Zane⁓Chan: The Handmaiden and The Pirate Mercenary

EIGHTEEN: It'll Be Fun

Zane laughed and helped me up, I couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed but I still followed him down the pathway...this felt weird doing this without Travis.

Running down the pathway to the beach, we seen everyone and I smiled when Aphmau jumped up and rushed towards me with a smile on her face, her hair braided with flowers in it.

Over the last couple days Aphmau and I have gotten really close, she even has been pretending to work in the palace so we could hangout without my parents suspecting anything.

"You look beautiful Nana-Chan!" She chirped, grabbing my hand as we looked around.

"Thank you, so do you" She smiled happily at me as we stopped and I seen that Garroth and Aaron were already in the water, Aphmau went running in after them.

I sat down on the shore...I know that people have been teaching me how to swim but I just seem to fail with catching onto it and it's not exactly the greatest thing in the world.

"Come on Nana, it'll be fun" Zane said standing in the water, staring at me but I just looked at the water and then back to him again...the idea of almost drowning isn't at all appealing.

"I'll drown" I mumbled.

"I'm not going to stay nearby and watch you drown Nana, come on. You need to get the hang out swimming one day" He said and I looked at him confused.

One day?

I pushed the thought of my head and started undoining my boots, pulling them off, I set them near everyone else's shoes and the jackets of the guys and stood up.

I started walking into the water and stopped when it was at my waist and stared at Zane again who seemed to lose his impatience because he walked over to me and picked me up.

"Zane!" I squealed out as he walked further into the water until he knew I wouldn't be able to stand, then he let me go and I grabbed a hold of his hand while kicking my legs.

"Come on Nana, you remember how we showed you to swim right? Then just do that" He said and I nodded my head, taking a deep breath.

-3 Hours Later-

I learned how to swim!

I'm not a very fast swimmer but I know how to swim now and that's the important thing because for the first time ever, I can go out into the ocean past my shoulders.

It feels amazing.

"Told ya I wouldn't let you drown" Zane commented and I looked over at him, I would've normally shot back with something snappy but I just smiled at him.

"Thank you" I said and he ndoded his head, swimming nearby while Aphmau and Aaron were off in their own world and Captain Garroth was passed out on the sand.

"Nana-Chan, use this" A potion was thrown on me a moment later and I blinked a few times, a little confused as to why Aphmau threw a potion on me.

She pointed towards the water and I realized she meant to go underwater....wait will the potion be able to make me see underwater without the salt burning my eyes?

I took a deep breath and dove underwater, I opened my eyes and looked around to see everything and smiled accidentally letting go of the breath I was holding...but nothing happened.

Amazing.

I could see all the fishes, the coral, and more around me and it's gorgeous...I can't believe that people think being underwater is this horrible thing and mermaids are horrible.

I started swimming around, looking at everything around me as I spun around water and surfaced a minute later, I looked over and seen Zane nearby watching me.

I smiled at him and looked around some more, I could see Aphmau a few feet away from me and she had a had huge smile on her face as I let out a happy laugh.

I never thought I'd be able to experience this.

We swam around for a few more hours before I pulled myself out from the dock and looked around at everything, I started walking around...looking around at everything.

That's when Ii noticed that there was something being set up at the taverns that caught my attention, I looked over at Zane and he smiled at me, stepping up next to me.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Dancing night, it happens around this time all the time. Pirates and merchants enjoy their time for the night before setting sail at the end of the week for years long journey's or even just months long" I looked at him.

"Does that include you?" I asked.

"It does, I'll be leaving with Garroth at the end of the week. We're set to be gone for the next four months afterwards" I nodded my head but felt a little disappointed by that.

"Dancing night sounds like fun" I admitted, pushing the disappointment out of my mind that Zane would be gone for the next 4 months and I wouldn't be able to see him.

"You should join us" He said.

"Really?" I asked.

"It's actually fun. There's all kinds of food, drinks, and you can hear stories from people from all over the world and it moves out onto the docks as well too" He explained.

Wait a minute...I've heard the music playing before.

"Wait, I used to sit at my window at night and listen to the music. My parents always hated it but I thought it was amazing and always wanted to know what was going on. How long does it last?" I asked.

"A couple days" I smiled.

"When's the most popular night?" I asked.

"The last night is the most popular, because it's the last day before everyone leaves. We usually go the first night and the last night before setting sail before sunrise" Zane answered.

"Can I join you guys on the last night as well?" I asked.

"You can. Though I must warn you, it gets very rowdy and you have to watch your step so you don't end up hurt or being thrown in the water by someone" I nodded my head.

"On the brightside...I know how to swim now" I said, he chuckled and agreed with me, I looked back over and then started walking back towards the beach to be with everyone else.

But my mind drifted back to the fact that Zane would be leaving at the end of the week for 4 long months that could turn into longer if something happens.

I don't want him to go.

I sat down on the beach with everyone, listening to some stories from their previous travelling experiences while my mind kept going back to Zane leaving in 4 months.

Would it be wrong for me to ask him to stay?

And in that moment I realized...I had fallen for Zane and I never thought that would happen but here I am completely in love with Zane and he might not even feel the same way.

Then the panic set in at the idea of my parents finding out about my feelings for Zane who is a pirate mercenary...my parents really hate those kinds of pirates too.

Oh irene...they'd freak out.

They'd freak out and lock me away until they could get me off the island and ship me off far away where I could never return because they would've already arranged a marriage for me too.

I just need to find a way to keep my parents in the dark about this while trying to control my feelings for Zane because I don't want to ruin our friendship.