Droplets (DROPLETS Trilogy Book 1) (23 page)

     “You can even hear Nixie talking. Well, rather loudly if you listen,” he said jokingly.

     I smiled feebly in response. “Oh.” It was all I could say.

     “He’s really scared you hasn’t he?” Patrick’s tone was comforting.

     I appreciated his concern and I nodded my head while looking at the ground. In a moment he wrapped his arms around me. The feeling from the night before enveloped me. I felt safe and secure in his arms, as though they were a barrier from the rest of the world.

     “Come on, we had better get up there before they go looking for us.” Again I nodded and we walked toward the house and up the spiral staircase, all the while Patrick held my hand.  

     Stepping inside, the warm light from the fireplace enveloped us and cast a golden light on the people inside. Kryssa, Shaylee, and Tunder were situated on the couch. Nixie stood next to Daggin on the other side of the room, her hands gesturing while she spoke so quickly her sentences ran together. Elik sat in the chair Patrick usually occupied. Upon our arrival, they all turned to greet us. I suddenly became very aware of Patrick’s hand around my own, and warmth filled my cheeks.

     “There you are!” Tunder approached, a smile on his face. The change was amazing; the serious authoritative demeanor was replaced by a man worthy of winning Shaylee’s affection.

     Patrick and Tunder embraced in greeting, and without hesitation Tunder held out his hand to me. Slipping my hand from Patrick’s, I reached out to accept. A feeling of approval and ease washed over me and I relaxed.

     The rest of the group greeted us kindly and Patrick immediately began to speak with Tunder. There was a light in his eyes like I had never seen before. Something about his excitement made my heart warm knowing he was enjoying himself. To even think of how many years he spent alone on this island made me shudder; he deserved these visits and I didn’t want to intrude. 

     Realizing dinner was not yet made, and seeing it as an excuse to depart from the long-term friends, I moved into the kitchen and began to prepare a recipe from the family restaurant back home.

     “Hey,” Kryssa said, coming up behind me as I placed the noodles in the water.

    “Hey,” I said back and smiled up at her.

     “What are you making?” she asked curiously, and I wondered if merfolk would even eat shrimp scampi.

     “It’s a recipe from back home. We call it shrimp scampi. It’s noodles covered in a creamy sauce with shrimp. One of my favorites,” I shrugged. Kryssa looked very interested.

     “Sounds yummy,” she said with some enthusiasm that put my worries aside. “Can I help?” she asked sounding like a child who was interested in learning something new. I realized it was my turn to introduce her to a new skill.

    We worked side by side. She listened to my instructions and asked a myriad of questions that I answered easily. Her eyes were excited as though we were embarking on a fascinating adventure; I laughed to myself, in wonderment that she enjoyed it so much.

     As the noodles cooked, I began to make the sauce. I added the ingredients efficiently until the aroma filled the room and reminded me of home. Kryssa glanced into the saucepan and nodded in approval. She then returned to her job of cutting the bread right next to where I stood at the stove. 

     Well, cutting was an understatement. She was carving the bread with a vengeance and chunks of it were falling off in different oddly shaped sizes and crumbling onto the floor. Each time one fell off the cutting board, she tried to grab it in midair but always missed. With no regard for the sharp knife she wielded, she would dive to the ground and pick up the mutilated piece and continue her desecration of the loaf of bread.  I had to look away to keep from laughing.

     “So,” Kryssa said, still carving like a madwoman, “How’d it go with Patrick?” I knew what she meant.

     “Pretty well, actually,” I said, thinking back to when I had first seen Patrick after returning from Lathmor. “I admit I was scared to death though. But it turned out fine.”

     “I knew it would.” Kryssa paused for a moment and then asked in a soft whisper, “Have you kissed yet?”

     My blush that followed was enough of an answer for her and she laughed out loud. I hushed her quickly while peeking over my shoulder to make sure we had not attracted attention. The last person who needed to know that right now was Nixie. If she knew, then all of Lathmor would know all too quickly—not that the other merfolk would care. Patrick glanced up and caught my gaze. He flashed me a quick smile, and I warmed under his gaze. That feeling of connection once again filled me as I turned back around to the bubbling sauce.

     “You love him, don’t you?” Kryssa’s assured voice pulled me from my thoughts.

     “What?”

     “I can see it in your face when you look at him,” she observed without a hint of doubt.

     “No,” I said shaking my head quickly. “I don’t. We haven’t said anything… I can’t be….” I broke off, uncertain of how to explain to her what it was I felt. 

     Silence fell after my words and I glanced up to see if she had heard me. The smile on her face told me she had. She looked as though she was trying to control some deep emotion and then all of a sudden she hugged me.

     “I’m so happy for you!” She exclaimed rather loudly in my ear.

     “But I haven’t said anything,” I tried to explain. She let go and stepped back.

     “Yes you have,” she said, throwing back her head and laughing. Her hair rippled gently. “You just gave everything away!”

     “No,” I said again. “I’m not in love with him. It’s just… he is… important to me.” I spoke simply, but the recollection of the cave flickered before my eyes. That was not what you did with someone who was only important to you, but I threw the thought aside.

     “Sure,” she said skeptically.

     “It’s like it’s easier to be alive when I’m around him. He makes me comfortable. And in some way he understands me, because we are both similar. Does that make any sense?” I asked and glanced at Kryssa.

     She didn’t respond, but was staring out the window, her eyes blank as though seeing something from a long time ago. Her wet eyes shined as though she held back tears. A twinge spiked my heart as I wondered who it was she grieved for.

     The crackling bubble of the sauce grabbed my attention and I returned to the stove to finish preparing dinner. Eventually, Kryssa restored to her normal self and continued the demolition of the bread. She was silent, her mind far away from the cabin in some long lost memory.

     “Okay,” I said, breaking the silence between us. “Dinner is ready. Are you done cutting the bread?” I glanced over and saw that the previously pretty loaf was now a crumbled mess.

     “Yeah, I’m done,” Kryssa said and handed me the basket of disfigured chunks.

     “Good, thanks.” I turned around and called everyone to dinner. They all lined up, got their plates, and formed a sort of lunch line while I distributed the warm noodles and shrimp.

     “This looks and smells delicious, Lissie,” Shaylee complimented once we had all taken our places in chairs around the fire.

     “Thanks,” I said. “I hope it tastes just as good.”

    “Here’s the bread,” Kryssa said as she passed the basket around.

     No one seemed surprised by the uneven chunks; in fact, they all looked like they expected it. Patrick didn’t though—when the basket reached him he glanced at me with a smile and winked knowingly. A choked gargle of a laugh escaped my throat, but I turned it into a cough. The others were unaware and expressed concern, but Patrick was smiling brightly in my peripheral trying just as hard as I was to not laugh. I avoided his gaze in order to compose myself, but it was quite a few minutes before I was even able to look up from my plate.

     “So, Lissie,” Nixie said, sounding very formal. “I have something very important to ask you.”

     “Okay,” I said, hoping it was simple. I glanced around trying to get a hint from her sisters, but they gave away nothing.

     “I don’t think anyone has told you…” she glanced at her sisters to see if they had and they shook their heads, “but Daggin and I are engaged!” I blinked, taking in the information for a moment.

     “Really?!” I asked,  incredibly loud. “Congratulations! When did it happen?”

     Nixie laughed, “Oh this?” she held up her hand to show a very bright and large turquoise ring on her left hand. “This happened a long time ago, but the wedding is in two weeks. I know the last time you came to Lathmor you were not welcomed in the best manner.”

    
Welcomed? I was severely criticized.
“But I have gained father’s permission and so,” she placed her hands on her lap in a respective manner, “I would like to ask you and Patrick to be guests at our wedding.”

     My eyes flickered to Patrick questioning him. “I would love to go.” He addressed Nixie.

     “Me, too,” I smiled.

     She clapped her hands together excitedly. “Wonderful! The ceremony won’t be extravagant because of the war, but it’s a blessing to even have one!” Her eyes filled with tears and she wiped at her eyes. Daggin nuzzled her with his nose whispering into her ear and she giggled.

     “I do have one question,” I said leaning toward Patrick. He cocked his ear to hear me better. “Isn’t she a little young to be getting married?”

     He shook his head and laughed. “No, not at all.”

     Nixie overheard our whispers. “It’s true! Most mermaids are married by my age. Shaylee was my age when she married Tunder, and Kryssa was—” She broke off suddenly clapping a hand over her mouth, her eyes wide with horror. A jolt of awkwardness sprang into the room, everyone unsure of what to say or do. Tunder and Shaylee looked at their intertwined hands, Daggin rubbed Nixie’s arm, Elik’s face grew somber and he stood up and walked to the other side of the room. The tension in his body was evident. Out of the small group Kryssa was the only one to remain calm. She spoke, but when she did there was a throaty tone to it as though slightly clogged from emotion.

       “You don’t have to worry about finding anything to wear,” she beckoned with her hand toward Patrick and I. “Nixie already has clothes for you.”

     I remembered the beautiful clothing in Kryssa’s closet and wondered what sort of dress Nixie had prepared for me.

     “Sounds wonderful,” I said, trying to lighten the mood.

     “So you really will come?” Nixie pleaded. “Both of you?”

     “Yes,” I smiled and stood up to give her a hug. She pranced into my embrace, her red curls bouncing with energy.

     She pulled me down beside her on the bench and began to explain all the details of the wedding. Shaylee and Kryssa joined in, adding little details here and there and making sure nothing was left out. Every now and then I glanced over at the men. They were standing in the kitchen, their faces serious but their tones light. Tunder and Patrick carried most of the conversation while Daggin joined in every now and then. I couldn’t help but notice how dejected and separated Elik appeared; the smile that usually adorned his face was nowhere to be seen.

     “…And Daggin and I have been hoping that we will get the first light snow of the year on our wedding night. It should be right about that time and—”

     “Snow!” I exclaimed, butting in. “It’s been so warm out, is it really going to get that cold?” Shaylee and Kryssa laughed heartily.

     “It’s been colder than you think Lissie,” Shaylee explained. “It’s been in the low thirties for the past few days. You just don’t realize it because of your new body.”

     “Really?” I asked, astonished and wondered how I could have miscalculated so poorly.

     “It is mid-November,” Kryssa clarified while I tried to wrap my mind around the idea. How had I lost track of time so badly? So much had changed in such a short span of my life.

     “Then what day is the wedding?” I questioned.

     “December first,” Nixie said as she smiled with anticipation.

     The rest of the night concluded with every detail of the wedding being described to me. Their excitement for the occasion was contagious—mentally I calculated how many more days until the wedding.

     Eventually our visitors decided it was time to return to Lathmor, but not before Nixie explained that she would be visiting soon so I could be fitted into my dress. Shaylee and Tunder held back as the rest of the group filled the cabin with their goodbyes. A sudden silence followed the click of the door shutting. Patrick turned back from the wooden barrier, his eyes roving over these old friends.

     “What’s all this about?” Patrick asked, the happy moments of before long forgotten in an instant. A seriousness fell between us as we all sat down once more around the fireplace.

     Needing comfort, I reached for Patrick’s hand. He took mine within his own gently and rubbed it with his thumb. Tunder cleared his throat, the sound echoing within the cabin.

     “Shaylee has remembered something we think is important to Morven’s intentions for both of you.” Patrick’s grip tightened on my hand at the mention of Morven’s name. I held my breath, waiting for Tunder to continue, but Shaylee spoke instead.