Page 31 of Coral Prince Conundrum
“Better,” he replies.
I bite my lip as I catch my breath. “For what it is worth, you no longer need to rent anymore. You are living with the royal family now.”
He nods and looks out the window again. “Yeah, for now.”Of course, this is temporary.“Your whole country will probably hate me for being an American immigrant, a Black guy, and a dude who can’t breathe underwater.”
I shake my head. “No one will hate you. Besides, Father already met you. They all know that you will be staying with me on the surface. As long as you are here, no harm will come to you, that is my vow.” He gazes at me, and for a moment we say nothing. I hope he knows that, fake fiancé or not, I would never let anyone, on the surface or the ocean, hurt him.
“Um, thanks.” He gulps. “And, uh, scuba gear?”
I tap his hand. “I will get you clothes and everything you need for when we go to the underwater palace. And we will spend as little time there as possible. You have my word.”
He grins. “Thanks, Coral Prince.”
“Please, I need you to call me Seero.” I wave my hand. “You are the only one who…”Who sees the real me.
Before I can lie and say something more platonic, the boat stops. Daryl looks around, panicked; the reality of the situation is hitting us both. He is now a member of the royal family, and I am back to my princely duties.
“I will take care of you.” I smile and touch his shoulder. “Come, let us go meet the rest of the royal family.”
“No pressure,” he mutters as I walk out of the boat.
A green carpet is laid out in front of the large door, just as I remember. The surface home was primarily used by my brother, but we rarely saw each other when we stayed here. I’ve missed both my siblings, and they greet us in the foyer.
“Brother!” they say in Corali, in unison. My brother and sister both bow.
“Come, give your older brother a hug,” I say in English.
“Oh, we are speaking English now? That sounds so ill!” My one-year-younger brother has a softer stomach than I, with longer hair. What he lacks in muscular physique, he makes up for in technological intelligence and a brighter personality. I hug him, then my sister.
“What is ill? Ill means like a plague, no?” she asks. She is merely a year younger than my brother, shorter than both of us, and she is the quiet princess my mother raised. I don’t know much about her life, other than her expertise at being a water mystic.
“Oroy, Priya, meet my betrothed, Daryl. Daryl, meet my younger brother and sister.”
“Wow, a real American,” my brother says. He shakes Daryl’s hand, who stands stone-faced.
“Your betrothed is a surface-dweller,” my sister remarks. My siblings share mixed looks of fascination and apprehension. I’m simply happy they’ve shifted into English for Daryl’s sake.
“Where is Mother?” I ask.
“She did not want to come to the surface, instead waiting for Father,” Oroy replies.
“Why would she want to come here?” Priya asks, looking at the cream-colored walls. “It is so dry.”
I laugh and put my arm around Daryl. “That is normal for most Americans. Come, walk us to our quarters.”
I lead Daryl down the hallway as he gazes at the various statuettes outside each room. The pink and white busts made of shells and coral decorate all the royal buildings, but I’ve never taken the time to notice them. “The servants prepared the fourth floor for you,” Oroy says.
“I am choosing to stay on this floor, closer to the water,” Priya adds.
“Ooh, that reminds me,” I say. “I need to introduce Daryl to some of our pets.”
“Pets?” he murmurs while scrutinizing a large conch statue.
“I shall take him to the outer tidal pools first.”
“Of course, to prepare for tonight.” Oroy taps his head. “Duh, totes. So ill.”
“Ignore him, he has taken to watching worldwide television,” Priya says to Daryl. Daryl gives a tight smile and gazes at the ceiling. This all must be so overwhelming.
