Fathom by L. Standage (spanish books to read .TXT) 📕

“Um. I’ll go home at the end of the summer.” This was true. I pressed my lips together again. Trying not to laugh was hurting my face.

“This is so awesome. Can I take you out sometime?” Brock asked.

Wow. He was hitting on me! My scowl deepened.

“What makes you think I’d want to do anything with you?”

“I can show you what life is like here.” His eyes trailed over my body again. I lost my temper.

“No, you know what? I think I’ve got a pretty good idea of what life is like here.” I took a step closer and pointed a finger at his chest. “And if I get any trouble for what you did, I swear you’ll live to regret it.”

Leaving him with my best daggers-shooting-out-my-eyes look, I headed toward Samantha. Hottie McScottie and his red-headed companion watched me. For a second, I locked eyes with Hottie McScottie and felt a sudden swoop in my stomach. My pace faltered. Why had he come back with the lady from the grocery store? Just like the first time I saw him, neither was dressed for normal beach activities. Could they have had anything to do with what happened at the tide pools?

I shook my head and pulled my gaze away and strode toward Samantha.

“Come on, we’re leaving,” I said, towing her away from the boys.

“Bye!” She waved, keeping a loyal pace with me. “So, how’d it go with Brock, mermaid girl?”

“You are not going to believe the things he said to me.”

Her eyes grew big with the intensity of her glee. “What?”

I glanced back once more. Brock had returned to his friends and headed down the beach. The Scottish guy had gone, but the red head still stood there, watching me. She opened her mouth as though about to say something. I turned away and took Samantha’s arm.

“Let’s go back home. I’ll tell you all about it.”

The clock read after eleven o’clock. Samantha lay on the couch, laughing her head off with her arms and legs curled up like a beetle on its back. I laughed too, but on the floor. Around us lay the remains of our chicken pot pie dinner, along with empty ice cream bowls and discarded candy wrappers.

“The look on his face, Sam,” I said after relating, for the millionth time, what had happened between Brock and me. “I swear I’ll never forget it. This guy totally thought I was a mermaid!”

“Guess I’m a better photographer than I thought,” she said with a residual giggle.

“No, you’re a better seamstress than you thought. He saw me in the costume, not just a picture. A costume! Seriously, what is this guy?”

“I wonder if he got money from the tabloid for turning the picture in.”

“Ah, I should have asked him!” I snapped my fingers.

“Yeah, because it was my photo shoot. If he got money for it, I should sue him.”

“Yeah, sue him! Sue the crap out of him!” I shouted like a battle cry.

“Sue him and win a zillion dollars to pay for my photography!” She rolled to her knees on the couch.

“Pay for my marine biology degree!” I stood.

“Pay for my trip to Paris!” She threw her arms in the air.

“To Fiji!” I punched the air.

“Any place where the shopping is choice, and the men are smokin’ hot!” We fell back into more laughter. Fatigue and large amounts of sugar made us slap-happy. When the final giggles subsided—which took a while—I looked down at the mess from our unhealthy dinner and groaned. “I don’t feel like cleaning this up.”

“Then don’t. We’ll do it tomorrow.” Sam got up and stretched. “I’m tired. I’ve gotten up early every day we’ve been here!”

“I’m ready for bed too.” I burped and tasted pot pie on my breath. Gross. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“G’night.” I slouched into my bedroom while Sam trudged to hers. I had intended to find my toothbrush, but the last thing I remembered was lying on the bed for a minute, just to rest my eyes before changing into my pajamas, brushing my teeth, washing my face…

I saw Landon. He smiled, his hair gelled to perfection and his eyes glinting with beckoning allure. He wore my favorite blue tee shirt. But he stood far away, dark and indistinct. I looked away and saw my parents standing together. My dad had his arm around my mom. They both watched me with love in their eyes, serenity erasing the dark circles from my mother’s face and the extra gray in my father’s hair. But I turned away. Landon. My parents. Landon. My parents. I tried to run to them. At first, I moved slowly, like trying to run under water. Then I stopped. I didn’t feel like running anymore. Instead, I just wanted to go to the beach. The beach was everything.

I didn’t know why because I woke up.

At least, I thought I did. I sat up in my bed, feeling an odd detachment from myself. I looked at the digital clock on the nightstand. The glowing numbers read 3:27 a.m. I gazed around the room for a moment, disoriented and sluggish, until I realized why I had woken up so suddenly.

Someone called my name.

“What?” My voice came out weak and hoarse.

“Olivia. Please come…”

I looked around. Was it Samantha? I sat and listened for a moment.

“Olivia, my sister, please…”

It wasn’t Samantha. It came from the window. I got out of bed and walked toward it. It sounded like a woman’s voice. Why did she call me her sister? I was an only child. I hesitated, my hand shaking on the blinds. Someone waited out there, on the other side of the window.

“Olivia, help me.”

It could be a trick. Some psycho could be standing out there. But how would she know my name? And I was only dreaming, wasn’t I? The woman sounded so sad, so desperate.

I pulled the blinds open.

A face stared back at me. I gasped. The blinds dropped and clattered over the window. My heart