The Heart of the Ocean
A Need for Answers

" Screaming out so loud

But my words don’t make a sound.”

-UNSECRET

As the day of the Festival was approaching, everyone was running in panic. There were still so many things that had to be done; the decorations had to be put in place and the food had yet to be prepared. The village’s market was full of people –Aide could barely walk among them. Everyone was trying to find the last ingredients they needed, before they were completely gone. Although, no one would admit it, there was an informal contest about who cooked best. This resulted in the stalls being quickly emptied, either out of necessity or sabotage.

Aide moved quickly, not caring if she pushed or stepped on somebody. If her Nana didn’t get the apples she asked for, she wouldn’t hear the end of it. Gloria Steel, the mayor’s wife, had been trying for years to surpass Nana’s talent in apple pies, but she was failing miserably. Every year she tried to sabotage her and every year she failed. Aide didn’t want to find out Alexandra’s reaction, if she ever succeeded.

Her whole face lit up in satisfaction. She found the red treasure she had been looking for. After paying for the apples, she found her wandering friends. With the help of Aileen, she and Petra had managed to talk things out. Their relationship was never the same –her trust had been broken too many times. The two of them were arguing a lot –mainly, because Aide refused to put up with Petra’s antics anymore. However, they did have a good time when they were all together –they were getting along.

Aide was in a particularly good mood. She was speaking with her friends and had plans to spend the afternoon with them. Her Nana would be pleased that she’d found the apples she wanted. She was away from the sea, the heartache and the drama it always seemed to bring to her. However, a familiar figure standing in the shadows made her groan internally.

“Oh-oh!“, she said moodily.

“What? What is it?“, Aileen asked nervously.

“Guess who is standing by Mr. Adwin’s stall...“, Petra wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

Aide shivered in disgust at Petra’s excited tone. She didn’t know how, but these past two years P seemed to take a liking to Alastor Steel. The asshole himself never stopped trying to approach Aileen, making her constantly anxious and scared to be alone. Truth be told, Aide never told Petra what really happened at that beach party –she didn’t know that he was the one that had almost drowned her. She had tried once, but the girl was too immature to make a serious conversation. Aide ended up hearing about how “handsome” and “amazing” the mayor’s son is for the next hour and a half.

Aileen didn’t seem well. Her hands were hugging her form as if to protect herself. Her body was slightly trembling. Her eyes were sparkling with fear as she tried to make herself look smaller. After years of being bullied and man-handled by this person, she just wanted to be as far away from him as humanly possible.

“I-I need to go”, the red-haired whispered fearfully.

“That’s fine, baby girl!“, Aide gave her a smile of encouragement, “We’ll see you at Nana’s house this afternoon, okay? Someone has to eat those apple pies of hers.”

Aileen smiled gratefully at her before disappearing into the crowd of the market. Petra looked at her confused, not understanding what had just happened.

“That was weird”, the blonde muttered.

“Sometimes, I wonder if you really are so ignorant or just plain stupid”, Aide shook her head in disappointment before heading home.

The hours passed by quickly. The afternoon came faster than the brunette had anticipated. The three girls gathered in Alexandra’s home and helped her prepare her amazing desserts. The kitchen was filled with laughter and the delicious aroma of baking goods. Soon, the large table was filled with small strawberry tarts, yummy lemon pies, mouth-watering cinnamon cookies, and Nana’s famous apple pies. Proud of their work –but also extremely tired- the girls made their way to the garden, where they spend the rest of the afternoon.

“Do you believe they’re true?“, Aide whispered to her friends.

When all she got was questioning stares, she couldn’t help but roll her eyes.

“All these stories about sailors and...and mermaids”, she elaborated.

Aide could feel her heart beating wildly. She knew for a fact that merpeople were real. However, she never found the courage to talk about it with her friends. She didn’t know why but she felt the need to hear their opinion. Alexandra seemed to know a lot about the myths of Seaworth and had taught her so much about them. However, the elder refused to acknowledge the existence of mermaids. Every time Aide brought it up, her Nana was quick to put an end in the conversation.

“No, they couldn’t be possibly real”, Petra answered first.

“Why? I mean that every myth has an ounce of truth in it. They had to come from somewhere...“, Aileen furrowed her eyebrows in thought.

“Yeah, but mermaids? I mean... it’s a bit too much, don’t you think? It seems too fantastic to be real to me”, Petra shrugged and took a sip out of her cup.

“Well, just because it is out of the ordinary, it doesn’t necessarily mean that it could be true only in our fantasies”, Aileen defended her opinion.

“But...mermaids?“, Petra insisted.

Aide watched them as they spoke among themselves. She couldn’t say she was surprised by P’ refusal. The girl wasn’t able to realize that Alastor Steel was an abuser, even though all the clues were right in front of her. However, Aileen’s opinion had triggered her curiosity.

“Well, humans couldn’t possibly be the only intelligent creature on the whole planet. Plus, we have only discovered a small portion of the oceans. The possibilities of their existence aren’t small...“, Aileen mumbled to herself.

“I agree with you. And nana does too”, Aide finally spoke, “She had told me a story about them when I was younger.”

“What story?“, Aileen asked curiously her friend.

“A story about merfolk and their soul mates”, Aide whispered in a low voice.

“Soul mates?“, Petra asked as the strange word captured her attention.

Aide began explaining to her friends of what she’d heard. How the oceans had turned red because of the brutality and lethal ways of the merpeople. They were killing each other –driving themselves to extinction, until their deities decided that this had to somehow stop. They gave them a purpose –to protect and love the person that was meant to them. Their better half –their soulmate.

“And how do you know that this specific person is your mate? How could you be so sure of it?“, Aileen asked confused.

“You just know, my dear!”

The three girls turned around at the unexpected voice. Nana Alexandra just gave them an apologetic smile and sat in an empty chair beside them. She went on to explain to them how mates find each other. She seemed to have a deep knowledge of their ways –she knew things that weren’t written in books. She left them with more questions than answers, wondering if all these could be true.

When the stars decorated the sky, Petra and Aileen decided it was time to go home. Grandmother and granddaughter were left in peaceful silence, staring at the sparkling diamonds in the night sky. Aide sighed deeply, deciding to take the risk.

“Nana...”

“I know you have a lot of questions, my dear”, the elder gave her a saddened smile.

“That’s an understatement”, Aide laughed nervously.

“Perhaps, I’m being selfish. I know that I have many of the answers you seek, but...”

“But, what?“, Aide sighed in disappointment, “I’ve been trying to talk to you for a while and you refuse to listen to me, Nana. I really need you to explain some things.”

“And I will”, Alexandra nodded in agreement, “I just need some time.”

Aide shook her head in refusal –her hands combed through her messy hair.

“You had plenty of time, grandma. I really tried to respect your wish –I tried to not pressure you”, Aide stood up abruptly, “However, I cannot ignore the fact that I need answers. You are the only person that can give them to me and you constantly refuse. I’m just so...tired of it.”

“Aide, listen to me-”

“No! You listen to me!“, Aide breathed heavily, “Something happened a few years ago –it really took a toll on me. You asked me what my nightmares are about –they are about it. And the fact that makes me helpless is that nobody will believe me. I cannot talk about it with nobody else but you.”

“I’m sorry”, Alexandra whispered, “I just...can’t.”

Aide felt a tear sliding down her face. She was quick to whip it away. She was tired of feeling weak and helpless. She was tired of not getting the answers she wanted. She just needed to know what had happened to Evander that day –was he always like this? Would he ever hurt her? Was she really his mate? She was aware that she was the one that walked away. She tried to make herself believe that she was okay with her decision, but in reality, it was eating her alive.

She just needed someone to talk to.

And nobody was listening.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

End of chapter 16!!

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