Embracing Jasmine

The Marine Odyssey

Monday May 29th

Initially, I felt like this aquarium was a sensory nightmare. With a crowd this huge and intimidating, I normally would've turned around and left as soon as possible, but the sensory wonderland I was struck with was much greater. The clear tanks were filled with a variety of sea creatures from schools of tiny fish that darted in and out of coral reefs to large sea otters who playfully chased one another. Every creature that I encountered were housed in pools that shimmered an enchanting shade of deep, royal blue. It took everything in me to not start freaking out from excitement since this was a public space that had a bunch of people. I made my way over to the jellyfish, captivated by the way they floated gracefully in the water.

"Jellyfish are over 600 million years old, which makes them older than trees. Isn't that something?"

The comment made from the a girl beside me took me out of my trance. After jumping slightly because she scared the hell out of me, I recognized my opportunity to info dump about one of my favorite sea creatures. I turned my body to face the girl.

"They're also about 95% water and don't have a brain, heart, or lungs."

"Are they even living creatures then?"

"They are, they're part of the animalia kingdom and belong to the Eukaryote domain."

She had an expression on her face that made it hard to tell if she was weirded out or interested.

"I don't know what any of that means."

She fixed her gaze back on the Jellyfish, giving me a chance to take in her appearance. She had hazel eyes, shaggy, shoulder-length hair that was a reddish-brown color, and a fashion sense that was the complete opposite of mine. She had on a black jacket with black, platform shoes that were nicely complimented by her spider web themed tights, which she layered with black leg warmers and a plaid-patterned black and red skirt. I feel like this combination of clothes normally wouldn't go together, but she somehow made it work.

For about next 30 minutes, the girl and I continued to explore the aquarium, sharing our knowledge with each other on each sea creature we encountered. Seahorses, Tiger Sharks, Starfish, Axolotls... She knew something about them all. I already thought she was really pretty when I first laid eyes on her, but the fact that I could bond with her over something I love because she loves it just as much as I do makes her even prettier. Once we were done looking around, we made our way to the exit but were stopped by a salesperson that stood behind a booth full of shirts, hats, necklaces, and other items that contained different sea creatures on them.

"Hello, ladies! Would you guys like to buy anything?"

My eyes immediately made contact with a beautiful shark opal necklace. I pulled out a few dollars that my mom gave me before I left from my wallet and happily brought the necklace. I immediately put it on and the girl and I left the aquarium and stood outside of it.

"I had a lot of fun today. I'm Aria by the way."

"I did too! I'm Jasmine."

"It would be cool to hang out with you again so we can get to know each other better if you're up for it. I mean, you know a lot about sea creatures, which automatically makes you cool in my book." She flashed me a quick smile and handed me a slip of paper with her phone number on it.

I blushed a little as I took the slip of paper from her hand and put it inside my purse. "I'll text you when I get home. I look forward to seeing you again."

She flashed one more smile at me before we parted ways.