Ariel (Harry Styles)

Chapter 2

"Did you have a nice day?" My father tried to make conversation as we sat down to eat dinner. I nodded my head and silently ate my pork chops, not looking at him. He let a few seconds of silence pass before he calmly said my name. "Ariel." I reluctantly looked up at him, knowing what he was going to say. "You know what tomorrow is, don't you?" He asked quietly. I nodded my head slowly. How could I forget? Tomorrow would mark 11 years since my mom died.

"Your sisters are coming over around noon. We'll go to the cemetary after they get here." He said gently. He let the one-sided conversation drop, and we ate the rest of dinner in silence.

After being excused to my room, I sat on my bed with Flounder, stroking his golden hair. Looking out the window, I stared at the waves crashing against the shore, wondering how the boy that I saved was doing. Harry. Just thinking his name gave my stomach butterflies. Harry, with his plump lips, and toned stomach... Stop Ariel. You're being crazy! How could I start liking a boy so fast? He hasn't even spoken to me yet; doesn't even know of my existence! Get a grip Ariel! You're a mute, no boy is ever going to like you. And anyway you're too shy to let anyone get to know you.

I tried to think of anything but Harry by picking up a book I've read numerous times, To Kill A Mockingbird. One of my favorites. But I found myself peeking out the window more than once in hopes of finding him taking a midnight stroll on the beach.

~~~~~~~~~

The next day dragged on painfully slow. I hadn't seen my sisters in a while, so seeing them was great. If only it was under different circumstances. We all hugged and cried together at the cemetary, my sisters a little more noisy than me. I placed a pink rose on the top of my mom's grave, both of our favorite's. My heart broke a little when we left.

Dinner was slightly more cheerful. My sisters were full of stories about their lives in college and with their families. Arenna, Adrella and Anastasia are all going to out of state colleges. Arenna lives in New York, Adrella in Florida and Anastasia in North Carolina. Amy has a family already, she's married with two children; four year old Tyler and two year old Massie. They live in Texas. Alanna is pregnant for the first time. She married in Georgia a few months ago. And Arista lives with her boyfriend in Arizona. I don't understand how all of them could leave my father and I in California. It's like they've forgotten us, and our mother too.

I'm not going to lie, I resent them a little bit. I feel like they're betraying our mom by forgetting about her so easily and moving on with their lives.

"Ariel? When are you going to go to college?" Arista questioned, snapping me out of my thoughts. I shrugged, pushing my pasta around the plate with my fork. "A better question is, when is she going to talk?" Alanna muttered. I looked up at her, stung. No one came to my defense, not even my father. "Ariel, you haven't said a word since you were seven. You're eighteen now. I think it's time to move on from mom's death. You aren't the person she'd want you to be." Amy said gently. I bristled at her words, slamming my palm down on the table. I wanted to scream at her that she couldn't tell me what to do. As hard as she tried, she's not my mother.

When mom died, Amy was the oldest at age eighteen, and I was seven. She tried to be a mom to me but I soon let her know I'd only ever have one mom.

"Ariel, we've set up for you to go to a special place. It's where kids... with problems like yours... can go to learn how to interact with other people. You get to live there! You'll love it." Adrella said from beside me, gently placing her hand on my arm. My stomach dropped, and my mouth opened. No. This can't be true.

I looked at my father desperately, as if to say, is this true? He looked back guiltily. That was my answer. I slapped my sisters hand off of my arm and stood up abruptly. "Ariel, let us talk to you about this. Nothing's been decided yet! If you want to go to college that's an option too!" My father said, standing up. "We only want what is best for you!" He promised. They think that's what's best for me?! They know how shy I am. They think they can just drop me off at a house for crazy kids and call it a day? I need to stay here, living with my father and Flounder, right by the beach. By my mother.

Tears ran down my face as I ran out of our dining room and through the screen door that led to our back porch. I could hear the waves crashing routinely, and I already started feeling better. I stripped off my tank shirt and shorts, revealing my bathing suit underneath. I always wear a swimsuit underneath my clothes. I always have since I was little.

Although it was dark, I could see the ocean and feel the cool sand beneath my bare feet. "Ariel come back here, please! Let me talk to you! It's not safe for you to swim right now!" My father called from the back porch. I ignored him and kept running until I hit the water. I dove into a wave, trying to get out far, away from the shore and my family.

I was startled when I heard splashing coming from behind me, afraid that my father or sisters were following me. But when I spun around in the water it was only Flounder who followed me, my loyal Golden. He swam strongly against the waves until he reached me, obviously pleased with himself.

The waves were strong tonight, and I could feel an even stronger rip current pulling me out. My father was right, I shouldn't be swimming right now. I began paddling parallel to the beach, farther and farther from my house, until my arms felt like sandbags were weighing them down. I dove in and out of huge waves, sputtering when salt water found its way into my open mouth.

Flounder followed me the whole time, struggling just as much as I was. I couldn't even get out to the shore that's how strong the waves were. I grabbed a fistful of Flounder's silky hair underneath the water, pulling myself closer to him. I was getting weaker and weaker, losing the struggle against the powerful waves.

Is this the end? Am I going to die in this ocean? Just like my mother did 11 years ago? Am I never going to see my father or sisters again? As if the world was against me, I could see an enormous wave forming in the distance. I swam in a little circle to find out I could barely see the shoreline from here, nobody was going to save me. The wave came closer and closer and I tried to scream but then it was there, and I was suffocating. I could feel Flounder thrashing next to me, trying to get back to the surface, but I was tumbling down. The last thing I remember was feeling a sharp pain in my right arm before I blacked out.