Sierra Lemon was starting to worry if she was making the wrong choice. She didn't even know anything about this diver and now she wants to see him out of the blue. What if he already has a girlfriend or a family? What if he wants nothing at all to do with an Animalian? Humans tend to be very uncomfortable around sharks in the water, even sharks that rarely attack humans. Was this all just a mistake?
Eventually, the dock manager walked over to Sierra and said, "I've got your diver on the line. His name's Andre Potter. You ready to talk to him?"
Sierra fidgeted a bit and said, "I'm not sure. I mean, I don't really know him and now I'm trying to make friends with him. How do I know I'm making the right choice?"
The dock manager scratched the back of his head and said, "Well, I don't know how it is for uplifted Animalians. But with humans, the nervousness and uncertainty you're feeling? That's perfectly natural."
Sierra took a long sigh. She was still not used to breathing like this. At least she didn't stay in constant motion in order move water through her gills. "Thank you," she said, "I guess I'm as ready to talk to him as I can be."
She walked into the dock manager's office and picked up the phone. "Hello?" she asked.
"Who is this?" asked a male voice on the other end of the line, who sounded like he might have a kind of accent.
"Is this Andre Potter?" she asked.
"Do I know you?" asked the voice.
"Well...not that you'd recognize me," said Sierra before taking another deep breath, "You remember the lemon shark that you occasionally fed when you were giving your diving tours?"
"I...think so," said Andre, "But I don't recall that shark biting anyone. Even so, I'm not liable for what-"
"No, no, I am that shark. Or at least I was," said Sierra.
"I'm...sorry?"
"I'm an Animalian now. You know, the animal people?" asked Sierra.
"Oh... wait, since when?" asked Andre.
"A few days ago," said Sierra, "I had a bad reaction to eating a lionfish so they uplifted me to treat me."
"I thought barracudas were capable of eating them without ill effects," said Andre.
"Well, I guess I tried to eat it the wrong way. Shouldn't have chomped on it from the back," said Sierra, "I don't know if it would have killed me, but I'm grateful for them treating me."
"Ok, so why call me? Don't you have a community of other sharks to hang out with?" asked Andre.
"Well, I was just able to remember you from when I was just an ordinary shark and, well, I don't know. I thought it'd be nice to meet you, if you're interested." Sierra bit her lip very slightly. Something she had soon learned was that it was a bad idea to put any pressure on her own lips with her very sharp teeth.
"Well... this isn't exactly a good time..." said Andre.
"Why's that?" asked Sierra.
"Well, the rain's kinda flooding everywhere and, well, things are a mess. I suppose the rain doesn't bother you," said Andre.
"It feels rather good on my skin," said Sierra. She wouldn't mind standing in the rain except her clothes would get soaked. And soaked clothes on a female body, especially the type of body Animalian women have, can be very distracting to other people.
"So, yeah, I'm kinda interested, but this isn't exactly a great time for that," said Andre, "Maybe when things are a bit dryer."
"Ok, I can wait," said Sierra, "Do you want me to give you my number so you can call?"
"You have a phone?" asked Andre.
"Well, not my own phone, but I have an apartment at Skull Island," said Sierra.
"Uh, sure, did you give me your name yet?" asked Andre.
"Didn't I? I guess I didn't. It's Sierra. I guess my last name is Lemon."
"Well, Sierra, I guess I'll see you on a sunnier day," said Andre.
"I hope so," said Sierra. Then Andre hung up. Well, it wasn't a start. It wasn't a complete rejection like she feared. At least he wanted to meet her first. Sierra looked up at the rainy skies. She hoped it wouldn't take too long for them to clear up.