Bryan ran in with a medical kit. I gave a quiet sigh of relief. "I got it!" Bryan exclaimed as he ran up to me. Michael grabbed it from him. He opened it up, pulling out bandages, scissors, and thread. I didn't know why he had the thread. Lucas looked at me pitifully. "Alright."Michael said as he organized everything. He looked at me. "I need to put stitches in to hold the wound shut. So this is going to hurt."

I felt fear spread though my body. Lucas grabbed my hand comfortingly. Michael began stitching up the wound. I held back tears every time he pushed the needle though my scales. I gritted my teeth, holding back a pain filled grunt. Lucas ran his hand though my hair, letting me know it would be over soon.

I relax a little bit, letting myself get lost in his touch. I heard Michael sigh, "Done." I didn't realized I closed my eyes until I opened them to see myself wound wrapped in bandages. I propped myself up with my arms to look at it closer. Moving my tail, I noticed it didn't hurt as much.

"Thank you..." I said quietly. Michael smiled. "No problem. It was the least we could do." Lucas was still running his hand though my hair. I couldn't help feel my face heat up. David noticed this.

Smirking, he said, "I think fish boy has a crush." Lucas looked at him confused, until he saw my face. His own face turned pink as well. Pat didn't say anything. Bryan was....silently screaming? I don't understand why. Looking at Lucas, he seemed to know why, because his face was rose red now. Michael just sighed, shaking his head.

Breaking the moment, Pat asked, "So what are we doing with him?" Everyone fell silent. Lucas stopped brushing my hair, Bryan stopped silently screaming, David's smirk left his face, Michael looked troubled suddenly. Uneasiness soon fell over me. My tail twitched in instinct. I suddenly felt like a cornered rabbit, trembling.

"Can't I just...go home?" I whisper. Everyone looked at me sadly. "Sorry dude....but no..." David said. "Why?" I asked, my voice cracking. "Well...mermaid scales are rare and high priced in the market..." Lucas said guilty. My eyes widened in horror.

No, I thought. My shaking got worse. I tried stopping it, but I was too scared. "You're not going to...." My voice quivering. Michael's eyes widened. "Heck no! We just need to borrow a few of your scales. We're not going to kill you." He explained quickly.

Sighing in relief, my shaking had stopped. "But..." He continued. "...we need to keep you here so we know you won't run away," He thinks for a moment. "Or in this case, swim away." I nod in understanding. "This is better anyway. Then my family can't find me." I say out loud without realizing it.

Bryan titled his head curiously. "Why don't you want your family to find you?" He asked. I sighed. "I guess it won't hurt to tell you..." I mumble. I take a deep breath, before I say, "I ran away from my family, because I'm one of the princes of the sea. My father is the king of the sea...and I'm the heir to the throne." David's jaw dropped. Pat's face flashed surprise, before it returned to normal. Bryan had stars in his eyes. Lucas looked surprised and a little sad. Michael smirk slightly.

"I kinda guess." He said. It was my turn to be surprised. "Then why didn't you tell us!" David shrieked. I flinched at how loud it was. Michael shrugged. "It wasn't my secret to tell." David grumble something under is breath angrily before he mumbled, "I'm going to go pull up to anchor." As he walked out of the room.

"How did you know that I was the prince ?" I asked Michael. Michael replied, "Like I said, I met a mermaid before. He had dark blue hair with a yellow bandanna in his hair." Michael stared blankly at a wall, letting his memories take over. "We met a few times, before he disappeared completely. We talked about many things, but one conversation stuck with me." He paused, thinking how to word his memory. "One day, he came up to me, excited. I asked him what he was excited about. He said he had a new younger brother, the heir to the throne." He chuckled to himself. "We were too young to understand what that meant back then. Anyway, I asked him what he looked like. He began explaining that he had white hair, a purple tail, and cobalt eyes. When I saw you, I knew immediately who you were." He laughed sadly. "We never gave each other our names, because we had nicknames for each other." He looked down. "Ritchie..." I say quietly. He glanced over to me. "Uh?"

"His name is Ritchie. My older brother." I say louder. His eyes look glossy as he walks to the door. "Thank you, Brandon." He smiles happily. He clears his throat. "Bryan, raise the sail. Pat, help him. Lucas, you can stay here. If Brandon needs anything, give it to him." Bryan salutes and runs out of the room. Pat follows at a much slower pace. Michael follows them, shutting the door behind him.

It was just me a Lucas now. I noticed Lucas looking down sadly. I grabbed his hand. He glances down at me, before he looks away again. "What's wrong?" I ask, pulling him down to sit by me. He doesn't say anything. I feel my heart hurt, when he didn't answer. I lean gently into him. His face turned pink as I laid my head against his chest. He began playing with my hair. A smile spread across my face. "Even if I'm a prince, It doesn't change my feel about you." I say softly, closing me eyes. "Really?" He said. I nodded slightly.

I let out a small yawn, earning a quiet, "Aww" from Lucas. He gently pulled me closer to him, pulling the rest of my body into his lap. He wrapped one of his arms around my torso, while the other one continued to play with my hair. I snuggled closer to him. He chuckled. "Sleep well, Brandon." I soon felt myself getting consumed by darkness. Before I was completely asleep, I mumbled, "I love you."