Epilogue - Marella
Once, we belonged to the sea. We roamed through its depths, swimming freely through canals and rivers and streams—as far as we could go—into land.
Those waterways had long since dried up. We had to take a train—a train—from Rossaia to the coast. The closer we got, the more I could feel my legs itching. I could smell the salt and taste the brine long before the train pulled into the station at the end of the line.
Garrett held my hand as we disembarked, and it was only his presence that kept me from sprinting to the shore. We walked, together with my family, as quickly as we could without drawing too much attention to ourselves.
The humans had long since forgotten we existed, and we didn’t particularly want to remind them. So, we walked, far away from the beaches crowded by tourists, until we reached a quiet inlet surrounded by cliffs where blue water lapped at the rocky shore.
My family didn’t hesitate. They ran forward, pulling clothes from their bodies as they went, diving headfirst into the waves. The sight of their tails, shining and bright, nearly brought me to tears.
I held myself back. Garrett still gripped my hand tightly. His blue eyes were shaded by dark sunglasses, but I could tell by the tightness in his jaw that he was feeling something more than he would ever say out loud.
"It won’t be forever," I said gently, both of us staring out at the place where my family had disappeared beneath the surface. "I’ll be back before you know it."
His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. "I know. I just—"
He turned to face me, dropping my hand to grasp my shoulders. "It feels like we just found each other. We haven’t had nearly enough time… together." He laughed, but the sound was hollow. "Not that I don’t want you to go home—I know what this means to you. I just—"
I lifted my hand to press a finger against his lips, trying to fight the tears forming in my own eyes. "I know," I said gently. "But like I said, it won’t be forever. I’ll always come for you. There’s no force on land or sea that could keep us apart."
He leaned his forehead against mine.
"I’ll always wait for you," he whispered before our lips met.
He did. And when the day came that I was ready to once again step ashore and mingle with humans, he was there, waiting with a smile and a stolen red dress, ready to welcome me home.