Rainy Day Interlude.
Monday. 9:00pm.

The rain was cold. It blended with the ranging sea spray from all around and below. Every droplet hurt and stung. Falling was almost a good change from the swaying above the waves. But then cold water pressed from all sides and it was like she would never be warm again. She couldn’t breathe. She couldn’t see. The grip on her shoulders hurt, but she was even more afraid of it going away. Worst of all was the feeling of being chased. That somewhere in the storm was something much worse than drowning.

“Mommy!” But only bubbles came out.

Monday evenings were slow at the Sirens Dream. Doubly so when there was rain. Not a lot of people were interested in open air clubbing when the weather was gloomy. Even the semi-permanent residents of the hotel seemed to slow down on rainy days, hardly making any requests except for more hot drinks and plush blankets. Thankfully, rainy days were rare in southern California, but not impossible. That Monday, it rained heavily from a sudden cold front.

That made it an easier day for the Sinclairs. Except for Sharinia. They weren’t sure how much she could remember from their past, and she didn’t seem to remember anything when they asked her, but something about rain at night caused old and buried memories to resurface. Her bedtime was at eight. She had woken up screaming twice. The nightmares were intense, at times, sending the toddler scrambling off the side of her bed before she could be woken up and reassured that she was safe and the ocean was not about to swallow her whole. She would refuse to look outside and they had to close the curtains in whatever room she was in if it overlooked the water. The walls of the Sirens’ Dream were fully sound-proofed, an expense well worth the cost. With the curtains closed, there was no hint of the storm outside.

On warm, sunny days, Shari had no fear of the ocean or water. They enjoyed numerous beach days without concerns. It was only on dark, rainy nights that Sharinia feared the water. Understandable, if she remembered how the Sinclairs had escaped their previous situation. They were thankful that California had few rainy days let alone heavy storms.

Alandrea read to her daughter, keeping her company until she calmed and went back to sleep, but they knew it would take the whole family to put Sharinia’s fears to rest.

Therefore, rainy nights meant an early night for the whole family, though not an early night off. As soon as they were able to get away from work, they would gather on Shari’s room. Orhan took over reading while Alandrea snuggled with Shari in her bed. Kellinore sat on the other side, her head resting on the side of Shari’s pillow. Shari was happily sandwiched between them, her arms around her favorite floppy bunny toy. The curtains were closed and thick enough to shut out the noise outside. Phones were silenced. The only sound was some quiet giggling, snoring, and a chapter of The Princess and the Goblin. Surrounded by comfort, Shari could fall asleep all night, with one final memory bubbling up: in the midst of the storm, the four of them found a golden bubble under the sea where they were warm and safe from everything outside.

Their employees knew not to disturb them unless it truly could not wait a few hours. Truthfully, it wasn’t just Sharinia. They built the Sirens’ Dream to shelter themselves from the storms and the monsters chasing them. They hoped nothing would break in.