“Mira… you seem out of it today. Everything okay?”

Mira tapped her pen on the table a few more times, only half paying attention to everything going on around her. “Yeah. Totally fine. I think I might have caught a cold when I went swimming yesterday.”

Emmi leaned back in her chair and rolled her eyes. “Wow, I’m so surprised. You know the average ocean temperature this time of year is only, what, sixty-five? Seventy? That’s not enough for you to hang out in the water like a fish for hours.”

“Thank you for the warning, Emmi,” Mira said, picking up a fry to nibble on. “As if I didn’t know.”

Emmi shrugged, the sharp edge in Mira’s tone skating right off of her. “Clearly you didn’t. Anyway, let me know if you need anything, I can drop something off if you aren’t feeling well.”

Helplessly, Mira felt her lips upturn. Snappy though she might be, Emmi always had Mira’s back. “Thanks, Emmi, but I’ll be fine. I’ve got a… skype call with my parents tonight. I won’t be around.” Her heart thudded as she told the lie, never taking her eyes from her food as she ate another fry. It was true, she wouldn’t be around, but not because she was calling her parents.

When she got home the evening before, Leo had consumed her thoughts. She knew without a doubt that she shouldn’t accept his invitation; she also knew that, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t stay away. She had changed out of her bathing suit and taken a hot shower to wash away the cold water and remaining sand, but the sensation of the ocean still remained on her skin, pulsing like the waves.

Mira lived for the water. She had been swimming as long as she could remember, utterly comfortable beneath the waves. Lakes and pools were acceptable, too, but there was something about the pure energy of the ocean, how alive it was, that drew her back again and again. In choosing a college her first priority had been getting accepted to one near the sea, to be able to be near it all year round.

Fall was fast approaching, and soon the water would be too cold for her to swim. But for now she could enjoy it, even if it was a bit chilly, and cold water meant less people. Less people who might see the beautiful creature that saved her.

She had to go back, had to talk to him. She had some suspicions she needed to check on, and Leo was the only one would know, since he was there.

“Suit yourself,” Emmi was saying, drawing Mira out of her thoughts, “but just shoot a text if you need me, I’m only a block away.”

Mira smirked and held up a fry for her friend to eat. “Yes, mom.”

“I will let that slide,” Emmi mumbled as she chewed, “because you fed me.”

“Food for insults? I can do that.”

Emmi stuck out her tongue, then stole another fry. “Better eat faster before I eat everything off your plate, you owe me from all the you usually dish.”

“Me?” Mira said, faking innocence. “I would never.”

***

Maybe she did actually have a cold. Mira pressed her palm against her forehead, trying to see if it was any warmer than the rest of her, but couldn’t tell. Still, when she thought of going to meet Leo, her heart beat a little too fast for comfort; a cold it must be.

Mira had no idea what she was getting into, and packed accordingly. Her sleek but modest bathing suit was beneath her dress and fresh clothes were in her backpack; she wore good sandals that wouldn’t try to trip and kill her, a flashlight, a water bottle, and her phone in a water proof bag. She was no stranger to the beach.

As she walked out of her small apartment, she threw her towel over her shoulder. The public beach was maybe a five minute walk, just a few blocks away, but the area she was going to was nearly twenty minutes by foot. It was protected by a small cove and not many people, even the locals, knew it was there and accessible. Mira had hunted it down on week three at college, nearly a year and a half ago now, and still she had only seen maybe two people there in that whole time; a young woman sunbathing, and an older gentleman fishing.

It was there that Leo had saved her. She walked quickly, wanting to be there exactly at eight if not before, sliding down the steep slope that hid the cove. The sand immediately began to infiltrate her sandals when she reached the bottom, so she took them off and laid her bag and towel down next to it.

It was already pretty dark, the echoing light of twilight letting her see well enough. It was the sound of the waves that guided her most, showing her where the edge of the wet sand was and stopping her as the cool water began to rush around her toes. She was tempted to go in, to wait for him surrounded by water.

“Mira.”

She gasped, the sensations sparking through her at the sound of his voice nearly overpowering— she hadn’t been expecting it at all. She spun around, trying to spot him in the dark, before noticing his figure leaning against the rocks where she had left her shoes and back. Today, again, he had his legs; if she hadn’t seen the his kind before, she might have convinced herself she was mistaken in seeing his tail the tail the day before.

“Hello,” she said, voice far more meek than she would have liked. But damn, if it wasn’t stupid of her to come back. She was mildly annoyed that he had actually showed up; now she couldn’t excuse herself from the situation.

“I’m happy you came,” he said, and through the haze that slid through your mind at his words, you did spot a small smile gracing his lips. “I have something to discuss with you.”