“I love you, but that’s a totally bogus argument.”Marcos countered.“Who cares if she’s your mom?If someone else treated you like that, you wouldn’t stick around, right?”
“Right,” Adrien agreed softly.
They lapsed into a contemplative silence before Marcos broke the tension: “Dude, sorry to change the subject, but if I don’t get out of the water, I’m gonna get hypothermia.”
Adrien glanced up to find his boyfriend shivering in the water, looking at him apologetically with his arms folded over his chest.Adrien chuckled despite himself.
“Fair enough, sorry about that,” he said, forcing himself to change back.“I stop noticing those things when I’m transformed.”
He eased himself out of the surf, struggling with his clothes for a moment while Marcos did the same.With a frown, he realized that he’d ripped through his underwear when he’d transformed—Marcos was politely averting his gaze, but Adrien still caught him catching glimpses every now and then, a mischievous sparkle in his eye.
“Don’t think I don’t see that, Marcos Flores,” he accused, doing his best to scrape water off his exposed skin.Now that he was back in his human form, the chill of the night air was beginning to set in, gooseflesh prickling his arms.
“See what?”Marcos grinned, now unabashedly staring behind Adrien.The merman responded by swatting his arm.
“Save that for the bedroom.”He smirked.Marcos cackled.
Once they were dressed and tucked warmly in Marcos’ car, their conversation continued.
“I still can’t believe you’re a mermaid,” Marcos repeated, looking moonstruck as he pulled out onto Marina Boulevard.“That issoimpossibly boss.
“Also, back to what I was saying earlier: forget your mom.And forget her weird blackmail-bodyguard-guy, too!Come to Austin with me andI’llkeep you safe from whatever weird-ass freaks are trying to make you into ceviche.Wait… sorry, is that too insensitive, or…?”
Adrien laughed.“No, you’re fine.And thank you, Marcos.I really mean it.But…”
He leaned back into his seat, watching the beach houses roll by.In the middle of the night, their windows were dark, reflecting only the headlights of the Escort as they passed.
“What about Jessica and David?”he asked.“The second I leave, I know my mom’s gonna start pulling that crap on them.She’s already been taking Jess’ babysitting money.”
“She’s been taking her—?!”Marcos balked.“Dude, she’s liketwelve.That’s criminal.”
“I know,” Adrien groaned, pressing his palms into his eye sockets.“I try to reimburse her with what I can.But… but I worry what will happen to them if I leave.Jess can’t support the family just from watching the neighbor kids after school, and God knows David struggles as it is.What if they end up homeless?”
Marcos shook his head.“My parents would never let that happen, you know that.”
Adrien grimaced, guilt eating at the pit of his stomach.“I know, but they already do so much for us as is.I mean they bought me amotorcycle,for Christ’s sake!I couldn’t ask them to take Jess and David in.”
“Well, why not?”Marcos frowned.“My folks love those kids to bits and they’redefinitelynot hurtin’ for cash.If we ask them to, I bet they’d be more than happy to take them in if you come to Texas with me.That way you won’t have to worry about—”
“No.”Adrien continued to shake his head.“I couldn’t ask that of them, Marcos.It’s too much.”
“Okay, I’ll drop the subject,” Marcos said in a soft tone.He reached across the center console, laying a comforting hand on Adrien’s knee.“But you and your family aren’t burdens.I want you to remember that, okay?”
“Okay.”Adrien allowed a small smile to curl at the edges of his mouth.“Thank you, Marcos.”
Marcos smiled back before returning his attention to the road.He was about halfway to his house in the Sunset when he dropped his head to the steering wheel at a stoplight.
“Babe?”Marin asked, staring at him in shock.“Are you okay?”
He noticed that Marcos was grinning down at his shoes, looking a little manic.
“Amermaid,” he whispered, enchanted.“I can’t believe I’m dating amermaid!”
32
Marcos was easy to fall in love with and devastating to be separated from when he inevitably moved to Texas for college.
He continued to encourage Adrien to come live with him in Texas in every letter and phone call.According to Marcos, Adrien deserved the world.He could have anything he wanted, and Marcos wanted to help give it to him.He told Adrien that he wasn’t beholden to his business scholarship to SFSU, like his mom believed he was.
