One-Shot Stories

The Cove

You've been coming to this same cove since you were little. It was your absolute most favorite place in the world and you did your best to keep it a secret from everybody when you went there. It was quiet, secluded, and felt like it was worlds away from the hustle and bustle of your everyday life and the city just a few miles away.

As you grew older, you discovered you had a passion for painting and art, and would come here on weekends to try and capture the beauty of your little hideaway on canvas. You'd yet to do so to your satisfaction, but you felt as though you were getting closer with every piece you did. You had sketchbooks stacked high throughout your little apartment, filled to the brim with drawings of the rocks, the birds, the water. Each of them felt like a little bit of your love for this beautiful place frozen in time.

You've been coming here since you were little, and you could honestly say you'd never once seen something like that before.

There, on one of the long, curved jetties that extended the circular cove out into the water, was a large, muscular man with the longest dreads you'd ever seen. His back was to you as he sang into the air, his baritone voice carrying strangely well over the sound of the waves on the beach. You consider coming back later, but you couldn't help but be curious about this man finding your little sanctuary. A twinge of annoyance passes through you at the thought; in a way, it almost felt like someone had stolen a secret from you.

You dig out your sketchbook and sit on the sand, determined to memorialize this intruder in the pages. Your hand flies over the paper, capturing the strength of his shoulders and the odd way the light shone off his skin. The unusual mix of greys in his long, dreadlocked hair. The long, sharp talons on each finger and-

Wait.

You squint into the sunlight, certain your mind was playing tricks on you. There was no way in hell this guy had talons; that's ridiculous. You stare intensely at him, trying to get a good look at his hands as he moves around. In doing so, you happened to be looking right at him when a strong breeze blew off the sea and lifted his hair into the air, revealing the strange fins running down his back.

Fins.

You goggle at the sight, unsure of trusting your eyes. So, what was this guy, then? A performer of some sort? An actor? Was there a movie being shot nearby? A dozen questions spin through your head as you try to logic your way out of what he clearly was: not human. As you gape in amazement, his huge, powerful tail flips upward as waves crash into the rocks, and there was no way that he was anything other than a merman. You notice that his tail is smooth, not scaly, and it was a deep grey that was similar to one of the tones in his hair. Was he... a shark or something? As you ponder, the wind changes, and blows out from the shore. You scramble to keep your sketchbook in your hands as it seemed liable to blow away at any moment due to the strength of it.

Suddenly, the merman stops singing, and you freeze. You thought maybe if you didn't move that he wouldn't notice you. Not that your were (too) scared, you really just didn't want him to leave now that you knew what he was, so you do your absolute best impersonation of a rock. Slowly, he turns, eyes scanning the sand, and looks directly at you. You clamp a hand over your mouth to prevent yourself from shrieking in surprise.

You'd expected him to look human, but he most definitely did not. A too-wide mouth; a heavy, sloping brow; and small, pitch black eyes greeted you as he faced you. Your eyes slowly discover that he didn't look half as human as you'd thought he did before taking in the greyish tint to his skin and the markings he had.

A long, long moment passes as the two of you stare at each other, and finally, after what felt like an eternity, he raises a webbed, taloned hand and gives a tiny wave. Such a fantastic creature doing that simple gesture sends your mind reeling, but you respond in kind. Suddenly, he grins widely and your heart leaps into your throat. He abruptly turns and dives into the water beyond the rocks and out of sight, and you sigh as bot relief and disappointment wash over you. You watch the spot where he'd been sitting for a bit before glancing down at your sketchbook, and your eyes widen in surprise.