The boy continued staring at the empty space that wasn't empty. Air surrounded him, invisible oxygen that he couldn't see but was nevertheless vital. And of course, the creature was there.

"Hello?" he called tentatively.

"Hello," called the voice of a young girl. The water stirred around the hole in the water, and a female form appeared. "I'm sorry," she said. "I was just curious."

The boy continued to stare. The girl had hair the color of flame and a smile like no other. He was particularly worried about her sharp teeth.

She laughed, a sound like breaking glass, and glass was near invisible in water. Dangerous. "Oh, I didn't meant to scare you!" she said. "Really, I don't eat humans; they're way too tough."

The boy backed away.

"At least, that's what my grammy told me."

Grammy?

"I usually stick to oysters and small fish. But what about you? What are you doing in the water?"

"I was just swimming," said the boy. "It's a hot day."

"Is it?" said the girl, viewing the sky with curiosity. "I wouldn't know, but the water has been warmer than usual lately, at least closer to the surface."

The boy smiled, beginning to feel more at ease, more under her spell. He came closer. "What is it like to live in the water?" he asked.

The girl smiled again, sharp teeth sparkling in the sun. "Tell you what, boy," she said. "You can show me your home, and I'll show you mine." Then taking his hand, she pulled him along with her under the shimmering waters. Her emerald tail splashed one time before speeding them both to her ocean home.

Comments

Want to comment? Login or Join

Login Sign up
ericjkrause over 11 years ago

I'm not sure whether to say this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship or this boy is in big trouble now. Either way, this is a fun story!

the clark over 11 years ago

The ambiguity here is great. "Smiling" with "sharp teeth"... I'd love to know what happens underwater!

Anglea over 11 years ago

I alway love mermaid stories this one was a bit unnerving, making me wonder if the boy survive or not.

ganymeder (joined about 14 years ago)
Visit Website

Author Catherine Russell shares her life with her high school sweetheart, their son, and two ferocious puppies in the Wilds of Ohio while writing short stories, editing her novel, and learning more about the craft every day. Her work has been published in Flash Me magazine, Metro Fiction, Beyond Centauri, and the ‘Best of Friday Flash – Volume One‘ and the ‘Best of Friday Flash – Volume Two‘ anthologies.

No favorites

Story information

License

Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0

genres

fantasy

Contact


We like you. Say "Hi."