Jemma's night didn't go much better either, in fact, it went just as terribly. After her initial breakdown and frantic escape, which had actually gotten her a good thirty miles away, she had slowed down and tried to figure out what to do. She immediately regretted leaving Skye alone on that beach, but she had to figure things out on her own. She couldn't go back to the caves, her pod members would instantly be on her tail and she just wasn't up for that right now.
The only other solution would be to find other shelter and either go back to the caves or the beach in the morning, depending on how her thoughts turned out. Finding shelter was no easy task, though, her pod had been lucky to find the caves. Jemma went without one, simply sitting at the ocean floor, thinking about what that thing with Skye had felt like. It was terrifying and unknown, but also sort of wonderful. If only Jemma had slowed down enough to tell her so, maybe this would be better right now.
It had to be intimate, whatever Skye had done. In her time with the human she found that they weren't as touchy-feely as mermaids, and personal space was a lot more important to them. For Skye to throw those values into the wind had to mean something important. The only thing she could think about was the deep bond between them. How it formed, how it had been going, but mostly what it was. What were they, exactly? Best friends, sure, but what else? The only other type of relationship she really knew about was partnership, but that- wait.
Skye knew that that was what tail touching meant, was Skye just trying to show her the human version of that?! Jemma suddenly felt extremely guilty for running away, she wanted to go back and say that she was sorry and that she had enjoyed whatever that was called, she just hadn't understood it. After a whole day of crazy new things, something she didn't understand was quite a repeat experience. She wanted to go back to Skye, but she was probably already gone, and she ran into another problem.
Jemma had no luck on her own, apparently, because she'd stopped paying attention, and she didn't think to watch out until she saw a shape in the dark, distant water, and by then it was too late. She shot off back towards the caves, but it wasn't going to do any good. She was fast, but some sharks were faster. It was night, sharks were nocturnal, they hunted at night. Now Jemma was the prey.
She sped back towards the cave, but it wasn't enough. One of the smaller sharks finally caught up and flung itself at her, locking its partially developed jaw onto her shoulder and back. She let out a screech, one that would alert her pod both that there were sharks and that she was in danger, before she grabbed the shark herself, pried it off after a struggle, and continued swimming, leaving a large trail of blood behind for the sharks to follow. Maybe they somehow decided to have mercy on her, or maybe her pod members had gone out and done something she hadn't noticed, but soon there were arms around her and a terrified voice trying to get past her ears and to her head.
"Jemma, what happened? Where have you been? Are you okay? Can you hear me?" They just kept coming and Jemma didn't have time to answer them , though she would have tried her best if it had been Skye. It didn't matter that Bobbi was holding her close and swimming her back to the cave and their shaman, not unless Skye was there.
The shaman gave Bobbi a mixture made out of plants with healing abilities, always keeping the stronger magic for life or death emergencies. Without another word from Jemma, Bobbi brought her back to the small sleeping space shared between the two of them and forced Jemma to lie on her stomach as Bobbi applied the medicine to each of the teeth's puncture wounds or tears, trying to ignore the hissing sounds each time her fingers came into contact.
"Did something happen with Skye?" Bobbi finally asked her once she was finished. They hadn't been talking lately, but she knew her sister well enough to know that only one thing could make her this upset. She'd even been happy she'd been stung by that jellyfish as a kid just because now she knew what it felt like. She was different now, though.
"Please, just leave me alone." Jemma sighed, hiding her face in her arms as she lay face down and wishing she could curl up in a ball and die. She wanted to go see Skye, but she was so tired... Her eyelids drooped shut, and soon she was out like a light, though her dreams were stressful and full of Skye.
Skye didn't know whether to get up and go now or wait till her and Jemma's regular time to meet to go to the beach but she knew that she wasn't going to get any sleep. She had been lying in her bed for hours and the birds were already starting to chirp outside, signaling that the sun would be coming up soon.
The walk back to her house had been a long one, but once she got there she had found her supply of tears had been refilled. She stayed them off until she could get up to her room, making sure to keep quiet downstairs so her mother didn't hear her come in so late. She had washed and bandaged her knuckles and fallen into bed. She had tried to sleep, but it hadn't come. She was too worried and afraid and upset at what she had done. How stupid she had acted without thinking. She had probably ruined things with Jemma.
However, by the time the sun had come up, Skye had managed to fall asleep, full of fitful dreams and unrest. By the time she had woken up it was already past the time that she and Jemma normally met and she scrambled to get dressed. She didn't take much, not sure what to grab, so she raced out the front door and jumped on her bike.
From the beach access point she leapt off, not even bothering to lock her bike onto the rack before she was sprinting down the beach, cutting the time it took her to reach the rock wall nearly in half. She scrambled over it, chest heaving, heart pounding and gasping for air. She practically fell to the other side, but once she was up, she scanned the shore. No rock tower.
"No, no, no…"
She left her bag where it had fallen and ran to the water's edge, looking around frantically. Maybe she had missed it. But there was nothing.
"Jemma?!" No answer.
"Jemma, if you're here please come out!" No answer again.
Jemma was always here early, so the fact that Skye was late and she wasn't here…Skye didn't want to think about it. She resigned herself to go and sit in the shade some of the larger rocks of the wall provided, taking out her phone and flipping through all of the pictures. It made her cry again to look at them, especially the one Jemma had taken of them on the Ferris Wheel. She could hardly stand it.
Skye was hungry, but she didn't leave. She had forgotten to pack a snack but she didn't get up to go and get one. She waited it out, the entire day, and the sun was well down in the horizon before she even thought of getting up.
Jemma hadn't shown up. Jemma probably wasn't going to show up period. Skye had scared her away and she was trying to prepare herself for that. It actually became night again before her phone battery died and she began to get cold again. Without thinking about it as much as she had last night, she finally got up off the sand and brushed herself off. She would try again tomorrow, though she figured the results would probably be the same.
When Jemma's eyes finally flashed open again, she didn't know what time it was, but for some reason it felt like it had been a long while. She blinked several times to clear the fogginess from her vision and her mind, and for a minute everything was alright...until everything came rushing back. If mermaids could cry, Jemma was sure she would right now.
Suddenly, she realized she had no idea what time it was and panic began to bubble up in her throat as she began to wonder if she had missed Skye. Wide eyed and finicky, Jemma pushed against the rock wall and raised her upper body, wincing at the pain it caused the relatively large oval of teeth marks and punctured or slightly raised skin on her right shoulder and shoulder blade. It felt like the bite was larger than she had been able to tell last night, but she couldn't be sure.
"Jemma, you need to rest." The sudden voice and light hand on her good shoulder made Jemma flinch and jump, she was still so wound up that even Bobbi in their own cave startled her.
"What happened to you?" Bobbi's eyes were full of sadness, and it made Jemma's heart ache, even though she'd been trying to stay mad at her sister. She was concerned and very upset and Jemma couldn't blame her. She was acting very strange, even she knew it.
"How long have I been asleep?" Jemma answered her question with a question.
"About a sun and a moon. The shaman gave you something to help, you were exhausted and you need rest to heal." Bobbi informed her. Skye may not have understood the mermaid's way of expressing time, but Jemma sure did, and she was horrified to discover that she'd been asleep for a full twenty four hours. She'd probably missed Skye. What would she think, when she showed up and Jemma wasn't there, after everything that had happened the night before?
"I have to go," Jemma was already trying to pull herself to the edge of the ledge and into the water, but it was difficult using only one arm.
"I know." Bobbi sighed. It was like she'd come to accept that Jemma would always go back to Skye, and even though she didn't know why Jemma had disappeared yesterday and come back like this, she had to trust that Skye wouldn't hurt her, as she didn't really have an option.
Jemma was grateful for this, and very glad that Bobbi didn't try to stop her when she finally did slip into the water. The salt stung her wound, but there wasn't much she could do about it. Mermaids didn't exactly have a ton of extra material sitting around to make bandages with.
"Just be back by nightfall, or the sharks are going to come for you again." Bobbi warned, and Jemma just nodded, her mind already on Skye. Would she show up after Jemma didn't yesterday? Hopefully she kept coming back.
It was still early when Jemma got to the beach, and by now her wounds were bleeding again, quickly dripping down Jemma's back when it could mix with the water and become so much thinner. Jemma clenched her jaw and pulled herself as far onto shore as she could manage with one arm, and the tiny rock tower she built there was pathetic. It was short and not made up of very many rocks at all, and it was still just within reach of some of the waves, which could probably knock it over.
Jemma would have pushed back into the water to go hide behind the rock and wait for Skye, but she wasn't sure she'd be able to get back up again and she was afraid to go back into the water right now when her attackers could still be out there, whether it was day or night. Some of the sand was already red with her blood, but Jemma couldn't move, she just laid in it, resting her head down on her arms like she had the night before. She wanted her best friend.
Skye had a tight knot in her stomach when she woke up, and she realized it was because she didn't know if she wanted to go to the beach today. If she did and Jemma was there...what was she even going to say? She had to apologize. Obviously it had been enough to scare her away for a whole day. Maybe she would just have to lie...tell her it had been a mistake...a lapse of judgement.
Skye didn't know if she could do that. She didn't think she could lie like that, tell Jemma she didn't really care as much as she did. But if she did tell her and try to explain...what if Jemma didn't understand? What if that wasn't what she wanted? Then their friendship would get weird because they would both know Skye wanted to be more than just friends. The thought of not going back danced in her mind, but only for a second before she pulled herself out of bed. She had some classes today but Skye knew she wouldn't be able to concentrate.
She began to get ready to go to the beach, even though she didn't know what she was expecting. The scenarios in her head didn't play out well and it only made that knot bigger. She had never been this anxious about going to the beach. She had always been excited but now...Skye felt like she had tainted it. She had caused it to feel bad. It was her fault if everything fell apart when she got there.
She didn't try hard today, there wasn't enough effort in her. Her short hair was in a small ponytail and all she had on were some shorts and a shirt. Before she stepped out of the house, she remembered to hook her phone to her computer and print all the pictures Jemma had taken. Maybe she would still want at least the sunset ones.
Her next stop was the college, but she didn't go to class. Instead, she laminated all the pictures so they wouldn't get messed up in the water. Maybe she was stalling going back, but she didn't know, because she sighed heavily when she had finished. She grabbed a bite to eat, and then got back on her bike and peddled slowly for the beach.
Once on the beach, the walk seemed to take forever. Eons if it were possible, which it wasn't. Her chest kept getting tighter and tighter as she approached and when she reached the rocks, she laid a hand on them, just standing there in dread, not sure if she could make it over. She still took deep, heavy breaths and composed herself enough to sling her bag over. Skye followed suit and when she landed inside the grotto she turned, hesitant to face the beach. When she did, she wasn't sure what her eyes landed on first. The rock tower, the blood, or Jemma lying there in the open. She began to panic, but for a different reason than before.
"Jemma!?" Her bag was on the ground and she was running over, in the wet sand in an instant, knees in it, down on her level. She was bleeding. Something had hurt her and Skye hated to think it had been because of all the stupid things she had done.
"You're hurt! Are you alright? What happened?!" She could apologize later. She didn't touch her, in case Jemma didn't want her to, but she stared at the puncture wounds with horror and worry.
When Jemma heard Skye, her head shot up and she winced at the movement. Skye was right there and even though Jemma didn't know what had happened between them, she still reached for Skye's hand, she needed to.
"You're here." Jemma breathed. She didn't know why she had been doubting her, Skye always came back.
"I was going to meet you yesterday, but I had a little trouble getting home that night." Jemma couldn't help but laugh, a small, bitter one. "Sharks are definitely not our friends." She joked, trying to sit up a little bit. Pain shot through her shoulder and she decided against it, though, so she laid back down and just held onto Skye's hand. For a minute it was starting to seem like nothing strange had happened between them.
"A shark?!" Skye looked at the shape of the wounds together and it made sense now in her head. She held Jemma's hand tighter for it. This was her fault. She had kept her out so late and then scared her off the other night, the girl probably hadn't been paying attention. It made Skye want to cry all over again but this time, she held the tears back. Jemma was the one hurt here, not her. She could take it. What she couldn't take would be if Jemma got eaten by a shark.
"You're still bleeding..." Skye didn't want to leave her, but she couldn't just let her lay here in the bloody sand. She knew she had Band-Aids in her bag. Her own hands had them on where she had stupidly punched rocks the night Jemma ran away. She kept them there for her run ins with Ward too, but she wasn't sure that they would really help. "Hold on..." Skye gently pulled her hand away after a squeeze and went up onto the dry sand and brought her bag back down, pulling out the band aid box.
Skye took off her shirt without hesitation. She had a bra on and it was no different than Jemma sitting here in one all day. "This might sting, I'm sorry," the brunette breathed and then as gently as she could, tried to dry up Jemma's back so she could get the Band-Aids to stick. Her shirt would be a mess, but she didn't care. She did however, take care to put Band-Aids on each individual mark, hoping that it would keep them alright until she found something better.
"There, just try not to move it. If you were this hurt why did you come back? You should have stayed...I-I can't handle you bleeding out in front of me," it was her fault. She was the one who had driven Jemma away.
"I-I'm sorry about the other day. I was an idiot...I didn't m-mean to chase you away and get you into trouble like this..."
"This wasn't your fault, Skye. I was being reckless, this is on me." Jemma said firmly. She shifted a tiny bit, trying to get used to whatever sticky things Skye had put on her wounds. "I'll be fine, there's nothing to worry about." She assured her. Before Skye could say anything else, Jemma spoke up again. There was still this weird thing between them, polluting the air, and Jemma had to clear it up.
"Oh, and Skye..." Jemma swallowed a lump in her throat, though she didn't know why she was nervous. This was her best friend, and if she was right, Skye felt the same way about her that she was beginning to discover. They had already established that they cared about each other, but to put herself out there like this...to consider the possibility of a partner-like relationship between them...it was crazy. It was more than crazy, it could never work. A fish and a bird could fall in love, but where would they live?
It was worth a shot, though, wasn't it? They'd been doing great so far and Jemma would be happier with this system than a normal relationship under the sea with anyone else.
"What you did..." Jemma paused again, and it looked like the anxiety was about to kill Skye, so she quickly righted it.
"It... It wasn't bad. It was good. I just didn't know what it meant... But I think I know now. I only left because I needed to come to the same conclusion, figure out how I felt, without needing an explanation." Jemma looked back up into Skye's eyes, and she knew, she just knew, that they both felt the same way. They weren't just friends, Jemma knew this. As a mermaid, she naturally loved everyone equally except for her partner, and Skye had grown to mean so much to her. She was more important than Bobbi, even more important than herself.
Skye was struck silent, to Jemma it looked like she was either shocked or in disbelief. Maybe Jemma needed to be more clear. It stung and hurt to sit up, but Jemma managed. Skye was quite used to Jemma touching her, so it was no different when Jemma laid a gentle hand on Skye's shoulder, at least until it slid to the back of her neck and her fingers buried themselves in Skye's hair.
"I know what it means." Jemma said again, quietly, her face only inches from her best friend's. Without another thought or second to doubt herself, Jemma leaned in the rest of the way and touched her lips to Skye's, very softly at first, but then with a little more pressure when her heart fluttered. It was a little awkward since she didn't know how to do this, but she was trying.
There was a split second where Skye didn't react. Her brain was trying to process what Jemma was telling her while simultaneously trying to push all her anxiety and grief about it aside so she could just listen without panicking. Only a second. Then, the knot in her stomach seemed to dissolve and her chest expanded, taking a heavy and much needed inhale past Jemma's lips. Her hands suddenly grasped at her hips, half on skin and half on scales before one moved up Jemma's back, careful to avoid her injury, and up into her hair, cradling the back of her head firmly. She was pulling her closer. Skye needed her to be closer.
Skye's lips moved against hers then, initial shock faded away, harder than Jemma's had, because this was actually happening. She wanted it, she needed it, and suddenly she was desperate to get as much of this as possible. Skye didn't mean to be rough. She wanted Jemma to enjoy it, since she had just confessed that she had liked it before...but she was so happy. Skye couldn't handle it. She couldn't contain it. She certainly didn't want it to end, but she knew she needed to breathe, and Jemma did too.
She took her lips away, slowly, not really wanting to, and she touched their foreheads together while Skye kept a firm hold of the mermaid. She didn't want her even an inch away because it would be too far. She cleared her throat, her face red, but Jemma would appreciate the wide dorky grin she had on her face, "So then...miss know it all...if you're such an expert in the world of humans now...wh-what does it mean?" She wanted to hear the mermaid say it. She needed to hear her say it. Jemma could kiss her all day long like it was a regular custom for people but Skye had to be sure she came to exactly the right conclusion on her own.
"It...it means that we love each other. And that we're..." It was still a little hard for Jemma to say. She already knew she loved Skye very much, but to say it and mean it in a different way was a little scary. What if Jemma was wrong about what it meant and this wasn't it at all? "Partners. If you want." Jemma said it. The word all of her kind used to describe pairs of significant others. She hoped it would hold the same meaning for Skye.
"I do...I-I...would love to," Skye smiled and she wanted to kiss her again, but she thought that might be a little much for Jemma. She was just getting used to this...and Skye supposed she was in a way as well.
"B-But of course only if that's what you really want too. I know you know what it means...what I did, but I don't...I don't want to have pushed you into this if...if it isn't what you want," Skye clarified quickly. She was happy, but she was still having trouble. She probably always would. How was it that a mermaid, a beautiful, perfect mythical creature, was going to choose her to love? Skye could see it the other way around. She found Jemma to be extraordinary, and for many more reasons than just the fact she was a mermaid. People were so ordinary.
"I...I want to be 'partners', if that's what you want too..." She wanted it more than anything.
"I absolutely want it." Jemma nodded adamantly, taking both of Skye's hands in hers now. Her thumbs brushed over bandaids on Skye's knuckles. Jemma made the connection between injuries and the little sticky pads, so she knew Skye was hurt, but it didn't seem very bad and she didn't want to ruin their moment by prying about it.
Jemma just couldn't believe it, even as she held onto Skye's hands and pressed her tail up against Skye's legs. All everyone in the pod ever dreamed of was having a partner, and it was so satisfying to Jemma to know that she finally did have one. It made her feel whole. Skye was her partner for life now, for better or worse. Most of Jemma's pod members had been urging her to pick a partner for a while now, but she didn't think this was quite what they had in mind.
Skye had certainly come here thinking she had ruined everything, and seeing Jemma hurt had made it all that much worse but now things had turned out like she had hoped…better than she had hoped even. She hesitantly took her hand from Jemma's head and slowly brought it to her tail, which was pressed so close up against her legs they were touching and she could feel the coolness of the scales giving her shivers. She stroked it slowly with a grin, not sure of what else to say but just very happy and content at the moment.
Sneaking a look at Jemma's back, she concluded the band aids were working for now and it wasn't a pressing issue to run to her house for the first aid kit. She was relieved that she was alright and she sighed heavily, shifting so that she was next to Jemma instead of across from her, so the mermaid could lean against her comfortably and not have to strain her arm and shoulder.
"I thought I had scared you away for good…I was so terrified I had ruined…all of this. I mean I can honestly say I've never had a girl fling herself into the ocean after a kiss…" She chuckled and scratched the back of her head before returning it to Jemma's hand and holding it.
"Oh…uhm…that's what it's called, when you use your lips to touch someone . A kiss…it's…sort of like tail touching, but not quite. It's still very different. There are a lot of things humans do that are like tail touching but that's not a conversation I can even start to explain right now."
"Oh, Skye, you could never scare me away." Jemma sighed, leaning into Skye and trying not to let her sleepiness take over. "You're kind of stuck with me now." Jemma joked, and still, the reality of the fact that she had a partner and that partner was Skye still hadn't quite sunk in. Maybe it was because they hadn't finished the process yet.
"Can I borrow your necklace for a minute?" Jemma asked, but not before realizing that it sounded out of context. "According to mermaid tradition, we each have to exchange something personal if we really want to be linked forever." Jemma explained. Once Skye managed to take it off, Jemma pulled it closer to her lap and removed one of her own scales. It hurt no more than plucking a hair off the top of her head, and it would grow back soon. The colorful scale in her palm was no longer hers, but Skye's. It took Jemma just a few minutes to undo it a bit and braid the scale into the center. The colors were still visible, and the scale was held in place.
Jemma handed the newly modified piece of jewelry to Skye to look at for as long as she wanted before putting it back on.
"Obviously you can't use a scale, but I'm sure anything you think of will be just amazing. We're already straying from tradition quite a bit, don't you think?" Jemma laughed and smiled, she was happier in this moment than she had been ever in her life.
Skye eyed the necklace with wonder, handling it very gently. She knew now, of course, that mermaid tails were practically sacred. They were so special to each mermaid that taking one of their scales had to be a huge deal, so it made perfect sense in her head. Skye had absolutely nothing of value that was this important that she could give to Jemma, but she knew she was good at making things…so she could think of something she hoped that came at least a little close to its significance.
"Thank you, Jemma. I'm never going to take it off," She smiled, leaning over a little so the mermaid could put it back around her neck, where it had stayed since she had given it to her and where it would now stay for as long as Skye could possibly manage to keep it there. "Didn't know I was going to get to carry the galaxy around on my neck when I woke up this morning," she touched her new centerpiece with her finger lightly, still smiling ridiculously big, "I'm glad that I'll have you everywhere I go now. I miss you so much when we have to leave…I don't really have any friends here now besides you…not that Ward was ever really an actual friend…" She leaned into her and couldn't help it. She kissed her cheek with a grin.
"What do you think everyone is going to think about this? Surely you have to tell at least your sister?"
Jemma's cheeks tinted pink at the flattery, though it was a wonder she wasn't used to it at this point. She was glad Skye liked the scale so much and if she hadn't liked it before, she was definitely starting to like this human "kissing" thing. Her face felt warm and nice and her heart swelled. Everything was perfect until she remembered that eventually she'd have to tell the pod, but she didn't let that thought ruin this moment.
"I don't know if I should tell the pod just yet. Bobbi has actually been way more tolerant than I expect the others to be, unfortunately." Jemma sighed, trying not to think about how this was going to make everyone react.
"They're your family too, you know. Bobbi's your sister now too." Jemma said with a smile. She'd forgotten about this part, but she felt partially worried about how Skye would take this. Maybe she should have told her this beforehand. "Technically, if you're my partner, you're a member of the pod. You're a human member of a pod of merpeople, only one of which you've met." Jemma couldn't help but laugh, the whole idea was just as ridiculous yet satisfying as a mermaid and human falling in love.
Skye raised a curious eyebrow like she did often when Jemma mentioned things about merpeople that she hadn't known before, this being one of them. She thought it was sort of nice that they all treated each other so well, like one big family. People would be a lot nicer if they did this too, probably.
"Well…that's cool. It'll be nice to have a big family…it's always been just me and my mom," She laughed and shrugged it off. It was curious, that she was now a 'member' of something that she wasn't sure she could really be a member of. How many other people had gotten to be members of a pod of mermaids? Probably no one. Skye felt special…but that was only because Jemma made her feel that way.
"Maybe I'll get to meet everyone. Maybe they'll like me," Skye shrugged then and looked out towards the sea, "They might even think it's funny…a hydrophobic human no less…"
Jemma chuckled at Skye's words. She was basically the definition of irony. Maybe the pod members would like her, once they got over the fact that Skye had two legs instead of a tail and stopped wondering if she was going to harpoon Jemma.
"Maybe you'll swim someday." Jemma said, looking out at the ocean. She would never force or rush Skye to get into the water, but if she was ever willing to try, Jemma would be there for her, no matter what. That's what partners did.
"What about you, are you going to tell your mother? If you think it's safe, I trust you. She is your family after all."
There was a sigh as Skye shrugged. She didn't really know what to tell her mother. She didn't suppose this was exactly like a girlfriend, it seemed a lot more permanent than that. More like a marriage…which suddenly made her heart speed up and pound harder in her chest. Jemma had mentioned forever a few times…and Bobbi had something about partners for life. Skye was certain she could commit to that, but still, all of a sudden to realize was a little scary and she grabbed onto Jemma's hand a little tighter than she probably should have.
"I haven't even really been telling her why I was going to the beach…I've kept you as much of a secret as I could…I'm not sure my mom is ready for 'oh, by the way mom, I'm practically married to a mermaid'…" Skye turned around, a small smile on her face. Forever was a long time…she was only afraid because she knew humans didn't very often pull a 'forever'. She was fallible, and that's what scared her the most. She didn't want to be. She wanted to be everything Jemma deserved, and she certainly deserved forever.
"It might be a while before I tell her…I can't exactly tell everyone I know. I might be part of your pod now but…you're still a mermaid. At least mermaids know people exist. People don't even know you exist…and I'm not sure I want to know what would happen if they found out."
"You're right." Jemma said, only a little sadly. She would have liked to meet Skye's mother, but it didn't look like she would be able to, at least not for a while. It was understandable. The pod didn't have rules against communicating with people for no reason, they really were dangerous. Jemma had just gotten lucky with Skye.
When Jemma looked around again, she noted by the grayness of the sky that it was getting close to evening. She didn't want to have to leave soon, but staying late wasn't an option. If she got back in the water when it was dark and she was still injured, the sharks would track her down in no time.
"If I stay here tonight, will you?" Jemma asked. She knew it was a lot to ask, but she would much rather spend her night here with Skye than back in the caves, under the watchful eyes and questions of her family.
"R-really?!" Skye jumped, wide eyed and excited before she coughed and her grin grew a little more appropriate, "I-I mean yes...yes of course. I would love that..." She squeezed Jemma's hand tightly and continued to smile. It would be their first night together, and after such a big decision and commitment today, Skye thought it was well deserved.
"I Uhm...I didn't bring anything to be able to really stay...I could go home and get some things? That could make us more comfortable? Would that be ok?" She would go and come right back. Jemma wouldn't have to be alone long but Skye knew if she stayed in just what she had, she might freeze over night.
"Yes, absolutely." Jemma shifted away from Skye slightly so she'd be able to get up. She knew it wouldn't take very long for Skye to make the trip, since she'd made it herself before. Everything would be fine for a few minutes while Skye was gone.
"Don't forget this." Jemma grabbed Skye's shirt from the sand and handed it to her. It was bloody now and quite a mess, but Jemma remembered how much more humans covered up in public and it was what Skye had come in.
Skye cringed a little when she looked at the shirt. At this point she was probably certain she would get less stares if she just left in her bra than if she rode back home through town with a bloody shirt, but she took it anyway and put it back on. She would definitely have to change.
She got up and grabbed her bag, brushing herself off before turning to make sure Jemma was comfortable. "I'll be back soon, I swear. It should only take me a couple of minutes," she leaned over then and slid one hand over Jemma's cheek and held it gently, pulling her just a little bit before Skye met her with a kiss.
She grinned after and stood up again, "And if my bag doesn't come over that wall first you need to hide. I don't want anything happening to you..." It made her nervous to know she was leaving before Jemma. She always watched her swim away, so she knew she was relatively safe, but this was different.
"I'll be just fine." Jemma promised, though she was secretly still a little worried. If someone did decide to come other than Skye, there was no way she would be able to drag herself back into the water in time to hide, but she wasn't going to tell Skye this. Of course no one else would come, no one ever did.
She waited eagerly for Skye to return, and it felt like much longer than usual. This was probably just because she was so anxious out in the open when Skye wasn't there. Each minute felt like an hour and the time drew on for what seemed like forever.
The sky had darkened considerably, even though it had only been about half an hour, before Jemma finally saw Skye's bag slung over the rocks. Jemma's face instantly brightened with a smile. She was so excited to spend the night here on the beach with Skye, it would be like an extension of their already wonderful days. Plus, they were partners now, and that made everything so much better, to know that it was all permanent.
After Skye's regular bag, came another much larger bag over the wall and landed heavily in the sand with a loud thud. She would see Skye's flashlight from the other side flicker off before she scrambled up and over the rock and hoisted the two bags down closer to shore.
"I tried to hurry," Skye said with a smile and opened up the big bag. She pulled out a large quilt and laid it on the sand.
"Do you think you can get up here? We have to stay out of reach of high tide...I'd probably have a heart attack if I woke up and was in the water," she chuckled, "I can help you if you want?" Skye knew she was no weight lifter, but she felt she could probably manage if Jemma needed the extra help because of her shoulder, which she had brought a first aid kit to take better care of.
She pulled out another blanket too, and a thermos which she set on the blanket along with her normal bag that was full of snacks and the first aid. "I brought some things for you to try too, since I know at least I'll get hungry. Couldn't really bring all of this and dinner too. Oh and I brought you a sweater if you get cold...don't uhm, don't really have anything for the tail, sorry," she chuckled and walked back towards Jemma once she was done setting up. She was in longer pants and a sweater as well now too, her hair still in a small messy ponytail at the back of her head.
"I can't wait to try everything." Jemma gave Skye a grateful smile, just like always. She honestly felt like the luckiest mermaid alive, Skye was just so... perfect.
"And yes, a little help would be great." Jemma said with a laugh. It took a little time and some very awkward help from Skye to maneuver herself onto shore a little further and onto the quilt, but she managed. It was soft and warm and Jemma found she liked it already. She finally settled down next to Skye, the both of them still sitting upright on the blanket.
"I don't really like these, is it ok if I take them off?" Jemma asked, already trying to peel one of the band-aids off of her shoulder with her fingernail. Even though they had helped with the bleeding before, now they were uncomfortable, and there were so many of them.
"Yeah, yeah of course," Skye smiled, quickly rummaging around in her bag for the things she had brought. The first aid kit finally fell out and Skye grabbed it up.
"Stop picking at it. Just give me a second," she laughed and swatted Jemma's hand away so she wouldn't accidentally scratch one of the wounds back open. She pulled everything she would need out and dumped it onto the quilt, finally turning her attention back to Jemma before she looked at all the Band-Aids. It had been...well, she had used a lot.
Skye had been in such a panic about her bleeding she hadn't really thought all of this through. "Oh...so uh, there may be...a uhm...a slight problem," she started, laying a gentle hand on Jemma's shoulder, "Band-Aids...uhm these things on your bite, they're really sticky see and..." She fiddled with the edge of one lightly, "uhm, they sort of hurt sometimes when you take them off...so it's best to do it fast. J-just rip it off..." Right when she said it, she let the first bandaid come jerking off in a flash. The bite was fine, but Skye knew it had hurt by the look on Jemma's face.
"I'm so sorry! It's worse when you anticipate it, trust me. I'm really sorry...but uh...hey, only eight more to go?" She gave an apologetic grin and proceeded with the rest, apologizing and giving her a gentle kiss here and there as each one came off.
Then came the sterilizing agent, and Skye had to apologize for the sting of that too, but finally she got antibiotic on each bite mark and was able to wrap it up in some gauze and pin it up. "This won't be as sticky and hurt to take off but it might not be any less annoying...I'm sorry. I just...this should help it to heal faster. I don't think it'll do great in water though...so I uh, I can take it off tomorrow before you leave."
"Humans are terrible at first aid." Jemma complained, still pouting. The removal of the bandaids and whatever Skye had put on her wounds had almost hurt as much as the aching and stinging of the wound itself.
"Why would people even make that, bandages that hurt? It doesn't make any sense." Jemma sighed and decided to lean into her partner instead of continuing to focus on the pain.
Jemma had to admit that it was chilly out and that she was getting cold. It was much warmer under the ocean and in the caves at night than it was on shore, where the air was still sharp and there wasn't extra heat under the ground. She dug the extra sweater out of Skye's bag and pulled it over her head, though she needed a hand to get the piece of clothing over the one side of her body.
"Thank you, though. Despite the ridiculous human supplies, I appreciate your help. And the way you're staying here with me tonight." Jemma's tone was light and joking, but it fell a little more towards the serious side near the end. Skye was an amazing person to have in her life, and Jemma was so glad she'd decided to save her life that night, the one that seemed like it was ages ago but was still fresh in her mind.
"Are you kidding? You don't have to thank me, Jemma. I would do this every night if you asked me to...although I feel like you would be better off stealing some more of that potion. Once you've slept on my mattress you won't want to sleep on anything else," Skye chuckled and leaned against the mermaid lightly, blushing a little in the dark and a stupid silly grin on her face that the girl was wearing her sweater. A mermaid in a sweater. What a sight.
"I want to spend every night with you...I hate it when you have to leave. I wish I could stay with you every night...although on land might be better. I really think you make a better human than I would a mermaid. I'm not sure a mermaid afraid of water would work out very well..." She shivered and decided to take her hands from Jemma for a moment to grab for the thermos. Skye screwed the lid open and poured some of whatever it was into a cup and took a sip. She made a little satisfied sound and suddenly her insides felt warm again, even if her outside were cold.
"Here, try some of this. It's hot chocolate. I can't really describe it. It's sweet...and tastes really good and it's warm.". She handed the half full cup to Jemma now and waited patiently.
"Even if you could swim, I don't think you could hold your breath for long enough to get into the caves." Jemma chuckled, not even able to imagine Skye down there with her pod. Maybe she could introduce her eventually, though, but they'd all have to come here. That truly would be a sight.
Just like Skye, Jemma copied her movements and brought the cup up to her lips, taking a small sip, and then a second one when the taste actually registered and the warm fluid ran down her throat.
"This is amazing." Jemma told her. She had to admit, humans had the food and drink thing down pat. They had so many options, unlike the mermaids under the sea.
Skye smiled, glad that Jemma liked the warm drink, letting her have the rest of that cup as she grabbed hold of the other blanket and wrapped it around them. She didn't bring any pillows but she figured the sand would be soft enough to be bearable.
It was getting significantly darker, and without all the lights from the city lighting up the sky, the brunette could see more of the stars and it made her stare in awe. She hadn't been out here this late before except when she had come after Ward had beaten her up after the soccer game. It seemed a far off time now. So many things were different, for the better of course.
"Well...you've got me all night. What do you want to do? Are you tired yet? You can sleep if you want too."
"I wish we could actually keep each other's company, but I am quite exhausted." Jemma sighed, handing Skye the cup once she was finished and snuggling against her under the fuzzy blanket. Whatever the shaman had given her felt like it was still in effect, and the ten mile swim while she was injured hadn't helped any. Her eyes had been begging to fall shut since she'd gotten here, and now she was finally going to let them.
Jemma slowly readjusted and laid down on her good side, and when Skye followed Jemma nuzzled her face into Skye's neck and rested her arm across her stomach.
"I love you." Jemma mumbled, following the human tradition and lightly kissing Skye's cheek before settling in again.
Skye was practically stunned into silence. Her face flushed and suddenly she felt very warm, all over. It made her feel awake. It made her feel alive. It also made her nervous. This was serious, and Skye had never felt quite this strongly for anyone. She was practically married. They were together and although Skye knew she loved her, it would literally seal the deal. She was anxious to say it back, and yet afraid.
Her previous thoughts came back into play. What if she couldn't handle it? What if something happened? People rarely made anything forever, even when they said they it was. What if she was a disappointment? What if she fell short of Jemma's expectations? God forbid what if something happened to either one of them? Skye wasn't sure how long mermaids lived, but she knew humans didn't live long in comparison to legends she had heard about other mythical things. Was she depriving Jemma of an actual forever when humans were so very, very mortal?
And if something did happen, on land, no one would know to tell her. No one should know to come here and tell Jemma what had happened to her. Jemma would just keep coming back again and again and Skye wouldn't be there. Would she think something had happened or would she think Skye had changed her mind? Would she think she had left her on purpose? She was stiff, laying there all of a sudden, staring up at all the stars and her mind going over and finding every possible thing that could happen and go wrong.
By the time she managed to whisper a soft, "you too", the mermaid next to her was already asleep. Skye was glad that Jemma didn't seem to be having any of these concerns...but Skye knew they were there and that they were real. She certainly didn't want to hurt Jemma and she knew she would never do it on purpose...but accidents did happen, and Skye knew she couldn't prevent all of them. She didn't know when, but eventually she had fallen asleep, holding the mermaid close and tucked warm and snug under their blanket.