I bit my lip hard, thinking. My father was out of town for business and I had the house to myself for a week.

Summer break was coming up fast, but I didn't have any plans other than my birthday. Father should be home in time for it, but if something happens and he isn't, I told him we could celebrate together when he gets back.

I didn't have any friends growning up and still don't, so I'm used to being alone. He knows this and accepts that I am more of an introvert than a people person.

And, he doesn't know that I spent the last four years searching for Cronus every chance I got, but what he doesn't know won't hurt him...

With a sigh, I hooked my backpack over my shoulder and headed to the beach. It was only a five minute walk and I needed to hear the water to relax enough to do my homework and study.

Once there, I went to the unused pier. The pier wasn't unstable or falling apart, it was just old and creaked under weight. But, since the new one was built, everyone took their business there.

But I liked this pier. It was always quite, no sign of life other than me and the few starfish clinging to the support beams. I lit the old gas lantern that hung on a thick metal hook at the end of the pier and settled under the warm light just as the sun started to set.

Finals were coming up soon and I had to get my work done. Leaning against the last pillar dividing stalls, I opened my English three book and flipped to the monologue I was supposed to memorize and recite for my final.

It was a form of a love confession, it seems. I had about a week and a half to get this mastered, so it was first and, seeing as it was the only thing I was having issues with, the most important.

I cleared my throat and read it to myself. "And what if they find the nature of our love illfitting of our age? Where would that leave us? Alone, with nobody to turn to but each other. That is all I could ever hope for, yet you hide from your true feelings. Why?

Why are you so frighetned of something so natural? Are you afraid of me, or of the endless possibilities that hide in the very word of love? And what defines the difference of fear and love?

Are the two really so different, in their affects on your soul and body? So come with me now, into our endless sea of love and fear, and discover how far we can go. Together." I shook my head.

"That doesn't sound right." I sighed and shut the book in my frustration, slipping it back in my bag. I took out my Calculus book and my math notebook, getting ready to finish my math homework.

A flick of water hit my leg, making me jump and look around. There was nobody in sight. I frowned and went back to my homework, then another splash hit both my legs.

I sighed heavlily and looked at the water, expecting to see somebody swimming by and messing with me. What I saw made me gasp and drop my book on the pier.

"It wasn't that bad Kankri." My heart almost stopped when I saw his face. Cronus. He was in the water, smiling up at me.

"Cronus?" I asked, my hand touching the necklace under my shirt. He smiled and held his hand out to me. I braced myself with the pillar I had been leaning on and pulled him up onto the pier, moving my books aside with my foot so he didn't get them wet.

He hugged me, soaking my shirt. My heart squeezed in my chest and beat faster before he let me go. I blushed as he looked at me.

His hair was longer and he was even more muscular, abs rippling down his stomach as he sat down next to me. He was dressed exactly as I remember from years ago in black shorts and nothing else.

I stuttered as he reached into my shirt, lifting out the necklace he'd given me. He smiled softly at it and let it go, resting it against my shirt. "Thank you for keeping it." He kissed my cheek.

"You're a mermaid right?" I asked bluntly, covering my mouth. He blinked at me, his smile falling. "I'm so sorry if that offended you but I've been wondering the last four year and I-" His lips on mine stopped me.

"Shut up." He pulled me into his lap. "I'm kinda a merman and not really. My mom was a mermaid and my dad was a horny fucker." He smiled. "So I can be up here and down there." He pointed to the water. "My friend is actually out here too. She wanted to meet you."

He leaned over the pier and stuck his head in the water. I watched him grab the pillar with one hand and reach into the water with the other, pulling something out.

A girl surfaced, looking up at me. Her hair was cut short, two long braids floating behind her. She looked at me with pink eyes and smiled, showing pointed teeth. I swallowed hard.

"So this is the human scum you saved Cronus?" She asked, narrowing her eyes at me. My mouth fell open, no words coming out. "What a waste." She rolled her eyes and turned to go away, but Cronus grabbed one of her braids and tugged her back.

"Say you're sorry Meenah." She curled her lip at him and glared at me until he tugged her braid a little harder, making her squeak.

"S-sorry!" He let her go. "You better watch yourself when you get back you little bitch." She spat at Cronus before sinking under the water. She didn't have any kind of tail, the only differences I could spot between the two of them being their teeth and she had...fins for ears.

I looked at Cronus, realizing what all had just happened. My hand lifted to my mouth and I touched my lips lightly, almost in shock.

Suddenly, all the frustration and anger and sadness that had been building inside of me these last four years I'd spent looking for him blew out of me, tears rolling down my cheeks and words spilling out of my mouth.

"Where have you been?" I asked, ducking my head so he wouldn't see my tears. "I looked everywhere for you. I spent so long combing the beach for you. Where have you been?!" I asked, pushing away from him and standing up.

He looked at me, at my tear stained face. "Four years Cronus! I haven't seen you in four years and you think you can just randomly kiss me when you reappear? I don't even know you!" He stood up and pulled me against him.

I went without a fight. It wouldn't have mattered if I fought him or not. He was much stronger than me. He rubbed my back lightly, resting his head on mine. "I'm so sorry." He said softly, kissing the top of my head.

"I missed you so much. But I wasn't able to get away long enough to see you like this. Every day on my scouting trips I would stop by here and watch you. I would make sure you were safe and not in any kind of trouble. But Meenah's mom caught on to me and took me off. Meenah and I snuck away to see you."

His words made me shake. I wanted them to be true so bad... "You'll have to ignore her though. She treats everyone like crap because her mom is the queen." He sighed and held me tighter.

I could feel his heart beating, his skin soft over the muscles. "I thought about you every day. I missed you every day. And for that I am sorry." He said, hooking his finger under my chin, making me look at him.

And, as I looked into those purple-blue eyes, I knew. I knew that he meant it. Fresh tears rolled out of my eyes as I wrapped my arms around hm, clinging to him.