Ocean Magic (PJO x KC x HOO)

1. Inhabitation Saves Me From Devastation

It's hard to choose where to start my story. I could start it when I was born -- if that's what you want to call it. Or I could start it when I first knew something was different about me when my emotions would cause unnatural things to happen to the world around me. I could definitely start it at the end since I'm technically writing about what happened in the past, but that wouldn't make sense at all. I think I should explain a little about myself before jumping into the action.

You see, ever since I was a little girl, random things have been happening to me. Well, sometimes it didn't just happen to me -- it also happened to kids I disliked, to boys I was crushing on, to people I wanted so desperately to be friends with. Everything I touched would come to life for a few seconds, like the time I made my love letter to a random kid in elementary school into a bird and it actually flew away. Dad knew about everything, though. He could sense when my magic would kick in, so he moved us all over North America, trying to bring peace to my life, but nothing worked. He knew back then, and honestly, so did I. 

Enough of that, though. You don't really need to know about the things that happened before my near-death experience while surfing. Oops, I'm jumping too far ahead already.

Let's back it up a little. The last time Dad and I moved together, he moved us to Jupiter, Florida. Yes, you read that right. It's funny that my dad chose to move us to Jupiter, Florida, when I was fourteen, especially since Jupiter was the place that I lived in the longest. It held special memories between my dad and me as well as where things really started for me on this . . . journey, quest, whatever you want to call it. 

It's also the place I nearly died on December 31st, and that is where I'm starting my story.

Buckle up, kids. This is one wild ride.

〰✦〰

Sweet moonlight broke through my blinds, sending shards of silver all over my dark room. I was struggling to put on my wetsuit since it was still wet from my other surf session yesterday. My right leg was already in the suit, and I caught my left foot on the edge of the black suit, nearly pitching forward. Throwing a hand out, I stopped myself from falling by grabbing ahold of my small dresser. Glaring at my wetsuit, I jammed my foot into the leg, and I was finally in it. Pulling it up over my swimsuit, I reached behind me and tried to find the zipper. 

A soft rapping noise on my bedroom door alerted me that someone was there. I spun around, glancing around my tiny room, making sure I didn't have laundry strewn everywhere. I must have cleaned up recently because my dirty clothes were piled in the white basket at the end of my bed and my shoes were stacked neatly in front of my mirror that was hanging from the purple wall, opposite of my bed. The only thing wrong with this picture was that I don't remember cleaning up my room. Dad must have been in here recently.

"Ariel?" Dad's voice said from the other side of my door. He sounded a little nervous like he was afraid of talking to me. Sure, I got upset with him yesterday when he was mad at me for being out after curfew, but it wasn't that bad. At least, I didn't think it was. "Are you decent?"

I looked down at my wetsuit falling off my shoulders because I hadn't zipped it up yet. I came home in this last night when he saw me, so I say, "Yeah, I'm decent." The door swung open slowly, revealing my father in all his early evening glory. I flipped the light on, and his dark hair glinted in the soft moonlight coming from my barely open blinds and the artificial light, and his brown eyes glittered. I swore I could see specks of gold swimming toward the surface. I wondered for a second where I got my dull brown eyes. "What do you need?"

"I wanted to talk about last night," he said, still holding onto the ancient door handle. The rusted metal was twisted into a pointed edge, perfect for accidentally hurting myself during the dark nights. Standing in the doorway to my room, he looked so awkward, so I took a step back, motioning toward the twin bed pushed into the corner of the room. He smiled at me, showing off the smile lines around his eyes and mouth. He gently sat down on my bed, and I plopped down next to him. For a while there, we sat in silence, not looking at each other. I stared down at the sand-covered floor, and I was glad I didn't buy the white carpet I saw at the store earlier in the week. "I'm sorry for yelling at you."