Whispers Beneath The Waves (Boy x Boy) [Shortlisted for The Wattys 2018!]

Chapter 13 - Aquarium

Hi everyone!

I am SO excited to say that Whispers Beneath The Waves has progressed on to The Wattys Shortlist for 2018! It means SO much that my little story of a boy and a merman has been recognised and I am keeping everything crossed for Lennon and Kye... Wish them luck! :)

Hope you enjoy the newest installment and as ever, thank you for reading and supporting my stories <3

Becky xxx

Chapter 13

Aquarium

As I made my way back home, Keiko's words were spinning on a loop in my head. I couldn't understand what the hell had just happened. It was like some kind of crazy fever dream or something. She had been so... spiteful. And Keiko wasn't spiteful. She didn't have a nasty bone in her whole, entire body.

It was that girl, Maryssa. It had to be. She was a bad influence. Maybe she'd even said something to Keiko, twisted her mind in some way. Because the things she had been saying to me a few minutes ago didn't even sound like her. And sleeping all night on the beach without even telling her parents? That was NOT something my best friend would ever do of her own accord.

Where the hell had Maryssa come from? What was her story? Something about her sudden, all-consuming appearance alongside Keiko's attitude-flip just wasn't adding up in my brain.

Then again, maybe this was partly my fault. I'd been shutting her out and avoiding her since Kye had turned up. She was probably just trying to give me a taste of my own medicine. And I probably deserved it. One second we'd been hunting in Mum's attic together for evidence, the next I'd gone completely AWOL with nothing but lame excuses for an explanation. But how could I explain what was unexplainable? It was an impossible situation and I was clueless about how to handle it.

The first thing I saw when I got back was Kye, standing and waiting for me like a dog at the door. He was wearing the colourful shell-print shirt we'd bought from the mall along with navy shorts and bright white trainers. They really suited him. He was like a different person to the wild, naked boy who'd washed ashore a few days ago.

"Hey, you look great," I greeted with a smile. "That shirt is perfect."

He pulled proudly at the collar. "Yeah? Reckon I can pass for human now?"

"Well, you're definitely fooling me."

"In that case, it must be time for this human breakfast you've promised." He reached out to take my bag of supplies. "Can I help? Did you get everything OK?"

I gently pushed his hand away and carried the bag out to the kitchen, getting straight to work. I was starving by now. Kye followed, sitting at the table to watch me.

"Yeah, I got everything," I finally replied, mid egg crack. "But I bumped into Keiko on the way and she's acting really, really weird."

"Weird, how?" Kye asked. "Isn't she supposed to be home studying all hours of the day or something?"