Still trying to keep up with things. This story is nearing a close. Shouldn't be too much longer now. But I've got more to come!
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AND DON'T FORGET TO CHECK OUT COCONUTCINNAMON 'S ART FOR WHERE I GOT INSPIRATION FOR THE PREVIOUS CHAPTER ON HER TUMBLR.
Chapter 7: Lurking Beneath the Surface
Joy's golden hands gently fussed with her swim suit, adjusting the blue and white cloth to make sure it was snug and secure. Satisfied with the sturdiness of the knot, she happily sat herself back down onto the towel beneath her, shaded from the glorious glittering sun above by the wide beach umbrella in the sand. She layed herself slowly onto her back, beaming a blissful smile skyward, enjoying the warmth of the summer breeze over her beady glowing skin.
Fear took in a slow, shaky breath. His cheeks still retained a smidgen of color from the topless incident only moments earlier, and he was trying to calm himself back down, though he was being met with some difficulty as he tried to ignore the image now burned into his retinas. He continued his deep, calming breathing, looking instead to the rise and fall of the cerulean surf as it rolled its frothy waves upon the sand, trying to keep his thoughts from drifting elsewhere.
Though the incident had thoroughly flustered Fear, Joy thought nothing of it. As she lay on the beach absorbing the warmth in the air, she sighed contentedly, as if she had simply fetched her outfit from the tent without anything interesting happening along the way. After all, modesty was a branch of fear. So while the feeling was severely muted to her, it was insanely heightened in him.
Fear was also mildly frustrated. Laying on his stomach, he repeatedly traced an infinity symbol into the sand with his finger, repeatedly going over the past twenty minutes in his mind. In the chaos, yet another chance for a pebble had been snatched away from him. It was just within his grasp; but because Joy had bolted away, her back remained unprotected from the sun. He would've reminded her once she returned that she still had exposed skin so he could complete her request, but he could hardly manage a sentence after the fact for almost ten minutes straight. So he reluctantly let the opportunity pass him. This was getting annoying. He defiantly told himself that he was refusing to miss the next one. And he knew just how to get it.
In a swift and surprisingly bold move, Fear leapt to his slender, lavender feet. Joy, somewhat startled by the sound, lazily rolled her head and opened her starry blue eyes to complete her quizzical expression.
He held a widespread hand in her direction. "Come on, Joy!" He smiled, confident yet still unable to prevent his facial color change. "Let's go swimming!"
A huge wave of excited energy immediately flew through her entire body, and Joy sat up in an instant. "All right!" She shouted, placing a golden hand into Fear's palm. "Let's do it!" As she pulled Fear's spindly arm to rise to her feet, she beamed a beautiful smile. She was so happy, even astounded, that it had been Fear who had suggested to go swimming. Maybe, she thought, he really was learning how to relax and have fun, as she did.
Up on her feet, Joy refused to release her colleagues hand, and instead dragged the skittish emotion behind her as she plowed through the sand to where the sea lapped at the surface. Fear, doing his best to control his anxiety, followed clumsily behind with a nervous chuckle. This was working.
Joy only released Fear's hand once she was ankle deep, as moving forward now increased in difficulty and she required both arms for balance. Without Joy's leading, Fear slowed significantly. The water, though warmer than he expected, was still a shocking temperature change as it splashed against his bare skin. And as the depth around him increased, so too did all his fearful thoughts, mostly concerning all the dangerous sea life that could be swimming unseen all around him. But he quickly drowned these thoughts out with another glance at Joy. Her picturesque form moved gracefully in her excitement, with splashes of glistening seawater sparkling around her ankles and accenting her natural glow. For Joy, he told himself. This was all for Joy.
As she entered water deep enough for her stomach to become partially submerged, Joy noticed the sound of her follower had diminished. She paused and turned with a wide grin, noting that Fear was still a few good steps away and slowing. She waved an arm, gesturing towards herself. "Come on, Fear!" She chirped, trying her hardest to be encouraging.
Fear returned her upbeat smile, though his involved more red in his cheeks, and continued to make his way forward. Though the anxious thoughts became louder and the feeling of dread more nagging, he managed to stay focused on Joy long enough to join her in the water. He noticed his slender torso had begun to quiver, no doubt a result both of his worrying and of the cool water, and he nervously kneaded his hands with an embarrassed giggle.
His quaking nerves obvious from the ripples reaching out from where his body broke the surface, Joy decided this was deep enough for now. She offered a playful laugh and lowered herself into the water, kicking off the sand and gracefully floating backwards using her own natural buoyancy.
Carefully studying her subtle movements to stay afloat, Fear attempted to follow her lead. Ignoring the alarms and warnings of his own psyche, he leaned down until the tips of his shoulders were barely visible. Slowly yet with little hesitation, he allowed his feet to leave the muddy sand beneath, imitating the swim style he had learned from Riley's swim instructor and paddling over to Joy. Due to his odd shape, his stubby legs offered little propulsion, and he relied instead on his long arms and large palms to push him forward, which he found worked quite admirably as both his engine and his steering.
Somewhat surprised by this talent he never knew he had, Fear grinned widely. Pushing this time a tad more vigorously, he swam in an excited circle all around Joy. She immediately found the silly display adorable, and emitted a bubbling laughter as she spun in the water, tracking his face as he moved. Fear laughed too. This was... fun! Maybe Joy was right, he pondered. Maybe it doesn't hurt to let your gaurd down sometimes..."
Fear's own excitement only invigorated Joy further. Her eyes gleamed with a new plot. Now that he was having fun, it was time to, gently, start pushing him a little harder.
She rolled forward again and stood tall upon her feet, remembering just how shallow the water still was. As entertaining as shallow water swimming was, it didn't compare in Joy's mind to swimming where the water was deep, dark, and so brilliantly blue. "Come on!" She signaled ahead. "Lets go even deeper! To where we can't stand!"
All the enjoyment he had mustered seemed to dissipate in an instant as the realization of Joy's request washed over him. Deeper? Where they couldn't stand? The danger would soon escalate to levels he could never ignore. Fear forced a phony smile and nodded, and Joy merrily spun around and continued further out to sea toward the shimmering horizon. When her gaze was gone, his face immediately fell into an expression of worry and concern. Wasn't the shallow swimming fun? Why couldn't they have just stuck to that? Fear eeked out a quiet whimper. He should've known the pebble wouldn't be acquired that easily.
Fear took in a deep breath. 'This is all for Joy', He told himself. 'Just go one step at a time'.
With the density of the water absorbing most of the quivering in his knees, Fear shuffled a few nervous steps forward. As the water grew darker and more of his glowing lavender particles disappeared beneath the surface, his thoughts of terror and dread began to scream ever louder. As each step pressed on the sandy sea floor, he imagined a sleeping stingray being rudely awoken and jabbing a barb into the offending ankle. As each leg swung forward, he could almost see half a dozen sharks lunging at exposed toes, some with mouths wide enough to take off an entire leg in one diabolical bite. Crabs were posed and ready to pinch, Jellyfish floated lazily by to apathetically sting, a lion fish whose warning colors went unnoticed was prepared to inject any threats with a toxic venom.
As Fear's foot once again impacted the sand below, a foreign object rubbed across his calf muscle with a feather like touch. Fear's mind instantly flooded with thousands of terrified thoughts as to what this lurking danger might be, immediately overwhelming his entire being. He quickly let loose an ear piercing shriek that cut through the summer air like a dagger, causing Joy to turn fast. With his horrified eyes constricting and his expressive hair like appendage standing up straight, he forced his body backwards, nearly tripping and falling beneath the waves.
"IT TOUCHED ME." He screeched, the thought of pebbles now absent from his mind. "SOMETHING JUST TOUCHED ME. I'M GOING TO DIE!"
"What is it, Fear?" Joy called back to him, concerned, but having trouble hearing him over the ambient sounds of the ocean.
As he screamed, the mysterious underwater being gently tickled his knee, and he started to shriek even louder. Terrified, he plunged a hand into the brine and groped blindly for the object, nabbing the slimy thing in his grip and yanking it toward the surface where he determined it would be defenseless.
Hanging limp from his fist was a harmless hunk of seaweed that he had accidentally stumbled into while wading through the water. This, Fear realized, was the mysterious creature that had sent him into a frenzy. Slowly, the embarrassment set in, and Fear's face once more erupted into a crimson glow. He slowly brought his shame filled gaze up towards Joy, and was embarrassed even further to find that she was desperately trying to hold back her laughter.
"Hey, it's okay, Fear!" She giggled, keeping the bulk of her chuckle at bay. "You're alright. It's just seaweed! Now come on! We're almost deep enough!"
'Actually, you're almost deep enough...' Fear sighed. He was still a considerable distance behind the golden figure. And now he was filled with so much shame and embarrassment... His display, he decided, had already cost him the pebble. It was clear that he was simply too much of a coward to join Joy in any of the activities she found fun.
"N-no..." Fear sighed, keeping his voice loud not only so Joy could hear him but also to disguise his depression. "You go on ahead. I'll... I'll just stay here where it's shallow for a while." He forced a small smile. "You have fun..."
Joy's keen eye saw straight through the false grin upon Fear's face. She lowered her shoulders in sorrow, struck by another wave of guilt. She had pushed the poor creature too hard again. Just as before, his natural concern and anxiety had worked him into a panic from too much being asked of him. Joy felt her face fall. Surely the fake smile was to mask his frustration towards her insensitivity.
Desperate not to upset him any further, Joy simply decided to do as Fear said. "Alright." She grinned, hoping her fake smile was more convincing than his had been. "I'm just going out a little further. I'll come and join you later."
Both emotions turned in opposite directions, allowing their faces to reveal their true feelings now that the other couldn't see. As Fear slowly waded closer to shore, he could hear Joy swim the other way, no doubt to have fun in the deeper waters without him. When the water was shallow enough, Fear knelt down in the sand, the water lapping at his shoulders.
He had been trying so hard during this outing, doing things he normally would never attempt. Yet he had nothing to show for it. If he couldn't find another opportunity to prove himself fast, then it might be time, he worried, to admit that he simply wasn't good enough for Joy.