LITTLE MERMAID | ❝Be nothing except your whole, unapologetic self. Be nothing except what you truly are and what you wish to be; others will see you and those that will love you will see you the way you wish.❞
POST SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING | PLATONIC...
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ARIEL COULDN'T STOP THINKING ABOUT THAT NIGHT. She had managed to get home without any confrontation or problem, which was fortunate for her who was too engrossed in her thoughts to even answer the flurry of questions Sebastian threw her way, Flounder taking the wheel and answering as best he could, clutching his camera still slung around his neck. Sebastian had been the one to walk the young boy home, instructing Ariel to just get to bed and go to sleep, and the teenager was too starstruck to care, almost unable to pause to say goodbye to Flounder, who went so far as to hug her to catch her attention.
"Bye, Ariel, see you tomorrow!" the boy called, waving as Sebastian led him home, and Ariel allowed herself a brief reprieve from her racing mind to wave and grin at her only friend, who seemed relieved that she remembered he existed.
Heading into the house, she took the stairs two at a time, hoping that her father wouldn't try to intercept her on the way to her room. Fortunately, if he was still awake, he didn't make any motion to reprimand her, though it was clear that their previous fight was now water under the bridge, at least for the time being, as, when Ariel stepped into her room, she found dinner waiting for her with dessert: shrimp tempura sushi rolls with tiramisu; one of her favorites.
Smiling, she grabbed the large plate and brought it towards her bed, setting it on her bedside table as she moved to get ready to sleep, shucking off her clothes and tossing them into the hamper she had by her closet, grabbing her oversized shirt and tugging it over her head, figuring to just take a shower in the morning or after she went swimming; she was always swimming, it seemed.
Pulling out her laptop, she let out a wistful sigh as she settled on top of her covers. Plugging in her headphones, she picked up one of her rolls, struggling to chew as she placed all of it in her mouth, restarting the movie she had stopped in the middle of; she had watched it countless times before, and she never liked watching something new right before bed, always preferring to relax rather than become invested, lest her mind start to run.
It was somewhat of a horror movie, though there were many funny scenes, and Ariel figured it must have been a satire, what with how certain characters acted, as well as how long it had taken one of them to die, though the end seemed to take itself rather seriously. She had thought about it for days after her first viewing, but eventually just decided to watch without scrutinizing every movement of the characters, which was easier said than done.
As she watched, carefully chewing her rolls, her mind began to wander back to the boy. She thought of all of them, at least at first, but she couldn't help but think back to the boy. She had gotten so close to him, so close to one of the people that her father insisted were dangerous, part of a dangerous world.
He hadn't seemed dangerous. Of course, he had been unconscious, but even from a distance, while still awake, he had seemed so free. She could still see his bright smile and hear his laugh, filling her room the way it had filled the night air. She had heard the others laugh, but there was something about his. It was unique in the way it was so average, the laugh that came to mind for an example, but could never be heard in reality; not until him.
