If Only You Knew

CHAPTER NINE

The aquarium hasn't changed much at all. A few developments here and there but the main structure of the place remained the same. The tanks had been replaced with bigger and modern ones, while the décor also changed to a more modern beachy look. The color scheme which used to be of only blue shades were now replaced with blues, grays and whites. And they had also added blacks here and there for some harsh contrasts.

I glanced around as I walked a few steps behind Kegan. It felt nostalgic and a bit uncomfortable as memories flooded my mind. Even though it didn't look the same as it used to, I still remembered all the steps I took in here with my father very clearly. And that made my heart throb.

As if he noticed my demeanor, Kegan turned around and walked to me who had stopped walking. Though there wasn't a change in his expression, I saw worry in his green eyes.

"Do you not enjoy this place? You seem a bit uncomfortable." He spoke.

"No, it's nothing. I like this place. It's just have been a while since I last came here. Sorry if I let you feel like I'm not enjoying." And that was the truth. I really did enjoy getting the chance to finally spend some time with him.

"Okay. I saw an announcement that says there's a dolphin show today. Do you want to go there later?" The worry in his eyes faded as he told me about the show.

"Dolphin show? Yeah of course."

The dolphin show was something I always went to watch whenever I came here. It was mine and my father's favorite. We mostly even came to the aquarium just to watch the show. We even knew the days that had the show by heart.

"Okay. We still have some time before it starts, so let's look around first?" Kegan pointed at the entry for the area with the big fishes like sharks. I nodded and followed him.

The big fish area was huge. The huge tank covered the walls and the ceiling while people watched above their heads as they pointed at them. The fishes were everywhere. I looked around in awe before glancing at Kegan, who was moving his eyes from one place to the other like a little kid who came to the aquarium for the first time. It was quite amusing to see that expression on a face which was mostly unbothered by anything. It was like his real personality was peeking through his façade involuntarily.

I raised my head above to see a cute stingray as Kegan pointed at it. There were also sharks and other big fished swimming around in the tank. I smiled and felt my eyes go wet as memories of the past crept through me.

We continued to explore and look around other areas until they announced that the dolphin show was about to begin. We walked to the huge showroom, while we talked about dolphins. It turned out that Kegan loved dolphins the most among all sea creatures. And that he once begged his parents to get him a dolphin, after he went to the aquarium when he was little. Who knew he was such an adorable kid when he was young.

When we finally got inside, we took a seat on one of the middle rows. The place looked more or less the same as before. Rows and rows of seats filled once side of the room which surrounded a huge pool that had a lot of different toys set up for the dolphins. I particularly remembered the part where the dolphins jumped through the hula hoops, which was my father's favorite part of the show. He used to stare at that part in awe every single time. With that though, all the uncomfortable feelings I had disappeared. A sad smile formed on my lips as I continued to look around.

"Faye, it's going to start." I turned to look at Kegan who looked excited even though he was trying to hide it.

"Well, someone's excited. I didn't know you liked this kind of stuff." I teased him as my smile widened.

"Excited? Who? Me? No way! I'm just-"

"Yeah, yeah. No need to lie about it. It's not a big deal." I giggled at him. And he just continued to look at the pool. For a brief moment, it seemed like he pouted his lips a bit.