Her Other Half (Fin Series #1)

Chapter 11-Don't Stick Your Tail Where It Doesn't Belong.

Image of Brietta's Teal Mermaid Tail above :3

So this chapter is newly edited :P

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I wanted to avoid school for the rest of the week, but Phoenix wouldn't let me do that.  He claimed that I had to "grab the bull by the horns".  Whatever that meant.  I just translated it into "hold onto that turtle shell".  He didn't seem to understand my phrase, either.  Oh, well.

So I started my third day of school--it would have been my fourth if I hadn't flipped yesterday--and Phoenix came to pick me up so that I didn't have to walk that following morning.  Although maybe that wasn't the best idea, considering so many eyes were on us as soon as we both got out of his truck.  I gulped.  All their stares made my gills itch.

"Taylor!"  I looked over my shoulder to see Brietta racing up to us, Phoenix still hovering over me like a Manta Ray.

"Good morning, Brietta."  I smiled at my Human best friend as she returned the gesture.

"So what happened between you two?" Brietta glanced between Phoenix and I curiously, and I turned to look at him.

"Can I tell her?" I asked, and Phoenix seemed rather uncomfortable with the question.  "She already knows about me," I whispered lowly, and Phoenix sighed before nodding his head and waving his hand in a 'go-ahead' gesture.  I grinned and quickly turned to whisper in Brietta's ear.  Her blue eyes slowly widened before she squealed in both surprise and delight.

"Seriously!?" she screamed, and both Phoenix and I winced at her shrill tone.  It was almost like two Conch Shells being rubbed together.

"But you can't tell anyone," Phoenix lowered his voice threateningly, and Brietta narrowed her eyes.

"Or what?  You'll slap me with a fish?" she countered, and I burst out laughing at Phoenix's surprised face along with Brietta's phrase.  I guess I was rubbing off on her already.

"Come on," I chuckled while tugging on Brietta's arm and leading her inside the school building, Phoenix reluctantly following after us.

For the rest of the day, it was relatively quiet, which is just another way of saying that everyone basically left me alone.  Well, except for one person.  It was Lunchtime when she decided to pick a swim fest with me even though Brietta and I hadn't spoken to her since the first day she tried to get me to sit with her and Luke.

"Hey, Taylor," Brianna sneered my name as she approached our table.  Phoenix tightened his hold on the back of my chair, and I bumped my knee against his reassuringly.  Brietta avoided her sister's gaze and just continued eating her food.  "So I heard you two went on a date," Brianna stated more than asked.

Phoenix huffed.  "What's it to you, Queen Bitch?"

Brianna cut her bright blue eyes to him.  "Watch it, Daniels, or mummy just might lose her job," Brianna threatened, and Phoenix clenched his jaw.  I narrowed my eyes at her words, having heard them before when I had gotten my feet wet in the bathroom earlier this week.  Her two friends even flanked her left and right side.  Margaret and Veronica, I believe?  "So?  It's true then?"

I frowned.  "What's true?  That we went on a date?"

Brianna scoffed a laugh.  "No, that you bailed on the date just like your mom bailed on your dad."

I shot to my feet like a Sea Serpent at her words.  Where had she heard that from?  "And who exactly told you that?" I ground out through clenched teeth.  I swear this girl was getting on my last scale.