Chapter 36: Ain't no Rest for a Mermaid

Farley and the rest of the gang looked down onto the Marine Park pool from the backstage viewing room. It was a small space, devoid of much furniture besides a few chairs and a table with a computer. Not that anyone wanted to sit, however, as they all were pacing nervously at the front windows. The first demonstration had not started yet, and they were all waiting anxiously in anticipation.

Elliot was at the computer, pulling various news sites from Australia as well as America and Europe, trying to key into what everyone was saying about Sara across the world. "It seems almost every western news agency has sent someone to Gold Coast to find out more about Sara, or they are least discussing something about mermaids," Elliot spoke. "There are reporters and journalists here from the States, Canada, The UK, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Mexico, Ireland, Spain, Argentina…"

"Alright we get it already," Farley interrupted angrily.

"This is getting so much bigger than we anticipated," Katy complained.

"Anticipated? I don't know what you anticipated, but we had no idea what to expect. That's why we're winging it here," Mia fired back.

"What are all the news sites saying?" Blake asked to Elliot, changing the subject and trying to avoid an argument.

"Mostly a lot of speculation right now. They keep going over the same footage from Sara's press conference over and over again. Social media is blowing up though. So many people are talking about her right now," Elliot responded. "Over a million tweets and counting, and that's just been since the end of her press conference."

"What's the general consensus?" Farley asked, stepping away from the window and looking over Elliot's shoulder.

"Mostly positive, so far as I can see," Elliot replied. "At least a large majority of the more popular tweets are positive. That's at least a good sign."

"I always loved the little mermaid as a child… Turns out it's actually a true story!" Farley read a tweet aloud to everyone in the room, who responded with mostly groans with a few chuckles from Katy.

"That is better than what the alternative is. Even so, this is why we need to make Sara more open to seem more human. The more they know about her, the less they have to fear," Zane explained. "Speculation can't be a good thing."

"He's right…" Mitch added. "Many people fear the unknown. That fear leads to anger, and anger leads to hate."

Katy put her arm around Mitch. "Awww…. I'm glad you know such wise proverbs," she teased.

"I literally just quoted Star Wars. But, I'm glad you loved it anyway," Mitch joked, kissing Katy.

"First of all, Mitch, Katy. Please save us your PDA," Farley joked. "And second, this is about Sara, and we have to make sure she's accepted as a whole by the public. Whatever the cost may be."

"It's starting!" Mia announced. Farley and Elliot rushed towards the windows. They heard Denman announcing Sara forward. Farley looked out to the crowd to see them roaring with applause.

They looked down below to see Sara dive into the pool. When her tail appeared, she began to swim around the pool for several minutes, culminating in a massive leap out of the water many feet into the air. "We can do that?" Farley announced aloud.

"Of course!" Mia joked. "Oh you've only had a tail for a couple weeks. There's so many things you don't know."

"Oh please, I'm guessing Sara's the first one who actually tried something like that," Farley bantered back.

Farley was interrupted by Sara's speech. "Hello Everyone! I want to thank you all for coming out today to witness my abilities." Sara spoke. The rest of them heard through speakers in the room. "I've waited for some time to reveal myself to the world, unsure if it would be the right choice. Yet still, I want to thank you all for your excitement, love, encouragement, and acceptance." Sara steadied herself for a moment. "Thank you for coming to watch me today!"

There was a collective sigh of relief in the viewing room as the group seemed to relax. The first demonstration had gone very well. "I'm so proud of our daughter," Karen stated confidently, with Paul right by her side.

"She did well," Katy stated. "She's doing us mers proud."

"Now you're just making us seem like we're not truly human," Mia spoke.

"Well, we're different Mia, and still it's important that through Sara, we can eventually find acceptance," Farley argued.

"I still don't want to go public though. Not for a while at least," Mia responded.

"Let's hope we actually get to make that choice," Farley trailed off.

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Sara had gotten dried off down below at the pool, standing up to her feet. She refused to use her powers to dry herself following Zane's advice, hoping that it wouldn't lead to people being frightened by her abilities. She waved backwards at the roaring crowd, following Denman back through the staff door and into the corridor.

"That was amazing!" Sara beamed to Denman once they were back inside. "That felt so good! I loved it!"

"You were great out there Sara," Denman added. "I don't see how anybody couldn't love you after that. But that was only the first of two presentations. We still have one more to do after this."

"I know I know…" Sara conceded. "At least now I'm feeling a lot more relaxed and confident. The next one will be a piece of cake."

Sara and Dr. Denman wandered their way through the building. They climbed up some stairs and burst into a seemingly random room, only for all the occupants to look at the two of them. "SARA!" Mia and Katy yelled, surprising Sara. They rushed toward her, hitting her broadside.

"We gotta stop this," Sara joked, "you're gonna hurt me eventually."

"It looked like everyone loved you out there," Mia noted, "This crazy hair-brained scheme of Zane's might actually work."

"Speaking of Zane, where did he go?" Sara asked, checking around the room.

"He said he had a phone call to take and disappeared. We haven't seen him for a few minutes at least," Katy responded.

Farley and Sara's parents walked up behind to meet Sara, each giving them a hug in quick succession. "How are you feeling?" Farley asked.

"A little overwhelmed, but otherwise I'm feeling ok," Sara replied. "It was a lot of fun though!"

"We're so proud of you," Paul added.

Just before Sara could respond, Zane burst into the room with a stupid grin on his face, out of breath but full of elation. "Sara! You're not gonna believe it!" he exclaimed.

"Oh I bet I will believe it, Zane. But what is it? Get it off your chest already. What's coming next?" Sara responded snarkily.

"You've got great wit. You'll be awesome at interviews. Speaking of that, I just got a call from Australian Broadcasting Network, and they want you to be a guest on their talk show Australia Tonight! They want you to come in for filming this afternoon!" Zane rambled.

"Wait what? What's Australia Tonight?" Sara asked, honestly a bit confused.

"Australia Tonight? It's the most well known late-night talk show in Australia!" Katy exclaimed. "You've lived here for six months and have never heard of them? Either way it looks like they want you to be their special mermaid guest."

"Ok, this is getting crazy. Especially if they're as huge as you say they are," Sara admitted. "What do I need to do for it?"

"Well, their filming begins around four and it's just past noon here. So for now, just proceed as planned with the second presentation," Zane informed. "As soon as that's done, we'll take you over to their studio. Understood?"

"Roger roger! Yes sir," Sara mocked a salute, trying to inject humor in. She sighed and chuckled, "Seems like there ain't no rest for a Mermaid."

"Maybe so, but still. It's a positive start. Let's continue this string of good luck," Zane added. "And maybe… just maybe… it might all work out."

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It all was going well so far. Sara had a successful press conference, a successful performance, and now she was going to be on a popular talk show. It was at this moment that all of them felt somewhat more relaxed. Farley jolted upward when his phone started buzzing. He excused himself from the group and went out into the hallway for more privacy.

"Hello?" he spoke into the phone.

"Yes, I am currently looking for Farley Davis. Might I speak to him?" An overly cheery woman asked on the other end.

"Can I ask what this is all about?" Farley countered skeptically.

"My name is Amber and I work for the Gentleman Australia lifestyle magazine. We want to offer a lucrative and exclusive interview to Mr. Davis about his relationship with Sara Meyer. We want to talk about how it is dating the first ever mermaid," Amber responded.

"I am Farley Davis," Farley spoke.

"Well, we understand you are dating Sara Meyer, the mermaid. We want you to answer some questions for our dear readers about how you convinced her to date you. Should be really easy!"

Farley hesitated. He suspected a call like this was going to be coming eventually. But he was so unprepared how to answer it. Should I actually go through with it? No. I need to ask the others' perspectives. I can't risk myself on some foolish venture. "I'm undecided at the moment. I would like to decline for now, but in the future I might like to accept your interview."

"Understood! If you wish to set something up, please call this number again. We would love to hear from you, and the rewards would be amazing," Amber spoke.

Farley hung up the phone, puzzled. Why do they want to interview me? Should I do it? But will that take away some of the spotlight from Sara? And what if I'm accidentally splashed. I'd bet they'd love more to have an exclusive interview with a newly revealed merman….

He didn't have any answers for himself. Farley returned to the group, unsure of himself. Sara picked up on Farley's seeming lack of focus immediately. "Is everything alright Farley?" She asked when Farley walked back in the door.

"I got a call from Gentleman Australia, the magazine… They want to interview me because apparently dating a mermaid is the new 'It Thing' right now," Farley responded.

"I feared this would happen," Zane grumbled. "Just wait. You all may get calls from news organizations wanting an exclusive interview to talk about being close to 'The Mermaid'."

"Well, Zane what do you think I should do in all your infinite wisdom?" Farley asked.

"Hmm… Not taking part in anything and being secretive would seem suspicious like you're hiding something. And this is a well-known and important businesses like Gentleman Australia. Keep a low profile, but we have to act as though you're a normal bloke who just does a few small interviews," Zane recommended.

"Ok… I'll call them back tomorrow and… I guess... set something up," Farley affirmed.

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An hour of milling around awaited them, before it was time for Sara to return back out to the pool for another presentation. Zane gave her parents a ride home. They wanted to stay out of the spotlight and were feeling tired. Sara only wished she could go with them, but she had a job to do. It was imperative that she stay and continue the work she was doing.

Sara walked over to Elliot, still engrossed on the computer. He rubbed his eyes, tired from staring at the screen for such a long time. "Shouldn't you take a rest from that?" Sara asked. "You've been at it for way too long."

"Don't you want to know what everyone is saying about you? It could be good to know public opinion. We can use it to your advantage," Elliot replied.

"Ugh… I'd rather not honestly. Sometimes ignorance is bliss," Sara pondered for a minute. "Don't you have something else to be doing Elliot?"

"Not particularly," Elliot responded quickly, refusing to take his eyes off the screen. "I need to help you."

Sara sighed. "Elliot, you need to call your sister," she suggested.

Elliot put his head down immediately, waiting in silence for a few moments. "I just.. I can't. I can't do it. What would I even say? What could I say? Everything over all these years makes sense now… I don't know what to do…She's a mermaid! And, she never told me about it..." Elliot rambled, strongly fighting back getting choked up.

"You need to be honest with her," Laura interrupted, walking over and placing a hand on his shoulder. "This is your chance to have an open discussion about things with her. She'll want to ease things over, especially now that you know about her secret. She knew Denman knew about her past, so it would only make sense that you would've found out eventually."

"She's right you know. And I don't even know anything about your sister," Sara agreed. "Call her."

"Ok… Ok… I'll do it. While it's still evening in Florida," Elliot relented. He stood up, feeling a bit nervous, but mostly determined.

"I'll go with you for emotional support," Laura added. Sara nodded at Laura, who smiled back.

"Ok… Let's do this…" Elliot sighed.

He and Laura turned away from the rest of them, heading out into the silent hallway. Elliot sat down on an empty bench, the hard metal feeling cold as ice against him. Laura slid in next to him. Elliot took out his phone, placing it in his palm. It felt heavy in his hand. "I don't know if I can do this," he spoke.

"Elliot, you need to. You need to find closure here. You'll never find out anything unless you call her," Laura persuaded.

"Alright. Ok fine. I'm gonna do it. Just, give me a second. And don't pressure me about it."

Elliot paused for a moment, collecting his breath. When his courage peaked, he dialed Emma's number and placed the phone up to his ear. She picked up on the third ring. "Hey Elliot! How's it going?" Emma asked cheerfully.

"Hello Emma. We… need to talk…" Elliot trailed off, unsure how to begin.

"What's going on? I saw all the news about what's going on with Denman. Apparently she's the scientific advisor to that mermaid girl, Sara Meyer. Do you know what that's about? Are you involved in this as well? Have you actually met her?"

"Emma… It's… Well yeah, but that's beside the point…"

"You know the mermaid? That's great! I wish I was in your shoes. To be close to a celebrity like her, with those gifts, what I wouldn't give."

"That's not the point!" Elliot exclaimed, now frustrated.

"Then what is going on Elliot? Is there a problem I should know about?"

"I know you're a mermaid, Emma," Elliot stated bruntly yet quietly to not allow eavesdroppers to hear. The other line went deathly silent. Elliot continued. "Don't try to deny it, Emma. Denman and Zane told me the whole story. They told me everything that had happened to you. Zane told me the story about you and Denman. How did you forgive her after what she did? And how did you get your… abilities back after you gave it up to trick Denman?"

Elliot allowed the silence to begin again, waiting for Emma's answer. It took a minute. Elliot would've waited all day if he needed to. He finally wanted a straight answer out of Emma after all these years. "Elliot… I… I'm so sorry," Emma sobbed quietly into the phone. "I never meant for you to find out like this…"

"How did this happen?" Elliot asked, forcing himself to hold back tears and stay strong. "And the same thing with Cleo and Rikki too. Tell me the whole story. Please, Emma. You owe me that much."

Composing herself, Emma relayed the story to Elliot, from six years before when she became a mermaid with Cleo and Rikki up to the present day. Elliot listened silently, remembering back all those years and finding the memories of those days. Everything began to make sense. "I wish I had told you and Mum and Dad that long ago, but what could I say?" Emma continued "And what would happen to me?"

"We would've accepted you for who you are!"

"I didn't know if that would actually be the case! I was so scared of you all finding out about what I was and what I could do. So, I kept it a secret for years. Until now that is obviously. I suppose I couldn't think it would stay secret forever, especially from you."

"I have too many questions. My head is just spinning right now. I don't know what to think. To be fair you aren't the first one I've known about. I am actually friends with Sara Meyer after all. But still, you hid it from me for six years!"

"I'm so sorry Elliot. I wish I could've told you so many times before," Emma responded, more composed. Silence grew for a minute before Emma spoke again. "So… where do we go from here?"

"I forgive you." Elliot stated. "I forgive you for keeping your secret from me for so long. Do you know why? I understand your fear of other people finding out about your secret. I remember meeting Sara for the first time when we found out about her secret. She looked so scared and panicked. I now see why you never wanted to talk about it. That fear of being revealed; I completely understand it now. So… I forgive you for not telling me. But, when we see each other again, I want to sit down and have a long talk about everything. No more secrets."

"Whatever you want. And… Thank you Elliot…"

"Emma, I love you no matter what. You're the best sister that a bloke could ask for, guaranteed. I've gotta go though. I'll talk to you later."

"Goodbye Elliot."

Elliot hung up the phone, staring at the floor in silence. So much had come out of that call. It was a lot for him to handle.

"Did you get the closure you were looking for?" Laura asked.

"I suppose so. But still, I need to actually sit down and talk with her to get exactly what I need. That was enough at least for now. And the both of us are on the same page about everything."

"I'm glad. We should probably get back to the others now though. The next presentation is about to begin soon," Laura informed.

Elliot and Laura stood up together. Elliot smiled. He felt like he had accomplished something then. He got closure from his sister. Thank you Emma. But be warned, you are going to tell me everything the next time I see you in Florida.