Chapter 11

Once Melody was taken to Ariel's and sent to her room as punishment, and Sarah was told that her granddaughter was safe, Jim gripped his hair and sunk to the floor, screaming internally.

"I can't believe she did that!" Ariel muttered. "When we get back to the sea, she is going to be confined to her seabed until she is seventy! Plus a century!"

Jim exhaled through his nose. "Ari..." He began, "Are you sure we can do this?"

"Pardon?"

Jim shrugged and plunked down on the couch. "Well, you have to admit... things may SEEM to be going good between us, but, you know there's always that tension between us."

Ariel nodded. "I understand fully." She muttered. "But, what's happened has happened, and in three days, I'll be gone and the tension will be too."

"I just want to know WHY!" Jim replied. "From the day we started dating, until you turned back into a mermaid, I thought you were happy with me... Please, tell me why you did it."

"Will it solve anything?" Ariel asked. "You're still going to slightly hate me."

"Maybe." Jim began, but i'm still curious."

Ariel hung her head. "Fine, I'll tell you. It happened a month after we had sex..."

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"Ariel..." Triton began.

Ariel was doubled over, being sick.

"You've been sick for a while now..."

"It's probably just a bad kelp salad..."

King Triton raised an eyebrow. "Bad kelp salad doesn't make you sick for a week. Ariel... Let me look at you."

Ariel wiped her mouth and turned to face her dad. Raising his trident, Triton zapped Ariel in the stomach.

Ariel gulped. She had a suspicion to what was making her sick... but it couldn't be... Humans and mermaids couldn't...

"ARIEL!" Triton roared.

Ariel balked. "Yes, Daddy?"

"Care to explain why you have a BABY INSIDE YOU?" Triton fumed.

Ariel gulped... Her suspicion was confirmed. "Well... Um..."

"Who's the father?" Triton asked. "Why did you even... YOU'RE SIXTEEN!"

Ariel hung her head. "We didn't think mermaids and humans could..."

"Humans?" Triton asked in disbelief, "what about humans?!" He roared.

Ariel gulped again. "That time when I vanished?" She began.

Triton glared daggers at his daughter.

"I had cast a spell making me a human. While I was on the shore, I met a boy named Jim Hawkins... and... well... we didn't think humans and mermaids could procreate..."

"Does this Jim Hawkins boy know?" Triton asked.

Ariel shook her head.

"Good. Break up with him."

Ariel looked up at her dad in horror. "But... But Daddy! Why?"

Triton glared down at her. "The fact you even interacted with a human... Does he know who you truly are?"

Ariel nodded. "And he didn't run. He accepted me! He LOVES me! And I love him!"

"But what about your child?"

Ariel looked down at her stomach and mindlessly pressed her hand on it... their baby was inside her...

"Your baby will born a mermaid, Jim won't be able to hold it, cuddle it... He'll have to live with that pain."

Ariel was unconvinced.

"And how do you even know he wants to be a dad?" Triton continued. "He's, how old?"

"Fifteen."

"That's still too young! I've seen how father's his age act. They tell you they'll be there for you, then one day they up and leave you, for a younger, non-pregnant girl, and this one will be the same species as him. No matter how you slice it, it's a lose-lose situation."

Ariel blinked back tears.

"No matter what happens, you'll both be in pain. So this will save you. I'll help you raise the child, give it a good life, but you must leave Jim. If you don't, he'll only grow to hate you."

Ariel covered her face and sobbed. This hurt her so much. Finally, raised her head.

"I... I'll do it tonight..." Then she swam off in tears.

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Jim was speechless.

"He really said that?" He asked in surprise.

Ariel nodded. "Even though I left you, I never stopped loving you." She said, then covered her mouth. "Um, you can have the bed... I'll make up the couch."

With that, she got up and left for the linen closet.

Jim got up and headed outside.

"She says she loves me..." He scoffed. "Yet she still..."

Then he paused... Why was he still angry at her? She clearly wanted to stay with him...

"Ugh! This complicates EVERYTHING!" He screamed.

Turning to the door, he saw Ariel making the couch up. Finally, he came inside after cooling down.

Looking at her closely, he saw her eyes were filled with tears.

"Ariel?" He asked in surprise.

Ariel quickly wiped her eyes. "Oh... um... I'm sorry. Just... just leftover tears from... what happened. I'm sorry I yelled at you... I was just..."

"It's ok." Jim calmly said. "You were worried. I understand... I've seen the same expression on my mom's face too."

Ariel smiled weakly. "Even though she's almost five... I still make mistakes."

"Hey... no parent is perfect. Look at me! I lost my daughter the night she was staying with me."

The two laughed in semi relief, then paused.

"Is it just me, or did it feel like..." "

We were teens again..." Jim finished.

They gulped, before Ariel ran to the kitchen. "Better make dinner..." She said. "I think Melody's learnt her lesson. You can go get her."

Jim headed upstairs and knocked on her door.

"Mel?" He called out.

"What?" Melody sniffed from behind the door.

"Your punishment is over, you can come out now."

The door opened, and Melody came out.

"Daddy?" She began, "I'm so sorry... I wanted an extension on my time as a human so I can spend more time with you."

Jim picked up his daughter and held her.

"Melody..." He began. "No matter where you are, on land or in the sea, you'll always be my daughter, and I'll always love you."

"And I love you, Daddy." Melody replied, hugging him back.

After dinner was made and eaten, the three of them went into the backyard and watched the stars. Jim pointed out his favourite stars to Melody, as she laughed and clapped.

"I'm going to miss this..." Ariel whispered, looking over at Jim.

After the fun was over, and Melody was sent to bed, Jim turned to Ariel.

"Your bed can fit two, right?"

Ariel nodded.

"Join me?" He asked.

Ariel shrugged and the two of them headed to bed.

As Ariel slept, Jim kept replaying her story in his head. Turning to Ariel, he realized in surprise, he may still love her.