THE CRYING OF A MERMAID

RESTLESS NIGHT

As the night unfolded, something within her began to change.

The music filled the room—soft at first, then deeper, pulling everyone into its rhythm.

And without fully realizing it—

She moved.

Ariel stepped onto the floor, her body swaying gently as the melody wrapped around her like a whisper.

All eyes turned to her.

Again.

But this time—

It was different.

There was something in the way she moved…

Something more raw.

More open.

As if what she kept hidden inside—

Was now beginning to show.

The warmth from the champagne lingered within her, spreading through her veins, awakening something she couldn’t explain.

Her breath softened.

Her movements deepened.

And then—

He was there.

Roy.

As if he had always been meant to be.

As if the distance between them had never existed at all.

He stepped closer, his presence steady, grounding—

Yet the energy between them felt stronger than before.

Unspoken.

Unavoidable.

Her hand found his.

This time—

She didn’t hesitate.

They moved together, slowly at first, then more in sync with the music.

The world around them faded again—

The whispers, the cameras, the watching eyes—

All disappearing into the background.

Because in that moment—

There was only him.

Only the feeling.

Only the pull she couldn’t resist anymore.

But deep beneath it all—

Something else was rising.

Unseen.

Uncontrolled.

And the night…

Was only just beginning.

The Dance That Meant More

The music softened—

Slower now.

Deeper.

Roy stepped closer.

This time… closer than before.

His hand slid gently to her waist, drawing her in until there was barely any space left between them.

Ariel didn’t pull away.

She couldn’t.

Her breath was uneven now, the warmth inside her still rising, making everything feel more intense… more real.

They moved together—

Slow.

Perfectly in sync.

As if the world had disappeared again.

His gaze dropped to her lips.

Just for a moment.

Then back to her eyes.

“Ariel…” he murmured softly.

She didn’t answer.

She just looked at him—

As if nothing else mattered anymore.

And then—

He leaned in.

The kiss was gentle at first.

Careful.

Almost hesitant.

But it didn’t stay that way.

Her hand lifted, resting against his chest as she leaned closer into him, the heat within her making everything feel stronger, deeper—

Unavoidable.

The music faded.

The room disappeared.

There was only the rhythm between them—

And the feeling neither of them could stop.

But beneath it all—

That same strange warmth grew stronger.

More consuming.

And though the moment felt perfect—

Something inside her…

Was beginning to change.

ONE DANCE AFTER ANOTHER

The kiss lingered.

Just for a moment longer than it should have.

And then—

The music shifted again.

Roy barely had time to steady her before another presence stepped forward.

A gloved hand extended.

Black.

Smooth.

Precise.

“May I?” the man asked, his voice calm but firm.

Ariel blinked slowly, her breath still uneven, the warmth inside her growing stronger with each passing second.

She should have refused.

She knew she should have.

But instead—

Her hand lifted.

And she accepted.

Roy’s grip tightened slightly at her waist for just a second—

Reluctant.

But he let her go.

The second man stepped in, his black-gloved hand closing gently around hers, guiding her into the dance.

Their movements were controlled.

Elegant.

Almost too perfect.

But Ariel…

All of a sudden, a guy very surprisingly comes out of nowhere and, all of a sudden, takes her own hand from the hand of Michael, her gaming husband from a robotics company. He also was a robot created by the same company, the one where she precisely met him in that same game, which had become a reality in her own real life just to know her better, but within other intentions on his mind towards her.

As that mysterious, handsome hero shows up out of nowhere all of a sudden and pulls her exactly towards him, he hugs her hard towards himself, with the intention of never letting her go from his own arms. Feeling like he owns her and that she belongs to him like his own possession, that he would never want to let her go ever again.

Alex was his own name. He was a young businessman within the age of 23 years old, yet very magnificent and handsomely plausible to the many girls around him, but he was not looking for the attention of the many, only of one girl who could really understand his own ways and his own heart through it.

He was the most richest and healthiest guy ever the world knew. From a very young age, he had learned about the most incredible things that you could ever even think about, like dealing from within bad corruption guys up to newest invention systems, all well known by the world. But the sickness of it from many would make of what he is in general. He has become what the world has created of him alone—a hard and viper, ruthless kind person. But in the end, his own heart was still there somehow, still to be found within the girl he could never even possibly imagine could fit into his own world, and that same exactly kind of girl was right in front of his own eyes .