Aurora King
Air was speechless for a moment. Then, she winced. "Cramp."
"Is it in your legs?" I asked her.
She nodded and struggled to keep treading water.
"Ooh, that means-"
Air looked down into the water. "Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! Where are my legs?!" she shrieked in horror.
I smiled.
She lifted out of the water a tail, just like mine. Except, Air's was hot pink, not lime green. Yuck!
Her expression went from horror to delight.
"Ooh! My fave color!" she squealed.
"That's right," Natalie spoke up. "Everyone's tail is always there favorite color. If your favorite color changes, then so does your tail."
"Cool." I said. I looked at Natalie's tail. "So your favorite color is aqua?" I asked.
Natalie nodded and smiled. "So
now do you want to go swimming?"
"Can we breathe underwater?" Air asked.
"Yep." Natalie answered.
"Then yes! Now what's this place you wanna show us? Crystal Falls?"
"Crystal Waters." corrected Natalie. "My home."
Home...that's where we should be. Will we ever go back? I thought.
I didn't tell Air that I was homesick. It was bad enough that she now knew that I couldn't swim. I just knew that she was going to tell all of her friends. I would be the bully magnet next year in 7th grade.
"What are we waiting for? Let's go!" Air exclaimed.
Natalie River dived into the water. We dived too.
At first, I held my breath thinking I was still "normal". When I couldn't hold my breath anymore, I let it out. I thought I was going to drown. Then I realized I was breathing normally, like I would on land. Then I had time to focus on the scenery.
Next to me swam dozens of different fish I didn't know the names of. But one in particular caught my eye-the flyingfish. I had learned about it in school. It had been the first time I saw a real, live one.
Wow, it actually looks like it's flying, I thought.
I didn't know swimming in the open was so much fun! I wondered if I could talk underwater. I wanted to tell Air about the flyingfish. I opened my mouth and looked up. I looked all around me. Then, I willed myself to except the truth: I was lost.