Karla Camila Cabello Estrabao is the only lesbian living in Wingston Harbor. Wingston Harbor is the smallest island someone could live on, but she calls it home. She's obsessed with sea glass candy and spends most of her time with her best friend Di...
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The next morning I was up and ready to go. I had brushed my hair three times before I decided that it looked fine. I also decided to wear my bathing suit under my clothes and bring my goggles, just in case we went swimming.
Walking out the door, I could hardly contain my excitement. I was friends with a mermaid! Well, it looked like the start of a friendship to me. I had so many questions to ask her. I was so caught up in my thoughts I didn't see Dinah standing at the bottom of the porch steps. I jumped back, shocked. For a second I forgot why she would be here. Then I remembered that she was my best friend, and, of course, Dinah would be here because best friends do best friend stuff together.
Dinah smirked. "I didn't mean to scare you."
"It's fine," I said, slowly walking down the porch steps.
Dinah eyed my necklace. "When did you find that?"
"Well--I--um...." I trailed off. I didn't know how to answer her. Dinah raised her eyebrows.
"You're seriously not going to tell me? After we spent hours looking for it?"
"No!" I said quickly, "it's not that I don't want to tell you. A-um-a girl found it."
Dinah's face suddenly turned happy. She was smiling like an idiot.
"Oh," she drawled out. Dinah started to circle me. I shifted my feet uncomfortably. "So you're all nervous because you finally meet a girl? Why didn't you tell me? What's her name? Is she hot? Are you going to meet her again? I bet you're meeting her right now! I am definitely going with."
"No!" I yelled once again, holding my hands out. No Dinah couldn't meet her. Not yet. I didn't want to share her.
Dinah gaped at me. I took a deep breath.
"Her name is Lauren. Yes, she's pretty hot. She's brunette and she has seriously pretty emerald eyes. Yes I'm going to meet her, but you can not come," I said, stressing the you part.
"Why not?" Dinah frowned. She sounded like I just kicked her new puppy.
"She's nervous around new people."
Dinah didn't say anything. I keep wringing my hands. Dinah was once afraid of people. Since she came out, Dinah's been a lot happier and open. She would understand that.
"It's okay Walz. You go hang with your girl. I'll just go stalk Normani."
I snorted. Dinah smiled slightly as I patted her on the back. Personally, I didn't like Normani. She was as straight as a ruler, and Dinah doesn't need to be chasing a girl like that, but there's nothing I could say about it. I wasn't Dinah, and I didn't know exactly what Dinah was feeling for Normani. Love is a crazy thing, I thought as I arrived at the beach.
"You okay?" Lauren asked. Her emerald eyes were filled with concern.
"Wha--yeah I'm good. Just thinking," I replied, smiling down at her.
"Do you want to go swimming?" Her voice was chipper. She must really want to go swimming.
I laughed at her enthusiasm and agreed. I took off my clothes and sandals, and grabbed my goggles. There was no point in swimming with a mermaid if my eyes were going to be burned out of my skull. As we swam, I asked her questions about being a mermaid.
She said that mermaids have been around as long as humans have. They worship a Sea Goddess who is known as the Sea Mother. She was a star that fell from the heavens and into the ocean. Once she was in the ocean, she came in contact with a pearl, creating her sea form. She has an eight foot long torso and two ten foot tails. The mermaids have alters and tapestries in their homes to honor her. The Sea Mother took other precious gems and created more mermaids, but she was the only one created from a pearl. This was why Lauren took my necklace. Pearls are treasured among mermaids.
Then that lead to me asking about their homes. Most mermaids lived in coral reefs, caves, and trenches. I thought that was amazing. Lauren said she and her family were some of the ones that lived in a cave. She also had a little brother named Chris.
As we swam, I saw that her gills would open along her ribs. She had three on each side. Above land, she said that they sealed shut so she could used her lungs to breathe.
We also talked about humans. I told her about houses, technology, clothes, and how humans had hundreds of religions. I talked about Dinah, my family, and the inn. I even told her about Aunt Maria.
"She just sits next to her window?"
"Yeah. She stares at the sea," I answered softly.
"Maybe you should tell her about me," Lauren proposed.
"What?" I laughed. Was she insane?
I stopped laughing when I saw her expression. Lauren was serious.
"No," I said, shaking my head. "Do you really want more humans to know about you?"
"Who's she going to tell?" Lauren snapped.
I pulled back from her. Why was she so upset? Lauren sighed.
"I didn't mean to snap," She apologized as she took my hand. "A lot of mermaids are refugees. After a while of not being in the ocean in your original form, a mermaid can become depressed."
"Why are mermaids running from the ocean?"
Lauren didn't answer right away. She looked around as if to see someone listening in on us, and leaned in very closely. I was very much aware of how close her lips were to mine. I could lean in and we would be kissing. No, I told myself. I couldn't be thinking about that. This had to be very important. She's never been so somber.
"There are humans who know about us. Some humans don't bother us, but others hate us. They think we're disgusting creatures that use magic to kill humans. So in the Medieval times they came up with a...club of sorts called the Anti-Trident Association.
"The ATA's one goal is to destroy all mermaids and our culture. They've found some mermaids and have killed them. So, when the ATA gets too close, some mermaids flee. We never know who's apart of the ATA and never know how long or how much they know. Mermaids that leave the ocean rarely come back."
I couldn't imagine the horror on my face. Lauren inhaled raggedly.
"I'm sorry," I said. "Humans can be so hurtful and cruel."
Then I hugged Lauren, hard. I could understand the hurt and pain from people thinking you were disgusting. Dinah and I have had to deal with these types of people in Wingston Harbor more than we would like to admit.
For a long time Lauren and I sat on the beach, still embracing, still centimeters apart from one another.
