Goodbye, Mermaid

The sea expanded far and wide. The allure of the ocean breeze was magnified by the setting sun in the distance.

A trail of footprints tracked in the sand, leading to the edge of the water.

The water washed gently over the toes of the boy standing on the water line.

The sensation sent pinpricks up and down his feet, but he paid it no mind. He was entirely focused on the sight before him.

The entire sea before him was covered in newspaper clippings.

The boy put his hands to his mouth.

Images flashed through his head.

A surfboard. A struggle. Calling voices.

But also,

A hand.

It’s reaching out.

The boy reaches his own hand out.

His hand gets closer.

Closer.

Almost touching.

Then,

The images are gone.

He’s back in the water.

The boy’s hand is still outstretched.

He stands frozen in the water.

The water brushes against his feet.

He pulls his hand back into his chest and stares at it.

-

The boy sat in the back of the classroom. The sun shone in through a nearby window. The boy shielded his eyes.

The girl in the seat behind him leaned over.

“Josh, did you do the homework for today? I forgot again.”

Josh didn’t respond. He simply pulled out his homework.

The girl smiled. She sat up in her seat, looking over his shoulder.

“Thanks Josh, you’re a lifesaver!”

She began copying his homework.

The teacher walked into the classroom.

“Alright, everybody. The homework for last night was chapter eleven. Did everyone do it?” the teacher announced to the class. A few students groaned.

“Jacob, will you collect the homework?” the teacher asked a student in the front row.

A boy in the front got up and walked down the rows, collecting papers from each student. When he picked up Josh’s paper, he stopped and looked at the desk behind him.

The girl held her papers out to him, beaming.

“Hey Jacob, can you believe I actually did my homework this time?”

Jacob blinked. Then he turned around and walked back to the teacher.

The girl’s mouth opened. “Did he just ignore me?”

She sat back in her seat.

She patted Josh’s back. He flinched.

“Josh, go give this to the teacher,” she demanded.

Josh didn’t turn around.

The girl pouted and crossed her arms.

“Fine, be that way. I didn’t want to turn it in anyways,” she announced.

She gave one more glance to Josh before turning away again.

-

Josh walked through the hallway with his head down. The girl followed behind him, swinging each arm as she walked.

Someone spotted Josh as he headed in the opposite direction. He turned around to walk with Josh.

“Hey, Josh. How are you feeling?” the boy asked.

Josh didn’t look up.

“I’m okay.”

The boy’s shoulders drooped slightly.

The two walked in silence for a moment.

“You know we’ve all been thinking about you,” the boy reminded him. “You should come by the old clubhouse after school.”

Josh gave him a shy smile.

“Yeah, maybe.”

The boy pursed his lips.

“Well, don’t be a stranger, okay. We’re all here for you, you know.”

The boy exhaled.

“I’ve got to get to my next class. See you after school?” The boy asked.

Josh stopped.

“I’ll think about it.”

The boy smiled slightly.

“Awesome. Hope to see you there!”

The girl watched as he walked off.

“That was weird,” she stated. "What's wrong with him?"

She turned her nose up.

Josh kept walking.

-

Josh looked up at the clubhouse that loomed in front of him. Written on the door in bold letters was the phrase “Secret Clubhouse.” The windowsills were covered in dust, and some of the paint had chipped off the siding.

The girl peeked around his shoulder.

She rubbed her chin.

“You know, it’s not much of a secret if you write that on the door.”

Josh took a breath.

“Been a while since I’ve been here,” he realized.

He bit his lip.

Suddenly, the door swung open.

The boy stood in the doorway.

“If it isn’t the man of the hour. Come on in!” he called to Josh, gesturing with his hand.

Josh rubbed his hands on his shorts.

He stepped forward.

The girl realized that she was being left behind and quickly bolted after him.

Inside the clubhouse were numerous board games scattered about. There was a couch with three people sitting on it as well as a TV and a couple of chairs.

“Josh!” A chorus of voices greeted him as he entered. He froze upon hearing them.

“Hey, guys,” Josh managed to blurt out.

Jacob sat down on a bean bag to the side.

Jacob looked back at him. “Come and take a seat. We were just going to watch a few movies.

A smile crept its way onto Josh’s face.

“Thanks guys,” he said quietly.

One of the guys waved his hand. “Hey, there’s no need for that. Just come take a seat.”

Josh nodded and walked over to a chair to the left.

The girl stood at the entrance to the room. She gingerly crept into the room and took a seat beside Josh. No one said anything about her entering.

The group watched a few movies. They laughed at dumb horror movies when the monsters appeared and jumped at some of the scares.

One of the boys chimed in, “I hate when they add these weird supernatural things into these movies. Like I just want to watch something normal without all the ghosts and monsters.”

Another one retorted. “I actually kinda like it.”

“You would.”

Some laughter.

Josh looked around at the group.

He blinked a few times. Then he looked over to the seat where the girl was sitting.

The girl’s eyes widened. “What? Why are you staring at me like that?”

Jacob noticed Josh’s gaze.

“You know,” Jacob cleared his throat. “It’s been forever since we all got together like this. We should do it more often.”

Josh looked up at him.

A boy on the couch frowned. “I don’t know, we have finals coming up- Ow!”

One of the other boys elbowed him.

“That’s a great idea!” the other boy said.

Josh closed his eyes. He leaned back into the chair.

Jacob spoke in a quiet voice. “You know we’re all going to be there tomorrow, right?”

The room went silent.

Josh swallowed. He sat up in the chair and looked at them.

“Why are you treating me like this all the sudden?"

No one spoke. Josh cleared his throat.

“It's not like we're all friends.”

Josh looked at the ground.

He felt the stares of the boys around him pouring into him.

Jacob spoke up.

"I know you're upset, Josh, but we're trying to help you here."

Josh got up. He took one more look around. Then he left.

The girl hadn’t moved in this whole time. She looked around at the guys around her. They were all looking at Josh as he left.

She balled her fist.

Then, she got up and followed him.

-

Josh was in a small room adjusting his suit. His mom was helping him. The girl stood in the corner of the room.

“Is this long enough?” His mom asked.

“Yes, mom. It’s fine,” Josh groaned.

His mom finished pulling down on his tuxedo.

Then she looked up at him.

“Are you going to be okay doing this?” she asked.

Josh hesitated. He took a shaky breath.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine.”

Josh’s mother grabbed his hand.

“Okay, let’s do it.” She opened up the doors in front of them.

The two walked into a large room. People stood around chatting. A few of them stopped and turned when they saw Josh.

Everyone was wearing black. Some wore suits, some dresses, but everyone wore the same color.

Josh pursed his lips. He turned to the right. His breath caught.

He walked forward.

The girl stepped into the room behind him, searching for Josh with her eyes before finally locking onto him.

“Where are you going Josh? What’s going on?”

The girl walked over to where he was.

“Josh?”

Josh’s expression couldn’t be put into words. It was as if his face had no emotion at all, but you could tell exactly what he was thinking by his clenched, shaking fist at his side.

The girl followed his gaze. Before them sat an open casket. Inside was a girl who looked identical to her.

The girl stepped forward. She touched the other girl’s face.

“This isn’t possible. What’s going on?”

The girl’s breathing picked up. She scanned the face of the girl in the casket over and over again. She slowly shook her head.

“Don’t look at me like that. That’s not me. Who are you!”

The girl grabbed the coffin lid and closed it. She took a few steps back.

Josh jumped, breaking him from his trance. He looked at the coffin.

“What the…?” He took a step towards the coffin. He put his hand out to touch it then stopped himself.

“Hey, Josh! Josh, this is a joke, right?” The girl waved her hands in front of Josh’s face.

“Josh? Why are you ignoring me?” The girl backed up a few steps.

She looked around. No one was looking at her.

“Am I... dead?” she asked herself.

Suddenly a voice came from behind them.

“Hey Josh, the reception is starting.”

Josh turned around to see his four friends standing there.

“Okay. I’m coming.”

-

Josh sat near the back as the pastor spoke up front. A number of people sat in front of him. The pastor cleared his throat.

“We are here today to celebrate the life of Lorelei Isla. A life taken from us too soon. You know, there is a legend in this town. They say that whenever a life is snuffed out too soon by the sea, they are reborn as a mermaid.”

A few broken chuckles cut through the tears of the attendants.

“Whether or not I agree with this is of course up for debate. However, it’s still a nice thought.”

The pastor continued talking, but the words started to blur together. Josh sat in between his family and his friends.

He glanced around.

As the pastor continued talking, Josh noticed people sniffing around him. He covered one of his own eyes, then took his hand away and stared at it. For some reason, he shed no tears.

The pastor finished speaking. By this point, no one in the building had a dry eye. Except for Josh.

A few people glanced at him as he sat in his chair.

They started to murmur.

“Wasn’t that her boyfriend?”

“He’s not crying at all.”

“I heard he was there when the accident happened.”

Josh stiffened. He looked around. A few people were looking at him, but they instantly faced forward when he met their gaze.

Images flashed through his head.

Lorelei's face, her eyes clouded over.

The old beach.

The storm.

Josh heard a voice. His voice.

"You're like a mermaid!"

Then a response.

"Shut up, Josh."

Josh’s heart started pounding. His breathing picked up. He grabbed his stomach and leaned forward in his chair.

Josh’s mom looked over at him.

His friends turned to look too.

“Josh, are you okay?” Jacob put a hand on his back.

Josh slapped his hand away.

“Josh?”

Josh suddenly stood up. He clenched his teeth. He felt his fingernails dig into his palm.

Without a word, he stormed out of the building.

-

Josh sat on a bench on the street, covering his face with his hands.

A couple glanced at him as they passed.

Josh bit his lip.

“What’s wrong with me?” He whispered. “Why can’t I cry?”

He sat on the bench without moving. He took a long breath.

Then, he heard something.

A sound.

He picked his head up.

A newspaper had fallen next to him on the bench.

Josh looked around. No one was there.

He picked up the newspaper. It was the local paper, and the front page read as follows:

“Young girl drowns after freak surfing accident”

Josh’s breath caught in his throat. He looked up again.

“Hello?” He called in a shaky voice. “Is anyone there?”

There was no response.

Josh looked around. There was still no one.

“I must be imagining things,” Josh realized.

He put his head back down. Suddenly, another newspaper hit the ground under him.

Josh blinked. He reached down and picked it up.

He looked around again. His eyes locked onto something.

There was a newspaper on the ground across the street.

Josh pursed his lips. He folded the newspaper in his hand.

He checked both ways then crossed to the other side of the street.

When he reached down and picked up the paper, he instantly heard another sound.

He looked up to find another paper.

Josh followed the trail of newspapers. Every time he reached down to pick one up, another one appeared a few paces in front of him.

Before long, Josh understood where the newspapers were leading. He tucked them under his arm and kept walking.

-

The beach was quiet. Almost reserved. It was a place he had gone to with Lorelei all the time.

Now it was just him.

Josh looked down at the newspapers in his hand.

Suddenly a strong wind picked up.

The newspapers flew out of his hands, covering the sea in front of him.

Josh licked his lips. He stood still for a second.

A memory surfaced.

Lorelei ran in front of him, surfboard tucked under her arm.

"Come on, Josh. Don't let me beat you."

Lorelei's image faded. Josh looked out onto the beach.

Then he saw something. It was small, yet indistinguishable.

Josh squinted. He put out his hand to block the sun.

Then he brought it back.

Coming towards him was a girl. She splashed around in the water, flicking her long fish tail in the air.

Josh’s jaw dropped. He swallowed.

“Lorelei?”

The girl stopped swimming for a second. She looked up at him and smiled.

“Goodbye, Josh.”

Josh blinked.

His eyes got hot.

The tears started to fall down his face.

He tried to move, but his legs were stuck in place.

The mermaid turned and swam away.

Josh bit his lip.

The tears kept falling.

He made no attempt to wipe them away.

He took a breath.

“Goodbye, mermaid.”