Mermaids, Trigonometry, and Everything In Between

The 14th Thing

I was stuck in the library for four hours after classes were over. In all honesty, I should have gone back to my dorm to finish the piles of homework I had to do, but I knew I wouldn't get any work done with Gen. I wasn't too worried about the full moon. I'd gone through tons before, and the thing about them was that as long as I didn't look straight at it, everything was going to be fine. I retrospect, I should've known that nothing would go how I expected it.

My phone buzzed and I picked it up. According the alarm, the moon was already out.

Crap, I thought to myself. I had forgotten that Brecker Heights was an hour earlier than my hometown, Atlantica. I packed up all my stuff and headed for the girls dorm. It wasn't too difficult to keep my gaze low.

When I got to my dorm, I pulled out my key and kept an eye out for any open windows, but it looked like I was in the clear.

"Gen, you here?" I asked, unlocking the door and stepping inside.

"Glad you're back," she said, pointing towards the window, "Look, we've got a perfect view of the full moon from here."

There it was, massive and white, like a bowl of milk. And just like that, all my efforts were made futile.

"Are you kidding me?" I groaned, shaking my gaze off the bright circle, "Did you forget that mermaids are celestial beings? The moon does weird stuff to us!"

Gen gasped, "Oh no!" She rushed to the window and pulled the blinds, "I totally didn't even think about it. What's gonna happen to you?"

I sighed, "Well, that's--" I stopped in my tracks. What was going to happen to me? I had been taught in mermaid finishing school that a moonstruck mermaid was drawn to the water and would act impulsively, but I had never experienced it myself. Mom, Dad, and I were always so careful.

Truthfully, I didn't feel any different.

"I don't know," I said, "Maybe, since I only saw it for a second, I'm alright?"

Gen inched closer to me, "You don't feel...strange?"

I shook my head, "Not a bit."

Gen clutched her chest dramatically, "Oh, what a relief! I swear, I'll remember that the full moon is off limits in this room from now on. I feel so bad about this!"

I patted her on the shoulder, "It's alright, it's not like I'm a werewolf."

Gen's eyes brightened, "That's true. I hear they lock themselves up on a full moon so that they don't get out and break stuff."

I wrinkled my nose, "Really? I learned in Magical Studies today that werewolves have full control over their wolf selves."

"Even on a full moon?" Gen asked.

"Well..." I crossed my arms, "I dunno. I didn't listen that much. Anyway, we should get ready for bed. I can already tell that tomorrow is going to be a crazy day."

Gen nodded, "Good idea."

As she and I got ready for bed, I started to feel uneasy. I'd never actually looked at the full moon before. It seemed both reckless and exciting. Hopefully though, nothing would happen. After all, I didn't feel any different.

***

I woke up feeling very, very different. The first thing I noticed was that it wasn't daytime, and I wasn't in my bed. It was practically impossible to see, but I felt grass below my feet.

Uh oh. I looked around, as my eyes started to adjust. I was definitely outside, in a place I had never seen before. There were trees everywhere, and not a single building in sight.