“I’m sorry, Dylan. Sometimes love hurts. Sometimes all we can do is bear it.”
That’s just it. I don’t know if I can.
Ryan is waiting for us at the pier, along with Uncle Declan and Aunt Margaret, Mother’s sister. The vermillion sun hovers above the horizon.
“Don’t pick fights with walruses,” Ryan says.
“I won’t.”
“And watch for party boats.”
“Whatever.”
Ryan laughs, but he glances toward the tree-lined road.
“Be safe out there, Dyl.”
“I’ll be with Father.”
“I still worry.” He pulls me into a hug. “You’re kind of a disaster.”
I laugh into his shoulder.
Father clears his throat. “Time to go.”
My chest feels like it’s going to burst, leaving my family behind. Leaving Samir behind.
He’s so close, but he’s not mine.
Ryan follows me to the end of the pier and takes my clothes as I hand them over. A few feet away, Mother does the same for Father. They exchange one last kiss.
I bask in the sunset and take a deep breath.
“See you,” Ryan says.
“Yeah. See you.”
I leap into the water and let the change sweep through me: legs melding, spine lengthening, flukes unfurling. It feels so good, so right, that for a moment I forget my own name. The sea welcomes me home.
I let out a few pulse bursts to check my surroundings, but there’s nothing nearby except a few fish and one perturbed octopus. Father lets out his own clicks after he slips into the water beside me.
I turn and pop back up above the surface. Mother smiles through her tears as she hands me my satchel. I sling it over my back.
“Love you, Dylan.”
“Love you, Mother.”
I take a breath and get ready to dive when a voice splits the silence.
“Wait!”
My heart stops.
“Dylan! Don’t leave!”
Samir sprints down the pier, footfalls reverberating through the planks into the calm water below.
I sink until only my head is above water. My tail twitches.
