The blue mermaid waited, glancing out of the archway as best as she could to make sure there were no more mermaid sightings. Once the coast was clear, she turned around.
“Luis?”
The barefoot young man poked his head around the rocks.
She held out her hands and coaxed him back to her, and he could scarcely settle beside her before she had taken hold of his head.
“They hurt you,” her fingers gently parted the hair on the side of his head.
“Is that what I’ve been feeling?” Luis dabbed his fingers in his hair as she leaned closer to him and placed her hands around the wound. “It’s all right; I’ll heal.”
Sapphyre frowned and let her hands drop after a moment. “I can’t believe you helped us,” she said softly.
He smiled with a confused look to his face. “Why wouldn’t I? We can’t have anyone kidnapping your sister.”
“But, they hurt you, and they could have hurt you even worse...”
“I told you, I’ll heal.”
The blue mermaid shrugged. “It’s just rare to find someone... so kind.”
“I agree.” He smiled.
“Khallista said to tell you thank you; I know everyone in Enclei will send their thanks, too.” She gently brushed the side of his face with her fingers. “And I thank you so very much, Te’Luis.”
He brought his hand to hers on his cheek. “You mean so much to me, Te’Phyre.” He drew her closer with his other arm and soon had her wrapped against his chest.
Her eyes fell closed as she took in warmth of his embrace. “You mean everything to me...”
A spark flickered within her. It tingled upward until it reached the back of her head. She exhaled and held him even tighter.
To her, the feeling was so strange and new, but she couldn’t help but feel as if she had felt it before.
To him, the feeling was almost surreal. He had ached for moments like this.
Their faces were so close; she could feel his breath.
Their lips were so close; he could almost taste them.
Sapphyre’s eyes shot open and she bolted away with a short outburst.
Luis leaned back in shock. “Wh—oh, I—I’m sorry, I...” He clutched at his head and turned away with a rosy expression. “I’m so sorry...”
The blue mermaid shook her head slowly. “No... No, it’s...” She sighed as her eyes squinted shut. “I can’t keep hiding this from you... I need to tell you about Neva’s gift.” She shook her head even more slowly. “...But I don’t want to lose you.”
His brows lowered, watching her carefully. “Why would you lose me?”
“Because,” she bit her lip, “it lost someone before.”
Luis carefully got to his hands and knees and crawled closer to where she sat. “Listen, no matter what it is, whether I accept it or not—I will always care about you. There’s not a single thing that would change that, I promise.”
His sincerity again proved itself as he took her hand and squeezed it tightly.
Sapphyre took a slow, deep breath as she looked at their hands. “The gift Mama’Ne gave me... it’s a very powerful magic that I hold within me.” Her face flushed a moment, “I can only give it with a kiss...”
“Oh,” Luis was hit with realization, but he remained piqued for the rest of the story.
She pressed her lips together and nodded slightly. “She gave it to me to give to Christopher to close the barriers between us, but he did not accept it.” She slowed into silence, trying painfully to recover a line that had already crushed one chapter of her life. When she glanced at his expectant look, she clenched her teeth and winced as the words spilled from her mouth. “...I hold the power to turn a human into a merman.”
Her words hung in the air; even the seagulls seemed to quiet. Luis was silent for longer than she would have expected. She began to worry as he remained unmoved with an expression that showed he was deep in thought.
“Well,” he finally spoke, though he kept his eyes on the sand, “I can understand why Christopher was surprised.”
The blue mermaid hunched over and grasped her tail, fearing the worst.
“...But he sure missed out.”
Her eyes popped open. When she slowly turned to look at him, he was smiling at her.
“Being a merman; that would be a life of never leaving you.” His smile grew. “That’s... that’s all I could ever ask for, Phyre.”
“You...” She found words difficult to muster. “You would... accept it?”
“I would go anywhere; do anything for you,” he placed a hand on her shoulder. “Te’Phyre, I love you.” He looked down almost sheepishly as his grin widened. “I always have... and I always will.”
Tears were already slipping from her eyes before he could finish speaking. She felt amazement, joy, confusion, and shock all at once. Without another thought, she was pulled into a tight hug. She clutched his back tightly and shut her eyes.
“I love you too,” she finally murmured into his ear. Still fighting disbelief, however, she loosened her grip and wiggled back from his arms. His warm expression alone almost disarmed her concern, but she continued to fight it. “You would really give up your life for me?”
“I’m not giving up anything; I’m gaining a life with you.” His eyes strayed aside. “I just... I need one night to make sure I have everything back there in order.”
She immediately grew tense.
“But I promise—I will be back.” He grasped her shoulders. “I promise with everything I am—and everything I will be—that I will be back. I love you.” He stressed his final words.
She still did not seem placated, though she attempted to nod as firmly as she could as he began to stand.
“Here,” he fished the purple starfish ring from his necklace, “This is my promise that I’ll be back.”
She watched as he knelt down and slid it onto her right ring finger.
He gently drew his face to hers as he kissed her cheek. She felt the roughness of his beard and the softness of his lips against her skin. Her eyes fell closed, overtaken by weakness and euphoria.
He slipped his hands under her shoulders and at once lifted her from the sand. Her tail wrapped around his back as he twirled her around, and she giggled over his shoulder as they spun to a stop.
He almost lost the strength in his knees when she rewarded his spontaneity with the widest smile he had ever seen.
She held his face in her hands, and pressed her forehead against his.
He shut his eyes as tears, laughter, and joy broke through the gentle rolling of the waves and the calling of the gulls.
He had loved her for years, and she loved him too.
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