Throughout the rest of the evening, Elick paced back and forth. He dodged all the people coming and going along the park paths. He’d try to distract them with a weird dance or bad singing. Instead, he caught their suspicious side-eyed judgement a few times and hid behind the bushes to hide his shame. However, he never took his eyes off Mallard or the fountain as he tried to figure out a way to rescue him.

If someone saw Mallard, they wouldn’t have time to ask how he landed in the fountain before the police, or some scientist appeared. Elick knew that Mallard would be abducted and taken into custody like some sort of mermaid freak show. He stared back at the fountain with a sunken, grim look on his face. Elick was filled with dread, a mental image of Mallard being experimented on and dissected, crept into his mind. He trembled at the thought and rushed over to the fountain. “Are you alright?” He tried to keep his voice to a whisper. “Mallard, are you alright?”

Mallard nodded and braced himself against the fountain shadows. He looked as if he wanted to swim to Elick’s side. His face was filled with sadness and worries that made Elick upset. For once, it felt as though they were no longer on the same wavelength and neither one could comfort the other.

Elick took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. He sat on the edge of the fountain and felt defeated. He kept his head hung low and watched the other park goer’s feet pass by. It wasn’t until the sun set behind the buildings and filled the sky with a purple glow that Elick looked up. A tinge of excitement and worry filled his heart. If all else failed, he could at least drag Mallard out under the cover of the night.

When Elick turned around, he felt a rush of cold-water brush against his back. Mallard had snuck over to his side and clung onto the edge of the fountain to greet him. Elick jumped from his seat in a panic. He looked around, hoping no one could see them. The evening lights hadn’t come on yet, but Mallard’s tail illuminated the water with a faint orange glow.

“I can be by your side now, right?” Mallard asked.

Elick was frozen stiff, he didn’t know what to say.

Mallard looked perplexed. “Elick, are you alright?” He dragged himself up out of the fountain and splashed water everywhere.

Elick’s heart pounded.

Mallard rose from the water and the glow from his tail engulfed him in a blinding light. The streetlamps came on and filled the park with a dull yellow. Elick opened his eyes and Mallard stood in front of him with a goofy smirk. “I guess I’m back to normal.” Mallard stood naked in the park lights, dripping wet.

Elick staggered backwards, it was as if his breath escaped him. He couldn’t find the right words to say, but his mind was overwhelmed with thoughts. If Mallard was going to change back so easily, did he worry for nothing. How long will this last or did anyone happen to see them? Mallard slowly approached with his arms stretched out. He placed his hands along Elick’s cheeks and smiled.

“What was that?” said a voice.

“What’s going on over there?” said another.

Fear shot through Elick like a bolt of lightning. He took a deep breath, held in his frustration, and shoved Mallard back. Elick flailed his arms around in a panic and let out an angry cry. “What are you doing naked?! Someone is going to see you, Mallard!”

“Hey, you!” someone said.

Elick shocked Mallard into the fountain and turned around. He pretended to be praying by the fountain with his hands clasped together. He mumbled a fake prayer and looked to the stars with an intense stare. He hoped Mallard would understand what he was thinking and keep himself hidden.

A police officer on park patrol came running over with a few pedestrians. Elick was trying to maintain an air of calmness when he whirled around. He broke out in a cold sweat and trembled. He was fighting back a cheeky grin because he knew he’d unintentionally reveal the truth through his poor lie. “What is it, officer?” Elick took a deep breath and cleared his throat. “Sorry, got a bit of a cold.”

The police officer looked angry and confused. He was out of breath, but his brows were furrowed into his narrowed eyes. He was suspicious of Elick and held his hand along his belt, ready to attack at a moment’s notice. “What are you doing here?” He gripped his nightstick. “What was that flash? Are you out here doing something fishy?”

Elick bit his lip and looked away. He was doing something fishy, but it wasn’t what the officer was expecting. He closed his eyes and calmly looked back at the officer, hoping his expression was innocent enough. “No, why do you ask?”

“Don’t lie to me, we all saw it.” The officer pointed at the other pedestrians, and they nodded in agreement. “Sir, we know you saw that light.”

“Oh! You mean the light!” Elick looked up at the streetlamp and pointed at the others nearby. “Yeah, there’s something wrong with your lights. I think they’re about to go out.” He showed them with his hands and made an explosion noise. “There was a big flash, then bam!” He shook his head. “I came out here to pray before my…trip home.” He hoped they’d believe him.

“Oh.” The office stepped back and relaxed. He looked up at the lamps and then back at the others. “I guess the garden crew should look into that, then.” He rubbed the back of his head out of embarrassment. “Then, there’s nothing else going on here?” The others looked at him with an eager expression, as if they were waiting on some big reveal.

“No. Everything is perfectly fine, sir…except for the lights. Otherwise, I just hope I have a safe trip home.” Elick gave a slight smile.

The others backed away and left the officer alone.

“Oh, then, I’ll leave you to it. Sorry, about the confusion.” The officer said.

“That’s quite alright.” Elick started to panic and wished the officer would leave. He didn’t know how long Mallard could hide.

“Safe trip to you, then.” The officer turned around and walked away with a wave of his hand. He inspected the nearby lamp and gave it a kick.

Elick felt tense and was too afraid to turn around until the officer was far out of sight. When at last he and Mallard were alone, he turned towards the fountain and splashed around. “Mallard?! Where are you?!” A soggy hand gripped Elick’s arm and yanked him into the pool of water.

Mallard was as swift and elegant as a fish, even with his legs. He wrapped his arms around Elick and leapt out of the water. “Sorry, didn’t mean to pull you in.” He laughed and gave Elick a hug.

They were dripping wet and Elick shivered with anger. “Now look at us! What’ll we say if someone catches us? Where are your clothes?”

Mallard chuckled and brushed Elick’s hair back. Their skin glistened in the lights. “Everything will be okay, I promise, Elick.”

Elick felt a sense of calmness return to him and he felt at ease. Somehow, Mallard did it again and made everything better. He felt as if he were about to go limp in Mallard’s arms and snuggle up close to his body. “You…you confuse me so much.” Elick looked away. “I never used to be this excitable. Here I was all worried about you. I didn’t know you’d change back or how long you could breathe underwater.” Mallard gently turned Elick’s chin towards him. “Why do you work me up in a frenzy? Huh? Mallard?”

Mallard pulled Elick in close and kissed him in a rush. Their wet plush lips met with a smack and melted into a passionate kiss. “Everything will be alright, Elick.”

Elick pulled away and smirked. “You say that a lot, but—”

“Hey! Did you hear that?” someone said.

“No way, she didn’t!” another said.

“I can’t believe she did that and didn’t get fired!”

“Oh, of course!”

Elick felt a chill of panic and grabbed Mallard without thinking. They dove into the nearby bushes and crept along the shadows. Park goers approached the fountain where they were standing. “We have to get out of here and get you some clothes.” Elick said.

Mallard nodded and gripped Elick’s shoulders as he looked back at the others. Elick felt a prick on his backside and lunged forward. He turned around and Mallard’s throbbing manhood stood firm, right in front of him.

“Mallard! You’re going to get us in trouble!”