The next morning, Tommy walked out onto the pool deck in his trunks, planning to go for a swim.
"You must be Tommy," said an unfamiliar voice.
Tommy turned to see an young woman with long blonde hair stretched out on a lounge chair by the pool. She looked vaguely familiar. His jaw dropped when he saw her legs were a gray tail, like a dolphin.
"I'll take that as a yes," said Jessica.
The wide-eyed young man started at her in disbelief. Jessica sized him up. He looked alright - not hot nor hideous.
"A pleasure to meet you. I'm Jessica. I'm staying in the guest room for awhile."
Tommy finally regained his composure. "That's a costume, right?"
Jessica responded by curling her tail in a way that clearly showed it was not a costume. "I'm a mermaid for real."
"You look like you're ready for a swim," she said. "Mind if I join you?"
"Uh, yeah, sure."
Jessica slid from the chair into the pool in what by then was a well-practiced motion. Tommy, slowly made his way to the pool steps and waded in. After swimming laps for awhile, Tommy climbed out of the water and sat on the edge of the pool, his feet still dangling in the water. Jessica pulled herself out and sat next to him. She tried to strike up a conversation, but Tommy offered mostly monosyllabic answers. Frustrated, though not entirely surprised, Jessica finally announced she was going to swim more and dove back in the water. She playfully splashed Tommy with her tail, which seemed to at least elicit a slight smile. He watched her swim for a few minutes then slowly got up to leave.
"Nice meeting you," said Jessica. "I hope you'll swim with me again tomorrow."
Tommy walked away without saying anything, but Jessica noticed a bulge in his wet trunks.