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Holding on to Nothing

Liquid Zoo

Tours didn’t guide themselves, and that was clear. It also dawned on me that I was in the job position to guide groups of people, as Zahra was in charge of the marine animals, and Whitney was a veterinary technician. The realization didn’t take a genius to figure, but for some reason, it wasn’t occurring to me as fast as it should have. All of it fell into place, and I was the one who had to manage the five who looked to be more than one person could handle at a time.

I guess at some point the group of men retreated from the front desk and headed for the first exhibit, because by the time I had come out of my slight trance, they weren’t in front of me anymore. Whitney must have excused herself to return back to her shift, because I had a very perplexed Zahra looking into my direction. Clearly, I was still zoning out.

“What planet are you on, Lu? Earth is here, and you’re clearly not.”

Fortunately, I returned to reality quick enough to catch the words she had decided to spit in my direction. Daydreaming and overthinking were two common causes of judgment from others time and time again, though quitting was easier said than done. My mother had always given the excuse that I was just a kid with my head in the clouds with many aspirations, and I’m really doubting about how much of that was true. Perhaps she was simply saying that, in efforts to disguise just how ditzy I must have always been.

“I’m on Earth, Z. That I can promise.” My tone was flat and tight. She was my best friend, but there were times where I felt like she was trying to help me out more than I needed it. What could I honestly do? She was bold and wasn’t afraid to make it known. “Permission to ask why you seem so uncomfortable around them?”

“I’m not uncomfortable.” Zahra’s eyes didn’t let up on mine, facial expression entirely apathetic with no indication of faltering whatsoever. “Personally, I don’t care too much for them or what they’re about. They strike me as the type of guys who are in some local band and are probably some wannabes who think they’re big shots. That is my opinion on them, and unless there is some reason I should believe something else. Wouldn’t surprise me if they have been drinking and decided to come here because they have nothing better to do.”

The way Zahra fiddled with a ring on her finger, answered a few questions that were residing in the back of my mind. For as long as I knew her, she was always the type to speak her mind when it came to giving opinions on others, but never described anything regarding herself. Her upbringing wasn’t the brightest, but I felt like there was so much more than that. From what I was told, Zahra had a distaste for men, considering she had opened up about a dangerous relationship she was in before she had moved out here, and how badly it ruined her sense of trust in those around her. Upon hearing that, it painted a picture of just how damaged she was - which really shined a light on our similarities. Love was nothing like the movies, and we would never again believe it could be.

“Lucia, go. I already know what you’re trying to do, and you’re wasting time. They’re waiting.” Zahra stated, arms folded across her chest as she shuffled away from me. “I need to get into my position before a line builds up.”

My jaw clenched at the blunt statement she decided to toss my way, pulling myself away from the desk to join the group of five that somehow was patiently waiting for my arrival. This would be a piece of cake. It wasn’t like I needed to say anything anyway. All I posed as was a guide that would answer questions if their curiosity was peaked enough to demand knowledge. These men looked old enough to understand, and part of me was praying that they weren’t the type to ask about something they probably already knew.

After I had my fill of playing through scenarios in my mind, I lifted my head with a smile as I met all of their gazes, leading them through the doorway that shielded the other exhibits with a curtain. The curious looks some had on their faces was enough to bring me to a small chuckle. Surely at least one of them had to have gone to an aquarium before, but it was hard to tell. Many children attended this place for a school trip, but this bunch didn’t look like they would have cared too much back then. I turned to look at the large tanks myself, taking a moment to truly admire the aquatic life housed behind the glass. Life must be easy to be a fish, only having to worry about being eaten. Having the deep blue as your home sounded better than paying to have a roof over your head.

“So I have a joke for you. How much does a polar bear weigh?”

My head turned to the source of the voice, nearly having jumped out of my skin at both how sudden it broke the silence, and from who it came from. It was that Jimmy guy again. His stature remained natural, arms clasped behind his back with some stupid sly grin on his face. It was then that he stepped a bit closer to me, being sure to bend down so I’d be able to hear what he was going to say next.

“Enough to break the ice.”

Before I could make any form of remark to his cheesy yet form-fitting pun, a green-eyed one from his group walked past him with a scoff, which told me that they heard the attempt - and knew how awkward it was.

“Jimmy, if that was your attempt at breaking the ice...I’m sorry, but that was god awful. This place probably doesn’t even have polar bears.” He cringed, shoving his hands into his pockets as he found a spot next to the guy who had handed Whitney their money just moments ago.

“Shut up, Zack! I’m about to prove you wrong! You guys have polar bears, right?”

Either I was hearing things, or Jimmy had a slight speech impediment that was nothing short of a lisp. Another quality to add to his character. He had a warmth to his voice, which made it much more interesting to hear. Finally meeting his gaze, I decided that it was time to give my honest answer - which was a stern shake of the head. My gesture led the one who was now known as Zack; to cackle to himself. That, of course, made Jimmy scowl, eyes narrowing at the other with full malice.

“I wasn’t asking for your feedback!”

“Jimmy, this is an aquarium. Not a zoo. Polar bears aren’t fish, so they sure as hell aren’t going to be here.” Zack disputed, trying his best to prove his point.

“Haven’t you heard of a liquid zoo? Clearly not. Every animal lives in those, and they just so happen to have a lot more fish here!” Jimmy asserted, propping out a hip as his hands rested upon both of them.

I had to admit that I was getting a major kick out of the humor that was following this group of guys. Even though I’d only heard from three out of the five, I had a hunch that the other two were just as entertaining. It still struck me as odd that they were people whom I had never seen or heard of before, but they could be from anywhere, and I just so happened to encounter them all during this one shift of mine.

“Liquid zoo, huh?” I challenged, a clear smile on my face. “Never heard of that one before.”

He smirked, eyes finding mine in an instant. Those crystal blues were going to be the death of me.

“Seriously?! How have you never heard of those? They’re state of the art, and ten times better than having to build two separate buildings! There are liquid zoos and land aquariums! Hybrid animal havens!”

“Where in the hell did you come up with something like that?” I felt the need to question him, since I truly wasn’t following the context as to what he was talking about. It didn’t seem to make a lot of sense. “Are you sure you didn’t just make that up?”

“I could have for all you know, but admitting that takes the fun out of things. We should go along and say that these things do exist, so it sounds authentic. Besides, you can’t say that you wouldn’t go to one of those!”

In the midst of my amusement, it took me a moment to notice that the rest of the group moved ahead to the next exhibit. I truly wonder if he was aware of that…

“So pardon me for asking this, but what brings you guys to a place like this? You don’t strike me as the type to walk around in an environment crawling with fish, nearly a half an hour before it closes.” I queried, raising an eyebrow in pure curiosity - pondering about his response. “Unless you were unable to find anywhere else to go on a Sunday evening.”

Jimmy grinned, causing me to freeze in place. Never in my life had I ever seen something so unique. He had a crooked smile - practically lopsided and sitting at a perfect yet imperfect slant. The smile arched his cheeks, displaying natural eye creases. Why was I admiring him like that?

We just met.

“We just happened to be in the area, to be honest. Mentioned about how bad I wanted to check this place out, which led to a lot of bickering and whatever have you, but here we are!”

“You know, I get the feeling that your friends tend to let you do what you decide on.” I hinted, stepping onward in efforts to guide him along. My eyes caught him giving a shrug, uttering a small sound to match the gesture.

“Not so much letting me do what I decide, it’s more so with me deciding, despite what anyone’s opinion is. I’m not a person that can be made to do something if I don’t want to do it. If I want to do it, I will. No questions about it. It is what it is, you know?” He explained, following me by my side.

“You’ve got a great motto to live by. Shows you live to please yourself, and do whatever you desire.”

If I had to be honest with myself, meeting Jimmy was a much more enjoyable thing, compared to any of the other days I’ve been at my job. He brought such positive energy to the place, giving me more of a reason to like it. Even though I knew that this would probably be a once-in-a-lifetime encounter with him, it was a good change in my routine. At some point perhaps I should thank him for that. My life needed a little more excitement in it anyway.

There was a small bit of silence between the two of us before Matt made an appearance again. His expression was something that didn’t seem pleasant, and he locked eyes with Jimmy before beckoning him over. The conversation must have been unfavored, seeing as the taller man’s face fell in an instant. It took him a little before he shuffled over to me, stopping just before me instead of by my side. He was fidgeting, aimlessly cracking his knuckles and trying to avoid my gaze - which he failed miserably at doing.

“So, I guess we have to cut this liquid zoo time short and head back to Huntington Beach for some stupid meeting with our big boss man. Maybe I’ll see you around?”

For some reason, this upset me a bit. Figuring out why would be a difficult thing, but part of me felt like it really had to do with the captivating creature in front of me and the fact that we had to end our encounter on such an abrupt note.

“It’s funny you mention Huntington, because I actually live there.” I disclosed, giving a slow blink as I felt myself getting lost in the pools of blue that I had taken such an appreciation towards. “Just moved there about a year or so ago.”

“No shit? We’re all from there! We’ll have to catch up sometime! I’ll probably be busy some of this week due to my job, but I’ll be in the area at some point - and we’ll figure some shit out, yeah?” His eyes were bright, glimmering with pure ambition.

How could I say no to that?

“I’ll gladly take you up on that offer actually. I work all week minus the weekends, so you’ll more than likely see me. Just come up to the front desk and ask for Lucia.”

As if to gain a sudden amount of energy, Jimmy practically threw his arms around me to give a tight one-armed hug - pulling away quickly as we both had heard his name being called.

“That’s my cue! Best I go before they leave me behind. Consider this the end of part one. Until we meet again, Lucia!”

Just like that, he was already gone. So many thoughts were running through my head at that moment, and trying to pick one out to decipher felt impossible. The hug was something I wasn’t expecting in the slightest, but I gladly accepted it.

Now Jimmy was on my mind, and I couldn’t wait to see him again. For part two.

Notes

Comments

<3 Thank you for the support!

RamonaFoREVer RamonaFoREVer
6/18/19

Happy belated birthday =)

insaneangel18 insaneangel18
6/11/19

That was an awesome Chapter. Really liked it. Excited for the rest of it.

Veehansen1982 Veehansen1982
6/8/19

KISS HIM. BLAME THE WHISKEY SOURS BUT DAMMIT KISS HIM!

PS I love how sweet Jimmy is to her, she needs him in her life!

RamonaFoREVer RamonaFoREVer
6/8/19

@fyction
She can’t be tamed, and that’s what worries me the most. It’s times like this when she needs to placed her under surveillance.
Hint; “Mean Girls” ;)