Life Under the Sea

The problem with being underwater is that you can never really be sure how wet you really are. Jesse knows this all too well. Sharing the hammock with Riley always excited her senses, but now she has no idea what to feel. What she does feel is a good eight inches of solid maleness against her belly. Her hands tremble at the urge to just grab it.

"Jesse? What's wrong?" asks Riley. "Your heart's racing..."

"It's not the only thing throbbing right now."

Riley pauses for a brief second and looks down. "Ah! Damn!" He turns a slight shade of red. Just as he is about to pull away, Jesse seizes him by the hips.

"You're embarrassed!" She leans in close. "I've never seen this side of you before."

"... I haven't seen this side of you, Jesse... What are you doing?"

"Being a little more assertive... I really love how you feel against me..." Jesse moves up to kiss the merman on the lips. Riley tries to pull away again, but an irresistibly playful tongue pulls him back in. Seeing the distracted look on his face, Jesse frees his mouth from her hold. Still, she keeps his hips anchored to hers.

"Wait... wait...," he huffs. Jesse only lets go when he softens against her. He is not getting into it.

"I don't understand... I thought you would like this...," mumbles Jesse.

"You caught me off-guard, and I don't want it like this."

"Does this mean you don't like me?" asks Jesse.

"No, but I can't say that I am too fond of you after this," says Riley sourly. He pushes away from Jesse as gently as possible before swimming out of the hammock.

When it is light out, Lily swims towards the land to find more flowers for her hair. She tingles at the thought of exciting Varon with their exotic smells and colors. The mermaid stops where she is upon seeing Jesse moping quietly on the sand. With no one else is around, Lily swims down closer. Jesse has her face buried in her arms, with her depression diffused in the water.

Lily reaches out and rubs her friend's shoulder. "Jesse? What's wrong? Why are you all alone all the way out here?"

Jesse looks up, eyes frightfully puffy, but she manages to put together her words. "Oh... uh... hello, Lily. I... I... got in a little fight with Riley."

"I see..." Lily's expression darkens. "About what, may I ask?"

"It wasn't really a fight, but I ended up upsetting him. I was trying to get him to warm up to me."

Lily crosses her arms. "Well?"

"I was successful... in the wrong way..."

"I don't understand what you are trying to say," replies Lily skeptically.

"This is what happened..." Jesse tells Lily the details of the nightmarish night. Her face is set like stone. She does not say a thing until Jesse finishes her re-telling.

"If you were any other mermaid, I probably would be furious, Jesse, but I guess you didn't know any better."

"What did I do wrong?" pleads Jesse.

"I'm sure Riley wasn't ready to be intimate with you. You admitted you do hide things from him, one of which is the fact that you were human. Kind of a big deal. That's what's turning him off."

"But... he got all excited!"

"He's a guy and your body is pressed against his. It's bound to happen whether he likes it or not. Riley probably didn't notice until you told him, right?"

Jesse's heart sinks. "That's right..."

Lily sighs. "Down here, it is easier to see when guys are hot for someone. No one bothers noticing since it happens all the time. You must have seen a few mermen swimming around stiff. It's nothing to be ashamed of as long as you don't act on your passions so blatantly."

Jesse plays with her fingers quietly. "Does your brother hate me for embarrassing him?"

"I doubt it; he's not that kind of merperson. Still, you should apologize and eventually tell him who you really are. It's better that he hears it from you than from me."

Damien waits on the lonely beach. This early in the morning, Nikos is gone, possibly on a morning swim. The wind is a bit chillier than normal, but the water is fantastically warm. Damien slips into the ocean to wait some more. He wonders for a second if Jesse has a way of telling time underwater. However, he also wonders if she will even come back if her life underwater is so great. Damien's skin goes cold. He could be just wasting his time, but still, this might be his last time seeing his cousin.

"Damien?"

He looks out towards the sea. A head is poking out through the surface.

"Damien! I'm so glad you showed up!"

Jesse glides along the surface rapidly towards him and wraps him up in her embrace. She lets him go after a few seconds.

"I'm glad to see you again, Jesse," says Damien brightly.

"Did you end up telling Mom and Dad?"

"No, I couldn't bring myself to say anything... I'm sorry... They'd think I was mocking your memory by spouting fantasies, like by saying you turned into a mermaid."

Jesse tilts her head down solemnly towards the shimmering water. "I see..."

"Well, what did you want to talk about, Jesse?"

"I just wanted to spend some time with my little cousin. You're not staying in Greece much longer, right?"

"No, I just found out last night that we're leaving tomorrow. There hasn't been any leads as to what happened to you. Everyone is giving up. Do you think there is any chance that you could show yourself to Aunt Sara and Uncle David?"

"I doubt it. They'll just think I'm a hallucination," replies Jesse.

"But don't you want to see their faces?" Damien takes her by the shoulders and pulls her close again.

"Don't be silly. Of course I want to see my parents."

Damien takes a pebble in his hand and skips it over a wave. "Can you leave the water at all?"

"Only for a few hours, but my tail is permanent, nothing like those stories you read about."

"Oh... Do you want to go up on land for a bit? You know, a nice change from being in the water all the time."

Jesse floats and looks over to the beach. "Uh, sure."

Damien pulls Jesse by the hand towards the shore. She floats motionlessly with him. It seems useless to argue with being uncomfortable on land, but arguing would be pretty pathetic right now. Her cousin's smile is burning brightly for once and that is the side she wants to remember of him.

"C'mon. Here we go," says Damien as he lifts Jesse onto the sand. She quickly moves her hair over her shoulders to cover up. Damien sits down right next to her and watches the horizon. He is quite silent for a bit. "So... how is it so far down there? Nikos told me you made friends."

"Oh? Yeah! I've made a few new friends already! One of them is Lily and she's been real helpful getting me settled! There's also Brynn, Riley, Varon, and Miek. They're all really lovely."

"Is Riley the one you like?" Damien gazes straight into her eyes.

"What makes you say that?"

"Your tail shivered when you said his name. Then you blushed when I repeated it."

"You got me. I do like Riley. I could almost say I love him."

"Does he love or like you back?"

Jesse pauses and flicks her fins. "I don't know how he feels about me. He does know how I feel about him." Jesse stops again. "Oh, sorry! I got distracted for a bit. It was stupid of me to bring it up."

"No, it's not stupid. He's someone you care about." Damien looks back to the lapping waves and folds his hands over his knees. "Even if you haven't known each other a long time..."

"Do you have a special someone, Damien?"

"Huh? Uh... not right now..."

Jesse leans her head on Damien's shoulder. "How about a crush? I know you're shy. You must have had one at least once..."

"Well, there is this one girl in my physics class... He name is Holly..."

"Is she pretty?" Jesse smiles warmly seeing Damien being the one to blush this time.

"Gorgeous. Brilliant, too. She tutors me every now and then."

The two of them continue chatting while the sun rises in the sky. After a short story, Jesse feels her throat and lungs drying out. She begins coughing heavily like last time. Damien instinctively picks his cousin up and carries her to the water. It relieves the burning and stops the coughing.

"Are you alright?" he asks.

"Yeh. I just stayed too long out of the water, but I'm fine now, thanks."

"I guess you really are a mermaid."

"What do you mean?"

"I think it's finally sunk in for me. It was really hard to accept that you aren't human and I can't have that part of you back. After talking and stuff, I realized that doesn't matter anymore. You're still the same person."

Damien pulls her close into a hug. Jesse puts her arm around him. It feels so safe for both of them. His warmth is as welcoming to her as the ocean itself. Too late does she notice her hair moved back over her shoulder. Jesse tilts her head up. Damien does not look remotely reproachful. I'm glad nothing has changed between us, she thinks to herself. Jesse presses her ear to his heart and smiles.

"Hey, Jesse... I think one of your friends his here."

"What?" She turns around with a quick swish of her tail. "Who's there?"

"Hello. I didn't mean to interrupt." It's Lily. Her head is just peeking out of the water.

Damien grabs Jesse by the shoulders and stares uncertainly at the newcomer. "Is she really one of your friends?"

"Yeah, this is Lily." Jesse swims to her side and escorts the mermaid closer. "Lily, this is my cousin, Damien."

Damien extends his hand for a shake, but Lily wants a hug as well. He reluctantly obliges her. The mermaid's gorgeous face sends him halfway into a daze and her soft chest sends him the rest of the way. As soon as Lily lets go, Damien snaps out of it. She smiles smugly at him and his cousin. Jesse appears irked at first, but cannot help suppressing a smile herself.

Lily giggles sweetly. "Just so you know, I do have a boyfriend."

"I... I'll bet," stutters Damien.

Far out to sea, Brynn and Miek are hanging out in their secluded hideaway, a depression in the sea floor surrounded by rock pillars and boulders. Other merpeople and fish stay away from here because of the heat from the volcanic vents. However, that is their favorite part. Just lying on the exceedingly warm sand relieves all the tension in their bodies, exactly what they need right now.

Brynn lazily turns to Miek. She rubs him gently on his smooth chest flicking his nipples hard. He curiously looks back at her as she says, "Guess what I'm in the mood for?"

Miek licks his lips and moves to get on top of her, but Brynn gently pushes him off. "What was that for?" he asks.

"You had your way last time. Now, it's my turn." Brynn floats up and swims behind Miek.

He waits for her to swim around again and face him, but she stays right where she is. Brynn is still there; he can feel her breathing. Just as he is about to turn around, she grabs Miek by the shoulders and curls her tail around his. Her supple bosom is squashed magnificently against his back and that is all he cares to feel right now. Miek is enjoying this immensely when his girlfriend whispers into his ear: "Take me for a nice, long ride..."

Miek is confused by what she means until a hand descends to his loins and tickles the underside. He whips his tail furiously in laughter and pleasure and the two of them go speeding through the water. Miek laughs out loud while carrying her on his back. While, the undulating of his body causes him to rub against and bump into Brynn's searing-hot tender spot. Every single touch makes him more stiff and restless. Miek wants to take Brynn with his pulsing staff, but the longer he holds back his urges, the better it will be in the end.

Brynn stops tickling her boyfriend's hardness and takes his vulnerable pouch in her grasp. Miek's laughing quickly switches to low moaning. He feels heavy in her hand. Brynn giggles to herself knowing he is already swollen with heat. Miek could erupt any second now, but he is desperately holding it in though. The merman's head turns sideways.

"Please... Brynn," he pleads. "It... it hurts..."

Compelled by his pain, Brynn gets off his back and swims to face him. Miek's throbbing compass is pointing directly at her. "Angelfish, I'll make you feel better."

Brynn grabs her boyfriend by the hips and guides him into her. Miek groans quietly as she sheathes soothingly his flesh. When their hips collide, he explodes pure heat into her very depths. Miek thrusts into her energetically with all his might. He catches Brynn's coralline lips with his own and pulls her into a kiss. At first, she is surprised by his aggressiveness, but he is too irresistible. He makes her hot all over and within. Even now, Miek is not fully spent. His energy seems limitless but Brynn feels him trickle to a stop. Without fail, Miek's fatigue catches up with him. He can barely flick his tail and starts to slide off his lover. Brynn holds him tighter than ever and hears him whisper into her ear.

"Next time... I hope it hurts more," he groans. "In spite of what I say, I do love it when you tease me like that..."

"Oh, sweet Miek," whispers Brynn. "I'm not done with you yet."

She takes him down to the warm sand. Brynn lies on her back with Miek lying on top of her. She pushes him down until his face rests in the lush valley of her bosom. Miek is still exhausted, but when he opens his eyes, he eagerly seizes the nipple closest to him in his mouth. Brynn brings one of her hands up and gently rubs the back of his head. As his strength slowly returns, Miek reaches up to grasp her other breast. She lets out a muffled moan while he teases her nipples hard.

Miek frees one of her stiff pink peaks. "What else did you have in store for me?"

Brynn gives him nothing but a dark smile.

Back on the shore of the island, Jesse tries to pry Lily off of Damien. Lily has her tail rubbing roughly against the fabric of her human victim's shorts. When Jesse is finally successful, both she and Damien find themselves plagued with heavy breathing. Though he is also suffering from a pair of uncomfortably tight swim shorts. Damien looks at Lily pretending his curious eyes are not drifting. Regardless, his face maintains a nice reddish color.

"I told you he was off-limits, Lily," warns Jesse.

"I know, but..." Lily looks over to him. "I wanted to leave a good first impression. Besides, I don't think he'll forget me for a long time. Right, Damien?"

Damien just nods. Jesse smacks him on the back of the head to break him out of the trance. He rubs the small bump she left. "Oh... Very sorry about that."

"It's fine," replies Lily. "The pleasure is all yours." A stern look from Jesse tells her to get back on track. "Anyway, I'll keep your cousin safe. You have my word." Lily holds her hand above the water. Damien hesitates for a second but takes it and they shake.

Lily swims over to Jesse and pecks her on the cheek. "I'll see you later." The mermaid quickly disappears under the surface and swims away.

After a few moments of silence, Damien drifts over to Jesse's side. "I almost forgot... I got you something."

Jesse floats curiously while he gets up on the beach and picks up his backpack. He fiddles around in it for a second before pulling something out. She sees a brown paper bag with something shiny in it.

"Come here," he beckons. "I might lose it in the water."

The mermaid beaches herself on the sand with the waves lapping the edges of her fins. Damien squats next to her and holds the bag before her eyes. Inside is a gold necklace with a pendant shaped like a dolphin.

"It's... it's... gorgeous!" exclaims Jesse, taking out of the bag. "How did you afford such a thing?"

"I saved up money for every birthday you missed at home. I bought it and took it with me here to Greece, because I was sure to find you."

"Awww... thank you!" Jesse kisses him on the cheek. "Let me try it on!" She couples the chain around her neck and flicks her hair. "How do I look?"

"Perfectly stunning."

"So, how are you going to pay for school and stuff?" Jesse stares at him closely. "I can't imagine you always saving up to spoil the women in your life."

"Your mom and dad. I'm also gonna work at university. They're not too concerned with where or even if I go, but they have money saved."

"Huh... they must not want to pressure you... You know, so they won't have another runaway..." Jesse stares at the horizon with a sigh.

"I couldn't do that to them. I'm happy where I am and you're happy where you are. They need me."

It goes all quiet again. Jesse plays around with her necklace. "I'm sorry I didn't get something for you, Damien. Oh, wait!" Jesse reaches down and plucks five scales right off her beautiful tail.

"Stop!" Damien seizes her wrist. "Doesn't that hurt?"

"Damn straight, but I wanted to give you something in return." She holds out her hand and drops the scales into his open palm. Damien looks at his gift. He expected the vibrant green to fade, but it remains as radiant as ever. "I guess you have to go now. Mom and Dad must be worried about you." Jesse reaches up for one more hug. "Please come and see me tomorrow morning, if you can."

Lily swims rapidly through the water and enters the village. Dozens of thoughts rush through her mind and she cannot seem to organize them all. For now, she has to gather the her friends together and bring them to the surface. Jesse will meet with them as soon as she is done. Varon should be waking up soon, but she has not seen her brother all day. Not a single one of them are sure what she appears to be planning but all of them are beginning to doubt her sanity.

Riley calls out from her right. Seaweed belts of shells and pearls wrap about his waist. "Hey, Lily! I've been looking for Jesse. Have you seen her at all today?"

"Yeah, she has some business to attend to right now. Someone from her hometown came to check on her." Lily pauses. "I also heard what happened between you two last night."

"Oh... What have you heard?"

"Enough. Just enough," replies Lily thoughtfully.

Riley looks off to her side. "Look. I didn't mean to leave her alone or get overexcited."

"I know you didn't." She pats her brother on the back. "Jesse will want to talk to you when she gets back. Until then, please be patient a bit longer. You haven't slept all night have you?"

"No, I probably got a moment or two of sleep but I'll be fine after talking to her."

"That's good. I'm looking for everyone else. I want us to be up at the surface as soon as possible. Jesse will head straight there. Help me search, but don't overdo it. I don't want you passing out on us."

In the end, they only find Varon in town. Brynn and Miek are nowhere to be found. Lily gives up on them until they swim to the surface. She sees two lovers following from far behind.

Riley squints when he notices something odd. "Hey, Miek! Something wrong with your tail? You break it or something?"

To everyone's sudden interest, both Miek and Brynn blush red. "I... I just overdid it. That's all..." replies Miek.

Brynn is saved the embarrassment of explaining by the appearance of Jesse. Riley swims out to meet her face-to-face. When he looks her in the eyes, he basks in their warm, gentle glow. She smiles wordlessly and wraps him up in her embrace.

"I wanted to apologize, Riley," she says. "I shouldn't have done that after you and everyone has been so nice to me."

Riley presses his forehead against hers. "It's fine... it's fine... I have to apologize to you, too."

"Really? What about?"

"I shouldn't have left without saying a word. That was pretty stupid of me."

"I'll forgive you if you forgive me."

They both pause. "Deal."

Riley grins at the wonderful smile on Jesse's face. The glint of her necklace catches his eye. He reaches out to hold it when Lily swims up to them. "Hey, angelfishies." Lily places her hands on their shoulders. "We'd better get to the surface. They're waiting."

Everyone looks at Lily uneasily. They all want to know who is waiting, but they follow her to the air. This is the place they are supposed to meet, but there is no one else around. The sun is especially scorching so no one but Lily dares poke more than their heads above the water. She looks towards the distance where two beings are swimming along the surface. They are slowly coming right at them.