Jake began to tread water with his new tail, beaming that he got such a cool looking body that any guy would fight for.
He swam along the beachside, humming a tune from The Little Mermaid, when he saw something that made his heart drop.
Nicole was walking along the beach with another guy by her side, seemingly lost in a conversation with him. It was Kyle.
"Nicole?!" Jake shouted.
Nicole froze in panic. "J-Jake?!"
Jake looked at his girlfriend with shock. "Nicole… How could you do this to me?"
"It's not what it looks like, man! I was just walking around with her." Kyle said.
"Shut it, you!" Jake growled.
"Jake, please! I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you!" Nicole sniffed.
"Why were you going out with him?" Jake questioned, deep within his heart he already knew the answer.
Nicole sighed. "I guess I… kinda like him more as a football player. He's so strong and made so much progress in our league while… you kinda stayed the same. I'm sorry, I just don't know how else to put it."
Jake slumped his shoulders and sighed as well. "At least you were honest. Kyle, you can have my crown, I won't be playing football anymore."
Kyle smirked as Nicole gasped. "You're quitting?! Jake, why?" The cheerleader exclaimed.
“Well… I signed a contract with a sea witch.” Jake explained, lifting his red tail out of the water behind him. Needless to say, the sight of it only added to Nicole's ’s surprise. “I suppose the main thing you should know is that I became a merman.”
“A m-m-merman?!” Nicole gasped. “When?! How?"
“It’s a long story.” He told her, coming up closer and resting his upper body on the rocks as he looked at the two.
Kyle's grin began to fade as he realized that Jake's tail was curving in a way that was impossible for human legs to bend without breaking any bones.
Jake explained everything to them. About how Alora came up and offered him a deal. About how he took that deal to become a merman. About what was waiting for him if Nicole or another mermaid didn’t kiss him within the next three days.
Nicole stared at him in disbelief. "Jake, how could you this to yourself?"
Jake shrugged. "I wanted to keep you as my girlfriend. I know the football crown wasn't going to be in my head forever, yet I still wanted to get you away from Kyle's clutches. I loved you, Nicole. I was willing to give up my legs and football career keep you."
The merman looked at Kyle by Nicole's side and sighed again. "I guess I failed at keeping you, then. I'll be leaving."
Jake let his body fall back into the water and was about to leave when he felt a pair of hands pulling his tail back to the beach. He turned to see Nicole embracing him, tearing streaming from her eyes.
"Jake, I'm so sorry!" She sobbed. "I didn't mean to hurt you. Oh God, I feel so stupid for dumping you. Please, I don't want you to be trapped by a witch because of this. Will you ever forgive me?" She said, crying on his shoulder.
Jake looked at Kyle, the football player's once smug looked now one of surprise at Nicole leaving his side.
Jake patted Nicole's back. "How will I know you won't do this again?"
Nicole composed herself as she faced her boyfriend again. "If you're going to step away from being a quarterback, I'll step away from cheerleading."
"Nicole, what are you doing?" Kyle asked, worried.
Nicole turned towards the new quarterback king and scowled. "I'm about to experience something you can never give to me or the other girls you will leave me for. I may love sports but there's one thing I've always wanted to become that means dead to me than cheerleading!" She turned back to Jake, grabbed his body, and gave him a kiss.
As their lips touched, a golden cloud of smoke and sparkles began to surrounded Nicole's legs. She felt them twist and turn, fusing together. Before long she could no longer stand up and fell, landing on Jake's arms. When she looked at the lower half of her body, she gasped. Where there had once been legs, there was now a beautiful ruby pink fish tail.
Her clothes vanished along with the smoke, leaving only a strapless seashell bra.
"My God…" The former cheerleader gasped as she felt her scales. She giggled as she felt her tailfins and her long flowing blonde hair.
"This is amazing! I'm a mermaid!" Nicole cried in joy. She grabbed Jake and showered him with kisses. "Oh, thank you! Thank you! Is there anything I can do to repay you and forgive my mistake?"
Jake smiled. "Well, I don't have a diamond ring to accompany me but… Will you marry me?"
Nicole gasped as she put her hands over her heart. "Oh, Jake." She sniffed. "I know you may not have a ring, or even knees to do a proposal but you brought me something that's so much more than a diamond. You gave me a dream that became true." The new mermaid said as her eyes sparkled. "Jake, I'll marry you."
Jake grabbed his fishy bride and the two officially kissed as husband and wife, their tails entwining as their arms embraced one another.
After what felt like an eternity, Jake released his embrace and stroked the cheek of the love of his life. "So… What do you say we go into the water and try out our new bodies?"
Nicole looked down at her stomach to see gills the side of her belly, they opened and closed as they desired to be under seawater. She also noticed that her new pelvic fins flapped in anticipation for what was to happen next.
With a smile, Nicole nodded. "Yeah, let's go to our new home."
Holding hands, the newly made mercouple jumped from the sand to the sea. Officially leaving their human lives behind for a life beneath the waves.
Kyle could only watch in stunned silence as the girl who was supposed to be his girlfriend was now swimming with the fishes, more willing to give up her legs than to ever spend another moment with him