The Mermaid Spell

Hope

Alright, where do I start for this?  I don't even remember the last time I updated this story so this is gonna kind of be a bit weird trying to get back into this.  To be honest, I don't even remember how I was planning on finishing this story and where I was even going to go with it.  So after a little bit of rereading (it was so painful with all the errors and old writing) I had come up with how I might try and wrap this story up.  I wasn't even planning on ever finishing this, but we're almost to 300,000 reads and so many people have messaged me asking for the next chapter so here we are.  If you find errors that might not sound right (like something mentioned in this chapter doesn't relate right to something mentioned in an earlier chapter) please just tell me in the comments.  Thanks.

The frigid waves licked at my legs and dragged me further towards the shore, like a never ending nightmare.  The rough rocks scraped at my heels and my heart raced, but I refused to falter.  The full moon hovered just above the glittering waves, its force being the only thing that could drive me forward.  

"Lara!"  I gasped just before an inky blue wave embraced me and my beckons were lost in its wake.  I found myself coughing and sputtering once i emerged from the water, struggling to find balance before the next monstrous wave hit.  My vision was cloudy and dotted with shadows, but I continued to push forward through the tide that seemed to be trying so hard to force me back.  

The silhouette of a tail broke free of the surface several feet out to sea and disappeared with a loud yet graceful splash.  She must not have noticed me tirelessly charging through the sea, or perhaps she knew of my presence and was watching curiously at a distance.  The sight must have been hilarious to watch.

"...Lara," I groaned and extended my hand as far as I could, the tips of my fingers just barely touching the edge of the water where the moon met the surface.

Then there was a calm.

The still waters reached my neck now and I was forced to paddle forward like a young child who was just learning to swim.  My shoulders refused to move so I was forced to rely on my legs to propel me forward.  Deep down inside inside I knew that this attempt would fruitless and Lara would escape from my grasp.  Adrian would find me washed up on the beach without a single breath left and Ian would be lost below the depths of the ocean forever.'

I finally stopped myself and drifted backwards until my feet brushed against the bottom again.  There was no hope.  I knew that if I continued any farther, the hands of death would caress me and carry me away to a place where I had no control over any of the chaos I had come to find myself in.

I dragged myself through the shallow water until I finally collapsed under my own weight.  

"I deserve this," I told himself and furiously curled my hands into fists.  "Why did I question that god damn book?  Why did I even have to buy it in the first place?"  Salty tears touched my quivering lips and I closed my eyes tightly, only allowing more tears to flow freely down my stinging cheeks.

"Don't be so dramatic."  Adrian's voice woke me from own pitiful thoughts.  He lifted me from the sand and gently held my shivering body in his arms.  "I don't know what you were thinking, trying to run out all heroic and chase after a mermaid who clearly has an advantage in the water, compared to someone who can barely keep their head above the water," he snorted.