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If The Dead Can Walk, Maybe Mermaids Do Exist

"Okay, so if the pizza is cut into six pieces, and I eat three, then what fraction is left?" Lori ran a finger over the paper before looking back at me. She had somehow convinced me to give fractions another go. I couldn't say it made me happy, but Carl and Sophia were really helping.

"If you colour in these three," Carl began, "then there's still three left. So that's three out of six." He gestured to the circle, covering three triangular sections with his fingers.

"Three out of six is the fraction?" I asked with a frown, the numbers still jumbled in my brain.

"Yeah, but you can simplify, see. Because you can divide both three and six by three, making it one half." Sophia continued, scratching the answer onto the sheet with her pencil.

I stared at the paper, expecting it to magically make sense, but my brain still blanked. "I miss pizza right now." I sighed, letting my pencil fall from hand.

Lori and Carol chuckled to each other, flipping through the workbooks for more equations. I guess they were just happy to see me trying.

"Maybe if we did it with something I can actually see, you know, like how many fish we have left, or counting the berries. Things like that." I proposed, glancing up at the woman next to me.

Lori wasn't listening, though. She was watching Jim and Dale on the hill, her eyebrows furrowed curiously. I looked over to see Jim digging aggressively, Dale speaking to him as he gripped his bucket hat in a tight fist. What was going on?

My concerns for Jim were quickly diminished by Amy and Andrea returning from fishing, a string of shining wet scales stretched between them.

"Wow, I don't think I've seen so many fish in my life." Sophia whispered to me in amazement.

"I know. Amy and Andrea are great at it. Maybe they'll teach us if we asked." I whispered back, excitement lighting up my features.

"Where did you two learn to do that?" Lori asked, a subtle smile on her lips as the sisters wandered over.

"Our dad." Amy answered casually, smiling as she sipped her drink.

I nudged Sophia as I got to my feet. "Can you teach us?" I wondered, making my way over to the fish and poking them with a disgusted shiver. They would taste nice but right now they felt slimy and cold.

Amy enthusiastically said, "Sure! I'll teach you all about nail knots and stuff- if that's okay?" She finished, checking with Lori quickly.

Lori replied, "You won't catch me arguing," causing Carl to look at me and Sophia with an excited expression.

"Hey, Dale. When's the last time you oiled those line reels?" Andrea's attention diverted as Dale returned.

The man continued to wring his hat in his hands. "I, uh, I don't wanna alarm anyone, but we may have a bit of a problem." Dale ignored Andrea as he addressed the camp. He pointed over to Jim on the hill, still digging profusely.

The group headed up to where he was, me hanging back with Sophia as Carol held us behind her protectively. To be honest, the whole situation seemed a little off. What was he even digging for?

Shane and Dale stood up front, asking him outright what he was doing. He insisted it was nothing but I could almost feel the exhaustion coming off him in waves. How must've been up here a while if he could look so tired and worn out.

"Why don't you go get yourself some shade, some food, maybe?" Shane persisted, his tone remaining steady. "Why don't you go ahead and just give me that shovel?"