The mutant octopus slimmed towards us, it’s large tentacles glowing with bubbling yellow toxin. We weren’t going to make it. Fin smiled sadly.
“I’m sorry! It wasn’t supposed to be this way,” I cried.
“What? The neon yellow octopus wasn’t part of the date?” He was trying to be funny. It made me sick. Here we were on the deck of my father’s sailboat, floating in an oil infested ocean with a giant suctioned cupped cephalopod on the deck, and sharks darting around the boat.
I closed my eyes and prepared myself for the sting of the poison as a tentacle hovered over me. Make it quick, just make it quick.
Thunk!
I peeked open an eye. A large hunk of octopus flesh sat before me, bubbling and oozing. The sea creature let out a horrible shriek and turned it’s full attention towards Fin who was now holding a large machete.
“Where did you find that?”
“It was next to the life jackets and some aerosol can of something…” Fin puffed as he thwacked off another arm. I smacked my forehead and ran for the can underneath the bench. I pulled out the sea monster repellant as more octopus chunks flew.
“Back up!” I ordered Fin. I sprayed the pink foam over the intruder. His bubbling skins started to hiss, as orange vapor poured out of him. The octopus slid back off the edge of the boat and deep into the ocean.
“Phew, that was a close one…” Fin wiped his face with his t-shirt.
“Yeah it was, do you want to have our picnic now, or wait until we’re on shore?”
“I’d take some lemonade.”
“Sure thing.”
Delia was 21 and had never been on a date. It's not that she was ugly,shy,or awkward. She could really be quite engaging if you got a chance to catch her. But that's the trick: catching this girl. She was always on the run. Quite literally. Today she was running to catch to her plane to Memphis for a track meet. The only thing she hated about airports was those little metal detector portal thingies. She always had to take off her prostheic leg. It's not that she was ashamed or anything. She proudly sported it along her sleek pencil skirt and orangish red patton leather pointed heel which made her left leg sinews bulge. " I could sharpen an ax on my calf muscle," she often joked.
ReplyDeleteMike, her coach was a late bloomer. Shy and down right awkward around girls, but nonetheless an amazing runner. He was waiting in the recieving airport to pick Delia up for the big race. When she stepped of the plane and scanned the terminal for Mike, she almost didn't recognize him. His hair was trimmed and gelled and he was not in his usual running/coachy attire either. He had on a long button down shirt, and nice slacks. She cracked a smile though when she realized he was still wearing his lucky mizunos. " So, what's the occasion?"
" uh, this.... this was suppposed to,uh, well, this, this is for you." It was a half of a silver charm braclet complete whith tiny little charms that each had a significant memory attached to them. One was a little bandaid from the time Delia tripped on the track at practice and skinned her knee. Another was a high heal, for she loved them and always joked she got them for half price becuase she only need one. There was a tiny Mickey Mouse silouette from the time their team went to Disney land and she had thrown up after riding the teacups. The last one was a little half of a heart. " I was getting in the cab when i slammed the door on the other half and it broke off when the cabbie took off. The other half was cooler i'm sorry this is so stupid I-" Before he could finish, she wrapped her arms around his neck and practically knocked him over. It had never acurred to her, how much she cared about Mike. She was always so idependent, free spirited, and most of all, totally, "girl power." For the first time in Mike's life, he seized the moment and truely became a man. He lifted Delia up and planted one on her. As he did, her left leg poppped behind her, red high healed and all. - the flying dutch pig.