Merstuck

Chapter 2

Jake couldn't stop thinking about who that mysterious person was. He didn't get a good look at their face, having lost his glasses in the fall, and since those weird sunglasses obscured most of their face. He seemingly disappeared as soon as Jake opened his eyes. Where had they gone?

There was one explanation, thanks to the orange tail and underwater blur, that had teased at the edge of Jake's mind. Every time it popped up he shoved it down, frustrated with his childishness. However, no matter how hard he tried to quiet it, it would leave his mind.

There had been myths, speaking of a legendary underwater kingdom ruled by merpeople. There were many different kinds of merpeople from what he had heard- some had horns, others had strange markings, and some had miscoloured skin. They all had strangely coloured blood.

He shook his head to clear it. He was letting his imagination run away with him. He stabbed his fork into his mashed potatoes, scooping up a rather large blob and promptly swallowing it.

"Jake?" He heard his sister ask. "Are you okay? You seem awfully frustrated lately." He looked up to see her watching him, concerned.

"I've just had a lot on my mind lately, you know, with the move and all," he said, smiling a little bit. Jade shrugged and returned to shoveling their dinner into her mouth.

Later, when Jake was scrubbing off their plates, he decided he'd visit the caves again and think about it for a bit. Maybe he'd bring his journal and write today's entry.

He finished up, putting the dishes back in the cabinet, and walked to the door. He stuck his head outside for a moment to judge the weather, before deciding he didn't need a jacket and stepping onto the porch.

"Jade, I'm going out!" He yelled, waiting for a moment before hearing her yell "Okay!" In response. He closed the door behind him and strode down the hill, his journal and pen tucked under one arm.

He walked around the bend and onto the beach. He looked around at the caves before deciding he'd go into the same one as earlier; it was the largest one.

As he approached it, he noticed a strange, muffled splashing sound. He clutched his journal tighter and peeked into the cave.

Something huge was thrashing about underwater. All Jake could see was tan and orange. He froze for a moment, wondering what he should do, before making his decision and running towards the struggling form.

He grabbed for something, one of his hands catching onto what felt like an elbow, and the other an armpit, before dragging whatever was underwater onto the rocks. He gasped.

He had pulled out a young man, around his own age, with short blond hair and the same pointed glasses as the person who had pushed Jake out of the pool earlier. But that wasn't the surprising part- the man also had a thick, vibrant orange tail.

He was still struggling and gasping for air. Jake noticed seaweed, wrapped tight around his chest, which he was grabbing at, trying to pull loose. Jake fumbled about for a bit, trying to figure out what to do.

He soon realized he had to cut the seaweed. He looked around the rocks they were on, his eyes landing on a sharp, jagged stone. The man had passed out by the time Jake turned back to him, a thin trail of blood pouring from one corner of his mouth.

Jake had to act fast. He wedged the stone under the seaweed and twisted it sharply, the seaweed snapping, freeing the man's chest. Jake noticed his breasts, covered by scales, and realized what had happened.

He grabbed the man, hoisting him up bridal style, and started running towards his house. He turned the corner and started running up the path to his house.

About halfway to the house, the man's tail changed into legs, which were much lighter, and Jake was able to run faster. He threw open the door, ignoring his sister's surprised exclamation from her room, and entered his own room. he laid the man down on his bed, which was really just a mattress- Jake hadn't had time to unpack yet.

He felt around the man's chest, feeling a decently-sized bump just under his left breast. Jake frowned, his concerns confirmed.

He ran out into the living room, blowing past a confused Jade, searching through the stacks of boxes. He found one labeled "medical supplies" and picked it up, setting it on the island in the kitchen and running back to his room.

Jade was blocking the doorway.

"Jake, who is she?" She hissed through gritted teeth. "This is really creepy."

"I think it's a he," Jake told her, "And I think he has a broken rib. Incorrect binding, if my suspicions are correct." Jade gasped. Being trans herself, she had done quite a bit of research on the topic, and knew what Jake was talking about.

"With what?" She asked in a hushed voice, letting Jake in. He kneeled beside the bed.

"Uh... bandages." He responded, knowing she wouldn't believe the truth, as he took the man's glasses off, setting them beside the bed. He picked him up again, and carried him into the kitchen, next to the box of medical supplies.

His grandmother had taught him how to put a broken rib back in place and check for organ punctures after Jake had broken his own ribs a few times on adventures. However, Jake had never preformed the operation on someone else before, and as a result was somewhat nervous.

He shoved down his nerves as he pulled on his gloves and looked through his box, searching for some painkillers, to no avail. He grimaced as he realized he'd have to do the surgery without them.

He found a few vials of sedative, however, and injected a good dose into the man with a small syringe. He made a line for the incision just under the bump and grabbed his scissors, getting to work, Jade watching anxiously from behind him.