The Alluring, Savage Mermaid
As I bury my toes in the warm sand, I’m still in shock that I forked over my life savings to get to this enchanting, secluded island.
Donning my scuba tank, I grab my fins and mask, and walk down to the wooden pier to the gazebo. I know I’m supposed to dive with a buddy, but no one is up on the island yet, and the water is so inviting. Slipping on my fins and mask, I place my regulator in my mouth, and step off the edge of the gazebo, the cool salty water crashing around me. With no air in my BCD, and the perfect weight around my hips, I immediately begin sinking into the deep blue sea. I take in the whimsical scenery, feeling my ears pop as I descend.
I watch the air bubbles release from my regulator and drift toward the glimmering water’s surface, wishing I could live in this world forever. It’s so serene down here, only able to hear my breath entering and exiting the breathing apparatus. My gaze wanders over to the beautiful coral reef swarming with an array of colorful fish.
Surrounded by the rocky reef, something darts by in my peripheral vision. Hoping it’s not a shark, I quickly recoil, jerking my head in that direction. There’s nothing there, save the vast array of colors supplied by the sea urchins and fish along the reef.
Maybe it was just a stingray zipping by.
I check my gauges, see I’m at fifteen feet, and nowhere near dipping into the halfway mark on my air tank. As I near a captivating cavern amidst the reef, I see a glimpse of a glistening tail flick through the entrance of the cavern.
Holy crap, that must be a huge dolphin fish.
I pull my camera from my pouch, preparing to capture the beauty on film.
My dad is going to be so jealous when he’s see how big this sucker is.
As I approach the cavern, something tugs on my fin. Screaming through my regulator, I spin around, dropping my camera.
Gasping through my regulator, a kaleidoscope of colors flash before me. Fear instantly turns to awe as I hover, suspended in time, mesmerized by the beauty before me. I blink three times, wondering if this magnificent mermaid actually floats before me, or if I somehow acquired decompression sickness.
Before I can take in all of her tantalizing details, she zips behind me; I feel a tug, and instantly water fills my mouth on my next inhale. My eyes widen with shock, tunnel vision quickly evades, and my instincts kick in. I swim toward the surface as quickly as I can. Small bubbles escape my mouth, rising faster than I can swim. My lungs burn, wondering if I’ll break the surface before I pass out from lack of oxygen. The sun reflecting on the water’s surface brightens as I near.
I’m almost there.
The burning intensifies, my lungs feel as though they’re going to burst; I want to inhale so badly. I need to breathe.
Relief washes over me the moment my hand breaks into the sea breeze, my face follows seconds later, gulping the air in — gasping, choking.
Treading water, I rip my mask off, and fill my BCD.
Thank goodness she didn’t cut the air supply to my BCD.
My heart still racing, I lean back into the water and float, too exhausted to care that the devilish beauty or something worse might attack me and still mesmerized by what just occurred. I will never forget this horrifying, enthralling experience.
© KC Holt 2019
