Fish Out of Water

Chapter 37~ I wish-

"Emory!" Sean burst through the door, water dripping off his hair.

"Over here." Emory waved to him and then went back to petting my head and rubbing my arm. Sean dropped beside me. Blood roared in my ear muffing everything beyond it.

"Where are your parents?" he asked.

"Do I look like I know?" I snapped, grinding my teeth, pain seized every muscle from the waist down, a cramp twisted my abdomen into knots.

"What's it feel like?" he asked.

"It hu-hurts!" I wanted to grab for Emory's hand, but I couldn't even uncurl my fingers.

"Ocean." Sean scooped his arms under me and lifted me up without losing his breath. He must have that ocean dweller muscle even if he didn't have a skin. He held me tight to his chest and jogged out the door. I bet that's why we lived so close to the ocean, in case dad had to do this. Except he wasn't there. Mom wasn't there.

I held on to Sean's neck and tried to make my lungs open, but I only managed a breath every few steps. My head swam. I reached under my shirt and pulled my pouches off.

"How you doin'?" Sean asked.

"I–" I gasped, air barely escaping. My lungs were too tight. They weren't working.

The shoreline was so close I could already taste the water. Why wasn't that enough? Why couldn't I just be human? Tears pricked my eyes as my gills opened and closed and my lungs gasped at the sporadic breath. My chest burned.

Mom

Tears slipped out, as if I could afford to lose more saltwater. Mom, it's happening the final part of the transition. I would lose my lungs. I'd have to stay in the water.

"Hold on." Sean sprinted full-tilt across the sand and crashed into the ocean. I peeled my shirt off, and crawled into the water. The ocean cradled me, the saltwater soaked into my already dried out skin. I gasped for breath but not from my lungs. My gills took the water in, I dragged myself deeper into the waves as they lapped over me, welcoming me, and kicked off my pants. My thighs stuck together as I fully submerged. The same cramp dug at my sides as my body became something else. Pulling myself deeper into the water, pain shot through me, a layer of thick skin grew over mine with a flick of my small tail, I dove deeper into the water, the feeling of wholeness made my chest ache. I didn't want it. I wanted to go home, I wanted to go to college with Emory and travel and be human.

"Dakota!" Sean's voice reached me, and I glanced back. I was already so far from shore I could barely make him out. I turned and flicked my tail, soaring back to the shoreline. I stopped just a few feet from the shore and took a breath. The moment of truth. If I could take my skin off. If my gills would close on land and open in water. I inched up the shore. Willing my skin away, calling my legs back. My skin morphed back to its eel-like texture, my skin fell away from me but left a deep purple tail behind.

Sean stared open mouth at me, his eyes glassing over. "You're both..." he panted. "You got both."

I dragged myself back to sand but kept my body under the water. I didn't want that pain to come back yet. I clutched my skin in my hand, I got the skin. I got the tail. Everything was going to be okay.

"Thanks Sean." I panted, letting the water ease away the lingering pain. "You're a life saver."

"What?" I though that's what he said as he stared at me but Emory threw her arms around me.

"Are you okay, that looked like it hurt." She laugh-cried in my ear as she held me to her. I reached up with my free hand and patted her back.

"It definitely hurt." I tried to laugh but my abdomen burned with muscles I didn't even know I had.

"What did you say?" Sean asked.

"It definitely hurt." I repeated.

"No." his eyes were wide as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. As if he had never seen a mer-person before. As if most of our classmates didn't grow a tail under water. "Before, to me. What did you say?"

"Oh." I laughed, relief washing over me. If even someone like Sean was that ready to mark me as other, when he was just like me, what would someone like Emory think. "You're a life saver. Thank you. Emory wouldn't have been able to get me to the water like that and I obviously wasn't going to get here myself." I reached a handout to pat him on the shoulder.

"I saved your life?" he asked again.

I nodded. "Yeah, thanks," I said again. I hadn't expected him to be weird about it. His mouth fell open and his hands shook.

"Sean?" I asked. "Are you okay?"

His eyes glassed over, and he leaned forward. "I wish that I—"

"Wish?" I cut him off "wish?" I hissed at him. Emory pulled away and looked me over, black rings sprouted over my skin. "Is that why you were helping me?"

"No!" he shook his head, his eyes refocusing on me. "No, no... I thought...right now." He pressed his lips together, his shoulders sagged and he nodded, "At first, yeah."

I nudged Emory out of the way and crawled toward Sean. I waited a second for my legs to come back like Bay's always did. "You were using me?" I demanded. "I thought we were friends. I thought—"

"Dakota." Emory's quiet voice barely registered as I pulled myself further onto the sand when my legs didn't come back. "I thought you were just a nice guy. I defended you. I told Bay that it was stupid to assume all you wanted from me was a wish."

"I didn't anymore." He backed away from me. "Yes, that's what I wanted, but you were cool and I didn't want to just take anything from you. I wanted to help you. I wanted—"

"Liar." I lunged forward, arm outstretched, but he jerked back out of my reach.

"Dakota!" Emory snapped, louder that time and I paused. "Look." She said and I glance back, her finger pointing at my tail.... My tail, that was firmly on the beach, not even my fin was touching the water. Realization piled in my stomach like stones.

Sean leaned around and his mouth fell open. "I'm sorry." He mumbled. I pushed myself back into the water, fear rippling through my body, making me tremble. I was stuck. I would be stuck forever. I didn't get to go to school. Or move to New York or wiggle my toes in the sand again.

"Dakota." Emory held her hand out. "Wait, don't—" I dove into the water and swam as fast and far as I could manage each powerful flick of my tail like a sucker punch to my gut.

Woooow Sean, kind of a d-bag move but like...

what were you gonna wish for?