Real Mermaids Don't Need High Heels (20 page)

“I bet I'm the only guy here with
three
dates plus a brand-new driver's license.” Trey smiled broadly as Serena, Cori, and I walked arm-in-arm with him into Port Toulouse Regional High's Fall Folly dance on Saturday night.

“It's a
learner's permit
, not a driver's license—big difference, by the way,” Cori said. Trey had obviously neglected to mention that teeny bit of information. “It's lucky Jade's dad drove us so we didn't have to skateboard over here.”

“Details, details,” Trey joked.

Cori had loaned Serena a funky, ankle-length dress from her collection, and our
Cori
Originals
swooshed over our bedazzled flip-flops as we entered the gym. We'd all gotten ready at my house once Mom finally made it back home and helped us do our hair. Mom even convinced me to wear a little makeup.

“Should be fun!” I said with as much conviction as I could muster while seeing everyone else paired off in couples in the darkened gym, dancing, chatting in corners, or sitting at tables.

“Should be
awesome
,” Cori agreed just as Trey made a beeline for his friends at the snack table. “And…we lost our date. So awesome.”

“Oh, pretty!” Serena marveled as the DJ turned on the colorful stage lights. The disco ball hanging from the rafters sent sparkles of color dancing along the gym walls.

Serena walked to the middle of the gym floor and twirled in place, mesmerized by the colors, her long golden brown curls swaying around her.

“I can't believe she might get kicked out of school on Monday,” Cori said as we grabbed a few seats at an empty table.

“I know,” I replied, thinking of Principal Reamer's deadline. “I've kind of gotten used to her.”

“I think a few more people might be disappointed to see her go,” Cori said.

A couple of guys had walked up to Serena and asked her to dance over the loud music, but from what I could tell, she didn't notice any of them.

“Ah! I can't think about that right now. Not tonight, after everything we've been through. Let's just enjoy ourselves in our awesome dresses.” I smoothed the fabric of my dress as I sat down. “Thanks again, by the way. It really is perfect.”

“Well, I may not be an underwater mythical creature but I do know my way around a sewing machine,” Cori whispered. “And a seam ripper.”

“So, does this mean you'll be doing your mentorship with Mrs. Chamberlain after all?” I asked.

“As a matter of fact, yes!” Cori replied.

“Oh, good,” I gripped her arm and gave it a squeeze, “because I was so mad at Lainey for not telling you to call her mom.”

“Yeah, about that…” The look on Cori's face was confusing. She was smiling but she also looked a little embarrassed. “Lainey actually
did
tell me Mrs. Chamberlain wanted me to call but—”

“But what?” I asked. Cori shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “Spill!”

“Well, I kind of blew Lainey off.”

“You what?” I cried. “Why would you do that?”

“She'd just been so mean to you. Then all the stuff that happened this summer—”

“And you thought it would help the cause if you gave up your mentorship? You dope!” I laughed. “This is your dream, Cori. I wouldn't want you to do anything to ruin that.”

“Okay, okay,” Cori replied with a smile. “I get it. I actually apologized to Lainey and sorted things out with her mom so it's all good, but what about you? Did you decide what you're going to do for your mentorship?”

“Not yet.” I spotted Coach Laurena chaperoning the dance with a few other teachers on the other side of the gym. “But I'm working on something.”

“Cool,” Cori said as she stood up. “I'm gonna go find Trey to get some drinks. Are we good?”

“We're good,” I replied as she headed for the refreshment table.

Suddenly, I felt a shift in the crowd. One by one, people turned just as Lainey Chamberlain entered the gym. She looked beautiful in a pale yellow, off-the-shoulder dress with a chiffon skirt. Her hair was swept into an updo, and her bangs were flat-ironed to the side in a sleek, sophisticated style. Her eyes sparkled and she smiled in a way I'd never seen her smile before.

And on her arm was Mr. Chamberlain—looking dapper in a suit and tie, much like I'd remembered him from before. This time, though, his face was relaxed and smiling.

Lainey spotted us. She seemed to hesitate, but then she stood on tippy-toes and whispered something in her father's ear. He nodded and followed her as she headed our way.

“Hello,” Lainey said as she approached. Cori looked at me warily from the refreshment table on the other side of the gym, and Serena drifted back to my side from the middle of the dance floor.

“Um, hi, Lainey.” We hadn't really had a chance to talk since our quick chat through the car window the night before. “You brought a date? It's good to see you up and around again, Mr. Chamberlain.”

That meant Lainey's dad, Coach Laurena, Serena, Mom, and Bridget had all made it through the Merlin 3001, but there was still no sign of Luke.

“Oh, I can't stay,” Mr. Chamberlain said. He motioned to the stage where his two aides were helping to mount the bell from
Fortune's Folly
next to the speaker's podium. “We got it all cleaned up to donate to the school like your mother requested. I wanted to come by with my men to install it. And to give you this.”

He pulled a yellow business envelope from under his arm. He was about to hand it to me but then noticed Serena. “Actually, this should go to you. I emailed a copy to Jade's dad, but I thought you'd like one, too.”

“Thank you.” Serena took the envelope but didn't seem to quite know what to do with it.

“Open it,” I whispered.

“Oh!” Serena ripped open the envelope. She pulled out a couple of official-looking documents and handed me the envelope so she could inspect them.

“They're school records…” I said slowly as I read over Serena's shoulder while she flipped through the pages, “for you, Serena!”

“For me?” Serena's eyes widened.

“It even has a letter of recommendation from an actual principal,” Lainey added as she pointed to one of the papers.

“Lainey thought that would make it seem more official.” Mr. Chamberlain smiled at his daughter.

“How did you do this?” I asked, not believing what we were seeing.

“Eddie put me in touch with his sister in Australia,” Mr. Chamberlain said. “She connected me with a charity that does remote learning via Internet to some of the smaller South Pacific islands. I made a sizable donation to their cause and, well—”

“It means you can stay at our school,” Lainey said to Serena. “Officially this time.”

“Wow!” I wasn't sure what had me more speechless—the fact that the whole “school registration” nightmare was over or that Lainey Chamberlain actually had a hand in making it happen. “I really don't know what to say. This is going to change everything.”

“Well, not everything,” Mr. Chamberlain replied. “I'm still working on passports for everyone, but that will have to wait until I get back to the office on Monday.” Mr. Chamberlain put his arm around Lainey's shoulder. “Until then, I was thinking of taking the rest of the weekend off.”

Passports? That would mean Laurena and Daniel could actually get married, and Mom and Dad, too.

“Thank you so much, Mr. Chamberlain,” I said breathlessly.

I
only
wish
I
could
do
more,
he rang to me.
You
and
your
family
have
given
me
my
life
back. And saving Lainey from drowning like you did? If there's anything else I can do—

Well. Actually, I might have a teensy favor to ask,
I replied. I caught Coach Laurena's eye across the gym and waved, and she waved back with a big smile. All of a sudden my mentorship plan seemed crystal clear.

“I was wondering if I could help Coach Laurena with your
Safe
2 Swim
program for my ninth-grade mentorship,” I said.

“I couldn't think of a better candidate. Send the paperwork to my office,” Mr. Chamberlain said with a wink as he kissed Lainey good-bye and headed for the door. “On Monday!”

Just then the music stopped and the screech of the microphone filled the air. The regular gym lights were turned on, blinding us with their fluorescent white glare.

“Awrraah…” A groan rippled through the crowd.

“Test, test…Can everyone hear me?” Principal Reamer called out from the gym stage as everyone quieted to hear what she had to say. “Welcome to the Fall Folly, everyone. A time when we celebrate strength of character and bold choices—while being supervised by a twenty-to-one student-to-adult ratio, so don't get any funny ideas.”

She nodded to the parent and teacher chaperones stationed strategically around the gym floor.

“We have a few announcements,” the principal continued. “First, we'd like to thank the Baxter Family for donating the bell from the ship
Fortune's Folly
. It truly is magnificent and will be enjoyed by generations to come.”

There was a round of applause. Trey actually whistled from the other side of the gym as he and Cori walked our way.

“Now,” Principal Reamer continued, “it's time to declare the winners of the recent school elections.”

“Serena,” I whispered and nodded to the stage. Serena slipped the papers back into the envelope and placed it on the table, then took my hand. By then, Cori and Trey had arrived with drinks from the refreshment table.

“Election?” Serena whispered in my ear.

“Yeah. Hey, you pronounced it right.” I nudged her shoulder and smiled.

The principal ran through the results for School Council president, vice president, secretary, and treasurer.

“And now for the individual grade representatives.” Principal Reamer turned over her paper.

I squeezed Serena's hand and caught a glimpse of Lainey standing alone near our table.

“Hey, Lainey,” I called to her in a loud whisper and offered her my other hand. She shrugged and let out a little laugh, then took my hand.

“And our new ninth-grade representative position goes to…”

The gym went silent and a few people looked our way. The election battle between Lainey and Serena hadn't been a silent one and I'd been caught smack-dab in the middle of it, so people were probably wondering why all three of us were holding hands like Girl Scouts kumbaya-ing around a campfire.

Principal Reamer cleared her throat before announcing the winner.

“Raymond Fresco!”

I actually laughed, hearing Raymond's name. Like that loud, snorty, wild-eyed laugh I excelled at so much.

Trey and Cori looked at me like I was a crazy person.

“Come on, you gotta admit. That's hilarious!” I said breathlessly as I tried to calm my laughter. But it was too late. I cackled like a ticklish hyena and tears streamed down my cheeks, probably destroying whatever makeup Mom had managed to get on my face.

“Raymond did have nice signs,” Serena said with a giggle. “Even if they were not pink-screened.”

Lainey laughed out loud.

“See? Even Lainey thinks it's funny.” I turned to Trey and Cori, but they were already laughing, too.

“Sorry you guys lost, though,” I said to Serena and Lainey. “I know you both worked really hard.”

“Oh, well.” Lainey raised her hands in defeat. “I guess it was time for me to retire anyway.”

“Also, thanks.” I lowered my voice to a whisper while Principal Reamer continued reading the results from the other grades. “For, you know, Serena, and for keeping our secret.” Lainey had only just found out about her dad the night before. She could have done a lot of damage spilling our mer secret in the meantime. But she hadn't.

“The thing is…” Lainey said, looking around to make sure no one was listening. “When I saw you guys in the pool like that—and then your mom—a lot of things started to make sense. Cori explained why you'd worked so hard to shut down my father's construction site to save your mom. And then when I found out about
my
dad—”

“I'm sure that freaked you out, huh?” I asked.

“Yeah. And…well, I guess you could say I saw you in a whole new way once I understood you a little bit more.”

I thought about that for a second. It was true. From Lainey's point of view, I probably seemed as mean to her as I thought she was being to me. I'd avoided her like the plague, trying to keep my mer identity a secret; I ruined her father's big construction project; and I'd let my feelings get in the way of the school election. How many of my problems with Lainey had I brought on myself?

And as far as Lainey was concerned, how much of the way she acted came from being misunderstood? Ignored? “I have to say, I think I understand you more now, too, Lainey. That can only be a good thing, right?”

“Definitely,” Lainey said with a smile. Then, a familiar mischievous expression puckered her lip-glossed lips. “Now, if you'll excuse me—my date totally bailed on me so I think I'll go see if Raymond Fresco has a girlfriend.”

Lainey headed over to his table.

“Yo, dudes!” Trey sat hunched over his phone and waved his hand to get our attention over the music that had just restarted.

“Dudes?” Cori yelled. “You show up here with three gorgeous dates on your arm, then ditch us for the snack table and call us
dudes
? Really romantic.”

“Sorry, but Luke just texted me to tell me he's on his way over!” Trey replied.

My heart rate tripled at the mention of Luke's name. My phone buzzed, too.

fluke1019: heard trey stole my date

hurricanejade: get here soon b4 cori clobbers him LOL

fluke1019: poor trey. i guess i got all the smooth moves in the family

hurricanejade: haha…he could use some brotherly chips

hurricanejade: lobsterly tips

hurricanejade: lobsterly lips!!

Gah! How did “brotherly tips” become “lobsterly lips”? I stopped before autocorrect got me into even more trouble. There was a very long, very painful pause before my phone buzzed again.

fluke1019: }O<
<--fisherly lips ok?

“I couldn't figure out how to do a lobster.” I turned just as Luke reached our table.

“Luke!” I didn't care how it looked. I jumped from my seat and bear-hugged him in my flip-flops and fancy dress. He wrapped his arms around me and picked me up off the floor and swung me around. Just once, which was impressive since I probably outweighed him, so I appreciated the effort.

“I'm sorry I'm late,” Luke whispered in my ear. “We had a slight delay.”

“What kind of delay?” I asked. But that's when I spotted him. “Oh! Serena…”

But Serena's eyes were already glued to the big double doors where Luke had just entered. Standing in the doorway was a familiar, round-faced teenage guy, holding a box.

“Reese,” Serena said, springing from her chair.

Reese's mom, Bridget, was with him. She waved to me and whispered something in Reese's ear. He smiled and held out his arms for Serena as she ran toward him.

“That is
so
awesome,” I whispered to Luke.

It was almost comical seeing Serena and Reese together, now both of them with legs, because Reese was about three inches shorter than Serena, even in her flip-flops. But she didn't seem to mind.

Reese caught Serena in his arms while a few guys who had asked Serena to dance looked over and shook their heads, wondering who the new dude with the scraggly long hair was. Unsteady as he was on his new feet, Reese stumbled back and they both ended up in a heap on the floor, laughing.

Serena grabbed Reese's hand and pulled him up. He turned to wave good-bye to Bridget before walking to our table.

Mother
tells
me
I
should
never
show
up
for
a
date
empty-handed,
Reese rang.

He placed a box on our table and opened it. Inside were three wrist corsages.

“Aww, that is
so
sweet!” Cori cried, then turned to Trey. “See? Corsages—that's romantic. Mental note for next time, okay?”

“Who do you think ordered them?” Trey said as he placed a corsage on Cori's wrist.

“Really?” Cori asked, her eyes shining with happiness. “You did?”

“Of course,” Trey said sweetly, then kissed her.

Did
you?
I mouthed as he looked over her shoulder while they hugged.

No.
He mouthed back, bringing a finger to his lips.

I put a hand to my mouth to stifle a laugh.

For
you.
Reese placed a corsage on Serena's wrist and kissed her hand.

“And you.” Luke slipped mine on.
I
didn't buy them, either.

“I don't care. I'm just so, so happy you're here,” I whispered.

Luke brought a hand to my cheek and looked at me for a long time. “I'd rather be here than anywhere else in the world.”

I thought about our human and mer worlds and how much life had expanded over the past few months. We'd both gained whole new families.

“Sorry I broke up your reunion, though.” I suddenly felt really bad, considering how much Petra adored him. “You really didn't have to rush back.”

Though I was glad he had.

“And miss awkward dancing in the middle of our high-school gym with you?” Luke led me onto the dance floor and spun me once before pulling me close into a slow dance.

“Wow. It's almost like you planned that,” I said, amazed that we'd managed to pull off a semi-respectable dance move.

“Maybe I did.” Luke's face was so close to mine that our noses almost touched. The small scar over his eyebrow where I'd maimed him with my braces back in fifth grade looked faded and almost invisible.

“Luke Martin?” I asked, thinking of Folly Porthouse sailing her ship across the Atlantic to retrieve her fiancé at the end of the war. Surely, if she could do that, I could do what I was gearing up the courage to do.

“Yes?” he replied, his breath warm and sweet on my face.

It was time for me to make a bold move. “May I kiss you?”

“Well, that depends.” Luke's eyes crinkled at their corners. “Are you okay with having a boyfriend who visits his mer parents on alternate weekends?”

“That sounds like the best of both worlds to me,” I replied, then kissed him.

As our lips touched, Luke pulled me close, and our last few months together swirled through my mind.

The first time I bumped into him at Dooley's Drugstore. Kissing him at Cori's pool party when I found out he was a mer, too. Losing him to the ocean after he'd helped me rescue Mom from the tidal pool. How he'd played his guitar for me on Port Toulouse Beach.

We'd been through so much both on land and at sea.

“Ouch!” I cried as Luke stepped on my flip-flopped foot.

“Sorry!” he replied. “I told you I wasn't much of a dancer.”

“Maybe you should stick to skateboarding,” I suggested with a smile.

“Now you're asking for it!” Luke warned.

I laughed as Luke twirled me around and around, making me dizzy and giggly as the colorful lights swirled all around us.

Did I have the best of both worlds, too, I wondered, as Luke caught me mid-twirl and pulled me close again.

I rested my head on his shoulder as we slow-danced in the middle of the gym floor. I glanced from Cori, touching the petals of her wrist corsage while Trey held her hand, to Lainey dancing around Raymond Fresco, then to Reese and Serena doing a weird mer-dance next to our table while a few people looked at them like they were from outer space.

I really
did
have the best of both worlds. The very best.

“Hey, Luke?”

“Yeah?” he replied, looking into my eyes.

You
wanna
go
show
Reese
a
few
awkward
dance
moves
on
those
new
legs
of
his?

“Let's do it!” Luke squeezed my hand as we headed off the dance floor to drag Reese and Serena and Cori and Trey back along with us.

I was starting to understand this whole “girl power” thing, after all. Folly Porthouse didn't just wait around for stuff to happen. She
made
things happen.

Was I anything like her? Was I brave? Was I fair? Was I kind?

Maybe I didn't have things totally figured out yet—like how to be friends with girls like Lainey Chamberlain or how to be somebody's girlfriend when I barely knew the first thing about dating.

But spinning and dancing and funky-chickening in the dizzying colorful lights of my high-school gym—surrounded by friends who were brave and fair and kind—I hoped Great-Great-Grandma Folly would have approved.