Fish out of Water Read online

We may have reached a silent truce in the last week, but the image of him sneering at me steels my face. I won’t be weak in front of him. Not ever.

  “I think you forgot something,” Dylan says when I get to work.

  I grab the blue apron from one of the shelves in the Aquatics island. It’ll have to do for today. I just hope Clark doesn’t ask any questions. “I forgot a lot of things, actually. Did you clean the tanks yet?”

  “Of course not.”

  I pinch the bridge of my nose. We’ve gotten to the point that he’ll do stuff when I ask him to, but if I don’t mention it he pretends it magically doesn’t need to be done. “Good. I need to scrub.”

  His eyebrows go up. “Did something happen to you?”

  “Why would you care?” I grab the cleaning supplies. “Go check the shelves to see if there’s anything we need to restock.”

  “Okay … ”

  His expression might be concern, but I’m already too upset to be impressed by his small show of compassion. I grab the big magnetic scrubber, attach it to the glass, and get to work. Try to forget the words she said. Think of anything else. Everything else. She’s just a crazy old lady who doesn’t know what she’s saying.

  Which is actually more frustrating, because I can’t cuss her out for being such an awful person. She probably wouldn’t even remember if I did.

  “Ugh!” I struggle to get the magnetic scrubber off the glass. They are super strong and get slippery in the water. “Stupid thing!”

  “Mika?”

  I look up to see Clark staring at me like I’ve sprouted horns. I stand straight and wipe the water off my hands. “Yes?”

  He looks over my outfit disapprovingly. “Did that tank do something to hurt your feelings?”

  “Sorry.” I stare at my feet, realizing how crazy I must look.

  “Dylan said there was something wrong with you, but I didn’t expect him to be right.”

  I snap my head up, eyes wide. He tattled on me? After all the times these last two weeks I restrained myself? I’ll kill him for this, freaking hypocrite. “I just … it’s … family stuff.”

  “What happened?” His voice is so kind when he says it, but I can’t bring myself to explain.

  “It’s personal,” I choke out. He would never understand, and I can’t bring myself to say the insult.

  He nods. “Well, I’m sorry for whatever it is, but I hope this doesn’t happen again. You have to wear the uniform, Mika. It’s not like you to ignore rules, so I’ll assume this is a one-time thing.”

  “Definitely.”

  “I need to feed the kittens, but if you feel like talking at some point feel free to holler at me. I know family stuff can be hard—we’ve had our fair share lately, with you know who.”

  “Like what?” I ask before I can stop myself. Despite my best efforts, I’m still curious as to how Dylan ended up here. He is kind of ruining my life, so I feel like I deserve to know.

  He purses his lips. “My brother and I don’t exactly get along—very different world views, you could say. He’s always been overly ambitious, nearly cutthroat in how he approaches life—he thinks I’m a lazy slob.”

  Clark is a bit odd, but “lazy slob” is definitely the wrong descriptor. “But you own a business, and you work really hard to keep it running.”

  “Why thank you, Mika.” He smiles wide, like he’s relieved to have validation. “I feel the same way, but my brother doesn’t think much of one pet store when he owns … well, it’s a lot more than one store. He’s never even come to visit this ‘dirty flea hole’, so.”

  I raise an eyebrow, curious. If Dylan grew up with such a stuck-up sounding father, no wonder he’s so condescending. “What does he do?”

  Clark waves it off. “It doesn’t matter, but suffice it to say I never liked how much they neglected Dylan, and yet also expected him to do everything they told him to. They sent him off to boarding school so they didn’t have to deal with him. Now they’re not happy with how he turned out, and I find it rather … frustrating.”

  “Is that why you took him in?”

  “Partly,” he says, looking at the school of fish nearest him. “Also because I believe family is family, even when they’re not behaving how you’d like. Of course you can’t be an enabler, but you don’t just throw people away. Especially in their darkest hours, when they need you the most.”

  His words hit me right in the gut. Scary how much they apply to me. “You really think that?”

  He nods. “Now get back to scrubbing, and I expect you to change at lunch.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  As I continue cleaning the tanks, Clark’s words repeat in my head. Mom has always told me that taking the high road is better, even though it’s harder, and I agree with Clark that you shouldn’t throw people out. But I’m not sure that applies when said “family member” has never been part of your life because your parents knew they’d only hurt you. Besides, wasn’t Betty the one who threw my parents out?

  I don’t know what happened with Dylan, but he’s not Betty. She’s already had enough second chances. She needs to leave, and I’ll do what I have to in order to make that happen.

  Dylan manages to avoid me until after lunch, but now he approaches the Aquatics island slowly, as if he’s trying not to anger a tiger. He better be careful, because I’m still pissed about him ratting me out. “You better scrub these tanks all week, otherwise I’ll tell Clark you’re still a jerk to me, and he’ll make you clean up all the poop in the store.”

  “Probably. You are teacher’s pet,” he says.

  My eyes narrow. “I’m not the tattler. And after I covered for you at the beach and everything!”

  He holds up his hands. “Fine, maybe I shouldn’t have, but you looked really messed up, okay?”

  “Gee, thanks.”

  He leans on the island, seeming to have decided that I will not, in fact, decapitate him. “C’mon, that’s not what I meant. I figured you wouldn’t want to talk to me, and my uncle has this annoying habit of being ridiculously level-headed when other people are freaking out.”

  I purse my lips, appraising him. If I’m not mistaken, I think he might have been worried about me. Weird. I thought he hated me, but maybe I’m wrong. “That is an annoying habit, but you still get tank duty. My standards.”

  Instead of the glare I expect, he smiles. “Fine.”

  I look away, surprised at my blushing.

  Customers come in and out for the next couple hours. Tanya the Gumsmacker is actually here today, but now Old Lady Miriam has a doctor’s appointment. Between those two missing work I’ll be here full time all summer. But I actually wish the time would go slower, dreading what might happen at home tonight. The afternoon is always slow, so when the door dings I automatically look up.

  “Shit!” Dylan says before I can process who’s there, and then he drags me around the corner. “You can’t tell them I’m here.”

  “Who?” I ask, pulling my arm away from him.

  “That girl and guy who just walked in.” He clasps his hands together. “Please. I’m actually begging you.”

  “Why?”

  He clenches his teeth. “Just because, okay? The guy’s not so bad, but meet that girl once, and I’m sure you won’t want her hanging around. I’m gonna hide in the back.”

  He dashes off before I can argue, and I go to my island plotting all the ways I’ll make him pay for this. The two people talk with Tanya, who smacks her gum and takes them in with her classic “I don’t give a crap” expression. She points over to me, and I straighten my shoulders in preparation.

  As they walk down the aisle, I can’t help but notice how expensive they look. The girl is over-tanned, manicured, glossy haired, and wearing preppy clothes. The guy is clean cut and attractive, with dark skin and a swagger only the financially secure possess. They look like the kind of people who vacation in Carmel, the kind of people Olivia and her mom take care of at Pebble Beach Spa.

  And that’s whe
n it hits. Dylan is not just rich, he’s loaded. Or was? Clark’s words suddenly make a lot more sense.

  “The lady up front told us Dylan Wainwright works over here,” says the girl, who has warm brown hair and bright blue eyes. “Do you know where he is?”

  “He went home already,” I blurt out. “Sorry.”

  The guy frowns. “Damn.”

  “Well, do you know where he lives?” the girl asks.

  “Nope. I don’t know much about him.” Except that he’s the laziest person I’ve ever met.

  “Clearly.” The girl looks me up and down. It feels like she deems me lacking in every possible way. I hate admitting Dylan was right—I don’t want her around at all. “Can you at least tell him that London and Brock stopped by?”

  “Sure.”

  The guy, who must be Brock, leans on the island and smiles at me. “Maybe we’ll see you again … ” Nametag glance, and also a boob glance. Lovely. “Mika. What a pretty name.”

  London rolls her eyes. “You really will hit on anything with boobs, won’t you?”

  Brock doesn’t look at her. “Ignore her. She gets jealous of girls who are prettier than her.”

  “Oh please.” London shoves him, then gives me a glare that seems to prove Brock right. “If Dylan wants to see us, we’re staying at the usual place. He’ll know what that means.”

  “Okay.” I try not to glare at them as they leave the store. My time is up for the day, so I head to the back to get my stuff and clock out. Dylan is there, lounging in the break room with his feet on the table.

  “Are they gone?” he asks.

  “They said you can meet them at ‘the usual place’ if you want. Oh, and the guy tried to hit on me.” I grab my bag, punch my card. “He seems like a keeper.”

  He frowns. “You’re joking, right?”

  “Nope, not at all,” I say in my best sarcastic voice. “You owe me.”

  “I do.” He puts his hands behind his head, smiling like he just got away with murder. It makes me wish I’d turned him in to those people. “Thanks, Mika.”

  I leave, refusing to react to his first real show of gratitude and decency. He won’t win me over that easily. He obviously has plenty of other girls hunting him down. I refuse to add myself to that list.

  Chapter 11

  A few days pass, and Mom and Dad still haven’t gotten rid of Betty. Every time I come home and see her still there, anger flares inside me over our last conversation. I’ve refused to talk to her since then. If my parents don’t decide where to put her soon, I might lose my mind, too.

  “I don’t want to go to bed!” Betty’s voice is so loud I can hear it through my bedroom door. “I’m not a child!”

  “I didn’t say you were … ” Dad’s tone has grown increasingly aggravated over the last few weeks. This “family crisis” has put back their grant work, since they can’t start without Dad. It’s made us all even crankier, knowing we’re missing out on valuable research time. Their bedroom door shuts next, so I figure that’s Mom signing out.

  I turn up my music.

  As I look over Olivia’s newest string of beautiful pictures on Facebook, I can’t help being distracted by the search bar at the top of the page. All I’d have to do is type in Dylan’s whole name and …

  I close the tab before I go there. I won’t be a Facebook stalker, because that would mean I actually care and I don’t.

  Sighing, I watch my fish and try not to feel like I’m trapped in my own aquarium. Ever since Betty got here, I’ve been hiding out in my room more and more, like avoiding the problem will make it go away. Truth is, so much about her scares me. Not just her disease, but who she was before and what she can do to us now.

  My computer starts ringing, and I check to see who it is. I smile at the icon and click “accept.” Olivia’s very tan face and bright white smile appear on the screen, and she laughs when she sees me. “Hey, Mika, you’re up! You miss me?”

  “Yes! Stupid time difference—you’re never on when I am.” I’m so happy to see her I barely restrain a squeal. “Shreya and I are lost without you.”

  “Of course you are.” Her smile gets bigger. “But you’ll have to endure it, because Tahiti is freaking amazing. The guys, Mika, you have no idea.”

  I laugh. Olivia has always been boy crazy and proud of it. I guess that’s what happens when your mother is a professed “old bachelorette” who will never settle down. Olivia was the first in our group to kiss, to have a boyfriend, to go all the way. I’ve gone to her for advice on guys since I started liking them. “How many have you kissed?”

  “Four,” she says like it’s no big deal. “But we just got to our hotel on the other side of the island, and I have my sights set on a very attractive bus boy at the restaurant across the street. I’m thinking he’ll be my vacation fling.”

  “Good luck with that.”

  “Thanks! What’s up with you?”

  I cringe when I think about the past few weeks, but as I tell her everything that’s happened I feel better. Olivia gasps and swears and frowns in all the right places, and it reassures me that I’m not blowing these events out of proportion. My summer really has sucked.

  “You know what you need to do, right?” Olivia says when I finish my tale. “You need to kiss Dylan.”

  “What? No!” I put my hand on my cheek, the idea making my face burn. “Why is that your answer for everything?”

  She laughs. “C’mon! You’re all tense anyway, and you clearly have chemistry whether you admit it or not. Making out with him will make him very nice at work, and it’ll chill you out so you can deal with Betty.”

  I roll my eyes, though her logic is disturbingly sound. “You know I don’t do the casual thing. I have to at least like the guy, and there are few people I despise more than Dylan.”

  “Psh, you and your fake relationships.” She puts her face right in the camera. “You never date anyone seriously anyway! You like to stay emotionally detached while they fall madly in love with you.”

  “That’s not true!” Okay, it’s kind of true. All three of the guys I’ve dated were leaving in one way or another—moving, going to college, only in town for the summer. It made it easy not to get too attached, to practice liking someone without falling in love. But I don’t see what’s wrong with that. When I do fall in love, I want it to be permanent like my parents. May as well try a few guys before that, figure out what I really want.

  Olivia leans back into her pillows, her expression skeptical. “Whatever. I still say you should make out with him.”

  I sigh, not wanting to talk about this anymore. Yet all I can think of is Dylan tackling me in the sand last week. And he was worried about me the day I went to work in pajamas, so maybe he’s not all bad … I shake my head. “Enough about me—I want to hear more about your exploits.”

  She gets this big grin on her face. “You’re so avoiding, but the bus boy’s name is Waka. While my mom was out with some businessman, I went … ”

  There’s a knock at my door, and then my parents pop their heads in. “You have a second, Mika?” Dad asks.

  My heart skips. This must be it—they’ve found a place for Betty and they’ve come to tell me. We can finally get back to our lives and the grant and this nightmare is over. “Yeah. Olivia, I gotta run. My parents need me.”

  She frowns. “Fine. See you in two weeks!”

  “Bye!” I close the video chat as they settle on the edge of my double bed. They look hesitant, and this washes away all my excited feelings. “What’s wrong?”

  My dad purses his lips as he looks at Mom, but finally says, “I know you won’t be happy about this, but Betty needs to stay with us.”

  There’s a long moment of silence as I stare at my parents. I couldn’t have heard them right. The only option they ever entertained was a care facility—they never mentioned once that they were considering keeping her here. They look at each other when I don’t reply, and Dad soldiers on. “I know you don’t like her. Believe
me, I’m well aware she’s not a pleasant person. Not by a long run. But looking at all the options, this one makes the most sense.”

  “Have you two gone nuts?” I say before I can think better of it. “We can’t take care of her! We know nothing about Alzheimer’s, and besides, we all work.”

  My parents aren’t looking at me, and I get the sinking feeling I’m involved in this plan much more than I want to be. Dad gulps. “The truth is, Mika, we don’t have the money to put her in a home. We’ll all have to help out. Even you. If you stayed here in the afternoon with her while we—”

  “What?!” I cut in. “Are you saying I’d have to give up working with you this summer?”

  They look at each other, wincing.

  “No, you can’t do that. You promised me!” This can’t be happening. All I’ve wanted for years was to help them with their research, to be part of their marine biologist world. Now they’re going to rip it away because of Betty? It’s hard enough having her around—I can’t believe they’re asking me not only to give up the internship, but to take care of her on top of it. This can’t be the only choice. “What about Uncle Greg? I thought you said he’d help.”

  My dad deflates. “He said he could maybe give us five thousand, but Marietta is finally expecting and their funds are limited as it is. Forest rangers aren’t exactly rolling in cash.”

  “And Medicaid?”

  “Not every facility takes it, and it won’t cover it all anyway.” He puts his hand over Mom’s. “We just can’t afford it, even with the help we’ll get.”

  “No, you have to find a way!” My voice is desperate, but I don’t care. “She’s awful, Dad. She’s already called me horrible names, and she doesn’t treat you guys any better.”

  Mom’s brow pinches, and I hope this is a good sign. “What did she call you?”

  I tell them what happened in the backyard though I hadn’t planned to. These are dire times, and I need to play every card I have. “I was so mad I couldn’t even be here, and I went to work in my pajamas and got in trouble. How could you keep her around when she does that to me?”

  This story has a big effect on my parents. I can see them wavering in their conviction. Dad sighs. “This is exactly why we’ve kept you away from her all these years. My worst nightmare is coming true.”