Something Fishy

On the Swim Team

by Samantha K.W.

“Honestly, it makes me want to quit,” Lisa complained from inside the bathroom stall.

The girl was never satisfied. Lisa had been the fasted girl on the swim team all season and even though the coaches and scouts all loved her, she was always unhappy about something. “Shut up Lisa – you not getting put in one event you want isn’t the end of the world. Try not winning one race since sophomore year and then talk to me about frustration,” Nell sighed.

“Yeah,” Lisa sniggered as she exited the stall, “I guess that’d suck harder.”

“Three minutes! Don’t be late today, Moritz is getting really tired of it,” a black haired girl named Bethany snapped at the two. They quickly pulled on their caps and walked towards the pool entrance.

-

Nell pulled open the doors of the swimming pool and haphazardly ran across the wet concrete deck to the swim lockers. She was five minutes late for morning practice and knew there would be hell to pay in the water. After quickly changing, Nell dove into the pool and swam over to lane six – the lane she, Lisa, and a miserably slow girl named Marigold, always shared. Before pushing off the wall however, she noticed that there was no Lisa anywhere in sight, merely Marigold’s pasty arms flailing around wildly at the other end of their lane.

When the swimmers had all finished their warm-ups and coach Moritz wasn’t looking, Nell turned to Marigold, “Did Lisa say anything about not coming to morning practice to you yesterday?”

The red-faced girl shook her head violently, “Nope. Her mom called me last night though, to see if she had spent the night.”

“With you? Huh. Yeah, she called me too, but I assumed Lisa was spending the night with Greg, so I told her she was with me to cover for her,” Nell muttered, thinking to herself. Lisa’s boyfriend, Greg, was about to return to college for his third trimester any day, so it was understandable that she’d want to spend time with him. Never before though, had Lisa skipped Friday morning practice; it was tradition.

Practice passed slowly; all Nell could think about was Lisa and her mysterious absence from practice. When Moritz finally dismissed them, she quickly took her phone from her bag and walked outside to call Lisa and make sure she was okay. Just as she stepped outside however, a piercing scream echoed through the high ceilinged room. All the girls pushed into the women’s locker room, where the noise had come from and heard sobs coming from the farthest row of lockers. Nell shoved her way through and turned the corner to see Bethany, the raven haired swim captain, lying on the floor in a puddle of filthy pool water, crying hysterically.

“Shit Beth, what’s wrong?” Nell asked as she rushed forward to inspect the girl. Bethany ceased sobbing momentarily and looked up at Nell, at strange look crossing her face.

“The locker…” she whispered, before getting up and running out to the pool deck, weeping.

“Ominous, much?” Ruth, the team bitch, snickered as an eerie silence fell over the locker room.

“Shut up, Ruth,” Nell snapped. She usually wasn’t so rude, but she had no idea what else to do or say to calm the other girls down. “Come on, let’s go check on Beth-“

“Ew, look at all the ants!” Marigold shrieked as the girls took a collective few steps backwards. Giant ants were making a trail from a crack in the ceiling to one of the small, cubby lockers on the top shelf.

“This is just getting too fucking weird,” Ruth said, turning to go.

“Calm down you guys, it’s probably just a moldy bagel,” Nell attempted to reassure the girls. But as her hand extended towards the locker handle, she could feel pickling in her spine. She paused when her fingers touched the cold locker door; her whole body was standing on edge.

“Go on, then,” a sophomore named Laura whispered.

“Nell pulled open the locker. It was dark inside and all she could make out was one massive black shape.

“I think it’s just a giant plate of food or something. Maybe even some really moldy old gym clothes,” Nell guessed. “Someone get me something to scatter these ants with,” she commanded, holding up her hand. Marigold handed her a kickboard.

Careful not to move the object, Nell tapped the base of the locker as the ants scattered. It was still too dark to make out the exact shape of the object inside, but she could see strings dangling out the sides. Quickly, she reached in and took hold of the strings, intending to pull whatever rotting mess was in the locker out and throw it away without having to look at it. When she did however, all breathing ceased in the room and Nell’s eyes dropped to the head dangling from her fingers. Lisa’s head.

-

“I don’t believe a word of it, this is so much fucking bullshit,” Nell fumed into her pillow. She was past crying. It had been two weeks since she found Lisa’s head in that locker. The next day, police discovered hundreds of dollars of drugs in her locker, along with a letter to her family explaining that she was in deep debt with many drug dealers and would have to pay with her life. The part that bothered Nell the most though, was that everyone believed such a lie. The whole school had eagerly accepted the story, making drug-rehab support groups and hosting fundraisers for teens with addiction problems. It was sick.

“It gets me too, Lisa was one of my best friends and I never saw her do drugs once,” Marigold added from the end of the bed.

Sitting up, Nell brushed the hair out of her face. “We’ve got to find out who really killed her,” she declared.

Marigold reached for a notebook and pencil on Nell’s bedside table, “Alright, who done it?” she joked.

“I’m serious, Marigold,” Nell glared. “Suspects are… everyone on the team – but us, of course – because those are the only people who know how to get into the locker room after hours.”

“Well, what about that weird janitor who just stays in there all day yet mysteriously doesn’t clean a thing?” Marigold added.

“Now you’re thinking. So far, we’re off to a good start,” Nell nodded.

-

The next morning at practice, Laura announced she would be hosting a séance that evening to reconnect with Lisa’s spirit one last time before it passed on. Some girls were more enthusiastic about the opportunity than others, but by the end of practice, Nell, Marigold, Ruth, Bethany and three other girls had all committed to attending.

“It will be a good chance to investigate,” Marigold whispered to Nell during Bethany’s announcements regarding the new lineups.

“Definitely. I’ll bring the notebook,” Nell nodded.

-

“I can’t believe you talked me into going to this stupid shit. What the fuck is really going to happen – Lisa will rise from the dead and annoy me like she usually does?” Ruth complained to Bethany on Laura’s front porch.

“Did, Ruth. She’s not here to bother you anymore, not like she ever did anyways,” Marigold interjected. “Is it impossible for you to show a little respect? If not for anyone else - maybe the dead at least.”

“Come on,” Nell sighed, tugging on Marigold’s sleeve. “Laura called me ten minutes ago; she’s all set up.”

“Alright, alright,” Marigold replied as the four girls stepped into the entrance hall. Laura’s house was dimly lit with shawls hung over the light fixtures. The smell of incense was suffocating and seemed to intensify as they moved up the stairs towards the bedrooms. Slowly, Nell pushed open the door to what she knew to be Laura’s. Laura and the three underclassmen were all seated on the floor in a semicircle around a pile of candles.

“Welcome! We were just about to start without you. Please, sit down and take your neighbors’ hand. For the spirit to speak to us, we all have to be united,” Laura spoke with her eyes closed.

Ruth laughed under her breath and crossed her arms. “Beth, this is just so dumb, can we go? I honestly would rather die than be a part of this. No pun intended,” she whined as Bethany sat down between Laura and Nell.

“Ruth, I’m the captain of our squad and this is a group activity – I have to stay. Sometimes you have to leave personal judgments at the door and do what is best for the team. But if you’d really like to go, I’m sure Lisa won’t be upset,” Bethany spoke calmly.

Ruth sighed frustrated, staring down at Bethany before turning to go. Nell and the other girls all turned to look at their captain, who appeared untouched by the exchange. She had never turned Ruth down, nor had she ever spoken so kindly of Lisa.

“Well then, let’s begin. Lisa’s spirit will touch us all in different ways; some of you may be able to speak with her in your mind, others may not feel anything at all. Souls have minds of their own – no one knows what this one will do. Just concentrate on your memories of Lisa and the things you wish to say to her,” Laura instructed.

The girls all took hold of each other’s hands and closed their eyes. After twenty minutes, Nell still hadn’t felt anything. She’d experienced no flickering lights or unexplainable gusts of wind, and especially no voices or ghosts. Just when she had resigned herself to believing that nothing interesting would happen, she heard a soft whimper.

“Lisa?” she whispered, too quiet for anyone else to hear. Another whimper sounded in response. She began to concentrate hard on the events of Lisa’s death, hoping that her questions would get through to the spirit and that it might provide her with answers. The whimpers grew louder and more frequent, sounding as though they were uttered from mere inches away. Nell squeezed her eyes shut tighter, not wanting to lose the ghost.

“Please, please, please,” it spoke. But it wasn’t Lisa’s voice, it was Bethany’s. Nell peeked out of the corner of her eye, glancing over at the girl. She was furiously mouthing words, pleading silently into the circle of girls.

“Beth…” Nell whispered, shaking Bethany’s hand. It slipped from her own, drenched in sweat. Nell slid over and wrapped her arm around the shaking girl. “It’s alright, nothing is really happening. You’re just imagining it.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right,” she mumbled and looked up at Nell with a worried look on her face.

-

“Did you see Beth’s massive panic attack back there?” Nell asked Marigold as they walked back to her car.

“Yeah, we need to add it to the notebook once we get back to your house,” she answered, nodding.

“Why would we do that? Beth is probably just scared or ghosts or something. You can’t honestly think she killed Lisa; she is the team captain – the ideal picture of responsibility. What would be her reason?”

“Everyone is a suspect, remember! We have to write everything down. And as far as Bethany is concerned, she’d have a million reasons,” Marigold trailed off.

Nell stopped walking and looked into Marigold’s eyes, searching for something that might explain her behavior – something guilty. “So, you think I’m a suspect?” she asked quietly.

Marigold looked down at the pavement and shoved her hands into her pockets. “I never said that, I just meant…” she shuffled her feet uncomfortably. “We’ve gotta stay on guard.”

Nell nodded and resumed walking. The only reason Bethany would have to kill Lisa would be jealousy. Lisa had only started swimming in high school yet was better than all the other girls by the end of their freshman year. Bethany, on the other hand, had been on private teams since she was six or seven and was used to being the best. Even if she secretly hated Lisa for taking away her spotlight, Bethany would never do something so rash, or so Nell thought.

The two drove in silence to Nell’s house. Marigold seemed a little on edge, but the séance seemed to be doing that to everyone. For as long as she could remember, Nell had never known Lisa to be particularly close with Marigold and was surprised to find the girl so shaken by the event.

“The week we found the body,” Nell paused and looked over at Marigold, who’s grip had noticeably tightened on the wheel, “you said that Lisa was one of your best friends. Just curious, how much time did you guys actually spend together? Outside the pool, I mean…”

Marigold looked uneasy at the question and let out an awkward laugh. “Why? You’re not considering me as a suspect, are you?” she diverted.

“That’s not why I was asking, no, but as you said – we’ve got to keep our guards up,” Nell answered sternly.

“Oh, yeah, of course. I don’t know though really, we usually hung out at least once a week outside of school,” she answered.

Nell could tell her questioning was getting to the girl. She opened the car door and quickly got out, turning to Marigold. “I know I said we’d watch a movie, but that séance just wore me out. I don’t think I can stay awake for another minute. Maybe later though, alright?” Nell suggested.

“Okay. You don’t really look that tired though,” Marigold stated bluntly. “But I get the hint. I’ll see you at practice tomorrow.” With that, Nell closed the car door and walked inside, eager to forget about the night’s events.

-

Nell awoke the next morning with a headache and a sneaking suspicion. Despite Marigold’s mysterious behavior the night before, Nell searched the room for her telephone and dialed Marigold’s number. She answered on the first ring.

“Hey Nell, what’s up? Are you not going to school today?” She asked.

“No, I’m coming – I’ve just been thinking a lot about what you said last night.”

“I didn’t do it! God!” She exclaimed frustratedly.

“No, no, no. Not that. About Bethany… You said she’d have a million reasons to kill Lisa. I was wondering what those reasons are,” Nell murmured quietly into the receiver.

“Well, I mean, come on – isn’t it obvious? Beth had been the fastest swimmer on the team since freshman year until this season. Moritz had always put her in all the best events and would let her sit out any hard sets she didn’t want to swim in practice. Then this year, when Lisa came back after going to that fancy swim camp in Florida, all her times had dropped by whole seconds and she was beating Beth in pretty much every event. Plus…” Marigold paused, “Lisa had been fooling around with Richie for months. Maybe Beth finally found out.” It was common knowledge amongst all the members of the swim team, except for Bethany and Ruth, that Bethany’s boyfriend Richie had been canoodling with Lisa, despite both Lisa and himself being in other relationships.

“You are so right! I never even considered that before… Forget going to class today – I’ll pick you up in twenty minutes. Bring the notes,” Nell ordered before hanging up.

-

Half an hour later Nell and Marigold were parked outside the schools swim lockers with the notebook, a pair of binoculars and two hot mochas from Peets.

“So, let’s make a list. Suspects – Bethany for being jealous, Ruth for being…. Ruth, Laura for wanting to hold that weirdo séance in the first place, and naturally Greg, for being her boyfriend,” Nell concluded with a stern nod.

“No way – not Greg, he loved Lisa. Plus, he left for college two days before we found the head. You also can’t forget Richie; maybe Lisa said they couldn’t hook up anymore and he-“

“Killed her? Not a chance, not only is he more reasonable than that by far, but he has also been in Costa Rica for a month now – Beth won’t stop complaining about it,” Nell interrupted.

“So Beth, Ruth, or Laura?” Marigold asked, opening the notebook.

“Yeah, but now that I give it serious consideration, I’m going to take Laura off the suspects list.”

“Agreed. Well, what should we do? Go spy on them?” Marigold asked mockingly.

“Yes,” Nell answered firmly as she got out of the car. “We’ll drop by morning practice.”

The two girls walked slowly towards the gym hallway and Nell quietly pulled open the heavy metal door. They shuffled over towards the swim locker door and peered in through the tiny window.

“I don’t see anyone,” Nell muttered, cracking open the door just enough for them to get through.

They were greeted by a gust of humid, chlorine smelling air but trudged through to the pool entrance. Marigold went first, walking out into the brightly lit pool room.

“No one is in here, but all the doors are unlocked and the lights are on,” she whispered back to Nell. “Oh wait, I see Bethany’s swim bag on the deck – she must be in Moritz’s office.”

The girls crept towards the office door and pressed their ears against the cool metal. Inside they could hear giggling and quiet music. After a few moments, a low moan rumbled out from under the door.

“Oh BeeBee, I just can’t live without you,” Moritz’s voice crooned.

“Beth and Moritz – yuck!” Marigold squealed loudly before Nell could press her hand over her mouth.

All noises in the room automatically ceased, except for the discernible sounds of shuffling clothes and panting breath. The two girls stepped back and hid behind the bleachers as footsteps approached the door. Moritz swung the door open and stepped out into the pool room, looking around. He was noticeably flushed and frustrated and was holding a large red Swiss-army knife in his tight fist.

“Who’s there?” He asked, stepping towards the pool and looking down into the clear water. “I know I heard you.”

“Mo, it’s alright, come back in here. No one is here – I cancelled practice this morning, remember? All so that I could be alone with you…” Bethany whined from inside the tiny office.

“I swear I heard something. It sounded like a girl – a teenage girl,” he rubbed his forehead, frustrated.

Bethany left the office and walked over to stand next to Moritz, who was growing increasingly pale with every minute that passed. “Now now, baby. Are you still haunted by Lisa’s ghost? It’s been, what, three weeks now? She’s not here. I am the only girl here and I demand you to go back into that office and take off your shirt!” She demanded flirtatiously.

“Gee Bethany, can I get a minute? And for the record – it’s only been two weeks,” he snapped.

“Ugh! Mo, if I knew you were gonna be such a little pansy girl about it, I wouldn’t have asked you to do it for me. I thought you were a man; I thought you’d be able to deal with it,” Bethany sighed, turning on her heel and heading back into the office.

Nell and Marigold exchanged shocked looks. Marigold silently flipped open the notebook and wrote down one word beneath their suspects list. Moritz.

“Baby, don’t act like that. She was bothering you, so I was happy to take care of her for you, but did she really have to die? Couldn’t I just have kicked her off the team?” He asked hopelessly.

“Absolutely not. She was also fucking my boyfriend, if I remember correctly,” Bethany sighed, “But it doesn’t matter anymore. You dealt with it for me and I really appreciate it. Now come back in here and let me show you how much I appreciated it.”

Once Moritz returned to the office and closed the metal door behind him, Nell and Marigold ran to the locker room and then out through the gym onto the sidewalk.

“So… Police?” Nell suggested, out of breath.

“Definitely! But how will they believe us, we don’t have any proof and those two won’t confess,” Marigold frowned.

“Don’t worry about that. I recorded their conversation on my voice memo application,” Nell grinned as she held up her iPhone.

The two girls drove off into the sunrise together towards the police station, happy to finally have cleared Lisa’s name.