Fish out of Water

by Natalie Whipple

  I nod. “At the Aquarium, actually. Someday I hope to be out there with them.”

  This makes his mom smile wider, almost as if she approves. Even his father seems mildly impressed. “How did you two meet?” she asks.

  London groans. “Can we eat now? I’m starving.” In response to this, her brothers start chanting, “Food, food, food!”

  “Right.” Dylan’s mother shakes her head, as if she had forgotten everything she was doing before she saw her son. “Do you two … want to come with us?”

  “No,” Dylan says way too quickly. “We’re, uh, we were gonna meet up with some of Mika’s friends. They’re waiting for us.”

  I try not to show how relieved I am that I don’t have to endure that particular brand of torture. Karma couldn’t possibly allow such a thing to happen, because I have earned major brownie points this summer.

  “I thought you said you were seeing a movie. Why the sudden change of plans?” London gives us a cruel smile. “C’mon, maybe Mika can recommend a good Asian place.”

  Dylan steps forward, livid. “Excuse me?”

  “London! That’s enough,” her mother says, though it seems half-hearted.

  “It’s fine, Mrs. St. James,” I say, trying not to seethe too much. But there’s a big difference between ignorance and saying something racist on purpose, and London just crossed the line. Maybe she’s upset about losing Dylan, but that’s no excuse to go that far. “It’s how the kids speak these days. First thing I asked London when we met was if she could recommend rich, white-people restaurants.”

  London’s eyes narrow.

  “We’re leaving.” Dylan grabs me by the waist. “Thanks for reminding me how much I don’t miss this.”

  “Dylan, wait!” his mom calls, and I think I hear panic in her voice. It makes me wonder if she wasn’t completely on board with the whole kicking-Dylan-out thing.

  He doesn’t wait. In fact, I have to work extra hard to keep up with his long strides. I can feel him fuming, but I don’t say anything as we pass the theater and head for the parking lot.

  The second we’re in the car, though, he’s talking. “It’s like the universe hates me, I swear! I know there’s not that many places to see a movie around here, but why? Why? All I wanted was one nice night out with my girlfriend.”

  “I’m sorry.” I put my hand on his shoulder, unsure what words will comfort him.

  “Don’t be. It’s not your fault.” He clenches his jaw. “I can’t believe London said that, and my mom … what the hell? Does that happen often, people talking to you like that?”

  I purse my lips, unsure if this is the moment to get into the reality of looking visibly “other” and “mixed” on top of that. “It happens. Not every day, but yeah. I try not to think about it constantly, but people can be really stupid about the way I look sometimes.”

  “I’m gonna have a hard time not punching people who do that.” He grips the steering wheel, putting his head to it. I rub his back in the silence, and slowly his shoulders relax. “Seriously, why do they keep showing up?”

  I shake my head, surprised he doesn’t see it. “Maybe they miss you?”

  This earns me a nasty glare. “You saw my dad. That disapproving sneer pretty much sums up my whole life. Did you see how mad he was that I was happy?”

  I can’t argue this, so I put my fingers through his and bring his hand to my lips.

  He keeps talking. “He’s always treated my uncle like that, too. I used to think Uncle Clark was a total loser because of all the shit my dad said about him wasting his life in a pet shop. Did you know he has a business degree from Yale?”

  My eyes about pop out. “Clark? Seriously?”

  Dylan nods. “They were supposed to handle the business together, but he walked away. My uncle is just as smart as my dad, and yet all I ever heard was that he’s the laziest soul in the world. But you see how hard he works—and he loves that store so much. Now that I’ve lived with him, I’m positive he’s the only person in my family who isn’t miserable.”

  I think about it for a second. “So I guess Clark figured out a long time ago that money doesn’t buy happiness, huh. Kinda like you’re doing now.”

  “Yeah.” Dylan leans his head back, squeezes my hand tighter. “Not only that, but he knew all along that happiness was more valuable. Now that I’ve had it, I wish my whole family could feel it. I think they’ve forgotten what it means to be happy. They wouldn’t act like that if they could remember.”

  When he talks like this, I never want him to stop. “Maybe someday you’ll be able to convince them how important it is.”

  He smiles. “I hope so.”

  Leaning my head on his shoulder, I say, “Let’s delete that part of our night and go to my place for a movie. My couch is more comfortable than theater chairs anyway.”

  He starts the car. “Good idea.”

  When Dylan and I step inside my house, I can hardly believe what I smell. The spices … there’s no mistaking the scent of Shades of Bombay. But it can’t be—my parents wouldn’t dare venture there with all that Shreya’s going through.

  My mouth waters as I round the corner to the kitchen. Mom, Dad, and Olivia sit at the table, bouncing like excited children. Shreya stands in the kitchen, one hand stirring what I can only assume is curry and the other holding our home phone. She speaks in Hindi, so I assume she’s talking to Pavan.

  “Mika! Dylan!” Dad smiles ridiculously wide. “Isn’t this great? Shreya wanted to make us dinner for letting her stay with us.”

  “She really didn’t have to,” Mom says, though it’s clear they’ve both missed Shades of Bombay as much as I have. “But she was determined. She’s been on the phone with Pavan all evening.”

  “And she dragged me through an Indian market all afternoon,” Olivia says with a smile. “Doesn’t she look happy?”

  Shreya’s back is to me, but there seems to be an energy to her that’s been missing since her parents kicked her out. She gets off the phone, and when she turns around she’s smiling. “There you are! No wonder you were late.”

  “Sorry about that,” Dylan says.

  She shakes her head. I’m not sure why her mood has changed so drastically, but I’m happy for it nonetheless. “No you aren’t.”

  He grins. “True.”

  We sit at the table though it hasn’t been long since we ate. Olivia asks, “How’s your grandma?”

  “Better,” I say. “She was really coherent today and felt bad about having to be there so long. If she has a few good days we’ll be able to take her home next week.”

  “Let’s hope,” Mom says. “Hospitals aren’t cheap.”

  I sigh, not even wanting to think about how much we could lose over this.

  “No stress on Friday night.” Dad eyes Dylan. “We have more important things to discuss, like when Dylan will take me to Cypress Point. You’d get major boyfriend brownie points, just saying.”

  “Can I go?” Olivia asks. “I wanna meet a hot rich boy, too.”

  I thunk my head on the table, but Dylan laughs. “She and Brock would get along well.”

  “Too well,” I mumble.

  “Probably. Anyway, I’d be happy to take you sometime, Mr. Arlington. I haven’t golfed enough this summer, that’s for sure.”

  “Yessss.” Dad pats my shoulder. “You can’t break up with him—I’ve been trying to find this hookup for years.”

  “Do you know how creepy that sounds?” I ask. Something clinks on the table, and when I pull my head up I’m greeted with a huge bowl of saag. “Shrey, it’s magnificent.”

  “Seriously,” Olivia says. “It was worth driving to Seaside for the ingredients.”

  Shreya rolls her eyes. “I hope it tastes good. I had to ask Pavan for details because I rarely make it, and you don’t have a tandoori or even a grill so the naan didn’t come out great.”

  “It’s wonderful,” I say through a mouthful of bread. Spooning saag onto my plate, I dip the naan in this time
. Perfection.

  “Wow, you should be a chef.” Dylan takes another bite. “This is just as good as what you brought to AnimalZone for Mika.”

  Shreya lights up. “You think?”

  We all nod in agreement.

  “I was hoping to hear that, because … ” She pauses, looking at us like she’s about to make a big announcement. I brace myself. “Pavan and I have been talking about sticking to our strengths and opening a restaurant. He would be the chef and I could run the house.”

  It clicks. “Is that why you haven’t called Clark?”

  She shrinks a little. “Yeah, sorry. I’m still not sure what’ll happen, and I didn’t want to commit when Pavan might need me.”

  “Don’t worry,” Dylan says. “I’m sure my uncle considers it a standing offer.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” I ask. “I was kind of worried, honestly.”

  “Yeah, Shrey,” Olivia says through her teeth. “You shouldn’t have put it off for so long. See how well everyone handled it?”

  Shreya doesn’t reply. Clearly Olivia knew about this before I did. I’m willing to bet this idea sprung up the same day my grandma had her heart attack. Did Shreya think I couldn’t handle the news with everything else I’ve been going through? Or was she afraid I’d get mad that she didn’t want to work with me? I hope she doesn’t think I’m that petty.

  My parents decide to catch a late movie, since they don’t often get the chance with Betty here now. Shrey, Olivia, Dylan, and I settle in the living room and skim through Netflix movies. We end up on some B movie thriller, but I don’t care because Dylan’s arm is around my shoulder and mine is around his waist. Shrey and Olivia don’t seem annoyed at the cuddling, which is a bonus.

  About half way through the movie, Dylan says, “Hey, could I use your laptop for a sec?”

  I give him a suspicious glare. “Are you allowed?”

  “Not technically.” He bites his lip, which is when I realize something must be bothering him. “But it’s important. After what happened tonight … I can’t think of any way to make it clearer to London.”

  “London?” Olivia’s eyebrow arches. “You saw her tonight?”

  “Ugh, yeah. It was ugly.” I stand up, heading for the hall. “I’ll be right back—Dylan can fill you in if he wants.”

  After a quick check in my mirror, I grab my laptop and go back to the living room. Dylan takes it from me and opens Facebook. He logs out of mine and into his. I figure he’ll look through all the wall messages Shrey saw during her cyber-snooping, but he types in my name and sends a friend request. Then he goes to his profile and clicks on the relationship section.

  “Whoa whoa whoa.” I pull my laptop from him, my heart pounding. “Are you serious? This is what you wanted it for? No way. I can’t handle the lameness.”

  “I know it’s kinda stupid.” His eyes are soft, almost worried. “I’ve never done this before, but I don’t want her or anyone else questioning us again. Even if it’s lame, London will take this seriously.”

  I don’t know what to say, but I can feel Shrey and Olivia watching. They know I’d never do this on my own. I’ve never changed my relationship status, even when I was with my other boyfriends. It felt so … stupid yet official, which would make it harder to untangle when it ended. But I want everyone to know Dylan is mine, too. I especially don’t want London thinking she has any chance. There is nothing clearer or more public than this, so I take a deep breath and hand him back my laptop. “Okay, let’s do this.”

  “Holy. Crap,” Shreya whispers at the same time Olivia curses.

  Dylan changes his status to “in a relationship” and identifies me as the one he’s with. Then he gives it back to me so I can login and approve his requests. The friend one is easy, but my cursor hovers over the relationship approval. It’s crazy how nervous this makes me. “I’ve never done this for anyone, you know.”

  “I know.” He takes my hand and puts it to his chest. His heart pounds at my palm. “I’m nervous, too.”

  “Here goes nothing.” I take a deep breath and click “approve.”

  Shreya and Olivia stare at me like they’re not sure who I am anymore. Can’t say I blame them.

  I lean into Dylan, watching as my feed explodes with shocked responses. We log into his profile so we can watch the chaos unfold on both sides. There are a lot of excited congratulations on mine, and many crying girls on his. I hate to admit it, but this makes me extra happy.

  “If London doesn’t get it now, she never will,” I say after a few minutes.

  “Seriously. Thanks for humoring me.” He leans down and kisses me, and I’m pretty sure I’ve never been so happy in my life.

  Chapter 38

  After another week of slow recovery in the hospital, the doctors finally give my grandma the all-clear. I just have to make it through a work shift before we pick her up—Mom and Dad are meeting Dylan and me at the hospital after. I’m so excited I can barely take it. How we lived without her, I’m not sure. Now it feels like she’s always been here.

  “Are you sure you don’t want to come?” I ask Shreya as I slip my shoes on.

  Shrey shakes her head. “Pavan is picking me up for lunch. We’ll be scouting possible restaurant locations.”

  “Sounds fun.” I grab my bag. “So you’ll be okay?”

  She smirks. “Yes, Mom. Being with my brother makes things feel a little normal.”

  “That’s good. Are you staying with him tonight?”

  She bites her lip, as if she’s scared to tell me. “Yeah. You don’t mind, right? They really like having me around.”

  “Of course I don’t. It’s not like you’ll be gone forever. I’ll live. Barely.”

  She smirks. “You’re gonna be late.”

  I look at the clock. “Crap!”

  When I get to AnimalZone, Dylan is unloading an order of fish gravel from a truck. He gives me a disapproving glare. “You think you can be late because you’re dating the owner’s nephew? Tsk.”

  “Yes, three whole minutes late. I’m clearly taking advantage.”

  He nods at the door. “No seriously, you better get in there. My uncle needs help.”

  “Going.” There are a few early customers, and Clark scrambles between them. I stride up to the one with a little dog in her arms. It has a neon pink bow in its stringy hair, and it glowers like it wishes me dead. “Can I help you, ma’am?”

  “She needs dog food,” Clark says. “Thanks, Mika.”

  I take the lady to the right aisle and try to stay patient as she describes her precious dog’s dietary needs. This is not my area of expertise, but I know which brand Clark recommends the most often, so I go with that. She seems pleased enough, and when she checks out the place is deserted again.

  Clark sighs. “I swear that always happens when there’s only one person here.”

  “It’s like retail law or something,” I say.

  He nods. “Your friend never called me. Did she find something else?”

  I wince. “Kind of. She might be helping her brother open a curry house. I guess it all came up after I told her.”

  “I’ll just have to see if I can get someone else.” He straightens the merchandise by the register. “I really do need another hand around here.”

  “Sorry.” It would have been fun to work with Shreya, though I know she’ll be happier in her element. “I’ll keep an eye out. School starts in a few weeks—I’m sure I’ll run into someone who needs a job.”

  “Sounds good.”

  Dylan appears from the back room, heading for us with a big smile. He grabs me by the waist right in front of his uncle. I swear he likes to embarrass me. “So today’s the day. Are you excited?”

  I smile. “I am. I miss having her around.”

  “Sounds like it’s been a hard recovery,” Clark says.

  “So hard. I hope being home will help reduce her outbursts, though we’ll still have to be extra careful. Our home aide even said he’d come extra
the first week she’s home.”

  “That Joel,” Dylan says. “Heart of giddy gold.”

  “Totally.” I pull away from him, pointing to Aquatics. “Now, to the tanks!”

  He smirks. “Drill sergeant.”

  “She’s perfect for you,” Clark says, smiling like a proud father.

  “I know.” Dylan takes my hand and drags me to the tanks. Work always flies by now. It might be only a week since we saw his parents, but we’ve spent almost every second possible with each other since. I can’t believe there was a time when I couldn’t stand him.

  After work, Dylan hooks my bike to the back of his uncle’s car. I barely sit still as we drive to the hospital, the thought of my grandma being okay and coming home overwhelming. We could have been having a funeral, but she’s still here. We have time. Not as much as we could have had, but I’ll take what I can get.

  Mom and Dad are waiting for us in the lobby, and after a quick greeting we head for my grandma’s room. I knock on the door and then open it. When she sees me, a big smile spreads across her face. “I get to come with you today.”

  I nod. “Are you feeling okay?”

  “Just super.” She looks down, seeming embarrassed. “But I need help dressing. The nurses told me not to try it alone. They don’t want me to fall.”

  “You have good nurses.”

  “Boys.” Mom points to the door. “If you’d give us a minute.”

  My dad and Dylan leave. We help Grandma pick out the clothes she wants from a bag my parents brought. When Mom helps her out of the gown, I can’t help staring at the long scar down her chest. It’s not fully healed, and it reminds me just how close it was. We help her with the loose shirt and pants, and then I fluff her hair while Mom works on her makeup.

  “I wish I had daughters,” she says.

  “You do have a daughter—Jenny,” Mom says.

  Grandma frowns. “She doesn’t count. She never did stuff like this for me. All she ever did was drugs and men.”

  “What’s the first thing you want to do when we get home?” I ask, knowing Aunt Jenny isn’t a good topic to linger on.