Mermaid’s Lust

[Nina’ s Perspective]

I am now sitting in a coffee shop waiting for Kevin to arrive. He asked to meet me here since he told me he has something to say. 

It was a rainy morning. It has been like this for a couple of days now. I think that there is a typhoon coming up. 

I sitted somewhere near the window because I love watching the effect of the rainy season on people and the environment. It is just mesmerizing to see people holding their umbrellas while wearing thick clothes and boots. I also love to watch how raindrops roll down the glass panels of windows. This kind of weather is definitely perfect with a cup of coffee. 

A couple minutes later, Kevin arrived at the shop. He quickly spotted where I was so he approached me right away. 

“Hey! I’m sorry. Traffic was a little heavy because of the rain” He explained. 

“It’s okay.” I told him and smiled.

Upon arriving, a waiter approached us and gave us a menu each. After deciding on what to eat and drink, I turned to ask Kevin. 

“Are you ready? Have you picked something you like?” I asked and he nodded. 

I raised my hand and called the waiter. 

“I’d like a venti caramel macchiato and a slice of blueberry cheesecake please.” I said and turned to Kevin.

“I’d take a venti americano with two pumps of sugar and a slice of carrot cake too.” Kevin said to the waiter. 

“Is that all?” The waiter asked. 

“Oh, and can I get two cream puffs for take out please?” I said. I suddenly craved cream puffs. 

“Sure thing, Ma’am. I will be back shortly with your orders.” He smiled and gave us a small nod. 

“So, how have you been doing?” Kevin asked me.

“I’ve been doing fine lately. How about you?” 

“Well, I have a music tour coming up. It will start around the first week of July.” He said. 

“Really? That’s awesome.” I said. 

The waiter then interrupted us to give our orders. 

“Here are your orders.” He said gladly. 

“Thank you!” Kevin and I unanimously said. 

“So, you said you were going to say something.” I asked Kevin while sipping my coffee. 

“Well, yeah. It’s because I wanted to get something off of my chest” He said. 

I took a bite of cake as I waited for him to continue. 

“Honestly, I asked to meet you because I wanted to apologize.” He finally said. 

I smiled at him. 

“I know it’s been months since what happened in the restaurant but I still wanted to give a formal apology.” He continued. 

“It’s okay, Kevin. After I gave it some thought, I realized that it wasn’t your fault either. After all, you can never control what your girlfriend would say.” I said while giggling. 

“Yeah. That’s true, but I want to clear things up with you.” 

“Clear things about what?” I asked as I continued eating. 

“I really didn’t tell her your secret directly. She told me that I mentioned it to her when I was drunk.” He explained. 

“Drunk? You were talking about me while you were drunk?” I tried to make the conversation funny.

“Yeah. I guess so. I think that was the time that I really missed you.” Kevin said, while rubbing the back of his head. 

“I forgive you.” I blurted out. 

Kevin looked at me with wide eyes. 

“Wait, really?” His voice sounded excited. 

“Yes. I really forgive you Kevin.” I repeated. 

Kevin was speechless for a moment. His eyes were shaking as if he didn’t expect me to forgive him that fast. 

“Nina… I don’t know what to say, but thank you.” He said with affectionate eyes. 

After that, we stayed in the coffee shop for a little more before we decided to go home. 

“Drive safely, Kevin” I said as I waved goodbye.

“Thank you, Nina. Get home safely too!” He said. 

He actually offered to drive me home but I refused. 

It has been a year since that conversation between me and Kevin happened. In my opinion, I was actually thankful that he initiated the talk. Honestly, a huge lump in my chest was also relieved after that day. Both of us deserve to be free from the fact of not being forgiven and not being able to forgive. We deserve to be free from our setbacks to start anew and be happy again. 

“Good morning, beautiful.” I heard Andy say as he left a light kiss on my cheek. 

It has been a long time too since I discovered that Andy gave up his normal life to be a mermaid like me. At first, I had mixed feelings about it. I felt frustrated and mad because he did not consult with me before making the decision. On the other hand, I also felt moved and touched because he was really willing to do anything for me. 

Right now, Andy and I have been in a relationship for more than two years and being with him everyday makes me so happy. I never thought that I would actually fall for my best friend. But then, whenever I needed help or a shoulder to cry on, Andy was the one there for me. I even appreciate how he decided to change his life to adapt to mine. I am really lucky to have this guy. 

I looked at him while he prepared breakfast and I sat on the counter table to watch him. This is actually our everyday routine. We get out of bed underwater, dry ourselves up, wait to turn into human again and then we would start to prepare breakfast. I am in charge of the coffee while he is in charge of the meal. We divide tasks efficiently. 

After breakfast, Andy asked me to go somewhere with him so I quickly took a shower and dressed up. When we were both ready, we headed out of the cabin. 

Andy took me to an open space somewhere on the island. 

“This is where our future will start.” He said. 

“Future?” I asked, confused. 

“Yeah. I plan to build a house here. Not too big though, just big enough for the both of us together with your dog and cat.” He announced while smiling at me. 

I was shocked about his plan. I never knew he would go this far ahead to plan this for our future. I was speechless. 

“Andy, I…” I tried to say something but I miserably failed. I just stared at Andy so he spoke again. 

“Nina, I want to spend the rest of my days with you. I love you so much and you know that…” 

He paused for a while before he got down on one knee. 

“Do you want to spend the rest of your life with me too?” He said as he pulled a red velvet box out of his pocket and opened it in front of me. 

I was teary-eyed but I managed to reply. 

“Yes! I would love that.” 

Andy quickly stood up and slipped the ring on my finger. 

“Thank you for saying yes. I love you.” He said before kissing me passionately. 

After his proposal, I asked Andy about his plan again. 

“How will you build a house there? Isn’t it difficult to transport building materials from the city to the island?” I asked. 

“Don’t worry about that, I already have a plan.” He said proudly. 

“But why do you want to build another house on the island?” I asked again. 

“Well, don’t you think it would be nice to build a house here too so that we can have a place to live both above and below the water? Also, it is because I wanted us to have a place to rest wherever we want.” Andy said spontaneously.

I smiled at him to acknowledge his plan. He is really one thoughtful man. 

The day went by a flash and soon enough, it was time to sleep again. 

“Let’s go shopping together tomorrow. We are running a little low on supplies” I said as I yawned sleepily. 

“Okay then. Let’s sleep now since we have to go early tomorrow.” He replied. 

We both dove underwater and slept side by side. 

That night, I slept like a baby. I even had a dream about my parents coming to the island to come and see me. We talked and laughed and they even offered to take me home but I refused them happily. I have my life on the island now. This is where I belong. 

The next morning, when I woke up, Andy had already left. 

He must have gone to buy something. He should have woken me up and asked me to accompany him but he didn’t. 

Feeling a little bit sulky, I looked beside my bed and found that my dog and cat were still soundly sleeping. I smiled at the view. They just look so cute together. 

After watching them for a moment, I got up, fixed the sheets, took a shower, dressed up and woke my pets up. It’s been a while since I brought them out for a walk. They definitely need to get some sunshine today. 

While I drank my coffee and ate my toast, I also gave them their food. We all need energy to walk around, after all. 

After we were done eating, I put on their leashes and we headed out for our walk. 

Moments later, while walking my pets, I unexpectedly met Grandma Lucia on the way. 

“Good morning, Grandma Lucia!” I greeted her cheerfully. 

I can’t help but smile at her scattered white hair and little worn out clothes. 

“Good morning too, Nina. It’s nice to see you again.” Grandma answered. 

“I know. It has been a long time since I last saw you. How have you been?” I asked out of concern. 

Even though Grandma Lucia is still tough and strong, I can’t deny the fact that she is all alone now. She does not have any family with her. She actually just strolls around the island to entertain herself. 

“Oh, I’m good, Nina.” She replied. 

“I missed you. Didn’t you miss me?” I tried to joke around. 

“Of course, I missed you. How about you? How are you doing recently?” Grandma Lucia asked me again.

“Everything is fine, Grandma. Andy proposed to me yesterday. He even told me that he was going to build another house for me in the open space on the other side of the island. He said that it was necessary so that we have multiple places to rest.” I excitedly told Grandma Lucia all the latest happening with me. 

“Oh! That’s wonderful” She exclaimed happily. 

I can feel that grandma Lucia is happy to know that Andy and I are together. It is because every time I tell her stories about Andy, she just smiles widely. 

“Grandma, do you want to move in with us? The house would be quite big anyway.” I suggested.

Since grandma Lucia is living alone, wouldn’t it be nice to live together? I know that Andy wouldn’t mind. 

“What? Ah… no. It’s okay, Nina. I have been alone for most of my life now anyway, so a couple more years wouldn’t hurt.” She replied. Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

“But… it’s just that…I’m a little worried.” I finally confessed. 

It’s just sad to know that she lives alone in her old age. It is kind of heartbreaking. Honestly, some people around here told me that she had two lovers before. One is someone she loved deeply but left her for another woman while the other one was someone she loved too but unfortunately died at sea. Ever since then, she decided to live in this island. 

“Oh, you silly girl. I am fine, you should be the one taking care of yourself more.” Grandma said to me again and smiled. 

“Grandma Lucia. It’s nice to see you again! It has been hard to catch you lately.” Andy’s voice broke out. 

“Hey, young man! It’s nice to see you too!” She exclaimed happily. 

Andy then stood next time. Looking at us, grandma said something again.

“You should take good care of Nina, okay?” She said while her eyes were on Andy. 

“I will, Grandma.” Andy replied. 

“I will come back and see you some other time again. I’ll have to go first.” Grandma Lucia said as she walked away and we couldn’t stop her. 

“Goodbye grandma, come back to see us often.” We watched grandma leave.

After that I turned to Andy. 

“You went out early in the morning yet you didn’t bring anything back?” I questioned. 

I looked at empty-handed Andy, a little angry. He went out without me yet he came back empty-handed.

“Who told you that I didn’t bring anything?” He asked. 

“Look, I brought breakfast!” He said while holding up two plastics worth of food. 

“Let’s go home and eat some of these. Then I will tell you why I headed out early today.” Andy suggested. 

Andy and I, together with our pets, walked home together. When we got home and got settled, we started eating and Andy started talking. 

“I contacted the people who would build our house here. They said that the will visit the site this afternoon so we must get ready.” Andy excitedly said. 

After listening to him, talking about the plans of the house and how it would look, I imagined it right away. 

Months passed by in flash and Andy and I finally got the key to our new house. For me this is such a dream come true, because I really wanted to own a house by the sea. I am really lucky to have a man like Andy. 

Before we opened the doors of our new home, I turned to Andy.

“Andy, without you, I might not have lived so well. I am who I am today because of you. Thank you.” I hugged Andy and thanked him sincerely. 

“You are always welcome Nina.” Andy looked at me with deep affection. 

“Go into the rooms and have a look.” Andy motioned me to open the doors so I did. 

As I opened the door, my breath was taken away. The interior of the house was perfect. The kitchen was small but it was enough. The bathrooms were nicely done too. Our bedroom was fully decorated to my liking and there was a little corner for my pets too. You can clearly see that the layout of the house was given so much thought. 

“Everything is beautiful, Andy. Thank you so much!” I said as I hugged him again. 

“I’m glad you like it. We can move here right away if you want too.” He said proudly.

“Yeah. I’d like that. But… How about you? How about your job in the city? Isn’t this too far from work?” I asked out of concern. 

“Don’t worry about that. I actually already found a job near the island.” He told me. 

“Really? That’s great news.” I said.

This is nice. I am no longer alone now and I am at my happiest, I couldn’t ask for more. Andy and I both have stable jobs. We are living peacefully here on the island and above all that, we are both mermaids at night. 

I believe that a better future is ahead of us, whether we are mermaids or something else. In fact, that isn’t important anymore because at the end of the day, Andy and I are unique individuals. Nobody could swim like us, after all.