Page 49 of Surface Pressure

“Can…” The word squeaked out, and Autumn swallowed before trying again. “Can you still hear my thoughts?”

“Oh, no.” Soulara relaxed into Autumn’s side. “I don’t like to use that magic. It’s too invasive and everyone deserves privacy. I removed myself from your mind once we were both satisfied.”

Autumn pressed her face into Soulara’s drying hair, kissing the top of her head before closing her eyes.

They fell back into silence. Autumn was used to silence. As her mind pondered the reality outside of orgasmic bliss with a mermaid, she knew their bubble would burst soon. It tore at her insides like a caged animal—or what she imagined a caged animal might feel like. She had seen old footage of animals, caged and not caged. But until she left her home planet, she had never seen any living creature other than humans.

Autumn looked up at the sky. It had darkened, but she noticed clouds that hung around in the distance, not dark enough to guarantee the idea germinating in her mind, but they were far from white.

“Does it rain here?” The thought filled her with hope.

“Reine? That’s my home. I don’t understand the question.” Soulara snuggled in closer, her breath brushing over Autumn’s nipples and distracting her thoughts momentarily.

“We call water that falls from the sky rain.”

“Oh.” Soulara shuffled away from Autumn now, sitting back and curling her tail next to her. “I’m not certain. I haven’t been on land when it’s done that. And my people don’t often come to the surface.”

Autumn’s hopes deflated before the idea had truly taken form in her mind. “It used to rain back home. There are stories of there being so much rain that it washed away houses. But I guess I was stupid to think the answer could be as simple as rain.”

“I think it’s interesting that you name the one thing that could save your people the same name as our home.” Soulara trailed her fingers in delicate circles over Autumn’s abdomen.

“Interesting?” Autumn shivered without Soulara’s body pressed against her own. She stood and with a heaviness to her limbs started dressing again.

“Maybe there is something to it?”

“Them both being named rain?”

“It seems far too connected to be dismissed.”

“You believe in fate?” Autumn hadn’t guessed that would be the case with Soulara. Then again, they hardly knew each other yet. If a human had said such a thing to her she would have mocked them. Heck, she had done that very thing in the past. Belief wasn’t something Autumn had any faith in.

But this was Soulara. She hadn’t been ravaged by her own people’s foolishness and greed. She hadn’t had her world destroyed, clinging to existence through more greed and barbaric actions taken by her people.

Autumn had never liked her people’s tactics, but she had understood them. Desperation. Survival. And she had justified their theft because she had read all the reports. All the reports that stated in black and white.

No Life.

But had they lied? Was this the first planet her people had come to that held life? And how many of them knew?

Tears burned at the back of her eyes.

“Of course I believe in fate. How else can you explain us meeting?” Soulara pushed up on her hip, still half-lying in the sand with her gorgeous long tail disappearing into the dark water. She must have noticed something wrong, because Soulara’s face morphed into concern.

“I’m sorry.” Autumn brushed tears from beneath her eyes. “I know I’m not supposed to cry.”

“Why?” Soulara cocked her head, curious. She was so much more alive than Autumn would ever be.

She hadn’t had to see everything she held dear die and crumble.

Not yet.

The idea of Soulara losing that spark crushed Autumn’s chest.

“I don’t know how to stop them, Soulara.” Now dressed, she sat on the beach, knees tucked to her chest.

It already felt so natural for her to sit and watch the water. Even as the movement was hard to see in the darkness. The sound of the water coming in and out, foaming as it stretched as far as it could on the sand before it rushed away, lulled Autumn.

“We’re stronger than your people imagine. The water is vast, and we have many tribes.”

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