A Day in the Life of Odette
Odette opened her eyes and stretched, giving a big yawn. The sun shone through the crack in her curtains and she groaned, moving her head so it didn’t hit her eyes. Her hands groped for her phone and she hit the button on the side to see what time it was. 6:56 am, 4 minutes before her alarm went off. Odette sighed, then opened her phone to turn off her alarm. No sense in trying to sleep for just a few minutes. “Another beautiful day.” She smiled, pushing herself out of bed and opening the curtains, humming to herself. Odette didn’t have dance classes today, as it was a weekend, but she still needed to do some exercises and stretching so she grabbed her favorite fish patterned leotard and went to her dance room. She had bought a dump of a house so she had gotten it for a good price and had made it into a custom house suited exactly to her taste. She had a dance room with a wall of mirrors and an excellent sound system, two bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms, an open plan living room, dining room, and kitchen, and a very large aquarium along one wall in the main living area. After her morning routine she showered then went to take care of her pets. “Good morning fishies.” She sang, climbing the footstool so she could feed them. “Okay, time for me to eat and then it’s time for the beach!” She had always loved the ocean, her magic allowed her to create an air pocket so she could breathe underwater and enjoy it for as long as she liked. Sometimes she liked to imagine she was a mermaid.
“Bye fishies, I’ll see you later.” She changed into her bikini and covered it with her favorite shirt, ‘Mermaid in Training,’ then grabbed her bag and headed out the door. Odette walked to the beach, humming a cheerful tune under her breath and waving to people she knew. Once at the beach she set her bag down in a special nook, took off her shirt and threw it on top of the bag, then ran into the ocean. She dove in gracefully and activated her magic, taking in a breath. Her air bubble smelled just like the ocean, which she didn’t mind at all. Odette loved swimming around the reef, seeing all the different fish and just letting herself relax. It was how she relieved her stress or helped herself calm down. She usually brought some fish food, it was good for fish not just people food, and today was no exception. She opened the plastic bag and let the food swirl out, watching fish grab pieces and swim away until it was all gone. All of a sudden she felt like someone, or something was watching her. Instantly she was alert, treading water and looking around. There were sharks in the area, but she usually stayed away from the places they frequented and she tried to be extra careful not to bleed or go into the ocean if she had an injury. “Is someone there?” She asked, looking around. There was no answer, although she didn’t really expect one. As far as she knew no one else had her ability and she had never seen another person while swimming. “Hmm.” She muttered to herself. “Maybe I should return early, just in case.” The feeling vanished, but she still felt uneasy. She began to make her way slowly back to the beach, not willing to take any chances. While she loved the ocean she also respected how dangerous it could be.
After emerging back onto the shore she went to her cranny and grabbed her things, pulling the towel out of her bag. She laid it on the sand then laid on top of it while using her bag as a pillow, closing her eyes and giving a happy sigh as she felt the sun’s warmth on her skin. Odette left herself drift into a small daze, half awake and half asleep as she enjoyed the sun and the sound of the ocean.
“Um, excuse me.” A male voice said to her right. Odette’s eyes shot open and she pushed herself up to sitting, glancing up towards the voice. A tall man with long black hair and mesmerising blue eyes was standing next to her. “My apologies for intruding.” He had an odd accent she couldn’t quite place and she hadn’t seen him around before.
“Oh, it’s fine.” Odette scrambled to her hooves. “Can I help you?”
“Well I just moved here and was told this was the best beach.” He gave her a charming smile. “I saw you on the beach and wondered if you might be able to tell me if this is a good place to swim.”
Odette looked at him, then smiled. “This is my favorite place to swim, but it’s best if you’re able to find a way to breathe underwater since there’s only a small shelf of shallow water before it gets fairly deep. I have magic that lets me do so, but if you don’t then you can always rent or buy some snorkeling or scuba gear.”
“Thank you.” He gave a slight bow, which Odette thought was odd. He was so formal. “Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Valdimar.” He held his hand out to her.
“It’s nice to meet you, my name is Odette.” She put her hand in his, intending to shake it, but he lifted it to his lips.
“A lovely name for a lovely lady.” He said, smiling at her as he gently let her hand go.
Odette blushed. “Thank you, I’m named after the main character of Swan Lake.”
Valdimar tilted his head. “That’s a ballet, correct?”
“Yes, it is.” Odette nodded her head. She was impressed, not many men who weren’t dancers paid attention to ballets in her experience.
“And have you ever danced that part?” He asked curiously.
“I haven’t yet, but my dance troupe doesn’t do a lot of classical ballets.” Odette shook her head.
“I’d like to come see your dance troupe perform sometime.” Valdimar told her.
“You’re welcome to come to practice tomorrow, we’re allowed to bring visitors as long as they sign an agreement not to share what they’ve seen.” Odette offered, smiling up at him.
“I would be delighted.” Valdimar smiled down at her.
Odette took a closer look at him. He was toned but not overly muscular, his skin a light tan and his hair very dark. She had seen his hair was long enough for a ponytail, but now she saw it went down to the middle of his back. His eyes were as blue as the sea and she was mesmerized by them until she noticed the strange markings on his forehead. He had a slightly darker line going through his forehead and directly underneath in the center was a slightly paler circle. “Is that a birthmark?” She asked, peering closer.
“Ah, yes.” He said, a trifle awkwardly. “I’ve had it since I was younger but it has gotten a little more prominent as I’ve gotten older.”
“Oh.” She pulled away as she realized how close she was. “Sorry for invading your space! Well, I should get going, but if you want to meet me here at seven thirty tomorrow morning I’ll take you to my dance class.” She said cheerfully.
“Of course, I’ll be here.” He flashed a smile at her. “Thank you, Odette.” He sketched another bow.
Odette felt like she should curtsy or something, but wasn’t sure how to do it properly so she just waved. “You’re welcome!” She called back as she headed home. It certainly had been an interesting day, and it was only half over. She’d have to call Nicki and see what she thought. But she was excited about bringing him to dance tomorrow, he was pretty cute. Odette got home just in time for lunch, then called Nicki and chatted to her about the cute new guy as she did some chores around the house. “You’ll get to meet him tomorrow, but I get first dibs.” She told Nicki playfully before they hung up. She sighed as she tossed her phone on the couch. He’d probably be more interested in Nicki anyways. Not that Odette wasn’t pretty, but Nicki was hot and she knew it. Of course any guy who decided not to be interested in her after meeting Nicki probably wasn’t a good person to be in a relationship with, but it was still frustrating.
“Well, time to binge watch some sappy movies.” She told herself, getting some popcorn started and going to turn on her TV. She always cried during romantic movies so she usually just watched them by herself. Odette tried not to eat too much junk food with her profession as a dancer, but she loved popcorn and couldn’t give it up. After watching a few movies and going through a whole box of tissues Odette was ready for bed. “And tomorrow I get to meet Valdimar again.” She smiled at her reflection in the mirror as she did her nightly routine. “And who knows, maybe he’ll stick around.” She giggled softly before turning off the bathroom light and heading to her bedroom. “Goodnight, fishies.” She called out from her doorway as she turned out the light before walking over and flopping into her bed. She snuggled into her blankets and closed her eyes, wanting tomorrow to come quickly.