Bleary-eyed, Aqua woke up and realised how much her legs were aching from all that walking yesterday. Little dark patches could be seen on her skin where she had fallen yesterday, and they were painful to touch. Aqua wondered what that was. Maybe Dawn could explain it to her.Draining the jacuzzi tub as she had seen Dawn doing,  Aqua scrub it well so that she could use it again tonight. Then, she hugged the edges of the wall and made baby steps all the way to the showering stall, where she leaned against the cold wall tiles in an attempt to balance on two feet while doing other things.Living as a human was a lot easier than living as a mermaid, even if there were many things to do apart from hunting, swimming, eating and sleeping. Compared to her life in the ocean, Aqua slept worry-free and did not need to worry about not having anything to hunt for her next meal. The water was always warm, and the only thing Dawn asked of her was to master the use of her legs. Aqua

The drive to Taco Bell took about fifteen minutes at best because there wasn’t much traffic at this hour. Dawn parked his car in the closest lot to the restaurant because he didn’t want Aqua to walk too much and risk falling over. After all, she was wearing sneakers for the very first time.Walking over to open Aqua’s side of the door like a gentleman, Dawn carefully escorted Aqua to the fast food restaurant like he was taught to treat all ladies. From an outsider’s point of view, they looked like an odd couple, with Aqua toddling unsteadily and Dawn behaving like a prince in street fashion. Neither of their demeanour matched their appearance.“Hi, welcome to Taco Bell. How can I help you?” the teenage girl at the cashier greeted lazily. It was late in the afternoon before the dinner crowd and there was nothing to do. She took orders on autopilot and only looked up from her order kiosk when there wasn’t an instant reply.

The bar wasn’t quite what Aqua was expecting. It was small on the inside, although it looked big on the outside, was rather quiet and was overall a little scary without Dawn around. The two men in front of the shop wearing black glasses that covered their eyes were big, much bigger than Dawn. They also looked very fierce, reminding Aqua of whales.Thankfully, nothing happened, and the ‘bouncers’ let them pass after they saw Dawn. After entering a new door, Aqua and Dawn were shown inside the bar to a different room. That explained why the bar looked small after they entered. It wasn’t the main room!However, even after following the part-timer to the room they were going to wait in, Aqua still could not understand why this place had so many walls and rooms. It was like a maze. Without the guide, Aqua would have a difficult time finding anything.“Is there anything you’d like to drink while waiting for the master?” the part-tim

Living a life full of tension, Dawn never had the luxury to do nothing and unwind. He was taught that there was no safe place with the life he led. However, ever since meeting Aqua, the number of peaceful days increased. Each day that passed uneventfully became a new treasure that Dawn would always remember.They showered separately and decided to pull the bed near Dawn’s large balcony so they could comfortably lie in it while watching the stars. The night air was slightly chilly, so Dawn brought extra blankets. Aqua did not seem bothered by the temperature. If anything, she was slightly disappointed by the lack of stars in the sky.“When will the stars appear?” Aqua wondered aloud as it closed in on midnight. The city was still as bustling as always, and the frustrated mermaid decided to count the number of traffic lights instead of stars.Dawn checked his watch. Although it wasn’t wise, he contemplated leaving the safety of his pen

When Jericho first read it, he thought he was finally losing his marbles. However, after rereading the text and confirming that nobody had hijacked his best friend’s phone, he was convinced that it was Dawn who had lost his marbles.Of all the things that he thought Dawn would do, home tutoring wasn’t one of them. It was more understandable if his best friend asked him to be a stand-in babysitter and watchdog. He knew Aqua wasn’t from this country because she spoke and behaved weirdly. It was Jericho’s opportunity to know her better without Dawn’s overprotectiveness getting in the way. However, he wasn’t very highly educated. Unlike Dawn, he dropped out of high school and did not accept the Daniels family’s offer for home tutoring or sponsorship to attend a private boarding school.After mulling over what his best friend was thinking, Jericho decided to call Dawn instead of texting. Clarifying things over the phone was faster. This