Mermaid’s Lust

[Nina’s Perspective]

I have a piece of freshly roasted fish in my hand. Tingge and Huamei immediately stood up after seeing it. It is their usual habit, and I always make sure that they show some manners.

“Please get down! I shouted.

The two of them got scared and sat down quickly.

I tore the meat in half and divided it equally between them.

At this time, my mother was stunned and admired how I disciplined my pets.

Mom smiled and patted my head.

“I’m happy that you are behaving them well,” she responded.

Later on, My mother told me that she would like to bring her new dog for me to train.

“You look like you need another furry friend. I might as well bring my dog for you to play with the next time I visit here again”, she said.

She also told me that I could give it some training.

“Sure.” I agreed and promised her that she could bring the dog to play together the moment she’ll come back here to Greenland.

Late at night, I took my mother and my pets back to the cave to rest.

The cave was chilling. I noticed that my mother couldn’t bear the cold temperature.

I proceeded to the room to find a blanket for her.

“Here, take it.” I gave her a quilt.

“Thank you, Nina. “she hugged me and continued to rest on the bed.

I stared at them for a moment and made sure they were sleeping comfortably, then I went back to the shore alone.

I laid on the beach and gazed at the bright moon.

The waves created a cold breeze that feels so relaxing to me.

As I closed my eyes, I suddenly heard someone coming from the ocean water.

Who could it be? It’s already late, and no one can sail their boats this time of the day. I sat down and glanced around.

My eyes grew big when I saw who it was.

Why is he here? It cannot be!

I looked at the man for a second time.

It really is Kevin! He came to Greenland alone in a boat.

I was so shocked. I don’t want to see his presence here!

I got up and ran as fast as I could. I heard him running towards me.

As a result, Kevin caught up with me.

He took my hand, carried me and placed me on the top of a big stone.

“Nina, I missed you so much. There wasn’t a day that I thought of you.”, he looked at me with pure despair and told me that he still wanted to be with me.

I wiggled and removed his arms around me.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t believe you anymore and never will again,” I replied coldly.

At this moment, he suddenly wanted to kiss me forcefully.

“Stop it Kevin!”I shouted.

Fortunately, I responded quickly and skimmed my head to avoid him.

“What do you think you’re doing! ” I desperately stopped him.

I looked at Kevin with a sad and distrustful eye.

“Nina, I came here for you. I know what I did was wrong and I went all over here to ask you a second chance,” he told me.

I looked away and replied, “For what Kevin? Haven’t you done enough?

I’m sorry but I can’t believe in your lies anymore.”

He also looked at me deeply and didn’t speak a word.

The silence was very loud and it made him realize everything.

He suddenly let go of me and walked away.

[Kevin Perspective]

Are you sure you can’t go back?

I walked on this empty beach and felt a little lonely.

I love Nina. I really do.

I ended her trust and she seemed to really despise me.

I can’t do anything if she wants me out of her life.

Nevertheless, I still hold thoughts on whether I’d stay or not.

My heart was also hurt and I was feeling devastated from her rejection.

Just when I was still regretting it, suddenly, there was an old woman who appeared beside me.

“Oh, my God! You are a ghost!” I looked at this startled grandmother on the desolated beach.

It’s maybe because she had not taken care of herself for a long time.

Her white hair was looking very rough and her clothes were messy and dirty. She leaned on a crutch while gazing at me.

I almost screamed and ran, where did she come from all of a sudden?.

The grandma looked at me with deep eyes and calmly greeted me,

“Hello there son, I am Grandma Jingchen.”

Still shocked, I took a few steps back and asked her.

“What can I do for you?”

“Do you like the girl just now?” Grandma Jingchen tentatively asked me.

Why does she know about me and Nina? Did she happen to hear our conversation? I was very puzzled.

I was sure that we were the only people in that area. I swallowed my saliva and continued to answer her, “Yes! But she doesn’t trust me anymore because I broke her heart once.”

She continued to stare at me like she’s trying to memorize my whole face.

“Did you know she was a mermaid?” she curiously asked.

How could this old woman know about Nina’s secret? Do they know each other? I was more and more mystified by this encounter. Aside from the fact that she came from nowhere, she also knew some hidden information. It feels amusing and scary at the same time.

“I knew about her secret, but when I saw her in her mermaid form, I thought she was a monster and abandoned her immediately.

I was very naive back then. I regretted that moment that caused Nina pain and anger. Because now, I feel that no matter what she is, I still like her, and I can’t forget her ever since. I tried to seek her forgiveness, but she rejected me. She was very mad at me and pointed out that she has completely lost her trust in me. There is nothing else I could do, I felt helpless and left her again.”I answered her.

“If you really loved her, would you give up everything for her?” Grandma Jingchen asked this question, which baffled me.

I hesitated for a moment. “Why would you want to give up everything you own, just because you love someone?” I told her.

“Okay son, now I know your answer,” she replied

Then all of a sudden, Grandma Jingchen disappeared in front of my eyes.

I felt a dreamy feeling that night, I always thought I met a madman, so I didn’t care much about that moment and thought that I may be hallucinating.

Although I felt a strange feeling, I proceeded back to Heidi in a boat.

[Nina Perspective]

I watched Kevin leave until he disappeared from my sight.

Suddenly, someone patted me on the shoulder.

I turned my head and looked at it. It turned out to be Grandma Jingchen.

Grandma Jingchen has been very kind to me in recent days. I also dreamt and learned her story when she was still living. She often reminds me to pay attention to some details.

Honestly, It has made my life quite better recently.

I hid my sorrowful face and greeted her warmly.

“Hi Grandma, It’s already late. How did you appear at this time of the day all of a sudden?” I asked her.

“So… that young man who just left, do you love him?” Grandma Jingchen asked me directly if I still have feelings for Kevin.

She might’ve overheard our conversation while her soul was lurking in the seaside.

I took a deep breath and started to explain to her.

“So you’ve met Kevin. Yes, It must be impossible to have no feelings at all, but I want to be sure how much he loves me. He already hurt my feelings once and I am not sure whether I could forgive him or not ” I replied.

“Is that so my child? Well, are you willing to find out for yourself? Grandma Jingchen asked me.

“If I could have the chance then why not,” I told her.

“That’s good to know. I don’t want you to overthink about it and I need you to clear out all your doubts. Here is what we are going to do… ”

Grandma Jingchen came up with a plan, which I thought was feasible. She wanted to help me verify Kevin’s true intentions personally.

“Go ahead and follow him. Ask him if he’s willing to give up his job and settle his life with you,” she ordered me.

“But…”As I was about to respond, she interfered.

“Nina… It’s now or never. Go ahead and follow him.” Grandma Jingchen smiled at me.

I was startled and grabbed my paddle quickly. There’s no more time left!

I removed my clothes then hopped on the cold sea.

I needed to swim as a mermaid to reach him on time.

My arms stroked the waters as fast as I could.

There it is! I can see Kevin’s boat!

I rushed in front of it and grabbed the boat’s wooden edge.

“Ke.. vin…” I desperately called out for his name.

I can see in his eyes that he was shocked to see me.

“Nina? What are you doing here?” He curiously asked me.

I can see on his face that he was startled by my sudden appearance.

“Kevin, I want you to answer me honestly. I would like you to think about it carefully.”

“About what?” he prompted.

“Do you really want to be with me?”I asked him.

He went closer to me and held my hand.

“Of course Nina!, why would I travel here to pursue you if I wouldn’t want to,” he replied.

For a moment, I felt a little hope and happiness hearing his response, then I went ahead to ask him my most important question.

“Then… are you willing to leave your successful career and live a simple life for me?” I added as I stared at his eyes with pure desperation.

Kevin’s face turned pale. He cannot respond to my question right away.

At that moment, a needle struck my heart. I think I knew what I needed to hear.

“Nina… I love you so much and I want to be with you so badly.

But, you see… it is not that easy to leave my personal life and settle with you.” he replied.

Kevin cannot look into my eyes. He stared at the waters blankly.

All of my hopes for our reconciliation have shattered.

A tear flowed in my eyes as I stared at his pale face.

I released my hand from his boat and woefully dived back to the sea.

I reached the shore weeping my tears.

The result was the same as I thought.

He would never give up his career for me.

Though I feel sad about Kevin’s decisive departure and rejection, I am also relieved to know his answer.

He won’t love me like Mom and Dad.

He can’t give up everything he has just because he loves me.

I have always been so selfish to let him go, but that’s because I love him and I don’t want him to get hurt.

Grandma Jingchen comforted me, she seemed to know what had already happened.

From my gestures, it’s already quite obvious.

“Everything would be okay my child, time heals all your pain,” she told me.

Grandma Jingchen advised me not to be sad and said that I would meet better men in the future.

Today was an emotionally draining event, I was happy with my mom’s arrival then I was suddenly broken-hearted now.

Feeling a little tired, I went back to the cave and fell asleep.

The next morning, my mother woke me up because my pets kept barking and meowing, not because they were hungry, but because they needed my help to go outside the cave.

I had no choice but to wake up from my sweet sleep.

I fixed our beddings and changed my clothes.

My mother noticed my tired eyes and weird behaviour.

“Are you okay Nina?” she asked me worriedly.

“Yes mom, It’s just that I went swimming in the dark waters last night and I had sand go through my eyes.” I tried to force a smile and answered her.

“Are you sure?” she insisted.

“Please don’t worry, I am all fine,” I told her proudly.

Finally, she was convinced and shifted to a new topic.

It’s been a long time since I shared my problems with mom, especially when it comes to my relationship matters.

I don’t want to add to her stress and make sure she would go home without any worries.

I went over to grab the groceries I bought from the supermarket and showed them to mom.

“Look, mom, I have a lot of ingredients here. Can you guess what dish I would like us to prepare?”

She smiled and peeked at the plastic bag I was holding.

“Hmmm… let me see. Pasta, Tomato Sauce, Pepper and some more spices.”

She paused for a while and started to think deeply.

She snapped her fingers and proudly answered.

“Aha! Are you planning Spaghetti?” She smiled at me.

“You’re right mom.” I smiled back and proceeded to give her a high five.

We laughed and continued to prepare the ingredients on my makeshift dining table.

My mother and I prepared spaghetti while Tingge and Huamei stared at the food. They looked at the food with much curiosity.

I jokingly said they would die after eating this, and they quickly ran back to their playing area.

“The weather is very humid and the waters are inviting for a swim”, she stated.

“We can go for a swim if you wanted to,” I responded.

My mom smiled at me and felt excited to plunge into the sea.

After a full meal, my mother took out her bathing suit and changed into the dresser.

I also followed to the sea wearing my bathing suit, whileTingge and Huamei ran to the sand as fast as they could.

On the shore, I took my mobile phone and began to take pictures of the colourful corals.

I saw mom and my pets playing in the seashore.

What a perfect moment! I immediately directed my camera towards them and took their photos.

I also took some beautiful photos for my mother to take back as a souvenir when she returns.

After a few hours, my mother was a little tired, so we took a group photo at the sea and returned to the cave.

Good times always pass quickly. That afternoon, my mother packed her bags and went back. She promised me that she would come back to live here at least twice a month.

“Please take care of yourself, same with Tingge and Huamei too,” she advised me.

“I will mom… don’t worry,” I assured her.

We all hugged and kissed each other goodbye.

“See you soon mom, Don’t forget to bring your pet dog next time,” I added.

After my mother went back, Tingge and Huamei looked in the direction of her leaving boat. They looked curious about where my mother was going. When I looked at them, I thought they were so cute and clueless.

Looking at the sunset and the orange sky. I picked up my mobile phone and recorded this beautiful moment.

Sunsets on the beach are absolutely the best sight!

The memories came back to my mind which made me pause for a moment. After everything that happened yesterday, I felt quite sad, but

to think of it Grandma Jingchen is right, better days would come soon.

I should focus more on my work.

Maybe Kevin and I weren’t really meant for each other.

I took out my sketchbook and began to depict the setting sun while sitting on the beach. Tingge and Huamei were staring at me while I stroked my pencil.

They observed me while I was drawing.

I came up with an idea and gazed at these cute animals.

I held them both and placed them sitting together in the port’s benchers.

I made sure that the sunset is placed between them to have a perfect illustration.

After making sure that they have a great position, I grabbed my materials and started to draw them quickly.

After a few minutes, I showed them the finished drawing.This content © Nôv/elDr(a)m/a.Org.

They were nodding continuously like a person agreeing.

I’m sure that they loved it.

It was already getting late. I carried them down and held them.

We are ready to go back to the cave.