After school, Zac walked home with Weilan. They were discussing the latest history test that they took that day on the way to Rita's. Zac had listened to Mimmi's advice from that morning and came up with a few excuses to tell his parents to explain his odd behavior. Right now, telling them that he was a merman was not an option.
"Zac?" Weilan asked, waving a hand in front of his face.
Zac blinked a few times and focused on the Chinese mermaid.
"Yeah? Sorry, I zoned out there for a minute. What were you saying?"
"I was asking you what you got for number 27 on the test." She asked.
"Oh, yeah. I don't remember. Sorry." Zac looked at the street and kicked a rock in front of him.
Weilan looked at him with worry. "Are you okay? You seem distracted today. Are you nervous about meeting your parents tonight?"
Zac stopped and looked at her. She stopped too and crossed her arms.
"I mean, of course I'm worried. My parents are not stupid. They know when something is wrong with me. It's just getting exhausting trying to come up with excuses lately."
Weilan put her hand on his arm. "Trust Rita. She will come up with something that will please your parents." She gave Zac a smile. "Come on. I heard that Ondina and Mimmi are trying to cook something besides seafood. I'll race you to Rita's."
With that, Weilan started to run, Zac behind her.
A few minutes later, they entered Rita's home, almost at the exact same time, Weilan wining by a few seconds due to her head start.
"Mimmi! Put the pasta in now!" Ondina screeched as they walked through the front door.
"No, we have to wait for the water to boil first!" Mimmi shot back.
"Well it's taking forever!" Ondina said and stuck her hand out to use her powers to speed up the process.
"Ondina no! We both agreed to make this dinner happen without magic!" Mimmi slapped her best friends hand down to stop the magic.
"Well they are going to be here soon, and the dinner is not yet done!" Ondina put her hand back out to resume heating the water.
"Hey guys." Zac said, trying to get the girls attention. But both girls did not seem to hear him.
"Ondina, you are boiling it too fast. The directions say to gradually boil it." Mimmi said exasperated.
"Guy?" Zac tried again.
"You and your directions. Just let me do what I want!" Ondina spead up the heating process.
"HELLO?!" Weilan shouted, scaring the two girls. Ondinas powers went out of control from the shock from being scared. She caused every liquid in the room to suddenly explode, dousing Mimmi and herself. Zac and Weilan quickly jumped back, avoiding the explosion.
Mimmi and Ondina both looked at each other and groaned before flopping over, their tails slapping the tile floor hard.
"Great. Look what you did." Ondina glared at Weilan.
"Me? If you two stopped bickering for one second we could have…" Weilan was interrupted by the doorbell ringing.
"My parents! There here!" Zac cried. He glanced at the two mermaids, still sprawled out on Rita's floor.
"Right, Zac, distract them. Mimmi, use your moon ring to clean up this mess while I dry your tail. Ondina dry yourself off. This is not a drill. Go people, go!" Weilan clapped her hands and went over to help Mimmi. Zac raced down the stairs to meet his parents. Ondina and Mimmi did what they were told and soon the kitchen was spotless once again and the two mermaids were human.
And with good timing too. Zac couldn't delay his parents any longer and they just walked up the stairs when everything was back in order.
Mimmi, Ondina and Weilan all sat up from the floor.
"Hello." Mimmi said cheerfully, still slightly shaken by what just happen.
"Hello girls. How are you today? Happy it's the weekend?" Rob asked with a wave.
"Yes we are. Dinner isn't fully done yet. There was a slight accident with the pasta." Mimmi said apologetically.
"That's quite alright girls. Why don't you go and get changed for dinner. I'm sure I can finish it." Rita said, walking up to the group.
The three girls looked down. Mimmi was still wearing her uniform from the Marine Park. Ondina was wearing an old t-shirt and Weilan still had her book bag on. The smiled and excused themselves, heading to their "bedroom". Rita gave the girls a spare room to keep their clothes and personal belongings in. None of them slept there though. Mimmi and Ondina slept in the moon pool, while Weilan preferred the grotto.
Rita went and started the pasta, Lauren volunteering to help. Rob and Zac sat down on the couch and discussed the day.
The three girls appeared a few moments later. Ondina changed into a pink dress with palm trees on the front, Mimmi in a light blue shirt and jean shorts and Weilan in jeans and a dark red shirt. Nothing fancy, just plain and simply for a family dinner.
"Sorry about dinner Rita. It was our first time making pasta." Mimmi said. She nudged Ondina who also apologized.
"Girls, it's totally fine. You don't mind helping me with dinner, do you Lauren?" Rita turned to Zac's mother.
She smiled warmly at the three girls. "Not at all. I really didn't expect you girls to cook dinner tonight, so I am more than happy to help."
Rita turned away from the stove while Lauren placed the pasta in the now boiling water. "Will you please set the table?" She asked the three girls. They nodded and started to grab the necessary things for dinner.
They all sat down at the table. Rita sat at the head of the table while Weilan sat at the other end. Ondina sat next to Rita with Mimmi in the middle and Zac to her right. Across from Zac sat Rob with his wife in the middle and Evie to her left. Once they settled down, the conversations began.
"So how was your day at school?" Lauren asked the group of teenagers.
Zac looked at his mother.
"It was fine I guess. We had a surprise pop-quiz in math today, but it was fairly easy. Oh, and I got my Biology test back. 87%. My best grade yet. Thanks to the combine efforts of Evie and Weilan."
Evie smiled at her boyfriend while Weilan rolled her eyes.
"How about you two?" Rob questioned, turning to Ondina and Mimmi.
Both the girl's eyes widened. No one told Zac's parents that they didn't go to land school. They graduated mermaid school and both earned their moon rings. Thankfully, sensing their distress, Rita came to their rescue.
"Ondina and Mimmi are both homeschooled and does their classes online. They never went to public school before and I didn't realize how long they were staying so I didn't sign them up for Suncoast High."
Ondina and Mimmi smiled at the parents trying to convince them of the lie.
"Right…" Rob said slowly, not completely buying their story. "But you go to the high school. Right Weilan?"
Weilan looked up from her pasta, her chopsticks still in her mouth and some noodles dangling down from her chin. The entire table stared at her. Rita and Lauren in sympathy, Rob in shock, Mimmi and Evie rolled their eyes and and Zac and Ondina were both struggling to contain their laughter, but failing miserably. Weilan quickly slurped up the noodles and coughed once before answering.
"Um yeah. I went to a public school in Shanghai before I came here. I really didn't mind starting a new school so I joined Suncoast High."
"And how are you liking the school?" Rob asked. He was president of the school board so he was always interested in student's opinions of the school.
"It's fine. The students are all really nice and everything. Some teachers are… interesting." She was referring to Ms. Trumble, which made Zac and Evie smile. "My only complaint is that the food sucks."
Lauren chocked on the water she was drinking as she laughed. Mimmi reached across the table to swat Weilan's arm as Weilan grinned deviously.
"Did you hear that Principle Santos?" Rob asked laughing.
Rita smiled brightly. "Noted."
The laughter soon subsided and a silence filled the room. The teens knew that the adults were planning to start a more serious conversation.
Zac sighed and looked at his parents. "Okay, let's get this thing over with."
Lauren tried to look innocent. "Get what over, Zac?" she asked her son.
"The conversation. The real reason why we are all here on a Friday night for dinner. I'm pretty sure that you really don't want to talk about school, so start asking questions."
Rob and Lauren both looked defeated. Their son knew them both too well. They had never been able to hide anything from him.
"Okay fine. You got us. We just wanted to figure some things out and try to relate to you better."
Zac mumbled under his breath. "Good luck with that."
Mimmi, who was sitting next to her brother was the only one who could hear this remark. Her heart hurt for her brother. She could tell that he was upset. It was almost like she could feel his pain. She too felt… scared. She looked over at her twin. He was rubbing the back of his neck, the nervous habit he had. She felt a weird pressure on the back of her own neck as he rubbed his. As soon as he took his hand off his neck, the pressure instantly subsided.
Shocked, she closed her eyes and shook her head. She looked back at her brother, who was already staring at her. He raised an eyebrow in confusion, noticing her strange attitude. Mimmi gave him a look that could only say "later." Zac gave a slight nod, only visible to her.
"And that is why we are worried about you Zac." Lauren finished.
Mimmi gazed intensely at Lauren who was sitting across from her. Mimmi didn't even notice that she was talking. She must have completely zoned out and missed the entire conversation. How did that happen? She was always very attentive. Her heart was racing now, as she grew oddly warm. What else had she missed? What was happing to her? What was happening with Zac? A million thoughts raced across Mimmi's mind, freaking her out. What was going on?
A cool hand on her arm brought her back to reality. Mimmi jerked her head to her left to see Ondina staring at her. Ondina's blue eyes were wide, watching her best friend have a mini freak out. Ondina pointed at Rob with her other hand, still watching Mimmi carefully. The rest of the table also noticed Mimmi's strange behavior, but it was only Zac who felt the same confusion and fear that his sister felt.
Weilan cleared her throat and motioned Mimmi to talk.
"Sorry, I zoned out there for a moment. What did you say?"
"They wanted to know if what Zac said was correct." Supplied Rita.
Zac said something? When did that happen? Mimmi thought.
"Uh, what did you say again Zac?"
Evie tried to help the confused girl. "Zac said that the reason that he was acting so strange was the fact that you two were trying to find your biological family. And the reason that he has been so distance is that he didn't want to hurt their feelings. That is the reason why he is been acting weird, right Mimmi?"
So he took her advice about finding their birth families. Good. That is believable.
"Um, yeah. T-that's exactly what's happing. We are just t-trying to find our birth family. I-it's really no big deal. I assure you that- that everything is fine." She manage to stumble out.
The teens looked at each other. Mimmi never stumbled. She was always the confident one.
"Are you alright dear? You seem a little frazzled." Rob asked, his profession slowly creeping up.
Mimmi was once again zoned out. She was completely lost in her own thoughts. Her eyes were fixed on the centerpiece in the middle of the table. Her normally tanned complexion was paled at the slightest.
This was really starting to concern Zac. He placed his hand on her back. Mimmi snapped into focus as her gaze settled on Zac's concerned brown eyes.
Mimmi turned back to Rob. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just tired though. Would it be okay if I went to go lie down for a bit?" She was now addressing Rita. "I didn't get much sleep last night." Ondina and Weilan both knew that she was lying. She went to bed early the night before in the moon pool and Zac and Mimmi both got up at the same time. She got plenty of rest.
"Of course sweetheart. There is nothing wrong with going to bed early." Rita answered, obviously seeing the young girl in distress.
Mimmi smiled gratefully and excused herself from the table. The group watched as she left. She stumbled a bit as she walked towards the bedroom, but caught herself before she could fall. Dizzily, she pressed her hand to her head and entered the bedroom.
The table resumed conversation once she was gone.
"Are you sure she is alright? I could go and check on her if need be." Rob asked Rita.
"I'm sure she's fine. Just tired. You know that teenagers tend to stay up really late. And there is a stomach bug going around school. You of all people should know that Dr. Blakely." Rita smiled and looked at her students. They all saw that she was concerned, despite her efforts to look calm and put together.
Rob and Lauren left soon after the meal ended. Rob still wanted to check on Mimmi, but Rita assured him that she was okay. Evie too had to leave, due to her dad expecting her home soon. Zac stayed behind, saying that he wanted to talk to Rita about something for school.
As soon as they left, Zac went to go check on his sister, as the girls cleaned up dinner.
Zac knocked on the bedroom door lightly.
"Mimmi?" He asked quietly. There was no response. Zac knocked again. The door cracked open as Mimmi didn't close it all the way.
Zac entered the bedroom, his eyes adjusting to the darkness. It was painted a pale blue and had tiny sea shells as molding by the ceiling. Three twin beds were in the room, mainly just for show because none of the girls wanted to use them. Two were placed on the side walls while the third was placed against the back wall. A soft glow from a lamp light was the only light source in the room. The white curtains were closed to block the evening night sky.
Mimmi was sound asleep on the bed closest to the left wall. She changed into a pair of black sleep shorts and a lavender tank top. She was curled up in a ball, facing the wall, breathing deeply. Her chocolate brown hair was sprawled across the pillow and it covered some of her face.
She must have been really sleepy to fall asleep on land. Mimmi have complained to him how uncomfortable land beds were and how she much preferred the ocean to sleep on. Zac couldn't complain though. After turning into a merman, he to found his bed to sometimes be too much for him to sleep on. On those nights, he would sneak into the ocean and sleep until the sun woke him up. Mimmi told him that it was normal, and to not be alarmed.
Zac smiled at his sister before picking up a quilt from the end of her bed and carefully placing it over the sleeping girl. She moaned in her sleep and snuggled under the blanket. Zac reached up to brush a lock of hair away from her face, but as soon as his hand brushed against her skin, he placed it over her forehead. She was warm. Not uncomfortably warm, but still warmer than usual. Almost like she had a slight fever.
As soon as that thought crossed his mind, he also felt feverish.
Flinching, Zac pulled his hand away from his sister's forehead and stared down at it. Turning it over, he inspected it for anything abnormal. Nothing. But he still felt warm and almost… dizzy? Just like Mimmi had been during dinner.
He looked down at his sleeping sister's flushed face and pondered. What was going on with them?
"Zac?" a voice asked, startling him.
Dropping his hand, Zac quickly spun around to see Rita in the doorway. Her eyes were wide in shock. The twins were both very jumpy today and just not themselves.
"Yeah?" Zac asked in a shaky voice.
Rita still stared at him. She then flicked her eyes down at the sleeping Mimmi, than back up at Zac.
"Your mother just called. She wants you to come home before it gets too dark." Rita explained, steeping closer to Zac.
Zac nodded and looked back down at Mimmi.
Mimmi huffed in her sleep and curled deeper into a ball. She let out a sigh as she settled into her pillow.
"Zac? Are you okay?" Rita whispered, walking up next to Zac and looked down at Mimmi, as if following his gaze.
"I'm fine." Zac matched Rita's tone, not wanting to wake up his sister. "I'll see you tomorrow." He looked up at Rita, meeting her questioning eyes. "And um, she seems a bit warm. You might want to keep an eye on her."
Rita's eyes widened and her hand shot to Mimmi's forehead, feeling the girl's temperature.
"Huh, that's strange. Thanks Zac. I'll watch her. Now hurry home before your mum calls again."
Zac glanced at Mimmi's sleeping form one more time before bidding his goodbyes to Rita and leaving the house.
Guess whose back! *bows deeply* So sorry I haven't updated in a while. School started for me and it had been CRA-ZY! But I love it there and I am sooo glad to see all of my friends. I hope you liked this chapter because I had a blast writing it. I might have wrote it during my math class instead of paying attention, but no one has to know. *winks*
I've been getting a lot of mixed reviews for thinking of adding Rob and Lauren's P.O.V in the story. To all those who like it Zac/Mimmi P.O.V. thanks for liking what I have already posted. But I think I'm going to add them on special chapters. When things happen that are crazy and I bet you all would like to know their response to … certain developments in the family. They won't be every chapter but I think I might throw them in once and a while.
So how did you like this chapter? I absolutely adore sibling fluff. It is really fun to write about. What is happening with Zac and Mimmi? You just have to wait to find out.
Thanks so much for all of the support. It means oh so much to me to have you really like what I am putting out there. For being so new to the fanfiction community, you all have made me feel so welcome. My family really doesn't understand the benefits to being in a fandom and the difficulties we all go through, so thanks for making me feel welcome. And don't worry. I have NO intentions of dropping this story anytime soon. I'm just a huge procrastinator. Oops.
~Moonlight Mermaids