OCEANIA

IV

I was too confused to throw the paper away. I had no idea what the note was about. Some part of me wanted to believe it was a prank but pranks don’t go all out like horror films. My next move would be tagged foolish but as a good detective, I need to inspect the strange aisle. Nothing was out of place “Aisle 12” I read the card. This made no sense whatsoever. It had a big ‘O’ on it in my dream. A dream that felt uncomfortably real. I picked the book that tried to murder me. The title of the book was The Fourth Wall. It was boring no doubts. No one would read this. Suddenly seeing Helen and Bill didn’t seem too necessary. This whole thing was hurting my head. I could really use that trip.

I left the library speedily. I pulled out my phone and sent a couple of texts to Helen and Bill. My ears tingled as soon as I walked past the girls' bathroom. It sounded like two people sucking each others faces out. Normally, I would walk away but I had to see this. Kera's back was one with the mirror and she made a lot of throat sounds. The other person was Sara.

I should close the door now but that’s Helen’s Sara. “You’re a dirty cheat!” I screamed. “It’s not what it looks like”, she tried to explain but I didn’t let her. “So… you’re nothing but a damn hypocrite”, I scoffed at Kera, “you both deserve to rot in hell”. I stormed out slamming the door. Door slamming was becoming my thing. I need to place an advertisement for door slammers.

I had nothing to keep me in school again. Today has to be the most frustrating day of the week. First, I wake up with a headache, then I get the strangest dream and now, Sara's cheating. Could it get any worse? I’m going to tell Helen about this later ‘cause she really likes Sara and this will screw her. I decided to take a taxi back home.

Martin and Shelly were putting their bags in the car. I slipped into the house without them noticing. I grabbed my bag and walked downstairs. I really wanted to talk to the fake parents but after my little act, I don’t think they'd want to. “I didn’t know you were home”. Shelly said smiling. I gave her a look that said ‘are you bipolar?’ at first but I smiled back. “You guys looked busy. I didn’t wanna bother you”. I replied. She took my bag and turned away.

*******

We were driving to the guest house now. We arrived in Alameda some minutes ago. I was still focused on the note. Get your first clue. “What does that even mean?” I mumbled to myself. “Wiberly!” The scream cut me off guard. I jerked up and the note fell out of the car. “s**t!” I cursed.

“Language” Shelly warned. “Well, I wouldn’t have to if you didn’t yell my name”. I retorted. “I just wanted to tell you that we’ll be there soon in case you needed to pee or something”. Her voice showed genuine care. “Oh! I don’t need to. Thanks” I said before leaning deeper in the seat.

It wasn’t until the engines got quiet that I realized, I had dozed off. The warm air hit me nicely. It should be extremely hot right now but I’m guessing the sea is making everywhere warm. Martin took care of all the bags. The place was amazing. The outer color was white but the inside was painted cream (with a blend of yellow).

It had spiral stairs leading to a hallway. There are two rooms facing each other and the third was at the end of the hallway. I know I saw a room on the right corner from the kitchen. “Since it's your birthday week, you get to pick the first room”. Shelly whispered over my shoulder. I picked the one at the end of course. I wouldn’t want any throat sounds disturbing my beauty sleep.

The room was plain. That’s understandable. The room isn’t supposed to suit anyone’s taste but I loved it. This room had twin beds. I dumped the bag on the second bed. I noticed the short white curtains that covered the window. I pulled the curtains opened. The air was cooler probably because I could see the sea from here.

The sunlight made the water look glimmering. For some strange reason, the sight calmed me. I feel like I can just take a dip and all my problems would be solved. As if. Not even the water's calming powers can make me forget that my real parents didn’t care about me. That’s the only reason why parents leave their kids, right? I wondered. I spared the water one last glance before entering the bathroom.

The cold water helped me think. My whole life went from normal to complicated in just one afternoon. With my almost dried hair, I crawled into bed. I need some shut eye before throwing my questions around. Martin and Shelly better get ready. I checked my texts quickly. Helen had left almost a million text and voicemail. “Where are you?” I started reading them. “You didn’t give us a heads up”. “Bill checked in with Mrs Methaly. He doesn’t have to go to Summer school! Yay!” I sighed at this. I can't imagine spending my summer without him. Her next texts changed to a call for help.

Apparently, Kera was rubbing it in that she made out with Sara. Bill was stuck in detention for punching an emo boy. In Bill's defense, he was doing his happy dance. So, she was all alone. I’ll call her tomorrow. It was my birthday after all. Her mood would be better. I decided against sleeping.

I told Martin and Shelly that I needed the car. With no questions asked, they gave me the keys. I wanted to take a dip. Hearing about the Sara thing made me angry and I needed to cool off. What better way to cool off than with swimming. Thanks to the car’s GPS, I found the dock. I parked the car and walked to the wooden floorboard.

For a place with lots of water, there were not many boats. The boats were even small which means only people who fished occasionally came here. I could have sworn it was broad daylight some minutes but now the sky was covered with dark clouds that suggested rain. I kept my sneakers a distance away from the edge and I entered with my clothes on. I was a bit worried since this is my favorite dark blue turtleneck top but at this point, it was okay. The water was cold as suspected. This felt like home. I was at peace. My hair was in sync with the flow of water. My exposed legs loved the wetness. I was doing the backstroke farther away from the dock.

My happy thoughts were cut short by a loud growl. I panicked. I never saw any signs warning about a wild fish. I felt a tug on my legs so I struggled with the grip. I kicked and kicked but whatever had my legs was strong. I dived low to see what had me. There was nothing; no animal, no human. What’s going on? At the time I resurfaced, it was night time. The moon had its light fixed on me. I need to get out of here. I paddled away hurriedly. I looked up to check if I was close but I seemed farther away than before. I saw a red light glowing just some feet away. The growling got louder. I couldn’t tell which was louder; the growling or my heartbeat.

A large shark snapped its sharp teeth at me. Where the hell did that come from?! My legs tried to swim away but the water current was pulling me back. I turned around in pure fear. The creature's red eyes shone brightly. “AH‼!” I screamed as its mouth covered me. I bolted up from the bed. My window was widely opened and it was still afternoon. I grabbed my phone to call Helen so that I know that it was a dream. My blood turned into ice as a text lit up my screen. That was not a dream. You’re running out of time.