Hannah grumbled a “yes” in reply as she crouched down and searched through a bush of ferns. Considering how dark it was, she hoped she wasn’t about to encounter some animals of the eight legged variety. She still couldn’t handle spiders.
The dark corner was void of mischievous penguins. Hannah shimmied back out again. “Are you sure he was missing?”
“I counted. Trust me, there was one missing. He has to be around here somewhere.” Harry leant over a fence, only to be confronted by a seal as it belched into his face. “Do seals eat penguins?”
Hannah shrugged, hoping not. “Maybe we’ll keep looking.”
They searched around their designated area of the zoo for the next twenty minutes with no luck. Making their way down to the penguin enclosure, all the other birds seemed to be missing their family member too. Where normally the penguins would be huddled up for the night, they were all wandering around their enclosure.
“Aww, they’re missing him,” she sighed.
“I told you one was gone,” Harry replied.
She turned around, trying to put herself in the bird’s flippers. Where would she go if she escaped? What area would look most attractive to a little penguin? It was easier said than done. No real answers came to her.
Out of the corner of her eye, Hannah suddenly saw a flash of white where there should only have been green. She gripped Harry’s arm and pointed silently, mouthing ‘over there’.
They approached stealthily, trying desperately not to startle the poor thing. It had caused enough commotion for one night, they didn’t want to have to take it to the vet as well.
“Here, little fella,” Harry whispered as he crouched down closer. Hannah followed him, making every move slow and deliberate. “You want to go home? To your family? I can arrange that for you.”
The penguin stared back at him, watching his every move like it might be his last. He was alert, that was a good sign he wasn’t hurt, at least.
“Everyone is looking for you,” Harry continued in his most soothing voice. “You’ve caused quite a ruckus here tonight.”
Hannah watched as the penguin moved slightly. Except it wasn’t away from Harry, but closer to him. He must have been speaking some good penguin language.
“Come on and I’ll reunite you with your family. You’ve got a girlfriend in there, right? Did you guys have a fight or something? Huh? I know girls are difficult to understand, but they’re worth it. They really are.”
Harry crept forward, inching along on his legs in slow motion. One wrong move and the bird would be too startled to trust him again. He knew what was at risk and had no intention of messing it up.
“Come on, buddy. That’s it, just a little closer and this will all be over with. Then we can all get some sleep. I’m tired, I’m sure you are too from your big adventure.”
One more inch and Harry managed to get his hands around the penguin’s body. He picked him up, creeping out backwards from the garden.
“You’ve got him!” Hannah exclaimed. The way Harry was holding the penguin reminded her of The Lion King when the lion cub was born, he didn’t exactly look comfortable.
“Now what do I do?”
“Put him back in the enclosure, I guess.” They crossed the path to the enclosure but the fence was too high just to plunk him down on the other side. “Around the back way.”
They skirted along the fences until they reached the staff only area where Hannah opened the doors while Harry continued to keep the bird calm.
When they were safely inside and the door was closed behind them, Harry gently returned the penguin to the group. The little guy joined them eagerly, flapping his wings in greeting.
“They are so cute,” Hannah cooed. She had an overwhelming urge to join the animals and hug them all tight. They always were one of her favorite animals.
“Whoever said animals don’t have emotions are idiots,” Harry added. “You can practically see the relief on their faces.”
“Not to mention the love. They are a family.”
Harry nodded as they watched the reunion. It was heartbreakingly touching. Hannah had to keep blinking just to keep the tears away. She wasn’t the kind of girl to cry over every little thing, let alone a penguin reunion. But the scene was impossible not to be affected by.
She tried to distract herself. “So you think he had a fight with his girlfriend, huh?”
“Probably. It’s normally the reason why guys get so upset. I figure it’s got to be the same for a teenage penguin.”
“I don’t think guys get that upset over girls.”
Harry continued to look at the penguins, unable to have the conversation while looking at Hannah. “You’d be surprised. Sometimes it takes them years to get over someone. Especially if it was the first girl they ever fell in love with.”
Hannah didn’t know what to say, she wasn’t entirely certain he was only talking about the penguins. In the end, there was only one thing she really wanted to say. “For the record, it takes girls just as long to get over guys. Especially when it was the first guy they ever fell in love with too.”
“So that girl is probably over that guy then,” Harry replied. Finally, he turned to face her. Hannah saw so many emotions run over his features. His eyes were hurt but hopeful at the same time, a smile lingered gently on his lips. It was too much to take in after such a long night.
“She thought she was.” Her breath hitched in her throat, strangling any further words.
“He knew he wasn’t.” Harry shuffled closer so she could feel the heat from his body beside her. As her face blushed with nerves and embarrassment, his hand slid into hers, grasping her tightly.
Hannah’s hand burned with the skin to skin contact with Harry. The warmth travelled up her arm and filled her entire body. It ignited all the memories of that feeling again, setting her on fire. Had it really been three whole years since she had felt that way? It seemed like ten years and two seconds all at the same time.
“Ahem.” The voice behind their backs startled them at the same time. They jumped apart as they turned around. Logan was staring at them. “Good work with the penguins, guys.”
“It was Harry who did all the hard work,” Hannah stated. Her face was flaming from the heat and embarrassment of being caught holding hands. And why did it have to be Logan that had found them? Why not anyone else?
“Hannah spotted him,” Harry quickly added. “If she hadn’t found him, we’d still be searching.”
“Well done to both of you then,” Logan replied, his eyes flicking between the pair. “You should make your way home, it’s getting late and we’re going to lock the zoo in a few minutes. Now Jingle is safe, we can all sleep easy.”
“Will do,” Hannah replied. She went to follow Harry as he headed toward the door. As she did, Logan stopped her with a gentle touch of her arm. She looked up at him expectantly.
“I’m really glad you could make it tonight. You really do look amazing in that dress. Sleep well,” Logan said, his eyes sparkling with intensity the entire time.
Hannah had no idea what to say, she didn’t trust her voice to be able to say anything. She purely nodded, letting a smile creep over her lips. He had said the same words as the ones scrawled on the fundraising ball flyer in her locker. At least she knew who left it for her now.
He let her go and she continued on her way to follow Harry through the zoo. With each step she took, her heart raced with everything that had happened that night.
There was only one thing Hannah knew for sure. It was going to be a very interesting summer and she couldn’t wait to dive in and see what happened. Suddenly the rest of her internship seemed more exciting than her entire life had been.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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Jamie Campbell grew up in the New South Wales town of Port Macquarie as the youngest of six children. She now resides on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Au
stralia.
Writing since she could hold a pencil, Jamie’s passion for storytelling and wild imagination were often a cause for concern with her school teachers. Now that imagination is used for good instead of mischief.
Visit www.jamiecampbell.com.au now for exclusive website only content.
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