Under the Sea ⇔ Cashton ✓

How Am I The Lucky One?

After the whole Luke-getting-caught-in-the-net ordeal went down, people were less hesitant to let Calum stay in the small community than they were before, which made both Luke and Calum very happy. Turns out all you have to do is save a life to be accepted in the clan.

Calum likes it under the sea. He likes the way the water feels against his skin and the way the ocean current drifts around him soothingly. He likes the way he feels, stronger and more healthy than he ever did on land. He simply likes it.

It's always a bit odd when he has to leave the sea every afternoon before Michael gets back from school, and he has to walk on wobbly two legs for the rest of the day. After feeling the way he does in the water, it's no wonder he got so sick spending his life on land. He dried himself out.

So to avoid any of that from happening again, he spends his mornings and early afternoons in the water.

The only person that doesn't seem to appreciate his place in the community is Ashton. The curly haired man still glares at Calum whenever he sees him and warns Luke to stay away from him, barely even looking him in the eye. Calum isn't really sure what he can even do to fix it.

He's resting against one of the cave walls, playing with a clump of coral in his hands as he watches the ocean in front of him, still finding it too beautiful to just ignore. Everything is much more vivid, more colorful than life on land. He can't seem to get enough of it.

As he's analyzing the intricate details on the piece of pink coral, he suddenly notices a shift in the current, the water dropping a few degrees as a shadow approaches him. Calum glances up, widening his eyes a little when he notices Ashton standing in front of him, his arms crossed over his broad chest and his hazel eyes looking steely.

"If you're going to stay here, you're going to need to train," Ashton says, looking unhappy with the idea to begin with. Calum narrows his eyes.

"Train?" Calum repeats.

"You have no idea how dangerous the sea is, do you?" Ashton says, and Calum blinks. "You think it's just pretty and colorful and you can just swim around as you please?"

Calum shifts uncomfortably. "Um... no?"

Ashton scoffs. "Come with me. You're human and you're naive. You'll get killed if I don't teach you how to survive."

Calum rolls his eyes and pushes off the wall, but as Ashton turns his back, Calum can feel nerves running through his veins. Ashton's eyes were serious-- he wasn't just trying to scare him. Calum can't help but feel a little fearful at the man's words. He slowly drops the coral and watches it float to the uneven floor, burying itself into the sand.

Ashton leads the boy into the large and gaping mouth of a rock cave, but with a partially open ceiling to allow water and sunlight to filter in and out. Along the walls are what Calum supposes are weapons, made out of carved rock and coral and materials Calum doesn't recognize. There aren't any knives or blades in sight, apart from the kitchen knife Calum had brought down from land. It's safely tucked away from all the others, as though the mermaids aren't so sure what to do with it.

Ashton faces him, crossing his arms. "This is where you'll train. You're going to need to know how to use all this if you want to stay out of trouble."

Ashton sees the look on Calum's face and groans, running his hands through his hair. "Look, kid," Ashton says, "we mermaids are at the bottom of the food chain here in the ocean. We're right along with the fish everyone else feeds on. Sharks and deep sea fish and all of those creatures won't think twice about preying on you. Whales, too, if you make them angry enough."

"For real?" Calum says, shocked. "We have thumbs. They don't. How are we at the bottom?"

Ashton narrows his eyes a little at Calum's use of the word "we", but he doesn't say anything. "They're better swimmers. They also breathe water, mermaids don't. Eventually, we're going to have to go up for air. It's just the way it is."