"So any movie then?"
"Yeah. The adults want some time alone-" On cue various 'ews' and catcalls from all us kids, "-so they said pop in a movie and stay in the living room for two hours."
"Two hours?" One of the boys demands in indignation. "Can't we go outside then?"
"They don't want us unsupervised in the yard right now after a certain incident that occurred a few days ago."
"It was just a little fire!" Dean protested next to me. I giggled and pressed my cheek to his shoulder. I'd been trying to teach Dean how to light a fire with flint and a bush had ended up aflame. All the kids turned to glare at us.
"They're keeping us in for a bit. So let's take a vote on what we watch."
I perked up slightly, looking towards the shelf full of video tapes. Even though I'd been sat in front of a tv screen many times in my short life, a common tool used to take care of us when the adults got bored, strangely I hadn't seen a whole lot of Disney films. Mostly I'd seen cheap little cartoons on repeat, or just had the tv turned to Nickelodeon or the Disney channel (which didn't show their own classic films a whole lot it seemed). But this foster home had almost a complete collection of Disney VHS and I'd gotten to see more in two and a half months than I ever had before. But there was one movie in particular I was itching to see.
"How about The Little Mermaid?" I asked.
A groan went up from most of the boys and I shrunk back down slightly. "No way," one of the boys, Will, said boorishly. "Let's watch Terminator." I flinched and buried my face against Dean's arm. I hated movies like that. The fosters had their own collection of movies that they kept locked up, but most of the kids knew how to pick locks.
I blanched at the idea but didn't say anything because I knew I'd be overridden.
Next to me Dean sat taller and said, "I wanna watch The Little Mermaid too."
Will rolled his eyes. "Of course you do Dean. Franky wants it, you want it."
"Yeah, well she hasn't seen it."
"Oh my fucking God. Franky hasn't seen it! Call the fucking police, Dean's Franky hasn't seen a fucking movie," Will sarcastically sneered. I stuck out my tongue and pressed closer to Dean's side, snaking my arms around Dean's arm to hold him back from leaping up and getting into a fight with the bigger and older Will. Because it wasn't worth it to get into fights, this home was one of the better ones either of us had ever been in, and we were together here.
"Fuck it, let's just watch The Little Mermaid," Keesha growled from the other side of the couch. "You know Dean's gonna be a little dick about it if we don't. Plus I like that movie." She glowered down at Will, who was a good three years younger than her.
Will whispered with one of the other boys, then said, "Fine. But Terminator next time." Everyone nodded agreement and a big grin crossed my face.
The movie was popped into the VCR player and I cuddled closer to Dean, eyes locked on the screen.
I'm not positive, but I'm almost certain Dean watched me more than the movie.
The movie ended and we still had a good half our still stuck in the living room. Someone switched the television back over to regular channels, but I was still half in fantasy, imagining myself as a mermaid under the sea. I held out my legs and wiggled my toes, wondering what it would be like to have a fin instead.
Will noticed my antics and laughed. "What is it Franky, trying to morph into a mermaid? You have the hair for it!" I grinned and silently tugged at a lock of my hair, suddenly proud to be a redhead like Ariel. I'd hardly ever seen characters with red hair, and now here was one who was strong and brave, an actual heroine. True, my hair wasn't red like hers was, but whose hair was that bright red color anyway?
"And what, is Dean your Eric?"
In alarm Dean and I looked at each other, then simultaneously made faces of disgust. "No fucking way!" Dean protested in distaste and I shook my head hard. "I'll be Flounder!" Dean sucked in his cheeks and made a fish face at me, leaning in and teasing my by threatening to give me a slobbery kiss on my cheek. I squealed and jumped off the couch, pumping my arms as if I was swimming away as I ran. Dean chased me around the living room and when he finally caught me he lifted me off my feet and gave me a half-spin.
"You two are gross!" Will called over to us.
At the same time Dean and I raised our middle fingers to Will and flipped him off. We laughed and I turned back to Dean, teasing him lightly," So you're my Flounder?"
Dean nodded. "Yup! Even if you grow legs and start walkin' on land I'll hang out on the beach waiting for you."
I blushed and kissed his cheek affectionately. "I won't grown legs and leave you in the sea Dean."
"Promise?"
"Promise."