This was a little project I worked on way back in 2021. I was very happy to be a part of this wonderful zine! There are many other amazing stories and art that y'all can check out FOR FREE. Be sure to go check it out on their tumblr luckycharmzine.
In the small town of Étoile Shores, lived a girl named Marinette Dupain-Cheng. It was a quaint town on the coast of France that was known for its quiet beaches. She was the daughter of Tom and Sabine, who ran the only bakery in the entire town. People would drive for miles just to sink their teeth into one of their famous croissants or eclairs.
On days when she wasn't helping out her parents, Marinette liked to spend her time down at the beach. Her favorite hobby was walking up and down the shore and scouting out various kinds of seashells. She would then use the good ones to make jewelry, either to keep or sell for some money.
Walking, Marinette looked down at the empty satchel in her hands. She wrinkled her nose before pulling the straps to close it.
"Stupid ocean," she looked out at the sea, watching the waves crash against the horizon.
She stomped her feet in the sand before sitting down on a towel she had laid out earlier. Every now and then, the water would try to brush up against the tip of her feet. Marinette found herself scooting further back every single time she felt even the smallest bit of water.
With a huff, she stood up and picked up her towel. As she turned to head back home, however, she caught something out of the corner of her eye. She turned and watched the water once again. The waves pushed back and forth as usual, but she knew something was different.
Her eyes darted to the nearby dock, where she then went to get a closer look. As she sat down on the edge of the platform, a sudden feeling of regret brushed over her.
"It's probably nothing and I'm just crazy," she said out loud. "My stupid curiosity."
She was almost too busy mentally smacking herself to notice the set of green eyes staring back at her. Marinette froze as her blue eyes suddenly met the person in front of her.
With a confused look on his face, a blond haired boy popped his head out of the water.
"Um, hi?" he spoke, raising his hand. "I'm A-"
He was unable to finish his sentence as she screamed. The sudden loud sound caused the both of them to jump, with Marinette almost falling forward into the water.
"What- who- where did you come from?!" she asked in a panic as she moved farther away.
The boy moved closer, pulling himself up to rest his elbows on the edge of the dock.
"Do you want the technical answer or the real answer?" A cheeky smile crept onto his face. "Really, that first one is a real conversation starter."
Noticing the playful expression on his face, she tried to compose herself.
"S-Sorry," she moved closer to him. "It's just that I'm not used to seeing other people around here."
He laughed. "I know that feeling all too well," he slid lower into the water. "I hardly ever see anyone at all."
Marinette furrowed her eyebrows. "Is that why you came out here?" she asked. "Because you wanted to see people?"
The boy nodded. "That and also because I've never seen a real human before," he leaned back in the water so that he was floating on his back. "What a lucky guy I am today to finally encounter one."
She got closer, looking down into the water. She froze as the sight of green scales caught her eye.
"Look out! There's a really big fish down there!" she yelled out to him, only to be left confused when he chuckled.
"You got that right," he flipped backwards into the water, his tail flopping as it followed behind him. "Though 'fish' is sometimes used as an insult where I come from."
Once again, Marinette found herself frozen in place.
"Y-You're…" she momentarily lost her ability to speak. "What...what are you?"
The boy rested his arms up on the dock again, frowning a little as she scooted away from him.
"I'm a mermaid, technically a merboy or a merman." A smile returned to his face as he spoke. "All are correct, though you can call me Adrien."
"O-Okay, Adrien." Marinette regained her composure by taking a deep breath. "I'm sorry for my initial freak-out there. I didn't know that mermaids were real."
Adrien chuckled. "A lot of humans don't and I guess that's a good thing." He dropped back into the water and began swimming around the small area. "I'm risking a lot by just being here right now."
"Wow, I seriously cannot believe this is happening," she once again sat down on the edge of the platform and watched him. "You're not pulling my leg right?"
He swam over and gently grabbed one of her legs. "I am now," he said with a laugh. He spoke again when he saw her bemused expression. "Don't worry, I've actually spent most of my life studying humans and their various jokes and mannerisms."
Marinette raised a brow. "Where exactly did you come from?"
"I come from a small kingdom about thirty miles from here," Adrien pointed out towards the horizon. "It's very deep under the sea, though, so that's how you humans have never been able to find it."
"Oh wow," she said, amazed. "That's pretty impressive."
"Indeed it is," Adrien gasped and swam back up to her. "Pardon my manners young lady, but does this human have a name?"
She smiled. "It's Marinette." She giggled when he grabbed one of her hands and kissed it gently. A sudden realization hit her. "Wait, did you say 'kingdom'?"
He nodded. "Why yes I did." He looked up at her with a smirk. "I'm a prince."
"Are you being serious right now?" Marinette found herself laughing as she tried to take in everything. "So not only are you a mermaid, but you're royalty too?"
"That's right," he told her. "My mother died when I was younger, so now it's just me and my father. He is very protective of me and hardly ever lets me leave the castle, let alone visit another part of the ocean."
"So I'm guessing you probably need to leave soon?" She found herself feeling a bit sad once she realized that.
"Yeah, I probably should," Adrien told her. "But do not fret, for I will return soon." His eyes moved to the satchel next to her. "Hey, what's that?"
Marinette picked up the satchel and opened it for him. "This is what I use to carry my seashells," she picked one out and held it up. "It's hard to find good ones because they're usually all broken or too small."
Adrien smiled up at her. "That's a shame because a pretty girl like you deserves all the beautiful shells in the ocean," he winked at her and watched as her cheeks flushed.
"Oh, I-I, um," she found herself unable to speak. "T-Thank you."
"You're very welcome, Miss Marinette," he took one more look at the sun before waving to her. "Well, I really do need to get going, but it was super nice to meet you and I will definitely be back soon!"
She watched as he began to swim off towards the horizon. "Wait!" she yelled after him. "How will I know when you come back?"
"Trust me, you'll know!" he jumped out of the water and called back to her.
As she watched him swim away, Marinette felt an unfamiliar warmth in her heart. A feeling that she hoped would come back the next time she saw him.
As the days passed, Marinette found herself venturing down to the beach every evening. Part of it was that she wanted more seashells, but she also hoped that Adrien would return.
As she picked a small seashell off of the ground, a small wave came up and touched her toes. Normally, she would back away, but something else caught her attention. A familiar tuft of blond hair combined with green scales rose up out of the water.
With a smile, Marinette ran over to the dock and sat on the edge. "Adrien! You really did come back!" She sat back and watched him.
"I told you I would, didn't I?" He smiled brightly before lifting up a satchel from the water and throwing it up onto the dock. "And I brought you something too."
With a curious look, she opened up the satchel, her eyes lighting up at the contents.
"Adrien...I…" She pulled out a bundle of seashells in a wide variety of colors, sizes, and shapes. "These are beautiful."
Adrien looked at her bright smile, which ignited a similar warmth in his own heart. "We have so many shells like that where I'm from and I figured you would put them to good use," he rubbed the back of his neck. "You deserve them, Marinette."
"Thank you so much." She wiped a couple of tears from her eyes. Reaching into the pocket of her dress, she pulled out a small bracelet. "I, um, I made you something, too."
Adrien eyed the bracelet; the seashells shining in the bright evening sun. "Wow, you're sweet, beautiful, and talented," he chuckled as her cheeks flushed.
As Marinette reached down to tie it around his wrist, she nearly stumbled before he caught her. His wet hands gripped her wrists and their faces were nearly inches apart.
A panicked gasp escaped her mouth. "I-I'm sorry," she said. "I can be a bit clumsy sometimes." Her blue eyes moved away from his green ones and met the shining blue water before her. "I, um, oh gosh this is embarrassing."
Adrien couldn't help but giggle at her shyness. "I like you, Marinette," he pushed her back up so that she was sitting down once again. His smile faded when he saw the bewildered look on her face. "Hey, what's wrong?"
She swallowed hard. "Oh, i-it's nothing, really," she pushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "I'm just a bit afraid of the ocean, that's all."
He sunk down in the water, his tail flopping as he laid back on a rock. "Oh, I see," he said. "How come, if I may ask?"
Taking a deep breath, Marinette began,"when I was little, my parents used to bring me down here all the time to play in the ocean." She watched as a small smile returned to his face. "However, there was one day when I nearly drowned."
"Oh…" he looked up at her with sad eyes. "That's terrible."
She nodded. "Ever since then, I try to avoid it if I can," she looked back at him, noticing the small tears in his eyes. "But it's okay, you're here to protect me now, right?"
Adrien laughed as he wiped his eyes. "That's right," he swam back over to her, lifting his wrist so that she could tie on the bracelet. His eyes lit up at the wide array of shells she used. The colors of green and pink around his wrist was a beautiful site. "Wow, I hope you know that I will cherish this forever."
"I was hoping you would," Marinette giggled. She was surprised when he lifted up a hand, giving her a goofy smile.
"I know that you're afraid of the water, but would it be okay to be close to you?" he felt his face warm up. "Just this once."
Taking a deep breath and trying to suppress her fear, she grabbed his hands and let him wrap his arms around her. He pulled her down into the water, watching as her pink dress became soaked in salt. Instead of screams, however, she found herself laughing at how cold the water was.
The water was nothing compared to the warmth she felt while in his arms. Their cheeks blushed red as their blue and green eyes met.
"Ya know, you're even more beautiful up close," Adrien spoke, nearly out of breath.
Their heads leaned forward as their lips met for a gentle kiss. Marinette wrapped her arms around his neck, feeling the soft scales on his shoulders. Adrien deepened the kiss.
As they pulled away, she placed a gentle hand on his cheek and caressed it softly. "Thank you for showing me that the ocean isn't such a scary place after all," she smiled as he kissed her cheek. "It really did bring me something good this time."