Making New Friends Part II - Mark Meets A Girl

It was a beautiful day.  The ocean was fairly calm and the waves broke on the shore with a soft, rhythmic beat.  One after the other.  Over and over. Mark learned in school that they are called spilling breakers.  He loved studying on days like this.  A soft breeze coming up from the water kept him comfortable.  The gentle drumming of the waves kept his mind calm and helped him focus.

His usual spot at the end of the pier was his favorite place to study.  Besides the fact that he loved being outside, it helped remind him of the incident that brought him to this moment – and the many moments that would follow.  Thanks to his friends that had saved his life. He would occasionally look up from his textbook and look out at the vast expanse of water that seemed to call to him.  He pondered all of the amazing things it contained and the fact that it still held secrets that humans have not wrestled from it yet.

“Hi Mark”, came a voice from behind him.  A voice he didn’t recognize.  He turned his head to see who it was, but ended up having to turn most of his body a quarter turn to get a good look.  There stood a girl from one of his classes.  “Oh, Hi.” Do I know her name, Mark thought.  I don’t think I know her name.

“I’m Katie.”

“Yeah, you’re in one of my classes.”

She nodded.  “May I sit with you?”

“Sure.” Mark moved his backpack and closed his textbook.

“Thanks.”  She sat down.  “I don’t want to bother you or take you away from your studies so you can ask me to leave whenever.  You were here first.”

“Well, it’s not my pier.  I kinda feel like it is, but it’s not.”

Katie had a look on her face; like she felt she owed Mark an explanation.  When she started speaking, Mark realized that was exactly what he was getting.  “I’m not a stalker or anything. When I saw you in class I knew that I knew you from somewhere. It was driving me crazy trying to figure out how I knew you but didn’t know your name. Then I heard some classmates asking about the dolphins.  That’s when I figured it out.  I did Google you.  Not to be creepy or anything.  Just to confirm that I was right.  I read the articles that were posted shortly after your near-death experience.”

Mark sat quiet for a moment while he processed that.  “Ok, that’s cool.  So why are you here?”

“I don’t know, exactly.”  She seemed flustered.  “Maybe I just needed to say Hi.  Maybe I needed to meet the man who was saved by dolphins.  Maybe I’m crazy.”

Just then Mark heard some very familiar dolphin calls.  He looked out toward the water, then back to Katie.  She was looking out at the water with the biggest smile on her face.  She turned to Mark, “Maybe that’s why I’m here.”

“You came here to meet the dolphins.”

“Not exactly.  I didn’t find anything online about the fact that they come back to visit you.  This is what’s happening, right?  They come to visit you?”

“Yeah.  I don’t see them every time I come here, but often enough.  It’s good to know they’re okay.”

“See? That’s amazing!  She was talking faster now.  “You may not be the only person on the planet with dolphins for friends but you’re the only person I know that has friends that are dolphins – and I didn’t even know that until now.  You didn’t mention that in class. I can’t explain it.  I just knew I had to do this. I was hoping you would understand.”

“It’s okay.  I do understand.  I’m just processing all of this.”

“I know.  I’m sorry.”

“No need to be sorry.” Mark decided to pause the conversation for now so he could acknowledge his friends.  “Hi guys.”  He tilted his head toward Katie. “This is my friend, Katie.”

Katie waved to them.  “Hi.  Nice to meet you.”  The dolphins squeaked in unison.  They did a little bob in the water and nodded their heads up and down.

“They seem to like you.  They’re pretty smart.  If they like you, I think I can trust that.”

Katie seemed relieved.  “Good. I’m pretty harmless.”  She looked back to the water.  “They’re beautiful.”

Mark realized at that moment that she would probably spend the rest of her life protecting them if she had to.  Maybe that’s why she was here.  Did the dolphins know that?  Was all of this pre-ordained? Did humans even have free will? He pushed all of that to the back of his mind.  He could ponder life’s questions later.

“Have you named them?”

“Yes.  Pongo and Purdy.  I have no idea if they’re boys or girls or one of each.  I don’t know if they’re a couple or just friends who hang out once in a while, saving humans.  I just knew they were my friends and I needed to call them something other than ‘you guys’.”

“I get that.”  Katie looked out to the dolphins, who were swimming around interacting with each other.  They seemed to know that they did not have Mark’s full attention today.  “Pongo and Purdy.  I like it. Is this the only place you see them?”

“Oh no.  I’ve been surfing and they’ve come surfing with me.  It was hard at first.  It took me a while to be comfortable enough with surfing to actually take my board into the water.  Once I realized that they were the reason I went into the water in the first place; and the reason that I survived; it was a lot easier.  Plus, I really wanted to know if they would show up.  They did.  The very first time.  Surfed right along side me. They’ve got my back.  I just know it.”  Mark was surprised that he was being so candid with her.  This isn’t the kind of stuff that he told anybody.  He felt comfortable with her.  She had been honest and up front with him.  He felt he could be honest with her.  He couldn’t detect one iota of fakeness about her.  He liked that.  “Do you surf?”

“No.  Someone tried to teach me once.  I’ve never been very good at sports that require coordination.  I just kept falling off the board.  After a while I was sore and tired and frustrated and I decided that surfing was not for me.”

“Maybe someday you’ll try again.”

“Maybe.”

Pongo and Purdy started squealing, vying for Mark’s attention.  “Hi guys. I’m sorry I’m a little distracted today.” He tilted his head toward Katie.  “Blame her.  How are you? Everything okay?”  They squeaked and squealed for about 30 seconds.  It was as if they were filling Mark in on the latest events.  Katie stayed quiet, not wanting to interrupt.  Besides, she found the whole thing to be quite fascinating.

When Pongo and Purdy quieted down she said, “They’re talking to you.”

“Yeah. I wish I knew what they were saying.”

Pongo and Purdy lifted themselves out of the water, tails still submerged and did a little backward slide.  “They’re getting ready to leave.  They do this every time.  Bye guys.  Thanks for coming to see me.  See you soon.”

“Goodbye Pongo and Purdy.  I hope I get to see you again.”  Katie almost said I hope we can be friends. She stopped herself.  Their friendship with Mark was very special.  She didn’t want to seem like she was trying to encroach on that.

Pongo and Purdy turned to head back out to sea.  They leapt out of the water, crossing each other’s paths in an arc before splashing back down.  “That’s their other signature move.  They do it every time they leave.”  Mark and Katie watched them swim away.  Then they were gone; and the world seemed a little more empty.  They sat in silence for a few moments.  Mark, missing his friends already.  Katie, contemplating what she had just witnessed.

“I really should let you get back to your studies.  Thank you for letting me stay.  I really enjoyed meeting them.”

“No problem.” Mark thought to himself for a moment.  Should he do this?  Aarrgh, he hated this part.  Why was it so hard?  What would she think? Oh, what the hell.  Just do it. “Hey, I’m starving.  Would you like to go get something to eat? With me?”

“Yes, I would like that very much.  I’m starving too.”

And so it begins.