The days following Lena and Mira's encounter by the lake passed in a strange blur. Lena couldn't shake the image of Mira—her confession, her touch, the way her eyes gleamed with something ancient and unknowable. It was like a shadow that clung to her thoughts, refusing to let go.
Every morning, Lena would wake up determined to stay away, to reclaim the distance she had worked so hard to maintain. And every day, she failed. No matter how hard she tried to avoid Mira, there was always something pulling her back, drawing her closer to the truth she was both desperate and terrified to uncover.
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Lena stood at her locker, pretending to focus on her books, but her mind was far away, back at the lake where everything had changed. The voices of her classmates droned on around her, muffled, meaningless noise that she barely registered. It was easier this way—isolating herself, shutting everyone out. She had perfected this routine over the years, using it as a shield.
But now, her shield felt fragile.
"Lena."
She stiffened at the sound of Mira's voice, barely above a whisper, yet it cut through the noise like a blade. Slowly, Lena turned to face her, heart racing. Mira stood just a few feet away, leaning casually against the locker next to hers, her expression unreadable. No one else seemed to notice her, as if she existed in a space outside of everyone else's reality.
"I need to talk to you," Mira said, her tone calm but urgent. "Somewhere private."
Lena's instinct was to refuse, to shut her down and walk away. But instead, she found herself nodding, her body betraying her mind. "Okay," she whispered.
They left the school without a word, slipping through the side entrance, unnoticed by anyone else. The late afternoon sky was overcast, casting the town in a muted gray light as they walked in silence. Lena knew where they were headed even before Mira spoke.
"The lake," Mira said softly. "It's time you learned the truth."
Lena's chest tightened, but she didn't argue. She followed Mira, her steps heavy with apprehension, each one bringing her closer to answers she wasn't sure she was ready for.
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By the time they reached the lake, the wind had picked up, rustling the trees and sending ripples across the water's surface. The same eerie stillness from their previous encounter returned, as if the entire world were holding its breath.
Mira led Lena to the edge of the water, stopping just at the shore. She didn't speak for a long time, her gaze fixed on the lake, her expression distant.
"I didn't want you to know," Mira began, her voice low, almost lost in the wind. "But now that you do, you deserve to understand."
Lena swallowed hard. "Understand what?"
Mira turned to face her, and for the first time, Lena saw the weight of the centuries in her eyes—the pain, the regret, the weariness that came with being something other than human.
"I wasn't always like this," Mira said, her voice softer now, almost fragile. "Once, a long time ago, I was human. Just like you."
Lena's breath caught in her throat. She hadn't expected that. "You… were?"
Mira nodded, her gaze drifting back to the water. "I lived in this town, centuries ago, before it became what it is now. It was smaller then, just a few families, close to the lake. It was everything to us. Our life, our livelihood. But there was something more to it. Something hidden."
Lena listened, her heart pounding as Mira's story unfolded. It was as if the veil between her world and something far older, far darker, was slowly being lifted.
"There was a legend," Mira continued. "The people believed that the lake was a gateway. A connection to something beyond our understanding. It gave us life, but it also demanded something in return."
"What do you mean?" Lena asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
Mira hesitated, then looked at Lena, her eyes filled with an ancient sorrow. "A sacrifice," she said. "Every generation, one person was chosen. They were given to the lake, and in return, the village thrived. Crops flourished, the people prospered. But no one ever saw the chosen again."
Lena's blood ran cold. "You were the sacrifice."
Mira nodded, her expression unreadable. "Yes. I was chosen. But something went wrong. Instead of dying, instead of disappearing into the depths, I… changed. The lake took me, but it didn't destroy me. It made me into something else. Something… unnatural."
Lena took a step back, the weight of Mira's confession crashing down on her. "You became… a mermaid."
"A dark mermaid," Mira corrected, her voice filled with quiet resignation. "A creature tied to the lake, bound to its waters. I've lived here ever since, watching the world change around me. Watching people come and go, always drawn to the lake's pull."
Lena's heart pounded in her chest. Everything about Mira made sense now—the eerie calm, the strange, otherworldly beauty, the hunger in her eyes. She wasn't just a predator. She was a prisoner of the lake, cursed to live a life of isolation, feeding on what the lake provided.
"But why tell me this now?" Lena asked, her voice shaking. "Why me?"
Mira's gaze softened, her expression almost tender. "Because you're different. You saw me for what I am, and yet you stayed. I've hidden this from everyone else who's ever come close, but you… you resisted my power. You weren't afraid."
Lena's heart skipped a beat. "I was terrified."
Mira smiled faintly. "Maybe. But you didn't run."
Lena didn't know how to respond. Her mind was spinning, her thoughts a tangled mess of fear, curiosity, and something else she couldn't quite define.
"Lena," Mira said softly, taking a step closer. "I've spent centuries alone, keeping people at a distance. But you… you make me feel something I haven't felt in a long time."
Lena's breath hitched as Mira's words sank in. There was a vulnerability in her eyes that Lena hadn't seen before, a glimpse of the girl she once was beneath the centuries of isolation and loneliness.
"I don't know what this is between us," Mira continued, her voice barely a whisper. "But I don't want to let it go."
Lena's mind raced. She wanted to say something, to reassure Mira, to tell her that she understood. But the truth was, she didn't understand. Not fully. How could she? The world Mira came from was so different, so alien to her own. And yet…
There was that pull again. That strange, unexplainable connection that seemed to draw her closer to Mira, despite everything she had learned.
"I don't know either," Lena admitted, her voice trembling. "But I… I don't want to run."
Mira's eyes brightened, a flicker of hope breaking through the sadness. She reached out, hesitating for a moment, before gently taking Lena's hand. Her touch was cool, but not unpleasant. It was grounding, a reminder that despite everything, Mira was still real. Still here.
Lena squeezed her hand, her heart pounding in her chest. "What happens now?"
Mira smiled, a soft, wistful expression that held both hope and uncertainty. "I don't know. But whatever it is, we'll face it together."
For the first time in what felt like forever, Lena allowed herself to relax. She didn't have all the answers, and maybe she never would. But standing there, hand in hand with Mira by the lake, she realized that maybe it didn't matter.
They had each other.