Read Current Impressions Online
Authors: Kelly Risser
Tags: #young adult romance, #selkie, #mermaids, #shape shifters, #scottish folklore, #teen science fiction, #teen paranormal romance
Current Impressions
Clean Teen Publishing
THIS book is a work of fiction. Names,
characters, places and incidents are the product of the authors'
imagination or are used factiously. Any resemblance to actual
persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales
is entirely coincidental.
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Current Impressions
Copyright ©2014 Kelly Risser
All rights reserved.
Cover Design by: Marya Heiman
Typography by: Courtney Nuckels
Editing by: Cynthia Shepp
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Two days ago, I left my
human life behind.
I missed my boyfriend, Evan, who I loved and
I knew loved me. I had felt his eyes on me when I dove into the
ocean, but I refused to look back.
I Changed.
My Selkie fur flowed over my body, and my
eyesight sharpened to that of a seal. Before the icy cold could
register, the water felt comfortable, warm even. When I broke the
surface, I discovered my other senses were enhanced as well. The
sky was vibrant. The ocean glistened in a myriad of blues like a
sapphire. Words whispered on the wind reached my ears, and the
ocean sang. Then, there were the smells. I couldn’t identify all of
the scents in the bouquet, but I picked up the floral, tangy sea,
and the woodsy, spicy scent that was Evan.
Evan. My heart ached. Without turning, I
knew he stood guard. It broke my heart to leave him. I’d already
lost my mother only months ago. Now I had to leave the man I loved,
too. With a sigh that was more of a soft snort in this form, I slid
back under the water to follow my father. His home was an island
near Scotland. We swam with little rest until we reached it.
****
“Meara, aren’t you coming out?”
Dad stood on the shore, wearing a faded,
black T-shirt that bordered on gray and worn blue jeans. His feet
were bare. I marveled how I could hear him, clear as if he were
standing next to me. He was far away on the shore and not shouting.
Would my developed senses stay with me when I switched back to
human form?
Treading water, I tried to remember what he
told me on the way over about shifting back. At the time, we were
passing a whale and her offspring. The tenderness between mother
and child distracted me. He said something about needing to choose
a form for my Selkie skin. Whatever I chose the first time would be
permanent. I studied my dad again. He held his leather jacket
casually draped over his right shoulder. I knew it was his Selkie
skin, and my aunt Ula’s was her backpack. Both were too conspicuous
for me. I wanted something small, something easy to carry, like a
piece of jewelry. Aunt Brigid’s was a choker, but an obvious piece
of jewelry like that might not go with all of my outfits. I needed
something even less noticeable.
Anklet
, I thought.
The deep cold of the ocean seeped into my
bones. I wrapped my arms around myself and shivered. Gooseflesh
covered my body. My very naked, exposed body. Oh no! How could I
get out of the water now? My dad was standing right there.
“Meara?” Dad’s voice held the slight clip of
impatience.
“I’m naked.” It came out as a squeak, no
more than a whisper. He bent forward, his hands on his knees, and
his shoulders shook. Was he crying? Maybe he was exhausted from our
long journey across the Atlantic. I felt strangely exhilarated, but
I hadn’t spent the last six months trying to keep my mother pain
free and alive. During that time, my dad drained himself keeping
her comfortable and buying her a few more days to be with us. I
would be forever grateful to him.
“Are you okay?” I asked, uncertain. My teeth
chattered. I needed to get out or change back. Soon. The water was
freezing.
He raised his head and wiped his eyes. “I’m
sorry.” Dad coughed, but his grin told me he was covering a laugh.
He was laughing at me!
“If you think this is so funny—” I scowled
and sunk lower into the surf. Let me die of hypothermia and see how
much he laughed then! There was no way I was getting out of the
ocean and standing before him naked.
“Come out of the water, Meara.” He cleared
his throat a few times before continuing, his voice steadier. “I’ll
turn around if that will make you more comfortable.” Before I could
answer, he spun around and left me staring at his back. After
waiting a beat, he asked, “Are you coming?”
“Yes,” I mumbled. Straightening my
shoulders, I walked toward him and prayed no one else could see
me.
“Let’s try a simple exercise,” he said with
his back still to me. “Visualize clothes.”
“O-kay.” Since when did my dad become
Obi-Wan Kenobi? How in the world was I supposed to visualize
clothes?
“Close your eyes and picture your favorite
outfit. Can you see it?”
I thought about the dress I wore for my high
school graduation, a sundress made of pearlescent fabric with thin
spaghetti straps. It was so beautiful, and I loved how Evan looked
at me in it. I swear I could feel his fingers as he slid the strap
from my shoulder… I shivered and stopped that line of thought. Now
was not the time. “Okay, I’ve got it,” I said.
“Open your eyes,” he said. I looked down and
saw my dress. It was dry and like new. After a moment, Dad asked,
“Can I turn around now?”
“Yes.” I laughed and spun in a circle,
watching the dress flare. When I stopped and faced him, he smiled
at me proudly.
“I was wearing this when I dove into the
ocean,” I said. “How—?”
“That’s not the actual dress,” he
interrupted to explain. “It’s your visualization of your dress. A
very accurate one at that.”
I twirled again and felt the fabric grace my
legs, my bare feet gliding across the smooth pebbles that made up
the shoreline. “So I can change my outfit whenever I want?” The
idea absurdly thrilled me.
He shrugged. “Try it.”
I pictured something more practical for the
rough terrain—jeans, Evan’s hockey jersey, and tennis shoes. I
didn’t need to look to feel the tight jeans encase my legs, the
jersey slide over my fingers—it was always a bit too long—and the
shoes cover my feet. I laughed. How excellent was that?
“You’re good at this.” My dad smiled. He
reached into his pocket and pulled out my charm bracelet, offering
it to me.
“Is this an illusion too?” I held out my
wrist and watched him fasten it.