After we let go of each other, my dad put an arm around my shoulder and led me away. I quickly look back at the ocean, only to find that my uncles had swam away, probably to give us some privacy. I flushed with embarrassment at that thought. When I turned back from looking the ocean, I saw that the interviews were back from their break and ready to restart. Oh crap, what am I going to do? I really don't want paparazzi frenzy. Max had told me all about those, and it honestly sounded two sharks fighting over some meat, I really don't want to be that piece meat. So I started to formulate a plan to escape, then I realized that I had to leave my dad, which I really did not want to do. So while I was having my inward discussion, dad said
" All right guys that's enough for today".
Every one shared at him with a blank face, " What" said the man with the producer t-shirt
" We just got started" !
Dad just continued to walk " Can't right now" he said " A family matter came up".
He said looking at me with a goofy grin, and pulled me into a sideways hug. If this were two hours ago, this kind of behavior would not have been aloud with in thirty miles of me. But with dad, I'll let it slide. We started walking up the beach reminiscing about old times in the old lab. Then very suddenly my dad stopped walking. His sudden movement made me lose my balance, and I basically almost have a very close conversation with the ground. Just before I hit the assault I felt two arms circle around my waist, and pull me back up
" You got to be careful Sharkboy". Dad said with a smile, but I could see the real concern in his eyes. I looked down at the ground embarrassed to find assault? Assault, what? We are on a beach, then I noticed we had been walking up the beach, to a parking lot, now we in front of a car, which is why dad had stopped walking. Now I feel like an idiot. As if he could read my mind
" Its ok kid" he said with a smirk and kissed my head once again.
" All right Taylor, time to go home".
I remember what Max had told me about cars, and opened the passenger door, sat down in the seat buckling my seat belt. Dad started up the car, and starting to drive on to the main road, I only realized the implications of going to his house, once we got there.
My dad's place bet Max's house by a mile. The house was at least three stories high, on the first floor almost the entire wall surface was glass, and through the glass I could see giant tanks with all kinds of sea creatures in them. I remember dad being at against animals testing, so these must be the sick, and injured, animals he would find. He would take them here, heal them, and release them again. Always nice to know we have the same ethics about animals. I just hope that ethic applies to me. Before I could think about my own fishy problems I caught a glimpse at the second floor, it was painted entirely blue, with luminescent paint , so when the sun reflected on it looked like you were underwater, looking up towards the surface. Wow I can only imagine what was in there. Then came the third floor, not as cool as the others, but still wonder us. I saw that the most of story was covered in glass like the first floor, but unlike the first floor, the third floor had dark shades draped all around it. I am sure that if someone were in there, their shadow would reflect outside. I honestly don't know why you would put glass around something, if you did not want them to see what was inside. Yet this only made my curiosity sky rocket, I really wanted to know what was inside!
As we pulled up the drive way into the garage, and walk in to the house.
" Here kid let me give you the grand tour". Dad said opening his arms in the gesturing movement. He really did give me the grand tour. I was right guessing on a number of accounts what was in this house. The first floor was the place to the sick, and injured it was really an underwater vet. Oddly enough he took me straight to the third next no the second floor. I did not have time to think about why, because when I got to the third floor it was absolutely unbelievable. This was the research room, a room that was exactly like the one in the old lab! Dad stood by the door ,as I look around and messed around with some of the equipment. Dad soon came over to see what I was doing with one of the microscopes. " What are you doing"?
" Looking at the bio-structure of scales of an angel fish".
" Look kid, you should not be playing with Mr. Conner's equipment". Ok that was definitely not dad, I turned around to find a woman with a stern look about her face. She could have been more than thirty but that stern look she was giving me, made her look ancient.
" What are you even doing here kid, how did you get in here"?
Before open my mouth to explain, she took my ear in her hand, twisted it and pulled me out of the room. " Of whatever I'll just take you to Mr. Conner"
Wait a minute who was Mr. Conner, where did dad go, and can I throw this lady out the glass wall, honestly she could have just asked me to come with her. I probably would have reused to, but whatever happened to being polite? She pulled me down both flights of stairs to the main floor, only then did she let go of my ear. " Of where did he go"?
She ask probably looking for Mr. Conner, who cared, this was my chance to get out of here. While she was looking around for him, used I a little shark stealth and, walked down the opposite hallway, dad did say there was a bath room this way, I don't think she would pull me out of there. As I was being stealthy, I walked into a wall. Wow being human has made me lose all common sense, for instance look in front of you while walking. Nice job Sharkboy! " Hey shark where you off to"?
I look up to find that, that rock was my dad, where am I going? Where did he go? Again like he can read my mind he replied " I just went to the bath room, you were having so much fun I did not want to ruin it".
" Don't worry the Parana already did that"
. " What Parana" Opp's did I say that out loud, crap. " Sharkboy what's going on".
" Mr. Conner, that's where you are". Said the Parana lady, waltzing in.
She walked straight to me and re-gapped my ear. " I found this, wondering in your private lab, I brought him back here knowing you like your privacy. I don't know how he got in the house. Should I phone the police"?
The cops, for what! I was in my dad's lad that he let me in. Without realizing it I had let out a low rumpling growl. She looked at my stunned, and quickly run to my dad.
" He must be one of those street kids, really they say they are dangerous, we need to get him out of her before he ruins your research"!
While she was having her little freak out I saw her get closer, and closer to my dad, to the point where she was practically curled up in her chest. What wait a minute, this woman was flirting with my dad. Ok that's just gross. But gross aside, what if he liked her back, had I just destroyed my dad's relationship. I did not have to wait long to find the answer to that question. " Mindy what are you talking about? This is my son Taylor".
I gave a short wave. " He was in the lab, because I brought him there" Dad said pushing he off his chest giving her a look of utter peril, dads death glare, people think that batman has the best daddy bats glare, they are wrong papa-shark makes it seem like you are going to be torn limb, from limb. It really did not help that were where actually standing in front of a Parana tank, ah irony. "This is his house, he lives here, and what were you doing in my lab, you know its private to all personal that I don't verify, and I know I did not verify you"?!
" Well Mr. Conner" she said stammering for her explanation. Of this is going to be good. " Sir I just wanted to tell you that Animal Planet, Discovery, and Imax wanted to make a documentary of your scientific finds!"
" You could have called". He said not letting up the papa-shark glare one bit, but completely to my embarrassment he gapped me by that arm, and pulled me to his side, always having an arm around my shoulder.
" I just wanted to see you reaction to the news". Mindy said with a slit smile, trying to lighten the mood, it had the opposite effect. I knew dad despised it he when people tried to cover up there mistakes. So that smile just made him snap. He opened his mouth about to say something that probably have scared her for life. Then he suddenly looked down at me as if remembering I was there.
" We will talk about this later". He said giving her one last glare, it screamed ' get out'! Thankfully she was not that stupid, and scurried off. " Yes sir Mr. Conner".
Finally something registered with me. The Mr. Conner she was talking about was my dad. So if my dad was a Conner, that means my name is Taylor Conner. Not bad, I thought.
" I'm sorry sharky". Dad said as we restarted up the stairs.
" It's all good". I said trying to cover up just how irritated that Mindy had made me.
" Nice try kid, tell me what's up". I could lie to everyone else on earth, and planet drool, but him. I think it has to do with the fact, he was there when I first learned how to lie, go figure.
" Alright, she pushed my buttons, who is she anyway"? I asked.
" Mindy is my agent." I looked him straight in the eye, an agent my dad. Ah. I knew he was famous for a national science discovery. But an agent, only movie people have those. Wow I guess my dad was really that big, I just hope that I can keep this whole half-shark think under wraps. The high council of international creatures would not like if my secret was exposed on national television. Crap I have a meeting with them tonight. What am a supposed to do? I look up at my dad, he was giving me that most pitiful look, it would kill him if I just left. Ok the meeting is at 11:00pm, its late in know but if makes it less conspectus to see a bunch of all powerful nature kings, and queens gathering at one place. So I just have to seek out at around 10:00pm to get there on time, the meeting usually ends with in two hours, so I leave right after it ends, and swimming back takes about an hour so I'll be back at about 2:00 am. I wish the meeting spot was not of New Zealand, but it is lavagirl 'tropical wonder volcano spot', as she calls it. Crap, lavagirl what am going to tell dad about her. Of hey dad by the way I'm half shark, ,and I'm dating a girl who is half lava, she controls all of earth volcanos, and I'm king of the ocean. Ya that would not go over well.
" Shaky I promise that won't happen again". What has he talking about, oh ya that thing with Mindy. After I saw that camera crew, and had my little discussion with Mindy, I realized that I would just had to put up with this sort of thing, and he knew that. With his telocentric powers, he read my wind again.
"Ok there are a lot of paparazzi and snarky people, but we are sharks, we handle them, and if they bug us to much, shark frenzy!" Dad said with a smile I knew he was only half kidding, after that death papa-shark glare he had given Mindy. I almost pity her, almost.
"So sharky let me show you the rooms." Oh that's where he was leading me the second floor! It was really the living space. It had a living room with a wide screen TV mounted on the wall, black leather couches, and very up to date kitchen. Down the hall way, were three bedrooms and three bathrooms. He showed by the guest room, his room, and finally the last room. On the front door of the room it had a sign that ' Sharkboy inside enter at own risk'. I had made that sign for my room, at the old lab. I don't know how that thing survived that night, but I'm glad it did. Well if that was my sign, this must be my room. I can't believe that he put in a room for me, after all these years.
" What's wrong Sharky". Dad asked, I had not realized it but, I was standing in front f the door, with my mouth hanging open.
" How did you get that". I asked, my mouth had formed words before I could think about I was saying.
" That night some of the roughage of the old lab managed to float along with me, and I managed to collect some of parts of the old lab".
That was the first time any of us had talking about that night. It would not be the last, but right now was not the time to talk about it. So I quickly opened the door, and saw that my room, was truly my room. It looked like it had all those years ago. Same ocean blue paint on the walls, A clothes drawer on the left wall, and onto of the drawer there was a fish tank with a multiple ocean life inside it. A bed off to the fall right wall, and a few other accessories. I never spent much time as a kid, decorating my room. I preferred to spend my time out of my room, hanging out with the fish. I turned back to my dad in awe, I mean what do you say in a situation like this. Apparently he did not know what to say either. So when I turned to look back at him, he looked back at me, with the oddest expression. I don't know what to call it, all I know is for a brief moment he looked like he was about to cry. My dad did not cry. But he did wrap his arms around me and crush me to his chest. We stood there for a while, him just rubbing a hand up and down my back , and with the other hand running it through my hair. All the while whispering things like ' I love you Sharkboy', and ' Everything is going to be find now' . I really don't know if he was saying these things for my benefit or his, either way it was good to hear. I really can't remember the last time, someone told me that I was loved. I mean I loved my kingdom, Max was like the annoy little brother I never had. And lavagirl, well its complicated.
" Ya I know, love you to daddy". He looked down at my with a look that only be described as complete love, and affection. He gave me one last kiss on the head, and a rub on the back, he then rapped an arm around my shoulder, and said with that goofy grin. "Alright lets go see what you were working on in the lab".