I sat the plate on the bench behind me. “What is your type?” I asked sarcastically, a bit annoyed. The kiss we shared the previous night had been fantastic.

  “Someone who enjoys the water. Someone who would be happy to see me every day.”

  “You just described me,” I said.

  “And someone who doesn’t stop kissing me after a few seconds,” she added.

  “That right?”

  I took Aby by the hand and urged her away from the grill. At six-two, I was half a foot taller than she. She placed her hands against my bare chest and looked at me. This time when I kissed her, it lasted several minutes. When she pulled back, she gasped for air.

  “Now am I your type?”

  “I don’t know; do you like the water?” She took another bite of the fish and closed her eyes while enjoying the taste. While she enjoyed the taste, I scooped her into my arms and stepped down on the landing next to the jet ski. “You wouldn’t.”

  “Definitely,” I replied. “Any final requests?” She wrapped her arms around my neck and planted her lips against mine.

  “Breathe out through your nose when you go down,” she said.

  "I always do,” I said and jumped.

  We hit the water together and then reemerged together, Aby with her bikini in her hands. She tossed it onto the boat and then swam away.

  “Well?” she said.

  “I’m not real thrilled with my thing floating around under the water.”

  Aby laughed and swam back to me. She reached between us and pushed my shorts down. “It would have to be a big fish.” She smiled and put her arms around my neck.

  I reached down and removed my shorts, tossing them onto the boat.

  “I give you my word; no fish will nibble on you,” she said.

  “Sharks?”

  She shook her head. “As long as you’re with me, you’re safe.”

  “I think that’s what I'm supposed to say.” I put my arms around her waist and moved my lips to hers, our mouths instantly opening, hungry for one another. Something moved against my forearms, and I raised my arms.

  “For love, you could walk away from your game, Seth?”

  “Who are you?” I asked.

  “You know who I am, Seth. I've been in your dreams but never in your nightmares. I’ve been at your games but never introduced myself. “

  “In the seats behind home plate,” I said. “Third row up from the bottom. Seat four. You were always alone and always had a glass of wine.”

  Aby nodded.

  “Earlier this summer you were at one of the clubs, one of the few times I went out after a game. I asked you to dance, and you said no.” A wave crashed between us, breaking the tension.

  “No, I wasn’t stalking you,” she said.

  “Then why follow me?”

  The water around us calmed, the waves gone, the air still. I reached out to Aby and pulled her next to me, my hands against her sides, my fingers…

  I pushed away and raised my hands to examine my fingers.

  “It was time for me to return to the water,” she said.

  Naked, I climbed back onto the boat and stood watching Aby. The water around her began to swirl and the harder I looked at the water the clearer the sea-life swimming around her became. She darted beneath the water and then reemerged just below me.

  “What are you?” I asked. I’d not been seeing things last night while she showered.

  Aby smiled as her eyes washed over my body. “I’m a creature of the sea,” she said.

  “You can’t be real,” I said. “It’s not possible.” All around her fish appeared, their heads and googly eyes turned in my direction. Sharks and dolphins watched me. I rubbed my face and shook my head.

  “You aren’t dreaming,” she said. “I’m as real as you are. As are they.” She spread her hands toward the fish around her. “You have no need to be scared, Seth.”

  “Scared? I’ve lost my fucking mind.”

  She placed her hands on the boat where I’d jumped off with her in my arms, and pushed herself up, the large fin that stretched from her waist to where her feet should have been flapped and threw water into the air. She waved her hand toward the fish, and they sunk into the darkness.

  “What was in the wine?” I insisted.

  Aby patted the planks next to her. “Join me, Seth.”

  I stayed in place, staring at the flapping fin, mesmerized by the reflecting blues and greens. The gills I’d felt on her sides had closed.

  “When I’m in the water the gills help me breathe. Outside the water, I breathe the same as you.”

  As her scales dried, they began to disappear replaced by legs and feet. She stood and stepped up, standing next to me, her eyes still black, still peering into mine. I glanced at her sides again, and then I reached out to touch her face.

  “You cannot be real,” I said slowly.

  “You certainly thought I was real last night while you pressed against me.” A sheepish smile crossed her face. “You found me no different than you.”

  A smile worked across my face. I’d kissed a fish last night. I shook the thought from my head. “Is the boat even yours?” I asked.

  “Yes. As are the others I mentioned. I’m one of the few in my world who are able to traverse land and sea.” She wrapped a towel around herself and entered the cabin, me following. We entered the bedroom where we dressed and started to leave.

  “Wait,” I said, and blocked the way. “This was all planned? The storm? The boat? The… ”

  “The crew is safe,” she said. “And no, I didn’t plan any of this. Go back to your life and your game.” Aby ducked under my arm and left me alone in the bedroom.

  Go back to my game? It wasn’t my game she wanted me to go to. She wanted me to walk away from it. I glanced out the small window and found darkness settling in around us. I pulled on a pair of shorts and left the bedroom, finding Aby pouring herself a drink, her legs crossed, a foot swaying to a tune she sang. I sat on the stool next to her.

  Aby sipped her drink and stared straight ahead, watching the sunset through the windows. She was doing a superb job ignoring me. I’d seen The Little Mermaid a dozen times with Miranda’s daughter, but never would have imagined the true beauty of a mermaid before meeting Aby. It all still seemed impossible, yet here she sat in front of me.

  “Now that I’m over the shock, would you like to start from the beginning and tell me what the hell is going on and why I’m involved?”

  Aby sat her drink on the bar and turned on her stool to face me. “Not long ago a woman broke your heart,” she said. “A woman you loved?”

  “How’d you know that?”

  “I was in the water next to the boat the night you made love to her. I was there when she told you she was leaving.” Aby reached out and placed her hand against my cheek. “I knew you were hurting.”

  “You were there, in the stands the night I had three hits and broke out of my slump,” I said. “I remember now. In the same seat you have always been in.”

  “You looked back at me,” Aby said.

  “I remember. The umpire told me to hurry up. I stepped up to the plate and hit a triple along the left-field line. The next guy up hit a single, and I scored.”

  “And we made eye contact again,” Aby said.

  “Then you helped me. Every game you attended I had multiple hits.”

  Aby nodded. “I heard the things you said to the woman the night she said she had to leave. You told her how much you loved her. You described it as two galaxies coming together and creating something so powerful that it could never be undone. You said every day with her was like living a life of all sunrises and no rain. I heard you say those things. But I also heard your heart hurting. I was determined to help you change those things.”

  “Then you know how important the game is to me,” I said. “And yet you want me to walk away?”

  “I would like for you to visit my home. Then you can make whatever decision it is you need to make.”

  I studied the water and the small waves pushing against the boat. “Down there?”

  Aby kissed my cheek and then dove into the water. When she came up for air dozens of fish poked their heads above the waves. “They won’t bite. I promise.” Her breasts bobbed above the water, and the water was clear enough that I could see her shimmering tail. “I can hold my breath for about sixty-seconds. Then I'm back up. “

  “As long as you stay with me, you’ll have no need to return to the surface.” She held out her hand. “Come, Seth. Come into the water and see my world. Kiss me and live the magical dream you never knew existed.”

  I moved to the edge of the boat, my life teetering at the edge with me. I had the feeling if I entered the water I would never return. That I would drown and die in the darkness below.

  “You don’t trust me,” she said. She disappeared below the water.

  I saw her approaching, her tail a rainbow of teal, blue, and emerald green. She broke the surface and soared ten feet above me before landing on the board next to me, her legs having returned.

  “I brought friends,” she said and waved her hand toward the water.

  All around the boat heads began popping out of the water. Dozens of beautiful women swam and sang, moving in a circle around the boat, the voices heavenly, angelic. I turned to Aby, her black hair dry yet shiny. Her eyes, dark, sparkled. Mystery and intrigue surrounded her. Trust her? I didn’t even trust my eyes.

  “Open your eyes to possibilities for all that you see when you are not blinded by the world,” Aby said.

  I nodded. A man who had accomplished so much in such little time. I had everything a man could ever want. Money, cars, a house. But there was one thing still missing. And no matter what looking glass I used, my life was incomplete.

  Aby dove into the water and all those surrounding the boat returned to the depths. I looked toward the west unable to see land, unable to see the baseball stadium and fans awaiting my return.

  The water stilled. The sun began its descent. And then my life changed.

  I hit the icy water with lungs full of air, kicking my feet as I descended, counting in my head the seconds ticking away. Panic grew as the darkness approached. Twenty-seconds remained. Deeper and deeper. Surrounded by darkness. Ten seconds. Eyes burning. Lungs contracting. Five seconds. I closed my eyes.

  My life played forward and backward in my mind. Water filled my mouth, and I swallowed, throat burning, stomach screaming.

  Downward. Slowly downward. Fading into nothing, my eyes closed, trust drowning with me.

  A hand grabbed mine, lips pressing against mine. Water left my body, shortly replaced by air. I opened my eyes, Aby there, staring at me, her cheeks expanding and contracting as she filled my lungs with air, returning trust.

  We continued our downward spiral locked in each other's arms, our lips remaining together. I looked beneath us and saw the light peeking up from the abyss.

  Where are you taking me, I thought.

  To my home.

  I shook my head, my eyes wide. You’re reading my thoughts?

  She nodded. I have been since the day I saw you on the boat with that woman. I know you almost as well as I know myself.

  Where are your taking me?

  To my world. Don’t be afraid.

  I’m not afraid. I’m intrigued now. Wondering if this is all a dream. Wondering if I’ve dreamed of drowning in my sleep and I’ll wake up dead.

  I assure you I would not have brought you down here if you were going to die. I want you to see where I live. Maybe you will stay.

  The water grew warmer the closer we drifted to the light. Aby blew one last breath into my lungs and pulled away, grabbing my arm and dragging me behind her.

  We shot through the water like a torpedo, splitting the light and then suddenly emerging in a vast, colorful cavern. Coral stretched from one end of the cavern to the other, reflecting the neon colors lining the walls.

  People walked the cavern. Some sat and chatted. Others sat in small, cave-like homes along the base of the walls. Both men and women swam in the lagoon-like pool of water we appeared in, both sexes having tails.

  Aby and I swam toward the rocky ledge and when she climbed out her legs returned. I tried to kick my legs and then looked down into the water, horror on my face.

  “Climb out,” Aby said.

  I did, in a hurry, and my legs returned. “What the hell happened?” I stood and found myself at least a half-foot taller than everyone else. I rubbed my legs. “How can any of this be real? Why haven’t you been found?”

  “Only things that want to be found are found,” Aby said. “We have seen what humans have done to both land and sea. We’ve chosen to keep you away.”

  “Then why me?”

  “Aby?” The man walking toward us looked none too pleased with my presence.

  “Sebastian,” she said and faced the man.

  “You brought a human to Cliffden Deep? You know the rules.” He tried to move around Aby but she blocked his way.

  “Speak to my father,” she said. “He knows I was bringing him here.”

  The man or creatures or whatever the hell he was wanted a fight. He grabbed Aby’s arm and I quickly removed it, shoving him back.

  “Sebastian!”

  “Father,” Aby said. “This is the man I was telling you about.”

  “He doesn’t belong here,” Sebastian said.

  “I’ll see you in my quarters,” Aby’s father said. “And, Sebastian? Never touch my daughter.”

  The man watched me as he walked away, his eyes suggesting we’d have to settle up sooner or later. If he did touch Aby again it would be sooner.

  “King Esner,” he said and offered his hand.

  Cautiously, I accepted the gesture. “Seth,” I replied, suddenly realizing I was naked.

  “My daughter will take good care of you until we meet for meal,” he said. He gave Aby a sideways glance and left us.

  “Can they all read my mind?”

  Aby shook her head. “Only me.” She smiled and led me away from the lagoon.

  It was not lost on me that I was a zoo animal. The new creature for everyone to stare at. It made me smile to think about them watching me play baseball. Our worlds were entirely different. I’d read about the city of Atlantis, or at least its supposed existence. This place seemed close.

  Aby led me across the cavern, through a series of tunnels and into a small alcove. She waved her hand back at the entrance and a silver sheen of water closed off the passageway.

  “What do you think?” Aby asked.

  I scratched my head. “If I didn’t see it all for myself, I’d say you were insane. Who was the angry guy?”

  “Pfft. Sebastian?” She sat on the cushion in what appeared to be a gigantic oyster shell. The shell was pink and blue. I took a seat across from her on something spongy. I bounced up and down. “He thinks I should marry him. He has no claims to my father’s throne unless we are married.”

  I shrugged. “Why not marry him?” No, I didn’t mean it. Then I remembered she could read my thoughts. “Don’t bother answering.”

  “Do you like it here?” Aby asked. “What you’ve seen so far?”

  “So far,” I said. “Though I know nothing about you or your . . .”

  “People?” Aby moved from her seat and crossed the room where a large pool of water rested quietly. She lowered herself into the water and steam rose. The neon-colored walls reflected in the water, a psychedelic image that made me feel like I was stuck in the seventies. I was trippin’ on sea life. “Would you like to join me?”

  “You know I would.” I moved across the room and climbed in. As soon as the water reached my neck, I felt everything from my waist down change. I reached under the water, trying to find my manhood. Gone.

  “It’ll come back,” Aby said. She swam close to me and draped her arms over my shoulders. I moved mine around her waist, where skin met scales. Our fins touched and a weird sensation shot through my body. “You’ll feel strange at first. But I think you’ll get used to it.”

  “I’m not sure I will. It’s a lot to consider. Things were very good for me up there.” I couldn’t believe I was even saying that.

  “We’ve been here for centuries,” Aby said. “Things here have always been good.”

  I pulled her close and moved my lips to hers, the taste of sea water faint, her breath warm and invigorating, the way it had been as we descended into the depths. At that moment I had no clue as to what I would do: stay or go. I guess inclined to go. Leaving under the sea had never been a dream of mine not that I ever knew it was possible. The life seemed to simple, so uncomplicated. I’d miss my iPhone, movies, baseball, family and the thousands of amenities the surface world had to offer. It wasn’t like I was moving from the city to the countryside. It would be moving between worlds.

  I moved Aby back to the edge of the large pool, the two of us swimming in small circles. She moved her hands against my face and I moved my hands to her ass, squeezing. She moaned and kissed me again, her tongue finding its way into my mouth. As we kissed, I found myself swimming through her mind, seeing all her life had been.

  Cliffden Deep, at least through the images in Aby’s head, was a peaceful place. The people/creatures spent their days in community, talking to one another, debating philosophies. They gathered food together and cooked together. They maintained Cliffden Deep as a community, everyone with specific and equal tasks.

  “Why do you want me to stay?”

  Aby moved away and swam around the pool. She went under the water and then came up in front of me. “Because of what’s in there.” She pointed at my heart. “I know you were devastated when that woman left.” She climbed from the water and her legs returned.

  She moved to a bed in the center of another gigantic shell and watched me, waiting I assumed.

  While I climbed from the water, I watched my scales and fin change back to legs, completely mesmerized by the metamorphosis. I stood and wiggled my toes. “The fuck is happening?”

  “You’ll get used to it,” Aby said. “Though you’ll lose the hair on your legs.” She noticed me looking at my dick. “That will never go away.”