Lights, stars, and waves. Those are all the things I see when I drown. I always thought that dying from drowning would be painful but in a way, it is relieving. No more heartbreak. No more suffering. No more pain.

The light and the stars blend and form glitter, making the waves sparkle with natural beauty. Finally sound comes into the scene of crashing waves but the waves aren’t crashing against anything except for themselves. Blending, the waves grow higher and angrier.

This is it. This is the time I should say goodbye to everything I have known. Everyone I have ever loved. The future I would have if I didn’t choose to go to the lake that gave me comfort.

The waves that were once blue turn black and crash on top of me. Submerging me, the waves grow heavier and heavier until I can’t move anymore. My chest feels like the biggest mountain in the world is right on top of it. Struggling to move, my vision goes bright in the black waves and it consumes me.

All of a sudden the heaviness lifts off of my chest. Opening my eyes, I struggle to focus my vision on my surroundings. All I can see is blue blending in with hints of green and greys. I rest my eyes for another second before blinking rapidly. The more blinks, the more I can focus on what is around me. Attempting to flinch my fingers, I grab something soft underneath me. I lift my head, giving myself more range to see where I am.

Around me is water. That can’t be right. I swear I died and I can… breathe? This should be possible. How can I breathe underwater? I sit up a little bit more and I look around once again. I am in a bedroom but it is different than any other bedroom I have seen before. There is seaweed underneath me with some clumped up and tied where pillows are supposed to be. Lights are somehow glowing above the bed where there is a roof that looks like it is made out of stone.

There is a window on the wall next to the bed and I glance outside. The ground is covered in grass and it pulsates like it is being pushed by waves. Where am I? This has to be some weird afterlife. I have never heard of this kind of afterlife in any religion.

I can hear voices somewhere outside. Maybe they can help me figure out where I am. I turn around and see the wooden door that is slightly cracked open. More light trickles into my room from outside and I wonder if there is someone in the house. I don’t have anything to defend myself except my fists.

Slowly walking up to the door, I try to sneak a peek outside. It looks like it is a hallway, like any other home would have. A hallway where family memories are kept and put up like trophies. Hallways where kids can pretend they are in the Amazon jungle and parents can see their kids grow up.

No one seems to be out there so I slowly start walking out of the room. My heart thumps so loud in my head that I can’t form thoughts. There is a staircase at the end of the hallway that leads down to the first floor.

“Do you think she will wake anytime soon?” I hear an eager voice say.

Stifling a gasp, I run up the staircase just in case that voice is coming any closer. It didn’t sound like it was close enough to hear any sound I would have made but I didn’t want to risk it. Someone is in this house and I have no weapons on me. How did I even end up at this house? Who is this person that they are talking about? Surely it couldn’t be me.

“I’m not sure. She’s been asleep for a couple of days now, so she should wake up at any time,” a different voice replies. This one sounds more sweet than the other. It sounds gentle and smooth like butter.

Right when I think about butter, my stomach chooses this moment to growl the loudest it could have possibly growled. Quickly, I put my hands on my stomach as if that would muffle the sound.

“What was that?” the eager voice says.

“Not sure. Don’t worry about it,” the gentle voice replies.

“What if she woke up?”

“You need to be patient my dear. Here, eat something. It will give your mind something else to think about.”

My stomach growls again as if telling the gentle voice to make extra food for me to fill it up with. If I am the person that they are talking about then maybe I should go down and let them know that I have indeed awoken. Taking in a deep breath, I force myself to go downstairs without an option to back down and go back up to my room.

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The first floor looks similar to a normal home yet it’s still underwater and somehow I am still breathing. This has to be a weird illusion my mind is tricking me into. Maybe it is because I died in the lake. I know I died, I just don’t know where I am in this and therefore I don’t know if I am still dying or already dead.

I walk past the living room and toward the voices which seem to be where the kitchen is. Everywhere I look is similar to a house but in an underwater aesthetic kind of way. Swiveling my head in all sorts of directions as I take in what is around me makes me feel dizzy and my stomach turns. This is somehow cool and overwhelming all at the same time.

“Oh good, you’re awake!” the gentle voice exclaims.

My eyes follow where the sound is coming from. Breath catching in my throat, I choke on a scream. In front of me are creatures I have never seen before. Creatures that are stunning and delicate and at the same time terrifying.

Both of the creatures stare at me as if waiting for me to respond like this is a normal conversation. The creature that is standing has long white hair with what looks like a jellyfish on top of her head as a hat. Her eyes are icy blue which stands out on her pale white skin. The freckles that dust her cheeks and nose shine like a fish scale. The reflection matches what looks like a pearl dress that shimmers as it constantly flows. Her feet are bare but she isn’t using them. She's floating. Like actually floating.

The creature that is sitting down, holding his food but not taking bites out of it. His mouth hangs open as if in mid-bite and I rudely interrupted. He looks very similar to the girl but he has short hair and she is gold instead of white. The jellyfish on top of his head gives the illusion of long hair but if you look closer you can see that he has shorter hair.

“W-w-what are you?” I manage to croak out.

“Come, sit. You just woke up and you must have so many questions. We can answer as much as we can,” the girl says. The boy continues eating his food which looks like seaweed wrapped around some other plant.

Obeying the girl, I slowly make my way to the seat she gestured to. I don’t take my eyes off either of them and my fists are in fighting mode just in case they decide to do something to me.

“Usually when we tell newcomers what we are about to tell you, they are in disbelief and denial, We promise we are telling the truth. Do you think you are ready to hear it?” the girl says gently.

I nod.

“Okay,” the girl hesitates, “You somehow have died and now you have been reborn into a masca. I am a masca and he is a masca.” the girl points to the man who is continuing to eat and does not pay attention to the conversation. “We are water creatures of this lake and we make sure the lake is running smoothly all the time. Being a masca is very special and I think you are going to like your new life with us.”

Reborn? I was reborn into this world? Wait… I’m a masca too?

I look down at my hands and sure enough, I no longer have my human skin but pink slick skin and webbed fingers. The pearl dress matches the girl’s dress except mine is pink and I am also barefoot.

“No, this isn’t real,” I say while putting my hands on top of my head. All I can feel is my hair and no jellyfish. “How come I don’t have a jellyfish hat like you guys?”

“These jellyfish have connections specifically to us. Don’t worry, one day you will get your own. You just have to create a connection with one and then you become one. They give us special powers that are unique to us. The power helps are village function smoothly and protects us of anyone who might attack us,” the girl replies.

I look at her with a puzzled expression. How do I make a connection with a brainless blob? It seems like, if anything, connecting to a jellyfish would make you somehow dumber.

“Don’t they sting?” I burst out the question.

The girl and the boy look at each other before the boy starts laughing, right in front of me.

“They are freshwater jellyfish. They don’t sting. Plus, you make a connection so why would the jellyfish sting you if it likes you?” the boy says.

I cross my arms, already knowing that I am not going to get along at all.

Once the boy is done laughing and sets his attention back on his food, the girl turns back to me. “I’m Zephyr by the way. We are roommates and this house belongs to the three of us. That over there is Briar, don’t ever take him seriously. He can be a party pooper and he is really mean.”

Briar’s head snaps up to us. “Hey! Not cool.”

Zephyr and I both give a slight chuckle but no matter what happens, I can’t take in that I am no longer a human.

I am not a masca.