My Ariel | Sea Tales

the beach

—

' you're my only compass, i keep you in
my pocket to use ' — The Neighbourhood

~

these days were the best days to prince eric; it's sunny, quiet and he's with his favorite two people in the world: ariel and max.

eric sits on the sand, his arms resting on his legs that are pulled up to his chest. his heart swells as he watches ariel laughing and running around with max right on her heels. she'd stop and turn to catch the fluffy dog off track and run in the complete opposite direction. this carried on for what seemed like hours to the boy, but he didn't care how long the clock ran down. if he had it his way, he'd stop time to stay in this very moment for as long as he could.

ariel giggles, biting her lower lip to try and stop them but they keep spilling. she stops running for a second, her heart almost beating out of her chest at the adrenaline rush. she watches as max barks playfully at her, standing on his hind legs with his front paws jumping up towards her.

and she doesn't know if it's a mix of max's strength or if she's just really, really tired, but suddenly her back's laid flat on the sand. the force of the unforgiving gravity hurts, but she's still laughing as max attacks her face with what she likes to call 'dog kisses'.

eric has one hand on his hat to keep it from blowing in the breeze as he rushes over to the clumsy girl, "are you alright?!" he exclaims, a concerned look taking over his face. it softens as he watches ariel run her fingers through max's shaggy fur coat with nothing short of a smile on her face. "oh love, what am i going to do with you..." eric sighs, her contagious smile spreading to his face.

ariel gently pushes max back, looking up at eric from the sandy floor, "you could give me a kiss too." she responds, raising a finger to tap her cheek.

eric tilts his head, "seems max has given you enough." he quips. ariel playfully rolls her eyes, a closed mouth smile on her face before she gives max a peck on his head. a chuckle leaves the prince as he holds out his hand, "c'mon, you crazy girl."

max moves off of ariel as the brown-skinned girl grabs eric's hand to assist her. she purposely spins herself around until his arm is wrapped around her shoulder.

eric shakes his head, "you are covered in sand." he chuckles.

ariel shrugs, "nothing i'm not used to."

she guides their feet until the both of them are walking along the shoreline. the waves crash underneath their feet, washing away the footprints they leave behind. max trots alongside.

"what do humans do for fun at the beach?" she asks, playing with eric's fingers.

he hums, "we stare at the water, think about how vast the ocean is. uh.. hm. we walk the shore just as we are. oh, sandcastles!" he snaps his fingers.

ariel lifts her head up with a slight tilt to the side, "sandcastle?"

"yes, sandcastles."

"who on earth would want to live in a castle composed of sand? it'd fall apart within minutes!"

eric bit back a smile at the bewildered look on the girl's face. his head shook, "not to live in, my love, but to build. they're just fun to look at." he explains.