I moved into the pool with my shoes hanging over my shoulders and Emma did as well. We waited for Cleo to get ready to swim under the cave. She sat on the underwater ledge with her legs tight and bent by her chest.
"Everything will be fine," Emma said to her. "How can you be sure?" Cleo asked. "Listen to her, Cleo. What alternative do we have? Stay stuck down here forever?" I asked.
Cleo looked away with tears and her eyes. I sighed softly. "Cleo, you're gonna have to face you fear sooner or later. There are two of us here with you and you don't have to do it alone," I said.
Cleo looked at me and I hold my hand for her to hold. Cleo finally gave in with a defeated sigh and took my hand. I pulled Cleo gently into the pool and we both went under the water to cover our bodies with water. We came up wiping the water of our eyes as I helped Cleo stay afloat with me.
The three of us looked at each other, ready to swim under but then we noticed the rings of the pool started to bubble. Then, little sparkles and thumb-size bubbles of water started coming from the pool, floating up into the dark sky towards a full bright moon that was over up.
As the bubbles of eater stopped flying up, we looked at each other. "Wow!" Cleo said. "Spooky," Emma muttered. She looked between me and Cleo, "Ok, now concentrate take a deep breath."
Then, she went under again. Cleo and I took another glance around the cave before holding our breath and swimming under, following Emma through.
I pulled Cleo up alongside with me. We came out of the tunneled part of the cave and swam upwards. Cleo and I gasped for a air when we hit the surface.
"There was more than 20 seconds," Cleo said, holding onto me. "We're proud of you, Cleo. We knew you could do it," I said, keeping my grip tight on her. Cleo gave me a small smile.
Then, a bright lights turned in our direction, making the three of us out a hand in front of our faces. "This is the water police!" A man's voice called on a loud-speaker. "Please make your way to the boarding ladder at the rear of the vessel."
Emma started to swim towards the boat just as Cleo and I took one last look at Mako Island. I turned to Cleo, "Come on," I said and started to help Cleo to swim over to the boat.
...
The next day, my dad wasn't home for a few hours. I went to the bathroom and opened the tap of the sink and put my hands on the water. I splash the water in my face and then looked at my reflection in the mirror.
All of a sudden, I felt a warm tingly sensation coming from my legs. I saw myself turning into water for a second and then coming back with a gold, scaly tail and a gold bra. Then I landed on the ground.
I groaned and looked at my tail. "What the?" I asked myself. What is going on? I grabbed my towel and started to furiously rub the tail and my body dry.
Then, when I was dry, I felt another warm tingly coming from my 'tail' and then I turn back into my Pj. It was like there was never any tail or never wet. I grinned, "Thank God."
As I got up from the floor, my phone rang. I walked to my room and saw it was a text from Emma, she said to meet her and Cleo at Cleo's house and she gave me the address. I quickly got dressed and rushed out.
... ...
I got to Cleo's house and meet there Cleo and Emma. We told each other how we discovered our tail; Cleo was just in the bath at the time, Emma was in the sea going for a morning swim and I told them that I was just washing my face.
We walked through the kitchen to get to the living room. "It was orange and cover with scales," Cleo said. "The minute I hit water," I cut Emma of, "I was water for a second."
"I was a fish," Cleo said before sating on the couch. "What's going on?" Emma asked. "That's what I wanna know," I said as Emma sat on the armchair and I glanced through the hallway before looking at Cleo. "Is there anyone else here?" I asked.
"No, dad's at work, and my sister and mom are shopping," Cleo replied and I sat on the arm of the armchair. "OK, what happen to us?" Emma asked.
"About 10 second after we touch water we grow these," I started and Cleo nodded. "And it vanishes when we're dry," She said. "And that's the same with you two, right?"
Emma and I nodded. "The tails are like-" Cleo started. "Exactly like," Emma said. "Um ... We look like mermaids," I finally said it. "Mermaids don't exist," Emma said. "That's just too weird."
Suddenly, there was a knock on the from door. "Oh no, it's Lewis, I forgot he's helping me with biology today," Cleo said. She got up as the door opened. "Cleo," Lewis said as he came in through the door, holding a book in his arm and a school bag over his shoulder.
As he turned from closing the front door, he paused when he noticed Cleo standing there behind him, but he looked over her shoulder at me and Emma.
Me and Emma smiled awkwardly. Lewis frowned. "Oh." He looked at his watch as he walked through the living room, towards the kitchen. "Did I get the time wrong?"
"No, we said 9:00," Cleo said. "But, sorry Lewis something has come up." She glanced back at me and Emma. "Like what?" He asked and Cleo looked back at him.
"Just something important," She said and then looked back at me and Emma, and we both shook our heads, telling her not to tell him.
"But, not so important that you need to know about it," She said as she looked back at him and put her arm around his shoulder, directing him back through the living room. "Sorry Lewis, I have to cancel."
"Oh," He started and then looked at her and then at me and Emma. "Maybe some other time," He said and was about to leave. "Lewis," Cleo started and he turned back to her. "You're smart. Do you know anything about mermaids?" I couldn't believe she asked him that!
"No, not really," Lewis said, confused. "OK, sorry, bye," Cleo said, shrugging and Lewis walked out. Cleo closed the door behind him and Emma and I got up.
Cleo came back. "What?" She asked. "'Do you know anything about mermaids?" I mocked her. "Cleo, are you crazy?"
"She's right, Cleo. This is really serious, if anyone find out about this we could be in big trouble," Emma said. "Well maybe," Emma cut Cleo off, "Look, something very strange happens to us, we don't know how and don't know why."
"There is a way for us find out more," I said with a smile. "How?" Cleo asked. "Go back in the water," I replied. "No way," Cleo said, shaking her head. "Not me." She walked over to the armchair this time and sat down.
Emma and I sat down on either side. "I'm going," I said with a smile. "I just don't think I should go alone, any volunteers?"
... ...
Emma and I went to the beach, we went to a part where no one will be so no one will see us. "I'm not so sure about this," Emma said. "It's all right, I am," I said. "That's gives me no confidence whatsoever," She joked and I smirked.
Emma and I grabbed each other's hand as we got closer to the water. We got in. "About 10 seconds right?" I asked, looking at her and she nodded. "Yep," She said and we looked at the sea and we started to count. "One, two, three, four, five-"
Then, I felt the warm tingly sensation coming from my legs again. Emma and I turned into water for a second and then coming back with the gold, scaly tail and the gold bra and both of us landed on the wet sand and water. I looked at Emma and we chuckled.
We started to swim in the sea. Looking at the beautiful fishes and swimming with a dolphin.
... ...
Me and Emma walked to her house. "So we climb out of the water, and everything's back to normal when we're dry like nothing ever happened," Emma said with a smile. "But it did," I said with a big smile. "It was the best experience of my life."
"I agree with you," She said. "Wait!" We heard Cleo's voice. We turned around and saw her running towards us. "You will never believe what just happening," She said. She grabbed both of our arms and bragged us inside the house.
Cleo got a glass of water and the three of us walked to Emma's bedroom. Cleo put the glass on the table. She turned her right hand. A thin water rope started to form from the water and drift upwards, but it was like the water was doubling because the water in the glass was still at the same height as when it started.
"And it grows even more," Cleo said. I looked at the water confused. "Where is the extra water coming from?" I asked. "I don't know," Cleo said, not realizing that her hand that was controlling the water to fall.
Emma put her hand up and the water froze and I was shook. "Did I do that?" She asked. "It wasn't me," Cleo said. "It wasn't me eater," I said.
Emma and I looked at each other and I smiled. "OK, this is over the top, I'm getting tingles now," I said. "All I did was ..." Emma said and she made the flat hand movement on a vase of flowers and smiled when the water in the vase froze. "Be careful where you pointing your hand," I joked and the three of us smiled.
I also tried to do something but it didn't work. "Not fair, why don't I get the cool stuff," I said. "I don't think cool is the word. It's scary," Cleo said and then grinned, "But you should have see the look on Zane's face."
I snicker slightly. "This isn't funny," Emma said. "We've got to keep this as a secret, from everyone. We could end up dissected or in a circus or something."
"So this secret is just between the three of us?" Cleo asked. "Our secret, our responsibility. Whatever happens we're in this together," Emma said.
I looked between the two. "It doesn't mean we're married, does it?" I joked. The two cracked a smile. "Now, that was actually funny," Emma said.
