1
Saturday, July 30
(Two Days Before)
As part of the opening shift at Water Zone, Blake DeLuca’s job was to walk the dry slides every morning to check for fractures or debris.As the hulking young man slogged across the lazy river, he gazed up at the main tower, a massive tangle of dripping and cracking plastic silhouetted against the smoggy California skyline.
With a resigned sigh, he scaled the steep hills of the Coast-2-Coaster, and scooted himself down the entirety of the Black Hole while clenching an energy drink in one hand and a flashlight between his teeth.The static set his hair on edge and it crackled against the aging polyethylene.
Eventually he got around to the kiddie pool and climbed into the big pirate ship playground.After checking the little slides on the side of the ship and the water cannons, he climbed down the large slide that extended from the aft, still nursing his energy drink.
Then, from above him, a voice said, “Can I have some?”
Without thinking, Blake replied: “No.”
Then, it slowly dawned on him: he didn’t recognize the voice at all.What was more, there was another twenty minutes until the park opened to the public and not a single other staffer in sight.Blake did a double-take, glancing back up the slide and onto the ship.It sounded like it came from the top of the slide, but there was no one there.
“Hello?”He huffed, already exasperated.There’d been a lot of kids trying to hop the fence into the park lately and Blake didnotwant to bother with calling the cops before they even officially opened for the day.
“Up here,” came the eventual reply.
Blake’s eyes flicked up in disbelief.
Plastered to the front of the fiberglass pirate ship was the figurehead of a merman, staring down at him with dark eyes.His arms were crossed neatly over his chest, blue and lilac hair spilling down around him, festooned over the aft.His usually serene expression was contorted into one of expectation.
Blake always thought the merman looked a little too realistic and pretty for a kiddie pool pirate ship, but who was he to judge the lonely soul who took the time to mold and paint it?In fact, his coworkers had even taken to playfully referring to the figurehead as Blake’s “boyfriend”—an unfortunate side-effect of Blake’s single status and an innocent quip about the figurehead’s attractiveness.
Blake didn’t respond.Instead, he looked down at the energy drink in his hand and turned it to check the ingredients list for hallucinogens.
“You always have that flavor,” said the merman.“Is it any good?”
“I…” Blake looked back up at the merman who continued to peer down at him with an expectant expression, and then back down at his energy drink.“It’s… Pipeline Punch.”
“I don’t know what that tastes like,” the merman said, tone flat.
“It’s… fruity?”Blake answered.
“Very descriptive,” the merman retorted.“The only thing I’ve ever tasted in my life is chlorine.”
“It tastes way better than that,” Blake assured him.
“Thank you,” the merman said, voice thick with sarcasm.“I’m sure it does.”
“How.Uh.”Blake stared up at him, mesmerized.Heknewthat the dangerous cocktail of sleep deprivation and working doubles was going to catch up with him eventually.That, or skipping breakfast to cut down on meal costs was taking its toll.“How’d you manage to get up there?”
The merman looked at him like he was stupid.“I was built into this boat, wasn’t I?”
“Of course,” Blake said, like this was a totally common everyday occurrence.“Sorry.I… what did you say your name was?”
“I didn’t.And it’s Marin, by the way,” the merman provided him.
“I’m—”
“Blake.I know,” Marin said, uncrossing his arms and taking up a lock of fiberglass hair.It melted into soft, real tresses and he combed it over his shoulder, thoughtful.“I hear everyone calling you that all day.You worked here last summer too, right?”
“Um, yeah.”Blake nodded.He wasn’t sure how long this evidently-haunted merman figurehead had been watching him for, but the situation was starting to stray into unnerving territory.“Look, I—I’ll be right back, okay?”
“Take your time.”Marin waved him off, continuing to play with his hair.Blake nodded again and turned towards the castle.
