'Round Midnight

Eric didn't really believe her when she said he was special. Eric was special, he knew that, but he wasn't special to her. Still, he smiled and kissed her back one more time. "I'm glad I'm special to you."

Not that she was special to him, though Nerina was also a special person. Eric just couldn't put that much stock into those sorts of feelings, and ultimately he avoided mentioning it altogether. He wouldn't lie, but he would never admit such a thing to anyone as far as he knew.

Eric seemed amused with Nerina's reaction to seafood. She seemed... worried though. Maybe she was picky about what kind of seafood, and didn't want to risk one with Eric? "How about a nice grilled chicken salad, then?" Living on his own, mostly his own, he had to learn quickly how to cook and prepare food that wasn't straight out of an instant noodle package. Unlike Félix, he needed to take care of his body.

Eric led Nerina back to his dorm. Inside, there were still a few unpacked boxes left in both the living room and in one of the recently occupied bedrooms. Another bedroom door was closed, presumably to Eric's roommate.

"Let me just prepare the chicken," Eric turned on the stove top and fetched a pan and a few pieces of stored meat from the freezer. He needed to thaw it a bit first, so while he threw it in his microwave he asked Nerina to help with the salad. Eric pulled out some of the ingredients, letting her tear up the lettuce and manage the tossing and dressing.

Once they were finished, Eric cut up the chicken and tossed the salad one more time. He had a little more than for two, but he'd eat the rest for dinner anyway. And if Nerina was happy to stay, he'd save some for her. The rest, Eric placed on two plates and brought them into the living room on his table.

"Let's eat," Eric didn't make a prayer or anything else. Just as quickly as Nerina dove into the food, so did Eric. It was lunch time now, and Eric was very hungry.

Once they finished and the album itself was done, Eric looked around the place to find something else they could do. Granted, he'd have loved nothing more than to have her in his arms the rest of the day. But it was awfully early to be frolicking in such a manner.

"How about a movie?" Eric asked. Eric didn't really have any hard copies of movies, but he could browse on his TV for something. He turned the large TV on and started flicking through a few of their movie provider's menus... anything to catch Nerina's eye.

"The Deep Blue?" Eric had never even heard of the movie. He looked over the synopsis briefly, and even then he still wasn't convinced it would be terribly interesting. You can't have gunfights and explosions underwater. At least, not often.

Still, to satisfy Nerina's request he selected the movie and let it load. Eric focused on the movie for the first little while, but when it became clear this was going to be something of a foreign drama he quickly lost interest.

He wondered how Nerina was faring. She was watching it still, but that didn't say much if Nerina had in fact tuned the movie and its endless supply of water out. Eric's hand tested their own waters, wrapping around Nerina's waist and pulling her closer towards him.

Once he though it safe, Eric's lips touched her jawline and started to make their way to her lips again. This would be a better time-waster anyway.

Eric figured Nerina just needed to ease into it. She probably wanted to watch the movie a little more than he did, but really, it was way too boring for him. Eric remained tentative at first. Had Nerina put up a better fight than a weak fist, he'd have pulled away very quickly. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, Eric barely felt her protest.

Eric didn't get bored of her so easily, but he did give her some space to watch the movie once in a while. Plus, even Eric had to catch his breath once in a while. He shifted his weight around, trying to make both of them as comfortable as possible.

"I'm not surprised. You seem to love water, yourself." Eric smiled, his thumb gently stroking her cheek.

"May I return them in the morning?" Eric smiled, all too willing to please her whenever she asked for something. He was about to lean in again when he noticed Nerina struggling to breathe. "Are you alright?" Eric shifted more of his weight off of her. It was awkward on such a narrow couch, but Eric was strong and athletic enough to keep himself in delicately sideways. His hand ran down her side until it reached her leg. Something was... different.

"You're not in a hurry to go, are you?" Eric still flirted with his words, but there was a more pressing sincerity to it. He couldn't tell if she was hot and flustered with him, or in pain.

Eric retracted his hand immediately as Nerina screamed. What the heck happened? The feel was different than he expected... it wasn't a human leg. But Eric didn't think of it for now, he was focused on trying to figure out what was wrong with Nerina.

“Okay, I'll take you home. Bear with me,” Eric moved away from the couch, but Nerine still couldn't stand up. She gripped onto Eric, and Eric did his best to raise her off of the floor. But he couldn't touch her legs... what was left of them... without hurting her. It was awkward, and Eric knew he couldn't lift her for long enough.

“What's going on?” He asked, but Nerina just said for him not to see her. “You're going to be okay, don't worry.” He looked down at her legs. They had scales now, and instead of two limbs there was one. It was growing longer as well. Nerina was also growing heavier. Eric hated to admit it, but he wasn't able to carry her far. Certainly not to his car.

“I-I'm sorry, I'm not strong enough. Can I take you somewhere else? Please,” Eric's arms wobbled. He bent his knees further and tried to place Nerina over his center of gravity. It helped, but it was far too awkward for him to walk any distance.