Whispers floated around Gil as he walked down the hall, running a hand through his newly blue hair.
"Hey man!" Joey, one of his friends said, hooking an arm around Gil's shoulder. "Nice sea hair! What happened?"
"I dyed it." Gil lied, turning to his locker. To be honest, Gil had no idea what had happened to his used-to-be blonde hair. Over the summer, Gil had went to beach and swam, as usual, but this time something happened. The bracelet that he had found when he was young started to glow and the ocean water around him swirled around his hair, turning it into the icy blue it was now.
"You joining the swim team again?" Joey asked, leaning against the locker next to Gil's.
"You know it." Gil responded, grabbing a few books and slamming the locker shut. Ever since he started to walk, Gil had been a phenomenal swimmer. It's as if every time I touch the water, my feet merge together and I'm as fast as a dolphin or something, Gil thought to himself and chuckled.
"See ha later crazy." Joey said, flashing a peace sign as Gil walked into his homeroom. His classmates greeted him as usual and he sat down, leaning back in his chair and closing his eyes.
"Hey mommy!" Gil opened his eyes to find himself on Palm Beach, watching as his younger self rushed to his mom. "Will you build sand castles with me?"
Ms. Gordon sat in the sun, her skin tanning. She lifted her sunglasses and stared at her son, an eyebrow raised. "No sweetie, sorry. If I don't tan, I won't attract any men, and you want a new daddy don't you?"
The seven-year old Gil sighed as he turned away from his mom and head to the far other end of the beach, collecting shells for his castle. Suddenly, Gil stubbed his toe on an object and he shouted, clutching his foot in agony. After the pain seeped away, Gil turned back and looked into the sand, a bracelet with a seashell buried in the sand,
Gil grabbed the piece of jewelry and clutched it tightly, the scenery around him changing into soft colors and sounds. He looked around him in amazement when something caught his eye. A blue tail disappeared behind a bush and Gil ran after it, slowly peering behind the plant.
On the other side of the bush, a caramel colored mermaid looked up at him with deep brown eyes filled with fear. Gil held out his hand and smiled, the mermaid smiling back.
Suddenly, Gil heard a bell and his eyes snapped open. Gil looked around as the last of the students filed out of the room, new ones taking their place. Gil picked up his stuff and headed out of the classroom as well, heading straight to first period.
...
When the final bell rung, Gil took his usual route home, this time stopping by the grocery store to pick up some ingredients to cook dinner.
"I'm home!" Gil called out, but received no response. He walked into the kitchen only to find a note on the fridge. On a date, I think this may be the one! His mother wrote.
Gil rolled his eyes and set the bag on the counter. "That's what you said last time." He said to himself. Gil sighed and walked into the backyard, looking over the fence at the ocean. He didn't know why, but for some reason just being near the sea soothed him.
Next door, Gil heard a door open and close and he peered over, watching a girl walked onto her backyard. He peered over the fence as the girl took a deep breath, taking in the view just as Gil did.
Suddenly, she looked over at Gil and he stepped back in shock, stumbling on a rock and falling on his head. The girl gasped, running over to the fence and looking down at the boy.
The girl was about to run over to Gil when her necklace started to flow along with Gil's bracelet. The scenery disappeared behind them and turned into a place with bright colors and bubbles around them, just like he had seen when he was younger.
The girl across the from him stood in shock, starting to shake. She then tugged off her necklace and threw it across the fence, running into her house and slamming the door.
Gil raised and eyebrow as the scenery went back to reality and his bracelet stopped glowing. He walked over and picked up the necklace, looking over at the house before walking into his own.
Meanwhile, someone had watched the whole event from a giant bubble, popping it with their long nail.
"It's happening." It said in a raspy voice, tapping the arm of the chair. It turned the chair around, facing three mergirls.
"We cannot let them get any closer than they already have. They've already become curious...Go to the surface, stop them from ever trying to find out the truth."
The three girls stepped out from the shadows, revealing that weren't mermaids, but actually sirens.
"It'll be our pleasure." The three girls sang in a hypnotic voice.
...