I first met him on a day when he was dressed in a sleek black suit, standing tall and elegant, with broad shoulders and a commanding presence.
Conrad gazed at me with an intense, far-off look in his eyes.
His words were steeped in deep sorrow. "You resemble someone I once knew, but she is no longer here."
I stayed by his side through those darkest days, watching him slowly emerge from the shadows of his heartache.
Eventually, Conrad stopped the search altogether.
On countless nights, he held me close, his voice tender as he repeated his love for me again and again.
Slowly, he began to move on from the girl he had once cherished and our new relationship took root.
Yet, when she reappeared, the heart that had lain dormant for years flared back to life with a fierce intensity.
If it could be so easily replaced, it was never truly the ideal muse.
My mermaid mother had always warned me: loving a human was a path paved with definite heartbreak.
I stubbornly refused to believe the warnings and had to crash into the wall before I would turn back.
I moved to a small coastal town, trading mermaid tears for a large supply of medicine.