101 Ways to Ruin a Mermaid's Life
Story 45: Rikki and Cleo
Our Enemies Unite (3rd person POV)
Will, Bella, and Rikki laughed as they walked up the path that led to Will's bout house hangout. Once they got closer, Will put his hand out in front of the two girls he had been friends with since he found out their fishy secret less than six months beforehand.
"What…." Bella, his girlfriend started before being interrupted by Will putting his finger up to her mouth. She took the hint.
After a few seconds of silence, the girl's heard what they were listening for, two soft laughs coming from the boat shed. The girls looked to Will, who took his finger from Bella's mouth before whispering, "Sophie met a new girl on the beach yesterday. They have been hanging out all day. It is bothering me to no end."
"That is amazing," Rikki commented in a whisper.
"That it bothers him to no end?" Bella asked in the same whisper.
"No, that Sophie found a friend," Rikki joked. Bella laughed as Will rolled his eyes at his rebel best friend.
The laughter stopped, and Will motioned for the girls to follow him inside. The door opened slowly, as Will walked in first followed by Bella then Rikki. Inside Sophie sat on the left side of the couch facing a girl Bella had never met. She had Stick straight shinny reddish hair that cascaded down her back. Bella smiled and waved to the girl, but she was paying no attention to Bella at all. Her eyes were locked on Rikki, who had stopped short in the doorway right when she caught eye of this girl.
"Rikki," She finally chocked out in a shocked expression.
"You two know each other?" Sophie and Will asked at the same time.
It took a second but Rikki finally choked out, "Yeah, you could say that. Right Charlotte." Rikki's eyes never left Charlotte as she spoke. She couldn't move. Shock radiated through her body and controlled her mind. There was no one worse for Sophie to be handing out with than Charlotte.
As soon as she could, Rikki raced to Cleo's house. She was breathless when she knocked on the door and was relieved when Cleo was the one who answered. It took her a few seconds, but she managed to choke out, "We have a big problem."
A minute later, Cleo and Rikki were sitting in Cleo's room with the door firmly shut and locked. Cleo was staring at Rikki, as she said, "This is not good. If Charlotte is around Sophie, and we already know Sophie is on to us, what does that mean?"
"I'm not sure, but if Charlotte tells Sophie…." Rikki started but could not finish. "If Charlotte tells Sophie… well I don't know what we would do."
Cleo sighed and sat down on her bed. Rikki sighed and look up at the ceiling. Then she looked back to Cleo. In a soft voice she said, "We have to tell Will and Bella something. They will start to wonder if we do not."
"What are we suppose to say?" Cleo asked eyes locking with Rikki's. "What are we suppose to tell them?"
"The truth I guess," Rikki admitted. "What else would we tell them?"
Cleo shook her head. There was nothing more to say.
Two hours later, Rikki and Cleo were looked on to Will and Bella as they sat in the back of Rikki's café. It was not completely a privet place, but it wasn't too public when in the back, as long as they whispered. Bella and Will listened intensively as Cleo and Rikki told the story of Charlotte and why she was such a threat hanging out with Sophie.
"So she knows about you?" Bella asked when Rikki and Cleo had finished. "And you're sure she won't tell."
"No, we're not sure," Cleo admitted. "We just have to trust her. We have no choice."
"And if she feels the need to tell Sophie, there is no telling what will happen," Rikki continued.
Will sat up as he said, "I'm not going to let that happen."
All three girls looked his way. He sighed and said, "I'll watch them, keep an eye on my sister and make sure Charlotte says nothing to her."
"That's sweet Will," Cleo started.
"But there is no way Charlotte would listen to you," Rikki continued. "She doesn't know you, and wouldn't see you as a threat."
Cleo put her head on the table as Will looked out to the café, Bella looked to Rikki, and Rikki looked to the ceiling. Then she smiled and looked back to her friends. They all popped back to earth as Rikki said, "You might not be a threat." She smiled a bit more as she looked to Cleo. "But we are." Hearing this Cleo smiled, already seeing where this idea was heading.
Charlotte sat across from Sophie in the boat shed. So far, other than the beach, it was one of the only places Charlotte was still allowed that the other girls went to too. Sophie had seen her reaction to Rikki, but Charlotte had no idea what she was going to tell her when the question came up.
"So, how do you know Rikki?" Sophie asked shocking Charlotte out of her planning day dream.
"Oh, Rikki," Charlotte started, not sure where to start or what to say. "Our relationship is complicated, and starts with the fact that she doesn't like me that much."
"And is there a story behind that?" Sophie asked with a smile.
"Yeah," Charlotte said nonchalantly. "It's kind of long, a little confusing, and not a time I like to remember."
Sophie's expression fell. "Oh." She looked away from Charlotte. "I was hoping to get some sort of clue into the girl that is Rikki Chadwick. You know she and her friends are not that open, and I was just hoping I could figure out just a little more about them."
Charlotte looked up to Sophie. She knew this was going to happen. Sophie wanted Charlotte to be her inside person to a secret club that kicked her out before they ever really accepted her. She understood now, but back then, she was just like Sophie, but with different intuitions. Who wouldn't want to get into the minds that are the most secretive girls in the city, or world even? Charlotte could not let Sophie see her as her way in.
"I can't tell you much," Charlotte said softly. "It was really nothing, just a bit of boy drama between Cleo and me. I couldn't tell you what you want."
"I bet you could," Sophie said, the smile repapering on her face. "Just tell me what you know."
Charlotte sighed and looked away from Sophie. She was about to say something when the door the boat shed slammed open and Will walked in. He looked angry and not impressed as he walked right over to Charlotte and handed her the note Cleo and Rikki had written her. She opened it and read, gasping when she got to the end.
"I… I have to go," Charlotte said grabbing her stuff and walking out of the boat shed.
Sophie turned to Will, confusion written all over her face. Will shrugged as he pulled a bottle out of his sports bag and sat down on the couch next to his sister. Sophie kept her eyes locked on her brother as she asked, "What was that about?" Will shrugged as he opened the bottle and took a sip of his drink.
On the beach, Charlotte walked up to where Rikki and Cleo were standing. Bella was standing behind them, but it was obvious she was not getting involved in their business.
"What is this about?" Charlotte asked with confusion in her voice.
"Sophie," Rikki announced, stern with no room for Charlotte to penetrate. "We are worried about you hanging out with her."
"What is she doing here," Charlotte asked pointing to where Bella stood.
"Ignore Bella," Rikki cried. "I want to talk to you about you're friendship with Sophie."
"Oh, what, now you decide who my friends can be as well?" Charlotte asked crossing her arms over her chest, standing her ground.
"We're just looking out for you," Cleo said in a softer, friendlier voice. "Sophie is stubborn; she gets what she goes after. She is a user."
"So you're saying she is using me?" Charlotte asked in a tense voice when in fact she was very interested in what Cleo was saying.
"She might be using you," Cleo corrected. "Sophie wants to get close to Bella as you did to me. We can't let that happen."
Hearing this, Charlotte looked back to where Bella was stand. As she did to Cleo, so Bella was a mermaid. It was obvious by the way they were so close to her, allowing her to be here, now. Charlotte sighed.
"I'll be careful," Charlotte reassure them. "I promise."
"I hope so," Rikki tossed in jumping forward a few inches, make Charlotte jump back. After that she nodded and started off in the other direction.
Charlotte walked along the beach for an hour. She didn't know what she was looking for, or what she was doing. She just let herself keep walking until she had gone further than she was expecting to go. That is where she found Sophie.
"What was that about?" Sophie asked. Charlotte knew she meant the note and the running out. She just didn't know what to say. Even without the tail, the secret was still weighing her down.
"It was nothing," Charlotte said in the best go-with-the-flow voice she could manage at the moment. Cleo's words still played over and over in her head, "She could be using you."
"It was about Rikki and Cleo, wasn't it?" Sophie asked. "They wanted to tell you not to trust me, didn't they?" Sophie watched as the words hit Charlotte. "They are the ones you can't trust. They want to turn you ageist me. They want you on their side. Don't give them that satisfaction."
"Sophie," Charlotte started, but she didn't know where she was going. It was already obvious. Cleo was right. Sophie was just using her. She was using her as Charlotte would've. She was so shocked and yet not surprised.
"Just tell me," Sophie said. "Just tell me what is up with them. I know you know, and don't lie like my brother."
Charlotte shook her head, but Sophie got closer as she said, "Just tell me, and everything will be great."
Charlotte couldn't make up her mind, she didn't know what to do, what to say. Sophie was demanding what she didn't want to give. Was there anything she could do?
"I can't do this," She whispered.
The next day, Rikki and Cleo stood on the beach, the same spot they had met Charlotte yesterday. Charlotte's text was so cryptic. There was no way to know what she was about to tell them. Whatever it was, they knew it was not going to be good news, and paranoia was eating them apart.
"I'm sorry," Charlotte said as soon as she saw the girls. "I can't do this."
"You didn't tell her did you?" Rikki asked sternly.
"I didn't tell her…" Charlotte started. "About you. But you were right, Cleo. She was just using me."
"What did you tell her?" Rikki questioned.
"I didn't want to," Charlotte said, almost crying. "She pulled it out of me. I had no choice."
"What did you tell her?" Cleo asked.
"I told her about your other friend," Charlotte whispered. "I told her that Bella was a mermaid."
