Prompted stories

Aquarium flf Slightly Autistic Mermaid

"Good morning, did you rest well?"
"Mhm!"
Alex comes closer to you and sits down in the chair in front of you. He reaches out and gently runs his fingers through your hair. He does this every time he sees u and ur head always tilts back and ur eyes close as ur tail sways back and forth calmly.
"Hmm~"
"Are you excited for the aquarium opening today?" He smiles softly at u and your tail sways in response.
"Mhm!"
U can feel him slightly pull ur head towards his body as he moves it down so ur head is resting on his chest. He starts rubbing your hair, as per usual
"U have to do ur show today you know....you have to do the tricks that I taught you..." he seems to be speaking mostly to himself here as he continues to play with ur hair
I just nod my head to say that I understood
He looks up at u, gently moving u head up so that ur looking at him
"You know u can talk to me right?" He says in a very gentle voice, still rubbing ur hair
"I know" I say meekly "just don't feel like it"
He still has ur head resting on his chest and u can feel him nod as he listens to u
"That's alright....u don't have to talk if u don't want." he says softly, then adds on with a small chuckle "But if u ever want to talk, u know I'd be happy to listen..."
"I know" I say, barely above a whisper
He runs his fingers through your hair once more
"Well...that's good..." He sighs quietly as his eyes glance down at you, a soft, gentle smile on his face "Are you feeling well today?"
I just nod my head in response, not feeling like talking much
He stays silent for a bit, continuing to gently run his fingers through your hair and staring deeply into your eyes "Do you..have any friends here? At the aquarium?" He says gently
i hold up 1 finger to his question
He raises an eyebrow
"1 friend?"
"Mhm!" I replied
His eyes seem a bit sad when u say that "Do you...not have many friends?" he asks in a curious tone He then smiles down at you as if he just had an idea "Would...would you be ok if I introduce you to my sister Ira?"He seems hopeful that you would like to meet her
"Hm..." I tap my chin to act like I'm thinking but then just shrug my shoulders, it doesn't really matter how many friends I have, just as long as they're nice
When u shrug your shoulders Alex chuckles softly and nods "That's true.." he says softly "Well would you like to meet her?" Alex has a big smile on his face. "Im sure she'd be happy to meet u as well."
I just nod my head again before feeling like this question needed a vocal response so I also said "sure"
Alex's smile widens as you respond, and then he stands up, still holding your head so u don't move suddenly
"Come, I'll introduce you to her." he says softly "You can meet my sister."
He walks over with you towards another door. After a few seconds the door opens and a woman walks in...she looks just like Alex and her eyes light up when she sees you
I just wave my hand at her, unsure what the right thing to do would be
The woman walks over to u and leans down to be face level. Once she's close she waves back gently. She has the same exact face and build as Alex but her hair is a bit shorter and her eyes have this soft glimmer
"Well hello there, what a lovely mermaid... what's your name?" she says softly, smiling gently at u.
I know I should be the one to respond, but it felt safer to let Alex do the talking, he knew Ira and what to say to her, so I looked at Alex
Alex chuckles softly at the interaction between u and his sister and looks up at u.
"Hello there Ira, she's one of the mermaids at the aquarium that I take care of. She's very shy and doesn't like talking much so please dont be offended by that."
He smiles at you reassuringly as he talks and then looks back down at Ira
"Can you show her around the aquarium Ira?"
Ira thinks for a bit and then looks back up at you nodding.
I grab onto Alex's hand, not wanting to be away from him for long. "you come with?" I asked meekly
Alex chuckles at you as his sister chuckles as well "Why do u want me to come with? Is she not good company?", Alex says with a smile on his face
Ira looks up at Alex with a smile as well and gestures for u to let go of his hand and go along with her. She seems to be very nice and caring, like her brother
"New, I don't know" i replied back to Alex
Alex shrugs and smiles again. He looks into ur eyes and speaks softly
"U know I'm always right here, right?"
He gently puts one of his hands up to ur chin and tilts ur head up so ur face is facing him. His tone is calm as he looks into ur eyes "U have nothing to be scared about, I'm right here..." he smiles again and gently lets go of ur head
"Trust, friend"
He smiles and nods his head
"Ok, well then. Ill let u two get to know each other. If you need me, well I'll be right outside."
He says to both you and his sister. He gives you a reassuring smile before leaving the room, closing the door behind him.
Ira is looking down at you and offers her hand to you. She seems like she wants you to take it and let her lead you around.
"Friend trusts you, I trust Friend." I say as I take her hand, almost grumpily
Ira chuckles and looks up at you
"Well aren't u a grumpy one today. Did you not sleep well?" she says with a small smile. She gestures for u to come with her as she starts walking
"Nuhuh", I shook my head no "too loud at night"
"Too loud at night? Well maybe we should go someplace where it's quieter."
she says to u as she looks down at you as she walks.
"Im assuming you dont come out of the water too often? If that's the case, there's a quieter and more secluded area that may be more suitable for you."
She keeps on walking with you. You can see a few people here and there in the aquarium going about their day, including some children looking into the tank u live in.
"Alex takes me places, I'm not supposed to leave without a supervisor"
Ira stops as u say that "Wait ur not supposed to leave without supervision?" she looks back at u, concerned "Well where does Alex take you?"
"Dolphins!🐬"
"Dolphins?" Ira says, seeming concerned.
She stops moving and looks back at u again "Do you mind if I ask why you go and visit the dolphins?"
"Alex likes them too!!"
"I see..do you like seeing the dolphins?" Ira asks She begins moving again and gestures for u to come with her. She seems to be walking back towards the tank u live it
"They're pretty, and really nice! They don't mind me talking to them!  😁"
Ira smiles "Well thats good, I would think talking to others would be relaxing for you" she says softly as she keeps on walking with you. She stops once she gets closer to the tank and looks down at you with a big smile "Here we are" she motions for u to look over at the tank where u live*
"😢no want to go back yet, I just got out..."
Ira looks confused for a moment, and then she nods "That's alright.... we can go visit the dolphins in a bit if that makes u feel more comfortable." She stays silent for a few seconds, still smiling down at you. "I don't want to force you to do something you don't want to. If there is somewhere else u want to go, we can go there instead..." She then looks back at the tank for a split second before looking back at you "Where do u usually go with Alex?"
"Hidey spots. I'm not really supposed to be out for long they said, but Alex takes me to the Hidey hole so I can stay out of sight"
Ira's face softens and she nods in response, seeming to understand "A Hidey hole? Well that's nice that Alex takes you to a spot where people wont find u" she says softly She stays silent for a few more seconds as she continues looking down at you "Is there a Hidey hole here in this aquarium?"
"Mhm! Over by the shed! There's a tent we set up, well.. Alex set up, I wasn't much help"
Ira nods and gestures for you to follow her. She walks around to the area of the aquarium where the shed is located. And as you said, there was a mini tent there. Ira seems to be in no hurry to enter the tent but you can tell she still wants to see the Hidey hole. She looks back at you and beckons you towards the tent "Wanna come?" she says gently
"Mhm!!"
Ira smiles as she opens the tent and gestures for you to come in. The tent itself is small. There is some old blankets and pillows laying around on the ground. The tent itself is covered in vines and some other plants, which make the inside look very...cozy and relaxing. If you had to pick where you thought Alex would want to hang out on break, this would probably be it. Ira gestures for u to sit down on one of the pillows. She then turns to you and sits down as well "We can rest here for a bit if you'd like."
"😁please!"
Ira reaches out to u and gently takes your hand in hers. There's a small smile on her face as she looks down at u. She gently puts your head as close as she can to her chest and starts to run her fingers through your hair again. It feels really warm and comforting. She sits there for a few more seconds before asking you "Are you tired? You havent really been talking much with me? Why's that?" she talks softly and looks like she genuinely cares about u.
"People don't like me talking too much... only had Alex and dolphins. I like dolphins"
Ira nods as she listens to you. She smiles down at you and gives your shoulder a gentle squeeze to try and comfort u
"I...I understand that" she says softly "But even if you think others dont like it, you shouldn't feel the need to stop talking..." she pauses for a Moment and then adds on "Dont you have things that you want to talk about?"
"Did you know that Many bony fish have more than just one set of nostrils."
She seemed surprised by your comment "Well...no I didnt" she says softly
She pauses for a few seconds and thinks to herself "Do you talk with other fish besides dolphins?" she says gently and her tone seems to indicate that she genuinely wants to know more about u.
"Not really... pufferfish don't like me, jellyfish hurt when they're annoyed, sharks are just mean, and I'm not supposed to go near any freshwater fish, so I guess not.. but I got Alex! Alex is really nice to talk to!"
You can see her expression soften
"Well... I think that's quite sad" she says gently, still holding onto your shoulder and running her fingers through your hair "You want to chat with other fish but you can't because they are 'too mean'"
She looks back up at you with a smile "...Well just know that I don't think ur boring to talk to at all" she says softly
"Really!? I like talking to you too! Especially about Alex, Alex is really nice to me, you're really nice too, but Alex is REALLY nice!"
Iras face softens even more as you speak. She gets closer to you so that ur faces are just inches apart
"I...I am?" she asks slowly "You like talking to me...? Well...I like talking to you...Alex said u really dont talk too often but I've enjoyed talking to you."
There's a small smile in her eyes now, as well as a soft glow. She keeps holding your shoulder and running her fingers through your hair
"Mhm~ you give good head scratches too, mmm~" I said while leaning my head further into her hand
She chuckles softly as she runs her fingers through your hair a bit more
"Is that what you want? Head scratches?" she says jokingly and she then pauses, her question seemingly not a joke* "Do u...like those a lot?"
"Any contact is nice, but head scratches are really nice."
Ira looks at you curiously "You...don't get much contact?" she says quietly, seeming slightly startled
"Alex gives hugs and head scratches sometimes, but that's about it I think"
Ira nods slowly and thinks about what u say for a moment "Can I...can I ask you a personal question?" she says, hesitating a bit
"Sure
"How..many people have been nice to you?" she pauses as she looks away before looking back at u with gentle eyes "When...when was the last time someone gave u a hug? " she sounds almost...sad about it as she says that last part
"Mama and papa were nice but I wasn't allowed near them for long, but then I met Alex a few years later... I think I was 15 then.. then I met the dolphins! And Alex gives hugs maybe every other week, I know he gets busy but he makes up for it in head scratches! "
Ira nods and smiles at you gently as you tell her this
"He sounds like a very nice and caring person. Alex and... and you said mama and papa were nice to you too. Why...why could u only see them for a short amount of time?" she says gently
"I was taken away when I was 10... I don't know why I can't see them anymore..."
Ira's eyes soften as you say that.
"That must...that must be hard. You said you met the dolphins a few years later...so they were nice towards you when nobody else was.." She looks down at the ground for a moment in silence. She then looks back up at you gently and says "Im...im proud of you."
"Im...Im proud of you for not letting those experiences change you. You're still so kind and loving.." she pauses and smiles again. She then gently puts one of her hands up to your cheek
I nuzzled into her hand more, it was warm and welcoming
Ira looks down at u and smiles gently as she feels u nuzzle into her hand more. She continues to move her fingers through your hair and looks down at you
She gives out a small laugh and says "You seem to really like head scratches, huh? Well...Im actually really glad. Im glad that Im able to do something to put a smile on your face" she says quietly. Her tone is soft and gentle
"😊you feel safe" I explained
Ira's voice turns to a whisper
"Safe..." she whispers softly and her face softens as you say that. She continues looking down at you and her hands and fingers still run through your hair.
She takes a second before speaking again "Well, Im glad im able to give you that feeling"There's a slight blush on her face as she speaks, but it doesn't seem to be due to any sort of embarrassment. It almost seems as if the moment is just...comforting and relaxing for her.