Mermaids in Miami
Copyright© 2026 by Rachael Jane
Chapter 9: Leaving the Aquarium
Naida wakes before the lights brighten, drifting in the quiet blue of early morning. Her new legs feel strange. They’re heavy and awkward. Her movement is slow in the water. She kicks experimentally, sending a clumsy swirl of bubbles upward.
Nerissa watches from a distance, arms wrapped around herself. Her tail flicks anxiously.
‘Does it still hurt?’ she asks.
Naida shakes her head. ‘No. It doesn’t hurt. It just feels different.’
‘Different isn’t always good.’
Naida swims closer, reaching for her sister’s hand. ‘I’m still me.’
Nerissa squeezes her sister’s fingers, but her thoughts tremble. ‘You don’t look like you.’
Before Naida can respond, a familiar splash echoes from above. It’s Brian. He descends through the water in a trail of bubbles, mask gleaming, fins slicing the surface. Naida’s heart leaps and then stutters. She suddenly remembers her legs. Her human legs.
Brian sees her immediately. He freezes mid‑descent, eyes widening behind his mask. His body jerks in shock, sending a burst of bubbles upward. He stares at her legs and feet. Her changed form utterly stuns him.
Naida lifts a hand in greeting, nervous. Brian doesn’t move.
Nerissa swims between them protectively, tail flaring. ‘Stay back!’ she warns Naida, though Brian can’t hear her.
Brian slowly raises both hands, palms open, as if approaching a frightened animal. He inches closer, eyes full of disbelief and wonder. Naida’s cheeks warm. She tucks her legs beneath her, embarrassed. Brian points to her legs, then to his own, then back to hers again. Naida nods shyly.
He lets out a muffled exhale through his regulator; a half laugh, half gasp. He reaches out, hesitates, then gently touches her ankle. His fingers are warm through the glove. Naida shivers at the touch. Nerissa turns away, unable to watch.
Brian gestures upward, toward the surface ladder. He taps his chest, then points to Naida, then to the world above. He’s asking her to come with him to the surface.
Naida’s heart races. She looks at Nerissa. Nerissa’s eyes widen in panic. ‘No. No, Naida, don’t go.’
‘Just to look,’ Naida replies. ‘I’ll come back.’
‘Humans take things. They keep things.’
‘Brian won’t.’
Nerissa’s emotions swell in alarm. ‘You don’t know that.’
Naida hesitates, but the pull is too strong. Curiosity and the possibility of discovery overcome her hesitance. Her body tingles with the strange warmth she feels around Brian.
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