I looked into the eyes of my captor, glaring at him. How could he do this to me? Why is he doing this to me? How did I get in this situation? Kayla, I think almost instantly. She just had to follow her father to Mako; if she had just left well enough alone, we wouldn't be having this problem.

"I would have never pegged you for a fish," he commented, walking around me tantalizing. "No matter how much you love to swim."

There was water constantly splashing on my legs—well tail—so I couldn't kick him. He had me laying down on a table. A light was shinning above my body, almost like a dentist trip, though I would not get sugarless gum after this one.

"You don't have to do this," I struggled in the ropes he had tied my hands with. He must have found out about my powers. No hands, no powers. No powers, no escape. No escape…no hope. "Just let me go,"

"As much as I would love to do that," He lied as he pulled on surgeon gloves. My glare got a little less intimidating. "You are going to help me make my debut onto the Board of Marine Biologists."

"Just let me go! You don't really want to be on the board with people who don't have anything better to do than to talk about fish all day, do you?!"

That was obviously the wrong thing to say. He came towards me with a sharp object so I did the only logical thing; I screamed.

12 HOURS AGO

Something felt wrong when I woke up, I just didn't know what. It wasn't until Tina ran into my room with a water gun that I realized what today was. She sprayed me because that's what she always does when today rolls around, only in the past I didn't have to worry about flashing a tail to her.

I shrieked at my little sister in horror. "Why'd you do that?!"

I answered for her. "It's the water gun fair," We spoke at the same time. Her voice full of excitement, mine full of fear.

"Get out of my room before I tell Mom you were on your phone all night again." I only had five seconds left. Luckily her fear of our mother overnighted her wanting to spray me again. She ran out of my room just as my tail formed.

Someone knocked on my door. I panicked and started drying myself. "Whoever it is, go away!" I prayed it wasn't my parents, they would kill me if I was talking to them like that. There are only a couple rules in our house and talking disrespectful to anyone of our parents was definitely one of them.

Elijah opened the door and I sighed in relief, my tail still had a long way to go before it was dry. "Boy are you lucky that it was me and not mom or dad, they would have killed you."

"Don't remind me," I mumbled. I watched my tail as I dried it, it had been awhile since I went swimming, maybe I would invite the girls to go swimming with me, and the guys if they wanted. I'm sure if I was craving a swim, Elijah was killing for one. It had been a week since I went swimming, almost three for Elijah.

After we figured out that someone might be watching us, we realized it was probably best if we didn't go swimming nearly as often as we did before, and if we did go in the ocean there was to be an adult with us at all times.

The McCartney's had a pool and while it wasn't the ocean it was big enough to fit eight mermaids, one merman, three boys with powers, and four husbands. But what I wanted was the ocean, and I think today was the perfect day to go to it. Everyone who is anyone would be at this water gun fight which is everyone who goes to school with us and their parents.

"Do you remember what today is?"

"It's Friday," Elijah chuckled almost saying how could you forget it's Friday!

"No you idiot! It's the water gun fight today!"

Elijah's eyes got wide. "Oh,"

"I know!" The whole school had been looking forward to this day since the beginning of the year. Permission slips for this grand event went home the week before I was turned, before I had to worry about every little drop of water that came in contact with my skin, before I had to fear days as fun as this.

"What are we going to do?"

"We could play sick," I offered just as mom and dad came by my room in work out clothes or more specifically, clothes that they could afford to get dirty/messed up.

"What are you guys doing in here?!" Mom questioned. "It's the big fight,"

"Lauran you've been looking forward to this since the beginning of school, I would have thought you would have been the first one ready,"

"There went that option," Elijah mumbled.

"I know but I wasn't…I don't…I just got a late start," I finally manage out. "I had a late night last night, because I was just so excited for this event."

"Well then get an early ending! We have to go; we want to get a good parking spot!"

"What about work?"

"I took the day off," Mom and Dad said at the same time.

"But people need saving Mom!" Elijah told her.

Mom looked shocked at Elijah's sudden outburst. "There are other doctors in the hospital, no matter how much it feels like it's just me, we have plenty of staff that are more than capable of saving people as you so kindly put it."

Elijah looked at me, I looked at him. "But Dad…don't you need to help people with there…um…booking needs?"

Dad was an author and a journalist for some newspaper. There wasn't really much to go on, but a mermaid had to try.

He gave me a weird look. "I don't know what's gotten into you two today but no, I don't need to help anyone with their 'booking needs'. I don't even know what that means! But I want to leave in twenty minutes so Elijah leave Lauran alone so she can get dressed."

Mom pulled him out of my room and Dad closed my door. I sighed, Elijah and I would think of something in the car…hopefully. I sighed, this was stressful and this stress wasn't good for my body; that swim was looking better and better.

I didn't have time for a bath and I definitely didn't have time for a shower (I can't really take showers anymore with my appendage). I just put on some lotion, quickly dried myself off (there is a lot of water in lotion) and sprayed some perfume on myself. Hopefully I smelled like I took a shower.

I had to give the illusion that I was about to part take in a war so I pulled my hair up, put a headband on to keep it out of my face, and got some of mom and dad's face paint—don't ask—and drew lines on my cheeks.

When I got downstairs, Mom was trying to paint Elijah's face. "Come on honey, get in the spirit!"

Tina was outside with Dad trying to squirt everything she saw. "Mom! I don't want face paint!"

"Do not raise your voice at me young man!"

"I'm sorry," Elijah hung his head in shame, it took all I had not to laugh at him.

Elijah let Mom put the colors of our school on his face, nothing to extreme like Dad's fully covered face, just a dolphin; our mascot. I was so busy watching mom and Elijah that I didn't notice Tina accidentally shooting Cleo and Bella with water.

"I am so sorry Mrs. McCartney!" Tina screamed at Cleo, probably because Cleo and Bella ran in the house not to get exposed. I went outside to see if everyone was okay, Elijah followed me, mom followed him.

"It's okay, she was just going to get towels. You know how girls are about their outfits—ow!" He screamed, Rikki punched him.

"Please tell Cleo and her friend that we are very sorry," Dad sounded apologetic. "Just getting in the spirit of the water gun fight today."

"Oh yes, that is today."

"You tell Cleo that she has a free shot at me." Dad laughed.

"Oh we aren't going. A family emergency came up."

Elijah and I looked at each other and sighed. Being an adult in this situation would be great, having Cleo and Lewis as parents would also be very great in this situation because they would understand that we couldn't go.

"Oh I'm sorry to here that,"

"Don't worry, it's nothing to serious. And I was just about to ask if you could take the kids for us because we have to get going."

Mom stepped in. "That'll be no problem, we have room for two."

Emma handed Joshua the keys to a car. She whispered something in his ear and he nodded and got in the car along with the rest of the gang except Justine, Ricky, and Tina.

It was a tight squeeze but we managed to get everyone in our not-so mini mini-van.

When the ride was over Elijah and I still hadn't figured out a way to get out of this stupid day; we might just end up skipping if it comes down to it. No matter how mad mom and dad get nothing could be worst than getting exposed.

"Well be right there, we just got to go get our visitors passes."

We nodded and said goodbye. Christi and Tina went to their group of friends leaving us with ourselves. Joshua and the others hadn't gotten here yet. "What are you doing here? Why didn't you play sick our something?!" Ricky scolded.

"You try playing sick to our parents. They are more excited about this than us and probably anyone here."

This whole day is stupid. It was supposed to be a day where kids could come to school and not have to worry about the stresses of high school or in Christi and Tina's case, middle school. But not everyone wants to get wet, I used to love it but now…now I was fearing our secret.

"Maybe we can sneak you off campus?" Justine suggested.

I shook my head. "That is a very much last minute scenario. Our parents are going to be here the whole day; they are going to know if we aren't here! They took a day off of work."

We all stared at each other, there has to be something we could do.

I couldn't think of anything I was getting frustrated, and then I saw Kayla. It was one thing for Elijah and I not to be here, but it was a completely different story for her to be here. We had months on her three week abilities, if it came down too it we'd be a lot better of than her.

I left my friends and brother to go see what she was doing here…and if she had any ideas of what to do to get out of here. "What are you doing here?!"

"Um, I go to school here." She answered in a duh tone.

"I know that," I lightly hit her shoulder. "But do you not know what day it is?!"

"Friday…?"

Did every mermaid forget what day it was today—? Not that I could talk. "No! It's water gun day, as in the day our secret might get exposed to the whole school."

"Your secret," she corrected. "It's not my secret, I don't want to be a mermaid and I'm working on not being a mermaid."

I sighed. "Have you even tried swimming?" She shook her head slowly. "Well maybe you should try before you write of being a mermaid completely."

She looked at the ground, kicking a rock. "Fine, fine! I'll go swimming. Just so I can tell you how much I hate it."

"Don't knock it, till you try it. Swimming as a human and swimming as a mermaid are two different things. I didn't know what swimming truly was until I was a mermaid,"

I grabbed her wrist and dragged her back to the group. "Did we think of a new plan?"

"We, didn't think of anything." Ricky teased. "But I did,"

"Yeah and his plan royally sucks so we are still taking suggestions."

"You haven't heard it yet!"

"But I've heard the last two, so I know that I inferred."

"Elijah can drive, right?" We nodded our heads. "Well when the rest of the gang gets here we can tell their parents that they forgot something. We convince them to go let us go get it by ourselves and then Justine and I distract them so they don't realize you aren't here. Fool proof!"

"That's great and all but there is one problem—"

"Have you ever tried to convince a black woman to do something when she's already made up her mind?" Kayla questioned bluntly. I wasn't going to phrase it like that but it was the truth, once a black woman made up her mind; there was very little that was going to stop it.

"…well no,"

"Don't. She'll practically bite your head off."

Mom and Dad appeared out of nowhere. "Why aren't you guys in class?"

Justine fainted, I mean she fell to the ground. Dad quickly caught her; Mom went into doctor mood. "Justine isn't feeling well and we didn't want to leave her alone!" Elijah thought on his feet.

"We should probably get her home then."

Dad picked her up and carried her to the car. "We'll be back, but we should make sure that Justine is okay first. Ricky will you call your parents and tell them what happened and that we are taking Justine home?"

Ricky nodded still in shock. "Yeah, no problem."

Mom left. "Well that was a lot easier than we were making it." Elijah said when no one was saying anything.

I looked at Kayla. All we were doing today was going to first period so they could take attendance and then the festivities start. "How about I take you on that swim now?"

Elijah, Kayla, and I embarked on our sea journey. Trying to get Kayla in the water took some time but finally Elijah just pushed in so she had no choice but to get deeper so the people of the beach would see her tail.

For what I could see, it looked like she was having fun but every time she saw me she would put a scowl on her face to pretend she wasn't having fun. It was very clear she was having fun.

We raced to Mako Island. We we came up for air in the moonpool we were all laughing. So much for not having fun. "Wasn't that fun?" I splashed Kayla for affect.

"Of course it was," Elijah answered for her.

Kayla smiled. "That was really fun…unfortunately."

"Why do you say unfortunately? Maybe now you'll stop seeing this as a curse. It's actually really fun to swim and I'm glad I could turn you to the dark side." I grinned evilly.

Elijah and I laughed, Kayla didn't. "Hey, what's wrong? I was just joking."

She cleared her throat. "Why do you think there is something wrong?"

"We're best friends, I can read you faster than a kiddy book. So spill, what's up?"

"I've got something to tell you, and I don't think you are going to like it."

"Try me."

"I don't know where to begin—"

"The beginning is always nice,"

"Very fun," she scowled. "It's…it's nothing. I'll tell you later, I don't want to ruin such a perfect moment."

"She's fine." Elijah told me, I dropped it but I wasn't so convinced.

"So, are you still dead set on becoming human again?"

"Yes," a new voice answered coming from the shadows of the cave. "Yes she does."

"Dad no!" Kayla screamed, but I was confused.

I saw Dr. Chandler emerge from the shadows. It dawned on me that Kayla did the unthinkable, she told someone our secret, and of all people she had to tell, she told the crazy marinebiologist.

Elijah didn't wait for answers, he didn't wait for clarification on what was happening; the second he saw Dr. Chandler, he swam out of the moonpool as fast as he could (which is pretty fast). I followed his lead but not before glaring a teary glare at Kayla. How could she do this!

That look cost me. As I was swimming out of the cave, scuba diving people came at me from all sides. I tried to get away but they grabbed me before I could get up to full speed. I used my powers to make the water around us hot, it made them swim back a little in shock but not let go of me.

I made the water around us cold, it still didn't make them dropped me. I couldn't think of anything else to do except struggle and that's exactly what I did; I struggled like my life depended on it and in a way it kind of did.

One of the masked people came at me with a tank and started to put it on my face, I harder struggled but when there are twenty people holding you it's very hard to get out of said hold. The person got the mask on me and that's all I remember before I saw black.