Chapter Text
"Mako, wake up!"
The sharkling pulled the covers further over their head, grumbling. They heard a sigh from their roommate.
"Mako, I just want to ask you something."
That sounded reasonable enough. But they were stubborn.
"Alright, you asked for it."
Mako heard their roommate pick something up.
"Last chance." There was an edge of amusement to their voice. When Mako ignored them, they muttered a 'okay then", before blowing an airhorn in their ear.
Mako flung the covers off, grimacing as the sound pierced their ears, then glared down from the top bunk at their roommate, Cal, who wore a smug grin.
"Alright, fine. What's up?" Mako muttered. They weren't truly mad, since Cal warned them, and they knew it was the only way to really wake them up.
"Coconut, Ermine and I are going bowling. Do you wanna come along?" Cal offered as they placed the airhorn back on their bedside table.
Mako's nose scrunched up in disappointment. They weren't very good at bowling, and it was a known fact. But Coconut and Ermine loved it, as did Cal, so it was the activity their friend group normally opted for.
"I know you don't like bowling that much, but I just wanted to ask so you wouldn't feel left out." Cal added briskly. Mako sighed.
"I'll give it one more go," They murmured. Cal gave a soft smile. "But, if my opinion doesn't change, I might stop going with you guys."
"That's fair. I'm glad you're trying one more time, at least. We're going in an hour and a half."
"Why so early, then?" They tilted their head as they climbed down the ladder for their bed.
"You know how long Coconut spends in the shower." Cal responded dryly as they headed out of the room, "Might want to get dressed maybe… half an hour before we go?"
"Sounds good." Mako shrugged, following after them whilst putting on a shirt. As they exited the room, the sound of sizzling travelled to their ears.
Ermine must be cooking something, they thought to themselves with a spark of excitement. Ermine's cooking was great. They hurried down the stairs, entering the living room to see Cal rearranging the cushions on the couch to their liking, something they did out of habit. Elsewhere in the house they could hear the shower running, presumably with Coconut in there. Passing Cal and peering into the kitchen, they saw Ermine in front of the stove, pouring pancake batter into the pan. On a plate on the kitchen counter were four plates, 3 of which had eggs, cooling down.
"Hey, Ermine." Mako called out, stepping fully into the kitchen. The octoling looked over his shoulder, a smile forming on his face as he saw them. They walked up next to him, leaning on the counter next to the stove. Mako saw regret flash in his eyes briefly, before disappearing.
"Hi, Mako! I'm making pancakes and eggs," He nodded to the plates, all of them with three freshly cooked eggs on each plate, apart from the empty plate, no doubt reserved for Coconut, who did not like eggs.
"I see that," Mako giggled, "Are the pancakes going to be long, or can I take my eggs now?"
"Yeah, no problem! I'll bring out your pancakes whenever you're ready." Ermine nodded.
"Thanks, Ermine!" They grabbed their plate, waving at him before going through to the living room and sitting down besides Cal, who was scrolling their phone, tucking into their eggs briskly.
"Good eggs?" Cal snickered. Mako nodded in response.
The two sat in silence, Mako eating and Cal playing games on their phone, until Ermine came out, holding Cal's plate and his plate. He placed them down on the coffee table in front of the couch, heading back to the kitchen as Cal thanked him to grab Coconut's plate, leaving it on the table as well, before sitting down between Cal and Mako.
"Do you guys like it?" He asked as he began eating.
Mako nodded, their mouth full of egg. "It's great as always, Ermine." Cal replied, patting his shoulder.
"Thank you!" He chirped, gingerly eating his food, a stark contrast to how Mako was ravaging their breakfast. "Are you coming bowling with us today, Mako?"
"Yeah. Probably my last time coming, if I don't have fun. Givin' it one more time."
"I see. I hope you have some fun, then." Ermine murmured, nodding in understanding.
Mako was never really good at bowling. They'd gone about two times thus far, today being their third time, and each time they'd had the bare minimum of fun. They were more than strong enough to lift the bowling balls, but they had to hold them with both hands. They'd overheard the murmurs from other people bowling as they went past to the lane to throw the ball, overhearing the racist remarks and comments about their height.
And on top of that, they just couldn't bowl. They'd tried over and over, hoping to improve, but most of the time they only sent the ball into the sides of the lane. They just weren't any good at it, and half the time came home feeling down in the dumps.
So, unless they magically got better… this would be their last time bowling.
"Do we have any maple syrup?" Cal's voice interrupted their train of thought.
"I don't think so-"
"Hello, everyone!" Coconut sang as he entered the room. His clothes were lazily put together (although Mako couldn't speak -- they weren't any better) and he smelled of steam.
"Hi, Coconut!" Ermine responded, smiling at him.
"Are these mine?" He asked, pointing at the plate on the coffee table.
"Yup." Cal answered.
Coconut nodded in thanks, and Mako scooted over to make space for him. "You're coming with us today?"
"Yeah," They nodded, hoping Ermine or Cal would tell him what they've already said. But the two octolings were already conversing, much to their dismay. They quickly explained themselves.
"Oh, I see…" Coconut murmured, looking down, "Well… if you don't have fun, you're always free to come with us later on!"
"Thanks, but… I get the feeling this might be the last time." Mako sighed.
"That's okay. How did you sleep last night?"
"I slept well! I had some crazy dreams, but that's nothin' new." Mako answered, thankful for the topic change.
"We still have an hour before we go. Do you guys want to watch a movie?" Cal asked, grabbing the remote.
"Yeah, of course!" Coconut replied, leaning back on the couch. Ermine leaned back as well, eyes intently on the screen as Cal went to one of the few streaming services the group had. Mako munched down the last of their food, placing their plate at the far end of the coffee table before kicking their feet up on it.
As Cal selected a movie, Mako settled in fully, enjoying the feeling of normalcy as they sat with their best friends on the couch.
"Cal, hurry up!" Mako called to their friend, laughing as Cal barked back a sassy response. Shortly after, they tumbled down the stairs, struggling to put their shirt on.
"World won't end if we're not there on time," Cal muttered.
"Tell that to Ermine," Mako looked out the front door to see him pacing anxiously. The white-tentacled octoling had a tendency to freak out about getting places on time.
"Are you guys done?" He called.
"Yeah." Mako answered, Cal behind them, adjusting their shirt. Ermine nodded and headed over to the driveway, where Coconut's car was. Coconut in question was in the car already, with the car turned on so it could get the air conditioner going. Mako and Cal followed shortly after, getting in the car in the back seats.
"Everyone ready?" Coconut asked. When everyone murmured an agreement, he began to drive.
Mako leaned back against their seat, looking out the window. Next to them, Cal's phone charm jingled, and in front of them Ermine was chatting to Coconut.
Although they agreed to giving bowling one more try, Mako wasn't excited, nor did they have high hopes. Deep down, they felt that giving it a try would be futile, and that they'd come home unsatisfied. But they didn't say so, as to not hurt their friends' feelings. They didn't hide their lack of enthusiasm, however.
The bowling place wasn't too far from home. Maybe about a 10 minute drive, if anything. The place seemed to have just opened for the day, with cars parked just outside. Mako could see movement inside. As Coconut parked the car, they heard Cal putting their phone away. Ermine was the first out of the car, practically buzzing with excitement, although still careful to not scratch the car next to them as he opened the door.
"Let's go," Coconut muttered as he left the car, Cal and Mako following close behind. Mako stretched as they followed along.
Let's just get this over with, they thought unhappily, trailing behind a bit as they walked into the bustling building. The jellyfish at the front desk waved at the group as they came in, their inkling coworker mirroring them. Mako stood next to Cal with their eyes gazing down as Coconut spoke to the workers, Ermine engaging in conversation with the inkling.
"Do you want some bowling shoes?" The inkling asked as they moved to follow their friends down to the bowling area.
"Huh?" Mako responded, stopping in their tracks. Then they remembered that bowling shoes were something that were offered here.
"Your friends all grabbed some shoes, but you went straight past 'em." The inkling told them. Mako looked at the shoes before shaking their head.
"I'll be fine." They murmured gruffly, turning away just as the inkling shrugged. As helpful as bowling shoes might be, they didn't want to take off their platform boots and become much shorter in the eyes of everyone.
When Mako caught up, Coconut was already winding up to throw his first ball. It rolled on the wooden floor, slowly until it eventually hit three of the bowling pins at the end of the lane. He walked back to the others, noticing Mako standing a little way away.
"Hey, Mako! Wanna go after Ermine?" He offered, placing his hand on their shoulder.
"Sure," They muttered, following him over as Ermine grabbed a ball.
Ermine was probably the best of all of them when it came to bowling. Although he struggled a bit when grabbing the ball, he threw it down the lane with precision, only failing to get a strike by one pin. He raised his arms in a silent cheer for himself.
"You got this, Mako!" He said cheerily as he went over to stand by Cal, turning around to watch them.
Mako hesitantly walked over to grab a ball from the rack, trying first to pick it up with one hand. However, as their fingers entered the gripping holes, their hand ached with the effort. They felt eyes staring into their back as they struggled, and, turning around to check if anyone was watching, they saw their friends watching them. Cal shot them a thumbs up.
However, just beyond their friends, they saw a group of teens laughing to themselves and chatting, their backs turned to Mako. It looked as though they were only pretending to have their backs turned. Narrowing their eyes, Mako went back to the rack and grabbed a ball with both hands, almost weightless in their grasp, clutching it close to hide the fact they had to hold it with two hands. They wound themselves up, leaning back as they threw the ball...
...and sent it off to the sides of the lane right before it could hit any of the pins.
They heard a snicker from the group of teens, and they narrowed their eyes. Were they laughing at them? Scowling, Mako said nothing to the teens as they slunk back to their friends. Ermine gave them an apologetic look.
"You can try again if you want," Cal spoke up.
Mako looked at them in surprise. "Are you sure?"
"Yeah, I can wait. Go ahead."
Cal smiled at them softly, and Mako nodded in gratitude as they went to grab another ball, not even bothering to try and grab it with one hand. Trying to straighten their throw, they sent it rolling across the wooden floor of the lane. Although it veered off to the side, it hit a single pin in the process.
I guess one is better than nothing, they thought to themselves with a sigh as they walked back to their friends. They overheard another snicker from the group of teens, and although one of the three were off bowling, one of them was looking directly at Mako.
"What are you lookin' at, asshole?!" They snapped, and the teen looking at them giggled.
Ermine put a hand on their shoulder. "Mako, ignore them..."
"Yeah, get your boyfriend to hold you back!" One of them taunted.
"Wh- I'm not their boyfriend!" Ermine cried, blushing. Mako pushed his hand off their shoulder and glared at the teens, teeth bared.
"What are you gonna do, bite us? Go on, do it, I dare you!" The teen stepped toward them. Mako narrowed their eyes as they realised the teen was trying to get a reaction out of them.
They turned away and walked past their friends, headed for the exit. "I'm leaving."
"Coward!" The teens sneered. As much as it hurt their pride to be called that, they knew they couldn't give into their taunts, as it would just get them a visit from the police.
"Where are you going?" Coconut asked, moving to stand in front of them before they could go any further.
"I need to clear my head. Keep bowling if you want." Mako muttered, their mood soured for the day.
Ermine walked up behind them. "Are you gonna walk home?" He asked, his voice soft.
"Maybe. I don't know. I need to get out of here," They grumbled, pushing past Coconut and not looking back as they left the building.
They pushed the door open, not bothering to shut it behind them as they walked out onto the concrete sidewalk, shoving their hands into their pockets. They looked both sides, trying to remember which way home was. Deciding it was probably right, they headed off that way, their platform boots clicking on the sidewalk.
Why couldn't they just have fun, like everyone else was? If they could hit at least one strike, they wouldn't care so much. If they hit one strike, it might even make them more excited to go bowling, because they would know there's at least a chance of them getting a strike, or even succeeding in some way. Mako clenched their fists, scowling. They shouldn't have come along today. It was a waste of time, and they made a fool of themselves too.
Suddenly, they heard something rolling on the concrete ground ahead of them. They looked up to see a green blur hurtling towards them.
"Hey, watch it-!" Mako exclaimed, although before they could properly react, they were knocked to the ground, landing on their back, knocking the air out of their lungs. They could faintly hear a cry, not of pain, but more of surprise. They groaned as they propped themselves up on their elbow, raising one hand to their face, their vision blurry. They drew in a deep breath as they blinked the blurriness away to see who ran into them, preparing to deliver a scathing insult. Whoever knocked them over was about to have their day ruined, Mako was not in the mood-
"Are you okay? Here, let me help you up..."
Oh.
Suddenly, all the words they could have said were knocked right out of them, as if they were winded twice. The soft, almost timid voice came from a figure standing in front of them -- a large sea slug woman with extremely pale skin, wearing a far-oversized brown sweater and a pair of shorts. Her face was partially obscured by a fringe of rhinophores, and on each side of her head were long, dangling rhinophores that faded to purple, similarly to the ones standing atop her fringe. Underneath her arm was a skateboard, her other arm outstretched to Mako.
Although her face was obscured, Mako could partially see her cerise eyes, glittering with worry and guilt. In the air hung a rank smell that caused Mako's nose to wrinkle up reflexively -- a mixture of general body odour, vomit, and the distinct reek of alcohol.
At that moment, Mako knew that if they said that scathing comment to her, they'd feel guilty about it for the rest of their day.
"Um... h-hello? Are you okay? Do you, um..." She trailed off shyly, her hand trembling as if she wasn't sure whether or not to keep her arm out. Mako quickly grabbed her hand, her skin soft in comparison to their own rough skin. They grunted with the effort of getting up, their back aching from falling on the hard concrete. As they stood up, they noticed that she stood about a head taller than them, making them look up to make eye contact with her.
Standing up straight, Mako could make sense of more of her features. Long, droopy ears on the sides of her head, a large mantle that went down to her waist, and three pairs of large cerata that increased her height drastically, making her look far taller than she really was. There were three cerata at the bottom of her mantle, resembling something of a tail.
"I- I'm sorry, I didn't mean to run into you, I wasn't looking where I was going, I'm sorry, I really am..." She apologised profusely, her eyes wide and guilty. Her general body language seemed extremely nervous and shy. Mako stared dumbly, forgetting completely about their seething fury from about 5 seconds ago, focusing on analyzing her. Her mouth was moving, but if she was saying anything, they weren't listening.
"Um... hello? A-are you, uh... are you mad? Um... are you, uh... even listening?..." She murmured, then her eyes widened, "O-oh! Do you not speak Inklish? Is that it? Um, I don't know much of your language, uh..."
"Wh- huh? What were you saying?" Mako responded, their voice gruff. They felt their face heat up, embarrassed by how aggressive their voice was in contrast to her gentle, timid voice. But she didn't flinch.
"I just, um... I wanted to know if you, uh, n-needed the hospital. Or if, um, it'd be alright for me to buy you a milkshake..." She murmured, fidgeting with her hands as she averted her gaze, "I feel really bad about running you over, I'm sorry..."
"...I don't think I need the hospital." Mako muttered, half to themselves, "Wait, a milkshake...? Why?"
"Because I feel really guilty, a-and I was on my way to buy myself a smoothie, and, I just, um... I want to make it up to you..." Her voice grew quieter as she rambled on.
Oh, she's definitely got some problems, Mako thought to themselves. A free milkshake might cheer them up, actually...
"Uh, sure..." They mumbled, rubbing the back of their neck. As their hand ran over their neck, they felt their gills flaring, as if they were just as timid as she was. But they weren't.
The two stood in silence for a moment.
"Do you, um- what flavour do you want?" She murmured.
"Mm... chocolate, I guess." Mako replied. They felt extremely awkward all of a sudden.
"Okay." She nodded, "Can you look after my skateboard while I get it?"
Mako nodded and took the skateboard from her hands, sitting down on a bench by the wall as she walked off. "Hey, wait, uh..." They asked, stopping her in her tracks.
"Oh- yeah?" She turned to them.
"What's your name?"
"O-oh, it's, um, L-Lilypad..."
"I'm Mako."
Lilypad nodded. "Okay." She stood there awkwardly for a few seconds, her gaze darting around, before continuing to walk to the milkshake & smoothie place. Mako sat there, watching as she left. Now that they had a clearer view of her back, they could see her cerata far more clearly. They faded to yellow and purple, with gray freckles all over them. The three cerata at the end of her mantle were tied up in a pink ponytail, and the edges of her mantle were pointy, a bit like a maple leaf. Her colours were somewhat desaturated and dull, as if she wasn't looking after herself properly.
Mako's brows furrowed as they watched her walk around a corner, where her destination would be. They suddenly felt extremely worried about her, despite only just having met her. While she was talking, they could see a distant sadness, even if it was masked mostly by her concern for them. They averted their gaze to their feet, still holding the skateboard close to them as they waited patiently for Lilypad's return.
When she did return, about five minutes later, she was holding two drinks, one in each hand, as she came around the corner.
"H-here you go..." She murmured, handing the drink to them and taking her skateboard, "Uh, bye..."
"Thanks- wait, bye? Hold on," Mako said, causing Lilypad to stop dead in her tracks. She looked over her shoulder, a confused look on her face, "Do you wanna sit with me?"
"Wh-" She stammered, before narrowing her eyes, "...Why?"
Mako couldn't help but snicker at her suspicious nature. "I wanna know you," They answered, and she turned around fully, her eyes glimmering faintly.
"You... do?" She mumbled, as if it were a big surprise to her.
"Yeah. Come on," They patted the spot next to them. Lilypad hesitated, before slowly setting down her skateboard again and sitting next to them. She stared down at her drink, while Mako cast a glance at her out of the corner of their eye, but not letting their gaze linger for too long. They didn't want her to feel uneasy. But in the glance they gave her, they couldn't help but wonder what was going on inside her head, what kind of thoughts were swimming around in there.
"What drink did you get?" Mako tried to strike up a conversation. Lilypad flinched when they spoke, as if not expecting to actually be conversed with.
"Oh, um... raspberry smoothie..." She muttered, holding it towards them to show it to them.
"Do you not like milkshakes?"
Lilypad shook her head. "They're too thick for my tastes."
"I see. I'm the opposite, I love the thickness of them," Mako paused, "Well, that and I can't have smoothies." They added with a snicker.
"You can't?" Her eyes widened.
"Nope. I can't eat fruit or vegetables. Well, I can eat them sometimes, but if I drank a smoothie, I'd get real sick."
"Oh... that's sad," She responded. "I, um... I'm the same with meat."
"Really?"
"Yeah. I- uh, n-nevermind..." She stopped herself, as if realising she was socializing too much.
"No, c'mon, tell me," Mako told her, "You can't just start saying something then cut yourself off, you know. I'll be curious for like... the rest of the day."
"U-um... well, when I was younger, I, um... I tried to become the first sea-slugling to be able to handle meat," Lilypad murmured, her cheeks red with embarrassment, "I'd try to eat meat over, and over, and I'd... I'd get sick, and, one day I tried raw salmon..."
"Jeez, yeah, probably not the best idea if you're intolerant to meat," Mako interjected. Lilypad nodded.
"I got sent to hospital..."
Mako snickered. "Honestly, not too surprising. At least you didn't die."
Lilypad didn't respond, although her gaze averted to the ground at the mention of death. Okay, avoid talking about death, Mako noted to themselves.
"When I was 7 I ate a fruit off a tree behind my house," They spoke up, grinning to themselves when Lilypad perked up, "My brother had to force me to throw up and then scolded me for doing so. Then he said that fruit was poisonous, but I don't think it was? Because I'm pretty sure I've seen that fruit in the grocery store before." They felt bittersweet at the memory of their brother, pushing down a wave of sadness.
"Maybe it was to get you to not eat it again," Lilypad pondered, "Or maybe since sharklings can't eat fruit, it was somewhat poisonous."
Mako shrugged. Both reasonable answers, actually.
"...Why do you, um... why do you want to know me?" Lilypad spoke up, her voice quiet. Mako looked over at her, noticing the way she looked a little uneasy.
"It's not every day I get run over by a skateboard and offered a free milkshake," They explained, "A milkshake from a place I'm banned from, no less."
Lilypad looked like she was about to apologise, then her expression shifted to one of confusion. "Why... are you banned from there?"
"They found me drinking from the ice cream dispenser in the middle of the night when I was 17," They replied, smirking at the memory. Probably best to not mention the fact they were homeless at the time.
"Oh." She blinked. "Well, um... I'm sorry for running you over..."
"Oh, don't worry about it. I'm over it. I should apologise myself, I was about to tear your head off your shoulders because I've had a shitty day up until now."
Lilypad stiffened.
"I'm not going to tear your head off your shoulders, don't worry."
"Okay." She paused, then added, "That... doesn't answer my question, though..."
"You seem nice, is all."
"...I do?"
Well, you smell like shit and you look like you haven't showered in years, but that's besides the point, Mako thought to themselves, then felt guilty for thinking it. "Yeah. Most other people would just run off without apologising after running someone over with a skateboard. And you didn't, so, I think you seem pretty... nice."
"...Thank you." Her voice was quiet as she said it, and Mako thought they could hear her voice quiver. But maybe they imagined it.
"Can I have your phone number?" They asked suddenly. Lilypad spat out her drink and slowly turned to look at them, her face shocked and her cheeks slightly pink.
"Wh-what?" She asked in disbelief.
"Er, can I have your phone number?" Mako giggled. Why did she look so shocked? They did say they wanted to be her friend. "Thought my voice was pretty clear when I asked."
Lilypad blinked at them. Why was she being so dense? They tilted their head.
"Why?" She murmured. Mako rolled their eyes.
"So I can be your friend...?" They shrugged. Why else would they ask?
Lilypad relaxed at this. "Oh. Okay." She realised a few moments later what they meant, "Wait, you- what? You want to be... friends? With me?"
"I told you, you seem nice!" They repeated themselves.
"Right, but, seriously? You want to be friends with me?" She looked utterly bewildered.
"You seem lonely." The words came out of Mako's mouth before they could stop themselves. They didn't bother to try to correct themselves, but they felt guilty when they saw a glimmer of sadness in Lilypad's eyes. They quickly added, "I know, uh, what it's like, is all."
"...Are you sure?"
"Of course I am."
Lilypad took in a deep breath, then pulled out her phone, showing them her number on the screen. Mako pulled out their phone and entered it into their contacts, quickly test-calling it, and smiling when her phone started ringing.
"Hell yeah," They nodded, flashing a toothy grin at her before saying, "Wanna get a pic, to commemorate becoming best buds?"
Lilypad's eyes widened and her cheeks reddened, before nodding shyly. Opening the camera app, Mako pulled her close, taking a photo, the two of them in frame.
Then they remembered their friends in the bowling alley. "Shit! I should get going, sorry!" They exclaimed, chugging their milkshake before standing up. Lilypad let out a little 'oh' of surprise as they did so. "Can I see you again tomorrow, somewhere?" They added.
"S-sure." Lilypad replied, her gaze shy as she nodded.
"Okay! I'll text later, nice meeting you!" Mako grinned at her, waving goodbye before running back to the bowling alley, taking no notice of Lilypad's shy wave. Throwing their cup in the bin by the entrance, they darted inside, only to run directly into someone's chest.
"Mako!" A voice exclaimed. They looked up to see Coconut, who was stifling a giggle. Ermine was beside him, looking worriedly at them.
"Hey, guys!" Mako responded, stepping away from Coconut.
Cal stepped forward, tilting their head. "We thought you went home," They chuckled.
"Right, I was going to, but..." Mako decided not to tell them about Lilypad. Not yet, at least.
"Good thing you came up to us just now, then. You might've had to walk home," Coconut teased, shaking them by the shoulder. Mako shoved him away cheerfully.
Ermine looked at them curiously, a hesitant smile on his face, "You've cheered up. What happened?"
Mako stared at him with their mouth open. What would they say?
"Hey, your breath smells like milkshake! Did you seriously break into my workplace to calm down?" Cal shoved them gently. They only shrugged in response. Obviously they didn't, but they wouldn't lie. Not verbally.
"Lucky you didn't get caught. Come on, let's go." Coconut walked ahead, as did Ermine.
"I won't snitch, don't worry," Cal grinned, "Or will I?"
"You wouldn't." Mako sneered. Cal shrugged, catching up with the others, Mako hurrying behind them.
As they followed behind, they paused and shot one more look at where they were sitting with Lilypad. They saw her sitting there still, and, seeing that their friends weren't looking, they gave her a toothy grin and waved at her. She waved back shyly, watching until Mako disappeared into the car.
They'll tell their friends. Maybe not right now, but soon they would. For the rest of the day, Mako's mind lingered on Lilypad, unable to think of anything but how she was doing.
They hoped she was doing okay.
