The Lily's Splendor

Chapter 4

I felt cold earth beneath me as I jerked to my side, coughing violently until all the ocean water I had inhaled came out. Looking wildly around me, I scrambled to a sitting position. It looked as if I was in a cave filled with tiny crystals that cast a soft green glow. I gasped when I saw a young man crouched against the cave wall across from me, his eyes guarded as they watched me. He looked like a surfer, dressed in shorts and a simple t-shirt with his dark, wet hair pushed away from his fore-head.

“You— you saved me?” I managed to say. The guy nodded once. Something about his features looked vaguely familiar. I sifted through my memory, trying to place his face. It soon clicked like two puzzle pieces. Before I had thought that I would drown, his face had appeared…along with his bare torso . . . and a fish’s tail. My eyes grew wide as I scuttled away from the guy until my back hit the cave wall. The guy held his hands out as if he was trying to calm an animal down.

“You can’t be.” I tried to reason, remembering that picture in the newspaper. Anyone could have photo-shopped that picture, I thought, as I tried not to panic.

“I can’t be what?” the guy finally spoke, startling me with his soft yet deep and lyrical voice. My hand instantly went to my chest where my fingers comfortingly felt the charm. I noticed that the boy’s eyes also traveled to my necklace, his eyes looking curious.

“And what are you?” he asked, his eyes going back up to mine.

“Pardon me?”

“You are clearly not human. You shouldn’t try to hide it,” he said.

“I am not hiding anything. And you are clearly not in your right state of mind.” I tried to back further away, looking all around me for an escape.

“Only I can show you the way out.” the guy said. I looked at him with panic just as my necklace began to feel warm against my damp skin.

“I have never seen such a powerful charm,” he murmured as his eyes seemed to be trying to figure it out.

“Powerful?” I gave him an are-you-serious look.

“First tell me who you are and then I will let you go.” he said.

“Let me go? Are you holding me prisoner?” I asked and my charm began to glow brightly.

“It seems to glow when you feel threatened.” he summarized, talking to no-one but himself.

“What are you talking about?” I huffed, my body felt weak and tired from nearly drowning and my patience was wearing thin.

“And you obviously know nothing about yourself . . . do you?” he stated as he watched me closely. Too closely for my comfort. I began to fidget with my wet hair that was surprisingly not nappy or tangled at all.

“Well, we can rule a Siren out.” the guy sat down, stretching out his long, muscular legs in front of him as his eyes swept over me.

Could he be that mermaid that I saw? The one that saved me? I wondered as my eyes went to his legs and back up to his face. Though there was the soft light that the crystals emanated, it still wasn’t enough for me to see his features clearly.

“Please let me go. I have no idea what you’re talking about. Clearly you are . . .” I couldn’t bring myself to say the word as I remembered my manners.

“Insane?” he finished for me with a lifted brow. I looked away.

“Don’t you want to know what I am? Or how I traded my tail for legs?” he sat up with his legs folded beneath him as he watched for my surprised reaction.

“It’s true then?” I asked in a whisper as I stared at his legs, waiting for them to transform. He laughed out loud, its symphony echoing through the cave.

“Please. Tell me the truth.” I begged. He must have seen the plea in my eyes for his face softened, melting completely away from amusement. Slowly, he came closer until he was on the border of the cave’s floor where the depths of the ocean lapped against the edge. Not taking his eyes off of me, he whipped his shirt off, tossing it to the far corner.

“What are you doing?” I stammered.

“Would you mind closing your eyes?” he asked with a hint of embarrassment, completely ignoring my question.

“And how do I know that you won’t leave me here when I do?” I couldn’t hide the panic and fear that leaked into my words. His eyes softened as he said, “I promise I won’t leave you.”

Taking a shuddering breath, I closed my eyes and heard a zipper along with clothes rustling before he finally said, “You can open your eyes now.”

I opened my eyes, not expecting to see his shorts lying next to his abandoned shirt, or the scales that crawled low around his hips, traveling down to the rest of his body that was submerged in the water. Faded scales covered the bottom half of his back and sides, transitioning into flawless skin.

“You can come closer.” he said with openness. Slowly, I crawled over to him, realizing that I was barefoot when my feet made contact with the cold, damp floor. No doubt my shoes had been lost in the sea. I honestly wasn’t worried about them, though I hoped that my grandmother wouldn’t notice.

When I was close enough to touch him, I tucked my legs underneath the hem of my dress as I held my nervous fingers in front of me. I looked into his startling, warm, gray eyes, seeing kindness and honesty. And then my eyes trailed down his torso to his tail, which he raised out of the water for me to see its full and startling beautiful length.

It was indeed stunning, the gray scales catching and reflecting the green light from the crystals. The end of the tail was attached with long, graceful and transparent fins that also decorated the sides where his knees would be.

My hand began to stretch forth, fingers wanting to touch and see if the scales were as smooth as they looked. I quickly pulled my hand back when I realized what I was doing.

“It’s okay.” he reassured, surprising me by gently reaching for my hand and guiding it to the scales that would be over his thigh. I could feel his eyes on my face as my fingers ran across his scales.

They were cool to the touch and smooth like a dolphin’s skin with the edges threatening to be sharp. I felt my head shake back and forth until I whipped my hand back and scooted away from him. “It can’t be true. Mermaids are a myth.”

“Well, technically, I am a Merman,” he said.

“A fairytale,” I said, completely ignoring him.

“And definitely not a fairytale, as you can see; though I do admire Hans Christian Andersen’s version of The Little Mermaid.”

“Will you stop!” I cut him off, not being able to stand it any longer.

“I hoped you wouldn’t panic and yet I don’t understand why since clearly, you aren’t normal either.”

“Will you stop saying that?! I am normal! I don’t have a tail like you. I am just an ordinary girl trying to live!” I shouted, unable to hold back my true feelings. I looked away from his eyes, stunned at my own outburst.

“I want to go now.” I scrubbed at the tears that had begun to fall. I couldn’t meet his eyes that had turned to compassion and something else that I couldn’t read.

“Okay,” he finally said after a long period of silence.

“What are you doing?!” I asked when he pushed himself into the water until only his shoulders and above were visible.

“The only way out is to swim. You may want to take your necklace off.” he carefully said as he looked up at me as he ever so slowly began to bob up and down. Though the waters were dark, I was still able to see his tail lazily moving back and forth.

“Why? And how am I supposed to hold my breath that long?” I began to panic.

“Hey.” His voice gentled as he swam to the edge of the cave, bringing his elbows up to rest on the floor. I felt my panic subside at the sound of his voice. “Trust me. You will be able to do it if you take your necklace off.”

For some odd reason, I felt myself believing his words. After seeing for myself that mermaids did in fact exist, why shouldn’t his words also be true? Very steadily, my arms went up until my hands were grasping the chain of my necklace before undoing the chain’s catch.

I never realized how much lighter I felt once the necklace was off. It felt as if I had been kept suppressed and could now breathe;like a butterfly breaking out of its cocoon and unfurling its wings for the first time.

Smiling, he said “Feels much better, huh?”

I bit my lip, confused by this new feeling. Not only did I feel lighter, but I also felt as if I was somehow connected and more attuned to the water.Bending down, I let my hand caress the water, no longer afraid.

“I don’t understand,” I said to myself. I felt no trace of fear at all. I strangely felt as if I was home. Safe and secure.

“Ready?” his voice interrupted my thoughts. I met his eyes and nodded. Carefully, I came to sit on the edge before easily slipping into the water, not feeling its cold temperature at all. I wrapped my necklace around the palm of my hand to secure it.

“And my name’s Henry,” he said as he took one of my hands and pulled us under the surface before I could say anything.