2.1 Moving On

Jamie was decidedly upset that Alex wasn't staying in the house. Graduation had come and gone far too quickly. In just a few days, he'd be off on his own.

She had tried to convince him to stay, but Alex couldn't be swayed. He had dreams of living in a house boat and he'd found the perfect one. Thankfully, he'd docked it just down the road, so he wasn't too far away.

Alex shunned regular work and opted to go into business for himself. He was going to become a professional diver. The ocean was practically his life, so it was the best solution to do what he loved and get paid for it.

He started out by doing diving classes, shortly followed by manning his own expeditions.

When he wasn't underwater, Alex was throwing parties. His entire lifestyle was very laid back and what fun was a house boat if you didn't throw any parties on it?

Party-crashers weren't unusual, but Maya Ocean stepped onto the boat, Alex couldn't help but introduce himself. He'd dated very casually, but no girl could ever compare to his love for the ocean. Maya seemed to be the personification of everything he loved. He barely even noticed the weird coloring of her legs--weird tattoos were becoming popular in Island Paradiso these days.

Not everyone was as impressed by the mysterious beauty. Alex's older sister Serena warned him against getting involved with such obviously strange types. Alex ignored her. Maya was brilliant in all ways. He was sure that Serena was just jealous. Getting knocked up by your boyfriend had made her a big sourpuss lately.

Alex spent the entirety of the party talking to Maya. It was rude to ignore his other guests, but he couldn't be bothered.

Alex and Maya became fast friends. He drug her to the summer festival and tried not to laugh as she awkwardly skated. He swore everyone knew how to skate, but Maya obviously did not. It was strange, but she didn't seem to have the same sort of balance that everyone else did. She was just so clumsy sometimes. It was cute, though.

"These skates are a death trap!"

"Nah, they're fun. Just give it time. You'll get it."

"I'm going to fall on my face. This is humiliating."

Alex laughed. "No. Look at that other guy. He just face-planted and nearly got run over. That's humiliating..."

Alex is happy being friends with Maya, but he's quite interested in becoming more, too. Putting on the charm seems to do little, though. Maya brushes it off and acts like he's just goofing around. Alex isn't giving up yet, however. He refuses to be 'friend-zoned.'

He's certain that it's not the fact that Maya isn't interested in him. She wouldn't let him drag her to all these place she's clearly uncomfortable with if she wasn't. No, maybe she was just scared or awkward. Whatever the case, he'd break her down.

Watching her interact with people just made him wonder even more what she could possibly be afraid of.

One day, Maya tells Alex that she's got something to show him. Alex agrees without hesitation, taking the day of work and following her directions. They end up at one of his favorite diving spots. He's never been here with Maya before, though. How did she know?

Before he can ask, she jumps over the side. He fumbles with his gear and follows after her. Did she just jump in without a tank?

He's pretty sure that he sees her, but she's moving so fast. How is that even possible? How is she still holding her breath? Baffled, Alex does his best to keep up.

When he does manage to catch her, he's quite shocked. Her legs are gone, replaced by a brilliantly colored tail.

"Holy crap..."

"Yeah..."

"Y-You're a mermaid?"

Maya nodded solemnly.

"I wanted to tell you sooner, but I was afraid that you'd hate me... or think I was gross or something. People don't always have the best reactions when they find out."

"Uh, no... I'm just kind of... surprised, that's all. I mean. It all makes sense now, but still."

"I'm not a fish."

"Er, yeah. Of course not."

She sighed. "No, really. I'm not!"

"I-I believe you, Maya. It's okay."

"You just don't understand what it's like. People are always asking me if I have 'fish parts' and other nasty things like that. Of course I don't! I'm a human and when I go into the water, my weird legs become a tail. It's magic. Witches, vampires, werewolves... even fairies are okay! But if you're a mermaid, well then, you're obviously nasty and fishy."

"It's okay. Really. It doesn't change anything for me. It actually kind of makes it even more awesome..."

"W-What?"

"I love the ocean! This is perfect. Forget normal girls, you're a mermaid. That's awesome. I'm kind of jealous, actually."

From that moment on, Maya spends a lot more time at the boat house. She's coming around, obviously. Alex wasn't lying when he said it was awesome she was a mermaid. What other kind of woman could understand his unadulterated love of the sea? Even her last name--Ocean--was perfect.

No, he wasn't letting her get away. He'd wait around until he was an old man for her to come around.

---------------------

Why are Maya's boobs so huge? Is it my sliders? Gah. I want to lessen them. I might. I mean, those are going to take out someone's eye.

Generation two is a lot of fun. I love focusing on the scuba diving. I was hoping Alex would hookup with a mermaid and Maya swam along. Hooray!

Once she reveals the island to him, I'll likely move her in and we'll go on from there. Playing a legacy is a nice break from my prosperity. I can let the town implode and not care. :D