Category: Zadie

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When Emmett started pulling her towards the ocean Zadie slowed. “You are going to drown me. You may be convinced that you can breathe underwater but I know I can’t.”

“Zadie, trust me.” His smile tugged at her heart, dredging up memories of all the times he had looked at her that way. And how many of those times had ended up in an epic adventure.

With a sigh, she gave a short nod. “Emmett, if you kill me, I am going to haunt you forever.”

His laughter echoed along the shore and into her heart. She had missed him. Not only the adventures they always seemed to accidentally find themselves in, but him, everything about him. She still hadn’t fully accepted that he was there, standing in front of her. In seconds, they were up to their shoulders in water and he took hold of both her hands.

“I won’t let go but I am going to go underwater. Just keep treading water and I’ll be up in a bit. How long do I need to stay under to convince you?”

“Ten minutes.” Zadie threw out the number without thinking. “Are you expecting me to tread water here for ten minutes, holding your hands while you sit underwater?”

“If that is what it takes, then yes. I’ve missed you and I don’t want to lose you again.”

“Ok.” Zadie shrugged.

And he promptly sank. 

Those ten minutes lasted forever but not once did he struggle or pull, seemingly content to hold her hands.

The entire time he was under the water, Zadie was torn between scanning the shore for late night beach walkers who might mistakenly think that she was skinny dipping or suicidal, and peering out at the water as if she could see down into the dark water. There were no signs of anyone else under the water around them but she almost yanked on his hands to pull him up to ask and make sure. She didn’t want to feel some creepy hand grabbing her ankle and pulling her under.

After what felt like eternity his head rose above the water with a huge grin on his face. 

He intently studied her face for a minute then a grin broke out. “I thought you’d panic.” He laughed. “You’re amazing.”

“Frozen solid is more like it.” She shivered.

Emmett continued to laugh as he swooped her up into his arms and easily plowed through the water and back up the beach. With no ceremony or even any consideration, he all but dropped her onto the sand. He plopped down next to her, shaking his wet hair.

With a groan, Zadie smacked him.

“What was that for?” He pushed back at her shoulder in retribution. “I proved that I can breathe underwater and you slug me?”

“I didn’t bring a towel, genius.” She tried to laugh but it came out as more of an audible shiver. “I wasn’t planning on getting in the water in the middle of the night.”

He scoffed. “Huh. Why not? Perfect night for a swim.”

She couldn’t get the words to come out as memories of the day he disappeared swirled through her thoughts.

Emmett noticed almost immediately. “What happened? Was it something I said?”

She had no words.

“Zadie?” He took her hand and gave it a little squeeze.

Finally she was able to tear her gaze away from the crashing waves and looked up into her best friend’s eyes. Tears began to fall. Her mouth opened several times as she tried to explain, to admit how truly battered she had been since he had vanished. Nothing came out. 

His arm came to rest around her shoulder, giving off warmth and causing her to shiver again. She took a deep breath.

“Emmett, I haven’t been swimming since you disappeared.”

“What? Why?” He shook his head, squeezing her for a second. “You love the water. Most days I couldn’t get you out of the water unless I caught you and dragged you to shore.”

Shaking her head she glowered at him. “How could I get in the water? I watched you drown. You were fine one second, and the next you weren’t there. I didn’t even see you struggle. Nothing. I still can’t get it out of my head.”

“But you just went in there with me. You didn’t even hesitate.”

“I wasn’t entirely sure this was real. A part of me still believed I was dreaming. Still do. You can’t be real.”

Instantly she was enveloped in a back-cracking hug, pulled into his bare chest. He held her for a minute, not saying anything, just holding her.

Her voice was still shaky as she spoke. “Are you going to see your mom?”

He grimaced. “I was planning on it. Has this all been hard on her?”

“Once she found the note she was fine. She’s missed you. Some days I see her staring off into nowhere.” She shrugged. “I always felt like she was just waiting for you to show up again for a visit.”

“Really?”

Again she shrugged, leaning on him. “Everyone just thought you’d be back soon enough. My parents constantly tell me that you’ll be visiting soon and I just need to be patient. I guess they were right.”

“Zadie.”

She cut him off. “Are you going to tell her?”

“No.” She felt his shoulders slump. “I can’t.”

“You told me.” Sitting up she moved so that she could look closer at his face.

He avoided looking at her.

Another pause and she sighed as the realization crushed her lungs. “You wouldn’t have told me either.”

“Zadie, I couldn’t. I’d get in so much trouble.”

Shaking her head she stood, swiping off the sand clinging to her. “You would have let me believe that I was crazy. That I had imagined seeing you disappear under the water. You would have confirmed what everyone has said about me for the past two years.” She took a step away. “I’ve mourned alone for two years, no one believing me. My only comfort was that I knew what I saw. And now, you come back ready to take that from me too.”

A sob tore out of her throat and she spun, racing up the beach. She heard him call out to her but she didn’t stop. Couldn’t stop.

When she heard him following, she glanced back. “Go visit your mother. She’s expecting you.”

“Zadie, no.”

“Leave me alone.” Zadie screamed, her tears nearly blinding her. She kept running.

Her mind registered that she could no longer hear him behind her but she didn’t slow. She ran all the way home, slowing only when she was at the door and easing it open. Not bothering to turn on the lights she changed into her pajamas, crawled into bed, and cried softly so her parents wouldn’t hear.

Zadie plopped down on the sand, gazing out into the darkening ocean. It was at this exact spot 2 years ago that she had sat laughing at Emmett as he goofed off among the crashing waves before he had disappeared beneath those same waves and never resurfaced.

The coast guard had searched but they never found his body. Most people on the island didn’t believe her when she had told them what had happened. Over the months-turned-years Zadie had grown used to the looks and scoffs that followed her in their small town.

When he had first disappeared, the police had taken her witnessing him disappearing into the ocean as a serious, time-sensitive matter but less than an hour after the police had arrived on the scene they found a note in his room addressed to his mom saying that he had decided it was time for him to go explore the world and get to know his dad’s family. And at the very bottom it told her not to look for him.

After that, his mom simply gave up looking, stating that he was gone. And since his mother accepted the note and seemed unworried, the police merely nodded and closed the case, assuming he had run off to finish out high school with his dad. Zadie’s parents accepted that the boy who had almost been like their own son had left. Less than 24 hours after his disappearance and no one but her wondered at his sudden absence. And according to everyone in town, her one parents included, she simply couldn’t let go. That she had lost her touch with reality. Some even speculated that drugs were involved.

But she knew she had seen him die.

And no one believed her.

Somehow this same spot became her refuge from the whispers. Here, she stared at the last spot she had seen him, imagining how different life would be if he hadn’t disappeared. How much less lonely she would be.

Evening turned to night and the moon was her only light reflecting off the water. And still she did not move, staring. 

Blinking tiredly, Zadie continued to gaze at the never-ending rolling of the waves crashing against the shore. She stood and wiped the sand off her jeans. When she heard a decidedly non-ocean sound coming from the ocean’s direction she jolted up straight. She squinted her eyes against the darkness. A shiver shot through her when she spotted a dark outline of what looked like a man rising up out of the ocean.

Unfortunately she tripped when she went to move back another step. Her startled cry seemed to amplify across the sand before being drowned out by another large crashing wave.

As she frantically scampered back to her feet she thought she heard her name called. Yet she saw no one else down the beach.

“Zadie?”

Her eyes fixed solidly on the figure moving toward her as tears sprang to her eyes at the familiar voice she never thought she would hear again. “Emmett?”

“What are you doing here?”

 Zadie froze, unable to move as she watched her lost friend walk toward her. Shaking her head she began to cry. “I can’t hallucinate now. Everyone looks at me weird enough already.”

“Zadie, you aren’t hallucinating. I’m right here.”

She threw her hands up in exasperation. “That’s exactly what a hallucination would say.”

“It would?” His surprised expression gave Zadie a second of hesitation.

Sinking to the ground, Zadie sighed and buried her face in her knees. She felt the sand shift as Emmett sat down next to her. 

Softly, Emmett spoke. “Why do you think I’m a hallucination? Why can’t I be real and get that big Zadie hug I’ve missed so much?”

“You died!” Zadie sobbed, looking up at him through tear filled eyes. “I watched you drown. You never resurfaced.”

When he didn’t respond, Zadie slugged him on instinct, as she had so many times before then gasped as her fist actually connected with his shoulder.

He turned to pull her into a hug but stopped short when he saw her face. “With everything that happened, I forgot that you were on the beach with me that day.”

“Forgot?!” She shrieked. “What could possibly have happened to make you forget that your best friend was standing on the beach when you disappeared into the ocean?”

“This guy grabbed me and pulled me under. I freaked out.”

“You were kidnapped?” Zadie interrupted. “I didn’t see anyone.”

His face softened as he smiled. “No. You wouldn’t have seen him. He was underwater. And yes, I guess you could call it kidnapping, though they said they left a note for my mom.”

“Why didn’t I get a note?”

“I didn’t pick who got notes, Zadie. I was only informed that they had left one for my mom to find. Now, did you want to hear what happened or not?”

“Yes.” She took a deep breath. “I’ll try not to interrupt.”

He chuckled and gave her a side hug. “I know how hard that will be.”

“So they left a note. Who are they?”

“I’m getting to that.” Emmett looked back out at the ocean. “Apparently there is a race of humans that evolved to the point that they could breathe underwater.”

“Mermaids?” Zadie shakily stood. “I’m going home.”

Emmett snatched her hand but didn’t move to stand. “Wait. Let me finish.”

“You just told me that you were taken by mythical fantasy creatures. As if it could be that easy to explain away.”

His soft grip on her hand was firm. “Zadie. I came back to find you.”

“Me?”

“Yes, you.” He chuckled and gently pulled her back down next to him. “Apparently I have the gene that allows me to learn how to breathe underwater. And no, I don’t have fins. They discovered me on a hunting expedition, to find more people to join their kingdom.  After they took me, I was required to complete my training before I was allowed to choose whether to stay or leave.”

“And you chose to leave?”

He shook his head. “I haven’t decided. All I know is that I had to see you before I made that decision.”

“To join the merpeople.”

With a groan, Emmett pulled himself up. She stood after him and crossed her arms. “Zadie, they call themselves the Vand.”

“And now you can breathe underwater.” Zadie stared out at the water over his shoulder. “I’m going home. In the morning I’ll wake up to discover this was a dream.”

Emmett’s hand on her back stopped her. “I’ll prove it.”

“How? Are you going to go disappear in the ocean again and I can come check back in a few years to see if you come out again for a quick visit?”

“No.” He laughed. “Come with me. I’ll show you.”