This day has definitely turned out to be a nightmare.

I ran as far away from my school as possible, then once I finished transforming into a merman I swam as quickly as I could to my safe haven underwater. I stop and laid down on a spot where different species of fish swerved around me, while the algae and plants agitated peacefully in the rhythm of the waves. There was no sign of any civilisation, not even the slightest piece of plastic bag floating around the bottom of the sand beside me.

Everything around me was peaceful, but in my mind, that was a different story.

I would usually come here to calm down when I was stressed or angry, and this secret spot would always manage to calm me down. However, I became such a shamble after the events of today, I knew that simply going away and isolating myself wasn't going to repair anything.

I have left the school so abruptly, and so much commotion had been caused because of me. People were probably wondering now where I have gone. Damn it, I knew that I shouldn't have stayed in school ! I should have listened to my instincts. Everyone must be informed by now of what happened in the hallway, including my parents.

I was certainly not in a state to face anyone. Not now, not never. I knew that I was a person that looked weird no matter where I was because I was a loner and all. But to the point of being physically attacked, I would have not suspected that to happen.

As I was brooding alone in the bottom of the sea, I spotted a mermatic silhouette in a distance rushing right for me. I got up and I was about to escape until I noticed who that silhouette belonged to, and knowing who it was I decided to stay put and wait for her.

Mira was now extenuated when she had finally reached me. It looked like she had travelled the 7 seas before finding me here.

I took a moment to admire her appearance, she definitely was a beautiful mermaid. Her short brown hair flowed around the water like it was made out of silk, and her tall slender figure was complemented by her earth-brown scales, with a fin as slim as a butterfly's wing.

On earth she really looked like a weirdo. But underwater, she definitely looked like a queen.

At last she managed catch enough breath that by now she could speak clear sentences to me.

"When I said run, I didn't actually mean GO IN THE FURTHEST PART OF THE OCEAN WHERE NOT EVEN THE GHOSTS OF THE TITANIC COULD FIND YOU !"

"I'm sorry..." I responded in a depressed tone. Upon seeing how bad I was feeling she calmed down her voice.

"Hey shortie, are you feeling better ?" She put her hand on my shoulder. I lifted my head to glare at her and pushed back her hand.

"How on earth can I feel better after what happened ! I was... assaulted..."

Just remembering those events sent shivers down my spine. I stared blankly at Mira, with the realization that I was letting out my anger at the only person who actually had the guts to save me in the situation I found myself in before.

"Thank you Mira... for helping me out back then. I don't know what I would have done in this situation without you."

"Well, seeing something like that happen in front of me, I had to intervene since nobody was moving their sorry butts."

I chuckled. "Yeah, sometimes it feels like it is only you and me against the world..."

"Akari, I know it feels like that, but it isn't true. A lot of people care about us, we have family and friends who love us, and- "

"Mira..." I interrupted her mid-sentence. "The only friend I have is you."

I lowered my head in sorrow. Suddenly, Mira swam closer to me and grabbed me by my shoulders. She exclaimed at me in a condescending tone.

"Akari, I am your only friend because you are not letting yourself open up to anyone else !" She sighed. "Listen, I get it. We get a lot of pressure from everyone around us about keeping our secret. But you know, I do get scared when I look at you. You are really suffering from the pressure and it is making you lonelier than ever. But at the same time you are literally locking yourself away from the world. Well you know what ? That will eventually break you, trust me on that ! Besides, it's not like there is no one else who attempted to be your friend. For example, Owen is always trying to talk to you, and you just shrug him off !"

After she was finished I immediately glanced at her. Hearing her utter that name somehow made me tense up while shambling my nerves to pieces.

"Don't try and kid me Mira, a guy like that would never be friends with me. You specifically said yesterday that he was like that with EVERYONE ELSE. Besides, he is always with Maximus and all the other meatheads, and it is very clearly him leading the pack ! Who knows ! Maybe he was the one who orchestrated the attack against me today, but he was too much of a stupid coward to face the situation himself ! He is not what he seems to be, and it is clear that all his supposed good actions are really just an act ! Screw him, I'd never want to be friends with him, I hate him !"

"Akari, you're kidding me right ? The only thing that Owen has ever done to you was trying to get on your side ! He literally has nothing against you, so why would he even think about pushing Maximus to attack you when all he wants is for you to open up ? Why are you always trying to find reasons to hate him, even though he hasn't done anything wrong ??"

"Because it it easier this way Mira ! He is constantly bugging me all the time and trying to make me be friends with everyone, without even noticing that all I want is to be left alone ! Sure, maybe he is a good person, but I would risk so much of just being associated to someone like him ! And for that, I would rather hate him than try to open up to him in the first place, because it is just better to cope like that. Trust me ! I am copping just fine right now ! But all I want is for people to understand that I don't need anyone ! IS IT SO HARD TO UNDERSTAND ?"

When I finished my outburst, Mira just stared at me, obviously very surprised by the words I have said. I was so frustrated after what happened earlier on, I just had to let it all out. Mira was used to it, really. I cannot count how many times my friend has seen me acting like that in front of her, and right now, she was giving me a very familiar look. A look that said that she understands, but at the same time she cannot comprehend. A look that said that she knew the place where I was coming from, but she unfortunately does not understand how to help me out.

She moved away from me and began to swim back the way she came from. But just about when she was going to leave, she turned to me and told me in a calm but desperate voice.

"We already had discussions like those millions of time Akari, and all I want to do is help. But unfortunately, there is nothing I can do to make you change, you must do that for yourself. The face you wear at school does betray who you really are, and I do know for a fact that you are a very kind person. You could help out a lot of people around you, and they can really help you out just as much. It doesn't have to be Owen if you really insist on it, but I would really appreciate to see you one day break your shell. So please, don't be afraid to let other people be a part of your life, I promise you, you will not regret it."

And on those words, she swam away into the deep blue.

A few hours had passed since my conversation with Mira. All this time I have been staring at the scenery around me while reflecting on myself. Am I really suffering that much from loneliness ? Probably. Although Mira is my best friend and that no one can ever replace her, I still know that she has her own life. I cannot always depend on her and count on her to comfort me every single second of my existence.

Besides from her and my family, it doesn't seem like that I have ever had a proper contact with anyone in my life. I did vow to keep up this lifestyle for the rest of my existence to preserve the secret of our kind. After all, we could risk our lives if ever we get discovered ! So shutting myself out was certainly for the best. But still, this feeling, it is making me feel... Really sad.

Watching the different marine species circling around this beautiful heaven of a place made me completely lose track of time. Only now have I noticed how many hours went by as I was floating above the sand. I think by now school must be finished and my parents were probably on their way home. They were probably going to be worried about me, especially after what happened today. But I still wanted to spend some time alone.

As much as I loved to stay here, it was slowly starting to get tiring. I don't really know where else I should go, so I'll probably just swim around the ocean for a bit.

Thirty minutes had passed and I felt like I was going around in circles. As much as I knew my way around the sea, I could say that I found myself completely lost. The sun was still visible in the sky but I knew that if I were to continue wandering around the ocean aimlessly like that I would get even more lost. Time will pass too fast and it will eventually become too dark to find my way back home. And the last thing that I want right now is my mom thinking I was running away after the events of today. So, slowly but surely, I turned around and went back the way I came from in an attempt to find the path to my house.

I was going back on my tracks when all of a sudden, I stumbled across a familiar place. As I swam into that direction I became surrounded by long green bushes filled with wild seaberries. The last time I came by this place was when I was about 10, a time where... a lot was going on in my life.

I remember finding this place and eating all the berries from those bushes while crying the living hell out of me. Once I got back and explained to my mother what I have eaten in the sea, she panicked and thought that I might have been poisoned by eating unknown wild food. I was fine, but I did get grounded for a month after that. Remembering those events made me chuckle, a lot has changed since then hasn't it ?

I decided to settle down and started eating the berries from the bushes. They tasted as good as I remembered.

Although I was enjoying myself by stuffing my face, I still felt frustrated and anxious about all the recent events. Seriously, could no one ever leave me be ? I did know that the people like me wouldn't have it easy by being in school, but I never expected it to go this far ! I would be lying if I said that I wasn't scared of what tomorrow would bring. And although Mira did her best to reassure me to a certain extent, it didn't fully take me out of my worries.

As I was lost in my thoughts, I didn't notice the heavy breathing and the giant bubbles escaping to the surface, happening only a few feet away from me. This breathing was unlike any marine creature, unlike anything that lives naturally in the ocean. Mortified, I slowly panned my face towards the source of the sound. What I saw shook me to the bones.

Right there, facing back at me, was a human. Not a mermaid, but a real human being. That person was in a complete scuba diving gear, so it was impossible for me to identify who it was. As he was staring intensely at me, I didn't do anything else except float there, frozen into place. My mind was going blank. I was discovered.

As I was getting back to my senses, I realised the gravity of the situation. I fled as fast as I could in the opposite direction, leaving the scuba diver flabbergasted by what he had just witnessed.