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Jian Lan knew better than to follow the alluring melody that graced her ears that night. Legends warned her from a young age about the creatures that lurked in the murky ocean depths, luring sailors to their certain demise. Denizens of the quaint coastal town she called her home all had a respectful fear of the ocean.
At first, all she could hear was a gentle hum, but as the wind picked up, so did the song. It was a woman's voice, bold enough to challenge the weather, demanding to be heard.
Never before had Jian Lan heard a siren’s song, but she couldn’t help but feel something was…off. The tone of the woman’s voice was just as she would expect; it was elegant and sultry, ebbing and flowing like the tide that caressed the rocks, but the lyrics themselves were heart wrenchingly somber. The poor creature's delicate melody dipped into shrill cries and wails as if she were crying rather than performing.
With one hand on her eight-month pregnant belly, Jian Lan inched down the stone path leading towards the cove, completely entranced. This music felt all too familiar. Her sharp mind knew it wasn’t trustworthy, but her heart told her that song was meant for her ears.
Under the pale glow of the moon, she finally discovered the source.
Perched upon a jagged rock berated by waves was perhaps the most ethereal creature Jian Lan had ever seen. Topless and clearly voluptuous, the skin of her upper body was so smooth that it glistened white in the moonlight. Silky dark hair cascaded down her shoulders, clinging to her body before splaying out across the rock like the stringy legs of a spider. Following the curve of her body, Jian Lan stood in awe at the shimmery scarlet scales that lined her tail and the delicate fins protruding from it.
Such a beautiful figure, yet her song was laced with anger and misery. The mermaid belted out a ballad about love and anguish that tugged at Jian Lan’s every heartstring
Her lyrics told the tale of a woman who once fell deeply in love with a man. Handsome and charming, he made the woman’s heart flutter every time she saw him. He held her passionately under the night sky and whispered sweet nothings into her ear. He would cross thousands of miles just to see her, and their time spent apart was tormenting.
Until it all came crashing down to an abrupt end.
The mermaid’s lament turned dark. The woman was abandoned despite sacrificing everything to be with this man. She reached out to him only to be pushed further away, all while her fragile heart shattered like glass.
Left confused and broken with no one to turn to, the woman drowned in an ocean of despair where the man could no longer hear her screams.
Jian Lan glanced down at her belly and found herself stirred by the siren’s lyrics. She wondered; Is there truly a man worthy of women like us?
Another step forward and her sandals landed in the cool beach sand.
The song silenced and Jian Lan froze, locking eyes with the sea maiden who alerted to her presence.
Her features were even more stunning up close. Her face and neck were slender, and she had pointed phoenix eyes with long, delicate lashes. Her hair, though wet and presumably salty, seemed to flow across her body like fine silk.
That dark curtain of hair could not hide the poor state of her eyes, though. Before Jian Lan could get a better look at how red and puffy they were, the mermaid’s dagger-like claws dug into the stone, her tail flexing its barbed spines protectively.
Defensively.
Jian Lan dared another step, holding her hands out as if to hush a wild beast.
“I…like yer song,” Jian Lan said after a moment of silence, “If ya don’t mind, can I stay an’ listen?”
The siren’s lips parted, flashing her shark-like teeth, but her expression remained bewildered. Wiping her eyes clean of tears, she retorted, “I’m not hungry and I don’t hunt women."
"I would hope not, else I came all this way fer nothin'."
"I'm not singing for you!" the mermaid spat angrily, "Go home to your husband and leave me alone.”
Feeling the weight of the baby inside her, Jian Lan lowered slowly to the ground to catch her breath. “Ah, ain’t got one.”
“But you’re—”
“Knocked up, I know,” Jian Lan sighed, offering a faint, practiced smile to hide her pain.
The siren returned a sharp, judgemental look at first, but her brows softened. “I’m sorry.”
“Ain’t nothing’ to be sorry about, hun. I shouldn't have let him sweep me away. Sounds like you've had a similar experience."
"I…"
She turned her head down, letting the moonlight glitter across her wet skin. Jian Lan wondered how long she'd been crying. But she couldn't offer any pity towards the other woman without pitying herself first, so she refrained from asking.
"That's all men know how to do!" the siren hissed, breaking the silence. "How many times did I wait here for him on this very beach!? He told me he'd come back for me! How could a human understand what I've been through?"
Leaning against the mermaid's rock, Jian Lan replied, "I told ya I came down to listen, didn't I? I might just be a silly ol' human, but…"
Trailing off, Jian Lan's eyes fixed toward her growing son, "His father used to say the same thing. Trust me, I get it. At least a lil bit."
"All men do is lie."
"Yeah, nobody's perfect I suppose."
"Hmph!"
“You don't have to sing if you don't want to. Your man. What kind of good-for-nothing was he?” Jian Lan asked.
The creature’s tail swayed lightly as her human half curled inward. “He was a good man…handsome…he treated me well” she replied dryly.
Jian Lan chuckled lightly, “If that’s the case, why’re ya tearin’ your lungs out singing about him?”
“I’m fine.”
“No you ain’t, girl.”
“I am!”
“Ya can’t fool me.”
The mermaid shifted onto her stomach, propping her head up with her hands to loom over the pregnant mother. “How come?”
“Because I’ve been there too,” Jian Lan began, turning her gaze upwards to share a sympathetic look. “I tried to pretend I was fine for so long.”
Offering a growl in return, the siren’s face wrinkled. Scrapping her claws against the rock, she asked, “So how did you get past it?”
“A lot of what yer doin’. Crying. Ranting. Thinking. If ya want the truth, I don’t think I’ll ever be over him. Not with CuoCuo anyways,” Jian Lan replied, gazing down at her belly. “I saw a lot of myself in your song I suppose.”
Her nose upward, the mermaid scoffed, "We are not the same."
She's in denial, Jian Lan thought to herself. Of course, she remembered this stage too. It was a time when she convinced herself that her handsome archer, her gallant knight, would return to her side. And when he never did, it was even more painful to accept the truth, much less try to move on from it.
The siren continued with a hiss, choked out by emerging sobs, "He loved me! I left the water just to see him! Just for him!"
She what?
"Why didn't he come back? Was it me? Am I not pretty enough?"
Unafraid, Jian Lan reached out a hand to sooth her companion with a soft pat to her scaled tail. "Oh come on! Listen to yourself! Do ya really believe that?"
Between a curtain of inky hair, the mermaid nodded.
Oh gods. She's really been through it.
Shaking her head furiously, Jian Lan rose to her feet. "Are ya kiddin'? Siren or not, look at yerself! Yer body's banging!"
"Hah?"
"Have you seen how perfectly thin yer waist is? Or this gorgeous hair? These big ol honkers?" She crossed her arms. "You, miss, are stunning! Any man would be lucky to have you!"
The siren's eyes widened, looking like she was about to refute the compliments, but instead, her pale face reddened. "Y-you think so?"
"Heck yeah I do girl!"
That brought a smile to the mermaid's face, brightening her features. She really is gorgeous, Jian Lan thought.
A little dazed, she tucked the woman's hair behind her frilled ear.
"What are you doing?"
"Oh nothin'! Ya have such nice bone structure, why hide it behind all this hair?"
The mermaid rolled her eyes, "It'll just fall back down again."
Taking the ends of a strand of that hair between her fingertips, Jian Lan laughed. "Howsabout I braid it fer ya then?"
"Why are you…"
Without waiting for an answer, Jian Lan set to work gathering the siren's hair behind her head, humming to herself. "Cause! You look like you need some self care hon," she said with a wink.
Seemingly without the energy to deny her human companion, the sea maiden simply sighed. "Fine I guess. What does it matter if I look pretty? He's not coming back."
Sectioning the other woman's hair with her fingernail, Jian Lan shrugged, "Yeah, so what? Who says yer lookin' pretty for him?"
"..."
"Girlie I barely know you, but trust me, if he left you like that, you deserve someone better! An' he especially don't deserve you at your best after all he put you through!"
After a moment of silence that Jian Lan could only assume was for reflection, the siren laughed. "So what? I find someone else?"
"Sure, maybe somewhere down the line if ya want."
Glancing over her shoulder, the siren's eyes locked with Jian Lan's. "Is that what you did?"
Jian Lan's face made no expression, and her hands continued to weave the siren's soft hair. "Nah. I've had enough of men for a while," she chuckled, adding, "Men suck."
Returning a toothy grin, the siren echoed. "Men do suck!"
It was such a juvenile thing to say that someone of Jian Lan's age should be embarrassed. But she knew it was the simple things that could make the most impact; these childish statements could bring a moment of laughter during a time of despair. Though it had been almost eight months since she last saw Feng Xin and she swore she was over him, perhaps helping this woman was a guise for helping herself.
Oh Feng Xin. You're a good man, but you suck.
Somehow her hands reached the end of the siren's hair and had tied it off before she had time to realize it.
"Here we are!" Jian Lan beamed triumphantly at her work. "Come're look!"
Nudging the other woman by the small of her back to peer over the edge of the rock, the pair found their own faces reflected in a tidal pool.
Compared to the mermaid, Jian Lan found her own appearance mundane. Her face was rounder, lacking the sharp, fierce bone structure of the other. Smiling, Jian Lan watched as the siren's face lit up. Her perfect lips fell open in awe and her fins perked up cutely. She turned her body every which way to try and get the best angle.
She really is pretty.
Jian Lan could hear the other woman's excited voice, but it sounded distant and muffled.
Of course, Jian Lan knew she was an excellent hair stylist, so naturally the woman looked stunning.
Everything felt a little blurry as the mermaid grabbed the expecting mother's hands to shake them gratefully before pulling her into a hug.
Squeezed between the two pillows on the siren's chest and her shockingly strong arms, Jian Lan was near out of breath.
The mermaid's voice broke through Jian Lan's trance when she said, "And you know what? I don't need him!"
"H-Hell nah you don't!"
Her voice elevated, "I'm better off without him!"
"Of course you are!"
"I am my own woman!"
"Yes girl!"
"Next time I see him I'll curse him!"
"What?"
"I'll kill him! I'll tear him apart limb from limb! I'll—"
Jian Lan covered the mermaid's clawed hands with her own, bringing them back down to her sides. "Hah, easy there, maybe don't do that. Maybe put yer talons down?"
Coming down from her moment of fervor, the siren's sadistic smile faded. "Oh. My bad."
Jian Lan waved her hand dismissively. "No worries hon. Love the energy though. If ya ever need a gal pal to talk to so ya don't, ya know, go off murdering someone, I'm always around."
What am I sayin’? She's a siren who's got the whole ocean! Meetin' here was just by chance…
"I…I'd like that," the mermaid replied warmly. She gestured toward herself. "My name is Xuan Ji by the way. What's yours?"
"Jian Lan." Pointing down at her belly, she added, "An' this lil one's name is CuoCuo."
The mermaid leaned down close to Jian Lan's stomach and waved. "Hello CuoCuo. Tell your mommy I think she's beautiful and kind and brave."
"Aw shucks," Jian Lan blushed, unable to stop herself from smiling or her heart from beating.
As if she were embarassed by her own words, Xuan Ji scratched behind the back of her head and looked off into the distance where the sky had just started to show hints of the colors of sunrise.
"W-well a-anyways, I should probably go before dawn breaks. Fishermen and all."
Nodding, Jian Lan slid down from the rock, "Right, of course. Golly, time really flies. I didn't notice the sun was comin' up already! Can I listen to ya next time you come ashore?"
Blast it Jian Lan, what are ya bein' so weird for?
Heaving her body towards the crashing waves Xuan Ji chuckled, "I don't think I need to sing anymore. But I'll see you around Jian Lan."
And with that, her elegant figure dove into the water, spraying a salty mist into the air.
"Thank you."
Jian Lan, smiling, closed her eyes. One thought drifted through her mind:
Xuan Ji, I think yer song was for me.