i forgot to update my bad

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With the now enchanted trident in your hand, you and Barley sat in the back of his van, the back doors open, the air still, and thought. A lot had happened after you enchanted the weapon. It terrified you to your core --- but you wanted to be brave. Ever since the ocean waves crashed their way back to the shore, you knew that it was time to go back. They now knew that you weren't there. They knew you were gone. And now they were telling you to come back and finish that they had started days ago. It was an unspoken agreement between you and Barley that Ian wouldn't come with you to go back. And it was an unspoken agreement that you could do the spell that would grant Barley the ability to breathe underwater. The spell was marked in the book right beside you. Neither of you said anything, until Barley said:

"You know, when I was little and my dad was, you know... really sick?" You nodded, mouth closed, eyes on his face. He couldn't really look at you as he scratched his arm awkwardly and then pulled the beanie off of his head. His hair stuck up at the sides of his head. It was so hard for him to talk about this, even now. You'd only ever heard about his father being sick one time. "Well, I was supposed to say goodbye to him and I didn't. I couldn't. I saw him all hooked up to these tubes and I was afraid. But being afraid was the biggest mistake of my life." His voice faltered and he had to swallow hard.

"Barley, you don't have to talk about this," you said. "I know it's hard and I don't want---"

He held up a hand. "No, no, I want to talk about it. I need to. You need to hear this and I can tell that you do. I lost out on time with him. I didn't get to say goodbye to my dad then. And often I wonder... how things would've been different since I didn't get to say goodbye. But I can't go back. That time is gone. So don't be afraid. It's okay to be afraid, but you don't need to be. Everything you need to have to do this is right inside of you."

You blinked hard and moved forward, putting your arms around his middle and moving closer to him. He put his arm around you and drew you in, helping you move without the help of the water around your fin. 

"I'm not going to let anything happen to you," he said, and you squeezed your eyes shut. Because you were afraid. You were so afraid. "I'll be right by your side this whole time and --- and I promise you that we'll get out of this together too."

"I know I shouldn't be scared---"

"No, it's okay to be scared, but you can't let it stop you," he told you. "You have to know that no matter what, you have to fight and you can fight. Your family needs you. Your friends need you. Whatever happens, we do it together."

"I don't know how I got so lucky," you said, barely showing a smile but tightening your grip around him for a long second. "I don't know how I got so lucky and got such an awesome best friend like you. I don't know what I would do without you."

"Well, you don't have to worry about it, because I'm not going anywhere," he said.

"You'd better not," you threatened lightheartedly. But then you were really scared of what could happen. It was just as easy that you could lose him completely. You were about to take him where he hadn't been before. The ocean was dark and scary and certainly grew even more so those things since the Trenches. Barley could tell that you were quiet now, and you wondered if he was thinking the exact same thing that you were thinking. "Bar, you shouldn't have to go."

"Neither should you," he said. "I'm not staying behind while you do this."

"Fine," you said. "But you stay beside me the whole time, understand? And don't do anything stupid."

"If you're referring to my actions of a warrior, you are just going to have to accept that I am your valiant and noble warrior, so you are just going to have to deal with whatever comes." As he said this, you sat up and looked at him. "Nothing is going to happen that I can't handle. I'm pretty much trained for this."

"Okay, but Barley --- I lost Wade because he protected me. If I lose you too, I just don't think---"

"You aren't going to," he said. 

"But you said---"

Barley put his hand on your shoulder. "What I said was true. I'm not letting you go into this thing thinking that I'm not going to have your back and do anything to protect you. Come on. For one, we're best friends. For two, a warrior always protects his lady."

And you smiled, because he was back to being his goofy self. You ducked your head for a minute and you knew he was looking at you in a way he hadn't really done much before. His hand touched the bottom of you chin and lifted your head. He moved his fingers along your jaw and you almost wanted to kiss him but you didn't, so you just put your arms around his middle again and laid your head on his chest. In a few minutes, he would drive you to the ocean where you would have to go back and face something you definitely weren't prepared at all for. You were so scared but you knew you wouldn't ever me any more ready than you were right now. Whatever was about to happen, you could do it. You had to be able to do it. And at least you weren't alone. Barely would never leave your side. That both comforted you and terrified you, because you knew he wouldn't leave your side unless he couldn't protect you anymore. And you didn't want to lose this best friend of yours that you definitely had feelings for.