Written For:
Quidditch Fanfiction League Competition: Caerphilly Catapults - Round 13 - Keeper
Write a story inspired by [book] The Surface Breaks — Louise O'Neill
Betas: charlotteredmond99, Wellwick
Notes: Plot from book, taken from Goodreads: Deep beneath the sea, off the cold Irish coast, Gaia is a young mermaid who dreams of freedom from her controlling father. On her first swim to the surface, she is drawn towards a human boy. She longs to join his carefree world, but how much will she have to sacrifice? What will it take for the little mermaid to find her voice?
The way my story is inspired by the prompt: A controlling father, a carefree boy that Marlene is drawn to, and her longing to join his carefree world.
Wild and Free
Marlene stared at the 'B' paper that laid so innocuously on her desk. For most kids, a 'B' would be awesome. It would be something to smile about, something to celebrate.
Not for her, though. She knew exactly what her dad was going to say when he saw it. She sighed as the bell rang, signaling the end of the day.
She slipped the paper into her binder and shoved the whole thing into her bag. Marlene stood up, quickly walked out of the classroom and down the hallway. When she reached the double doors, she pushed them open, squinting as her eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight.
She heard a rev of an engine and looked to her right. Sirius Black, a senior, straddled his motorcycle as he talked to his best friend.
Marlene watched the two of them, marveling at their odd friendship. They were complete opposites. James Potter was a preppy kid—a jock, a basketball player. He was also in the science club, but that had been to get closer to Marlene's best friend, Lily. He got good grades and came from an influential family with a lot of money.
Sirius Black, on the other hand, was someone with an attitude. He didn't play sports or do any extracurricular activities. He didn't care about getting good grades or being respectful to the teachers. All he cared about was hooking up with girls and his motorcycle. His family had money, too, but from what Marlene heard, he was more likely to set it on fire than spend it.
Marlene wondered what kept two such completely different people together—did they have any common interests?
Just then, Black happened to glance away from James and his gaze caught her's. She shivered at the intense look in his eyes. She quickly averted her eyes and hurried down the stairs so she could begin her trek home. She had more important things on her mind than wondering how two people so different could be best friends.
xXx
Marlene stared at the floor as her father examined the essay. He was quiet, and she held her breath, waiting for the damning verdict.
"A 'B.' Are you proud of it?"
Internally, Marlene was. It was a history essay, and history was her weakest subject. She knew that wasn't the answer her father wanted, though. "No, Sir," she murmured.
"What were you wasting your time with when you should have been perfecting this essay?"
Marlene didn't waste her time with anything. She spent four or five hours on homework or studying each night, breaking only long enough for a quick dinner. Then she read 30 minutes before bedtime. And on the weekend, more times than not, she stayed in her room. After finishing her weekend homework, she read ahead in all of her textbooks, so she was prepared for the next week of classes. She bit her tongue so hard, she imagined she tasted blood. "I'm not sure. I worked as hard as I always work."
"Maybe that's the problem," her father stated coldly.
Not for the first time, Marlene wished her mum was here. Or at least she wished her mum had taken her along when she had decided married life wasn't for her. What she wouldn't do to take off in the cover of darkness.
"I'm sorry, Father. I'll be better next time," she promised, despite knowing there was no way she could possibly try any harder than what she already did.
"You bet you will. From now on, you'll eat dinner in your room. The less time you are away from your books, the better. You obviously need the extra time if all you can manage is a lousy 'B'."
Marlene swallowed. "Of course, Father."
He threw the paper on the ground and strode away into the kitchen, grabbing a bottle of whiskey from the fridge before stomping up the stairs. She heard a door open and then slam shut. Only then did Marlene relax, knowing her father's oppressive presence was contained in his bedroom.
Marlene bent down and picked up the crinkled paper, smoothing it out. She quickly walked into the kitchen and grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl. She rinsed it off in the sink and then took herself to her own room, so she could begin yet another night of endless studying.
It didn't matter if she'd already gotten into university. She couldn't slack.
xXx
Marlene sat at the table. She ate her carrot sticks with one hand as her eyes skimmed her textbook, looking for the keywords.
"Is that all you do?" an arrogant voice drawled.
Marlene stiffened. She knew that voice, but she didn't look up. He didn't deserve her full attention. "It's better than wasting my life not caring about anything."
"I care about plenty. Just not books."
Finally, Marlene tore her gaze away from her textbook. "Then what do you plan to do with your life if you don't get good enough grades to go to university?"
"I'll tell you a little secret. I'm not going to university. My uncle left me a trust fund that my mother can't touch. Even though she has tried."
"So, you'll be a trust fund kid? You must be so proud."
"I'm proud that I won't let anyone tell me what to do. That I'll look out for myself and never have to answer to anyone. I can get away from my mental family and finally do what I want to do."
Marlene turned her attention back to her textbook. "Well, go do what you want to do somewhere else. I'm busy."
His hand covered her textbook and she looked back up at him with a glare. "At least I'll be happy. Can you say the same thing?" And he sauntered away, not caring how he might have affected her.
'Am I happy?'
The answer came quick and easy.
No, she wasn't happy. Not even close. She hadn't been happy for a long time.
But what could she do about it?
xXx
"Come on, Marlene, it'll be fun," Lily wheedled.
"I want to, but…" Marlene trailed off. Lily knew how strict her father was, so she should know the request was near impossible for Marlene to make happen.
"We graduate in less than a month. Do you really want to say that in four years of high school, you never went to a party? How sad is that?"
That was sad. And kind of pathetic. Lily never asked her to go to parties with her, but she must have thought it was important for Marlene to experience at least one party. "I guess going to a house party is kind of a rite of passage."
"Yes," Lily eagerly nodded.
"My father will never let me, though."
Lily grinned. "He can't say 'no' if you never ask him."
Marlene tilted her head. "What do you mean?"
"Tell him that we have a science project that we're paired up for, and you'll be spending the night at my house so we can get it done. How can he say 'no' to that?"
It was a good plan.
"And if he calls to check up on me?"
"My mum will cover for us. She's always saying you should have more fun. I think she'll be thrilled with this plan."
Marlene bit her bottom lip for a moment. "Okay, I'm in."
xXx
Somehow, Marlene found herself sitting on a swing in the backyard as the music blasted throughout the house. She nursed a red cup of soda. She wasn't sure why she thought this would be fun. She didn't know most of the people in the house, and Lily had disappeared, probably to find James.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" a familiar voice drawled.
Marlene rolled her eyes. "As if my night couldn't get any more annoying."
"I never thought I'd see you of all people at a party," Black sat on the floor in front of her.
"Well, I'm regretting it. It was supposed to be one fun night before graduation and before university. Instead, it's… this."
"Every night is fun for me," Black gloated.
"Of course. Everything is one big party to you because you don't care about anything."
Black glared at her. "I remember already telling you that I do care about things. Just not school. I care about my friends. I care about making sure they're happy. I care about enjoying myself. What's so wrong about wanting to be happy?"
Marlene stood up from the swing, only to sit, Indian style, on the floor in front of him. "Aren't you worried about what you're going to do after graduation? I can't imagine not having a solid plan."
"I'm going to go wherever I want. All I need is my motorcycle, my wallet, and possibly the GPS on my phone. I can't wait. In fact, I'm not even going to the graduation ceremony. I just want to get on the road and explore."
Marlene's mouth opened.
"Watch it. If you're not careful, flies are going to swoop right into that mouth."
"How does your best friend feel about you missing graduation?"
"James is not happy about it, but he understands me. And he's done arguing with me. He knows he'll continue to lose any argument with me anyways."
"I'm a little jealous," she softly admitted.
Black smirked.
Marlene rushed on before he could say something bothersome. "You annoy me more than any one person on the planet, but I wish I could be as carefree as you. I wish I could loosen up and just enjoy life a little bit."
"You could, if you wanted to."
"You haven't met my father," Marlene retorted.
"You're eighteen. It's time you start making decisions about your own life and stop using your father as an excuse to play it safe."
Marlene looked down at her legs. She knew she was playing it safe. She was going to a university her father had picked out for her. She had tried so hard to earn his approval, but no matter what she did, it was never good enough for him.
"Why don't you come with me? Maybe have a little summer vacation before you start university? You might have fun. And who knows? You might decide the open road is more to your liking than boring school and books."
"Are you kidding me?'
Black shrugged as he stood up. "Think about it. I'm leaving the day before graduation, before graduation rehearsal. If you're not there, then I'll take that as your answer."
He turned and started walking away but paused before he got too far away. "I'll bring you back before university starts if you want me to, so what do you have to lose, except maybe some stress?"
Marlene watched him go back into the house. What did she have to lose?
xXx
Marlene stood inside the school, peering through the window as Black stood next to his motorcycle, saying his last goodbyes to James. She watched him grin as he put out his cigarette, his foot stomping on it.
She watched James walk away, heading towards the auditorium where the rehearsal was being held. If she was going to make it in on time, she'd need to leave now, but she stayed watching Black, thinking about the adventure he was about to go on.
She felt a yearning that she had never felt before. Such a strong urge to throw caution to the wind and just live life.
Black stayed for a couple more minutes as if he was waiting. Then he shrugged and turned back to his motorcycle, putting his helmet on and sliding the visor down so it covered his face. He slid onto the bike and started the engine, revving up the gas, making it roar with life.
And just before Black could kick off and leave for places unknown, Marlene threw open the door and ran down the steps. "Black! Wait! I'm coming!"
Black looked at her, sliding the visor back up, and turned the motorcycle off. "Are you sure?"
"Not really. I didn't even say goodbye to Lily, but I'm done thinking. Frankly, I think I think too much. And I want to come with you. If the invitation is still open."
"It is. On one condition."
Marlene waited.
"You call me Sirius. Black is so formal when we'll be spending a lot of time together."
Marlene smiled. "Okay, Sirius. Come on. I'll call Lily later so she doesn't worry."
Sirius reached for the behind-the-seats compartment that was built into the motorcycle and took out a blue helmet, handing it to her.
"You knew I was going to come," she teased as she put the helmet on.
"No, but I hoped. Road trips are so much more fun when you have company."
Marlene got onto the motorcycle behind him.
"Hold on tight," Sirius ordered, sliding the visor back down to cover his face.
She wrapped her arms around his torso, trying not to think about how nice and muscled his body felt.
Sirius turned the motorcycle back on, revving the engine once again, and then they were off, to who knows where, for an adventure Marlene was sure she'd never forget.
(word count: 2,207)