Intertidal Zone - Four Swords Merfolk AU (Chpt 2)

Part One

Chapter 2

“About…dad?” Blue almost whispered.
“You know that I wouldn’t ever bring it up unless absolutely necessary.  Green and I loved him too, you know,” Vio replied matter-of-factly.
Blue took a deep breath and sighed, stepping down from atop the rocks.  “Fine.  What is it?”
“Alright, but before I tell you, I just want you to know that even though we enjoy pissing you off, we’re still your brothers and cousin.  We care about you, okay?  And besides, getting on each other’s nerves is what families do most of the time.”
Blue hesitated before replying.  “And this is relevant…why?”
Vio let out a breath.  “I have to admit that I’ve been lying to you this whole time.  You know how a few years ago I said that I found out our dad has been spotted around various places since he left?”
“Yeah.  That son of a bitch left us to go off and do his own thing!”
“I only told you and Green that to save your feelings.  I’ve already revealed the truth to Green which is why he was so quiet at dinner.”
Blue stood there as the colour drained from his face.  His dad wasn’t really…  Was he…?
“Blue, do you honestly think that a guy like our dad would just leave us to live his own life like that?  I’d spent ages researching to try and figure out why he hadn’t come back yet.”  Vio paused and closed his eyes to take another breath.  “About a week into his trip at sea, a wave crashed over his ship which severely damaged the hull and caused it to sink.  When divers found the wreck and looked over it, they found all the bodies of the drowned crew members…except our dad’s.”
“Except our dad’s?” Blue asked.
“When a person goes missing without a trace, they can’t be confirmed dead unless the body is found, at least until seven to ten years have passed.  So technically speaking, our dad is missing, not dead.”
Blue took a moment to drink the information in.  So there was a possibility that their dad was alive?!  “THEN WHY THE FUCK AREN’T WE OUT THERE LOOKING FOR HIM?!  WHY ARE YOU TELLING US THIS AFTER NINE GOD DAMN YEARS?!” he shouted.
Vio frantically waved his arms about.  “Shh!  Keep your voice down!  Look, if I’d have told you earlier, you would have done something stupid!  Besides, the reason why we aren’t out there looking for him is because I can’t afford to hire a boat and a captain to take us!”
Blue studied Vio’s eyes carefully.  “…You have a plan B, don’t you?”
Vio nodded.  “You know how I’ve been studying in a marine biology course for several years now?”
“Wait, don’t tell me…”
“In a few weeks’ time, I’ll be able to join a few of my colleagues out on one of their boats for free.  I’ve already asked if you guys can come and they said yes, and what’s more, since I’m the newest member, they’re allowing us to go wherever I want them to as long as I have a valid reason.  It’ll be the perfect opportunity to search for him.”
For the first time in ages, a smile made itself known on Blue’s face.  “Vio…  I don’t know what to say…”
“You deserve to have him back, Blue, especially if it’ll improve your temper, so if there’s the slightest chance of finding him, then we’ll take it.”
The older blonde didn’t even think as he enveloped his younger brother in a tight hug.  “Thank you so much…”
Vio awkwardly returned the gesture.  “Uh, no problem.  Come on, let’s head back.”
The two brothers released each other and began heavily trudging back up the sand.  As Vio took the first step on the cliff path, Blue hesitated and looked back at the gently rocking sea behind him.  No longer did he view it as the thing that stole his father from him, but finally as the world that the older man still remained in somewhere, hopefully alive.  The only doubt he held in his mind was the fact that it would be near impossible to locate his dad on a planet that was seventy percent ocean, and only so much as five of that percentage had been explored.  It could take years to find him, and that thought alone scared him – not only for the sake of his own father, but also for himself and his brothers.  It was lonely.
While his gaze flitted from wave to wave, it eventually settled on the figure of the boy he saw earlier.  With the moon’s rays shining directly on his face, Blue could see him clearly.  His now cold-looking eyes were fixed on the older teen as he floated there, almost as if daring Blue to pursue him while in the water.  He wore no expression of any kind nor did he make any form of movement, aside from the waves making him slowly bob up and down almost rhythmically.  This sudden transition freaked the ever-living daylights out of Blue, and he felt cold as he stared at him, unnerving shivers wracking through his entire body.  This definitely wasn’t the same boy he tried to shoo off…  He wanted to get as far away from the boy’s gaze as possible, but at the same time, he was…drawn to it.  It was like looking at a rose – its inviting petals enticed all who gazed upon it, but its thorns told a different story, warding people off with their threatening aura.  
Suddenly, Vio’s impatient voice called out from above.  “Blue, you coming?” he asked, already quite a way ahead.
Blue snapped out of his frightening trance and glanced up at his brother.  “Uh, y-yeah, you go ahead.  I’ll catch up,” he replied.  Vio simply shrugged his shoulders as he walked off, leaving Blue to his own devices.
The older blonde looked back to the ocean, hoping that the boy was still there.  Despite the fear that enveloped Blue, he couldn’t help but be curious as well, the same way that a person would investigate a bump in the night.  The darkness was terrifying, but confirmation of what was in it was needed desperately.
The boy was indeed still there, still staring at him.  He was almost glad that Vio hadn’t seen him…or had he and just not cared?  Either way, Blue began to take tentative steps towards the foamy edge of the sea.  The boy continued to stay still, almost as if waiting for Blue.  
“Who are you?” the older teen called out, his feet hitting the icy chill of the water and making him flinch.
The boy did nothing but blink and tilt his head slightly.
“I said… WHO ARE YOU?!” Blue asked again, aggressively this time.  Hopefully his anger would help cover up his fear.
Blue watched in entrancement as the other male slowly turned to look at the horizon, then back at Blue.  The confused blonde raised an eyebrow at the boy in the water, mouthing a small “what”.
Then, in a matter of a second, the stranger dove beneath the surface and vanished.  Blue wasn’t sure if he’d been seeing things, but if he had blinked, he would have missed the shape of a finned tail disappearing with the boy.

Blue’s tired eyes opened to the irritating light of day and the constant beeping of his alarm clock.  Reaching over, he silenced the disturbance and got up from the comfort of his bed to glance out the massive window of his bedroom.  It was slightly overcast and the sea was a little choppy, but other than that, it was just the start of another normal day.
Or, at least he hoped.
During the late hours of last night trying to get to sleep, his mind had been far too occupied by the boy.  Never in his life had he come across someone – or something depending on if what he saw was real – so bizarre, creepy, and innocent-looking all at the same time before.  It plagued his thoughts like a computer virus, taking him over rapidly with no intention of leaving.  
The tired teenager caught a glimpse of himself in the glass, and even in his transparent reflection he could see clear bags under his eyes from the lack of sleep.  Groaning, he slapped a hand to his forehead and ran it groggily down his face.  He turned away from the window to change into fresh clothes: a plain light blue singlet and darker blue denim shorts.  He then picked up a brush from his bedside table and began running it through his matted hair, pulling at any and all knots in an attempt to remove them.  Once finished, he headed out the door and slumped down the stairs to get breakfast.
Upon going back inside the house last night, he was greeted by a yelling aunt and a grinning cousin giving a thumbs-up behind her.  Shadow approved of anything that Blue did as long as it provided entertainment for him, and this form of entertainment lasted for several minutes until Eleanor had almost yelled her throat sore.  After that Blue had called it a night and headed upstairs for bed, and that was pretty much it.  However, he had a feeling that the tension between his family was going to be slightly different for a few days.  It wasn’t often that he caused such a tantrum, even with that temper of his.
Once he reached the bottom of the stairs, the familiar scent of pancakes filled his nostrils and ushered him to follow it to the kitchen where he found Vio preparing them.  Standing behind his brother was Shadow, who had his arms slung around Vio’s neck and his chin resting on the purple clad teen’s shoulder.  The sight almost made Blue want to laugh, but at the same time, he had to admit that they looked kind of content, so he decided not to disturb them.  After all, he felt like he owed Vio for telling him the truth and having a boat ready to go search for their father.
Blue made his way over to where the kitchen bench was and pulled out a stool so he could sit down.  The scrape of the metal legs on the floor startled his cousin, causing the purplette to practically leap away from Vio and stare at Blue with a panicked expression.  Vio, on the other hand, simply glanced in his brother’s direction and muttered a “good morning” before turning back to his pancakes.  Shadow nervously cleared his throat and decided to raid the fridge, earning a triumphant smirk from Blue.  This was probably only the second or third time that Shadow had been the deer in the headlights because of Blue.
“I saw that, you know,” Blue mocked, drumming his fingers on the benchtop.
Shadow closed the fridge door and turned to his cousin with wide eyes, pointing a finger at him.  “No, you didn’t.”
“Oh please, it’s unbearably painful how obvious your crush is on my brother.”
“Pfft, what crush?  You know I like to tease no matter how uncomfortable I make someone,” Shadow scoffed, laughing sheepishly.
“Really?  That looked more like snuggling him than teasing him, based upon how long you clung to him,” Blue replied, his smirk wider than ever.
“Wh-  I-  Uh, h-how would you know?  You couldn’t see our faces.”
“Don’t underestimate the importance of body language!”
Now it was Vio’s turn to look at Blue quizzically.  “…Did you just quote ‘The Little Mermaid’?”
At that point, Shadow burst out laughing and had to use the bench to hold himself up.  “Oh my god!  The pure fact that you know a Disney movie well enough to quote it!  BAHAHA!”
“…Shut up.  It’s true though!” Blue retorted.
Shadow’s laughing didn’t cease.  “What?  The fact that you still watch kids’ movies?”
Blue growled but refused to give in to Shadow’s antics.  Instead, he forced a smile.  “No, the fact that you totally want Vio to bang you.”
Vio froze in place as well as Shadow, who almost choked on his own saliva.  
“WHAT?!” cried a new and horrified voice.  “Dude, please tell me that you’re joking…!”  Green was standing just outside the kitchen with a disgusted look on his face.
“Relax, Green!  Of course he’s joking!” Shadow reassured his third cousin, giving another sheepish laugh.
Green looked at Shadow as if he were on fire and totally cool with it.  “Good, because not only are you both guys, but you’re cousins, and that is just plain wrong…”
That only caused Blue to snicker.  “It isn’t illegal here though.”
“Ugh, thanks for putting me off breakfast now,” Green groaned.  
“You’re welcome, bro.”
Vio cleared his throat rather loudly and asked Shadow to fetch some plates.  Once four were laid out, the intelligent teen served a small stack onto each.
“Anyone know if Aunt Eleanor is gone yet?” Blue asked.
“Yeah.  Mom left about two hours ago,” Shadow answered.
Mom left seventeen years ago… the older blonde thought angrily.

After placing his plate in the dishwasher, Blue headed over to the front door and clutched the handle.
“Heading down to the beach again?  Even after what Vio told you?” Shadow asked from the couch.
Blue turned to his cousin with a neutral expression.  “Yeah.  There’s…something I just need to look out for that isn’t my dad.”
Shadow studied his face for several seconds before letting out a melodramatic gasp.  “Are you seeing someone?!”
The older teen recoiled and disgust crossed his face.  “What?  No!  I’m aromantic!  The mere thought of me dating someone makes me want to throw up!”
Shadow wasn’t buying it.  “Right, because you’re such a ‘smooth player’.  You only think you’re an aromantic because you haven’t found that special someone yet.  Believe me, you’ll find them eventually.”
“And since when do I need advice from you?”
The purple-haired teen flopped over the armrest with a hand resting on his forehead.  “Oh, you hurt me!”
Blue’s face darkened.  “Grow up.  I’m not seeing anyone.  There was only this random guy down on the beach yesterday and I just need to make sure he doesn’t come back.”
Shadow smirked.  “Ooh, so it’s a guy then?  I feel ya, buddy.”
“Shut up you little-!”  Blue paused and then it was his turn to smirk.  “So you admit it then?”
Shadow’s cocky expression fell in an instant.
“HA!  I knew it!”
Shadow sighed and got up from the couch, beckoning Blue outside.  Once past the doors, he spoke up.  “Yeah, okay, fine.  I have a crush on Vio, but…it isn’t just a crush…”
Blue tilted his head in confusion.  “It’s…?”
“This is why I brought you outside in case Green hears.  After this morning, it’s official that I’m never telling him.”
“Telling him what?”
Shadow took a deep breath.  “Vio and I are actually dating.”
Blue stood frozen for a moment.  He always figured that it was just the usual bromance, but for it to be an actual thing…  He’d only teased them for payback, but just…wow.  “Well, at least that explains a lot,” he said at last.
The younger teen timidly rubbed his right arm.  “So…are you cool with it?  After what Green said, it’s made me a little anxious, and I just really want someone on my side other than Vio.  I know for a fact that my mom will be livid with me.  Heck, she might even disown me for it, and I’m not even exaggerating.”
“And the first person you come to talk to is me?”
“Vio already knows that I’m scared.  He is too.”
Blue rubbed that back of his head.  “Well, this is kind of awkward…”
“Tell me about it,” Shadow groaned.  “You hate me.  I get it.  But like it or not, we’re still family, and even though I still like to take the mickey out of you, I was just kind of hoping that you’d back me up on this.”
Blue hesitated.  Sure, he was cool with it, but he was just taking some time to process this new information.  
“Besides, you’re his older brother, so I suppose I kind of need your approval,” Shadow said with a small laugh.
“Uh, yeah sure.  I’m fine with it.”
Shadow breathed a sigh of relief.  “Thanks.  God, I feel like we’re signing a peace treaty to never insult each other again.  Is this like, our first serious talk or heart-to-heart or whatever?”
Blue’s eyes widened.  “It isn’t just that, this is the first time I’m actually getting along with my family for once.”  There was truth in Blue’s words.  Within the span of just one night, he suddenly felt a lot closer to his brothers and cousin…
Without speaking another word, the two teens brought themselves in for a quick hug.
After pulling apart, Shadow chuckled, held up his hand and said, “I hereby decree that I will never insult Blue out of spite ever again.”
Blue joined in with the younger teen’s chuckles.  “Thanks.  Same from me to you.  I…guess I have been kind of a douchebag these past nine years.”
“Ya think?  But then again…so have I,” Shadow added, shrugging.
Blue smiled.  “I suppose this makes us even now, then.”
“You bet.  But seriously, you have to let me know how things go with this guy!”
Blue scoffed and gave his cousin a playful shove.  “Like I said, he’s just a random guy who’s trespassing on private property.  Last I saw him he took a dive, so I don’t know if he’ll be back or not.”
Shadow turned to head back inside.  “Whatever you say, Romeo,” he finished with a smirk.

Once down on the beach, Blue noticed that the wind had definitely picked up, and judging from the dark clouds in the distance, a storm was approaching, and fast.  However, he’d been out here in worse conditions, so it was no problem for him.  The only question was if the boy from last night was here.  His eyes scanned along the beachline and shallow water, but there was no sign of the stranger.  He then made his way over to the rocks where he first found him; there were plenty of rock pools for a boy to hide if he wanted to.
Using the rough surfacing of the rocks as footholds, he eventually made his way up and onto them.  The first thing he noticed from up there was the rock pool that the boy was occupied with, so he decided to check it out to see if there was anything significant.  After all, he had become quite the avid collector lately.  Placing his feet in the small body of water, it felt unusually warm for a rock pool on an overcast day.  He lowered himself down so he was resting on his knees and plunged his hands into the water to scrounge around for anything that caught his eye.  It was mostly full of the ordinary stuff and a couple of sea snail shells, but other than that, there wasn’t anything special about the pool and he was about to get up and leave, but his gaze settled on just the tiniest shimmer of something that wasn’t a shell snagged on the edge of the pool.  He slowly reached out to pick it off, and once it was settled within the centre of his palm, there was no denying that it was a fish scale.  However, this thing took up half of the space on his palm and was a shimmering red colour.  
“The hell…?” Blue asked himself.  The only large red fish he could think of was a snapper, but even then it didn’t even come close to the size of whatever this belonged to.
The teen ran a finger along the scale’s surface, and it was surprisingly incredibly smooth, almost like silk.  It also held a slight yellow tint to it when tilted in a certain way at the light, which Blue thought was beautiful.  However, it was fragile and wasn’t hard like a reptile’s, so he carefully placed it within one of his smaller pockets and made sure that it wouldn’t break while he moved.  Satisfied with his finding, he stood up from the rock pool and stepped onto a higher vantage point.  Habit made him look back out to sea for several moments, and that was when he caught sight of the boy.  The younger male was sitting on a large cluster of rocks quite a way out in the water, but what Blue noticed next made him feel like he shouldn’t stare at him.
He was completely naked.
Thankfully he was sitting in a position so that Blue couldn’t see anything he shouldn’t, but it still made him question who on Earth this kid was.  If anything, he was just getting weirder by the minute.  He was facing away from Blue and looking out to the storm, and, come to think of it, that was the same direction he looked in before vanishing last night…  Did he know that the storm was coming?
Knowing that the thrashing of the waves would drown out his voice, he picked up a decent sized pebble from one of the rock pools and threw it as hard as he could through the air.  He didn’t care if he hit the boy or not, but either way, it impacted near where the younger was sitting and immediately caught his attention.  After glancing at the area the rock hit and seeing nothing, his gaze trailed to the shoreline and eventually spotted Blue.  The older teen had expected the boy to either disappear back into the ocean just stare coldly at him, but the guy actually threw a smile at him.  Just who did he think he was?!  First he trespassed on a private beach and ran from Blue as if he knew he was doing something wrong, then he gave Blue the creeps and vanished just like that, then appeared back on a distant rock the next day totally nude and smiled at Blue?!  However, after a while, Blue’s original prediction came true and the boy leapt off the rock and dove back into the water.
You wanna play this game then?  Fine, Blue thought, heading back up the beach with a scowl fixed on his face.

The angered teenager stormed through the front door and slammed it shut behind him, startling his brothers and cousin who were casually watching the news on TV.
“Wow, you’re back quicker than I-” Shadow began, but was cut off.
“NOT in the mood for talking right now!” Blue spat back, making the purple-haired boy clam up.  He honestly didn’t care about anything else other than figuring out who the hell this kid down at the beach was.  
He thundered up the stairs and made his way into his bedroom where he stripped down completely.  Then, opening up his drawers, he removed a pair of blue swim shorts with a palm tree pattern and slid them up his legs.  He tied the white string at the front to keep them secure and proceeded to carefully extract the red scale he’d found earlier from the pocket of his denim shorts.  After studying it for several seconds, he glanced over at the three long shelves situated on the right side of his room.  On each of them was the mass array of shells, coral, starfish, pearls, and other things he’d found washed ashore.  Reaching up to the bottommost shelf, he lay the scale down directly in the middle between a spotted cowrie shell and a jar of water that contained a hatched shark egg.  He decided that he should see if the boy knew anything about the scale before talking to Vio, but to do that, he’d need to play by the kid’s rules and take a little dip.  
Blue left his room to head into the bathroom and grab a beach towel from one of the cupboards.  Once he did, he slung it around his shoulders and headed back down where he was greeted by several raised eyebrows at the bottom of the stairs.
Shadow raised his hands up before speaking.  “Okay, I know you said you don’t feel like talking, but coming back in after a short period of time while all angry and stuff like someone hit you with a brick, going upstairs for another brief moment without telling us what happened, and then coming back down in your swim shorts does NOT make sense.  At all.”
“Yeah, and I don’t think therapeutic swims exactly fit in with your ‘calm down’ agenda,” Green added.
“So,” Vio continued, “care to let us in on a little something?”
Blue’s already pissed off gaze immediately landed on Shadow.  “You didn’t say anything to them about our conversation before, did you?” he said threateningly.  
“Yep, about how we made up.  Oh, and that you were seeing a…certain someone,” Shadow replied with a smirk.
Blue took a step forward with clenched fists.  Shadow told both of them that he was “seeing” a guy?!  “You son of a-!”
“Whoa, dude, chill!  That’s all I said.  I never mentioned any specifics.”
“Which is totally not fair, by the way,” Green huffed, glaring at his cousin.
Blue took a moment before replying, his anger finally dying down.  “…So you told Vio…?”
Vio nodded.  “Shadow filled me in and then Green, with his brotherly senses tingling, could tell that we were hiding something and wanted in.  So yes, one thing led to another.”
“Wait, so you told Vio about that but not…  I’m really confused,” Blue said.  Why would Shadow even need to tell either of them that Blue was apparently “seeing” someone?
“Uh, yeah, it’s not rocket science.  Shadow said that you were seeing someone but he left out the details.  We’ve been pretty much left in the dark, but clearly things didn’t go so well…I think,” Green clarified.
However, Blue was still a little confused.  Vio seemed to noticed this and pulled him away from Green and Shadow.  Once they were out of earshot, he spoke up.  “Shadow told me everything as soon as you left.  He told you about me and him and then the two of you made up because of it.  He then said that he joked about you seeing another guy down on the beach – don’t worry, I already know that it’s just a trespasser – and then you left to take care of things.  However, while he was telling me this, Green walked in on us.  I’m not gonna lie; we were terrified that he’d heard something we didn’t want him to.”
Everything suddenly clicked in Blue’s mind.  “So you told him that you were just discussing how I was seeing someone.”
“Yes.  And to make it easier, we decided that Shadow was going to be the only one who knew any details.”
Blue nodded in understanding.  “I get it now.”
“I would have asked you if you wanted to take the bullet for us, but obviously I couldn’t.  Also, thank you for…being okay with us.”
Blue smiled warmly.  “No problem, bro.  Besides, I owe you for getting a ship for us to look for dad.”
Vio chuckled.  “Sure thing.  Bro.”
“God, Vi!  Don’t use slang; it just sounds weird coming from you,” Shadow said suddenly, walking up to the two of them.
“Where’s Green?” Vio asked urgently.  
“Relax.  He’s taking a piss which is why we don’t have much time.  Quickly Blue, tell us what the heck happened down there,” Shadow replied.
“Uh, right.  Well, you know how I said that he swam off last night?”
The two nodded.
“Well, he did the exact same thing.  He was just…casually sitting on one of the rocks, smirked at me, and then took another dive.  So, I’m gonna play his little game.”  He almost cringed at the thought the popped into his head – the rest of the truth that he swore to never mention.
They heard a toilet flush from above them, so they moved back into the living room.  Vio gave Blue a quick brief about what to say right as Green came clomping back down the stairs.
“We all good?” he asked, leaping from the second-last step.
“Yeah,” Blue said.  “Vio cleared everything up for me.”
“Alright then, spill.”
Blue swallowed a lump in his throat; his pride had better not be damaged after this.  “This, uh, girl, that I’m seeing wanted to go for a swim last-minute, so when I got there she told me that she was heading back to get her bikini.  I just got a little pissed off because of wasted time, okay?”
“Yeesh.  Girls, huh?” Green said with a smile.  “You going back down now or…?”
Blue sighed and looked around.  “Nah.  I might as well chill here for a bit.  Her house is a bit of a walk away.”
“Okay, cool,” Green finished, heading back to the couch to keep watching TV.  
Vio turned to Blue.  “So you’re really not gonna say anything about her?” he said to keep up the act within Green's earshot.
“Not a chance.  Clearly I already made a mistake by telling Shadow,” Blue retorted, silencing his cousin’s snickering.
“Hey, at least I didn’t give away any details!” Shadow cried back, putting on his infamous puppy face.
“Whatever.  I’m heading out back,” Blue finished, walking away from both of them towards the sliding glass doors that led to the pool.  After closing them behind him, he made his way to one of the cabana-woven chairs and set himself down on the soft cushion that sat there, closing his eyes.
There was no need to go back down to the beach immediately, right?  After all, if the trespasser was there last night and this morning, then he would definitely still be there in twenty minutes or so.  The only thing that he couldn’t get out of his mind was the tail he saw last night.  I have to have been seeing things.  It was probably just a wave and the moonlight making me think I saw something.  After all, the guy has legs.   I saw them, clear as day, he thought.  All he had to do was get close enough to actually talk to the boy and get answers out of him, and he didn’t care what he had to do so he could.  If the kid turned out to be just some weirdo and didn’t know anything about the tail or the scale, then Blue would just have to ask Vio.  Perhaps he, with his extensive knowledge of the ocean, would surely know something.  That then led Blue to another thing: the fact that Vio was dating his cousin.  He could never look at the two the same way anymore, but he still didn’t want to get in between them, and with the homophobic Green living under the same roof, Blue could understand how scared they must have been.  He needed to keep the attention away from them, but he wouldn’t be able to keep up the façade for long.  He could probably just go back down and then say that he didn’t really want her anyway.  
He let out a sigh as his head fell to the side, coming to rest on the back of his hand.  Why does my life have to be so damned fucked up…?

Blue jolted awake as he heard the sound of sliding doors and footsteps approaching him.  Dammit, how long had he been asleep?
“Hey, Blue,” Green said, taking a seat in the chair next to his brother.
“Nngh…  How long has it been…?” Blue asked groggily, rubbing his eyes and sitting up straight.
“I don’t know, about half an hour maybe?”
Blue sighed.  Good, he thought.  It hadn’t been too long.  “What is it you want?”
“Honestly, I’m not sure.  I just wanted to talk I guess.  We haven’t done so in years.”
“Yeah, we haven’t…”  Blue replied, suddenly realising that he’d almost never paid any real attention to his brothers ever since their dad left.
“I’m not keeping your girl waiting, am I?” Green asked with a chuckle.
“Nah, dude.  If she gets pissed off, she gets pissed off.  I don’t think I’m that into her anyway.”  Blue waved his hand in dismissal.
“Yeah, she doesn’t exactly sound like good girlfriend material.”
“What about you?  I think it’s about time you found someone of your own.”
Green let out a sigh.  “I’m just…waiting, I guess.  I want to make sure I find my soulmate.”
Blue scoffed and threw him a disbelieving look.  “You seriously believe in that soulmate crap?”
“Say what you will about it.  I do, and I believe that she’s out there…somewhere…”
Blue let out a breathless laugh and slapped a hand to his forehead.  “God, do you have any idea how cheesy you sound right now?”
“Yeah,” Green laughed back.
Silence endured between the two for a short while as they gazed out at the view of the ocean in front of them.  The wind was beginning to pick up slightly and the dark clouds were rolling in quickly in the distance.  Blue hoped that the coming storm wouldn’t be too serious.
“It feels odd without Aunt Eleanor here, doesn’t it?” Green said.
“It hasn’t even been a full day yet, Green.”
“I know, but still.  Knowing that she’s going to be gone for a week or so…  I guess it’s just kind of nice to have the place to ourselves for once.”
“Yeah, I suppose.”  When Green didn’t say anything else, Blue decided to change the topic.  “It’s kind of funny, actually,” he began.
“What is?” Green questioned, tilting his head.
“I’ve actually been getting along with you guys for the first time in nine years.”
Green paused.  “Yeah, actually, now that you mention it…”
“I mean, I woke up this morning feeling…different.  I think it started from what Vio told me last night…  About dad…”
Green nodded.  “Same.  Don’t get me wrong, I feel just awful knowing that our dad is out there somewhere either alive or dead, but just…  The fact that he didn’t abandon us makes me feel over the moon.  We all owe Vio for getting a boat for us.  I want to find him as much as you do.”
Blue smiled.  “I know, and we will find him.  I promise.”
His brother cast his eyes down at the ground.  “Sounds similar to what you said when he left.”
Blue opened his mouth to reply, but kept quiet.  It was true that he’d told his brothers that their dad would come back, and yet he didn’t.  It was a silent promise that Blue was unable to keep.
“You know how you said you were finally getting along with us?” Green asked all of a sudden.
“Yeah?”
“Well, now that there’s a chance of finding our dad – and also the fact that this is the first time we’ve had no adult supervision – I don’t know, I…  I guess that your big-brother-mode is just finally switching back on,” he finished with a warm smile.