The Change

It was a twilight night, the sun not yet below the horizon, not yet risen but somewhere in between. She sat there, at the edge the dock, in this twilight, waiting for him to come up from the waters of the lake. He had brought her here, on their first date, to fish and harvest a meal from the lake and the forest. Mushrooms, berries, and herbs, to season and cook what the lake gives. And to go with it all, of course, Ma bottle of Merlot.

Ripples broke on the surface of the lake, and from within the depths of the lake came a man. Older than her 30 years, but still very handsome, came her date, holding a fish for dinner in-between its gills. A good catch, she thought, a good-sized salmon. He came up onto the dock, holding his prize, and she could see clearly why so many ladies thought he was the perfect catch.

At 49 years old, he was still in great shape, though only just now going round in the middle. Brown hair with a hint of blond, blue eyes, and fair skin, he was a sight to behold, a testament to his Finnish heritage. So, it had come quite a shock, when he had come up to her, to asked her out. She a single mother, who had never married. Who had thought of herself has no more than a plain Jane? Brownish hair, dull brown eyes, and curves that never really went away after giving birth. So yes, it had been quite a shock.

As she looked across the waters of the lake, he was busy cleaning the fish. Descaling, removing bones, and gutting. Then he began to season it with the herbs and stuffing it with the berries and mushrooms that they had harvested from the surrounding forest. He took great pride in showing her what they could find that was edible in the forest. And as they had walked along the path to get to the lake, he had shown her. Putting what they would use in a basket, as well as wood for the fire to cook their dinner over.

As he placed the fish on the grill that had been placed over the fire, she took another look around at her surroundings. The lake was on the small side, with the forest surrounding it on all sides. Off in the distance, she could see hills, that soon turned into mountains. Lush with greenery, and thriving with wildlife, she could see why they had come here. It was peaceful, and quiet, so different from the city. What, with hustle. the people talking, cars screaming on by, and with the occasional siren thrown in the mix. It was nice to just get away from it all.

“If only for a moment,” she thought.

“Are you OK?” he asked.

She looked up, startled from her musings. He looked worried, as if he had done something wrong. She gave him a reassuring smile, “Yes, in fact everything is just so perfect.” He looked relieved at her answer. This was the first date that they both had had in a long time, and both were very nervous. “In fact, dinner smells very delicious.” He smiled at her complement.

And as he was about to say more, a rumble echoed throughout, shaking the ground and making ripples in the water. Startled, they both stood up, not knowing what was happening or where it had come from. All of a sudden, the animals, began to run, slithered, or fly away, just as startled as the two people, who looked on in the direction that the echo came from. Dark clouds came in and a fierce chilly wind picked up. He grab her, “Come on, we need to go, I don't like the look of this.” She have him no argument.

Leaving their dinner to burn on the grill, they grab their belongings and ran quickly to the car, getting in and driving off. As he drove, she look to the sky has it continued to darken, with the wind getting stronger. They did not know what was happening or why, only that they had to get back to the city, where family and friends were.

The sky had darkened, as if it were night, and the wind began to roar, and soon it was almost impossible to see the road, making the drive treacherous but they knew that they could not stop, that they had to go on. Both hoping, that when they got back, that everyone would be alright and that they worried for nothing. But sometimes, life will spiral out of control and nothing could be done to straighten it out.

He didn't see the figure until it was too late.

And so turned the wheel to hard, causing the car to go out of control.

And into a lake that they had been driving past.

Knocked unconscious, they didn't come to, as the cab filled up with water.

They woke up, when the pain began.

Her body felt as if it was on fire, but knew that it couldn't be, has she was trapped underwater. And as her lungs began to fill with water, she knew soon that the end was near. Lungs started to burn, her mind becoming hazy and disoriented, she opened her mouth, in a desperate attempt to take a breath, and found that she could breath. She opened her eyes, not knowing that she had closed them. She took another breath, not believing at first, so she brought up a hand, reaching toward her face but instead, a clawed, scaled hand came forward. She screamed, but it sounded wrong, muffled and it was only then, she realized, she was still underwater.

She looked over at him and screamed again, seeing what they had become.