Aqua's pov

-

Honestly, I couldn't wrap my head around of all this. I couldn't even remember what day it was, or how long I've been here. I need to get back to land, but now that my mother is here, I honestly had no damn idea what to do.

I sighed and hung my head low, my hands gripping onto the sides of the balcony. I was currently at the top of the castle, there was a ledge I always escaped to when I was younger. It had a view of the town right below.

The balcony was a concrete ledge, square rough edges and a rusty rail, but it was my oasis. On my balcony I could enjoy the tides, the moonlight from the sky above, shining dimly into the ocean and even sometimes smile at the misty rain that would stop against the water surface.

Below the town flowed in it's gentle way, The town was a maze of narrow winding dirt baths, as complex as the heart. The paths were the veins, paved with dark red stones, and the mermaids were the blood. The sound of the small children swimming around and adults chatting with their families let me know the town was alive

"It's beautiful isn't it?" a voice said. My head snapped up and I flinched at the sudden voice

"So-sorry I didn't mean to scare you" she mumbled

"It's okay" I whispered and turned my attention back towards the horizon

My mother gave a fake smile and decided to join me, I scooched down to give her some space, trying to avoid her eyes on the side of my head

I had questions, many questions for her but she surely was tired. It takes a week of traveling from the land to get back here, surely she was exhausted out of her mind.

But I couldn't help but think of the burning questions at the back of my mind.

I wonder what went through her head when she was being taken away, perhaps she was scared. Well obviously she was scared. The dark thoughts of being trapped, held against your will and dragged away from everything you've ever known was enough to make me shudder. I couldn't imagine what she must have been going through in that moment

"I remember you used to come up here to clear your mind" she said

"Oh.. Yeah, being in a room all day makes you feel confided" I mumbled

"I remember, that's why I'd spy on you sometimes" she chuckled, I furrowed my brows and glanced at her

"You spied on me?"

"I... Yeah I wanted to give you your space but I was still curious to find out what you did up here" she chuckled softly

"Oh... " I mumbled

"Remember when that guy rode a sea horse and accidentally hit it too hard, so the horse threw him over it's head and slapped him with its fin?" she smiled

"Oh my God yes, I couldn't stop laughing that night" I chuckled

The woman smiled sweetly as she turned her head to face me. It was only in that moment did I take in her full appearance. My mind and body was racing earlier to even analyze her looks but now it was much easier seeing that I had calmed down

Her hair was midnight black and it flowed over her shoulders with the direction of the water. I could physically see her personality, it was elegant before but there was a new hint of bubbly personality in there that wanted to shine through, I guess she was scared to be herself. I guess we were all scared at this point.

She surely stayed in shape though, she was wasp wasted and had glossy skin with slender eyebrows topped off with a blossom smile on her pink lips, many said I looked like the splitting image of my mother but now I saw it

"I'm sure you have many questio-"

"How did you remember here?" I cut her off.

Our eyes went wide as we both chuckled softly, realizing what had happened

"Last year, Kat and your friend Allie who's a great person by the way, came to Brazil and brought me to California" she said

I heart my heart skip a beat at her words, confused but amazed at the same time. Allie knew about this?

"Y-you know Allie?" I asked

"She was the one that figured everything out, she did so much research with Kat's team behind her. The girl lost sleep over figuring out my location, she's really sweet" my mother said

"Yeah, she really is" I smiled sweetly

For a year, Allie knew about this. I'm not going to jump to conclusions, I'm happy she even found my mother. I honestly couldn't think right in this moment, how did she even know that my mother was alive, how did she even reach to that conclusion in the first place?

"I saw a photo of you and it felt like something clicked. I had no idea who you were but I felt it feel down. It's weird, I know but.. I just had to figure out who you were. So I came into the country with Allie, we've been meeting with doctors, going through so many procedures to help me remember. And then I did. I finally did. And luckily it was close to your birthday, so we wanted to surprise you" she said

So that's why Allie was acting secretive during that car ride

"Don't think I didn't want to see you. It was the first thing I wanted to do so bad but I just couldn't bring myself to see you, knowing deep down that I wouldn't recognize who you were" My mother said

"Really?" I asked

"I'm sorry. I know I should have but the thought of your face being so happy and shocked them dropping instantly into sadness because I couldn't even hug you was going to kill me. I'm sorr-"

"Hey, it's okay. I get, I really do" I mumbled and placed my hand over hers on the balcony, hopefully easing her nerves

"I'm sorry Aqua" she mumbled

"Don't apologize, I understand where you were coming from. I think it was brave of you to hold yourself back like that, you did the right thing. I don't know how I would have reacted but I definitely don't think I could have handled it if you came back and had no idea who I was. So thank you" I mumbled and threw my arm around her shoulder, pulling her into my chest

She smiled sweetly and wrapped an arm around my waist, leaning her head against my shoulder.

"Wait. So if you met Allie, who else did you meet?" I asked, she let out a soft chuckle

"I met everyone" she said

Upon my face, laid a smile. It was one of happiness growing, much as a spring flower opened. It came from deep inside to light my eyes and spread into every part of my being.

"So you've met your future daughter in law?" I chuckled

"I have. And she's so special. I'm so happy you found someone like that, someone that makes you happy" My mother said

I almost blushed at her words, Beverly truly made me happy. There was never a day where I went dull or a day where I wanted her away from me. I needed her more than I needed anything else. She was my rock that held me down in this world pool of reality.

"I've heard so much about this girl" another voice said

My mother and I both snapped our necks around to see my father behind us. I furrowed my brows when my eyes ran over his body, his hair was braided neatly and his beard was trimmed. What was once unkept and messy was now groomed.

"Well look at you, all groomed and shit" I laughed

The man smiled and ran a hand through his hair, playfully tossing it behind his shoulders and giving a smouldering look

"Thank you" he smirked

"Come over here" I chuckled

The man smiled and headed over towards us, wrapping both arms over our shoulders, engulfing us in a protective hug

"So who's the girl?" he asked

"I.. Her name is Beverly.. Beverly Hills" I said

"Sounds rich, I hope she's taking good care of my gi-"

"Dad!" I hissed

"What?" he pouted

"A woman isn't dependant on their partner to be the bread winner or provide for their every needs" I said sternly

"I know sweetheart, I was only joking" he chuckled and nudged my shoulder

"She's beautiful though" My mother said

"Very" I smiled sweetly

"How did you two meet?" he asked

"We actually met when I washed up on shore. She accidentally fell on me and then she fell for me" I smirked

"Sounds romantic" my father snickered

"In a way, it kinda is" My mother chuckled

"Have you two been together since then?" he asked

"We've been inseparable since then, we fell in love as the days went by and I couldn't be happier with my life than it is right now.. Well, before I was dragged back here" I mumbled

"Oh.. I... I'm.. I'm sorry" he mumbled

"Wait. I knew I came here for a reason. WHY THE FUCK DID YOU TRY TO FUCKING KILL OUR FUCKING DAUGHTER" My mother hissed as she flicked her wrist, slapping her palm against the man's face

"I'M SORRY, I APOLOGIZED" he yelled when another one came to his other cheek. I wanted to laugh so badly, actually fuck it. Ima laugh if I want to

"THAT DOESN'T MEAN ANYTHING. YOU CAN'T APOLOGIZE FOR TRYING TO KILL YOUR DAUGHTER AND EXPECT THINGS TO BE FORGIVEN DUMBASS" My mother yelled as she pounded her fist into his chest

"Say that again" I laughed

"I didn't try to kill her! I just wanted to knock her unconscious so I could bring her back home twice!" he yelled as he tried to dodge her fists

"THAT DOESN'T MAKE IT ANY BETTER" she yelled and slapped him once again

"I'M SORRYYY" he screamed

"YOU NEGLECTED HER FOR YEARS. WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT THAT" She yelled as she pulled her hands down, halting her moments

"I.. I want to make it up to her. I want to be that father I wasn't. I know it's been so long, it's been so goddamn long. You've been in so much pain Aqua, it's all because of me. I allowed my stupidity to take control. I shutted myself down instead of growing the heck up and being that father figure that you needed. I went into a hole and now I'm coming out. I know there's no amount of sorry in the world that could ever make up for everything I've done. But I'd like the opportunity to try, I promise you that I want to do better. I want to be better for. For everyone. I love you Aqua, I really do. Please.. Allow me to be that man you'll look up to. I'm not asking for forgiveness, but I'm asking for a clean slate. I promise to do better" He said

My body remained paralyzed on the balcony, my hands gripping the ended of the wall. There was a silence that fell upon the three of us after my father spoke.

Everything I've ever wanted from him was coming through, he truly did seem like he wanted to change. But was I ready for that?

"I... I think that's a good idea" I mumbled, locking eyes with him

His smile reached his ear as his eyes then twinkled under the dim light of the moon in the ocean.

He leaped forward, pulling his two muscular arms around my entire body and pulling me into his broad chest. I almost groaned because of how tight his arms were around me but I melted into his touch. It was the kind if hug you needed after a hard day's work. The kind of hug that pulled you in and refused to let you go. I smiled into his chest and leaned my head against his.

A perfectly moment couldn't be ruined, but there was still something I needed to do. So I pulled away after a few seconds, seeing their smiles as bright and wide as they could be.

I didn't respect my father and I surely didn't forgive him that instance. It was going to take time to overcome our problems, but I knew I wanted to. I needed to build that relationship with my father and be happy. Our parts is, I could tell that he was ashamed of it. There's many things I needed to learn and figure out about my father, the same way he needed to learn about me. But I was willing to do so.

But unfortunately it wasn't going to be today because I had other plans in my life right now

"I need to go" I said sternly, my father furrowed his brows

"Go? What do you mean?" he asked

"I need to go back to land. She's up there, lost. I couldn't imagine what she must be feeling" I said

"she's okay. I promise you" My mother said

"You saw her before you came here?" I asked

"I saw everyone. They're all okay, even Adam" she smiled

"Adam's okay!?" I grinned

"Yes. He really is. But they need you. Your name belongs to the water but your heart belongs up there. Especially with Beverly" She said

"Oh... You want to go back to land" my father mumbled

"He's a merman, he's slow" my mother playfully rolled her eyes, causing me to chuckle

"Go. She needs you" He said in a low voice, I glanced at him to see a smile on his face. He surely did want to change

"We'll see you soon sweetie. Just go do what you have to" she smiled

"I love you guys so much" I chuckled and wrapped my arms around them

It wasn't a good that said goodbye. It was a hug that ensured the return of a lost one. I wasn't leaving for good but I was leaving for a reason. And that reason being my freedom. I knew they would visit me soon so I wasn't worried. I knew I was leaving my mother behind, especially since we just introduced ourselves again. But that could wait. She was here but Beverly was there. I couldn't go another second without being away from her.

So with love on my brain and in my heart, I set off my journey back to land.

-

💖