Crap, Lance thought as he tread water the rocky beach close to his home. I don't really know what just happened, I mean I find this kid and all of a sudden I'm talking like a robot and following him and his friends everywhere. There was just something about the land dwellers and how they grew up and knew how it was on the surface.m. Lance couldn't help but tag along. They reminded him of his mother and oldest brother. They had spent most of their time on land and you could tell how they acted was similar Lance didn't understand why he was so weird. I should get home Lance thought after he realized that his new friends were long gone and he had been treading water with only his head sticking out for a while now and he knew he could be spotted. With a quick flip, he plunged headfirst back into the warm water of the ocean and shot through the liquid to get back as fast as possible.
A half an hour later, Lance entered the little cave marked with a few seashells that he and his family called home. The Cuban reached the bottom and traced a special pattern to reveal a door. He opened it up and the gritty sand turned to a rose gold marble flecked with gold inside the door. He flopped down on the soggy couch. He stared at the shells on the ceiling until he gained enough energy to move to his room. It was pretty late so most of his family was sleeping so he just slipped through the kitchen and the hall silently to his room and planned to go back to the beach tomorrow. He sling his treasure bag onto his wooden chair and slumped into bed
A while later, he was back at the beach, unseen, staring at a family just leaving and he felt a huge longing to be like that again. He remembered going to the movies with his mom, eating something other than seafood, and going to fairs and festivals. It was pretty lonely down in the ocean, there weren't many merpeople living in one place for fear of getting caught. The market was Lance's sanctuary, he had a few friends who he saw during his visits and he rest connected with them. The market was just a medium sized coral reef with the people visiting in the area. People selling their goods would use a special removable paint to draw pictures of their goods on a long, lightweight flag. Lance would be there now, but he wanted to see Keith, so he sent his brother down there instead. He found himself a few feet under the water, having drifted down, the family gone. He waded up, just above his eyes or check if there was anyone there. You can't stay for long and you know it, you're gonna be seen. There was a movement on the shore and Lance swam down and hid. He wasn't sure if it was his new friends or another family or just a bush. He risked a glance above water and he broke into a smile when he saw them. They had cleaned up and looked way more relaxed than the last time Lance had seen them. He did another look around to see if there was anyone else there, and then waved his arms to get their attention.
