With a bored yawn, Cheryl flipped back her long red hair, idly shifting her legs on the large rock on which she was perched, dipping her mermaid tail into the icy water. True, it was a relief to know that she could earn a paycheck for nothing other than sitting around and being admired by plebeians at a distance—she didn't even have to interact with them! And to think her parents had sneered that she would never be able to find a job on her own.
But working at Disneyland as a professional mermaid in the lagoon of the Submarine Voyage ride wasn't exactly exciting. She only had two choices in activities: sitting on a rock like a statue, or swimming in the water like a trained seal. As such, her job had very quickly become dull.
She'd entertained herself at first by swimming alongside the submarines at every opportunity, but had quickly been reprimanded for it by Archie, the mermaid handler. As a way of keeping her away from the dangerous sub turbines, he'd drafted her into playing Princess Ariel, the titular character from The Little Mermaid. Cheryl had then been fitted with the according green tail and purple seashell bikini. Now, she was expected to remain in sight for most of the time for passersby to gawk at as if she were some kind of zoo exhibit, only allowed to dip into the water occasionally to refresh herself.
"This is tedious," she hissed to Jughead, who played Prince Eric, even as she waved to the crowd on the walkway and in queue for the ride, both of which were about thirty feet away. "I can't wait until I can go home." Given her parents, it was a sentiment she rarely expressed, and even as she spoke, she knew it wasn't completely true.
"Well, Cheryl, I'm not exactly thrilled to be here, either," Jughead retorted through clenched teeth as he didn't let his practiced smile fall in front of the public. "Especially not with you for company."
"Oh, stow it. How much longer until the end of our shift?" Cheryl asked.
Jughead sighed and scooched closer to her. "Here, lean in."
"How very forward of you," Cheryl told him disapprovingly, but regardlessly pressed up against him for a stiff embrace.
As Disney cast members, they had to keep all of their interactions family-friendly and appropriate. As a result, they played Ariel and Eric as the ultimate chaste couple who never kissed, not even on the cheek, and instead only gave each other the briefest of hugs that were only a disguise for actually checking the time. Since he was Prince Eric, Jughead's uniform was a wetsuit designed to appear like the character's costume from the movie. He wore a watch beneath the long sleeves, and used his hurried embraces with Cheryl as a discreet way of looking down at it. He would put his arm around her upper back and then look down over her shoulder to glance at his wrist.
While Cheryl couldn't be less interested in Jughead, being paid to cozy up to him in public did have two prime benefits. The first was that she could spend as much time annoying him as she wanted. Jughead was normally stoic and unreadable, rarely giving an indication of when she was truly bothering him. Cheryl enjoyed the opportunity to try to break him down and get under his skin—he was more of a challenge than most other people.
But the part that she liked best was that she got to show off cuddling with Jughead right in front of Betty Cooper, Jughead's girlfriend. Cheryl could rub their touches in Betty's face all she wanted, and there was nothing that Betty could do about it. It was like a dream come true—Cheryl could antagonize someone as much as she pleased and never have to worry about the consequences.
As Jughead put his arms around her, Cheryl seized the opportunity to rest her chin on his shoulder and send a smirk over at Betty, who was lounging on her own rock a short distance away. Disappointingly, Betty only gave her a passing glance before turning back to her conversion with Veronica; obviously, Cheryl would have to work harder at flaunting her easy access to Betty's boyfriend.
Speaking of Jughead, he broke apart from her the moment he finished checking the time and snuck a quick glance over at Betty. Cheryl did not let his wandering eye pass without comment.
"Ogling other women, darling?" Cheryl chided him. "Not very princely of you."
"Deal with it," Jughead told her flatly. "It's three twenty-seven, by the way."
Cheryl groaned. "How can it more than four hours until the end of our shift? I want this to be over."
"Trust me, I know that feeling well," Jughead snarked back.
"Oh, shut up," Cheryl said, still not letting her smile fall. The company banquets she'd been dragged to by her parents had given her plenty of practice at faking happiness.
In her boredom, Cheryl found herself resorting to people-watching, of all things. Normally, she wouldn't take any type of interest in some random individual, not when they weren't readily available for her to manipulate. But in her desperation for entertainment, she found herself critiquing strangers' fashion choices.
"Good Lord, would you look at that group," she remarked, nodding at a trio of black-clad teenagers who had assembled by the walkway railing to watch them. "Why are they wearing black leather jackets and jeans? It's July."
Jughead sighed. "I don't know, Cheryl, but you know what? I've had my fill of dealing with you for the day." He pushed himself off the rock and swam over to Betty and Veronica, who had already been joined by Midge, Moose, and Kevin.
"Good riddance," Cheryl sniped after him, returning her attention to the three park-goers.
Much to her disdain, she could see that the lone girl of the group was wearing a plaid shirt, its tails trailing out from beneath the hem of her jacket. Really, why would anyone want to look like as much of a grunge band reject as she did? The way the girl dressed was an absolute crime—she could have a nice body underneath that shapeless, unflattering clothing, but Cheryl would never be able to tell.
Annoyed by the continued glances the teen sent toward her as they conversed amongst themselves, making it clear she was the topic of discussion. Cheryl narrowed her eyes at them. Due to the distance and the general hubbub of the park, she couldn't hear their conversation, but she still tilted her chin defiantly and fixed them with a cold stare of her own—she was no one's gossip fodder.
The girl of the group met her gaze readily, and for a few moments, they simply looked at each other across the water. But then the girl turned to her friends and spoke again, and all three of them departed.
"Good. Go," Cheryl said out loud to no one in particular, watching the girl's back until she vanished into the throng.
The rest of the afternoon passed slowly, with next to nothing to occupy Cheryl's time. She considered harassing Moose or Kevin, especially since with Midge there as well, it would be easy to stir up trouble for her and Moose's relationship. But ultimately, she decided against it. While all of the mermaids and swimmers in the lagoon were certified lifeguards, Moose and Kevin were actually employed as lifeguards, tasked with making sure the mermaids in the water were safe. Unlike the mermaids, they weren't stuck wearing tails, but instead had a uniform of a wetsuit that protected them from the frigid water, designed to appear as an old-fashioned sailor suit to fit the theme.
Cheryl knew she could be malicious, but she wasn't stupid. She wasn't going to anger the people in charge of saving her life if she should ever need it.
At long last, evening sluggishly arrived, and the lengthening shadows told her that their mermaid shift was almost finished. While the park closed at nine, the mermaids were allowed to vacate the lagoon at seven forty-five and needed to be out of the water at eight due to visibility concerns with the submarines.
But the arrival of evening brought back the odd of trio of leather jacket-wearers from before. This time they didn't linger to talk for very long. Instead, the girl shrugged off both her jacket and her flannel overshirt and shoved both of them at the taller of her two friends, whose scowled only intensified as he found himself used as an impromptu coat rack.
Then, as Cheryl spectated skeptically, the girl climbed over the railing and jumped feet-first into the water. Due to the brief plunge of about ten feet down, she vanished beneath the surface at first, but then she rose above the water again to whoops and encouragement from her friends. With a wave in their direction, she started toward Cheryl's rock, moving through the water with strong, confident strokes. Half-amused, half-disbelieving, Cheryl only watched as the girl approached her perch and then hauled herself up onto the rock alongside her.
"So—" the girl paused to catch her breath. "Wow, that water is really damn cold, huh? Anyway—" she pulled her long pink-streaked hair over her shoulder and wrung it out over the rock and then adjusted the bandanna she wore around her forehead. "How are you doing?"
"I'm somewhat curious, I have to say," Cheryl admitted. She was also somewhat impressed by the girl's boldness and very impressed by her fit but generous figure, emphasized thoroughly by the soaked t-shirt that now clung to her skin.
The girl's dark eyes sparkled. "About me?"
"Maybe," Cheryl returned coyly, warming to the girl's spirit and audacity. "And you are?"
"Toni Topaz." With a grin, she stuck out her hand for Cheryl to shake. "When I saw you earlier, and I mentioned I was ready to swim out here to say hello to you, and Joaquin—" she jerked her head back in the direction of her friends, "—bet me fifty dollars that I wouldn't. Said that it was was too risky for me, that I would back out."
Cheryl couldn't help but preen. "And you decided it was worth the risk to come and see me?"
"Well—" Toni began, but she was interrupted as Kevin and Betty raced over to them.
"Are you okay, Cheryl?" Kevin asked in concern.
"Can we help with, uh, anything?" Betty added, casting a dubious glance at Cheryl's unauthorized visitor.
Cheryl scowled at the two of them. "For love of all that is holy, peasants, shoo! Leave me in peace." She turned back to Toni with a smile. "I just want to bask in the attention of one of my many admirers."
"If you're sure," Kevin said reluctantly before retiring to a nearby rock with Betty.
To Cheryl's irritation, he still watched them closely, clearly uncertain about Toni's presence. Just as Cheryl wrenched open her mouth to snarl at him, they were all distracted by one of Toni's companion following her example and diving into the water. The lone individual who remained on the walkway glowered all the harder at this development, yelling an unflattering turn of phrase after him.
Toni rolled her eyes as her friend reached Kevin's rock and wasted no time in engaging with him. "I can't believe Joaquin—what a poser. Ugh, if he thinks imitating me is going to cancel that fifty bucks he owes me, he's wrong."
"Ignore them." Cheryl reached out and gently turned Toni's chin so that she faced her again, careful not to let her blood red nails bite into the other girl's soft skin. "You dove into the water for reasons other than money, didn't you? Was it just to see me?"
Her tone was cavalier, but her heart pounded as she awaited Toni's response, excitement mingling with nervous anticipation to race through her. The idea that she could lure people to her with just was one look was thrilling—and Toni appeared to be a prize catch.
"I wanted a little bit of adventure," Toni told her with shrug. "And you seemed like a good kind of girl to have it for."
Though never the type to be swept off her feet, Cheryl couldn't help but be charmed. No one had ever gone through with any type of romantic gesture for her, not beyond the bog-standard flowers and chocolates. This unexpected visit from Toni was the first, but Cheryl was hoping it would be the first of many grand showings from her.
"I'm not just good, I'm the best," Cheryl declared with an emphatic flip of her tail. "And forget 'for.' " She gave Toni a clandestine smile. "As tempting as the idea is for me to have suitors at my beck and call who will go on whatever quest I demand of them, I want to have adventures with someone."
Toni looked pleased. "In that case, you should come out and have dinner with me after you finish your shift. That should be fairly soon, right?"
"We're almost there," Cheryl confirmed.
"You know, I'll probably be banned from the park for life after this," Toni commented, leaning back and looking up at Cheryl with a smile. "But it was worth it, as far as I'm concerned."
A happy thrill rushed through Cheryl—Toni though she was worthwhile— and she grasped Toni's arm and tugged her closer.
"I'll just tell everyone that you saw me struggling in the water, and you dove out here to rescue me," she whispered into Toni's ear, delighted at the shiver she evoked. "My beautiful, daring rescuer."
"Hmm." Toni pressed up against her, so close that Cheryl could feel the warmth of her body even through her damp shirt. "I think such bravery deserves a reward, don't you?"
Cheryl trailed her nails down Toni's spine. "I'm already going to dinner with you," she demurred flirtatiously. "What more could you possibly want from me?"
"How about a kiss?" Toni raised an eyebrow at Cheryl. "As long as that's not asking too much of you."
Cheryl smirked. "Let me see what I can do."
Leaning in close, she brought her lips to Toni's in the softest and gentlest of touches, letting them linger together for just a few heartbeats before pulling back. She could have made the kiss more intense, more passionate—but Cheryl Blossom didn't do anything without first making certain her efforts would receive the appreciation they were due.
"What do you think?" she asked. "Was that worth the swim?"
"Hard to say," Toni drawled. She flashed a grin. "You should kiss me one more time, so I can be sure."
"Just once?" Cheryl questioned. "Because I'd be happy to do it more."
"Then do whatever makes you happy," Toni told her cheekily.
"I always do," Cheryl remarked, reaching out to stroke Toni's hair, not caring that her fingers became ensnared in the wet, tangled strands.
As the evening sun blazed down to the horizon, weaving a trail of light and color in its wake, the two of them sat, curled up together on Cheryl's rock, waiting for the inevitable arrival of park security. But even when they did come, Cheryl didn't think she would be very upset. Instead of being stuck going home to suffer through whatever her parents had in store for her, she would be going to dinner with Toni.
And, she thought with a rare burst of genuine happiness as she cupped Toni's face in her hands, bringing her in for yet another kiss, she couldn't think of a better way to spend the evening.
A/N: In the summer of 1959, Disneyland actually did employ young women to act as live mermaids. To celebrate the grand opening of the Submarine Voyage, swimmers were paid to wear the mermaid tails and swim in the water alongside the subs. The park discontinued the practice, likely due to a variety of safety issues and reports of men diving into the water to meet the "mermaids" (like Toni did). When I found out about this interesting bit of Disney trivia, I thought it would be a cool setting for a fic. Hope you enjoyed!