“I love you, Hian.”

At that time I didn't know, but with those four words Maikon would turn my world upside down.

I hugged my legs, cowering in the corner of our pillow fort.

“What does it mean I love you?” I asked.

Maikon's hazel-colored skin took on reddish tones. He chewed his bottom lip with a smile I never saw him do. Then he came over to me and caressed my face.

“It means that you are the most important person in my world.” He blushed even more.

I started to laugh. I was used to seeing my cousin run around the house, break the furniture, and get scolded by aunt Leilani for being in school detention. All our fifth grade teachers have already sent him to detention at least three times and even his surf trainer expelled Maikon from surf school, despite all his talent. It was very strange to see him so serious.

“You are also important to me, Maikon.” I tugged my dark bangs behind my ear. “We are cousins. Crime partners, as you say.”

Maikon twisted his lip and removed his hand from my face. From the way he narrowed his eyes, I knew that my answer did not please.

“Don't you feel anything for me?” He asked.

I tried not to show any confusion. Maikon hated being misunderstood, but dealing with him was so difficult. In my eleven years of life, I could count on my fingers the times he thought before acting.

This time, however, the situation seemed different. Maikon was not easily hurt, so his tone tightened my chest. I couldn't answer carelessly.

Maikon snorted in impatience and threw a pillow in my face.

“You don't need to answer now. But someday I'll want to know.” He said, with a little sad smile.

I swallowed bitterly, squeezing the hem of my Hawaiian sarong. Maikon had invited me to play videogames, how did things became this messy? He must have known what to expect from me.

“Eighteen solar cycles are required for the mermens' reproductive function to reach maturity. Before that the Call will remain dormant, and the mating instinct ... um ... sorry, I'm saying crazy things again, aren't I?”

Maikon did not open his eyes in astonishment, as everyone did. He just gave a sweet little laugh that calmed my heart and brought his face back to mine.

“You will go through puberty at eighteen, and before that you will not feel attraction or desire.” He stroked my face again. “I understand everything you say, Hian.”

I nodded, a little embarrassed. I didn't understand his interest in my cheek, was there any dirt on my face?

“I'm sorry. I know that humans are different.” I said.

Maikon approached me so much that I could see the true tone of his eyes: Dark blue, like the depths of the ocean. Maikon said he envied my own sky-blue irises, but I adored his eye tone, it was like a secret to be discovered by those who paid close attention. I've never seen eyes as beautiful as his.

Still, seeing Maikon so up close was starting to make me uncomfortable. I drew my head back, doing my best to not look as confused as I was.

When would I be able to understand humans?

“Can I kiss you?” Maikon whispered.

Fearing to hurt him again, I relaxed my shoulders and nodded.

Maikon touched the sides of my chin and closed his eyes, so I did the same, and then his lips pressed against mine. They were warm, soft and ... just that. I knew that humans valued touching their mouths because it sometimes appeared on morning cartoons, but what should I feel? My lack of understanding made me shiver. I knew Maikon would notice and be sad.

When Maikon parted our faces, the red on his face resembled the fillet of fresh salmon. And when he licked his lips a discreet smile formed on his mouth, which was a good thing. Maybe he didn't realize how much I didn't understand anything.

Our eyes met again. Maikon's eyes shone with such beauty that I wanted to stop everything and draw them immediately, but that was one of the things Maikon disliked.

“I will wait for you.” He told me. “I will wait for us to be adults, and then you will feel the same as me.”

“This is a long time away.” I laughed in embarrassment.

“It doesn't matter.” Maikon opened a playful smile and put a pillow underneath his shirt.” We will be fated mates, and then I will have your baby.”

My blood ran cold. I threw myself at Maikon and covered his mouth, watching the door.

“Are you crazy?” I whispered as Maikon laughed against my hand. “Nobody can know that I tell you these things.”

Maikon seemed to enjoy my fear. What’s the problem with humans? How could they like creatures like us? Did they not understand our true nature?

I pulled the pillow from inside Maikon's shirt and sat on it. My look of disapproval only made Maikon laugh even more. He was happier than usual.

“But it is true.” Maikon whispered. “I can't wait to carry our child.”

I tried to stay angry, but I couldn't, and soon a laugh escaped my lips. As dark as reality was, imagining Maikon with a big belly has defeated any trace of my annoyance. In fact, the idea was deeply appealing to me.

“Well, then you just wait. When the Call awakens my body we will be fated mates and form our own nucleus.” I took the pillow that served as our fort ceiling and bashed his head with it, laughing. ”But you be quiet and don't get me in trouble!”

Maikon removed the wall cushion, knocking the fluffy cave over us. When I got to the top he was already preparing a blow, which I blocked with my own pillow. We both laughed, turning the game into a real combat.

It didn't take long for my pillow to burst and cover the room with a layer of white feathers. Maikon and I looked at each other in panic and, to make matters worse, steps in the corridor approached the room.

I hugged the torn pillow in despair while watching the feather rain. Oh, no. What would dad Dylan think of me?

Quick as lightning, Maikon changed our pillows, and then uncle Alisson entered the room.

Uncle Alisson looked at me, who was hugging the normal pillow with shaking legs, then looked at Maikon, who was throwing the plumes up from inside the torn one.

“We are making it snow!” Maikon said while stirring the air cushion.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Uncle Alisson took a long breath and rubbed his forehead. I felt a little sorry for him. For a human in his forties he had too many white hairs. The grayish brown, although long, began to recede from the sides of the head. I felt as if the reason was right next to me, making feathers snow on the freshly vacuumed carpet.

“Just… just come to dinner, boys.” He said, dragging himself out. “Maikon, later we will talk about... how many punishments have you accumulated?”

“Three days without television, a week without internet, a month without a cellphone and two years without entering a pet-shop.” Maikon threw away the empty pillowcase and pulled my hand out of the room.” Relax, dad. We’re cleaning later.”

“Hian will clean later, you mean.” Uncle Alisson, was not at all wrong. ”I'm going to cut your outings, too. One week without visiting your cousin.”

Maikon ignored his father completely. Taking punishment, for him, was like breathing. It wasn't like he would obey, anyway. How many times has Maikon been forbidden from seeing me, only to appear in my room the next day, stealthy as a ninja?

We both sat side by side at the dinner table, while Aunt Leilani and dad Dylan finished the dishes in the kitchen. The spaghetti in the center of the table smelled tasty, a rich aroma of shrimp, scallions and olive oil.

Like me, Maikon lived in Waikiki, an upscale neighborhood in Honolulu, Hawaii. There was a great distance between our houses, but it was impossible to get lost. Both his house and my parents' mansion were by the sea, it was easy to follow the coast line so we were always at each other’s places. Maikon and I used to go to each other's house.

“Thanks for helping me before,” I whispered.

“We are partners in crime, have you forgotten?” Maikon smiled mischievously. “And I need to protect my fated mate.”

I twisted my lip at him, intrigued. I knew my cousin, and in one thing Maikon was easy to read: he only played nice when he would get something out of it.

Maikon noticed my thoughts and grunted a giggle.

“Okay, okay, don't make that face.” Maikon nibbled his hazel-colored bottom lip. “I want you to take me to see him.”

I looked into the kitchen, making sure my dad and aunt were busy. By the sound of a vacuum cleaner in Maikon's room, Uncle Alisson would take a while to return, no adults would hear us at that moment.

“See him who?” I asked.

“Uncle Gabe, of course.” Maikon’s eyes gleamed. “I'm not a fool, Hian. I know why your other father is not here.”

I felt a thrill of terror go down my spine. Maikon couldn't be serious.

“I don't know what you're talking about.” I lowered my hands onto my lap, trying to hide how much they were shaking. But I could never hide my face.

“Pleeeease, Hian.” Maikon pouted. ”Your parents were always inseparable, but suddenly only Dylan comes here, and Uncle Gabe locks himself in his bedroom when I visit you. I deserve to see how it is like, don't I? It is what awaits me.”

I swallowed, trying not to look at Maikon or those pleading, devious eyes would convince me. Like always.

Damn, too late.

“Just a little peek and then you're gone, you hear?” I said, my voice trembling.

Maikon squeaked in excitement and then we fell silent, noticing the adults arriving.

I ate my spaghetti with a cold feeling in my chest. How could I fulfill Maikon’s request without disappointing dad Dylan?

Merman children should never act behind their parents' backs. As an honorable Makaira offspring it was my job to bring pride to the nucleus and one day become a respectable merman, like my father.

“So, Hian, kow was school today?” Sitting across from me, Aunt Leilani tugged a gray hair strand back into her hair bun. “Did Maikon behave?”

“Yes he did, auntie.” Maikon and I exchanged a knowing look, Maikon holding back laughter. For him it was another day in detention after punching a kid who mocked my small, lean body. “We had an English class and received our geography exam grades. My grade was a full ten!”

“Ten? I would expect no less from my son.” dad Dylan smiled at me while serving himself some fried fish.

Dad's praise filled me with joy, making the sleepless nights of study worthwhile. But judging by Maikon's face I said something wrong and soon I found out why.

“What about you, Maikon? Did you get a good grade?” Asked Uncle Alisson, sat next to his wife. There were still some feathers in his hair.

Maikon chuckled nervously and huddled in his chair.

“It looked a lot like a ten,” he said. “The one and the zero were certainly there, very big and red.”

The adults' attention were all turned to him, I had no idea how to solve the situation. Damn, Maikon would kill me for that, but how was I supposed to know?

Dad Dylan's smile lessened my concern. I could feel his pride in me, and I wanted it to be like this forever. As long as he guided my steps the complicated nature of humans would be just a minor annoyance.

Still, the sensation of kissing Maikon refused to leave my lips. I could still feel the warmth.

****

Being away from dad Gabe was very distressing for dad Dylan, so our dinner ended quickly. Uncle Alisson tried to convince my dad that Gabe would survive a few hours alone, but everyone already knew dad Dylan’s antics, so my uncle didn’t insist too much. Aunt Leilani looked annoyed, which added to the weird mood as well.

Aunt Leilani filled a Tupperware with dad Gabe's dinner. My dad thanked her and got up, it was time for us to go.

My attention returned to Maikon, who was still eating his dessert.

“See you at school tomorrow.” I smiled at him and hurried to the house entrance, where my uncle and dad were saying goodbye to each other.

Our car was super scandalous, or so my colleagues said. For me it was just a blue Ferrari, quite old, although preserved. I suggested to my parents to let me hunt for sunken treasures se they could buy a new car, but dad Gabe insisted on working for a living. Something to do about teaching me the value of money, or whatever.

That was one of the many things I would never understand about humans.

I laid the plastic food bowl beside me on the back seat and was almost closing my belt when I remembered something important.

“My coloring pencils!” I hit my head on the back, frustrated. “I beg for your pardon, dad, could I go get them?”

Dad Dylan smiled through the mirror and started the car.

“Be quick.”

I ran out of the car and opened the door, trying not to make a sound. My uncles had already left the dining room, so I ran to Maikon's bedroom.

“Hey, Maikon, I forgot to get my ...”

Maikon was huddled at the bed corner in the dark room. At first it seemed that he was looking at the wall, but his gaze focused on the trophy shelf, where he kept all his surfing medals and golden cups. On the center shelf rested the biggest trophy of them all, and the only one that didn't belong to Maikon: the Surf-Hai World Championship trophy, which Uncle Alisson had won before we were born.

Since Maikon did not react, I approached him, and only then I heard voices and screams from the next room.

“How many failing grades does he need for you to wake up, Alisson? He cannot flunk an entire year at the most expensive school in Waikiki!”

“But love, we can't change Maikon’s school. His friends and his cousin ...”

“I don't care, Alisson! Eleven years of hell! When will the destruction trail stop? I'm tired of buying new dishware, and apologizing to the teachers, and ... I don't know what to do anymore.”

“He is a preteen, Leilani. It’s normal to be troublesome at his age.”

“That kid is troublesome since he popped out of my vagina and still you refuse to educate him properly. Sell that stupid surfboard and find a tutor who doesn't know his fame.”

Maikon hugged his legs tight and hid his face in his knees.

I swallowed bitterly, reached Maikon and touched his shoulder. He was shaking.

“Maikon ...”I whispered, not knowing what to say. The screams became more and more angry.

Maikon raised his head and looked intently at Uncle Alisson's trophy.

“I don't need math, or geography, or literature. I don't need any of that to be the best surfer in the world.”

“Of course you don't.” I hated that tone of voice. Maikon's pain reflected inside me, my powerlessness only increased my sadness.

Maikon remained quiet, curled up like a ball. But when I tried to step away he grabbed my wrist.

The sudden gesture startled me. I took a step back but Maikon got up quickly and pushed me against the wall. Even though he was a few months younger than me, he was taller and stronger. His harshness paralyzed me.

I opened my lips to speak just as Maikon stuck his body to mine. He kissed me again, this time running his tongue inside my mouth.

Confused and scared, I tried to relax and let Maikon go on. The sensation was very strange, like that one time when dad Gabe overcooked the soup and the squid became rubbery.

After a few seconds Maikon parted his lips. His brown skin was dyed pink again, but the gleam in his eyes was different. Maikon was on the verge of tears.

“You really don't feel anything, do you?” He asked.

I shook my head, wanting to cry with him and not understanding why.

“I'm sorry.” I said.

Maikon took a long breath and forced a smile.

“I always wanted my first kiss to be with you.”

“It was my first kiss, too.” I chuckled and turned to look at my wrist, which Maikon was still pressing against the wall. “Uh... Do you mind...”

Maikon released me quickly and walked away, even redder than before.

“It is good to get used to it. After becoming fated mates we will do this all the time.” He started to laugh, but another scream from the fight next door crushed that brief enjoyment.

“I look forward to it, my future mate.” I replied.

For whatever reason, my words really cheered Maikon. He helped me collect the pencils with a smile on his hazel lips. His happiness warmed me like the rays of the sun after a long dip.

When Maikon handed over my things I noticed something important. I was not happy for Maikon, I was happy for both of us. I wanted to be his fated mate. I needed to be. I needed it so hard that my heart twisted with anxiety.

How would Maikon react if he knew the truth?

A car horn honked outside. Damn, I didn't mean to disobey dad so much.

“See you tomorrow.” Maikon waved and I waved back, already looking forward to seeing him again.