Author's Note: Yeah! I'm back in business baby! I'm back with another chappie to my story… and this one's gonna be good… But now, for my shout-outs!
Insane Pirate Dragon- Yeah, she's alive… and I bet you did know it… but I bet you aren't gonna be ready for what's in this chappie… (Reads the end of the review) Lol that would be funny… Carlotta and Ronnie fighting over their man... and Lenny trying to break them up…
Lav'O'Dolphin- Lol, glad to know that you'll live through it… Scotty. (Mwahaha.) Unnecessary thievery is funny… to tell you the truth that originally wasn't supposed to be in that chappie; it hit me at the last moment. Yes, Lenny did have some funny lines in the last chappie, especially the 'peace treaty' comment. I've got plenty of lines like that… but I think that one is the most original…
Okay, so in the last chappie, Lenny found out that Ronnie was alive and Reuben got his blood. How did Ronnie survive, who gave Reuben his blood, and to add up to the mysteries, the question that everyone wants to know: Who was behind the shooting?
On wit da story!
Chapter Twenty: The Mysteries' Answers
"Ronnie?"
Lenny stared in shock at the sharkess floating in front of him. Her name was Ronnie, and she was dead… well, supposed to be dead. This evil shark named Markie had slashed her with a knife, and when Lenny last saw her, she was dead. He grew angry, killed Markie, and when he heard the sound of police, he fled for his life. As he swam away, he grabbed Ronnie's birthday present and looked back at the city, expecting to never see Ronnie or his friends again… but yet here Ronnie was, in the flesh.
"But… how? You were…?" Lenny began, but he didn't finish his obvious question as the sounds of 'Hey! I think I know where he is!' filled the streets.
"There's no time for questions now. We've gotta get outta here. Now c'mon!" Ronnie said, swimming down the alley.
Lenny was still confused at everything that had just happened, but he had the sense to follow Ronnie down the alley. After all, he was still being chased by Lamont's boys. He had to look for where she was, (the alley had many turns and Ronnie had disappeared from his sight) but he soon caught up to her.
"There you are! You vanished on me for a second…" Lenny began, but stopped when he saw what was in front of him. "It's a dead end."
"I guess we've gotta go the other way then…" Ronnie began, but was stopped by a voice.
"You two ain't goin' nowhere."
Lenny and Ronnie turned around to see two Killer Whales floating a few feet in front of them.
"Thought you could get away huh?" The first Killer Whale said in a malicious voice.
"I always give things a try." Lenny said a bit nervously.
"Well, you won't be trying anything else after this." The second Killer Whale said. Lenny watched in horror as he saw the hit-whale pull out his gun.
"Why do you wanna shoot him? What did he ever to do you?" Ronnie asked, her eyes never leaving the guns.
"It's not what he did to us. It's what he did to Lamont's little bundle of joy, Carlotta." The second Killer Whale replied.
"Who's Carlotta?" Ronnie questioned. "And who's Lamont?"
"Lamont is Carlotta's father." The first Killer Whale answered. "And Carlotta is your friend's date."
"Date!" Ronnie almost shouted in a near angry tone. She looked over at Lenny. "She was your date?"
"I didn't want her to be!" Lenny said in defense.
"Well then why did you go out with her?" Ronnie asked. She paused a moment before adding in a whisper, "You don't feel anything for her, do you?"
"No!" Lenny said. "Of course I don't!"
"Then why'd you go out with her?" Ronnie asked.
"It was either go out with her or die!" Lenny said.
"Oh really?" Ronnie said unbelievingly, crossing her fins. "And just who was going to kill you?"
"That would be us." The second Killer Whale said. "Or maybe some other guy…"
"Hold up! If Lenny went on the date with Carlotta, how come you guys are after him?" Ronnie asked.
The first Killer Whale sighed. "Here's the story. Carlotta was on a date with your friend over here, and he decided to swim off on her."
"So?" Ronnie asked. "That still doesn't explain why you're after him."
"Your friend had orders from Lamont to take his daughter out on a date. If your friend tried anything, Lamont would send us after your friend to bring him back to his office. Then, Lamont would… 'Take care of him'." The first Killer Whale answered.
"But I don't get it. How come you have to listen to Lamont?" Ronnie questioned.
"Because he's the boss of us." The second Killer Whale said. "And we're his hit whales."
"Hit whales?" Ronnie said. "Then, that would make you a…" She trailed off and looked over at Lenny.
"Hit shark," The first Killer Whale finished for her. "That's right; your little pal over here was a hit shark."
Ronnie turned around and looked at Lenny, who was staring at the dead end wall trying to avoid her eyes as much as possible. "Lenny…?" Ronnie said in a near-whisper.
"It's true." Lenny said, not looking at Ronnie.
"But… why?" Ronnie asked. Lenny didn't answer, and even if he did, it wouldn't have mattered.
"The reasons why isn't important right now, nor will it help." The second Killer Whale said. "Your friend is going to be swum back over to Lamont with a bit of… 'friendly' supervision."
"Now let's go…" The first Killer Whale began, but he was cut off by an annoying and whiny voice.
"Lenny! There you are!"
The four turned around and saw another sharkess floating near them.
"Who's she?" Ronnie whispered to Lenny.
"That's Carlotta." Lenny whispered back.
"I should've known that you would swim away from me…" Carlotta began, but stopped when she saw Ronnie. "And just who is this?" She asked, crossing her fins.
"Ronnie." Ronnie said.
"And how is she related to you?" Carlotta asked, her fins still crossed.
"Sh- she's not related to me." Lenny stuttered nervously. "Sh-sh-she's m-my… my…"
"Girlfriend." Ronnie finished up in an annoyed tone.
Carlotta eyed Ronnie for a while. "Humph! I don't know what he sees in you."
Ronnie just smirked and said, "Brains."
"Are you calling me stupid?" Carlotta said angrily.
"Well, maybe, I don't know… yeah." Ronnie said, smirking at the outraged look on Carlotta's face. "Hey, don't be mad at me 'cause I'm telling the truth."
Carlotta's face turned red as she began to stutter angrily. "You know what? I think…"
"Don't try to think, you'll strain your brain." Ronnie said.
Carlotta ignored the comment and finished her sentence. "… you're just jealous."
"Jealous of what?" Ronnie asked.
"Jealous of me, because I've got looks." Carlotta said. "Looks to kill."
"Your looks sure did kill me." Lenny said with a smile. Carlotta ignored the comment with a 'humph.'
"Okay, so you…" Ronnie began.
"Yes." Carlotta said.
"Are accusing me…"
"Uh-huh."
"Of being jealous of you…"
"Exactly."
"Because you're an airhead?" Ronnie finished.
"I'm not an airhead!" Carlotta screamed.
"… Yeah you are." Ronnie said with a smirk.
"No I'm not!" Carlotta shouted. She turned to Lenny. "Lenny, am I an airhead?"
"You want the truth or a lie?" Lenny asked.
"Arrgh!" Carlotta let out a loud sigh of frustration and anger, and grabbed the gun from the second Killer Whale's fin.
"Hey!" The second Killer Whale said in protest. "You can't do that…!"
Carlotta ignored the hit-whale as she pulled the trigger and succeeded in hitting Lenny in the side. Carlotta laughed as she saw Lenny fall down in pain.
"You don't think I'm an airhead anymore, do ya, Lenny?"
Ronnie rushed over to Lenny. He was still breathing, but losing blood quickly. He was conscious, but unaware of the things happening around him. With an angry glare, Ronnie turned towards Carlotta.
The two hit-whales gulped and swam from the scene. They were out of bullets for the gun, and even if they had bullets, they wouldn't try to shoot Ronnie. They both had girlfriends before, and both knew one important piece of knowledge:
Never make an angry sharkess angrier.
Ronnie swam over to Carlotta, who was still laughing. She had just seen Carlotta shoot Lenny, and she was mad… no, mad is an understatement. She was pissed off!
"Stop laughing!" Ronnie growled. "It's not funny!"
Carlotta stopped laughing, but her laughter was replaced with an angry face. "Don't shout at me like that!" Carlotta shouted, as she slapped Ronnie in the face.
Ronnie swam backwards a little. The slap's sting was gone after five seconds, but she wasn't expecting Carlotta to do that. But, a few seconds later, the surprised expression on Ronnie's face was replaced with an angry one… and Carlotta knew that she was in trouble. Ronnie punched Carlotta in the nose, knocking her into the sandy floor. It took Carlotta a few moments to recover from the punch, and when Carlotta recovered, she felt a sharp pain in her nose.
"You broke my nose!" Carlotta wailed. "I can't believe you broke my nose!"
"Yeah, and I'll break much more than your nose if you don't get out of my sight." Ronnie growled threateningly.
Carlotta quickly swam out the alleyway, holding her broken nose.
Ronnie laughed slightly, and turned back to Lenny. 'Now, how am I supposed to get him to the hospital?'
Scene Change
"Okay Mr. Reuben, you can go home now, but make sure that you take it easy, okay?"
"All right, doc."
Reuben had just been released from the hospital. He had gotten his blood yesterday, and just in time too; in a few more hours, he would've died from blood loss. Reuben didn't know who the donator was; for some reason he decided to stay anonymous; but that didn't mean that he couldn't feel thankful.
"Before you leave, here's a list of things you shouldn't do." Dr. Finn said.
Reuben sighed. "There's a list of things I can't do? I thought that everything would be okay once I got my transplant!"
"Well, blood transplants do have its consequences, depending on the situation. You lost more blood than most people would have, so as a result, when you got the transplant, even though you didn't die, you were weakened." Dr. Finn explained.
"That makes sense." Reuben said while nodding his head. "So, I guess this means I'll be off the job for a while."
"Sorry, but you have to take it easy." Dr. Finn said.
"That's all right." Reuben said with a slight smile. "I wasn't looking forward to going back into a whale's mouth anyway."
"Glad you see things that way." Dr. Finn said with a smile. "But I also must warn you, struggling will make you weak, too. If you're ever in a place where you have to struggle…"
"Relax doc." Reuben said in a carefree tone. "What's the chance of me getting into big trouble? I mean, it's not like I'm gonna be kidnapped or anythin'."
"I guess you're right." Dr. Finn said. "But still, be careful, okay? I've already seen you in the hospital this week; I don't wanna have to see you again."
"Thanks doc." Reuben said as he left the hospital. He was glad that he had… a 'second chance at life,' as he called it. But, even though he was glad that he got his blood (I mean, if he was going to live, he sure wasn't going to complain.) he still couldn't help but wonder about who gave him his blood.
'It couldn't have been Angie. If it was, she wouldn't have been so sad when she heard about the blood transplant.' Reuben thought. 'It couldn't have been Sykes, Ernie, Bernie, or anybody else at the Whale Wash; they would've told me if they donated blood, and plus, like Dr. Finn said, not many fish know their blood type, so many of them probably don't know their blood type. And it definitely couldn't have been Oscar… but then again…' Reuben thought for a moment about the possibility that his blood donator could've been Oscar… but he pushed that thought into the back of his mind. 'Yeah right! Like it could've been Oscar. Why would he want to donate blood to me anyway? He's got no reason.' Shrugging the thought off, Reuben swam to the Whale Wash. He may not have been able to work there, but he could visit a certain Angelfish…
Scene Change
Reuben was swimming towards the Whale Wash, a smile on his face. He couldn't wait to see Angie after spending a few days in the hospital; and the fact that Angie didn't know if he was alive or not added to the impending surprise. Reuben's smile grew wider; the Whale Wash was in sight. All he had to do was swim a few more feet…
Reuben heard a noise coming from behind him. He turned around; but saw nothing.
'Must've been the current.' Reuben thought with a shrug. So, Reuben swam towards the Whale Wash again…
Reuben turned around once more, only to see that nothing was there. 'Okay, I could've sworn I heard something that time!' Reuben thought, beginning to look around frantically. 'I felt something too!'
Reuben turned back in the direction of the Whale wash, telling himself to swim slightly faster… but something grabbed him. Reuben couldn't tell what grabbed him; he was too scared to care. He struggled to get out of his captor's grip, forgetting all about the doctor's advice, and used up all his energy. Even though he was exhausted from all that squirming around, Reuben could remember and think clearly; and the last thing he remembered was a bag being pulled over his head…
Scene Change
Oscar ate a bowl of cereal as he watched the morning news show. It was the only thing he could do to keep himself from looking through his photo album. Every time he looked through the album, he always felt depressed… followed by the gnawing pain of guilt. (Yeah, that was corny…) So, to keep from feeling guilty and depressed, Oscar did whatever he could to stay off the topic we all know he's thinking of: His 'Shark Slayer' job. Little did Oscar know, however, that all of that was going to change… and it was all going to change today.
Just as Katie Current was getting into celebrity gossip, Oscar heard a knock at his door. He looked at the clock and saw that it was nine' o'clock.
'That's the mail fish.' Oscar thought. 'One of the good things about being famous; you get your mail delivered to your door.'
Oscar opened the door; he was right, it was the mail fish.
"You've got a special letter today, Mr. Oscar!" The mail fish said in his usual friendly voice.
'Special? Hmm, I've never gotten 'special' mail before.' "Thanks kid." Oscar said as he gave the mail fish his tip.
"Good-bye Mr. Oscar!" The mail fish said cheerfully as he swam off to deliver more mail.
'I like him, but sometimes, he's WAY too happy.' Oscar though with a smile. The smile was wiped off from his face, however, when he read the letter in his hands.
Shark slayer,
we've got your girl and your friend. If you ever want to see them again, come over here in exactly two weeks at nine A.M. Why two weeks? Because I wanna see the look on your face when you know that you had time to think of something this time, but you couldn't do anything. You don't have my son to help you out now. Let's see you get out of this one.
Lino
"Ang… Rube…" Oscar said quietly as he placed the letter on the table.
"I see that you've got the letter."
Oscar turned around as he heard a voice coming from behind him. The voice was sensual yet dangerous, a voice that belonged to a fish that Oscar knew all too well.
That voice belonged to Lola.
"Lola." Oscar said angrily. "What're you doing here?"
"I'm here to make sure you got the message." Lola said.
"Where are my friends?" Oscar asked impatiently.
"Friends? I thought they hated you. Especially the plain-Jane girl…" Lola began.
"Shut-up." Oscar said angrily.
"And her boyfriend." Lola finished.
"Boyfriend?" Oscar asked in a confused tone.
"Don't you know? Your little girlfriend got together with your friend after you did something to make her mad. They went to the movies, and were getting all buddy-buddy." Lola said, swimming towards Oscar. "You wouldn't happen to know about this, would you?"
"Like I'd tell you…" Oscar began, about to say a nasty comment. He stopped, however, when he thought about Lola's words. "Wait… how did you know that my friends went to the movies?"
"I heard them talk about going to the movies." Lola said. "They were having a really good time. Too bad their fun was all ruined…" She added, hinting at something. Oscar got the hint.
"The shooting!" Oscar shouted angrily. "You were behind that!" He paused to think for a moment. "But... how? The police said that the gun fish was a guy!"
"You think I would ruin my fins by touching a gun? I knew that I would get caught!" Lola said. "That's why I hired a gun fish to take care of the job. Sure, he was caught, but he was paid."
"You were behind the shooting!" Oscar shouted.
"Yeah, I know, I just explained that." Lola said nonchalantly, pulling out a mirror to look at her hair.
"Don't you know that you could've killed them! My friend almost died! If somebody hadn't given him that blood donation…"
"Somebody?" Lola said. "Don't you mean you? You're the one who gave him that blood donation."
Oscar stared at Lola for a while before asking, "How did you know?"
"I've been snooping around." Lola said casually.
"Get outta my house." Oscar said angrily.
"All right. I know when to leave." Lola said, swimming out the door. She was almost out the door when she added, "Oh, and don't even try to call the cops. I've made sure that your friends will suffer if you do. Ta." And with that, Lola swam out the door.
'Aww man. Look at the trouble I've gotten myself into now.' Oscar thought. 'And now, I've gotten my friends dragged into this too!'
Oscar had gotten himself into a lot of trouble before, but nothing as big as this. Sure, he may have put his friends in trouble before, but it was never a life or death situation. Now, it was.
'What am I supposed to do now?' Oscar thought. 'I've only got two weeks… two weeks that mean nothing!' Oscar paced as he thought of what to do. All of a sudden, a line from the letter just popped into Oscar's head.
You don't have my son to help you out now.
"That's it!" Oscar said to himself. "I'll get Lenny!"
'You can't get Lenny, remember? He couldn't go home because you didn't tell the truth! You don't know where he is, and plus, why would he want to help you? He probably hates you now!' A voice in Oscar's head said.
'Yeah, that's true.' Oscar thought. 'But I can still try.'
'Yeah right.' The voice in Oscar's head said. 'And how're you gonna find out where he is?'
Oscar knew that the voice in his head was right. He thought for a long time. Just as he was out of ideas, he remembered the time when he told Reuben about the sham.
Flashback
"But you have to tell me!" Reuben said. "If you don't fix this mess, then her new boyfriend Lenny will get her!"
That grabbed Oscar's attention. He opened up the door and said, "Lenny?"
"Yeah, Lenny!" Reuben said. "Why, d'you know him?"
End Flashback
Oscar drew conclusions from the flashback. "When Reuben planned that 'get back together' date for me and Angie, he had to have put a letter in her mailbox. Angie didn't tell him about the sham, so this means that he had to have found out about Lenny on his own." Oscar said to himself while pacing. "If Angie didn't tell him, and he was putting the invitation in the mailbox… then he must've found out about Lenny in a letter! But if he found out about Lenny in a letter, then that must mean that…" Oscar trailed off as the idea hit him. "Lenny is okay and sent Angie a letter! And Angie always keeps a special letter; especially from friends… all I have to do is knock on her door and…" Oscar trailed off from the thought as he remembered where Angie was. "But Angie isn't at home, so what do I do?" Oscar thought… and thought… and thought, until his brain began to hurt. Finally, he remembered something… something that just happened to be a habit of Angie's.
'Angie always keeps her terrace door open!' Oscar thought. 'All I have to do is swim up to her terrace, open the door, and look for the letter! Oscar, you're a genius!'
'I wouldn't go that far.' A voice in his head replied.
Oscar ignored the comment and smiled as he swam out the door. He had a plan to save his friends…
Scene Change
Oscar opened Angie's terrace door and swam in her apartment. He thought of telling Angie about locking her door… I mean, anyone could just get in, but he wasn't there to think about security issues. He was there to look for a letter; a letter from Lenny. He searched everywhere; under the couch, in the kitchen, even in Angie's room; but he couldn't find the letter. Oscar sat down and put his fins on the table in front of him.
'Maybe Angie threw the letter away.' Oscar thought as he felt his fins touch something that felt like paper… paper!
Oscar took his fins from off the table and looked at the spot where his fins just were. There, on the table, was the letter from Lenny!
'Here it is! It was on the table all along! I wonder why I didn't notice that before.' Oscar thought as he began to read. 'Hey Angie, I'm doing fine… okay, I don't need to read this.' Oscar skipped the rest of the letter and read the p.s. note. 'P.S. The address of where I am is on the back of this letter.' Oscar turned the letter and looked on the back. It said:
365 ship field, Coral city.
'So that's where he is!' Oscar thought. 'All I have to do is look on my computer to find out how to get to this address, and I'll be on my way!'
So, with cheerful thoughts and an optimistic feeling, Oscar swam home to look up the address on his computer. He took the letter with him, just in case he needed it.
Scene Change
Beep… beep… beep…
'Stupid heart monitor… wait… heart monitor?'
Lenny opened his eyes to see himself sitting in a bed with clean, white sheets.
"¡Lenny¡Usted está despierto!" (Translation: Lenny! You're awake!)
"Ahhh!"
Lenny felt himself being tackled by somebody! He looked up to see that it was… Ronnie! He was trying to say something, but his sides were being squeezed in the 'death grip hug' she was giving him.
"¡Yo le pensé fue hecho para!" Ronnie said, still giving Lenny the 'death grip hug.' (I thought you were done for!)
"Oww! My side!" Lenny shouted in pain.
"Oh!" Ronnie said, realizing that she was squeezing Lenny too hard. She backed away from him with a sheepish smile. "Sorry."
"That's all right." Lenny said with a smile. "I'm just glad you didn't break my rib…"
"Ha ha, very funny." Ronnie said.
"So… where am I?" Lenny asked. "It feels like I'm in a medical room."
"You are." Ronnie said. "After you were shot, I took you to the medical room, and they had this really nice doctor help you out for free. She said that the gun wound you received wasn't serious; it just grazed your lower side, and even though you lost a lot of blood, you didn't lose too much."
"Well that's a relief. I thought I would have to get stitches." Lenny said.
"Actually… you did have to get stitches." Ronnie said. "And I'm the one who gave them to you."
Lenny smiled. "You sure you weren't born a Nurse Shark?"
"Do I look like a Nurse Shark to you?" Ronnie asked.
Lenny looked at Ronnie. "Gimme five seconds…"
When he took too long in looking, Ronnie said, "Hey Lenny?"
"Hmm?" Lenny said, still looking at Ronnie.
Ronnie thwacked him upside the head. "That's for looking at me like that."
"Oww!" Lenny whined, rubbing his head. "That hurt!"
"It's what you get." Ronnie said with a shrug.
"I thought you liked me." Lenny said with mock sadness.
"Nope." Ronnie said.
"I bet I can change that." Lenny said with a smirk.
Ronnie gasped as she felt herself fall on Lenny. Apparently, he had pulled her onto him. (A/N: Get those perverted thoughts out of your mind, people, it's NOT LIKE THAT!)
"I thought you were supposed to be sick!" Ronnie said.
"I recover quickly." Lenny answered simply, leaning in for a kiss. Needless to say, they were in a mini make-out session. It was cut short when…
"Uhh… am I interrupting something?"
Lenny and Ronnie broke apart to see a barracuda's figure in the doorway, smiling at the couple.
"Because if I am… I can always come back later…"
"Uhh… no!" Ronnie said, regaining her composure. "That's okay! We were just…"
"Making out in the medical room, I know." The barracuda said, chuckling at the blushes on Lenny and Ronnie's faces. "But hey, you guys aren't the first…" The barracuda chuckled some more, lost in her memories, before she finally realized where she was and coughed. "So," She said professionally, looking at Lenny, "How're you doing?"
"Fine." Lenny answered a little too quickly.
"I bet you do feel fine." The doctor said, adding to her amusement.(and Lenny's embarrassment) "So... do you feel sore in any places?"
"Well yeah, I feel pain in my side, but that's where I was shot, so that should be normal, right?" Lenny answered.
"Oh yes, perfectly normal." The doctor said, writing stuff down. "Okay Lenny, you'll have to stay here overnight…"
"Wait!" Lenny said, cutting the doctor off. "How do you know my name?"
"Oh, I have my ways." The doctor said.
"Okay... but how come you're letting me stay here for free? I didn't even do anything for you!" Lenny said.
"Actually, you did do something for me, you just don't know it." The doctor said with a smile. "A kind act is repaid with a kind act." The doctor swam out the door, leaving puzzling looks on both Ronnie and Lenny's faces.
"Do you know what she's talking about?" Ronnie asked.
"Nope." Lenny said. "So… how'd you live? You know, after the whole 'birthday incident'…"
Ronnie smiled and chuckled slightly. "Should've seen that question coming. I can't exactly tell you how I was able to live… just think of it as my best birthday gift ever, but I can tell you what happened after you disappeared." She was going to say more until she saw the look on Lenny's face. He looked like a little kid listening to a story. "This is gonna be a long story… you might wanna get a snack…"
"Naw, I'm okay." Lenny said. "Now tell the story already!"
Ronnie took a deep breath and began her story. "After being slashed with the knife, I blacked out. I was out cold for a week; Jamel told me that. Even though Ricky had left (Andre told me that he was supposed to be gone) he came back for some reason… and it was a good thing he did! He found me and took me to the hospital…"
Flashback Story
Ricky swam through the outskirts of the city, looking for his sister, Ronnie, and Lenny. He was supposed to take the Passenger Whale back home, but for some reason, he wasn't there. Just as he was swimming towards Ronnie's ship, he smelt blood.
'Hmm, it must be some poor fish that wandered off…' Ricky thought, but his smelling said differently. It took him a while to realize… 'That's not fish blood…' Ricky turned around and followed his nose, wanting to investigate why the sea smelled the way it did. He wasn't ready for what he was about to see…
Ronnie and Markie were bleeding heavily, lying a few feet away from each other on the floor. Neither of them were moving, and Ricky couldn't see any signs of breathing. He didn't care about Markie; Markie could've been burnt to a crisp for all he cared; it was Ronnie he cared about.
"This is not happening." Ricky said in an unbelieving whisper. He swam over to Ronnie and observed the bleeding gash in her chest. 'No…' She wasn't breathing and she wasn't showing any signs of starting. Tears began to stream down the big brother's face until he noticed something.
There was a rock lodged in the middle of Ronnie's gash. Not a small pebble and not a large boulder, but a medium sized rock.
Ricky didn't know why, but he took the rock out the gash… and heard a small gasp for breath.
"Yes!" Ricky whispered elatedly. "She's alive!" He would've done a happy dance right then and there if he hadn't suddenly remembered the condition his sister was in. "I've gotta get the meds over here…"
Ricky pulled out his cell phone and called the emergency number. Much to his relief, not many people were in the hospital, so they would be over more quickly than usual. Less than five minutes had passed and Ricky heard the sound of ambulance sirens.
'Thank you medical guys.' Ricky thought.
The ambulance had taken Ronnie to the emergency room and in a few minutes, the doctor gave Ricky the results.
"She needs a blood transfusion." The doctor said. "She's lost too much blood, and it's weakened her. Also, she'll need stitches. We can't have her swimming around ripped open. We've got the stitches all figured out, but not the blood transfusion. We don't know anybody who can donate blood."
"I can." Ricky said.
"Mmm-hmm." The doctor said, adjusting the glasses on his nose. "And just how do you know Miss Ronnie?"
"I'm her brother." Ricky said.
"Step-brother?" The doctor questioned.
"Nope, just regular 'brother.'" Ricky said.
"I see." The doctor said, pulling out a clipboard. "Well, Mr. Ricky, we have to run some tests. Make sure you don't have any diseases, you know?"
"Yeah… but I don't have to get a shot, do I?" Ricky asked.
"Yes you do." The doctor said.
"Shoot." Ricky mumbled under his breath. He hated getting shots.
"But don't worry." The doctor said with a smile. "We'll give you a lollipop when you're done." He added as he swam off.
"Oh goody." Ricky mumbled, rubbing his arm. He could feel the shot already.
Flashback Story Interrupted
"Would you guys like anything?" A nurse said as she swam into the room. "We've got hot chocolate, ice cream…" She smirked as she added, "Candles…"
"What was that last one?" Lenny asked.
"… Ice cream." The nurse lied.
"I'd like some ice cream right about now." Lenny said. "Strawberry flavored, with sprinkles."
"Me too. Vanilla please…" Ronnie paused before adding, "With extra chocolate sauce."
"Okay, I'll be right back." The nurse said as she swam out the door.
As soon as the nurse left, Ronnie said, "I thought you said you didn't want a snack."
"Well, yeah… but this story sounds long." Lenny replied. "Besides, they have ice cream… and we both have memories with ice cream, don't we?"
"Don't make me hurt you."
"Uhh… I'll just listen to the story now." Lenny said, not wanting to get hit again.
"Good idea." Ronnie said as she resumed her story.
Flashback Story
Ricky swam from behind two white, windowed doors, rubbing his arm and sucking on a lollipop. He had gotten his shot shortly after the doctor told him about it. He was disease free (Ricky grumbled, "I already knew that. They didn't have to give me a shot…") and Ronnie would be getting her blood transfusion in an hour. He swam out the hospital, heading for the hotel he was staying at, and bumped into no one other than Jamel and Andre.
"Jamel? Andre?" Ricky asked. "What're you doing here?"
"What're you doing here?" Jamel asked.
"We thought you were leaving tonight!" Andre said.
"I was leaving tonight… but then something came up." Ricky said, pointing to the band-aid on his arm. "I had to get a shot."
"That'll explain the lollipop." Andre said.
"It comes with the shot!" Ricky said defensively.
"Uh-huh." Jamel said. "But why'd you have to get a shot? I mean, it's not like you were due for a check-up, were you?"
"I had to donate blood." Ricky said.
"Why?" Andre asked.
Ricky sighed and said, "Because Ronnie was slashed with a knife and she lost a lot of blood."
Andre and Jamel looked shocked. "Whoa…"
"Yeah, whoa." Ricky said. He then remembered something and looked directly at Andre. "Markie's your cousin, right?"
"Yeah." Andre answered.
"Well… I'm sorry to tell you this but…" Ricky took a deep breath before finishing. "Andre, Markie's dead."
"Wha…?" Andre said sadly. "How…"
"I don't know how. I wasn't there to see anything." Ricky said.
"You okay man?" Jamel asked Andre.
"Yeah, I'm all right." Andre said. Sure, Markie was evil and mean and stuff, but he was still his cousin.
"So… how's Ronnie doing?" Jamel asked.
"Fine." Ricky said. "The doctor says that as soon as she gets her blood transfusion, she'll be fine."
"Glad to hear that." Andre said with a small smile. He stopped smiling, however, when he noticed something. "Hey… where's Lenny?"
"Dunnow." Ricky said. "I didn't see him around."
"Probably didn't find out yet." Jamel said, feeling sorry for his friend.
There was a long silence, but a little kid with a newspaper in his fin broke the silence.
"Excuse me mister? Would you like a newspaper?" The kid asked, holding out a newspaper.
"Eh, sure, why not?" Jamel said, taking the newspaper from the kid's fin and giving him his tip.
"Thanks mister." The kid said as he swam off.
"So where d'you think Lenny is?" Ricky asked Andre. Jamel was too busy reading the paper.
"He's probably checking out that ship." Andre replied. "He planned on getting it after he won the contest money."
Ricky and Andre continued their conversation until Jamel said, "You guys, I don't think Lenny's at the ship."
"What makes you say that?" Andre asked.
"See for yourself." Jamel said, handing Andre the newspaper.
"There was an attack and a murder near the outskirts of town." Andre read. "The attack involved a sharkess, whose name is unknown. The murdered shark's name was Markie Loreto. It seems that Markie attacked Ronnie with a knife; his motivation is unknown. Markie was killed shortly after and the murderer fled the scene before police could get a good look at him. Police officials can only guess why the shark wanted to kill Markie, and came up with this conclusion: The shark killed Markie in self-defense, and fled the scene because he thought the cops wouldn't believe his story of killing him in self-defense. Until detectives and cops can think of anything else, the reasons for everything will be unknown."
When Andre was done reading, he looked up with a shocked look on his face. Jamel and Ricky had the same expressions.
"There was only one shark who could've murdered Markie…" Jamel began.
"… And that would be Lenny." Andre finished.
"That's why he's not here. He swam away!" Ricky said.
"But… he couldn't have murdered Markie… he's the biggest softie I know!" Andre said.
"At least we know he didn't do it on purpose." Jamel said. "I mean, after all, better he did it by self-defense than on purpose, right?"
"Yeah, I guess that's right." Ricky said. After a long silence, he added, "Well, I'm turning in for the night. All this excitement has made me tired." He swam toward the hotel.
"Come to think of it, I'm sleepy too. Good night Andre." Jamel said, swimming towards his apartment.
Andre shrugged his shoulders and swam towards his apartment too.
Flashback Story Interrupted
"I've got the ice creams!"
Ronnie stopped her story and turned around, as did Lenny. The nurse was back with two bowls of ice cream in her fins.
"One for you…" The nurse gave the strawberry ice cream to Lenny, "And one for you…" She gave the vanilla ice cream to Ronnie.
"Thanks." Lenny and Ronnie said.
"No problem. Just call on me if you need anything." The nurse said cheerfully as she swam out the door.
"Now this… is WAY better… than rum flavored ice cream." Lenny said while eating his ice cream.
"Yeah…" Ronnie said. "Oh, and you've got ice cream on your nose."
"Oh no, I'm not falling for that again." Lenny said.
"Falling for what?" Ronnie asked innocently.
"The last time you told me that, you stole some of my ice cream." Lenny said.
"Why Lenny, do you honestly think that I was trying to steal your ice cream again?" Ronnie asked.
"Yes."
"Well good, because I was." Ronnie said with a smile. She paused before adding, "But can't I just try a little bit…"
"No."
"Fine." Ronnie sighed. "I'll just continue the story…"
Flashback Story
A nurse came into Ronnie's room and opened up the curtains, letting the sunshine light up the room. The nurse then swam out Ronnie's room to open up the other patient's curtains. The sunlight shone on Ronnie's face and made her wake up. She was surprised to see herself in the starched, white sheets, fluffy pillows, and weirdly soft mattress of a medical bed.
'Great, I'm in the hospital again.' She thought. She didn't think about that for long, though. She was still sleepy and decided to drift back off to sleep… but the sunlight wasn't making her attempt to sleep any easier. So, she put the pillow over her head and began to drift of to sleep…
"Rise and shine sleepyhead!"
Ronnie immediately woke up to the wake up call she was given.
"¿Qué demonios¿Por qué permitirán las personas no apenas que mí dormir!" Ronnie shouted in an annoyed tone. (What the hell? Why won't people just let me sleep!) She growled and put her head back under the pillow.
"Aww, c'mon Ronnie. You know we don't understand Spanish."
Ronnie took her head from under the pillow and was surprised to see Jamel and Andre floating in front of her.
"Jamel? Andre?" Ronnie said in a confused voice.
"In the flesh." Jamel said with a smile.
"But… what're you two doing here?" Ronnie questioned in a confused voice. "More importantly, what am I doing here?"
"You mean… you don't remember anything that happened a week ago?" Andre asked.
"A week ago!" Ronnie shouted.
"Yup, you've been a sleeping beauty for a week." Jamel said.
"Sleeping beauty?" Andre questioned.
"I couldn't think of anything better to say." Jamel said with a shrug.
"I can't believe I've been asleep for a week…" Ronnie said.
"Aww. C'mere and gimme a hug." Jamel said as he went over and hugged Ronnie, who gave him a weird look.
"You hugged her?" Andre asked.
"It seemed appropriate at the time." Jamel said. "Why, did you want a hug too?"
Andre gave Jamel a weird look that matched Ronnie's. "Dude, I told you not to try those free drink samples."
Ronnie's eyes widened. "Free drink samples? What the fu…"
"OOOkayyyy!" Andre said, stopping Ronnie from saying anything that would make this story R rated. "Yes, you were sleeping for a week, but that wouldn't surprise me; not after what happened to you."
"Does this have anything to do with what happened a week ago?" Ronnie asked.
"Yup." Andre said. "A week ago, you were attacked by Markie and he slashed you with a knife, and luckily, Ricky found you and took you to the hospital…"
"Ricky? But I thought he was leaving." Ronnie said.
"Well, he was, but his ride home was late, and he decided to come back. So, after that…" Andre began, but he was cut off by Jamel.
"Long story short, Ricky found you, took you to the hospital, you needed a blood transfusion, he gave you the blood, you got the transplant, and we all lived happily ever after." Jamel said.
Andre glared at Jamel for cutting him off. "That sure did sum everything up." He said sarcastically.
"Yup." Jamel said.
"Oh yeah… now I remember being attacked!" Ronnie said. "But… if I was found by Ricky… where is he?"
"He's at his hotel, probably still sleeping." Andre replied.
"Okay… so what about Markie?" Ronnie asked.
"He was killed." Andre said sadly.
"Oh, I'm sorry." Ronnie said sincerely. "But… who was he killed by, if you don't mind me asking?"
Jamel and Andre looked at each other, not knowing how to answer the question.
"Well… you see… it goes like this…" Jamel began.
"We were reading this newspaper…" Andre said.
"And the evidence the police found…"
"If the evidence is true, that is…"
"According to the evidence…"
"The killer is…"
"Lenny." Jamel and Andre finally managed to say.
Ronnie stared at the two with a blank look on her face. "Wha…?"
"It was in self-defense though, so that means that he isn't a blood-thirsty murderer." Jamel said.
"Oh." Ronnie said in a relieved tone. For a second there, she thought Lenny was a cold-blooded murderer. "So, where's Lenny now?"
"That's another thing." Andre said. "After Lenny killed Markie…"
"In self-defense." Jamel added.
"…He thought the cops wouldn't believe his story of self-defense, so he kind of… swam away." Andre finished.
Ronnie didn't know how to respond to that. There was a long silence, and Ronnie finally said, "Do the cops know which way he went?"
"Huh?" Andre said.
"Whaddya mean?" Jamel asked.
"As soon as I'm able to swim," Ronnie said, "I'm going to look for him."
"I knew you were gonna say that." Jamel said.
"How'd you know I was gonna say that?" Ronnie asked.
"Ronnie, I've been here long enough to know that you are crazy about him, and drawing conclusions from that, I know that if Lenny disappeared, you'd wanna find him." Jamel said.
"Wow… Jamel…" Andre said. "That's gotta be the smartest, most heart warming thing you've ever said."
"Yeah, well, you know." Jamel said with a smile. "What can I say?"
"Not much." Ronnie said with a smirk.
"Hey, I just gave you a heart warming talk thingy, and you're just gonna insult me like that?" Jamel asked.
"Well… yeah." Ronnie replied.
"You know, just for that, I'll never give you another heart warming talk again." Jamel said.
"I bet you won't." Ronnie said with a smile. "But seriously… do you know which way he went?"
"Well, no." Andre answered.
"But we know that he wouldn't wanna go back to Reef City." Jamel added.
"So that means that he would've gone in the opposite direction." Andre finished.
"So… that must mean that he's in Weed city…" Ronnie said. She thought a while before saying, "I guess that's where I have to go then."
"But… but… Ronnie! You can't go there! I mean, Weed city is full of robbers, killers and psychos!" Andre protested.
"So? I'm a tough girl." Ronnie said.
"Yeah but… you're going on the possibility that you might die!" Andre said. "In that city, there's a forty-nine thousand out of five thousand and fifty percent chance of death to anyone who goes there!"
"Well, those percents are gonna have to change, 'cause I'm going to that city, and I'm not gonna make it there without any difficulty. Maybe other unlucky fish have died there, but not me." Ronnie said. "I've escaped from death twice, and I'll do it again."
"You go girl!" Jamel said while clapping his fins. He stopped when he saw Ronnie and Andre giving him weird looks. "Sorry."
"Okay…" Andre said. "But still," He added, looking at Ronnie, "You do know the dangers in this situation, right?"
"Yeah." Ronnie said.
"Okay then, but there's a slight problem." Andre said.
"What?" Ronnie asked.
"Your brother." Andre said. "There's no way he'll let you go over there."
"There's no way he'll let me go over there IF he knows where I'm going." Ronnie said.
"Are you asking us to lie to your brother?" Jamel asked.
"No, I'm just asking you to cover for me." Ronnie said. "Besides, you guys owe me anyway."
"For what?" Jamel and Andre asked.
"Well, you owe me, Jamel, for that pizza prank." Ronnie said.
"Oh yeah, I remember that." Jamel said with a sheepish smile.
"And you, Andre… well, you know what you owe me for." Ronnie said with a smirk. "And it begins with an S."
"All right, we'll cover for you!" Andre said. "But I'm not gonna like it."
" I am." Jamel said with a grin.
End Flashback Story
"So, as soon as I got my energy back, I found a Whale Shark that was bringing some passengers over here and got on. I was able to get here by night. I didn't know where you were, so I began to swim around the city in hopes that I'd see you somewhere. I was swimming down an alley… and that's where you come in." Ronnie concluded.
"So that's how you were able to get over here." Lenny said.
"Sure, that's how I got over here… but how did you get over here?" Ronnie asked.
"Actually… I don't know." Lenny said. "You see, I was swimming around for a long time, and then, Carlotta appeared out of nowhere, and she kind of…" Lenny trailed off.
"Kind of what?" Ronnie asked.
"She kind of kissed me and I passed out." Lenny said. He didn't know it, but he was smiling.
"Are you smiling?" Ronnie said.
"Uh… no!" Lenny said. "I was… remembering a joke that C.J. told me!"
"C.J?" Ronnie questioned. "Who's he?"
"A friend of mine." Lenny answered. "He helped me with my job, and tried not to get me in trouble with Lamont. He couldn't help me out of trouble, though, when those guys were chasing me."
"You just make friends everywhere you go, don't you?" Ronnie said with a smile.
"Yup." Lenny said. "Though not all of them are friendly…"
"I saw that earlier on." Ronnie said.
"Excuse me?"
Ronnie and Lenny turned around to see the doctor floating in the doorway.
"Sorry, but visiting hours are almost over. You guys have one more hour." The doctor said as she closed the door.
"Well… good night I guess." Ronnie said. "I better be going."
"Night." Lenny said.
The doctor popped her head back in the door. "Oh, and no good night kisses in the medical room. Do that when you get home." She swam out the door again.
"How'd she know…?" Lenny began.
"It's kind of hard not to tell." Ronnie said with a smile.
"That's true." Lenny said. "But hold up… if you don't live here… where are you gonna be staying?"
"Hmm… I didn't think of that." Ronnie said. "You got any ideas?"
Lenny thought for a while, before an idea came to his mind. "You got your cell phone on you?"
"Well… yeah. Here it is." Ronnie gave Lenny her cell phone, who quickly dialed up a number.
"Hello, Rhea? Yeah, I'm alive, but I'm in the hospital." Lenny said. "How I got in the hospital is a long story… yeah, I'm all right. But listen… do you think you and C.J. can come over to the hospital? I kind of need a favor…"
Scene Change
Rhea and C.J. arrived at the hospital about ten minutes later. They had to get around a few of Lamont's boys and Rhea had to close down the tavern early, ("You can't trust hit-sharks alone in a bar." Rhea said) but they managed to get to the medical room without any trouble.
"A'ight Lenny," C.J. said, swimming into Lenny's room with Rhea, "Why'd you call us over here? I was busy…" He trailed off when he saw Ronnie floating in the room. 'Uh oh, it's time for me to put on the C.J. charm.' He thought.
Rhea noticed the weird look in C.J.'s eyes and shook her head. 'Oh no, he's gonna put on the 'C.J. charm.'
C.J. put on a sophisticated look and began to talk in a suave voice. He swam over to Ronnie. "Well, hello there Miss… why, I don't think I've had the pleasure of knowing your name."
"Ronnie." Ronnie replied.
'Ronnie? Didn't Lenny tell me that she was his…?' Rhea's eyes grew wide as she remembered what Lenny had told them at the tavern. "C.J.!" She whispered loud enough for only C.J. to hear. "Stop hitting on her! She's…"
"Shhh!" C.J. whispered back. "I think the C.J. charm is working!"
Rhea rolled her eyed. 'Fine. If he wants to embarrass himself, let him.'
"So… you said your name is Ronnie?" C.J. said suavely. "That's a pretty name to match your pretty eyes."
Ronnie glanced at Lenny with a look that said, 'Is this guy for real?' Lenny replied with a look that said, 'Yes. Sadly, he is.'
"Thank you." Ronnie said.
"So… how do you know my friend Lenny over here?" C.J. asked.
"Oh, he's my boyfriend." Ronnie said.
Had there been a record playing, it would've scratched.
"B-boyfriend?" C.J. stuttered.
"Yup." Ronnie said. "And it's been like that for a long time."
C.J. turned towards Lenny with the words 'embarrassed' written all over his face. "So you mean… I've just hit… on your girlfriend?" C.J. said.
"Yup." Lenny said, smirking at his friend's embarrassment. "If you were some other guy, I'd have to hurt you, but since you're my friend, I decided to let you find out for yourself."
"This is embarrassing." C.J. said, covering his face with his fin.
"It sure is." Rhea said with a smirk. "I tried to tell you, but did you listen? Nooo. You just had to use your 'C.J. charm' on the girl."
C.J. ignored the comment as he looked at Ronnie again. "But still… would you have gone out with me if you weren't Lenny's girlfriend?"
Lenny sent C.J. a death glare, which C.J. noticed instantly.
"Not that I'm still tryin' go out with you or anything, it's just that I wanna know because you're pretty…"
Lenny gave C.J. an even fiercer death glare, and C.J. noticed this one too.
"Not that I'm hitting on you or anything, I mean you're already taken and… and…" C.J. sighed as he felt Lenny's death glares burning into him. "I'm gonna shut-up now."
"Good idea." Ronnie said with a smile.
Rhea hid her laughter behind a fin to her mouth. 'Please, somebody give me front row seats for when Lenny kicks C.J.'s tail.'
C.J. coughed uncomfortably and tried to change the subject. "So uh… what was the favor you needed?"
"Well, I was kind of wondering if you could show Ronnie where the hotel is." Lenny said. "I can't, because I'm currently unable to swim."
"Of course we'll show her where the hotel is." Rhea said, and swam over to Ronnie. "C'mon, I've gotta see if I can show you around before we get to the hotel. The name's Rhea by the way."
"Ronnie." Ronnie replied.
"I've heard." Rhea said. "So, you know about Carlotta's date with Lenny, right?"
"Yeah, that's why I punched her." Ronnie said.
"You punched her?" Rhea said in a surprised tone. "But nobody's ever punched her before!"
"I guess I'm the first." Ronnie said.
"Ya know, I think we're gonna be good friends." Rhea said with a smile as she and Ronnie swam out the door.
"Hey, Lenny?" C.J. asked. "Why're you in the hospital anyway?"
"I was shot." Lenny answered.
"Where were you shot?" C.J. asked.
"The lower side." Lenny said.
"The lower side?" C.J. asked.
Lenny got what C.J. was trying to say, and said, "Unfortunately, yes."
"Well, that being said, I've gotta ask you a personal question." C.J. said.
"Ask away." Lenny replied.
"No, I mean a REALLY personal question." C.J. said.
"….."
"……."
"….."
"….."
"Oh! You mean, you wanna know if…" Lenny began.
"Yeah." C.J. said.
"Well yeah, I can." Lenny said.
"Oh." C.J. replied.
There was a long and awkward silence.
"So… I guess I'll go show Ronnie to the hotel then…" C.J. said.
"All right, see ya tomorrow." Lenny said.
With those words, C.J. swam out the room, and the nurse popped her in the door once again.
"Hmm, your friends have already left. Oh well, saves me the energy of telling them to get out. Anyway, lights out." The nurse turned off the lights and closed the door.
Usually, Lenny would've told the nurse that he wasn't sleepy; he always did that when he was a kid and he had to go the hospital for some reason. But now… he actually felt sleepy. Needless to say, he soon fell asleep.
Scene Change
Oscar was on his computer, looking up information on Coral City. He hadn't found out much info on it yet; the search results kept showing him different websites, (You can guess what was on those websites) but he had finally found what he was looking for… and it was on a travel website.
"Okay, so it says here," Oscar read off the computer screen, "That Coral City is one of the best tourist attractions because of its competitions and talent shows. It is an all carnivorous city…" Oscar stopped right there. 'All carnivorous? If I go there I'll be eaten for sure!'
'Read the letter; and this time read ALL of it.' A voice in his head said.
Oscar took the letter from off his computer desk and read it. There was one part he read that he knew would help him out. "I'm staying at my new friend Ronnie's place, and she's very nice. She didn't laugh at me when I said I was a vegetarian; truth is she's omnivorous!"
"That's it!" Oscar said to himself. "If I get Lenny's friend Ronnie, she'll be able to help me out! And since she's omnivorous, there's a slight chance she won't eat me!"
Oscar had it all planned out. Now all he had to do was find the location of Ronnie's ship.
'Map quest, don't fail me now.'
Scene Change
Lamont was at his desk, filing paperwork, when suddenly…
"Dadddddyyyyyyy!"
Lamont knew this whiny voice's owner anywhere; after all, it did belong to his daughter. Carlotta was floating in front of his desk, holding her nose.
"What's wrong Carlotta?" Lamont asked.
"Lenny ran off on me, and then this girl came up and broke my nose!" Carlotta wailed.
"What?" Lamont said. "I thought my boys took care of him!"
"Well, you see, I kind of shot him…" Carlotta began.
"Oh, well then, what's the problem?" Lamont asked.
"It wasn't a direct hit. He's still alive somewhere, with his girlfriend. Man, I hate her…" Carlotta said.
"Do you remember what she looks like?" Lamont asked.
Carlotta nodded her head. "And the boys you sent after Lenny know what she looks like too."
"Well, don't worry sweetheart." Lamont said. "We'll get Lenny… and his friend too…"
"Thank you daddy." Carlotta said sweetly before swimming out the office.
"No problem." Lamont said. 'You aren't gonna slip away from me this time Lenny. This time, I'm gonna get ya myself…'
TBC…
Oooh, what happens next? Will Lamont kill Lenny? Will Angie and Reuben get out of the mob's capture alive? Will Oscar find out where Lenny is? Only one way to find out, and that's to stay tuned for the next chappie!
I have found voices for un-voiced characters!
Rhea- Who could do her voice: Pepa (You know… from the group called 'Salt and Pepa?')
Willie- Who could do his voice: Bruce Willis
R&R pleez!