Mari en el Mar: Part 1
Thiago crosses paths with a mermaid and learns her history.
The sun pressed a little too firmly over Thiago’s shoulders. He sighed towards the sky and glanced at the empty crate behind him. He had been at sea for over an hour and not a single fish teased his bait. There was still enough rice and beans at home for him and his grandmother, but he was eager for something different on his plate.
As the minutes passed, the gentle pause the waves seemed to get shorter and shorter. He let his mind wander on his parents - far away in Venezuela for the next month. Then he thought of his friends, his classmates, and for a moment he thought of Maite.1
A low hum interrupted his thoughts. Assuming that the motor was acting up, he slid towards the back of his boar. But upon a closer listen the humming sounded…feminine.
Thiago looked towards the distant shore, then out to the open sea. The humming picked up a seducing melody, putting him in a lull. He was lost in so deep a trance that he did not notice the clouds darkening above, and the waters stirring up a force. He broke out of his stupor when a wave finally threatened to flip him over. He held onto his rickety boat for life, his terror keeping him from strategizing.
A pair webbed hands gripped onto his boat, its long nails leaving a light imprint on his vessel. A young woman with glowing orange eyes emerged from the water, ready to charge at her victim. But when the two were face to face, she stopped herself. The storms fell to a rumble, and her eyes changed to a natural dark brown color. She sized up Thiago.
“You are a boy.” Her voice echoed.
“I just turned fourteen, actually.” He replied with a grin desperate to hide his alarm.
She let go of the boat, contemplating her next move. Meanwhile, Thiago took the opportunity to take in this vision. Though her long dark hair floated above water, he could see short fins peering out from where her ears should be. She was a shade or two lighter than himself - his grandmother often compared their complexion to cinnamon - with bright pink scales freckling her face.
Before he could confirm his guess, she swam away with a flick of her matching fish tail. The sky returned to his bright blue hue, and the waves fell back to its steady laps. He fumbled towards his motor and quickly revved it up to rush back to shore.
Thiago hoped to find the mermaid the next day, but instead he caught enough fish for him and his grandmother for dinner. A week passed before we was back on his boat, once again struggling to catch dinner. He wondered if the mermaid had moved on from this location, and imagined several different origin stories for her existence. With a combination of boredom and teenage recklessness, he dove into the sea to find her.
He swam several feet away from his boat, disappointed to be met with an empty body of water. But his feeling disappeared when a distant barracuda cut toward his direction. He flailed back towards his boat, and just as caught sight of it he felt an assist loading back into his humble safe zone. Thiago tried to look past to surface to see if the barracuda was still behind him. While he couldn’t spot a fish, he did catch an exchange of hissing sounds before it fell quiet.
The mermaid shot above the surface and leaned over the boat. Though her eyes were dark brown, the spirit was just as lively as when they were orange.
“Coño carajo, are you TRYING to drown yourself?” She punctuated with a sharp hiss.
“I was looking for you!” Thiago planted his feet and puffed out his chest.
The mermaid rolled her head back and groaned in annoyance. Her pitch was deep enough to ripple the waters. Thiago imagined that this was what it must be like to have an older sister.
“I swear, todos los hombres son bobas.”2
She pushed his boat away in frustration, giving him a chance to really survey her. She seemed no older than twenty. Though her dark hair was slicked back from the saltwater, orange sea shells covered her chest. Large patches of pink scales covered her arms and entire torso.
“My name is Thiago. What’s yours?” He asked.
She stared pensively before answering.
“My name is Marimar.”
“How long have you been out here?”
She shook her head.
“I was not born a mermaid. I am also from El Tívoli, and I was betrothed to a man named Sergio. But his stepmother was jealous of me, so she cursed me to become a mermaid in order to separate us.”
She sucked her teeth and looked away.
“And in the end, he completely forgot about me. I never saw him again after I was exiled to the sea.”
While Thiago felt pity for her, the idea of magical curses piqued his interest. Then he recalled stories from the older fisherman of dangerous encounters with a siren. One particular encounter was fatal.
“Are you the one that’s been attacking the fisherman?” Thiago asked.
She nodded.
“Whenever I cross paths with a man, this raging feeling of revenge invades my thoughts. I can create storms and command sea creatures to attack my victims. It’s always men, of course. That’s why you escaped my wrath.”
This was the only instance Thiago was grateful to be called a child.
“This is the third time you’ve come out to sea alone. Does your mother know you’re out here?” Marimar asked.
Thiago glanced away.
“My parents are on a medical trip in Venezuela for a month. It’s just me and my grandmother. I just want to help out around the house.”
A calm silence fell over them, though it caused him to shift in his stance. He sat down and thought of Marimar’s story. He understood puppy love, and once again he thought of Maite. Though he imagined a life in the ocean was fantastical, he thought that it was weird that an old hag was jealous of a couple way too young for her to bother with.
“What if Sergio just doesn’t know what happened to you? Let me find him and bring him out here to see you.”
Marimar wrinkled her nose.
“Absolutely not. If he truly loved me, he would have swam across this sea to look for me.”
“Sure, but what if the witch lied to him, and told him that you ran away or something? If he saw you face to face, then he’ll know the truth.”
“And then what? There’s nothing you or Sergio can do to break the curse.”
“Maybe. But aren’t you at least curious to know how he’s doing?”
Thiago glanced at his lap.
“I think about my parents every time they leave for a medical trip. I know they make more money that way, but it sucks that they travel all the time.”
Marimar read his mood change, striking pity in her heart. She blew bubbles on the surface in contemplation.
“All right. His full name is Sergio Alvarez, and he is also from El Tívoli. We’ll meet at the shoreline in three days. That should be enough time to find him, but if you can’t then come meet me anyway. Even if he left town, that’s still an answer.”
“Promise.”
Thiago extended his hand out. Marimar reached for the edge of the boat and shook it. During the exchange, the tips of his fingers brushed a patch of cold, slimy scales. He did his best to hide his dislike, but the thinning of his lips revealed him. Karina laughed, displaying her perfectly human teeth.
El Tívoli was a relatively small town, and like every other town in Cuba everyone knew everyone’s business. The best place to start his search was with his grandmother.
The two took a walk to the plaza and sat on a concrete bench under a blooming Framboyán tree. Across the plaza were a few men playing dominos, one of them studying his next move over a cigar. Thiago listened to his grandmother release a content sigh, and decided to pry.
“Abuela, do you know a Sergio Alvarez? I overheard a girl at the beach talk about this guy that she was dating, and-”
Abuela laughed.
“Pero chico, are you a chismoso, now? My goodness, we need to find you something else to do. Perhaps I should let you join the boxing club.”
They both laughed, though he was unsure if she was joking about him joining the boxing club.
“Well, do you know a Sergio Alvarez?”
“As a matter of fact, he is the son of one of the cafetera ladies. He works at the Cervezeria. I also know that he loves to fill his time with dates. Who was this girl who spoke about him?
“I heard her name was Marimar.”
“Marimar? What a strange name…”
Thiago scrambled to make up a story.
“I think she is cousins with Maite.”
His stomach dropped to the ground, praying to God that his lie would not find her. Now invested, his grandmother raised her eyebrows.
“Ah, so she’s related to your Maite?”
Heat built up from his neck up to his cheeks.
“Abuela, she’s not MY Maite…”
She reviewed what she knew about her family, ignoring her grandson’s flustering.
“I know that she has relatives in Holguín. That must be where this Marimar is visiting from. It seems that she had the pleasure of meeting our Sergio?”
“That’s one way to put it…”
Abuela nodded in agreement, leading Thiago to make assumptions about his reputation.
“Well, for her sake I pray that she does not fall for his charm. That boy works hard, but he’s quite careless with a woman’s heart.”
-
Later that evening, Thiago offered to deliver mangos to his grandmother’s friend four blocks over. On the way there was the Cervezeria, where he hoped to find Sergio. The two-story brewery was bubbling with conversation, with a live band warming up at the center of the first level. The lights gradually shifted between a soft yellow light, followed by pink, blue, and green. He hung around outside, expecting to speak to a hostess.
Instead, a tall, stocky, bald-headed man appeared. He reminded the boy of The Thing, only with better skincare. The man already spotted him, so he had no other choice but to depend on his help. Thiago held his head high and made eye contact with the bouncer. He did his best to convince himself that he would be all right.
“Excuse me, sir. I’m looking for a Sergio Alvarez. I have a message for him.”
The bouncer nodded.
“Wait here. I’ll get him for you.”
Thiago had no desire to move an inch from the precise spot he was told to stay in. Two minutes later, He returned with a young bartender.
Sergio Alvarez was in his early to mid twenties, made especially apparent by his short, curly black hair styled with a low taper fade. His right eyebrow was clipped, and he sported a five o clock shadow. Older generations would describe him as “mulatto,” yet he was lighter in complexion than Marimar. His muscles were beginning to be defined, and he carried himself with the deliberate intention of appearing as responsible. When he noticed Thiago, he smiled with a crooked grin.
“Que bola, asere?3 Nacho says that you have something to tell me.”
Thiago chewed the insides of his cheeks after hearing the bouncer’s name.
“Yep, I do. Do you know a Marimar? She says you two dated in the past. Long, dark hair…super tan…”
Sergio looked at the street ahead of them, trying to match the description in his mind. The buzz of disparate conversations seemed to jog his memory.
“Yeah, sure, but we dated a while ago.”
Sergio glanced at the plastic bag he was carrying and sighed.
“Don’t tell me she has some sort of “gift” for me. The last time this happened, I got a voodoo doll of me with pins all over it. That one was a freak.” He reflected with a slight shudder.
Thiago wasn’t so sure of dating anymore.
“No…she just wants to meet you on the beach in two days. Let’s say four in the afternoon.”
Sergio paused before confirming.
“Yeah, I don’t have to work until that evening. You gonna be there too?”
“That’s the plan.”
Sergio gave a cocky smile.
“Cool. I’ll see you then, man.”
With a brief handshake, Sergio returned to the changing lights and opening song from the band. Nacho stepped in and with only a stern expression, he insisted that Thiago move along.
Mai-teh
“Every man is an idiot.”
“What’s up, bro?”
What a fun story! I don't trust Sergio's intentions, though.
Here I'm wondering now if Sergio's stepmother is really the bad guy, lol. Excited to see where this goes! Thiago's so cute.