The next three weeks are really awkward for the group of friends. Lewis and Cleo can barely look at each other, let alone speak to each other, which deeply concerns their friends. Lewis and Cleo have always been the power couple of the group, but now it looks like they're starting to fall apart. But why? What could have gone so wrong between the two of them when they seemed so happy?
Currently though, the group of six are studying in the school library, as they have a biology test coming up tomorrow. It's worth 25% of the overall grade, so they all know it's vital that they do well. Thankfully, the group seem to have put their differences aside in order to study. Despite the awkward atmosphere between the friends, no one wants anyone to fail. Cleo glances up from her text book, gazing around at her friends. Ash and Emma are talking quietly to each other as they go through the practice exam together while Zane and Rikki are just silently reading their notes to themselves. Cleo then looks over to Lewis, quickly noticing that he hasn't turned the page of his text book for at least 10 minutes, and he's not writing any notes down. He doesn't look like he's concentrating on his study at all. Usually, Lewis is the one helping others study, especially for the science and maths subjects. Today however, Lewis can't even focus on his own studies, just staring down at his text book blankly, his hands clenched into fists.
Cleo wants to say something to her distracted boyfriend, but she just doesn't know what to say that could help. Whatever is up with Lewis, he definitely hasn't been willing to share that with her or the rest of their group so far. It frustrates Cleo to no end, as she was so close to getting a proper answer from Lewis at the Juicenet cafe a few weeks ago, before their friends came barging in. Why did Lewis suddenly decide he couldn't say anything? Why has he been actively avoiding Cleo lately? Has she done something wrong?
Cleo hurriedly looks away as Lewis finally looks up from his text book and notices the mermaid staring at him. Cleo glares down at her own textbook, feeling flustered and embarrassed as she can feel her face heating up. Without looking up from her textbook, Cleo knows that Lewis is still watching her. Cleo tries her best to continue reading through her text book and jotting notes down in her exercise book, but in the end she decides it's impossible to concentrate in such an awkward atmosphere, knowing that Lewis is still staring at her. Cleo has had enough; she's definitely not getting any more study done here at school. She has to leave.
"I have to go, Dad wants me back to cook dinner. I'll see you guys tomorrow. Good luck with your studying," Cleo announces as she quickly snaps her books shut, stuffing them into her bag and then stands up, getting ready to leave. Everyone glances up at her in surprise.
"Are you sure? We could just quickly run through some practice exam questions if you want." Emma frowns at her friend in concern.
"Well, if Cleo gets to go now, then I should get to leave as well! It's not like I'm going to pass Year 12 anyway!" Rikki huffs in annoyance, throwing her pen down onto the table.
"Uh, not so fast, Rikki. You don't know you're going to fail, so don't give up just like that. At least finish your notes before you leave." Emma scolds as she picks up the pen and hands it back to Rikki, who groans in annoyance, but reluctantly stays in her seat and takes the pen from Emma. Cleo chuckles in amusement at her two friends' bickering. Some things will never really change.
"Yes, I'm sure, Emma. I think I'm feeling as prepared as I could ever be for tomorrow anyway. I'll finish those practice questions when I get home. I'll see you later." Cleo insists as she swings her bag onto her shoulders, walking away from her friends and towards the exit of the library. As she leaves the library, Cleo sighs in relief, happy to be finally out of there. The tension was so thick around that table, Cleo swore that she was about to explode. And, considering her powers, that would not be good for any drink bottles that students may have had in the library... which in turn would be terrible for Cleo, Emma and Rikki.
Cleo continues her way out of the school and begins walking towards her house, deep in thought about Lewis. She knows something is wrong, but how can she find out what that is? For a fleeting second, Cleo wonders maybe the reason Lewis is being so sketchy around her is because he's seeing someone else. That thought terrifies and haunts Cleo, not sure if she could handle that much heartbreak. Cleo then quickly shakes her head, dismissing the thought as rapidly as it came. It's a ridiculous notion, she doesn't even know why that fear popped into her mind. Lewis would never cheat on Cleo... would he? 'No, of course not,' Cleo reminds herself firmly. Lewis is not that type of person. Cleo sighs as she continues walking through the streets, still contemplating what to do about Lewis. Could there be anyone that might know what is going on with him? His brother, Lenny, is fairly close with Lewis, if Cleo recalls correctly. Maybe she'll give him a call and see what's up. Lewis did mention that there were some family issues at the moment. Maybe they're more serious than Cleo was lead to believe? The mermaid chews her lip worriedly as she walks, still no closer to actually knowing what's going on and what caused Lewis to snap at her at the cafe a few weeks ago.
Eventually, something does pull her out of her spiralling thoughts, but unfortunately for Cleo, it's nothing good. Thunder booms overhead, making Cleo jump a little. She glances up at the sky, only just now realising how dark the clouds have become, no hint of sunlight shining through anywhere. With a sinking feeling in her stomach, Cleo realises that it's just about to rain. There's probably going to be a storm for that matter. This is not good. Cleo can't risk continuing on her way home, which is at least 10 minutes away still. What would she do if she got caught out in the rain and was stuck flopping around on the ground as a fish? Doctor Denman might finally get what she has always wanted after all; a mermaid to experiment on. The thought makes Cleo shiver, goosebumps appearing on her arms and neck as fear washes over her. There's another boom of thunder and the wind starts to pick up around Cleo. Whatever she decides to be the next best move, she needs to decide fast. Cleo glances around her desperately, searching for a decent shelter to stay under to wait out the storm. Unfortunately, nothing really sticks out to her amongst the rows of houses. She highly doubts that the owners of any of these houses would appreciate Cleo standing on their front porch to wait out the rain. Before Cleo can do anything else, there's another boom of thunder accompanied by a flash of lightning. Suddenly rain starts falling from the sky, drenching Cleo almost instantly. Queensland storms can be sudden and intense, even on the Gold Coast.
"Great..." Cleo grumbles to herself, not having any choice now except to dive into the canal. With no time to lose, Cleo runs towards the canal as fast as possible, praying that she will make it in time. Thankfully, there is no one else around, at least. Cleo is sure that it would look super concerning seeing someone dive into the water and not resurface. Just before her 10 seconds are up, Cleo reaches the bank of the canal and immediately dives into the water, transforming into her mermaid form just as she fully submerges into the water. Cleo sighs in relief, incredibly glad that she made it to the water in time. Now that she is out of danger, Cleo smiles, happy to be back in the water again. It always helps clear her head. Instead of going home, Cleo decides to swim to Mako Island. Who knows how long the storm will last anyway?
After Cleo scans the water around her for a few moments, taking note of where the docks are and where the boats are floating in the water, presumably tied to the docks. Her brown hair swirls and curls around her in the water's current as Cleo begins to flip her coppery gold and orange tail, speeding off towards Mako Island with a swirl of bubbles surrounding her. As Cleo continues swimming towards Mako at a speed that shouldn't even be possible, her heart races with excitement. Cleo begins to forget about all of her worries and fears awaiting for her back on land. Cleo's worries and fear are now replaced with happiness, excitement, joy, thrill and adventure as well as a sense of calmness; all of these feelings rolling through her body like waves. Before she became a mermaid, Cleo never thought she could ever feel this free and at one with her surroundings, especially the ocean. Even with all of the complications that comes along with it, Cleo knows that her life has become so much better now that she is a mermaid. She gained some of the best friends anyone could ask for in the entire world, got brave enough to start going out with Lewis and has gained more confidence in general areas of life. She feels like she has become a better person, despite technically being half fish. Cleo wouldn't trade this new life of hers for anything.
9am Wednesday morning comes around a lot faster than Lewis would like. He knows he is absolutely not ready for this biology test. Lewis has tried to study for it for weeks, but his mind has been way too preoccupied with the whole merman business lately. Not that he can explain that to his teacher, unfortunately. It's a shame that there isn't a medical note from the doctor excusing someone from school for suffering from half fish syndrome. Lewis inwardly chuckles at the thought of actually being excused from the test because of doctor approved merman complications. Perhaps in an alternate universe, that could be a reality...
However, as it so happens, Lewis is not in that ideal reality. Instead, Lewis will just have to try and wing it. Not that he really has any choice now, considering he is currently sitting in class with the test paper right in front of him and a pen in his hand, waiting for the test to begin. Lewis looks around him for a moment, taking a look at his classmates to scope out how they are feeling. Most seem a little nervous, but not particularly freaking out. As for his friends, Emma and Cleo look confident and determined, whilst Rikki and Zane look like they have been defeated already, and Ash's expression is too hard to read from where Lewis is sitting.
"Alright class, your time starts now. Please turn over your test paper and begin writing. You have one hour." The biology teacher announces as she sits down at her desk. The students all around Lewis quickly turn over their test papers and get to work. Lewis hesitates for a few moments, not sure how this is going to go. Lewis wishes that he could find an excuse to bail and do the test another time, but he knows that will only get him into more trouble.
"Better get started, Lewis." The teacher says warningly, giving Lewis a pointed look as she notices Lewis still staring at the board, pen in hand, test paper untouched. Lewis gulps nervously and nods before looking down at his test paper and turns it over. 'Well, here goes nothing,' Lewis silently tells himself, deciding that he just needs to dive into it. He's a scientist studying the unexplainable, slowly making progress on it. He should be fine on one simple biology test... right?
Of course, the test goes terribly. Not only does Lewis not know the majority of the answers, his mind begins to wander once again back to his new secret lifestyle. Which he still hasn't told Cleo or anyone else about yet, and now fears that he's too late to tell anyone. What if Cleo and his friends got mad at him for keeping this information to himself for so long? He also fears that they'll be angry at him for allowing this to even happen in the first place. Having a tail was always just a Cleo, Emma and Rikki thing. Lewis doesn't know if they would be super keen on him joining the fish tail club. Besides, Lewis doesn't want to add more stress to any of their plates; it's hard enough for them to stay out of water danger. They probably wouldn't want to have to deal with helping someone else stay dry as well. Overall, it's just better if Lewis handles this new, scary part of his life on his own. At least for now, anyway. Then there's the whole issue of the next full moon, which is only a couple days away now. Oh god. Lewis is absolutely dreading what that night is going to bring. He still has a tiny thread of hope that maybe he won't be effected by the moon like the mermaids are, but he knows he can't rely on that. Until Lewis has experienced a full moon to know for sure, he has to assume that he can get moonstruck. It's a terrifying thought. Lewis thinks about all of the times that the mermaids have been moonstruck, and it's like they're possessed. It's super creepy from an outsider's perspective, and Lewis is sure it'll be just as bad experiencing it firsthand, if not worse. Not being able to remember an entire night where you cause heaps of trouble would be horrible. Lewis' free hand that is lying casually on the table starts to curl up into a fist as anxiety and fear starts to consume him.
Lewis tries to keep a control of his breathing, not wanting to go into a full blown panic attack. He needs to finish this damn biology test, and there's no point panicking days before the full moon anyway. It's not like Lewis can just stop the full moon from happening. Life keeps on moving forward, and so does he. Lewis takes a deep breath, clears his mind of all thoughts and then refocuses onto the test, not allowing himself to get distracted again. Needless to say that when the end of the test comes around and Lewis hands his paper up to the teacher, he knows deep down in his gut that this test result is going to be the worst result he has ever had in his entire life. Lewis sighs sadly, resigning himself to his fate, packs up his things and moves on to his next class without even acknowledging Cleo or his friends, not in the mood for talking right now.