Eyes of the Sea

Chapter 6

I was speechless.  This was the most Coral has opened up to me, and I was grateful for that. Her only request was to protect me from her. I inhaled sharply, then doubled over in pain that came from within.

Tears streamed down my face like pouring rain. I couldn’t control myself. I was holding myself in for so long and now everything just came out. A small part of me was embarrassed that I was crying in front of Coral, but the rest of me didn’t seem to care.

Coral called out my name and I felt an arm around my shoulders. I straightened up to see Coral standing beside me with concern in her eyes. “Come on,” she said softly, “Let’s go.”

Together, we walked down streets until we arrived at a small two storey house, with a tiny garden in front of it. The bricks were a mixture of reds, browns and oranges. Despite its run down look, I could tell it was a cozy home. Coral unlocked the front door and let me in her house.

 “Do you live here by yourself?” I asked, because no one else seemed to be home. Coral nodded. I thought of something. “How old are you, Coral?”

Coral grinned. “I was waiting for you to ask that. I’m 35.” My jaw dropped open. She looked my age, and I was sixteen. “Daughters of the sea can alter how they look. I can make myself look older or younger, or even invisible to mortals. It’s just a glamour.”

I thought back to when I first saw Coral at school. No one else seemed to see her. Now, it made a whole lot more sense. “But how come I saw you when no one else saw you? But I can’t see your true form?”

“Oh, but you can. Daughters of the sea can see each other’s real form. Look at me, really look at me.” Coral said, her eyes shining. I met her gaze and stared intently.

Nothing happened and I was about to give up, when her form started to shimmer. The next thing I knew, she looked older than me. I gasped involuntarily and Coral laughed. Her voice was different too, older.

“Whoa,” I breathed, impressed. “Can I do that?”

Coral shook her head. “Not yet. You haven’t had the proper training yet. Speaking of training, come on in.” We were still standing in her doorway.

I walked in and looked around. There was a lot of furniture cramped around each other, and many pictures of the sea were hung up. A table held a bunch of picture frames. I headed towards the table and looked through the pictures. They were mostly of Coral and people I didn’t recognize.

But then I saw one picture of someone I did recognize. Coral and my mother were standing together on the beach, linking arms. I picked up the picture and stroked it, unable to take my eyes off of them.

“Your mother was my best friend.” Coral whispered behind me. I turned to find her eyes fixed on the picture I was holding. “We did everything together. But then she fell in love with your father and left the sea to go to your world. I didn’t see her until she died and came back. She told me all about you. Oh, how she loved you Hazel.” She drifted off, lost in her own thoughts.

I decided to leave her alone, so I continued to look around the house. I felt a connection to the house, even though this was the first time I was here. I felt my mother’s presence here. It was faint, but it was there.

I heard Coral clear her throat behind me. “Alright,” she said, “let’s get started. Come on out to the backyard.”

Once in the backyard, Coral brought out a glass of water and gave it to me. “Uh, thanks,” I said, and I lifted the glass to take a drink.

“No!” Coral laughed. “It’s not for drinking. This is what we’re going to be working with today. Stick your finger in the water.” I did, and the water started to move, restless, in the glass. I grinned, still mesmerized by what I could do to the water, even though I knew this was nothing compared to what I can really do.

“Now pour out the water and try to stop it before it falls.” Coral commanded. I glanced at her and raised my eyebrow.

“And I do that how?” I asked sarcastically. “Like this?” Teasingly, I poured the water out of the glass and mockingly put my hand out in a stopping motion. I rolled my eyes at Coral and smiled. But Coral had a smug look on her face and she pointed to my hand.

I looked down at my hand to see that the water did actually stop in midair. I laughed in disbelief. “It actually worked!” Suddenly, I wanted to keep trying new things. I moved my hands in a circular motion, causing the water to move in a circular motion, making a moving ball of water.

“Good!” Coral encouraged. I grinned at a thought in my head. Giving Coral a knowing look, I quickly pushed my hands out in Coral’s direction. The water rushed at her, splashing her with water. She sputtered and wiped the water from her eyes. “Hey! I can’t believe you would… But hey, that was actually pretty good.”

We shared a smile and I felt a new power rushing through my veins. With water in my control, I felt invincible. Facing Cain wasn’t looking so scary anymore.

As if reading my thoughts, Coral warned, “Don’t get too arrogant, Hazel. Just remember that when we go in the sea, everyone there is more powerful than you are right now, because they had more experience. So don’t go around doing something rash, alright?”

“Alright, alright! What are you, my mom?” I said, then immediately regretted it. A silence fell in between us. I said a silent apology to my mother, who was probably suffering at the hands of Cain. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

“There’s no need to apologize. There’s nothing wrong with mentioning your mother, Hazel. Let’s just continue.”

For the next few hours, I practiced with Coral, experimenting with my new power. We didn’t try anything new, because Coral insisted that we take it slow and steady, so I just practiced getting water into a ball and shooting it at objects Coral would set out for me.

By the time Coral called it a day, I was exhausted. Every muscle ached, yet I felt alive. It was exuberating being able to control water, so the pain was worth it. I didn't realize until then how much energy controlling water took. I felt drained.

I came home at the time I would usually come home from school, so my dad didn’t notice a thing. I wasn’t caught yet, so I went up to my room and took out my laptop. I was about to turn it on when I heard footsteps come up the stairs. A few seconds later, Heather appeared in my doorway.

“Hey,” I said casually. “How was school?” Heather came in my room and shut the door, turned to fix me with an accusing glare.

“Cut the act, Hazel. I know you ditched. I saw you leave with some girl. What did you do?” Heather demanded.

I contemplated my decisions until I finally knew what I was going to do. Sighing, I sat up straighter and looked Heather in the eyes. “There’s something I have to tell you.”

Hey everyone! Thanks for reading Eyes of the Sea! What do you think of Hazel's decision? Do you agree or disagree with what she is going to do, and what would you have done in her position? Let me know in the comment section below! :)

-Bookworm9173