Splashy!

“Splash!” I jump into the Caribbean. OMG! I’m actually in the Caribbean! I’ve been waiting for this moment my whole life! “Ah!” I relax, but I get filled with anxiety when I hear a bunch of voices in the sea.

I don’t say anything. Why? I don’t have to say something, that’s why! Also, what would I say, “Hello! I’m a human being from land! What are you, a monster?” Suddenly, I see a mermaid, swishing her shiny tail. “Hi, can you teach me how- “Are you…a human?” she asks, holding up a swiss army knife. “How in the world did you get that knife?” I question, half-laughing. Bubbles seep out of my mask and around us. The mermaid drops her knife. “It’s nothing. I found it on the sea floor,” she says, flushing.

“Look, I can’t let you go to…back to the human world! And, by the way, sorry for my bad grammar,” the mermaid cries. I say, “Why not?” “Because,” she replies, “If I let you back go back to the surface, we be discover!” “Sorry to correct your grammar, but it is supposed to be we would be discovered, not we be discover,” I say politely. Then I ask, “What do ya mean, ‘we’???? It’s just you and me here!” I look at her nervous face. “Right?”

Oh, and here comes Ms. Sarcasm! “Uh, of course not!!!” she shouts sarcastically. “Other mermaids are down there, at the bottom of the Caribbean, which is where we are!” My mind suddenly chills. “Other mermaids?” I whisper. “Is this a joke?” “Of course not, and there are definitely other mermaids. I’m not the only one. Did you really think that?” “No,” I fib. Of course I did! But who was she to tell me? 

“Look, just do me a favor, and I’ll let you go back to your home!” the mermaid says. “‘Kay. What do I need to do?” I ask, and she replies, “First of all, my names Sparkles. Second, you can call me Sparky. And third, you need to look for a shiny gem. A diamond, to be exact.”

“But why me?” I question. Why does she need this stuff? “Did you literally forget…my name?” Sparkles asks. “Sorry, Sparky. I didn’t mean to offend you,” I apologize.

“Anyways,” she says, “I’ve been brewing a potion. There’s a legend. Long ago, and I mean hundreds of years ago, the humans and mermaids lived together as one. We weren’t separate. One day, though, humans started building structures on our territory. We fought, and that’s how we divided. But,” she pauses. I hear Sparky whisper, “There’s a reunion potion according to merfolk legends. When the Blue Diamond, Red Sapphire, Green Seaweed, and the Purple Amethyst are combined together in a cauldron with enchanted water from the sea Gods and Goddesses, we can be united again!” She looks at me. “I’ve found all of the ingredients needed, except for the Blue Diamond. I thought you could find it. With me!” “This will be a cinch, right?” I ask.

“Who said adventures were a piece of cake?” Sparkles answers. “It won’t be easy. Plus, even I haven’t found it, and I win EVERY Easter Egg hunt! No one else has found the Blue Diamond. But.” “But?” I urge. “But,” she answers. “I can feel it calling for you. So, I chose you to help me find it.”

We search all the reefs once I say, “I’m in!” The coral is very colorful, and the seaweed tickles my toes as we swim along together. Finally, we give in. Well, Sparkles does. “Hope isn’t lost!” I scream. “We can still find it!” Sparkle isn’t looking at me, but at my necklace. “That’s it!” she suddenly exclaims. “What, this?” I point to my blue diamond-oh! “Yes, this is it!” I cry. Yes! “Come, we don’t have much time!” Sparky rushes. “Wait, there’s a timer?” I ask. “Of course! Now, hurry!” Sparky and I rush to swim to where she is brewing the potion. 

…….

“Put the gem in,” Sparky commands softly. I plop the diamond in, removing it from my necklace. Suddenly, the whole sea glows, and the human world slowly descends to the sea!

 A bunch of mermaids and people rush out of their homes, murmuring, “What’s going on? Why are we here?” “Wow,” I whisper. I see the President, Joe Biden, greeting the Mermaid President, who looks like Jackie Harpinson, my sister. They’re talking, and when they finish their chattering, they shout in unison, “Well, whoever brought the mermaids and people back together, they’re anonymous. Anyways, we are now united together again!” I shout, “Yay!” I now have a best friend. Guess who it is. That’s right: Sparky! 

The End!

Written by Kruti Patel