Another Chance
Part 3
The night before, Evie had gone for a swim with her boyfriend. She felt like swimming that way helped her calm down before the exams. She was pretty stressed and nothing helped more than a swim. She never realized how she missed the feeling of freedom when it's just her and the ocean. As Zac said before, when you're in the ocean; there is no homework, no parents, no jobs, etc. When you're in the ocean, you let go of every human responsibility you are stuck with and you can just be yourself. That was the best feeling in the world.
The other mermaids all learned about what happened to Evie and how she got her tail back. In a weird way, Veridia looked relieved. The truth was, since Evie lost her tail, Veridia was scared Evie would blab about mermaids since it didn't affect her anymore. She knew she wouldn't do that now since she has her tail back. Veridia was more worried about Nerissa than Evie.
The alarm went off in Evie's room like it did every other morning before school. She had skipped school the day before just like Wei Lan and Zac did after the reveal. It wasn't such a bad thing since it was only revision and there weren't any exams.
She couldn't concentrate on school though; the mermaid part of herself was way more interesting.
Evie straightened her left arm and tried to shut her alarm. She ended up making it fall on the floor, but it didn't stop. She lazily got on her feet and leaned down to grab it and shut it.
She walked down the stairs and headed for the kitchen to eat breakfast. She opened the fridge and got a bowl of prawns. It felt natural to her to eat that. She saw down at the kitchen table and started to eat when her father walked in.
"Morning, Sweetheart." Doug said happily.
"Morning, dad." Evie responded while she took the shell off another prawn and put it in her mouth.
Doug did a double take realizing Evie wasn't eating her usual breakfast.
"Why are you eating prawns?" Doug asked completely clueless.
"I just felt like it." Evie responded it was the mermaid side of her that made her do that.
"Okay…" Doug said suspiciously. "Anyway, I'm very excited for tonight."
Evie's eyes widened. She had no idea what he was talking about.
Getting that her daughter looked confused, Doug explained himself.
"Our weekly father-daughter night dive." He said to his daughter. "Don't tell me you forgot?"
She had forgotten about that, because of the recent development.
"It's not that, I promised Zac I would help him study biology tonight since the exams are very soon." She lied easily and it scared her how easy it was for her. "I'm sorry, dad."
"It's okay, Evie. I understand. The school year is almost over and you need to do your best during the exams." Doug said.
"Thanks, dad." Evie said with a weak smile.
After that small conversation, Evie's dad left the house for another day full of dives. Evie, on the other hand, was pretty much frozen in place with wide eyes.
One thing she was happy about when she lost her tail was that she could do more father-daughter activities and get closer to her dad. Now that it was history, she would have to drift away from him again as well as lie so often it will become second nature.
At that moment, she was devastated. It was all over, again.
Her eyes were glassy now and a tear might have escaped her right eye.
She walked outside and sat on the jetty behind her house looking straight at the canal.
How could something so incredible and magical bring her such happiness and yet such sadness?
She had meant it when they were talking about Rita's choice to leave the school. You cannot be caught between two worlds eternally; one of them had to take over to the loss of the other.
Evie couldn't imagine being able to balance those two worlds without creating problems or being in trouble herself. She cannot just go to the sea. She doesn't belong there. She was not born a mermaid, but she couldn't live away from the ocean anymore since being a mermaid was a part of her.
This is so frustrating. Evie thought to herself as more tears poured down her face.
Without looked back, she jumped in the canal and swam to Zac's place. What she didn't know was that her father had come back because he forgot his wallet and saw her dive in. He wasn't expecting her to surface, but she never did. A bit panicked, he ran to the jetty and looked into the water. Far away, he could see a shape that pretty much looked like a human swimming away.
"Wow, she has improved her swimming." Doug whispered to himself still having a weird feeling about this. Why did she jump in fully clothed? Isn't she supposed to go to school? That did not make sense. He decided to shake it off since he needed to get to work.
A couple of seconds later, Evie made it to Zac's bungalow. School only started in an hour and a half, so they had time to talk.
Evie stormed into the bungalow, which only startled Zac.
"I hate being a mermaid." She shouted.
Zac looked at her with a mix of surprise and disappointment. It was his life and he loved every single parts of it. How could she not?
Zac sat down on one of the couches in his room and motioned for Evie to sit down too.
"What's wrong?" Zac asked after a couple of long seconds to give Evie time to calm down.
"It's ruining my life." She said with a cracked voice. Zac embraced her and held her close.
"What happened?" Zac whispered in her ear. Evie pulled away and took a deep breath.
"I just don't want to be a mermaid anymore." She said to the merman.
"You were thrilled yesterday that you got your tail back." Zac stated obviously confused.
"I didn't realize what it would make me do." She said.
Zac looked at her puzzled.
"I had to cancel plans with my dad because of my freaking tail." Evie said.
"So, that's why you're mad." Zac stated as he understood her sudden mood swing.
"Yes." She said. "I don't want to be caught between two worlds again. It's impossible to live in both at the same time."
"Evie." Zac said as he took one of her hands between his. "I've been doing this for years now and everything is great."
"That's not the same. You were born a merman. That's the world you live in." She defended.
"No, it's not. I'd be living like Eric if I lived like a merman." Zac stated and that left Evie quiet for a couple of seconds.
"Evie, I might have been born a merman, but I am living a double life on land. I've never had to choose between two worlds. I just chose the best of both worlds." (1) Zac said to his girlfriend.
"But you are a real merman. I don't belong in the sea. I'm not a real mermaid." Evie said.
"Do you have a tail?" Zac asked.
"Yes." Evie said confused by the question.
"Do you have magic?" Zac asked.
"Yes." Evie repeated.
"Can you breathe underwater?" Zac asked.
"Yes." Evie said for the third time.
"Those are all the qualifications to being a real mermaid." Zac said.
"You forgot one." Evie said dryly.
"What?" Zac asked.
"Being born in the sea and belonging to a pod." Evie said.
"Evie… You might not have been born in the sea, but you belong with the Mako pod. You were the first land girl to receive a moon ring from a mermaid council. I believe that qualifies you." Zac said to his girlfriend.
"I just don't understand how I can get the best of both worlds (1) if I have to lie to the people I love." Evie said.
"Then don't." Zac said.
"You want me to tell people I'm a mermaid?" E vie asked surprised.
"I know you're talking about your dad. Your best friend knows about you, my best friend knows about you, David knows about you, the mermaids know about you, my parents know the whole story; the only person who doesn't know is your dad." Zac explained to the mermaid.
"You want me to tell my dad?" Evie asked.
"Why not? I told my parents and they took it surprisingly well. They even invite Nerissa and Mimmi for lunch every week. I'm sure your dad will understand. You won't have to lie anymore."
"I'm not sure." Evie said.
"That's the only reason you say you're caught between two worlds, I'm sure of it." Zac said confidently.
"Yeah, probably." Evie answered.
"I'm sure you'll feel better once you tell him." Zac said.
Evie stayed quiet for a couple of minutes and when she spoke up again, her question startled Zac.
"Do you ever think about what your life would be if you just lived at sea and gave up living on land?" She asked.
"Every day of my life since I first became a merman." Zac admitted easily.
"I mean, there would be no school, no money, no job and no responsibilities." Evie said.
"I know, but it would also mean no parents and no friends on land." Zac said.
"You see, you cannot balance those two worlds." Evie said.
Zac sighed at his girlfriend's persistence.
"I don't want to choose between both. I've been living in both since I first got my tail and I love my life." Zac said. "I wouldn't want it any other way."
"It's hard." Evie admitted. "I want a future in management, but the sea is calling to me at the same time."
"I know, Evie. I'm also attracted to the sea, but I don't want to give up everything I've accomplished on land and every single person I love." Zac said.
"I know." She said.
"So, are you gonna tell your dad?" Zac asked.
"I think I will." Evie said. "Tonight."
"That soon?" Zac asked.
"Yes. I told him I couldn't go on the dive with him. We used to do this just the two of us. I'll tell him you cancelled and go with him and I'll explain everything on the boat." Evie said.
"That's very courageous of you. What if you get sprayed with water on the boat?" Zac asked.
"It's big enough. I won't." Evie said confidently.
"Alright then. Call me once you told him. We've got to get to school now." Zac said.
The couple left the bungalow and left for another day of revision.
Evie was quietly sitting in the kitchen doing her math homework waiting for her dad to come home. She was shaking from apprehension. She was really scared about her dad's reaction. For Zac's parents, it made sense because he was adopted, but for her, it all just relies on magic and she's not sure her dad is going to like that.
She was trying and trying to solve an algebra problem when her dad finally walked in. She froze in fear for a couple of seconds. She took a deep breath.
"Hey, dad." Evie said with a weak smile.
"Hey, darling." Doug responded. "Aren't you supposed to be at Zac's?" He asked his daughter.
"He cancelled on me." Evie said. "So, I thought we could still go diving."
"Yeah, sure, why not?" Doug responded. Evie was both relieved and anxious about her father's answer. "Are you okay? You look pale."
"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just a bit tired." Evie answered.
"It's not a good idea to dive if you are this tired." Doug said.
"I'm fine, dad. I really want to go." Evie said lying through gritted teeth. She was nervous, anxious and terrified.
"Okay. Anyway, we are both experts in diving." Doug said with a genuine smile.
Evie and Doug at their supper and chitchatted about anything and everything. Evie had calmed down a bit, but she was still very apprehensive. When the time came to leave the house and go on the boat. Evie asked to go diving at Mako Island's mangrove since it was a secluded spot and the pod didn't hung around that place much.
Doug finally stopped and threw the anchor in the water. He then prepared all of the diving gear they needed for the dive.
"Don't prepare mine." Evie demanded knowing there was no going back now.
"You don't want to dive?" Doug asked.
"I do want to dive. I meant I won't need it." Evie said.
"How come? You won't be able to dive very deep." Doug responded.
"Dad..." Evie started. "I didn't just ask you to come here to dive. There is something very important that I need to tell you." Evie said.
"What is it? Are you okay?" Doug asked suddenly concerned about his daughter's behavior.
"I'm fine." Evie said.
"Are you sure?" He asked.
"Yes." Evie said. "But you've got to promise that you won't get mad."
"Get mad? You're not pregnant, are you?" Doug asked.
"Of course not, but this is something even more improbable." Evie said.
"Remember that time when I wouldn't go on dives or swim with you anymore?" Evie asked. She saw hurt flash through her father's eyes.
"Of course." He answered on a melancholic tone.
"It wasn't because I did not want to go. Something happened to me about a year ago and I couldn't go in the water or I'd risk the biggest secret of my life."
"You're scaring me." Doug said as he sat down on a chair. Evie copied his actions.
"So, about a year ago, I ended up in a cave on Mako Island under the full moon. Something magical happened at that moment and it changed my life forever." Evie explained carefully.
"What happened?" Doug asked.
"It turned me into a mermaid." Evie stated and her father laughed.
"I'm sorry, what?" Doug asked.
"You heard right." Evie said.
"A mermaid, really?" Doug said.
"Yes and that's why I asked you to come here, so I could show you." Evie said seriously.
"Wait, you said it happened a year ago, but until a couple of days ago, you won't on dives with me and you did not have a mermaid tail." Doug said confused.
"My powers were taken away by a water dragon. We broke the spell on it and it gave me back my powers." Evie said.
"Too much information at once. A water dragon?" Doug asked.
"I know it sounds crazy, but it's the truth." She responded to her dad.
"Wait, we?" Doug asked.
"It's a complicated story, but there are lots of mermaids and mermen in the waters around here and you know one very well." Evie said.
"I don't know a mermaid." Doug said.
"True, you don't know a mermaid, you know a merman: Zac." Evie said.
"What? Zac is a merman?" Doug asked.
"Yes, he was born one." Evie said.
"Evie, this is ridiculous." Doug said. "Why are you making up such stories?"
"You don't believe me?" Evie asked. "I'll show you."
Evie walked to the edge of the boat and prepared herself to dive. She looked back at her dad for a split second and dove in. Doug followed right behind her to make sure her daughter was alright. When she swam back up Doug froze in place as soon as he saw her tail.
"Do you believe me now?" Evie asked.
"I-I, erm, I do." Doug finally managed to say. "It's because of him; did he turn you into a mermaid?"
"No, he didn't. It was just a matter of being at the wrong place at the wrong time." Evie answered honestly.
"You mentioned powers earlier, what's that?" Doug asked.
"I have magical powers principally over the weather and water." Evie answered.
"Wow, this is incredible." Doug exclaimed.
"Why don't you join me?" Evie asked. "I could show spots around Mako you've never seen before."
"Sure." Her father said with a genuine smile.
Doug put on all the equipment he needed to dive and walked to the edge of the boat. He sat on it and let himself fall backwards. Evie dove in the water as soon as he did. He looked at her completely stunned. It made sense now to why she jumped in the canal fully clothed earlier that day.
He looked at his daughter in awe. She was so graceful and beautiful as a mermaid under the water.
She showed him small caves and all sorts of species living around Mako that a diver wouldn't normally notice.
Doug was still completely shocked when they climbed back on the boat and she dried her tail using magic.
"I can't believe this." Doug said. "Why didn't you tell me before?"
"I was getting used to the idea of being a mermaid and when I was used to it, I lost it all." Evie said. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you until today. I was scared."
"Why?" Doug asked a bit hurt.
"Being a mermaid is a pretty big deal and the pod doesn't want human to know about it so I kinda lived by the idea." Evie admitted.
"I'm your father; you know you can tell me anything." Doug stated.
"I know and I'm sorry. It was hard to accept the fact that I am now half mermaid and half human." Evie said to her father. "You'll keep this a secret, right?"
"Of course sweetheart. Scientists and media would abuse you if the found out." Doug said.
"Thank you, dad." Evie said. Her father reached for a hug, but she rejected it.
"I'll pretend I'm not hurt." Her dad said bitterly.
"It's not that. You're wet. If I touch water, I get my tail and I don't feel like getting my tail on the boat." Evie explained as her father's facial expression softened.
"I guess that makes sense." Doug said.
"So, you're not mad?" Evie asked carefully.
"No, I'm just glad you told me the truth." Doug said.
"I really wish I could hug you right now." Evie said and they both laughed.
"I heard you wanted to see me." Evie said as she entered the grotto.
"Not exactly." Ondina responded as Mimmi stood beside her and Rita, Zac and Wei Lan arrived from the house in the grotto.
"Then why am I here?" Evie asked.
"Because Veridia wanted to talk to you." Ondina said as she stepped aside to reveal Veridia sitting behind the desk in Rita's grotto.
"Veridia, what a surprise." Evie said. "It's always nice to see you."
"Likewise." Veridia said politely. "I just wanted to let you know that since you've got your tail back, you are a member of the pod and will always be welcomed amongst us."
"Thank you, Veridia. This is a real honor coming from you." Evie responded happily.
"And since you are a member of the pod and mermaids your age have moon rings, I'm giving it back to you." Veridia said as she took a sea shell and opened it to reveal the silver ring with the blue stone.
"Thank you so much, Veridia. I promise I will learn to use it efficiently and intelligently." Evie said as the older mermaid stood and walked towards her to put the moon ring on her finger.
"I'm sure you will. Rita and Ondina will be happy to teach you." Veridia said.
Evie smiled and turned around to hug Zac.
"Well, I should go back to the pod, I have an important meeting." Veridia said as she left the grotto through the pool.
"I can't believe I got it back." Evie said enthusiastically.
"I told you it was possible to get the best of both worlds." (1) Zac said as he winked at his girlfriend.
The other mermaids were really happy Evie had gotten her tail back. She was one of them and losing her was hard for all of them.
Well, that was the last part of Another Chance. Thank you all so much for the follows, favorites and reviews. It really means a lot to me. I hope you enjoyed this story and I promise there is more to come throughout the summer.
(1) Sorry, I couldn't resist.