Two weeks later

CALLIE managed to move everything out of the bathroom and onto the floor in the small area in front of the stairs blocking her bedroom door. Between her work and online lectures, she finally found time to deep clean her living space. She spent all morning doing dishes and laundry, vacuuming, mopping , dusting, organizing, and now she was preparing to paint her ugly yellow bathroom walls.

She put it off for so long, but she finally found a shower curtain she loved. It had a panda bear and bamboo sticks on it. Committing to the theme, she bought a bamboo toothbrush holder, soap dispenser, and makeup brushes. Now she was going to paint her walls a soft green.

Her hair was already pulled back and she sported an old tshirt and pair of gray shorts that she wouldn't care if she got paint on. She had just started when she heard her dryer go off.

"Callie, your machine is beeping," Triton stated the obvious from the couch where he sat watching TV and eating chips, all morning. It is basically all he ever does. "What's for lunch?"

Oh, right. He also eats a lot.

"Whatever you make yourself."

He showed up in the bathroom doorway. "You're not making lunch? Aren't you going to eat?"

"I already did. I ate a bologna sandwich while vacuuming earlier," she said, pressing her paint roller against the wall with a little extra force already anticipating his response.

"Why can't you make me lunch?"

"Why–are you serious? I'm busy! There are microwave dinners in the freezer. You can figure it out," Callie snapped, more than a little over His Royal Highness's attitude.

"Fine."

After a few minutes, the humming of the microwave was drowned out by the crackling and popping of disaster. She leaped over her bathroom essentials to save her precious microwave, but it was too late. Black smoke was quickly filling the room. She stopped Triton from pouring water on the electrical fire. Holding her shirt over her mouth, she pulled out a fire extinguisher from under her sink and sprayed the inferno.

"What happened?" She demanded as she propped open the glass door and waved around a dish towel so the smoke wouldn't set off the fire alarms.

"Your machine broke."

"I know that! What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything!"

"Microwaves don't just explode!"

He shrugged. "Yours did. I just gave it a little boost and---"

"Boost? You mean you shot lightening at my baby!"

"I thought it operated by electricity so an extra charge would make it go faster and cook the food better."

She grabbed a pillow off the couch and screamed into it. The prince took a smart step away from the unstable human.

"It's fine. It's fine. Everything is super fine," she repeated to herself.

"Calm–" he stopped himself from making that mistake. "I will replace your heat wave machine once I return to Atlantis–"

"You electrocuted my microwave! Sorry. I'm calm. I'm calm. When are you going back to Atlantis?"

"I told you I can't return without Delphi. I made a deal with her to allow her the summer, which was rather generous of me."

"Yes. You did. Here's my deal. You need to start pulling your weight around here if you want to stay for the rest of the summer. Just because you're a Prince doesn't mean you can be a bum. You'll get a temporary seasonal job and replace my microwave with your first paycheck."

He opened his mouth to argue, but thought better. "Fine," he relented.

Callie took a slow deep breath. "Good. I will help you make a resume—Wait. You don't have an ID. How can we get you a job when you don't exist?"

"That is a dilemma. Guess I can't get a job after all..."

"Surely, your people have some sort of system when you visit the surface."

"We do... but it would require me asking the seawitch for assistance."

Callie scoffed, "Do you regret threatening her and calling her a heretic now?"

"I regret nothing. She is a heretic."

"While we are on that topic and because I need a distraction, what exactly is a seawitch?"

"They used to be one of us. But they went against the wishes of the sea gods. So as punishment, they and their descendants were exiled and lost their ability to transform. They lie and deceive, but they are also our only link to the human world. They're sworn, by a sacred oath, to help my people blend in when we are up on the surface. It is why Delphi sought her out."

"So no chance Erza will help you?"

"I could order her to by inciting the oath that runs through her blood, but I don't trust her. Though seawitches are sworn to help us on land, they can twist your demands in ways that suit them. I don't want to know how Delphi bought the seawitch's fierce loyalty. Doesn't matter. I have you to help me blend in."

With a sigh, Callie looked at her singed microwave, its pitiful state strengthening her resolve. "Rest now. He can't hurt you anymore. Alright, Triton. We will figure it out without her help then."

🐡🐡🐡

Karen agreed to hire Triton and pay him under the table. The fact that Callie had generously picked up a number of shifts on the next schedule may have been a deciding factor for the manager.

"You did great," Callie said after Triton had completed his CPR training. Now she will be able to start training him on the job tomorrow. "And Brandi could not take her eyes off you."

None of the girls in the class could.

He shrugged. "She was very helpful."

"Oh, yeah. Very..." She didn't miss Brandi adamantly telling Triton to ask her if he needed anything while adjusting to his job. Callie had to bite her tongue. She wanted to remind Brandi that she was more than capable of training him and answering any questions he'll have on the job. But then she realized Brandi was implying something not entirely work related.

"So I will just go to work with you now?"

"Yes, your schedule will match mine for atleast two weeks while you are in training. But I'm sure you'll pick it up in no time."

"If not, guess I can ask Brandi for help." He laughed as if it was a joke. Callie hoped he was joking, but Brandi was a short, plump beauty with almond shaped eyes and thick, curly blonde hair. She peered up at the Prince of the Sea and bit her lip wondering if he found her attractive... objectively speaking, of course. Or did he truly only have eyes for Delphi?

"You look at me a lot," he teased, knowing full well how attractive he was.

She released her lip. "Because you're sunburned again."

"Sure."

She rolled her eyes. "I'm serious. Guess it makes sense you would easily burn. Given where you are from, I'm surprised you're not albino. You need to take better care of yourself and apply sunscreen. I have some aloe in the bathroom you can use."

"You worry so much for someone so young. You must have been a mother in a past life."

She blushed, the words making her happy and disappointed at the same time. Being maternal by nature could never be considered an insult, but Triton comparing her to a mother figure just reaffirmed that he didn't see her as a woman. She wasn't as endowed as Brandi, after all. Not that she wanted Triton to see her like that. Being around someone as beautiful and as confident as Brandi just made her feel intimidated. Besides if she was like a mother, then Triton was a child, constantly needing supervision.

"That is something my dad would say."

"You miss him."

"Of course. But he will be home this Sunday." She had spoke to her dad several times on the phone, but has yet to tell him about Triton. She doesn't know how he'll react to her having a guy staying with her. It is something neither of them had experience with. She'll need to come up with some cover story about who Triton is.

🐳🐳🐳

TRITON scanned the crowded beach, his eyes hidden by sunglasses. He didn't mind the job so far. It was quite easy. But he didn't have the heart to tell his human companion that the job of a lifeguard was not suited for him, not after she worked hard to arrange it. Technically, Atlantean law forbade rescuing humans from drowning. Such charitable acts challenged and threatened their way of life.

Callie sat beside him in her own chair.  Squinting her brown eyes, she peered through the binoculars, her lips in constant motion. When children were in the water, she obsessively counted their tiny heads under her breath. If one of those bobbing heads stayed under for more than half a second, she would suck in her breath and hold it until they came up again.

He leaned back in his chair as she let out a breath she was holding as one kid came up coughing and screaming for their mom. The mother promptly reacted to the brat's overdramatic wails.

"Hey. It's okay. The kid just got scared," he assured Callie when she still seemed stiff.

"Oh, I know. I enjoy the sound of children screaming."

He gave her a wide-eyed look.

She laughed realizing how that sounded. Her hands moved around with her words, an adorable habit when she gets flustered. "Not like that! It's just if they're screaming or crying, I'm relieved. When they're too quiet, it worries me."

He nodded. "We don't have to worry about our young drowning."

"That's so wonderful," she said in a sad, wistful tone.

"You've seen someone drown." It wasn't a question. It was an invitation to tell him about it.

She closed her eyes for just a second before opening them again. "Yes. A five year old drowned last year when I had just started. I was there alone. I wasn't supposed to be, but my partner called in that day. It was so horrible. The boy was so pale, but his lips and eyelids were blue. He was so tiny... When I close my eyes, I can still hear his parents crying and yelling over my shoulder. I know I did everything I was supposed to, but I can't help thinking maybe the outcome would've been different if only I had done something different or reacted faster..."

"So that's why you count... Did the child die?"

Her hands tightened on the binoculars. The sea prince had a sudden urge to hug her. The thought left him a bit stunned. He had never hugged anyone in his life, not even his own parents.

"No, he didn't," she finally said. "But he isn't running around a beach or splashing in the waves. He is laying in his bed with a machine breathing for him."

Unable to stop himself, he reached out  and touched her hand. Her head whipped around. Both of them knew how much he hated unneccessary touching, when the truth was the gesture was only a fraction of how he wanted to comfort her. He had only allowed one person to touch him freely before, but it was just in a moment of pure physical gratification. Unaware of his turbulent thoughts, Callie smiled gratefully at his attempt at comforting.

"Thank you. I've been told a thousand times by everyone that it wasn't my fault. I was about to quit after that, but my dad helped me through it." She looked back to the ocean with that tedious habit of hers. Triton understood the weight she felt, the lead that made the heart feel like an anchor in the chest. He knew that despite his faster reflexes and strength, she'd beat him down the ladder if a child didn't resurface. His own piece of lead in his heart threatened to tear through to his stomach.

Screw the law, he thought. He will make sure none of these human brats drown.

Shoving down his own heavy feelings, he plastered a smile on his face. "It's good you didn't let that put you down. You're a good lifeguard, I think. Who knows? You could be the next Karen."

"Oh, do not curse me like that!" She laughed.

"You don't wish to be the boss someday?"

"Nothing wrong with it. I just don't plan to be a lifeguard for the rest of my life. It's my job, not my career. That's why I am in school, remember?"

"Right... so what do you want to be? I admit the thought of choosing what you get to be is something I can envy about humans. I never had that option."

"Oh, come on! You were born to rule your own kingdom. Are you saying you don't want that?"

"Of course I want to rule. What kind of fool does not want to be a king? I just said that to make you feel better. So tell me what will be your career."

"I go to a school known for marine science. What do you think?"

"So you will be like your father."

"Yes."

"Is that what you want?"

She seemed surprised at the question. "What?"

"You asked me so I get to ask you. Is pursuing a marine science degree not something you want for yourself?"

"I... don't know. What else is there?"

"You get excited taking pictures."

"I do. I love photography, but Dad said that is not a stable career."

🐡🐡🐡

When they returned home that day, she stretched and said, "I'll be leaving tomorrow around two o'clock to pick up my dad from the airport. An hour drive back should give me plenty of time to talk to him about you."

"Good plan," he commented coming out of the bathroom drying his hair with a towel. Callie spoke so much about her father that Triton actually felt kind of excited to meet such an extraordinary human. She held this man in such high esteem that she won't pursue something that would make her happy because of what he said. "What will you tell him?"

"I don't know yet. I have an hour drive to the airport to figure that out."

"Hmmm, what should we watch tonight? Since you say there are no more marvel movies to binge," he said pouting as he flipped through her TV apps. He really liked the marvel movies. They've been binging them every night for a while now. He especially liked spiderman, though he was partial to the newest ones.

"We could try DC movies now?"

"Nope, I already trolled online on one of those forums, told a DC fan to suck it. He thinks DC is better than Marvel. What a human."

"Okay, one, stop stealing my laptop and two, you've never even seen the DC movies," she pointed out. "How would—"

"I am a Marvel fan now, Callie. Can't cross that line."

CALLIE giggled. "Okay. Let's take a break from superheroes," she said, swearing to herself to trick him into watching Aquaman by skipping through the opening credits one day. "It's time to introduce you to the rest of the wonderful world of Disney."

"Disney is where Marvel is from?"

"Disney bought out Marvel, I think. I want to get you into Star Wars next, but first I want you to watch one classic disney movie. The Little Mermaid."

"Okay, I'll pop the popcorn... wait..."

He gave a sheepish grin and she closed her eyes sending a silent prayer to her precious microwave. "That's okay. My dad likes to pop his corn over the stovetop in his 'special' pot. I'll go borrow it."

They began watching The Little Mermaid, both of them sitting up on his bed eating popcorn. She kept looking over at him watching for his reactions. She liked that he didn't complain about watching a cartoon. Like a child, he got tense during the shark scene. When the seagull explained human stuff wrong, he chuckled. When Ariel claimed that she is sixteen years old and not a child, he scoffed.

Callie wondered if he could see the parallels between Ariel's story and what Delphi was going through.

"What did you think?" She asked as the ending credits rolled after the mermaid married her prince in the end.

"I think this movie is a prime example of humans placing emphasis on love at the expense of all else."

"How cynical. Everyone is happy in the end!"

"Because it is a children's movie, Callie."

She bit her lip. "That doesn't mean love is just a fairytale."

"Callie, you know we disagree about this. Why did you show me that movie? Did you really think an animation would change my mind?"

"No... I guess not. Just thought you would understand how Delphi feels."

"I am looking out for Delphi better than she is. Do you know why I can't return without her?"

"Because then you would lose your bet and your bride and your pride."

He shook his head. "I'm not that petty. Defying the gods' will results in immediate banishment. In Delphi's case, the gods may even curse her for her defiance."

She scoffed. "How can you be so certain what your gods' will is?"

"Trust me. We know. If Delphi does not accept her crown, she will never see her home again and all because of one human boy. The ridiculous notion of love isn't worth losing all that. I am trying to get her to come back home before it becomes public knowledge what she has done, because I do care for her."

"Wow... I'm sorry, Triton. I didn't know."

"I don't expect you to understand everything, Callie. Which movie next?"

Even though she now knew the stakes, she still felt like it was Delphi's choice. Delphi knew the consequences of running away. But she is young. What if the human boy doesn't reciprocate her feelings? What if he does, but she comes to regret her decision years later?

The two fell asleep on his bed. They had begun watching Star Wars starting with the one the came out first featuring Harrison Ford as the rugged Solo. She was afraid if they went in chronological order, Triton wouldn't like the Phantom Menace and give up on the whole franchise. After watching the fourth and fifth installment in the epic series, he wanted to keep going. They were both out when her dad came trudging down the steps early the next morning with a bag of donuts in hand.

"Surprise! I'm home and I got donuts—!" He stopped short when he saw his daughter scrambling out of the pull-out bed with a very attractive young man. Dr. Moretti stuttered adjusting his glasses. "Oh, I-I am sorry. Cal, I'll be upstairs if you need me. Do you two want any... yeah, I'll just be upstairs."

Awkward.

Callie: *hiding in shame*

Triton: Cal, where do the fish go after work?

..

The sand bar. Get it, Callie? The bar but it's the sand bar. Ha. It's just a joke. Fish don't work.