Setting- Dark, ocean is quiet and eerie. Calm, misty, foggy. The moon is shining and the water is clear. Atmosphere is tense yet relaxed.
610 words
I felt the water splash around me as I swam, my body twisting and turning in the water, my tail swooshing.
I watched as the coral danced, the bubbles collided. I'd always loved it, all of it. I don't get why my dad wouldn't allow us out, when it's all so beautiful.
The big ocean, all the creatures and plants, colourful and textured.
The moon twinkled and shone in the dark, illuminating the soft waves that crashed against the rocks.
I felt happy, free.
You know that feeling when the bell rings for the end of the school day on a Friday? When your finally learn to ride your bike without stabilisers? That's how I felt, in that moment, swimming across the depths farther than my home.
It had always been my home, always been my comfort zone and where I whisked off to spend most my time.
But that didn't mean I didn't explore. Just because my father kept a rule that all mermen and mermaids in his kingdom couldn't leave the boundaries and must stay in the kingdom, didn't mean that I followed that rule.
Who the hell is he to tell me what to do?
I hated being the Tide princess. Yeah sure, it was nice to live in a huge water palace and wear nice clothes and make up, but it was lonely. I was homeschooled and I wasn't allowed outside the castle.
The only friends I had were the guards around the palace, and they didn't talk a lot. Another bad thing about being a princess, and the only one of the Tide Kingdom, was that I was constantly monitored.
When I woke up, when I got in the shower, when I got out the shower, when I ate breakfast, what I ate, what I wore, when I fell asleep, brushed my hair, did my make up-
Everything. Single. Thing.
And I hated it. I mean, how could you not? Imagine being "protected" and "lavished", as my parents say, by some guards that just take notes about what you do and moniter you all day!
I still managed to sneak out the take some late night swims though.
Those guards might have been buff, but their heads were full of sawdust.
I let out a breath as I emerged from the water, my head popping out the water.
Oh, it felt soo good. The cool, fresh breeze contrasted perfectly with my cooled down skin.
This was my favourite part, the feeling no one could trade for, the best feeling.
I dunked my head back in but stayed shallow, swimming over to the shore. It felt so wrong, breaking my fathers rules, but it felt so right, having my own life and hobbies outside the kingdom.
People always underestimated me. They always thought I was some petite, fragile little piece of glass, always giving me "protection" and luxuries, but in the end, all I wanted was freedom.
And while I might not have had it permanently in that moment, escaping my palace and going for a swim in forbidden areas felt free to me.
I lay on the shore, slightly breathless, hair wet and body glistening in the moonlight. It felt so... calm. To sit and just stare up, counting the stars.
My tail still splashed about in the water as my chest heaved up and down as I sat up.
I froze, all my senses numbing as I heard a voice behind, a voice that I had never heard before...