Once upon a high school

Ariel

I heard the whistle blow and immediately the adrenaline shot to my heart. Gracefully but strong, I dived into the clear, blue water. My arms began to shoot through the pool, with my legs acting like a motor behind me. It was like music, the water speeding past my ears, and every other beat I had to tilt and breath. The splashes in the water didn't bother me, it felt like I was swimming in the ocean with the sprays of water hitting my face.

Once I reached the end of the pool I quickly flipped off of the wall and repeated to the other side. When I finished, I just knew that I reached my practice record goal. A smile grew on my face as I pulled my self out of the water. I jogged up to my coach. He was looking down at his stop watch and started laughing. He turned the clock over so I could see.

"Oh my god! A whole two seconds faster then my score!" I giggled and gave him a high five.

"Great job, mermaid! You can go get ready to head home." Coach Rogers called me the mermaid. I liked the name, it made me feel proud! I was the fastest on the team, so that's probably why he gave me the nick-name.

I grabbed a towel and pranced over to the locker rooms. When I got there I also saw Pocho. Me and her weren't best friends, but we talked. It's nice to have her around. She's part of the popular crowd at school, so we don't talk much. At least she wasn't a brat.

"Hey Pocho! I reached my practice goal!"

"Great! One second." She looked distracted with her phone. Her face was concerned. I think she was texting someone.

"Hey, you okay?"

"What? Oh yeah. It's just that Cindy is really upset."

"About John?"

"Yeah." I sighed and started to change into my sweats. Why was she so upset about John? He was a douche anyway. Cindy was just too innocent.

I finished getting ready then left with my bag. When I walked out the door the freezing air bit at my face and started freezing my soaked hair. I ran up to my Dads car and knocked in the window. He jumped in his seat and looked up. While sighing with relief, he unlocked the car doors. I laughed then sat down on the warm leather seats. I could feel the hot breeze coming from the fans in the car, and starting rubbing my hands together to get them warm.

"So dad, I was wondering, you know how you've been asking what I wanted to do for my 16th birthday? Well I think I know now."

He raised an eyebrow. My dad was very strict. I was crossing my fingers that he would agree to my idea.

"Well, I was wondering. What if I had a party?! You know, I could bring my friends and there would be music. But no alcohol! I mean unless you're okay with alcohol-"

"I would never allow alcohol. But Ariel, don't you just want a nice dinner? I think that would be better than a ton of rowdy kids at our home."

"But dad! Everyone has parties now! And it would be a lot more fun for me. I'm starting to get sick of the same restaurant every year."

"Ariel you are not having a party. Am I clear?"

"Dad! That's not fair! It's my own birthday, I should get to do what I want to-"

"ARIEL!" Enough!" I shut my mouth. Why did he have to be like this? Why couldn't I have my mother here? If she was here maybe he wouldn't be so freaking grumpy all the damn time.

We drove in utter silence all the way to my home.

"Ariel, I just-" before he could say anything else I got out of the car and slammed the door shut. When I got inside I ran up my stairs as I heard two of my sisters chatting their catty hearts away.

Why did my family suck so much?

I slumped into my bed and pulled out my phone from my bag. I smiled when I saw that Phillip had texted me wondering if I wanted to do something with him tomorrow.

He was seriously the man of my dreams.