Operation Deepsea 2: Revenge From the Deep

Chapter 3: Internal Struggles

(Alterna, one day later, nighttime, Star's POV)

     I still don't know what this feeling is I've been experiencing toward Jaelynn is... I want to tell someone, but I'm scared to do it. Am I gonna get judged for it? Will people laugh at me for it. Is Jaelynn gonna hate me for doing it?

     Ugh, this has been keeping me up all night, I need to sleep...

     "Can't sleep either, Star?"

     I turn over to see Leslie awake and petting Smallfry. She kind of startled me, since I thought I was the only one awake.

     "Yeah, there's just too much on my mind right now." I reply.

     "Do you want to talk about it?" I hear her ask.

     "I don't know Leslie, I feel..." but I stop before finishing that sentence.

     I turn to look down at Jaelynn, who's tossing and turning, along with muttering words.

     "Jaelynn? Wh- what's going on?" I worriedly ask.

     "N- no... Dad?... Mom?... Where... don't  hurt... them..." I hear her say.

     "Jaelynn? Are you ok?" I ask her again, reaching for her.

     "NO!! I DON'T WANT TO HURT THEM!!!" She screams as she jolts upright, reaching out in front of her as if someone is there.

     "Jaelynn!" I say as I reach out to bring her back down "What's going on?"

     "I... I saw my parents... a- a- and I saw this dark figure, and you guys we- were injured or dead I don't know and..." she says as she begins to mumble again, she also starts crying.

     "It's okay, Jaelynn. You're here, safe with us. You're ok..."

     As I bring her back down to the floor, she begins to hug me tightly.

     "Please tell me I'm not dreaming right now, please tell me this is real!" Jaelynn says through sniffles and tears.

     "Don't worry Jaelynn, we're here." I reply. "You had a nightmare, but it's over now. You're safe." I add as I begin to stroke her hair.

As Jaelynn quiets down and lays her head in my lap, another feeling of warmth just surges through my body. I lay my head on top of hers and look over to Leslie, who has a slight smile on her face. I blush again as I look down to Jaelynn again.

Leslie then gets up and joins the group, wrapping her arms around me and Jaelynn, I can feel all of Jaelynn's hearts beating as I hold her.

     "Just breathe, Jaelynn. It's okay." I say as I look down to see Jaelynn going into her squid form. Her tentacles still hold the green to blue fade, and the moonlight really makes it shine. She's like a pearl in the sand, shining beautifully amongst everything. I stroke her tentacles as I look back up to the night sky.

     "Oh Jaelynn." I say in my head. "If I could only understand what this feeling is that I have towards you..."

—————

(A cemetery in Splatsville, the next day, Willow's POV)

     We can't find Jaelynn anywhere today, and she wasn't responding to texts, so Leslie, Star, and I decided to look for her. After about an hour of looking, we're at a cemetery in the city, and I'm totally lost.

     "Leslie, are you sure this is the right place??" I ask.

She doesn't say anything, and continues to press forward. I look over to Star with a bit of a concerned look. After about another minute Leslie stops walking, and I almost hit her because of it. I'm about to ask her what's going on before I see what's in front of her.