Mermaids, Trigonometry, and Everything In Between

The 8th Thing

**Elly's POV

There was a bright light above me. Behind me lay the lagoon, but I had found the 'secret' entrance. It was a concrete tunnel, just a yard or two long. Now, I was in some sort of deep tiled pool.

I looked directly up, where the water rippled and sent beams of LED lights everywhere. Even underwater, I could feel the heavy bass of music vibrate my skin. This was it. Now or never...actually, on second thought, I could've easily held my breath for fifteen, even twenty more minutes, but that was semantics.

I broke through the surface of the pool, taking in a deep breath. Pop music blasted through speakers on the walls. The place was absolutely huge, decorated with sleek wooden furniture and shiny finishings, and absolutely packed. Amidst the dark sienna lighting of wall lanterns and the speckles of colors from dozens of disco-ball lamps, people were standing, sitting, and dancing just about everywhere. Even the indoor balcony, which showed off the second floor, was packed to the point where people were practically hanging off it.

I looked around--Gen was nowhere to be seen. I groaned, knowing in the back of my head that this was probably going to happen anywhere.

I did a 360 from within the pool. It looked like the pool was connected to some sort of decorative moat that twisted through the dance floor, and ceramic stepping stones were littered throughout it, allowing people to cross with ease.

The pool itself seemed nestled in the back corner of the country club, and at the vertex where both walls met was a massive pile of rocks that allowed a small waterfall to stream out from pipes.

There were girls sitting next to the waterfall, lounging at the edge of the pool--girls with long shiny mermaid tails.

Score!

What was surprising was that the massive crowd of people gave them space.They didn't look like upperclassmen, but there was an alluring air about them. It was as if they had their own special dignity about them. It must've been true that mermaids were popular. For once I had a special gratefulness for my own species. Having a tail never felt so lucky.

I swam over to them. I could imagine it now: new friends, new opportunities, and newfound popularity. This had to be my sweet sweet victory.

But, as I reached the curb, I realized I had spoken too soon.

"Oh, my gawd! Look who it is." came a voice from amidst the group of mermaids. It was a voice that was like a jellyfish sting to my ears. Meridia.

Alas! I bid my dreams a somber farewell.

My mouth curved into a crooked smile, "Meridia." my voice creaked.

"Come, sit, with us!" Meridia's perfectly red lips curled sweetly, and she patted an empty space amidst the group of girls, who had noticed me and beckoned me towards them.

I pulled myself out of the water and sat at the edge, letting my fin dangle in the water.

"What's your name?" asked one of the girls in an eager voice.

"Where are you from?"

"Are you a transfer or a freshmen."

I was about to open my mouth when the she-devil herself spoke for me.

"This is Elly Tidalis," she said in her silky voice, "She's a good friend from my old school, and I hope we can all treat her well." Meridia beamed wild.

I froze in pure shock. Then, I looked around. Where was it? Where was the hex bag that was controlling her mind? Where was the wizard that had cast some spell on her? It was impossible that she was actually being...nice to me.

Or was it?

All the girls gathered around me, holding my hands and chattered about how pleased they were to meet me.

No, I figured it out. I had somehow drowned in the tunnel, and this was mermaid heaven. It had to be. I felt the seed of my dreams spring back to life. Friends! Popularity! It was mine!

"ELLY!" A voice pierced the happy fantasy. I looked up and saw Gen at the edge across the pool, waving wildly and holding a pretty sky-blue sundress.

"Um," Meridia stifled a laugh, "I think you've got a follower, Elly."

"Y-yeah. She's my roommate." I murmured.

"Oh! How unfortunate," Meridia said loudly, "Fairies are soo buzzkills. All of them bossy know-it-alls, and not nearly as pretty as they think. I hope you aren't bringing her over here."

"So true," said a girl next to me.

"Can't stand them," piped another.

"What does she want?"

Under-the-breath comments bubbled up around us.

"Dont worry," I said quickly, "I'll go see what she wants."

I hopped into the pool and paddled towards her. Poor Gen, it looked like she wasn't going to get anywhere close to our group.

"There you are." Gen said boisterously when I surfaced, "So, it looks like you're getting chummy with them."

"Uh, yeah. They really seem to like me."

"Oh, that's just great! Here, I brought you this to put on. You and I can totally make a name tonight."

I glanced over my shoulder, where a few of the girls looked at me expectantly, "That sounds great, Gen, but do you think I could chill here for a bit?"

Gen blinked in surprise, "Yeah, sure, I guess."

"Great. You can put the clothes over by the chair, I'll catch up with you in a bit."

"Cool, cool," she said, "I'll get the scoop on the top seniors this year."

I nodded and turned to swim back to the mermaids.

"While you were gone," Meridia said to me as I reached their side, "We decided we were gonna check out some of the football guys. Wanna join us?"

"Sure!" I blurted out, "I mean, as long as they're not too intimidating."

"Not at all!" Meridia said in a honey-voice, "I mean, that is, if you're not intimidated by vampires."

My heart skipped a beat, "Y-you mean the f-football players are v-vampires?" I stuttered awkwardly.

"Of course! But don't worry, I'm sure it won't all be football players," she smiled coyly, "some of the werewolf teams are there, too."

I scratched the back of my neck, "Oh, g-great." I managed to say. Vampires? Werewolves? This was going to be definitely...great.