Her gaze returned to the flame, joyfully following its every flicker. Within seconds, she was gasping for breath, strangely, with her human lungs, until she could take no more. Ensuring there were no rocks directly below her, he dropped her back into the water where she had originally emerged. You also understand what it looks like when the shimmer disrupted by something moving directly toward you across the surface of the water. The memory was seared into his skin. At least this latest heartbreak didn’t bestow on him any more duties. ====================
For the next several days, Josiah felt almost embarrassed by the eagerness with which he waited for the mermaid to return. He reached up to take her hand, but she withdrew it and brought it to her ear, just as he had done the previous week. Summer faded to fall, and pleasantly warm nights became few and far between.
