into the dark hall.

"How do you—"

"C'mon. You go first this time, I'm right behind you."

I give him a dubious look and walk through the doorway. As soon as he steps in and shuts the door, complete, crushing blackness surrounds us. My heartbeats thumps between my eardrums, and closing my eyes makes no difference. It's all the same, all dark, all confining.

I gasp in a tight breath. "Nate, this is... this is like nightmare fuel. You're scarring me. Wait, did you bring me here as a sacrifice to the ocean gods or something? Just kill me now if that's the plan, I can't stand this."

The lightness of his laugh echoes, flowing into my veins. "How can I kill you when I can't even see you? That would be a flaw in my plan."

I swipe my hand forward to smack him, but it hits nothing, and my breathing quickens. Hands blindly feeling for anything tangible.

"Where are you? I hate this. Are we meant to be walking somewhere? Did you leave me? Nate!"

"I'm right here! Relax, relax."

I suddenly feel his hands on me, stopping my swinging arms. I heave out a shaky breath as he slides his palms over my skin, and I grasp at the solidness I'm looking for, feeling the material of his shirt and the roughness on his jaw. The comfort of him.

"Give me a second," he mutters, fidgeting around until a bright light from his phone illuminates a portion of the hallway.

"Why didn't you have your torch ready before we came in here?" I slap at his chest.

"I didn't think about it!" He stops my hands again. "You can let go now."

I ardently shake my head, clinging onto him tighter. "Not until you get me out of this death tunnel."

"It's a hallway. At an aquarium," he says, prying me off him. But not completely.

He takes my hand, giving it a squeeze as he leads me through the partial darkness. I feel my pulse steadying when a square light appears, guiding us to the end. He pushes open the door and we emerge into the main entrance of the aquarium. Tanks filled with little fish line the walls, casting a glowing blue tinge onto the carpeted floor. We round the vacant reception desk into the next room, his long fingers still clasped around mine. My stomach jumps at the crinkling of a newspaper and the burly security guard holding said newspaper.

"Nate." He nods as we walk through, eyes trained on us. "Nate's friend."

Nate casually greets him, dragging me along into the next room.

"Okay can you tell me what's going on already? That guy should have us in handcuffs."

"All right, all right." He chuckles. "I had a part-time job here last summer and made a few friends. Dave lets me come through the back whenever I want, and I only do at night because it's like, a million times better when no one's here. No noise, no distraction. Just a good place to think."

"It is?"

"Yeah. Look around."

Our soft steps and the dull hum of the lights are the only sounds around us. Swimming fish, dim lights. I can see the appeal. Compared to a usual aquarium visit, it's night and day. Literally. He guides me to the next room: the tunnel. This one has always been my favorite when I've come here.

The magnitude of it, to be safe on the ground, surrounded by ocean life. Hundreds of fish swimming with their shimmering, iridescent colors. Jellyfish pulsing and swaying. Coral blooming from the aquarium floor. And to be here alone; it's mesmerizing. We walk through slowly, hand in hand. The rippling light makes my dress look blue. When we reach the other side, I turn to him. The light has the same effect on our skin.

"Why are we here, Nate?"

His face falls slightly before he leads me to another room, and I get the feeling the fun part is over. It's confirmed when he brings me into the shark room. My least favorite. His hand leaves mine as we face the tank. It stands from floor to ceiling, wall to wall. And it's bare and murky, only home to a few sharks.

We stand in silence. A small shark swims by. A couple more minutes pass, and then Nate points to the water. In the distance, another one is approaching. A bigger one.

"This one, right here. Her name's Minnie. She's a great white," he says quietly, watching it glide closer. "The same breed that attacked me. About the same size, too. They identified it the day after it happened."

I step back as her details come into view. Sharp rows of jagged teeth and cold black eyes that send chills up my neck. The thought of her ability to strike so fast when she moves this smooth and carefully makes the chills worsen.

"Minnie." I push out a stiff laugh. "How suitable."

Nate faintly smiles, looking over my wooden expression. "So... in the diner, I might have downplayed how much the attack affected me."

He takes a seat on the bench facing the tank, patting the spot next to him. 

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