Page 19 of Shark 2

“Why don’t you all come?” I asked. Normally, it was just Theo and I, but there was no reason they couldn’t come, too.

“You want us to come?” he asked, stopping at the car to look down at me.

I nodded. “Yeah. You guys can form your own teams and compete against us. It’ll be fun. While I do enjoy times out with just Theo, I also always enjoy you being with me, and the trivia nights aren’t just Theo and I hanging out, but lots of our friends show up, too. So, it wouldn’t be abnormal for you guys to be there as well.”

The truth was, with this recent development with Reed, I wanted to spend as much time as possible with them, in case they all did end up leaving.

Grant pressed his fingertips against my chest, a scowl on his face, and whispered, “I can sense your fear, sweetheart.”

Swallowing the feelings down, I smiled wide and said, “Well, you guys can decide if you want to come or not. No pressure.” Before he could say anything else, I climbed into the backseat and focused on consuming my breakfast.

Grant took a minute to get into the car, during which Reed glanced at me in question, but I didn’t reply.

Once at the aquarium, I hurried to the locker area located behind the tanks, where I could strip and climb into the tank without anyone seeing me, that also had access to the large tank the kids came to see me at.

As I swam out into the large tank, joining the sea creatures there, I felt an uneasiness in my chest.

This trip was going to be my last chance to really show Reed what it would be like to be with me, to be fully mated to me.

It would also be my first trip with the others, so I wanted to make sure we all had fun and there were no regrets later.

Most of the fish and the sea turtles veered away from me far more than normal.

Swimming around the perimeter of the circular tank, I let my shark brain take over to stop focusing on my fears and worry, which were obviously being sensed by the others in the tank.

An hour later, the first group of students entered, pressing up against the glass to get a better view of everything in the huge tank.

Among the children was the little girl with the pink bow who came at least once a month to see me with her mother. Today, she held a stuffed creature, it took me a moment to realize it was a tiger shark. She was holding … me.

Spinning in joy, I did a barrel roll in the water that had everyone squealing and exclaiming in excitement.

The little girl hugged her shark tighter as her smile grew for me.

I knew I couldn’t do too much out of the ordinary for them or I really would risk exposing myself, but throughout the day, I did several more rolls and spins, especially when the parents weren’t looking.

All too soon, the day ended and I climbed out of the tank. Looking back at it forlornly, I tried to tell myself it was only for a week, but it felt like I was seeing it for my final time.

“Great work today,” Stacy, the manager, waved at me. She was a tall, thin woman who loved wearing business suits. Today, her platinum blonde hair was in a high, tight bun, and per usual, not a single hair was out of place. Her teal eyes sparkled like she’d sprinkled glitter inside them.

“Thanks,” I said and smiled at her as I pulled on my pants. “I saw a little girl with a tiger shark plushie. Did you guys start selling them?”

She smirked and held out a small manila envelope. “That’s part of why I came to see you.”

“What’s this?” I asked, opening the envelope.

“Your popularity has risen so much that we started offering merchandise. We felt it was only right to offer you a portion of the proceeds.”

My eyes widened at the check and the amount listed there. “Th-This is for me?”

She nodded. “You can thank the girl with her little pink bows. She demanded to know where Kass’s items were in the shop and asked every single time she came.”

“C-Can I see the items?”

She held up a small tote bag I hadn’t noticed at her side. “I grabbed you one of each item.”

Tears welled in my eyes as I looked inside the bag at the plushie, pins, magnets, and t-shirts.

“Don’t worry about you being gone, either. We’re going to let them know that you’re sick, but not to worry at all because the doctors are handling it and you’ll be back for them to see just as soon as you’re one hundred percent better.”

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