After my feet bled for the first time, I suppose I collapsed, likely from the shock of it rather than the pain. I had experienced much more painful things that day, and I was determined to not let this minor one destroy me. However, simply the surprise of seeing so much of human blood on the ground beneath me was enough to make me faint. There’s something much more haunting about human blood than mermaid blood; it may be the color of it, how red it is. The bright color is like some sort of a warning, bringing death with it.

When I woke up, I was covered in sand that was plastered to my still damp body, and waves were continuing to wash gently over me. The sun had risen again, and I vaguely realized that I felt it. In places not covered by my hair or sand, my white skin was steadily turning a reddish pink, and it stung slightly, though not quite as bad as a jellyfish sting. When I poked my sunburn, it hurt, and I frowned at it.

Suddenly, I heard voices. There were voices coming toward me. They were still faint, but there were at least two different ones. I sat up abruptly and looked around me, in search of some place to hide. I couldn’t let any humans see me like this! Covered in sand, sweat, and salt, my feet stained red—and humans were supposed to wear clothes, weren’t they?

The beach was flat and treeless, just a small stretch of featureless land. There was no place to hide. The voices were nearing. I lay back down and wrapped my long blonde hair around me, hoping that if I was still enough they wouldn’t see me. I prayed that the waves that were still occasionally upon me would disguise my form from the group of people.

As they grew nearer, I burrowed myself deeper into the sand, although I was careful to make sure I was in a position where I could still watch them.

“What are we going to do about Lola?” asked a distinctly male voice. He had curly brown hair, and one of his arms was linked with the girl beside him.

“Lola will be fine,” replied the woman. Her voice was light and airy, a sharp contrast to the gravelly tones of the man. The prettiness of it suited her, I noticed—she was thin and willowy, with pale blonde hair that fell in light waves. In the back of mind, I wondered what my own human voice would have sounded like. The woman continued speaking, “You know how she is. She’s down right now, but it won’t take much to bring her back to her usual self. This may take her a bit longer, of course, considering the situation, but there’s no reason to be so worried.”

He snorted. “Typical woman. Always so moody.”

She swatted him on the arm, and I had to stifle my gasp. But then I realized that they were both smiling, which meant it must just have been in jest. For some reason, it made me feel relieved.

Tugging on the sleeve of her blouse, the man pulled her in for a long, gentle kiss. It was something I myself had never experienced, though I knew it was intimate. Watching them, I was suddenly embarrassed, and I bowed my head and averted my eyes.

“Wait a sec. Did you see something?” the woman asked.

I froze. Had she really seen me bow my head? I did not raise my head, hoping that she was looking in the other direction and had seen something else altogether. My human heart pounded as hard as it had when I was struggling for air.

“See what?” the man said in a muffled murmur. His breathing was heavy, and he seemed disappointed about something.

“Over there. I swear I saw something move.”

“It was probably a seagull.”

“Well it’s just over there. It wouldn’t kill us to investigate, would it?” She was impatient, I could tell.

I still didn’t look up to see what was going on, and I didn’t have to. They were coming toward me now and I had no means of stopping them. It wasn’t even fear I felt anymore—neither of them seemed threatening in the least. Instead, I was filled with intense humiliation. Here I was, lying naked and injured on the beach, with no way to explain myself.

I did the only thing I could do: close my eyes and pretend to be asleep. Even so, I noticed the change of light behind my eyelids as their shadows crossed me.

“It’s a girl!” the woman gasped. “Is she dead?” Her voice shook with panic and fear.

“Hello? Hello!” the man tried to wake me.

“Oh my God! Christian, there’s blood! Call 911!”

I had scared them, it seemed, and that made me feel guilty. I hadn’t meant for them to think I was dead, only asleep and unaware. Before they could call 911, whatever that was, I opened my eyes, meeting the gaze of the pretty woman.

She grabbed the man’s arm, where he was fumbling with something square and shiny in his hands. “Stop. She’s alive!” To me she said, “Are you okay? What happened?”

I touched my throat, trying to tell them that I could not speak.

“Your neck? Your neck looks all right, no gashes or bruises. Only sunburned like the rest of you. What’s bleeding?” She was talking quickly, nervously, and she kept looking me up and down to see what she could do to help.

Again, I gestured at my throat, trying my best to communicate.

“Do you not speak English? What’s—“

“I don’t think she speaks at all,” the man finally interrupted. He glanced at me, and then looked away quickly. My nakedness embarrassed him in a way that did not affect the woman. “Can you speak?” he asked.

I shook my head.

The man lowered his voice as he said to his companion, “We need to take her to a hospital or a shelter or something. Somewhere where her family will be able to find her. She’s probably been reported missing.”

She wasn’t listening; all of her attention and concern was too busy with me. “Christian, will you go get a towel or a blanket from the car? She needs something to cover up with, I’m sure.”

“And then we can take her to the hospital.” It was not a question, but the statement was full of doubt. Still, he obediently walked away in search of something for me to wear.

The woman was looking at me with soft eyes. “I’m Hannah, and he’s Christian,” she told me. “We’ll make sure you’re taken care of, alright? Do you know if anyone could be looking for you?”

I thought of my father, grandmother, and sisters at home. But home was in the sea, and the sea didn’t matter anymore. They would be looking for me if they were not already, but I was certain that Hannah’s question did not include merpeople. I shook my head in response.

“Where are you from?” She paused for a moment, and then chuckled. “I guess I should only ask you yes or no questions, shouldn’t I? Have you run away from somewhere?”

I nodded before it occurred to me to lie.

She lowered her voice to a whisper as she asked her next question. “Do you need somewhere to stay? Just for a little while, anyway.”

Figuratively speaking, I was speechless. Here was a woman I had just met—and she was offering me a place to live? The notion seemed outlandish, particularly for a human. In the sea, they were spoken of as somewhat stingy and inhospitable, but with Hannah, this clearly wasn’t the case. Again, I nodded before I could stop myself. I did need somewhere to stay, and in my current state, I didn’t have the willpower or strength to make it on my own just yet.

“Alright. Christian may be a little angry about it at first, but he’ll relent. Especially after he remembers who pays the rent.” She winked at me, but I did not quite understand the joke. Still, I managed a small smile for both our sakes.

Christian had just returned as Hannah finished speaking. He handed me a brightly colored expanse of fuzzy fabric, still making sure not to look too closely at me. As I tried to stand, my legs shuddered in weakness; what kept me from falling was Hannah’s outstretched hand that I eagerly took. With my free arm, I awkwardly wrapped the towel around myself and clutched at it so that it would not fall away.

Hannah frowned. “Are you sure you can walk? Your legs seem weak from having lain there for so long. Christian can carry you, if you like.”

Again, I tried my best to smile. The last thing I wanted was for her to worry about me. And as much as I wished to avoid walking, I knew it was something I needed to get used to, no matter what the toll was on me physically.

Hesitantly, she released my hand. I tentatively took a few steps, and received exactly what I anticipated: a large amount of pain in my feet. I gritted my teeth in concentration to remain upright, and tried my best to stop the pain from registering on my face.

Hannah and Christian started walking together, both watching me over their shoulders. Both expecting me to fall and need their help, most likely. I was slow and unsteady, but I was able to follow them. Glancing over my own shoulder, I smiled genuinely as I noted that my trail of blood was noticeably lessening, even though the pain was not. If I was lucky, the blood would slow to a standstill and not attract the attention of my new friends or any other of my now fellow humans.

…..

I had seen pictures of cars before, and in the photos, they were always sleek and shiny. Hannah’s car was nothing like this. The outside was faded to a colorless hue, and even I could tell simply by looking at its boxy frame that it was awkward and ungainly.

Nevertheless, my ride in the backseat was one of my most exciting experiences yet. The car moved along of its own volition with only Hannah to guide it in whatever direction to go. I pressed my nose and forehead against the sun-warmed glass, my eyes wide as I stared out of the window. We passed too many trees to even begin to count, and I silently resolve to climb one of those monstrosities I had never before seen. As the drive lengthened, the groves of trees and plants and grass thinned out, while the number of other cars increased.

I shrunk back into my seat as I saw some sort of gigantic structures in the distance, shining in the sunlight against the sky. What are they? I was dying to ask. As Hannah drove on, they grew larger and larger, until we were among them. I noticed they had windows and doors, and must be some sort of living place. Tall, impossibly huge living places, with too much space for any one family. People lined the streets, walking too fast for me to get a good look at any of them. Everything about this human world seemed to be in excess. Too much this, too much that. I missed the simplicity of the beach, and then realized it had been stupid of me to assume that all human places would be so tranquil. There were reasons merpeople and humans could hardly coexist together, and this was likely one of them.

My real question was, how would I ever find my true love amidst all of this?

I had had enough of this for now. I curled my legs up into my chest, wrapped my arms around them, and closed my eyes.

…..

My moments of rest were few. It wasn’t long before the car slowly pulled to a stop, and I heard two car doors open and close. Then mine opened and Hannah was beside me, shaking my shoulder.

“Wake up, we’re home,” she whispered, trying her best not to startle me too much.

I yawned and stretched my arms as high as the roof of the car would allow, then hesitantly reached my legs out of the open door. Gingerly, I shifted my weight onto them, waiting for—ah, there it was. The pain that was slowly familiarizing itself with me.

Once again, I followed Christian and Hannah. Ahead of me, I listened to their muttered conversation.

“I thought you agreed we would take her somewhere,” Christian said, muted frustration in his voice.

“She doesn’t have anywhere to go. It won’t kill us for her to stay with us for a bit, will it? Besides, we have enough space. She says she’s a runaway, and if she is, well, she’s a grown woman. If we find she’s been reported missing, then we can let the authorities know she’s with us of her own free will.”

It did not take any more than Hannah’s argument for him to relent. “Fine,” he grunted. “But only because she’s so miserable looking. He glanced back at me, and I quickly lowered my eyes to the ground as if I hadn’t heard their conversation.

Although this building wasn’t one of the tallest, it was still intimidating up close. Like the car, it just had an old look to it, aided by the faded color of the red brick. Christian used a key to unlock the door, while Hannah told me, “It doesn’t look like much on the outside, but the inside is really nice, I promise. We have a lot of space for a pretty low rent.”

Inside the building seemed smaller than it appeared on the outside. There was a narrow hallway, a set of stairs, and an odd looking door without a handle. On it hung a sheet of paper with words on it that I was unable to read. The walls were covered in peeling yellow wallpaper that looked even worse in the artificial light.

Again, Hannah apologized. “I know you’re tired, but the elevator is out of order. We’re on the seventh floor. If you don’t think you can make it, my offer to have Christian carry you still stands.”

I shook my head and waved my hand as if to say, I don’t need the help. The stairs somewhat frightened me, it was true, but again, they were just something else I had to conquer.

Thankfully, the stairs did not make my feet hurt any worse than regular walking did, although they were hard for me to maneuver. I tripped once, and Hannah and Christian looked back at me with worry in their eyes. I smiled to reassure them and regained my balance.

After six flights of the difficult stairs, Christian stopped and opened the door on the landing for both Hannah and me. Inside was not where they lived, as I had anticipated. It was another hallway, identical to the one seven floors beneath us. Same rows of doors, same wallpaper.

“Our room is seven-oh-nine,” Hannah told me, stopping at one of the doors. She pointed at the number above it, and I tried my best to memorize what it looked like. 709. Alright.

Like Hannah had promised, the place in which they lived was nothing like the rest of the building. Here there was no peeling wallpaper, but fresh white walls, and even a few windows to let real light in. Everything about it seemed fresh and clean, and I enjoyed the feeling of the soft blue carpet between my toes.

“We have three bedrooms and one bathroom, a kitchen and this living room. Everything is a bit small, but only three of us live here, so it’s not too bad,” Hannah said. She nodded in the direction of a door. “That’s the bathroom. You can clean up in the shower and I’ll get you some clothes, alright?” She cocked her head and scrutinized me anew. “Mine might be a bit too big, but I bet something of Lola’s will fit you.”

The cool white tile of the bathroom felt nearly as nice as the carpet. I closed the door and dropped the towel I had been holding so close. However, the giant looking-glass hanging on the back of the door made me jump back a few steps. We had looking-glasses under the sea, but only small, broken pieces that we all deemed to be very valuable. Nothing so extravagant as this.

When I saw I took the time to look at myself, I couldn’t hold back a tiny giggle. Christian was right: I was miserable looking. Sunburned, sand in my hair, a few stains of blood on my ankles and feet—I was a mess. I stuck my tongue out at myself and laughed again, before moving on to inspecting the rest of this “bathroom.”

There was a white bowl carved inside a solid, square table with silvery tubes above it. I played with a few of the tubes, a spray of water suddenly came out of one and into the bowl. If I could have, I would have likely shrieked. I quickly turned it back, and the water stopped and disappeared altogether through a little series of holes in the bottom of the bowl. I waited for my speed of my heart to slow down before I moved onto the next contraption.

It was another white bowl, but this one was covered with a lid and sat on top of a low podium. I lifted the lid an inch and peered inside. There was already water in this one, and after I stared at it for a few minutes, I managed to deduce what it was for.

There was only one thing left in the bathroom for me to investigate, and I knew it must be the “shower” that Hannah mentioned, because it was the only one big enough for me to clean off in. I climbed awkwardly over the high edge of it, and as I had with the bowl in the counter, started to play with the little handles that were built into the immaculately smooth, white wall. This time I braced myself for the water.

It came from the ceiling, catching me unexpectedly. I let out a small, soundless scream when I felt how cold it was. There had to be some way to make it more bearable, right? Otherwise Hannah would have warned me. I hurriedly twisted the handles around more until the water reached a warmer, more bearable temperature. There. I saw a small puddle of water form on the bathroom floor, so I closed the salmon colored curtain that was hanging outside of the entrance to the shower.

As I let the water run over me, I sighed luxuriously. It was actually rather relaxing, and by far the most comfortable I had felt all day. Then, remembering I was here to get clean, I rubbed furiously at my hair and limbs until I became so.

I admit I probably took longer in the shower than I needed, but I eventually forced myself to turn the water off and step back into the bathroom. My eyes darted around the room, and I wondered what I was supposed to do next. The towel I had been wearing before was gone, and a newer, more fluffy towel sat folded up its place. Beneath it were the clothes that Hannah had promised me. With the towel, I dried myself off, feeling somewhat guilty over the mess I had made from the water I had dripped everywhere. When I was done with myself, I at least made an attempt at drying the rest of the bathroom off.

Next were the clothes. How exactly did these go? I recognized two pieces of them as a shirt and a pair of pants, because they were similar to what Hannah and Christian had been wearing. But what were these smaller pieces of fabric? I knew that humans wore undergarments….but how were they supposed to go?

After what seemed like an eternity I was finally able to figure them out, thankfully. Even the thought of having to ask for help made my cheeks flush. The rest of my outfit was easy enough to assemble. The shirt was black and a little oversized, with something written on it, and the pants were purple and covered in a plaid pattern.

I sighed again, but this time more in frustration than relaxation. I just had to become used to all of this eventually, didn’t I?