It was almost 3 in the morning when Emma walked in. Even though it all happened barely an hour ago, it felt to her like this night lasted for much longer. Emma and Will spent the last hour telling Nash everything. Well, not everything, but all he needed to know about them being mermaids, and about keeping it as a secret. Still shocked, he agreed to keep it a secret. She just wanted it to end, yet she knew she had one more barrier in her way: telling the girls.
Even though her general exhausted appearance, the girls couldn't tell the events of the past night, as they were way too excited about achieving the box, and assumed it was only the tiredness that got to her.
"We got it!" Cleo cheered and raised her hand, grabbing the box.
Emma walked slowly to the comfy chair, and set down, tired, exhausted, and mainly frustrated. "Doesn't matter. He knows."
Silence took over the room. The three girls exchanged worried looks with hopes in their eyes, hoping she's just kidding, just messing with them.
"How did it happened?" Rikki asked gently.
"Well he..." Emma paused. She knew she couldn't tell the girls what happened. She promised the guys she wouldn't say anything about it. "I'm sorry, I should've been more careful."
Emma hated lying, and especially to her friends. After getting used to lying the entire world, they were the people she could always be true with, and she hated when she had to lie to them.
"There was nothing you could do." Cleo tried to comfort her, although Emma could hear the disappointment in her voice.
But she wasn't disappointed of Emma, oh no. She was just disappointed that now another person knows. Another person they need to keep close, and another person they have to trust. They were all disappointed, and they all just hoped that when the sun will rise tomorrow morning it'll all feel better.
SKIP
The following morning, Nash woke up in his bed, almost forgot about what happened last night. It was Saturday, and like every Saturday, he slept in. But unlike usually, this morning he woke up hearing noises. He got into his slippers and walked down. As he got down, he saw Will sitting in the living room next to his parents.
"Will? What are you doing here?" He asked, still waking up.
"Oh, I just thought we need to talk. You know, about yesterday." Will said, pointing with his eyes towards Nash's parents.
"Oh, um yeah sure. Let's talk outside." Nash said and walked Will to the door. They got out and Nash closed the door behind them.
"I already told you guys I wouldn't say a thing." Nash said, crossing his arms.
"Not that." Will said, and then looked around with his eyes to make sure no one listens. "I wanted to talk about the kiss."
Nash's eyes widened up. "Oh." He paused. "Yeah about that, I'm really sorry I don't know what got into me."
"So it meant nothing for you?" Will asked, a bit disappointed. He obviously wasn't into the idea of dating Nash, especially not behind Bella's back, but it would've felt nice if someone had a secret crush on him.
"No, no, absolutely not." Nash said. "Can't we just forget about it? It's obviously was some stupid, crazy, drunken idea."
"Yes, yes we can." Will said awkwardly, followed by an awkward silence.
"Good." Nash replied after the shirt silence.
"So are you into guys now or...?" Will laughed and Nash joined him.
"You don't get to pull that card on him!" Nash answered.t"Oh I don't?" Will sarcastically said.
"Don't you think I didn't see you enjoyed it!" Will laughed and started walking away, with a goofy smile on his face.
"Hey you know what's weird?" Nash called after him, before running up to him.
"Last night, when I got back, I noticed the box was gone."
"What box?" Will tried acting innocent.
"You know, the metal box I found."
"Yeah, well about that..." Will thought it couldn't get worse, since Nash already knows about the girls. He figured that it wouldn't heard nobody of Nash knew about the box as well.
"Last night, Cleo, Bella and Rikki went to your house and took it." Will confessed.
"What? Why?" Nash was confused.
"Well, they didn't tell me all the information, but I know it's a mermaid related thing."
"Oh, so now there are also mermaid-related things?" Nash joked.
"You know what, I don't know all about it, but you should talk to the girls." Will said. "Come to the café at 9, they'll tell you everything."
SKIP
Nash couldn't sleep at all that night. He jumped out of bed every twenty minutes, anxiously thrusting his hand under the faucet. Time after time, nothing happened. Nash knew that it took at least until the next day for anything to really happen, but he couldn't help but keep trying. Eventually he dropped down into a chair at the kitchen table and forced himself to read a book until the sun began to rise.
He managed to wait until 7am before standing and eying the sink. Nervously, he walked over to it and turned on the water. He let the cool water gently run over his hand and patiently counted to ten in his head.
"Damn it." Nash muttered, feeling defeated as he twisted the knob until the water stopped running. He leaned against the sink, letting his head droop. He had been so sure this would work. As much as he tried not to, he felt terribly disappointed.
"Oh well." Shaking his head, Nash grabbed his bag and headed out the door. There was a diving competition in two days that he and Will planned both entering and he had a lot of training to do. He scheduled to meet up with Will only in an hour, but figured he got nothing better to do until then and better get into it already.
SKIP
"Hey guys." Nash said as he walked over the girls and Will who sat outside of the café. He could tell at the girls eyes it was all very awkward for them, as none of them look to his eyes. But most of all, he noticed Rikki. It literally broke his heart more then ever to see her like that. All he wanted was to get things right with her. Even though all that happened since that night at the movies. He just wanted everything to be fine between them again.
"We agreed to meet her to tell you everything we." Cleo said dryly.
"I guess you're just one of us now." Bella added.
Nash couldn't help the feeling of grief. He would never try to hurt them, and he had no idea why they acted as their world was torn apart. All he wanted was to be a bigger part of the group.
"What's wrong guys? Why you all acting like I'm gonna blow your cover?" Nash said then paused, but then he realized he was talking to loud, and lowered his voice. "I'm sorry of what happened, I really did," He looked at Emma, and she looked right back. "All I was hoping is that we can be friends now. Well, friends without secrets." He paused again, then got up. "But that's your choice, I get if you wanna keep it to yourself. It's fine, don't worry, I won't say a thing." He said and started walking away.
"Wait." Rikki called behind him. "It's fine. You're one of us now, I guess."
"Every friend of Will is a friend of us." Cleo added with a smile.
"We're sorry." Rikki finished, and Nash felt that she spoke more about herself rather then the others.
The girls looked at each other, then Bella took a deep breath. "Stay. Sit down. We'll tell you everything."
For over an hour went by, full of tales about the moon, their powers, everything that happened in their past, and the crystals.
"...and then was when we found out that the box you found," Cleo paused and took the little metal box out of her pocket, "Well there were three of these crystals in it. We didn't know what to do, so we just had to take it."
"Yeah, but was it that dangerous? I'm pretty sure I could take care of it by myself." Nash noted.
"Look, all the magic we have, all the magic the moon pool have, comes from moonlight. These crystals have been in those walls for years, and they've been packed with moonlight. If they touch each other, they could release moonlight, and moonlight is magic. With magic out there, no one knows what could happen." She finished, and looked down at the box. "Here, you have it." She passed it to Will. "Make a necklace for Emma as well." She said and hugged her friend.
"What should I do with the other two?" Will asked, holding the box.
"You think of something." She smiled.
"Well, I guess that's it." Nash said and got up. "Thank you for sharing all of that with me. I'll keep your secret close to my heart." He said and started walking away.
"I should go too, I need to at least try writing some songs till tomorrow." Bella said. "Unless I could have a writing partner..." She looked at Rikki with puppy eyes, yet all Rikki did was rolling her eyes at her.
"You offered that idea yourself!" Bella exclaimed.
"Fine, go for it." Rikki said and half-smiled at her.
Bella didn't wait a second before running after Nash. "Wait, Nash!"
He turned around to her. "Look, I think you're a great musician, and I wondered if you'd like to write some songs with me?" She desperately smiled. "I really need help."
"Sure. Mind if we'd meet at Will's? I think it'd be quieter there." He smiled.
She laughed. "Sure, tonight at 7?"
"You got it. Meet you there." He said and winked, right before walking away.
SKIP
Both Bella and Nash arrived just on time. They quickly settled with some popcorn and drinks, and they were in for the night. Will did their best not to interrupt them, yet every now and then came by to check on them. He was very anxious about leaving Nash alone with Bella, after what happened that night. He was sure that Nash wouldn't say anything on purpose, but he was still in a very stressful time that night.
"Okay so I think if the verses would be slower and then the chorus would be very loud, it would have some more effects." Nash said, as they went through lyric sheets.
"Yeah. I kinda thought starting it with piano and guitar strumming and later the drums could join." Bella added.
"Yeah, right where you sing 'So don't love me and don't lie' could be some kind of a drop." He said and looked up at her deep blue eyes. "Can I ask you a question?"
"Sure." She jumped up to the sofa behind her.
"It's about Rikki..." He delayed. "I just don't get what went wrong between us. I mean, I figured it was related to the secret, but now I know it all, yet still..."
"Look, Rikki is not an ordinary girl. Out of all of us, she's the most connected to her mermaid part. I mean, I honestly think that without her powers, Rikki was nothing like the one we know today. I guess she needs a man who understands that." Bella said, with her big sparkling eyes in the moonlight.
"But I do understand! I get everything now." Nash said frustrating.
"It's not like that... Rikki is a mermaid, and you're human, and you guys don't seem to get how special this thing is to us." She paused, then continued. "I think after her last relationship, Rikki pretty much decided to let it go for a while."
"So, you're saying it's hopeless?" Nash looked down with his head between his hands.
"Not hopeless, just try to understand her, try to be more like her." Bella said, then quickly changed her tone. "Well, I'm going to the bathroom. Be back in a sec." She said and got up.
"Be more like her? What is that even means?" Nash thought to himself. "Is she actually suggesting it? No, I could never... But, what if it's the only way I could get her back?"
"Is that even possible?" Nash thought out loud. "It's not even a full moon. But...what did Cleo said about those crystals...? They produce moonlight or something like that?" Nash looked over to the metal box that was on Will's desk. As he heard the flush of the toilet he realized he don't have much time. He quickly got up and grabbed the box, placing it in his pocket.
"Okay, ready to get back to work?" Bella said coming out of the small room.
"Um... About that, my mom just called and I really gotta go. Sorry, some other time?" He quickly grabbed his back and walked out of Will's shed.
"Sure..." Bella stood there confused.
SKIP
Nash walked all the way to the docks, going for his dad's boat. He jumped right in it and started it, heading to Mako.
He never been on the island, only heard about it a few times. Therefore he had no idea where he's heading. He heard from the girls that the cave was located on the east top of the mountain, but these where very general directions. He wasn't fully sure about doing it, but he decided to think about it on his way to Mako.
As he reached the shore, he dragged the boat to the sand and reached to it, grabbing a flashlight.
Nash looked around, trying to decided which way should he go. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, just stated walking, hoping it's the right way.
After around 30 minutes of walking he arrived a small waterfall, connected to a river. He climbed to the top of the waterfall, hoping for a better view of the area. He walked backwards, trying to see a bigger shot of view, when suddenly he fell into a hole in the ground. He hit his head, yet he was still feeling alright. He tried to climb up, yet failed, as the tunnel was too slippery. He looked around, noticing there were some rock steps on the other side of the cave he was in. "Could it be it?" He thought to himself, as he figured there's no better option anyways.
As he walked through the hole in the rock he arrived a big hollow cave, with a large round pool, filled with the bluest water he ever saw. All he could think of was WOW. He was not expecting this, and he could understand why they called this place magical.
He tried to remember what the girls said in their story. "They said there was moonlight, and they were inside the pool and that's when it happened."
Nash took the metal box out of his pocket and looked at it. He slowly opened it and took his first look at the crystals. They were beautiful, and identical to the ones Cleo, Rikki and Bella were wearing. He looked over at a small waterfall in the cave's wall, and placed all three crystals on the highest rock step. He got them closed to each other, until they finally touched. Then, a bright blue light flooded the cave. Nash covered his eyes, as the light was so bright.
Nash jumped in surprise as the water started bubbling in the pool.
"This is it." Nash whispered to himself, closing his eyes tightly. His fists clenched as he prepared himself. He jumped in the water in a moment of bravery, hoping he's doing the right thing. The water sparkled and frothed around him, filling him with a nervous, joyful anticipation. A few seconds later the bright light died down, and the water died with it, once more returning to the glassy calm of the moon pool.
Nash breathed heavily, looking himself up and down in the water. "I'm still human." He gasped, trying to catch his breath. "Wait," He shook his head. "That's right, the girls didn't change until the day after their full moon at Mako Island."
Trying to keep his breathing under control, Nash pulled himself out of the pool and quickly dried himself off. He grabbed the empty crystals and placed them back inside the metal box. He wanted to hurry and get back home before anything happened. He rushed outside, practically running. He couldn't wait to get home. More importantly, he couldn't wait for morning to come.
SKIP
"Good morning." Rikki wandered sleepily into the kitchen, where Cleo, Emma. And Bella were already sitting at the kitchen table.
"Sure did." Emma stood to refill her glass with orange juice.
Rikki sat down at the table. "You're working at the cafe today?"
"Yup." Emma nodded. "And aren't you as well?" She turned to Bella.
"Oh yes, I'll be over in a couple hours." Bella said easily. "I'm helping Will and Nash training for their competition."
"Well then I'll see you two there!" Rikki said before breezing out the door.
"I'm out too." Bella quickly checked her makeup. "I wouldn't mind spending some alone time with my boyfriend first."
"See you later." Cleo smiled.
Emma waited until Bella closed the door behind her before she started talking. "I really don't trust him."
"Nash? C'mon Em, he's on our side." Cleo stood to put her bowl in the sink.
"Yeah, but..." Emma remembered what he said that night... 'Now we both got a secret.' Emma was just scared what might happen if she would tell Bella, or anyone else, about what she saw that night. She was scared he's gonna blow their secret in revenge. But obviously she couldn't tell that to Cleo.
"Hello! Earth to Emma!" Emma blinked as she noticed Cleo waving her hand in front of her face. "But what?"
"Never mind. I just not relaxed." She tried to get away with the answer.
"Well, then just call him and talk to him about it." Cleo innocently offered.
"Yeah right." Emma stood up and grabbed an apple. "I gotta go too, see you later!"
SKIP
"My bad." Nash apologized after walking into a lady walking her dog down the sidewalk. He couldn't seem to concentrate on what he was doing, all he could think about was what he must have done wrong last night. Moon pool, check. Moonlight, check. In the pool while the water bubbled, double check. Nash furrowed his brow in concentration as he walked. Why hadn't it worked?
"Hey Nash. You're here earlier than usual." Bob, who managed the training pool, looked up as Nash pushed the front door open. "You're my first swimmer of the day. Training this morning?"
"Just like every morning." Nash said unenthusiastically, trudging his way to the locker room. He quickly changed his clothes and pulled on his swim trunks. Stretching his arms up over his head, he stepped into the locker room shower and twisted the water nozzle. He closed his eyes and let his head drop back for just a second as the water cascaded down onto his skin. After just a quick rinse he twisted off the knob and stepped out of the shower, reaching for his towel.
Suddenly Nash froze. Something didn't feel quite right. Nash's legs began to tingle and, before he could react, he suddenly pitched forward and landed hard on the floor. Utterly shocked, Nash flipped himself over onto his back and looked down at his legs. Well, he looked at what used to be his legs.
A long, elegant, blue tail had replaced his lower half. Nash stared at himself in awe, running one hand down the shimmering scales. He felt like his heart was about to beat out of his chest with excitement. It had worked. Nash couldn't stop the huge grin from spreading across his face. He laughed quietly to himself, moving his tail back and forth gently. He couldn't wait to get in the water.
Wait- he had to get to the ocean, he couldn't swim here, in a public pool. Flipping over onto his stomach, Nash dragged himself to his bag and managed to pull his towel free. He quickly dried himself off, suddenly anxious to be out of such a vulnerable position there on the floor.
"Nash?" Bob shouted from the other room, his voice growing closer. "I heard a noise, are you alright?"
Frantically, Nash rubbed the towel on his skin, trying desperately to dry himself.
"Nash?" Bob pushed the door open and walked slowly into the locker room. "Didn't you hear me calling?" He looked at the boy, confused. "Why are you sitting there like that?"
Nash sat, stunned, on the floor with his legs stretched out in front of him. He was breathing heavily and his face was flushed as he tore his eyes away from his legs to look up at Bob.
"Stretching." Nash said dryly. Shaking himself, he stood on unsteady legs and cleared his throat. "I was stretching." He repeated, his voice stronger this time. "I've got to go."
"Go?" Bob said, puzzled. "So no training after all?"
Nash didn't hear him, he was to preoccupied with his thoughts. He quickly threw his things into his bag and took off out the door. "See ya!" He called with a grin as he ran outside.
SKIP
Emma hung up her phone, disappointed, as she walked into Rikki's cafe.
"What's wrong Em?" Rikki said as she wiped clean a smoothie glass.
"Nash isn't answering his phone." Emma said glumly.
"Aw, bummer." Rikki put the glass away, looking sympathetic. "He's probably out running, I'm sure he'll turn up soon."
"Yeah." Emma said, dropping into a chair. "I'm sure he will."
The two girls looked up as Will and Bella pushed their way into the café through the beaded entrance.
"What are you doing in here guys?" Rikki asked. "Aren't you supposed to be training?" She turned to Will.
"Have you seen Nash?" Will asked.
"Nope." Rikki said. "He's not here."
Will and Bella started walking for the exit.
"Wait, Will." Emma jogged to catch her. "You can't find Nash?"
Will paused reluctantly. "No." He sneered. "He was supposed to meet me for training this morning but Bob said he'd already taken off. Now he isn't answering his phone." He strutted away without another word.
"Come on Will, let's just go back to your place, he'll surly turn up somewhere." Bella said coldly, obviously not wanting to he there.
Emma watched them go, as she turned back to Rikki. "Will can't find Nash? He practically keeps him on a leash."
"I really wouldn't worry too much." Rikki shook her head. "He's gonna turn up."
"Well he'd better." Emma said uneasily. "And soon."
Truth was, Nash hadn't thought about anyone in hours. He had run straight home, dropped his bag onto the dock, and dove straight into the ocean.
It was incredible. Nash didn't know how he'd ever been content with just human swimming. This was the most amazing feeling he'd ever had in his entire life and he never wanted it to end.
Nash flew through the water with incredible speed, only getting faster. He hadn't needed to surface for oxygen in what felt like an eternity and he had never felt more comfortable in his skin. Well, in his scales.
Glee flowed through his veins as Nash swam to the surface. He'd gone out further than he'd meant to, though he'd swum far away on purpose at first. He didn't want to accidentally bump into Cleo, Emma, Bella, or especially Rikki. He wasn't ready tell them quite yet, and he definitely didn't want them to find out about him until he was ready to show them. It was the weirdest thing, but Nash found that he didn't really want them to know. At least, not yet.
He liked being able to fly through the water, alone with the sea and his thoughts. He didn't really want to have to share it with anyone else. He knew how silly that sounded, but he just couldn't bare the thought of Rikki tagging along behind him as he swam, even though she was the reason he had done it in the first place.
"Geez Nash, hypocrite much?" He muttered to himself. Still, he didn't spare much of a thought for Rikki or the other girls. His life had changed and he couldn't imagine ever going back to the way he had been before.
He reached the surface in only a few seconds. He threw his head back, tossing water into the air. The sun was just starting to set off in the distance. With the utmost reluctance, Nash slowly began swimming back to the shore. He knew he'd have a lot to answer for after disappearing for the whole day. He was sure Will and Bella would be angry with him for not telling them where he was.
Will. Nash's heart sank just a fraction. Obviously training for any more diving competitions was something he'd never be able to do again. The thought of telling Will that he was quitting made him slightly nervous, though not nervous enough to make him that anxious. As he thought of it, he was more afraid of Will's reaction more than anything. But Will would just have to deal with it. He decided he's gonna have to tell at least Will, as he knew he needed some help from someone who knew mermaids longer than he had.
Nash took his sweet time getting back to the dock outside Will's boat shed. It wasn't until he reached it that he realized he didn't really know how to get out of the water.
He started calling Will. He yelled as loud as he could, hoping he would hear him. Will did heard him, and rushed off to the dock, where he heard someone calling his name.
"Over here!" Nash called Will from his place in the salty sea water.
"Nash? Where have you been all morning? What are you doing in the water?" Will rushed, as he was a bit confused while also angry.
"I wanna show you something." Nash smiled, in a totally relaxed and layed-back tone. He laid on his back, revealing his long tail to Will. Then, without warning, Bella popped behind Will's back, also looking to the water.
They two opened their eyes so wide, and their mouths sank to the ground.
"What is this?!" Bella was shocked, just like Will.
"Do you like it?" Nash smiled naughtily.
Panicked, Bella tried to take control over the situation. "Okay, so, um... You wait here. Do not tell tell anyone about it! Not even the girls!" She commanded him. "And you," she turned to Will. "Get him out of the water, I'll be right back!" She said and quickly took off.
Nash swam to the edge of the dock, determined to pull himself out. He could do this, his arms had never been stronger thanks to all the training he had been doing lately. He would pull himself out onto the deck, dry off, and get inside to safety.
While Nash was gripping the edge of the dock, Will mentally counted to three and then pulled Nash with all his might. He managed to get Nash up to his waist out of the water. Nash dropped himself onto the dock, hanging at the hips with his fin still submerged. Reaching forward, he dug his fingers into Will's hand, and pulled.
It took a long time, but Nash eventually managed to pull himself up out of the water to lay on the deck.
"I've got to figure out a quicker way to do that." Nash muttered to himself, mentally constructing a ramp-type structure that would make getting out of the water easier.
"What the hell is this?" A shrill voice came from just a few feet away, shocking both Nash and Will.
He turned his head, terrified, trying to see who had caught him.
Sophie stood, frozen, her eyes locked on Nash and his fin.
"Will, what is this?" Her voice was barely above a whisper as she spoke.
"Sophie, I can explain." Nash said desperately, pushing himself up onto his arms.
"Explain?" Sophie stepped back quickly before he could reach for her. She looked him up and down before speaking. "This..." She gestured to his lower half. "This isn't fake, is it? It's real."
"Sophie, listen, we can explain this." Will looked around quickly for his bag. If Nash could just towel off they could talk to Sophie without freaking her out. His bag was nowhere to be seen.
"Looking for this?" Sophie held a familiar red bag out to him. "You left it on the dock, I was going to put it away for you." She eyed Will warily, keeping her distance. "Talk."
"We will." Will said honestly. "Just let him dry off first."
Sophie let out a long exhale, obviously uncomfortable. After several awkward seconds she reached in the bag and tossed Will his towel. "Then do it. Will he be... erm, human again after you get dry?" She shuffled her feet nervously.
"Yeah." Nash's brain ran at a mile a minute as he dried himself.
Sophie didn't speak as she watched him. A few minutes later Nash transformed back into his young, human self. In spite of herself, Sophie gasped. "You just-" She stammered. "I mean, what in the world is happening?"
"I can explain everything." Will tried to sound soothing. This was his sister, after all, but also his best friend he was trying to protect. If anyone was going to understand and accept it, it would be Sophie. She knows how much they mean to each other. "Come on inside." Nash nodded towards Will's front door. "I'll tell you everything."
In all honestly, Nash didn't tell Sophie everything, just the abridged version. He left out everything about Bella, Rikki, Emma, or Cleo. Other than the girls, he told his sister everything he could. He told her all about Mako Island, about what had happened that morning, about what happened to him when he touched water...
Sophie took everything in as best she could, but it was a lot to process. She nodded, and nodded, and... nodded. They couldn't read her reaction. Had they made a huge mistake in telling her?
"Sophie?" Will said after he had finished telling her everything. "Don't you have anything to say?"
"What do you want me to say, Will?" Sophie stood, pacing distractedly. "Do you want me to say that I'm cool with your friend being a... a merman?" She looked at him closely. "I mean damn, Will, I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes."
"I know it's a little incredible..." Nash tried to comfort her.
"Incredible?" Sophie clenched her fists at her hips. "No. Incredible is Will shaving two tenths off his fastest dive. This is just..." She threw her hands into the air. "This is impossible!"
"But it is possible." Will placed both his hands on Sophie's shoulders, looking her dead in the eye. "This is real, Soph. And I need to know that you'll keep this a secret."
"Does anyone else know..." Sophie raised her eyebrows. "About this... Thing?"
"Only us." Will said honestly.
"Nash..." Sophie broke free from Will's grip and paced to the other side of the room. "Do you know what this could do for you? What kind of money you could make?"
"No." Will said firmly, without a trace of humor. "Soph, you can't tell anyone about this. Promise me."
Sophie met his eye for a long second before speaking. "Fine." She said grimly. "You're my brother's friend. I won't tell anyone." Her tone softened. "I love you, Will."
"And I love you." Will hugged her to him tightly. "Thank you, sister."
"No problem." Sophie said blankly before pulling away from him. "This is all so weird, Will."
"Yeah I get that." Will and walked away, hanging his head, with Nash following behind him.