She smelled lightly of the shore.

It was a beautiful late midday on the beach, Teto and Luka were snuggling on the shore after a long time being in the water.

Their skin and hair were sticky as the seawater dried, leaving salt and the scent of the ocean on them, only they didn't mind. Luka's hair felt smooth this wayーsmooth, thick, and extra wavy. Great for Teto to run her small fingers through and be reminded of the calm wavy seas.

Slowly, Teto took a small strand of Luka's coral-colored locks and began braiding, pacifying the mood even further. The older girl closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, taking in the calm scent of the seawater.

As Teto finished a single braid, she looked up and breathed in ecxitedly.

"Luka-chan, can we go in the water just one more time? Before we go back to the hotel? Please?"

Luka glanced to her younger companion, gave a slow, sage nod and allowed Teto to pull her up strenuously.

"Yay! Let's gooo!"

The girl with the bouncy red pigtails made her way through the sand, a light spring in every of her carefree step.

Luka sometimes found it somewhat difficult to keep with Teto's hyperactive, happy-go-lucky spirits, yet she brought herself to do it anyway out of how much she loved Teto. After all, her cheerfulness was what had changed Luka.

She got out from her seat and slowly followed behind, taking in a few satisfied sighs.

Teto reminded her of a dolphin when she played at the beach, she really did.

But when Teto submerged herself in the water, her beautiful hair coils spread out and expanded even more like graceful ribbons, reminding Luka of...

"A jellyfish..."

"Hm, what did you say, Luka-oneechan?" Teto eyed her innocently.

"Oh... I was just thinking about a jellyfish." Luka said.

Teto nodded enthusiastically.

"Oh. Well, they are really pretty. They almost remind me of my dear Luka. The way they're so... iflowingly/i."

Teto made up a word again, but Luka understood her perfectly.

The two girls began to sit on the sandbank together, cool clear water swiping up to their folded knees before it flowed back into the tide.

"Looking at jellyfish is really calming." Teto added. "Luka-oneechan is always calm, which is why I love being with Luka... she calms me down when I become anxious."

Luka eyed Teto fondly and wrapped her arms around her...

"Ah!" Teto let out a scream, ruining the moment.

"Haha, the jellyfish just tried to sting me!" she backed away just a bit.

"Haha, just joking Luka! Please don't get your feelings hurt! It's not like you really have stingers..."

Luka tried to laugh at Teto's joke, only it brought back somewhat painful memories...

When Luka was small, she had a rather odd appearance. She had a short haircut that everybody thought made her look like a jellyfish. All her classmates began to pick on her...

"Oww! She's going to sting me! Run away!" they would scream, make faces, and run from her as she approached them.

Even though her face or actions never showed it, Luka was hurt deeply by them. Yet she fought on, never conveying a single thing... and her face eventually became frozen into a scowl.

Eventually, all the children claimed that Luka could "sting" them just by looking at them.

Stinging just by looking...

Luka realized that this was their metaphor, their way of saying that they didn't like the look in her eyes. She was always misunderstood because of it.

It was only because she was shy that she seemed so unapproachable. Because she was insecure, she strayed away from people.

Secretly she wanted to be friends with everyone, for them to appreciate her. Only, she didn't know how, how to make them like her.

"All I do is sting everyone around me..." Luka would always think. She began to think everything was her fault...

But when she met Teto, she was the oneーthe one who saw her for who she truly was, underneath any "stingers" she had.

She saw Luka's true, easygoing and graceful nature, existing to calm people down, give them spirit, and to uplift the world with her wonder...

"You calm me down. I really love being around you..."

"I wish I could be with you forever..."

Luka wasn't that good at showing it, but these words Teto had said were the most kind and meaningful things anyone had ever said to her.

They were she never could forget.

Teto... she the one who meant the world to her.

"Teto..." Luka said softly, as the small playful girl splashed about in the water.

"Thank you... for everything. And if I am a jellyfish, then you're the one who sees me for more than my stingers. And..."

Luka blushed, knowing she was about to say something embarrassing.

"I want... to be your jellyfish girl forever and ever, Teto."

Luka blissfully threw her arms around Teto, who this time let her hug her in a tight, loving embrace.

Teto fondly closed her eyes, slipped her hand into Luka's, and gave a radiant smile.

"Then I'm a jellyfish too." she said. "And I'll be yours forever and ever."

"Jellyfish are immune to each other's stings after all." Luka said, eying the softly beautiful horizon. "We'll never, ever be able to sting each other. And I want that to be forever."