"Wait wait wait! You're telling that this girl over there," Chaeyoung paused to point at Sana, still staring at the TV, "is a Japanese mermaid you found on the beach?"

 Dahyun was starting to regret her decision to tell her best friend about Sana's origins. Why did she think the other would believe her? Nobody over the age of ten believed in mermaids, unless they were interested in crazy conspiracy theories and aliens. It was a terrible idea to tell her. Nothing good would come out of this.

 "How do you know she's a mermaid, though? Did you, like, see her with the tail and all? What was it like?"

 She blinked at Chaeyoung's questions, confused for a second. Someone who didn't believe you when you just told them you befriended a mermaid would not ask you questions like that. Or maybe Chaeyoung just wanted to make sure Dahyun was completely crazy before kicking her and Sana out of her aunt's house. It seemed like a much more reasonable option right now.

 The video from the beach! 

 "I didn't see her with the tail, actually," Dahyun started to explain as she unlocked her phone to find the video she had taken when she had found Sana, "but I did see her tail. Watch this." Dahyun pressed the play button.

 The video showed the shed mermaid tail that Sana had left behind her on the sand, just before it was washed off by a wave, scales returning to the sea. Dahyun chanced a glance at Chaeyoung, whose eyes were wide open in surprise.

 "Play it again."

 Dahyun did as she was told. If there was a chance for Chaeyoung to believe her, Dahyun would make sure to do anything she needed to ensure that Chaeyoung had everything she wanted to really believe her – she would play the video a hundred times if her friend asked her to. Chaeyoung's gaze shifted to land on Sana. Dahyun waited expectantly, palms sweating, stress eating at her stomach. What would happen if Chaeyoung decided that she didn't believe in the existence of mermaids? Would it be the end of their friendship?

 "She shed her tail like some snake?" Chaeyoung asked, looking somewhat disgusted by the idea. "Your mermaid is a snake. A snake-maid. A mer-snake-maid!" she exclaimed – she seemed a little too proud of herself right now; they probably should spend a lot less time around Nayeon unnie, it clealy wasn't doing them any good if Chaeyoung was pleased with mer-snake-maid. "It means all the movies lied to us, though," she concluded, now disappointed by the realization. "Did she at least tranform when she was in the bathtub?"

 Dahyun shook her head, "Apparently, she only transforms in sea water."

 Chaeyoung sighed, even more disappointed.

 "There's an actual mermaid in my aunt's house, but she's taking all the sparkly magic out of mermaids. You're ruining all my childhood dreams of mermaids."

 "Sorry to disappoint your ten year old self. But look on the bright side of things, you've just met a mermaid and you're the same height as you were when you were ten, so it's like you're ten again and meeting the mermaid you dreamed of!"

 Chaeyoung punched her shoulder.

 "You're shorter than me!"

 "I will deny it until my dying breath!"

 Their little argument had caught Sana's attention, and the mermaid was now standing in front of them. Staring. Staring at Chaeyoung as if she was the enemy. Probably not a good sign. Dahyun placed a hand on Chaeyoung's shoulder and smiled at Sana.

 "It's all right. Friend."

 "Friend," Sana repeated.

 Chaeyoung's Japanese was better than her own, so Dahyun wasn't surprised to hear her friend introduce herself to Sana – she even extended a hand for Sana to shake. Sana, confused sea puppy that she was, extended her hand as well, her hand a whole foot away from Chaeyoung's. Dahyun couldn't help but laugh at the confusion on both Chaeyoung's and Sana's faces.

 "Chaeng. You should shake her hand before she thinks we greet each other like that."

 Chaeyoung grabbed Sana's hand and shook it, speaking in Japanese at the same time. Dahyun hated not being able to understand. She refused to think that it might be because she didn't want to share Sana's attention with anyone. There was no jealousy. No reason for jealousy.

 "Dahyun."

 Surprised by her name being called all of a sudden, she looked at Chaeyoung, even if she knew that it wasn't her voice calling her. Sana was the one who called her. Sana really remembered her name. Dahyun breathed in deeply before daring to look at the mermaid. Sana's arm stuck out in front of her.

 With a bright smile on her lips, Dahyun grabbed her hand.

 "I'm Sana!" Her grin was truly contagious.

 "I'm Dahyun."

 Dahyun still hadn't let go of Sana's hand. It was warm and soft. She didn't want to let go. And Sana's grip didn't allow her the freedom of taking her hand back anyway.

 "I'm Sana."

 Korean. It was Korean. It seemed like her little mermaid would be able to adapt a lot more easily than Dahyun first anticipated. If she kept assimilating things that way, it wouldn't be too hard to pretend she was human while she stayed on land. How long would she be staying, though? Dahyun didn't even know why Sana was here. She didn't want the mermaid to leave, not now, not any time soon - even if it was a very selfish thought that she shouldn't have been having.

 "Are you sure you're not just lying about her being a mermaid so you can keep hiding that she's your girlfriend?" Chaeyoung asked, out of nowhere.

 Dahyun felt herself blush at the question. It would not help her case. But her hand was still in Sana's, who apparently had no intention of letting go or looking away from her. Dahyun didn't mind the hand holding, it was quite nice, even if Sana's grip might have been the slightest bit too tight. What she minded though, was the fact that Chaeyoung could imagine that they were dating. It was ridiculous.

 Dahyun was a church goer, a good Christian girl. And good Christian girls didn't date mermaids. Or girls. Even when they thought all the girls they met were at least mildly attractive. (But Sana was much more than mildly attractive, which Dahyun would abstain from expressing out loud.)

 . Dahyun was taking way too long to answer. Curse Sana's unholy beauty!

 "Sana isn't my girlfriend. If she was, I would have freaked out and told you about it, right?" She