The Hearteyes Zone (A One-Shot Collection)

The Stereotype of Ariel

You're standing on the otherside of the unchanging door into another dimension. A dimension of reduced sight and sound. To enter requires unlocking said door with the key of curiosity.

Erik Stevens is about to take the plunge.  For one man, the exit may forever be distorted and out of reach..

..in The Hearteyes Zone

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🎶 Di cuttlefish fled an di di wata turn red wen Vanity meet Mr Hammerhead ow awful dat day wid terrible dread dat old maid of Mer shi dead 🎶

"Wah mek yuh insist pan singing dat depressing song," Marin signed from beneath the water as she watched her curious best friend closely with her large dark black eyes. Her long black kinky hair was in two tail-length ponytails, wrapped artfully with twine so that she wasn't completely blinded and wrapped in her own tangled web of hair when she swam.. she'd gotten enough of that when she was young. Absentmindedly, her strong tail flipped back and forth as she floated, nearly breaching the surface. She wasn't bold enough to stick out like Nautilus.

Nautilus was already halfway out of the water, her ample waist still submerged as she looked about in every direction. She should've seen a ship coming by, it's why she'd come.. There was always a ship passing through about this time. Maybe she was too early. Based on the position of the big yellow starfish in the sky, it seemed that was the case. "Marin, Marin, Marin," she smiled. "Yuh kno mi majored inna Mer History at Great Coral yuh it di song of warning an it part of fi wi history as a people wah mek nuh sing it proudly?"

"Because it's awful!" Marin spun. "Who makes songs bout dem people being murda by hungry sharks? Plus a warning ave neva stop yuh from being curious," Marin signed.

"Yuh kno dat old merchild nursery rhyme Sleep Stonefish actually bout di poison epidemic of 154?"

"There yuh guh wid dem deh human years eff mi neva kno any betta I'd tink yuh use history as a excuse an yuh actually interest inna observing humans cuz yuh wish fi be one," Marin signed. "Is that why you always come here to watch the ships?"

"Yuh tell mi. Notice yuh always here wid mi Marin," Nautilus retorted.

Marin nodded slowly with a click that meant, "Touche."

"Wah mek yuh nuh eva use yuh lungs," Nautilus asked for the millionth time. "Nuh like anyone's round yuh cya practice yuh human speech it just mi yuh an whulla dis space," she spun, diving to refresh herself in the water before resurfacing. She slung her butt-length locks and two whipped over her shoulder as a few others hit her own face.

"It burns wen mi use mi lungs," Marin frowned. "Mi nuh like breathing oxygen. Plus eff word get back I'd be judge suh haad."

"It only burns cuz yuh nuh dweet enuff.. an who cares yuh suh gud at chatting like a human!"

"I care," Marin signed with attitude. "Humans evil. That's wah mek wi stay away!" Nautilus seemed to forget that she escaped a lot of ridicule since she was a Great Coral Scholar. Marin, however, had no excuse.

"Well evil or no.. mi wa fi si a ship an den wi cya guh."

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Erik was semi-lit from the complimentary wine left on his tiny desk when he left his cabin to walk about the ship, though he was tipsy his sea legs were sturdier than most sober sailers. He was no stranger to cruises having taken one every year through his friend's traveling business for the past few years. Erik always got the best deals. This year was Jamaica and Erik planned to spend as much time as possible on a beach butt naked surrounded by cuties. He couldn't wait until the ship docked so he could finally get back to some authentic Caribbean food. In the meantime, he hit up one of the onboard food stations and picked up an apple, banana, slice of pizza, and some fries before carrying it all to the massive deck to enjoy while looking out at the expansive sea. Everywhere he looked, he just saw blue rippling water. No land in sight and though he was ready to see land again, the view gave him peace. Families moved around, their voices and conversations carrying. Some played in the big pools, some walked by, and some sat, either eating or enjoying the scenery.