text: “Isn’t this romantic?” Guiding her toward the loveseat, ornamented with rose petals just for this occasion, I gestured for her to sit down. Eyeing me, she waited for me to drop the courtliness. Sensing her annoyance already, I backed away in defeat, trudging to my side and collapsing onto it with a huff. She sneered bitterly and sat primly, as usual, always so proper and perfect as if nothing had changed. “Sooo romantic,” she rolled her eyes. Those black callous eyes, the eyes which had once been a beautiful sapphire. The eyes I had once yearned to drown in. Now I wish nothing more than to return to the past. “Auriel, my golden flower, I remember how blissful our life was before,” I paused, hoping to see a crack in her facade, “don’t you?” My hopes held no merit. She stayed silent, inexpressive. Detached. Cold-blooded. “Auriel, please. I know things just aren’t the same, but... can’t we just make the best of this?” Something stirred within her, the fervent flame that had once illuminated our nights with lively laughter but now ignited argumentation. “Make the best of this? *Make the best of this*?” she arose from her chair with surprising grace, as if she were floating despite the anger. “And just how do you expect us to make the best of this, Oro? We’re never alone anymore! We can’t do anything privately! We can’t do anything *normally* anymore!” “Auri, please just *try.* Do it for me. For us-” “*For us?* What is left of us? Everything has been ruined! Ever since...” Her tangent faltered as she finally held contact with me, which is difficult these days. We have been struggling to stay afloat. She could see the pain in my eyes, and I knew she was miserable too: that’s why I try so hard. “It doesn’t matter now, Auri. We can’t change the past. Don’t let the accident change our future. Everything is for a reason. We were meant to be, this was meant to happen. Things are simpler like this anyway, there’s more time for just you and me,” as soon as I said it, I winced. Or did as close to a wince as I could- I still haven’t adapted to this new body. “How could you say that? Just you and me? We are being watched right now! We get no privacy!” gliding toward the glass, Auriel scrutinized her reflection. This is how she often spent her days now, in our new life. “Auriel...” I gently placed my fin on hers, “You’re beautiful. As you always were.” And she was beautiful: her golden scales, her slender fins, those big dark eyes. The eyes that finally held gaze with mine. “As a human or as a fish, Auriel, you have my heart. Please say you’ll make this work with me. Please say we can still have a life together,” my words bubbled in the water of our enclosure. ... Outside of the fishbowl, the scientists watched in absolute awe of their newest subjects: the once-human couple caught in the nuclear reactor meltdown radius... that mutated into fish.