Ariana stared at ....Harold (she was going to have to get used to calling a alimasag a self-given name) for a quick moment. Then she burst out laughing.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Okay, no seriously." She said, laughing hysterically. She clutched her sides and continued to laugh, almost to the point of mania.
But Harold stared at her, dead-pan. "I'm serious, Ariana. You're a mermaid, and I can pr-"
"Stop it." Ariana said, still laughing, but a suprising stab of anger cut her laughter short. She began to look around her, bending down, peeking under the boardwalk. She stood back up.
"Okay, where are the hidden cameras?"
Harold began to look worried. He raised one claw and scratched his forehead. "Hidden cameras? There's no hidd-"
"The fuck there's no hidden cameras!" Ariana's tone suddenly took a dramatic turn. Rage was boiling up inside her, about to spill over like hot syrup on a plate. "Look, I sort of believed you when you started talking to me. I really thought you were a talking crab. But now you're telling me I'm a mermaid? HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO BELIEVE THAT?!" Ariana threw her hands up in exasperation. Tears stung the corner of her eyes. She knew, somehow, inwardly, that Harold was telling the truth. But she just couldn't accept it. She just couldn't. The world around her began to spin. She felt dizzy. She felt like she was going to throw up. She clutched her stomach and heaved. A blur of lights swirled around her. Ariana clutched the railing on the side of the boardwalk.
"Are you okay? Ariana?" Harold's voice was filled with worry.
"Please....please don't talk to me." Ariana choked out. The wood underneath her palms scratched the surface of her skin because of how hard she was gripping it. The corner of the wood dug into the creases of the pad of the base of her thumb. But somehow, the pain was nothing.
---------------------------------
In class, all Ariana could do was daydream. Thoughts were swirling in her mind like sugar maniacally stirred into coffee. She had stuffed her purse, with Harold in it, under the boardwalk to pick up when she came tahanan from school. She couldn't stand being near him at all. She had run the rest of the way until she got to her high school building. But Harold's words were ringing sharply in her ear. She almost felt like they were going to pierce right out of her skull and land on the mesa in front of her. A mermaid? How could she possibly believe him? It was still a shock to her that she was taking talking to a alimasag so well. Well, as well as anyone who found out they could talk to a alimasag should. She was still freaking out about it. But madami importantly, she wondered why she wasn't immediately Pagsulat off Harold telling her she was a mermaid. She thought back to the discussions about how she was found on the tabing-dagat sa pamamagitan ng her grandfather. He had told her the story many times as a child, but as she grew older, he told her the story less and less, until he ceased to tell it at all. But she did remember the first time he told her.
"You were just sitting there on the sand, wrapped in a little blanket of seaweed." Her grandfather had said.
Her seven taon old self had looked up at him with wide, bright eyes. "Seaweed?"
"Yes, it was very peculiar." He coughed into his fist and smiled at her and reached down to ruffle her hair a little.
"Grandpa!" she said, and blew a stray bang out of her eyes. Grandfather gave her a peculiar look when he did that, but it was a flicker of a segundo then his eyes turned back to warm and welcoming, little wrinkles forming around the corner of his eyelids.
"You had the brightest blue eyes I had ever seen on a baby. Flaming red hair. You don't see anyone with your hair color anywhere!"
He let out an uproarious laugh, belly jiggling with each hearty chuckle. She covered her mouth and giggled at that.
"But my hair's not flaming red now!" Ariana pointed out, toying with the seashell kuwintas that was dangling around her neck.
"That's what was strange." Grandpa said. He adjusted his glasses and leaned back in the plush green rocking chair. She could almost hear his old Buto creak. His feet were propped up on the mesa in front of him, and old, loose watch dangling from his wrist. He had thick fingers and cracked nails, his hands rough and warn from years of labor. Whispy white hairs stuck up from his head, he had very little hair left. He stroked his chin.
"Over the years, your hair began to fade, until it turned to the color it is now." He paused, and gave a quick look at her brick red hair. Then he looked down and smiled at her. "Of course, whenever we bring you to the tabing-dagat and you go in the water, your hair brightens back to the color it was the araw I found you as soon as the seawater touches it!" he sinabi firmly, pointing a thick finger in the air, the other hand firmly gripping the arm rest of the chair.
Ariana tugged at a strand of hair and held it in front of her eyes. "But Grandpa, how is that even possible?" But his face was quickly wiped out from her vision, fanned away like a plume of smoke.
"Ariana!" ARIANA!"
Suddenly, Ariana was back in the classroom, memory interrupted. Her teacher was glaring at her, hands on her hips, mouth twisted into a tight scowl. The rest of the class was turned around and staring right at her. Chase was giving her a worried look.
"I've asked the same tanong three times, and all you did was sit there and play with your hair!" Her teacher's face was beginning to turn red.
"Sorry, I guess my mind was in other places." Ariana shrugged her shoulders and tried to look guilty.
"I guess it was!" Her teacher turned back around and continued to lecture the class. Chase continued to give her that look, but she tore her eyes away from him and looked down at her desk, visions of mga sirena and seashells dancing in her head.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Okay, no seriously." She said, laughing hysterically. She clutched her sides and continued to laugh, almost to the point of mania.
But Harold stared at her, dead-pan. "I'm serious, Ariana. You're a mermaid, and I can pr-"
"Stop it." Ariana said, still laughing, but a suprising stab of anger cut her laughter short. She began to look around her, bending down, peeking under the boardwalk. She stood back up.
"Okay, where are the hidden cameras?"
Harold began to look worried. He raised one claw and scratched his forehead. "Hidden cameras? There's no hidd-"
"The fuck there's no hidden cameras!" Ariana's tone suddenly took a dramatic turn. Rage was boiling up inside her, about to spill over like hot syrup on a plate. "Look, I sort of believed you when you started talking to me. I really thought you were a talking crab. But now you're telling me I'm a mermaid? HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO BELIEVE THAT?!" Ariana threw her hands up in exasperation. Tears stung the corner of her eyes. She knew, somehow, inwardly, that Harold was telling the truth. But she just couldn't accept it. She just couldn't. The world around her began to spin. She felt dizzy. She felt like she was going to throw up. She clutched her stomach and heaved. A blur of lights swirled around her. Ariana clutched the railing on the side of the boardwalk.
"Are you okay? Ariana?" Harold's voice was filled with worry.
"Please....please don't talk to me." Ariana choked out. The wood underneath her palms scratched the surface of her skin because of how hard she was gripping it. The corner of the wood dug into the creases of the pad of the base of her thumb. But somehow, the pain was nothing.
---------------------------------
In class, all Ariana could do was daydream. Thoughts were swirling in her mind like sugar maniacally stirred into coffee. She had stuffed her purse, with Harold in it, under the boardwalk to pick up when she came tahanan from school. She couldn't stand being near him at all. She had run the rest of the way until she got to her high school building. But Harold's words were ringing sharply in her ear. She almost felt like they were going to pierce right out of her skull and land on the mesa in front of her. A mermaid? How could she possibly believe him? It was still a shock to her that she was taking talking to a alimasag so well. Well, as well as anyone who found out they could talk to a alimasag should. She was still freaking out about it. But madami importantly, she wondered why she wasn't immediately Pagsulat off Harold telling her she was a mermaid. She thought back to the discussions about how she was found on the tabing-dagat sa pamamagitan ng her grandfather. He had told her the story many times as a child, but as she grew older, he told her the story less and less, until he ceased to tell it at all. But she did remember the first time he told her.
"You were just sitting there on the sand, wrapped in a little blanket of seaweed." Her grandfather had said.
Her seven taon old self had looked up at him with wide, bright eyes. "Seaweed?"
"Yes, it was very peculiar." He coughed into his fist and smiled at her and reached down to ruffle her hair a little.
"Grandpa!" she said, and blew a stray bang out of her eyes. Grandfather gave her a peculiar look when he did that, but it was a flicker of a segundo then his eyes turned back to warm and welcoming, little wrinkles forming around the corner of his eyelids.
"You had the brightest blue eyes I had ever seen on a baby. Flaming red hair. You don't see anyone with your hair color anywhere!"
He let out an uproarious laugh, belly jiggling with each hearty chuckle. She covered her mouth and giggled at that.
"But my hair's not flaming red now!" Ariana pointed out, toying with the seashell kuwintas that was dangling around her neck.
"That's what was strange." Grandpa said. He adjusted his glasses and leaned back in the plush green rocking chair. She could almost hear his old Buto creak. His feet were propped up on the mesa in front of him, and old, loose watch dangling from his wrist. He had thick fingers and cracked nails, his hands rough and warn from years of labor. Whispy white hairs stuck up from his head, he had very little hair left. He stroked his chin.
"Over the years, your hair began to fade, until it turned to the color it is now." He paused, and gave a quick look at her brick red hair. Then he looked down and smiled at her. "Of course, whenever we bring you to the tabing-dagat and you go in the water, your hair brightens back to the color it was the araw I found you as soon as the seawater touches it!" he sinabi firmly, pointing a thick finger in the air, the other hand firmly gripping the arm rest of the chair.
Ariana tugged at a strand of hair and held it in front of her eyes. "But Grandpa, how is that even possible?" But his face was quickly wiped out from her vision, fanned away like a plume of smoke.
"Ariana!" ARIANA!"
Suddenly, Ariana was back in the classroom, memory interrupted. Her teacher was glaring at her, hands on her hips, mouth twisted into a tight scowl. The rest of the class was turned around and staring right at her. Chase was giving her a worried look.
"I've asked the same tanong three times, and all you did was sit there and play with your hair!" Her teacher's face was beginning to turn red.
"Sorry, I guess my mind was in other places." Ariana shrugged her shoulders and tried to look guilty.
"I guess it was!" Her teacher turned back around and continued to lecture the class. Chase continued to give her that look, but she tore her eyes away from him and looked down at her desk, visions of mga sirena and seashells dancing in her head.