She tugged her glasses off her nose with a shallow sigh. There was no point in keeping them on her face—spray covered the lenses in a fine mist, a layer of water just thick enough to blur everything important anyway. "And you know for a fact that no one comes around here this time of day?" her eyes slid to the left to find his face, despite the sheet of blurred colors it was now.

"Yeah. It's off-season for tourists and the weather forecast for today was terrible. Everyone's in school right now, anyways," Jacob shrugged as he bobbed his head in a nod. Then, a bit quickly, he added, "If you wanna try for another day, that's totally cool. We don't have to do this."

Exhaling through her nostrils, Morgan glanced down at the surface of the water. Black and brown under the light from the clouds, pushed outward toward the sea through the river, away from the falls overhead. Thus far, every excursion into salt water had earned her another dream-like vision. But she'd agreed to do this. She wanted to do this. She wanted, more than anything, to be comfortable as herself around someone who wasn't a family member. And, after all, wasn't Jacob the ideal someone?

So, Morgan shook her head. "No, I wanna do it. Just can't be too careful."

"I think I'd be pretty paranoid if I had a secret like that to hide," Jacob agreed.

Morgan dropped her bag near the wall of rocks a foot behind her place at the edge, and unzipped her jacket. Her skin prickled, bumps breaking out over her arms as the cold breeze reached them, and she tried not to shiver as she folded the jacket atop her bag. It would be warmer in the water, she knew, but the wind was downright icy today. Beneath her jacket and jeans, she'd smuggled a swimsuit out of the house.

Jacob couldn't help but eye her curiously as a thought came to mind at the sight of the swimsuit top. She'd been wearing one the first time he saw her mermaid form. Did that mean her scales didn't cover anything above the waist? Were mermaids truly topless entirely? The thought felt intrusive, and he shifted uncomfortably as he forced his eyes away to somewhere else—anywhere but the physical reminder—while he pushed it away. It was stupid to think about. But that was exactly where his teenage brain went. Or was it something else?

Morgan couldn't tell if the gentle tremble to her muscles was the weather or the knowledge that Jacob stood only three feet to her right as she peeled the layer away. As it was, she hardly actually changed like this in front of her siblings. Her cheeks would be warm if the wind wasn't so cold. Though, that was normal, wasn't it? Anyone would be nervous in this situation. Her jeans folded neatly atop the pile on her bag. She placed her glasses at the very top, still covered in the mist.

With a deep inhale, she turned to face Jacob. Swaying slightly in an unknown rhythm, he stared at the trees near the trail at the top of rocks, angled away from her—and she paused. Had he turned away so she could change in semi-private? The thought was a bit unexpected, but relaxed the tension building in her shoulders. Of course he would turn away, she thought. This was Jacob. The left corner of her mouth threatened to quirk upward as she cleared her throat.

His eyes flitted in her direction in a quick double-take, settling on her face only when he was sure she wasn't still changing. "I can't swap out the legs with bottoms on, so how about you turn around and once I'm in the water, you can look?" she suggested it as delicately as possible. But he was quick to nod in agreement, turning his back to her and the water before she'd completely finished speaking.

"Yeah, of course. I won't look until you're ready. Scout's honor," he held three fingers up, high enough to be seen over his shoulder. Then, he tugged the hood of his jacket over his head, holding the sides forward. "There. Can't see a thing."

Something in Morgan's stomach rolled on its side but she swallowed it down, turning to face the water. The surface was only a few inches from the rock ledge she stood on. For the easiest entrance possible, she lowered herself down to sit on the edge, tossing her legs over the side into the water. It was less eventful to ease her way in instead of jumping. This way, she could control how fast she submerged. She could slowly lower herself in up to her chest, bracing against the rock the whole way and hoping her grip didn't slip.

The dark water enveloped any part of her she would give it, swallowing it whole, and the warmth of the current lapped at her in waves like a tongue. She could feel the urge to be digested. To let go and let it gum her down into its abyss of a gut. Carefully, she reached a hand down into the water to pull at her swimsuit bottom. She tugged it down her legs, hiking up her knees to ease them over her ankles, and hoisted the water-heavy suit piece over the edge of the rocks.

As she held onto the rocks with both hands once again, she allowed the scales to break through the skin. Her legs joined and grew into the shimmering mass of her tail, the fluke blossoming into the current like a delicate flower in the afternoon breeze, and she forced her grip to loosen. She could feel the tears in her neck, the slits of skin she could breathe through—and she blinked hard at the assumption that her eyes had changed to their usual silvery color, as well. Gently, she pushed herself away from the edge.

Her body floated backward through the surface with a soft nudge from the current as the tail fanned upward before her, dragging along the top with the rest of her. It was still so otherworldly to see. To be able to feel the mass all the way down to the tips of the fluke as though it were a singular leg. As she'd expected, the body of water felt warm, and it put her prickled and bumped skin at ease beneath it. She turned to swim on her stomach before dipping her head below the surface, diving downward enough to get the rest of her body wet, before arcing upward again in a loose U.

Then, she circled back toward the rock edge, coming to rest her arms atop as a kind of effortless anchor. "Alright, you can look," her voice almost cracked.

Despite his previous excitement, Jacob was somewhat slow to turn around. He hadn't actually prepared himself for this moment as he should have. It was still so jarring to see it outside of a thought. Here, like this, it was real. Even still, he simply clenched his jaw in anticipation and turned to face the water fully. Then, his eyes fell to the edge, where she perched on the rock—and he held his breath. There it was. Something in the coloring or the surface of it shimmered in the light as it rested in the water as though the pool was cradling it.

Perhaps it was? Anything was possible now. Morgan's features were shadowed with caution and some anticipation of her own, and he knew she was bracing herself. Tensing her shoulders and clenching her jaw like he was. It pulled at something in his chest, the way the silver of her irises was aimed at the rock like she was scared to see his reaction for herself. Carefully, he moved to lower himself to sit on the rock to her right—close enough to observe and far enough to not crowd her out.

It was then that she looked up, the movement catching her eye. "Ta-da," she said, in a nervous attempt at humor as she twisted in the water, instead resting her back against the side with her arms still on top. "I don't know why it looks like this. I didn't get to pick the color, unfortunately."

Jacob sat cross-legged on the edge to keep from soaking his feet in the frigid water, and forced the split-second of apprehension from his features. "It's a nice color. Almost looks like salmon. Maybe that means something?"

"Maybe," Morgan bobbed her head.

"Isn't the water freezing?"

"It's a bit warm, actually," she turned to face him again, dipping her shoulders below the surface a moment before returning her arms to the rock edge. "Most water is to me. It's never felt cold."

Jacob's eyebrows jutted upward. "Never?"

"Never."

"I can't tell if that's a blessing or a curse," he pursed his lips in a vaguely humored, visible moment of thought. Then, he jutted his chin toward the aimlessly floating tail behind her in a brief gesture, "Does it feel heavy?"

"Mm…not really. It feels the same as swimming with my legs."

"Is it kinda slimy, like a fish?"

A brave thought crossed Morgan's mind, and she inwardly sighed at herself. She pushed down on the edge to hoist herself up, thrusting down with her tail for some extra momentum, and twisted to perch herself on the rock. Though she shimmied backward a few inches to sit upright properly, she stayed close to the edge. Ready to slide right back in should the idea be as ridiculous as her knotted gut assumed. "You can decide for yourself, if you want," she offered the now exposed part of her tail up as a kind of offering, a sacrifice for intimacy, bravery.

Jacob hesitated. It almost felt inappropriate to think about. After all, wasn't her tail still her legs? In a roundabout way, wouldn't he still be touching a thigh? A knee? He wasn't quite sure how the placement worked, or if it even truly mattered, but it wasn't something he was going to do unprompted. She was offering it. Didn't that mean that it was alright? His curiosity was nudging him in the back, urging him to go through with it, to jump at the chance to have the question answered. But, above all, to say he'd touched a real life mermaid tail.

Maybe that would make it feel real, and he could settle into the idea fully? He swallowed thickly but kept the corners of his mouth upturned in a positive expression, quirking an eyebrow in a kind of sarcastic gesture. "It's slimy, isn't it?" he jested, jokingly rhetorical.

Morgan scoffed as she playfully shoved a palm into the side of his shoulder, but her own nerves allowed her to chuckle with him at the friendly fire. "I'm not a slug," she ran her own fingers down the length of the tail she could reach before holding them up for him to see. "Just water."

Finally, with a discreet exhale, Jacob reached forward. The pads of his fingers brushed the scales where her knees might be, a little lower on the tail than Morgan was expecting, but it was a gentle connection, a curious probe. The texture was smooth yet the ridges of each scale were felt at the same time. He couldn't think of anything he'd ever touched having this kind of surface. Regular fish didn't even feel like this. "Huh. It's actually…soft," he thought aloud, moving to touch a few inches over to confirm the sensation. Sure enough, those scales felt the same.

It was a part of the design, he knew. Most likely something to help with aerodynamics or something important above his education level. Still, it was the most fascinating thing. Morgan could feel every gentle brush of skin, every soft bit of pressure, and her spine was crawling with static. But she held still apart from a slight flex of the fluke to redirect the sensation. This was too important to ruin for something bearable. He was too important.

"The thin parts at the end, where it fans out—they feel a bit like rubber," she said, lifting the fluke an inch above the water in a brief gesture.

Jacob retracted his hand before adjusting his position on the rock. "And you can swim normally if you want to? You don't have to use the tail?"

"I can decide whether or not to use it," Morgan nodded. "I don't swim much without it, though. It feels weird."

"Does it hurt to sit on the scales like this?"

She shrugged up a shoulder. "Not really. It all feels like skin to me."

Jacob shook his head slowly as he digested the information. Of course it did. The tail was as a part of her as any other limb. It would simply be like being born with a single leg. He watched as she eased herself back into the pool and pushed away from the edge to swim toward the center. The tail disappeared below the surface—it didn't have as much buoyancy as a costume might. Instead, it held weight, and it moved much more smoothly through the water than all the fish he'd seen. It was almost like watching a water moccasin.

The speed and agility in it seemed unparalleled, and this was only a casual swim. He wondered, briefly, just how fast her highest speed could be. And, he questioned whether mermaids were predators or prey. Surely they could be deadly if they wanted to be. How could they not? They were born with all the skill to hunt virtually whatever they wanted. Morgan, however, was not thinking quite so tactically. So far, nothing had come to her. She hadn't been taken to any strange places or seen that woman again, and a part of her was happy about it.

After all, she didn't need any more drama, did she? Though, another part of her was nearly devastated. Then again, perhaps simply being in the water wasn't enough? She'd been submerged both times before. Maybe that was a condition? Morgan paused then, treading water near the center of the pool. The current nudged at her arm like a child trying to get her attention. But she couldn't give into it right now. Not with Jacob here.

Then, she felt something else. A rush of cold jolted up her spine and her shoulders jerked forward in a startle. It was those eyes again. It hadn't even been two days since the first time she'd felt them watching her, but they were there again, hiding in the trees somewhere—and they were seeing more than they bargained for. Quickly, she turned in the water and began to swim back to the edge. It was visible in her face again, with a paling of her cheeks and crease of her brow, and Jacob sat forward. She'd never swam so fast before.

"You okay, Em?" he asked the question instinctively, though it was clear the answer was no.

"Remember when I said I thought I heard something the other day?" her jaw was stiff, cutting the words neatly, as she reached out for the rock edge. "I'm having that feeling again and it's freaking me out a little. Can you turn around? I think I should get out."

Jacob was quick to stand, turning around as he took a step away from the edge without hesitation, but his eyebrows did furrow. "Is this a mermaid thing? Do you have, like, heightened senses or something?"

Morgan threw herself onto the edge of the rock to reach her swimsuit bottoms with her fingertips before tugging the fabric back to the water with her, soaked and dirty from its time on the ground. As she tugged them through the water to rinse them off, she answered him with a vague, "I don't think so."

"So…what do you think it is, then?"

It was a genuine question. After all, he heard nothing. He saw nothing. The thought that something might be around that only she could sense was a bit unnerving, as odd as it sounded in his own mind. It had him glancing away, eyes flitting over the trees and the underbrush as if he truly expected to find something lurking there. And, perhaps a small part of him did? But Morgan didn't immediately answer.

She had no choice but to duck below the surface to bring back her legs. Counting on the darkness of the water in this weather to shield the parts of her that mattered, she pulled on the swimsuit bottoms, and she could feel the sides of her neck flattening—the gills smoothed over and the color returned to her eyes. When she surfaced again, she was as normal as she was when she first got in, wiping water from her face as she sucked in a few deep breaths.

Still, her stomach was soured, turned on its head with knots that sloshed in the pit of it. Morgan was quick, then, to pull herself out of the water. The wind felt like solid ice as it collided with her drenched skin and her muscles immediately began to shudder, contracting sharply under the harsh cold. "I'm not sure," she finally answered Jacob, the lie covered completely by the gentle chattering of her teeth. "It's probably nothing, honestly. I'm just a little weirded out, you know? You're all clear."

Morgan dug a bath towel from her bag and attempted to get herself as dry as possible before shimmying her clothes back onto her wet body. It would soak through her jeans in the shape of the swimsuit bottoms, but what other choice did she have? Whoever was watching them most likely wasn't going away anytime soon. As it was, she could feel it a little stronger now, a jitter of nausea reaching her toes. But she pulled on her jeans and fastened them as Jacob turned to face her, and then tugged a hoodie over her head before putting her glasses back on.

They were still a bit misted, creating sporadically placed blurry spots all over her field of vision. "No, that's totally understandable," Jacob bobbed his head, stuffing his hands into his jacket pockets.

"I'm sorry I cut this short."

Morgan's lips pulled tight, her brow twisted in a partial grimace, as she pulled the bag onto her shoulder. She appeared genuinely remorseful, though Jacob didn't intend to hold it against her either way. He waved the guilt away with a brief gesture of his hand and a carefree chuckle, attempting to put her at ease with a relaxed approach to the apology and to the fear—and it worked. "Don't worry about it, summer's coming soon anyway," he told her. Then, he picked up his own bag from where it rested against the rocks behind his position. "Are you hungry? Maybe taking a pic-nic break will make you feel better?"

The feeling remained in her gut, but any more information than she'd already given would be too much. And what would she do if whoever was watching decided to act? There was nothing she could defend herself with. No amount of willpower could stop a vampire from doing whatever they pleased. So, she weighed her options. Sit and pretend to eat while hoping the vampire goes away on its own like an unkind rash, or call one of her family members for a safe escort home and fake a sudden illness?

However tempting, the second option would leave Jacob on his own, and that idea terrified her more than simply facing it herself. Both times she'd felt them watching had been while she was with Jacob. Was the vampire truly after her? Could they be watching Jacob instead? Morgan gave a quick nod, knuckles whitening as she gripped the bag strap on her shoulder. "Yeah, that sounds nice."

It came to mind again—the sheer futility of her existence. There was nothing she could do with the aquatic abilities of her body that would defend her, or anyone else, yet the urge to protect was so strong. She'd felt it even for her family members at times, and it was like the universe was playing some sick joke. The stars pointed and laughed at her collectively in a chorus. Still, she felt it with every fiber of her being. Like the mothers of nature—the bear, the lioness, even the goose—prepared to fiercely defend their young despite their calm exterior.

Morgan and Jacob hiked the trail back up to the top, to the patch of grass at the edge of the look-out where they'd sat together once before. It felt natural to sit there again. Comfortable. Morgan's legs dangled over the edge as she peeled away the layers of plastic wrap on a tuna sandwich. At least here, there was an advantage of height. It wasn't so much like being fish in a barrel. Well, one fish. That's what she told herself while she took a deep breath, forcing her shoulders to relax, jaw to unstiffen.

Wet swaths of hair clung to the sides of her face, angling forward like a curtain. The water itself wasn't cold—however, the wind had begun to reach it just so. Her fingers held a small tremor as she worked at the sandwich wrapping, the chill of the wind racing down her spine with drops of water. This wasn't something she thought well through. Though, it was then that Jacob's voice cut through the human silence and nature ambience, the rush of the water below.

"So, got any birthday plans? I mean, besides getting your license, obviously," he leaned forward an inch in his sitting position to better see her face as she glanced up from her sandwich. "It's Monday, right?"

Morgan's lips pulled thin as her eyes drifted away in thought. No, she didn't have any plans for her birthday. It had been reserved as a school day in her mind all month. And, with everything else going on, the event hadn't exactly been at the forefront of anyone's mind. "No…I guess I haven't really thought about that," she answered, honestly.

"Oh, come on. You're not gonna throw a big bash for your sweet sixteen? Invite half the school? I'm sure you'd get plenty of RSVP's."

"Eh, they'd come for my moat and leave when I didn't have one."

Morgan tilted her head in a momentary gesture, exaggerating her features with sarcastic disappointment. Jacob laughed at the running joke. Their joke. "Well, if you don't have anything planned, maybe you can come hang out with me and the boys after school? We can go to the beach," he offered, an idea that smoothed her features to soften them with adoration. "Probably too cold to get in the water still, but maybe you can find more slugs?"

A smile tugged at the corners of her lips, the plastic in her hands forgotten. How could she think of something so insignificant in comparison? "Okay. Yeah, that sounds fun," Morgan nodded in agreement.

"Cool. I'll tell them the plan."

A thought came to Morgan then, and she was quick to speak again. "Can you make sure they know there's no pressure to get me anything? I haven't known them that long and I don't want them to think they have to."

"Sure," Jacob's lips lifted to reveal his teeth in a smile. "Don't worry, I'll relay the message."

"Thank you."

She glanced back down at the sandwich in her hands and that's when he noticed it—the tremble. Her body vibrated against the cold. As the realization reached the forefront of his mind, a pang of guilt struck his chest, and he immediately moved to pull his arms free from his coat sleeves. "Em, are you cold? I thought you weren't affected by water temperature," he said, tugging the coat from his other arm.

Morgan was quick to lift up a hand to wave away the gesture. "Oh- no, it's fine, it's just the hair. The wind is hitting it. I'll warm up."

"Yeah, with a little help."

Jacob swung the coat over her shoulders and pulled the hood over her head of wet hair to block the wind, before situating it to better wrap around her shoulders. He wasn't about to sit there and watch her freeze for the sake of her pride. It would be cruel of him to have a solution and do nothing. Morgan's lips pulled tight, digging into her cheeks as they dusted a gentle pink, peripheral blocked by the hood. Her body heat started to be retained inside the dual layers and she could feel it soaking back into her skin like sunlight as he ran his hands up and down her arms to generate friction.

It was an action of common sense. After all, that was what someone would do for anyone who'd been submerged as she had. Stimulate the person's blood to pump faster and generate heat. Morgan had seen it on plenty of tv shows and even read about it in one of Carlisle's medical journals he'd left out in the office—though, it had never been done to her. The warmth was comforting and her body relaxed beneath it, its weight like a carefully weighted blanket, adjusted just for her. She found herself leaning into it.

Morgan's left shoulder fell against his chest, but he didn't mind, his arms all but around her already. Sometimes, she could admit, it was hard to get to this place—but it was so effortless to stay in it. Once the part of her that always thought better of it gave in, she wanted nothing more than to be vulnerable and accept any care he might give. Any affection. Sometimes she caught herself feeling almost too comfortable with Jacob. After all, the only thing left between them was the truth about her family. And that was far too easy to forget—even for a moment—when he was vulnerable with her, too.

He held onto her as she leaned into him, wrapping his arms around her to keep the heat in, and Jacob found himself holding his breath. Waiting for the pull-away. Expecting it. For the obvious cue he was doing too much and over stepping. His heart thumped a little harder in his chest when she was this close, usually in the way that teenage crushes always did, but—this time—it felt like more than that. Like it wasn't an anxious beat, but a strong one. It had gained an extra step in a long stride. He wasn't sure why he thought that, though it felt like it made sense. She made sense.

"Any better?" he asked her, careful not to speak too loud so close to her ear.

Morgan lifted a hand to push the border of his jacket hood back from her face as she twisted against the front of his shoulder, peering up at him with a crane of her neck. Something in her stomach dropped. She hadn't realized how far she'd leaned. Though, whatever it was lifted on its own, taking a new shape. Weightless, it traveled to her chest cavity and it felt as though her ribs had gone numb. Morgan blinked at the sight so close to her eyes. Warm, comforting brown like honey that swirled in an endless current around a darkness so inviting.

Full cheeks and soft skin so vibrant compared to her own. She'd forgotten how boyish he looked. For a month, they were the same age, but she felt so much older than fifteen. It was the company she kept, she knew—however, it othered her in such an odd way. Still, here, it almost felt even. Like, maybe, she was fifteen? Maybe she was fifteen and he was fifteen and they were both just kids trying to navigate the lives they'd been given? And it was okay to forget the secrets that slipped her mind so easily. She was too young to be expected to carry them, anyway.

Morgan swallowed. "Perfect."

Without the comfort, she could've slapped herself after the word left her mouth. She would've called it desperate or felt like the insinuation was crossing a line. Though, she didn't feel different at all. Jacob could've sworn there was still a sliver of silver swirling in the hazy blue of her eyes. The realization only added to the gentle warmth of it all. He knew her now better than he ever thought he would, and it was a wonder that they'd gotten to know each other at all. After all, Morgan wasn't exactly in what he would consider 'his league'—at least a few notches above it—and the truth about what she was raised the bar even further.

Who could possibly compare? Who could measure up to a real life mermaid? Just for that, he imagined she was out of just about everyone's league. Yet he was the one. Of anyone she could've befriended, let in, trusted—she chose him. It was easy to feel insignificant and special at the same time, the oddest of contradictions. And now they were here, perched by the waterfall together, in an embrace that grew increasingly warm. There was something in her stare that he almost could've mistaken for wonder. But it couldn't be, could it?

Morgan fell into the tingling feeling in her chest, then, and she found herself leaning again. This time, all it took was an inch, maybe two. She lifted her chin to press her lips against his. It was brief—a small tether to reality remaining urging her back to the ground, thinking better of an extended stay—though, the jolt down her spine was undeterred. Jacob stilled in utter shock. Although it wouldn't have been out of the question to an outsider, it was the last thing he expected. Thoughts swirled around his mind like a whirlwind of voices and he was sure the heat rushing to his cheekbones would soon be visible.

Still, it all happened too fast. There was a feeling that ebbed in his chest he couldn't read, but it was warm and good—and it felt like her—and he'd only been able to grasp it for a second. Morgan had pulled away from it as fast as she'd initiated it, but she lingered in that position still, only a couple of inches away. He wondered, then, just how long he'd wait to feel that again. Would he feel it again? How he responded would most likely be a large determiner, he knew. However, thoughts were starting to blur together, the beginning of one completing another, and an urge bubbled up in the pit of his stomach.

So, he darted forward, quick to catch her lips before he could lose them forever. They were cold from the water and wind but the heat materializing beneath his skin was more than enough to cancel it out. Morgan's head was spinning. Her stomach had capsized in her abdomen, sloshed about by a harsh drop. Still, the pads of her fingers landed gently on the skin of his face, and she drank him in. She couldn't convince herself not to. A hungry mouse smelled cheese and the contraption it sat on was not going to deter it—no matter how grisly the consequence.