Shark Weak

That pretty fish in the picture is me. Ain't I a sight to see? And the shark...well, I'll tell you about that. I'm a Betta fish. Betta fish are among the most popular and beautiful pet fish in the world, but that wasn't always so. The genus Betta contains more than seventy-three recognized species, but the fish most people are familiar with is Betta splendens or Siamese Fighting Fish.

Now go to the beach and look at my home. It's even more astonishing. When a human stands by the seashore, a person will no doubt marvel at the ocean's power, its restlessness, its vastness, and its depth. The ocean is my altruistic brother. It's really all I have. You may have wondered how the sea creatures feel, surrounded as they are by water. Thousands of feet down, you can find crabs and other sea animals walking on the ocean floor. The tremendous pressure down there would crush a man, but the bodies of these animals are built to tolerate it.

I would describe my home with some simple yet desirable words: rejuvenated yet beautiful, optimum yet has some sim- plicity that will bond our souls to the connection that we have with the ocean—yes, fish have souls. The colors of the sea, just by looking at the waves crashing the shore with such turbulence and the people doing all sorts of activities: surfing, building sandcastles, having fun in the iced deep blue water, splashing each other with water. It just seems it's never going to end.

The ocean is what makes our earth so majestic and beau- tiful. Even from outer space, we could see the earth's splendid greenery because of the trees that grow in the jungles and rain forest, but the earth wouldn't be the earth without its oceans. Unfortunately, the ocean is also our worst fear and enemy too. Because of its rough violent waves and fetch, it creates a monstrous world where no human want to be in when it's angry. Then there is the fear of sharks or galeophobia. But I've learned, sharks aren't the mindless killers that we've made them out to be.

"It's shark week, guys!" Cecil said, swimming to a group of teenage shark boys. On his face was a huge grin. "Who's down?"

Today happened to be the hottest day of the year. It's the summer vacation before my last year in high school. The sun was shining at full strength—beaming so hard you could boil fish on the surface of the water. You know the beaches were packed. All the sharks waved their tails except Stew. Stew was the youngest shark and also the "nerd" of the crew. "Are you coming with us or not, Stew?" asked another shark.

"Nope," said Stew. "I can't. I have to go home. Finish writing my essay."

"William Sharkspeare," said another shark.

"What a lone shark," said another shark. All the other sharks laughed.

"Get off his fins! Come on, let's go," said Cecil.

The group of sharks headed toward the beach, led byCecil. As anticipated, the beach was packed with people. A vast majority of people were in the water, swimming and surfing. Cecil stopped at about eight feet and turned around.

"Y'all ready?" asked Cecil.

The sharks swam closer toward the shore, stealth-like. "Now!"

The sharks race swam toward the shore. All the people

gasped; then terrified, they exited the water quickly.

All the sharks cracked up laughing.

Cecil was swimming about, admiring other fish as he usually does. While swimming around, he saw a small fish wearing a blue-green pinkish shirt. She was very pretentious and always swam with a strut. Me. The moment he saw me, he was really impressed by me. I must've been the most beau- tiful fish that he'd seen. Cecil couldn't help but stare. He was mesmerized. I saw him nod in approval. Instantly, I was stricken by the image from my worst nightmares. He wanted to eat me...of course. My eyes went wide as I realized this was a friggin' shark! I lost all semblance of courage and some of my sanity. In slowed-down dreamtime, I swam away fast, like a torpedo.

"No! Wait!" shouted Cecil.

I'm not listening to him. Cecil took off swimming after me. No time—I have seen all my life poor defenseless fish like me taken apart and devoured by sharks just like this. Sharks with a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth. I'm still swim- ming when suddenly, before I know it, bam! I'm ensnared in a fisherman's net. My heart was pounding out of my chest. I knew I was going to die one way or another and most likely be eaten. I closed my eyes and said a quick prayer. When I opened them, I was staring in the wide-open mouth of a great white shark who looked like he had a zillion sharp teeth! Again, I close my eyes...and suddenly, I was free. Wait, what?

The shark bit the net, releasing me. Without saying a word, I started off again, swimming away as fast as I possibly could. I did not look back. I slowed down, wondering what the heck just happened. He saved me? When I returned to where he was, he was no longer there. I turned back around and went home.

Night after night after night, I dreamed of that shark, wondering if I'd ever see him again. As weeks passed by, all hope of finding him left me. Then, Mom told me to go to the store to pick up some BettaMin because we were out. Printed in the paper the night before was a story of a great white shark seen in the area rescuing a human child that fell overboard a cruise ship in the Gulf of Mexico. I certainly did not believe this story. Then again, I wouldn't believe the story of a great white rescuing a betta fish from a fisherman's net that ran from it if it didn't happen to me.

Flashback

There Cecil was, minding his own business. Nineteen years old and drinking a shark attack cocktail. Unlike laws of the land, drinking in the sea has no age restriction. Usually when Cecil drinks, he becomes rude and selfish. The last thing he wanted to see was a human. That's when she fell. That night, a defenseless twelve-year-old human girl named Abagail Wright went overboard a cruise ship. At first, Cecil was reluctant to help her. After all, that was a human. Our absolute enemy. She landed on what she thought was a rock and sat there calmly. That is, until it opened its enormous eye. She realized she had landed on what was a gigantic, over- size octopus. The octopus tried to grab the girl with one of his tentacles. He was blocked by Cecil's headbutt. About fif- teen to thirty seconds later, after watching the girl panic and struggle to get away from the octopus and struggle to get air, Cecil could not bear to see the child suffer any longer. He threw her arm around his neck. Still frantic, she was kick- ing and screaming. He managed to pull her to the surface. Eagerly waiting on a lifeboat nearby was Abagail's father and three ship crewmen. A look of hopeless despair was upon her father's face. They had been tirelessly searching for Abagail. Her father thought he had lost his daughter to this great ocean as many have before. He sees a shark fin coming closer and closer. Then—

"Daddy! Daddy!" cried Abagail while gasping for air. She was riding on Cecil's back, holding tight to his fin. Cecil approached the boat, and her father quickly grabbed his daughter.

"Abby baby! Daddy's here!" said her father through tears of elation and joy. His lost daughter had been found! Alive. His face froze suddenly when he discovered that Cecil, a great white shark, had rescued his child. He could not pro- cess the idea that a monstrous man-eating top-ocean preda- tor was returning his daughter back to him. The father and Cecil's eyes met for a brief moment. Her father noticed part of Cecil's fin had been torn off. Seconds later, Cecil disap- peared back into the deep blue sea where he'd come from.

"Jesus Christ," said one of the crewmen.

"Did you see that?" asked another crewman.

Abagail's father was still speechless in total shock. "Aren't you going to pick that up?" the crewman asked Abagail's father.

"What?" asked Abagail's father.

"Your bottom jaw," the crewman said.

On the way to the store, I passed the Shark Tunnel Lounge, the hottest shark spot in the ocean. It sported four hundred disco balls over a large dance tunnel and a VIP private area called The Bloodbath section. The lounge was open Thursday, Friday, and Saturday only. Lines formed early and remained most of the night, as the capacity of the room was only 255 sharks. Specialty cocktails abound here and table bottle ser- vice was on (if you can snag a table, that is), but don't expect to get fed here. Shark Tunnel Lounge was strictly a dancin' and drinkin' kind of place! Outside, street sharks feasted their eyes upon young fresh tuna, bonitos, ladyfish, mackerel, and of course, female sharks swimming by. Every vendor in front of the club was well stocked on pheromones, selling cases and by the bottle in sprays, creams, even edibles, and pills.

That's when I saw him. Cecil was outside, swimming alone when two other sharks approached him. After talking outside, the three of them left the club. Immediately, I fol- lowed them. Before I could even consider if it was a good idea or not, I was looking at Cecil's residence. Yes, I followed him home. Like Nietzsche said, no journey is too great when one finds what he seeks. His house had a back porch built like a deck and was nearly buried under coral reefs. He often left the door open with just a screen door closed, and one could look right in and talk to him. I started watching him without letting him know about it.

Cecil was alone, watching the news on television. On television: "Worldwide, commercial fishermen are scouring the oceans for sharks, stripping them of their fins, and throw- ing the carcasses overboard. This type of gruesome ampu- tation is fueled by demand for nothing more than a pricey [shark fin] soup," reported Science News. "In August 2002, the U.S. Coast Guard seized a Hawaiian vessel off the coast of Mexico after discovering it was stuffed with thirty-two tons of shark fins. No other shark parts were on board. The grotesque load represents the slaughter of at least thirty thou- sand sharks and the discard of some 1.28 million pounds [580,000 kg] of fish," said the news. "Around the globe, fish- ing fleets now take an estimated one hundred million sharks annually. With shark fins fetching upwards of $200 per pound [450 grams] on the open market, there is an unsustainable growing demand."

Now was my moment, I speak or let it go for good. Finally, I spoke through the screen door. "I'm the girl from the net. Internet...I mean, in the net," I said, stealing his attention. He looked pleasantly surprised.

"Hello," I said.

"Hi," he replied.

"You are that shark...the shark that bit through the net," I said.

Cecil laughed. "Are you scared of me?"

"Cautious... but not afraid," I replied.

Cecil laughed, then opened the door and swam to me. "What's so funny?" I asked.

"Listen, Miss Siamese fighting fish, people are more likely to be killed by lightning or faulty wiring on a Christmas tree than by a shark. Death by bee sting occurs far more often than death by shark," said Cecil.

"Not for me. Sharks eat fish like me," I said.

Cecil came closer to me. Staring directly into my eyes, he said, "This shark chews wisely."

I couldn't help but blush.

"Why'd you come back?"

"To thank you for saving my life," I said. "I needed to thank you...and it was really strange that you didn't eat me." Cecil just looked at me.

"And...well...something about you intrigues me," I

said. Cecil smiled. "I'm Cecil."

"I'm Verina." We both smiled.

"Can you spend the day with me? Hang out for little bit?" he asked.

For the next few days, Cecil and I spent every waking hour together. He was amazing; funny, gentle, considerate. Nothing like any shark I'd ever seen before. He knew a lot about the ocean and humans. He told me some of the most dangerous places to avoid danger.

He loved watching the news and comedy shows. With Cecil, I felt safe. I trusted him. He and Stew would go down to the Shark Tunnel Lounge and sometimes I would go with them. Cecil warned me not to go without him.

"Two Lime Shark-a-Ritas, please. And for her...what you want, V?" Cecil asked me. I liked that he gave me a nick- name—definitely being personal.

"Um, I'll have a Blue Lagoon Cocktail," I said, handing the waiter five sea coins.

"Put that away," Cecil said to me. "I pay when we go out."

The waitress handed us our drinks. After Cecil started drinking, he turned to me.

"Verina, when we go out, I pay," Cecil said.

"I have money, it's okay," I said.

"I know you have money and your money is going to stay in your pocket. If you with me, we gonna spend what my money can buy. So if I don't have nothing, you don't have nothing," he said with all seriousness.

"Okay," I said with a smile.

"It must be nice having a girlfriend that doesn't care about money," said Stew.

"Excuse me," I said.

They looked at me.

"I'll be back. I'm going to the female fish room," I said. "She's rare," said Cecil.

When I arrived back at our table, I saw Cecil had another drink. He and Stew were talking.

"He makes killer whales go finless and makes fools of manta rays. With him, there is strength and practical wis- dom. To him belong the one going astray and the one leading astray. In other ways he pours out contempt upon nobles, and makes powerful ones weak," said Stew.

"What are you guys talking about?" I asked.

"The Legend of Anthony Attuma, Taino Indian shark," said Cecil.

Cecil usually answered for his friends whenever they spoke to me. I didn't mind; his jealousy was a turn-on. He does not come across as the "jealous type" though. It's more like he is very protective and afraid of losing me to another. And I'm okay with that.

"He is protector of the rain forest," said Stew. "He's also guardian of the sharks. He hangs out in Puerto Rico. He is supposedly two times the size of a killer whale. That's bigger than a blue whale!" Stew continued.

I looked at Stew, not at all believing. 89

"It's true," said Cecil. "It's a myth," I said.

"It's a legend," said Stew. "Exactly," I said.

"A legend can't be true?" Stew asked me.

I chuckled.

"He is supposedly as big as the original Megalodon," said Stew.

After we got back to Cecil's place, Cecil ordered sushi.

But he only ate the seaweed, cucumber, and avocado. I ordered the pellet soup. After eating, Cecil was reading to me the National Geographic (Ocean Edition). He suddenly stopped reading and began staring at me strangely.

"What?" I asked.

He didn't answer.

Cecil's eyes began to burn through me with curiosity.

He then leaned over and kissed me.

When we kissed, the water lit up. It was as if all the stars fell from the sky into the ocean. Trusting him, I calmly closed my eyes as I felt a tender combination of his soft, natural lips with a little tongue. It was like he had a need to touch and feel me with his mouth or something. Maybe because of the electro-receptors that are in small wells around shark's mouths.

After, I was speechless. I turned to swim away.

"You're coming back, right?" he asked, almost desperate. "Tomorrow," I assured him then continued swimming. "Verina," Cecil said.

Turning around, "Yes?"

"I love you," Cecil said.

I was swimming home when I saw what appeared to be an enormous shadow trailing behind me. I turned around. Nothing; just a few fishes swimming by. I saw it again. A big, rather humongous dark shape, now rocketing in the waters above me. This didn't look like a shadow at all. Anthony Attuma is real? Is this an apparition? Are my eyes playing tricks on me? No, it can't be. I squeezed my eyes shut and reopened them. Vamoose, it's gone. Maybe it's time to consider getting better rest. I'm seeing things.

When I got home, my mother was already asleep. My mother was really stunning: a spectacularly royal-blue-col- ored long-finned beauty. My dad was the same; bubble gum pink scales, and his fins also had a pinkish tinge under cer- tain lighting. I'm a blend of both in color. My parents sep- arated when I was five. My dad lived with his new wife in the Philippine waters. They had three kids together. We did not keep in touch. I guess my dad decided to divorce me too when he and Mom divorced.

My mom worked at the church-sponsored orphanage as the cook. In the kitchen, Mom left me a plate of cooked sea- weed pellets. I didn't plan on telling her about Cecil anytime soon because I knew she would be upset and worried crazy. She already warned me about sharks and how dangerous they are. I knew there was no need to tell her anything right away. Cecil is different, and besides, with the kiss and Cecil telling me he loved me, I had enough going on in my head that I needed to deal with. I kissed a shark...and I liked it. I liked it a lot. Holy fish eggs!

The next day, I couldn't wait to see Cecil. I was wonder- ing what it would be like to dance with him. I imagined the sea angels singing as we dance the night away. I looked for him, but I didn't find him anywhere. I then started to feel upset. For a while, I was thinking worse: he was with a female shark or fish in his case. Then I began to worry that he might be on the other end of a fisherman's hook. Something wasn't right.

I knew it wasn't safe, but I wanted to go down to the Shark Tunnel Lounge and see if he was there. On the way, an octopus swam by me. I hid from it. As I swam closer to the outside of the Shark Tunnel Lounge, I could hear loud screaming. As I expected, I found Cecil outside with friends.

"Bastards. I hate them!" Cecil screamed. I could see from a distance that he was visibly upset.

"Cecil. What's wrong?" I asked.

"Stew is dead," he said.

"What? How?" I asked.

"They stripped him of his fin and threw him back in

the water. He bled to death," Cecil said. "Who did?" I asked.

"Humans! Who else?" he snapped.

"Oh my God. I'm sorry," I said.

"Anyway, what are you doing here? I told you not to

come here!" Cecil said.

"I was looking for you," I said.

"That was stupid," Cecil said.

"I was careful and I can take care of myself," I said. "That's not the point. You could've been killed," Cecil said.

There was a moment of silence. The other sharks looked on with curiosity as to wondering why Cecil was even talking to me. Others looked on with envy. Some of their eyes invited me as they all began to swarm around me as if I was blood incarnate. It scared me. Cecil wouldn't stand a chance against all of them. Maya Angelou would probably agree; I am a fish phenomenally. That's me. As all the other sharks swept in, Cecil moved into the background, but he never took his eyes off me. His curiosity turned me on. I turned all my attention on Cecil, needing to show him that I was committed to him and him only. Making it clear as freshwater that I had no interest in his friends.

With that assurance, Cecil swam back closer to me. "I'm sorry. Bad day," he said. He turned to address the other sharks. "Hey, guys, this is Verina...my girlfriend."

All the other sharks nodded and said, "Hello."

"This is Jawshua and Smokey, Big Blue," said Cecil. They all waved at me. "Over here is Sharky, Jabberjaw because he always talking—always running his mouth," said Cecil.

"Yeah, okay, Trickster. You can cut the sharkasm now," joked Jabberjaw.

Pointing to the last two, he said, "Bulette and Finley." They call him that because he looks like a flying bullet when swimming.

"The whole clan," I said in a joking manner. "Which one of you plans to eat me first?"

They all laughed. I could tell they liked me immedi- ately. Cecil smiled at me.

"As you can see, she is a fighting fish. I told her she don't stand a chance against the predators in this ocean," Cecil said. All the sharks laughed again.

"No worries, Cecil. We have her back," said another shark. Turning to me, Cecil said, "Come on, let's go."

"Well, instead of going to your house. I was hoping I could take you home to meet my mom," I said.

Cecil smiled. "I'm with it."

When we were far away from the area, we kissed again.

Then just stared into each other's eyes.

We hear a loud noise. Cecil immediately got into fighting mode, being the predator that a shark is known to be. This is the first time I've seen him look and act like a shark. And this was the shark in full effect.

"Get behind me," Cecil said.

"It's just probably that octopus I saw earlier on my way to the Shark Tunnel Lounge," I said.

"An octopus! You passed an octopus?" Cecil said. "You can't be serious."

"I made it, didn't I?" I said jokingly.

"Doesn't matter. You are not a shark...you are just a fragile fish," said Cecil.

"Well, an octopus will kill you too," I said. He just looked at me.

"No offense," he said. A pause.

"In case you haven't noticed, I have the heart of a shark when it comes to you!" I said.