I remember when I learned of my fate like it was yesterday.
When my dad told me I was going to stay with my grandmother. My mom rolling her eyes when I started yelling. "There's no way I'm going down there!"
They didn't care what I wanted. All they cared about was that my older brother finally got tired of their shit, which meant they lost their free babysitter. "You got into enough trouble when he was still around, imagine what you'll get into now that he left us." is what they told me.
I was so mad when they said that. The only times I got into trouble was with him, I was just a good enough sister to not be a snitch. And saying "us".
He didn't leave me. He left them. He would never leave me. He would come back and whisk me away to wherever he was.
Except he didn't.
They decided they couldn't deal with their anxious, trouble making daughter by themselves. "We're too busy and you're too old for us to constantly have to watch you."
They couldn't understand that no matter how much money they threw at their kids, they were still kids and needed their parents. Needed love.
They didn't understand why I couldn't get through their dinners without having a "moment". "Get over it and stop embarrassing us."
So my brother never came and took me away from our absent parents. He never came back and took me away to my fantasy world.
Instead I got shipped down to North Carolina with my moms crazy mom. My grandma.
Imagine that? A teenage girl who lived her whole life in arguably the best city in the world. New York City is where I spent my whole life and suddenly I'm living in the south with people who've spent their whole lives fishing, with their weird accents and bad pizza. That's what I thought at least.
The last day I was in the city I tried to run away. I ran through the streets bawling my eyes out trying repeatedly to call my brother, call his friends, even call the people I once called my friends. Anyone who could help me get out of what I thought would be the end of my life. He never answered. His friends wouldn't tell me where he was. My friends just told me they'd miss me. "Don't forget to update your snap story with all your exciting adventures!" They said while laughing at me.
Eventually my parents found me. Guess they cared long enough to track my phone.
So I was hauled off onto an airplane. Away from everything I had ever known. I watched as the city grew farther and farther away. I don't think I stopped crying the whole flight. Sorry guy sitting next to me.
When I landed in North Carolina my grandma was standing front and center waiting for me.
"Your mom told me to be waiting for you right away so that you didn't try to get on the next flight back.", she grumbled at me, "had to close the shop. This is my busiest time of the year and I had to close just for a spoiled brat."
Great start right?
I hated it right away. We finally got to where she lives and I saw all the big houses, but we drove right past them. As we kept driving the houses got to be not as big, to put it nicely.
We kept driving until we got to what I assumed was her store.
"I have to open this store back up. Go find something to do, just don't bother me."
So much for being watched.
Here I was, straight off a plane, now in some dinky little town I had never been to.
What was I supposed to do?
I started walking around. Getting stared at by people I didn't know. Getting more and more annoyed by the second.
I had already circled around back to my grandmas shop and was exhausted from the heat. I couldn't stand it. I sat outside the store in what little shade there was trying to cool off.
And there they were. What I didn't know at the time was that this group of kids would become my best friends. The people who I shared everything with. My little family.
Now remember I didn't know this at the time.
They walked by and kept looking and me, then looked away talking, then at me again.
I had enough. I stood up, "What are you staring at?!"
They stopped, looked around, looked at me, then at each other, before realizing this crazy girl was yelling at them.
Suddenly the blond boy started walking over with a smirk.
"I said- why are you staring at me?! Answer me!"
The boy was right in front of me now, ignoring his friends yelling at him to come back.
"You have one more chance to answer me, blondie! What. Are. You. Looking. At?"
"A very pretty girl who I've never seen before, which is rare because I've seen every pretty girl that lives here."
Of course he was still smirking when he said that.
I wish I could have seen my own face. Suddenly blushing and flabbergasted.
"I- what?"
"I've never seen you before, pretty girl and we know just about every person who lives on this island."
The girl finally ran up to him, "sorry about him, he's not trained yet." then looked at him, "will you leave her alone!"
She tried pulling on his arm, but he shook her off.
"So can I at least get a name, pretty girl?"
I was still so confused, "Rose."
Finally he smiled instead of smirked, "perfect name for a pretty girl. When did you wash up?"
"Wash up?", I was still confused
"I mean you must be a mermaid or something. Pretty girl here to steal all the men of the island into the ocean." He laughed and the girl rolled her eyes, "again sorry about him."
I shook my head, "I'm sorry I yelled at you guys." I was embarrassed now. The two other boys were walking up now.
"Okay, JJ, I think you've done enough, whatever you've done", the taller boy said while the other nodded his head.
"Aw, but I just got into a really interesting conversation with Rose here. Did you know she's a mermaid," he laughed.
"Since we're doing introductions, I'm Kiara", she told me. "That's John B" he did a small salute, "that's pope" he gave a shy wave, "and of course this is JJ." Which he bowed down to.
"You don't look like a pogue, but I've also never seen you around figure eight. Where'd you come from," John B asked.
"New York. I'm from New York." I stuttered
Their eyes got wide.
"What the hell are you doing here then?" Pope now asked
"I'm here to live with my grandma I guess." I told them grumpily
Kiara put two and two together right before John B did, then Pope, then finally JJ.
JJ whistled, "so I guess that means your grandma would be Ms.Crazy who owns the surf shop?"
"Is that what it is? Guess so then." I rolled my eyes
"You don't seem to happy about it.", Pope said
"Is it that obvious?" I said sheepishly
They all nodded. "Yes." "Yup." "Definitely." "100 percent."
I slumped back to the ground "sorry. I didn't mean to be so rude. I'm sure this place is great."
"Oh no it kinda sucks-" John B started before JJ cut him off, "Unless you know who to hang out with" with his smirk yet again, "which would be us. So let's go."
He turned around and everybody else followed him.
I was still on the ground confused when Kiara turned back around, "aren't you coming?"
"Where?" I asked
"With us of course!" JJ yelled
I quickly got up, "but where are we going then?"
"Probably swimming, too hot to do anything else." Kiara said
"But I don't know how to swim?" I told her
After that we walked off, with JJ yelling about how ridiculous it is that I can't swim. "Who would send their daughter down to a town on the ocean without knowing how to swim?!"
And he never let go of the fact that he taught me how to swim. I secretly like that he taught he, but I'd never tell him that.
And the rest is history. I found my favorite people in the whole world- actually JJ found me and they all just decided to keep me.
Which brings us to now.
//
I didn't actually expect anyone to read this! Thank you to everybody who has and I hope you like it?
No matter how much I write I can't seem to find my own writing style I enjoy, so please hang in there with me because hopefully it'll get better.
Thank you again <3
