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frightenedcricket · 1 month ago

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The lake. Part 3.

Nick Folio x OC.

Summary: Petra moves to a quiet village and settles in a cabin by a serene lake, where the locals tell stories of a mysterious creature that dwells beneath its surface. As she spends more time by the water, Petra begins to feel an inexplicable, almost intimate connection with the creature. MASTERLIST. Note: this story was inspired by the beautiful board made by @mischievous-mayhem-is-upon-you, the moment I saw it I had to start writing. Thank you for such a beautiful concept.

Days got colder and it started raining. Petra felt her on her bones and the dark days took a tool on her mental health. Everything looked kind of sad for her and she wasn't used to this weather, so she didn't leave the house much. Luckily, with her fresh start with Nick, she had a golden retriever knocking at her door when too many days passed without news for her. Today was one of those days.

"Hey, P"

"Hi" She muttered.

Nick was by her front door when she arrived from work. It had been two days since they had heard from her. Nicky always updated them after their breakfast, but Nick was quite restless. There were no late nights or early mornings on the dock.

"Do you have plans for today?"

"No, I'm pretty tired"

Nick bit his lip. "We have dinner at home"

Petra looked at him. She wanted to stay at home, get in her pyjamas, and probably cry herself to sleep, but she also didn't know how to say no to him.

"I could bring you some if you are that tired"

Something sparkled in her eyes and Nick smiled.

"Okay?"

"That would be nice"

Nick nodded. He came back not long after Petra had already put her pyjamas on. He walked through the back door and left the plates in the kitchen. Two. Because he was worried and would stay even if he had to sit in silence.

"Hey, Jolly cooked this fish... Some lemon and pepper. It smells really good"

Petra looked up at him and there were tears in her eyes. She didn't want to cry in front of him, but her feelings were so overwhelming. She moved out of the city in a hurry, she grabbed the most important stuff and threw it in the back of her car. The house wasn't less lonely than her flat had become, but the little life she had started building had helped to keep that sadness at bay for a few weeks. Now it was the town that seemed sad with its dark days and wet streets and she couldn't find a thing to smile for. Not even her new friends - the lake creature especially.

"Wow" Nick took a deep breath. To be honest, the two years of not mending with anyone but his friends had made him awful with people. He wasn't that party animal he used to be, the social butterfly that brought everyone together at gatherings... "Uh... Are you okay?"

She shook her head.

"Yeah, that was a silly question. Can I help you?"

She sniffed and shook her head again.

"I doubt that. I'm sure there is something I can do. C'mon, scoop" He walked to her and told her to make some space for him to sit, and once he did, he smiled. "I'm definitely a hugger"

Petra looked at him an a tear fell. She wished a hug could fix her.

"No hugs?"

"I'm exhausted"

"That's a beginning, come here. I promise it will work. I won't bite" That silly comment almost made her smile, almost.

She gave in and dragged her body closer. Nick was awkward and she didn't make anything easier. At first she was stiff and he didn't know how to hug her. But with a scoff, he grabbed her hand and pulled her to his side, almost making her fall over his lap.

Petra was frozen. Nick couldn't see it but her eyes were huge. But he could feel her unsteady breath. So he did the best he could to calm her down.

His fingers were warm and every time he touched her she would remember that night when, on the lake, the creature grabbed her leg. He was cold and wet and just the thought of it gave her goosebumps. Instead, his fingers were warm and soft and caressed her arm up and down, slowly shooting her and forcing her muscles to relax.

Petra gave up not long after. Exhaustion took over her and her body molded against Nick's. Soon, her head laid on his shoulder close to his heart.

"It's slow" She muttered.

Nick was surprised when she spoke. He was to worried about not letting the nerves control him. He couldn't fuck this up.

"Mhm?"

"Your heart. It beats slower than mine"

Nick moved his free hand to his chest and his fingers almost brushed her nose.

"It is. I think it has to do with the lake... I'm not so human anymore... There is a bit of lizard in me"

Those words set the distraction for Petra's mind. Curiosity filled her instead.

"How was it?"

"Uh... I'm not really sure. I still don't know why it happened. I just know that I'm trapped here now"

She bit her lip.

"Can't you leave?"

"Uh... I suppose I do, but where to? There is not much people here, the lake is big... If we go somewhere else maybe I'll get caught. I don't want the CIA to experiment with me" He chuckled with that boyish smile of his. It made Petra smile and something in her flutter. What's this?

"And how did you notice? You showered and voilà?"

"No... I got ill. I thought it was the flu or something, I felt like shit. Like my whole body hurt and I had a fever for days. And I kept dreaming of the lake. And then the scales appeared and I couldn't breathe. I took a shower and BAM! A big tail"

Petra was trying to imagine how it could have been. From what Nicholas told him and what Noah had said here and there, it sound terrifying and confusing.

"Then I hid. I escaped from the house and left for days until I realized that I could go back to my human self." With a tight smile, Nick shrugged his shoulders. "I suppose things are better now"

"But you have to hide..."

"But I have my friends and can pretend everything is normal when I go with them" Nick took a deep breath. "And now there's also you"

Petra felt those words sharp on her heart. She felt the need to run and hide, but Nick was hugging her tight, as if he knew.

"It's nice to have someone that isn't Noah or Jolly around. You are the first friend I make since it happened"

By now, Petra's lip was trembling. She had feared this man. She had nightmares and thoughts about him killing her... But he was so nice and she felt so guilty. But at the same time it was all so surreal... But he kept pulling her close... He kept coming to visit with a smile, he brought food and said good morning when he went back to the lake when the mist hadn't even dissipated yet...

Nick sensed her anxiety and took a deep breath. He didn't want to push anything on her, but she was the first person - and girl - he had met in so long, and who was also insanely beautiful and misterious.

"But no pressure. I'm friends with the guys so my standard is pretty low."

Petra tried to relax, to push those thoughts away. Nick had come here to distract her, she had to.

"Yeah... No pressure" She mumbled to herself.

Nick pinched her cheek.

"Where do you come from? I know nothing about you" He sensed that was an awful question to ask as soon as the words left his lips.

Damn, Nick...

"Bad topic? No need to answer"

"From the city."

"Okay... Were you a nurse there?"

"Yeah, emergency room"

"Oh wow, tough"

"It really is"

"And why did you move? If it's okay to ask?"

Petra pondered her options before sitting up straight. Nick moved his arm but his hand fell over hers.

"Uh... I had a partner. And a friend. And she passed from an overdose..."

"Fuck. I'm sorry, P"

She shook her head. "It's fine most of the time, it just gets hard sometimes."

"And... Your partner?"

"He left. My people left when her addiction also took over me. I could see her dying and thought I could save her"

Nick felt like shit.

"Is that why you are feeling like this today?" His voice was small, and his big eyes looked like puppy eyes. So odd.

"Yeah, the damn rain doesn't help a fuck. Everything is grey"

"Yeah..."

Silence filled the room as they let their thoughts sink in. Nick couldn't stop watching her, with such a sad but beautiful look on her face. He wished he could take that dread from her.

"I ran." Petra continued

"What?"

"I ran away. The people who turned their back on me were still there, ignoring me. I couldn't be there. I packed my stuff and changed my number. I started over here. I came here running from them and suddenly there was this lake creature trying to devour me and I thought, wow"

Nick was so surprised when suddenly she started joking, but laughed along with her and pushed her playfully.

"I didn't want to devour you..." yet. "I was being a good citizen and trying to help"

"Yeah, well. It didn't look like that, to be honest"

Nick did something she didn't even know he could do and his pupils turned more animalistic, more like that night. She felt her skin crawl. At her shocked expression, Nick could only laugh loudly.

"Idiot"

"Nah... just silly"

Petra giggled and looked at him. She felt warm from laughing, her hoodie was starting to bother her. But she was also glad he had walked by.

"Now, what are you thinking?"

"Uh... Just... Thank you for this"

"It's nothing" Nick pinched her cheek as the most casual gesture and Petra felt her skin warming. "But we should eat the fish"

"Yeah, you are right"

They had dinner with light conversation.

"Uh... You like fishing"

"Yeah"

"And you still do"

"Mhm"

"I have a question and you can't laugh"

"Can't promise anything"

Petra rolled her eyes.

"Do you fish in your creature form?"

"Yeah"

"With a rod?"

Nick laughed loudly and Petra frowned at him.

"Sorry, I was just picturing myself fishing naked with a huge tail and fins and everything, and my cute little rod"

Petra shook her head with a smile.

"Nah, I hunt them"

Petra stopped chewing her bite and looked down at the plate.

"Not these! Not these... Jolly did. Well, his mates on the boat probably"

Petra sighed loudly in relief and Nick smiled. He was glad he came tonight too.

Nick cleaned everything for her and promised to come back the next day to pick up the plates. Right when he was about to leave, Petra grabbed his shirt.

"What?"

"I don't want to be alone" It was a huge step for her, but she felt overpowered by fear and loneliness.

Nick looked at her for long seconds and pulled her for another comforting hug. She laid her head on his shoulder and some tears fell to his hoodie.

"Okay... I'm here" He muttered as he swayed gently. "I'm with you"

Petra firmly believed that Nick was the most comforting person she ever met. When she laid on his arms that night, she found herself feeling his cold skin again. She needed to know if he felt like this when he was a creature too. She never wanted to leave his arms again. She wondered if those animalistic eyes had some hypnotic power because she couldn't understand how she was feeling like this.

Nick woke up when the sun was barely creeping over the mountains. Petra was sleeping with her head on his chest and her arm around his waist. He had a hard time moving her without waking her up. But he checked her phone. 06.05 am. Her alarm would sound soon. He wasn't a creep for knowing, right. He just happened to be outside looking at her window when the light turned on.

Petra woke up alone and a strange feeling of deception filled her chest. He had left. But when she went downstairs, the coffee was already made and the whole kitchen looked clean. There was also a croissant ready for her. She ate it sat outside and watched him go back into the lake. Noah, who had picked his clothes, said hi to her and wished her a good day. It had already started good, she doubted it could go bad.

But she had never been lucky in life. After a tiring but not too intense day, she arrived at home. It was on her plans to change quickly and go to see if she could have dinner with the guys.

Already wearing a hoodie, sweats and her Crocs, she walked out through the back door. The sun had already set and the last minutes of light gave the sky a nice shade of blue. Her eyes scanned the coast trying to find the familiar figure. But it wasn't there. Instead, from the corner of her eye and close to the plants, she saw him.

"Nick!" Petra crossed the backyard fast. Luckily no one lived in the two houses that separated hers from the guys'. "Oh god"

Her knees bruised when she threw herself to the ground.

"Nick"

His brown eyes looked at her and he opened his mouth, but only a ragged breath came out.

Petra looked all over his body, her stopping on a big wound on his side. His skin wasn't as scaly as it should. She could see his human skin there. He was halfway through the process and bleeding badly. His gills were there, his fingers had those membranes still, even his tail was still there.

"Oh god" She cried out.

His eyes went white for a moment.

"No, Nick. Stay with me, love. Please. Look at me"

He regained consciousness for a second when she cupped his cold face.

"There you are. Stay with me, please" Petra forced a smile before looking at the wound. He had been attacked. Someone had done this to him. With her hand, she covered the gnash and pressed. Nick groaned and his hand grabbed her arm. "Noah!"

She was desperate and looking around. If someone passed... They couldn't see this.

"Noah! Jolly!" Her voice broke.

She needed to get him inside, to stop the bleeding, to take care of that cut. But she couldn't move him alone.

She heard Butter barking and the kitchen light turned on. Soon, Noah's tall frame appeared. He didn't doubt a second before starting running. Just as she had, he fell on his knees.

"What happened?" His eyes were big and his hands shaking when he reached to touch Nick.

"I-I found him here... Someone has done this... Noah, we need to take-"

A loud boat passed not far from the shore and both of them froze. They could feel it. Somehow, they knew.

Petra craddled Nick close to her body. Her arm snaked around his shoulders and his head rested on her chest. If they were looking for Nick, they would have to get her first.

"Don't move, yeah?" Noah whispered. They were lucky it was dark and trees covered them from the view.

But Nick coughed and Petra looked down.

"What's happening to him?"

"I-I don't know... He can't transform"

"Can he breath like this?" She muttered lowly.

Jolly walked out of the house and saw them. He wasn't sure what they were doing, he was in the studio when Noah had ran outside. But he frowned and started walking when he noticed three bodies there.

"Shit"

"Shh"

They saw the boat again, they had a light. They were looking for something in the water. For him. Nick body's felt heavy on her arms, his coldness made her skin crawl. She could feel the blood dripping.

"What happened?"

"We don't know..."

"Let's get him inside. Your keys, Petra"

Her house was the closest. So it was the most clever thing to do.

"My pocket"

Noah and her managed the best they could. They pulled him up and he let a choked cry out.

"It's okay, Nick... Just a minute... Give us a minute" She begged him.

"The boat, Petra" Noah looked at her with so much fear on his eyes. They were there, if they moved the light to them...

"I know"

Jolly opened the door fast, his eyes not leaving the water. But for Noah and Petra was harder to move him. So he had to step in.

"Go and get what you need, Petra" He said while replacing her.

Noah and Jolly were bigger than Nick, opposite to Petra. So it was easier for them to move him. Still, his feet dragged through the floor and blood leaked down his naked figure.

"Stay with us, Nick" Noah begged.

Petra ran over the house, gathering everything she would need with shaky hands. She could barely breathe.

"Where?" Jolly shouted.

"The kitchen"

Nick groaned and his head fell to the side when they laid him in the table.

Jolly quickly closed the door and curtains.

"I'll need to clean the blood. They can't... They will know he is here. There is so much blood."

Petra worked on automatic mode while Noah tried to keep his friend awake.

"Jolly, bring all the towels you can find, please"

Once she got a closer look, she could see the amount of blood leaking.

"Fuck" She cried out. It felt out of her reach, she couldn't do this, she would loose him.

"Look at me"

Petra turned to look at Noah.

"He needs you, okay? You can do this. Only you can. Right, Nick?"

Nick's eyes fell on her and he forced a smile.

"I don't know for how long he was there... Maybe he needs blood"

"Uh... Let's stop the bleeding first, okay? Tell me what to do"

"Nicholas, Petra is trying. Just... Come, please."

Jolly left the towels on the counter.

"Get them wet, please" She said out of breath. She was cold but sweating.

Noah nodded and grabbed the towels. With some weird coordination, the three of them moved around the kitchen. Nicholas was on his way.

Petra stopped - or slowed down - the bleeding the best she could. Nicholas arrived just when she was going to start the sutures.

"Grab him. And keep his gills wet"

Nicholas needed a second to swallow and breath deeply.

"Nicky" Noah brought him back. "The towels"

When Petra sunk the needle for the first time, an animalistic sound left Nick's body. Noah and Jolly had to grab him hard.

"I'm so sorry, Nick. I'm so sorry"

"He is not breathing well..."

"He can't go to his human form. He will choke out here" Jolly said.

"T-the bathtub" She muttered without stopping her work. His skin was harder than any human's and the gnash was long. He was lucky it wasn't too deep.

"I'll go" Nicholas ran upstairs.

The cold wet towels seemed to help a bit. But Nick was unconscious now. His body had gone limp and there was no fighting back anymore. It was easier to stitch him, but it made Petra awfully nervous.

"I'm almost done"

When she tied the last stitch, she moved her fingers to his wrist. "Okay?"

"For a human? Yeah"

"Guys, the bath is ready"

"Should we already move him?"

"Carefully"

It took the four do them to move him to the bath without reopening the stitches. But when they finally sunk him in there, their friend regained consciousness. Under the water, his eyes opened.

Petra panted in relief and smiled so big. These last minutes... She wish she could know how his body worked. When he passed out in the table, she truly believed she was loosing him. Any human would have died.

"Hey! Nick!" She called his name and submerged her hand on the water. She cupped his face. "Help me to pull him up a bit, yeah?"

They moved him around a bit, his body still too weak. With care, Petra put a towel behind his head and gently laid him against it. The water reached to his chin.

Petra fell on the edge of the bathtub, still cupping his face. The adrenile was starting to drop and she was suddenly so tired.

"What happened?" Nicholas asked softly.

Nick opened his mouth, but Petra ran her thumb over his lips. "It's okay, rest"

"We don't know" Noah muttered. He sat on the edge of the bathtub too.

"It doesn't matter for now, I'm gonna clean the blood. Those fuckers are probably still looking for him" Jolly was the angriest between them. He left with loud steps.

Nick's eyes were slowly moving over them.

"Are you hungry?"

"I... Was..." He coughed a bit. His throat was still so dry. "Eating"

Petra sighed and ran her fingers over his hair. There was a twist of a smile there. She kept moving her fingers over his scalp and Nick sighed.

"Maybe you can rest for a bit and we'll bring you food"

Nick nodded and closed his eyes. His chest moved up and down slowly. It was as if the water had brought his life back. Petra was mesmerised by the way his body laid there, tail curled at his feet and scales bright like little green mirrors.

Noah touched her shoulder gently. "Let's go, Petra. You need to get changed"

Until this moment, she hadn't realized how her clothes looked. There where big blood stains and mud on her trousers.

"Yeah"

The three of them left the bathroom with one last look. Nick had fallen asleep.

Petra broke down then. Nicholas held her and walked her to the living room, where they sat.

"I-I found him... He was laying there... And..." She had been so scared. She had finally found something good and it almost slipped away from her fingers. She wasn't even sure if he was safe now. He had lost so much blood, bit how do you give a creature like him a transfusion.

Nicholas pulled her to his side tighter. He was just as shocked. He was having dinner when he heard the phone. Same to Noah, he was going to the toilet when her screams had broken the silence.

"Listen... He was lucky you were there. It was probably some fishermen who did that... If he was eating... I hope he didn't go to the town or anything." Noah sat on the armchair. "But we have to be careful now. If they have been close enough to hurt him, they have seen him"

Petra dried her tears. "He can stay here. For tonight at least. Or tomorrow. I want to keep an eye on that wound."

Noah nodded. "Yeah, it's the best."

Jolly came back.

"I've cleaned the best I could. And I think they are gone. I'll ask around tomorrow" He muttered.

"Can you guys stay here?" She whispered.

They stayed with with her, so they wouldn't be alone. But they couldn't stop her from going back to the bathroom and spend the next hours sitting next to Nick. She kept the water to the right temperature and made sure to check his vitals. But what kept her the busier was him. His soft festures, even in this form, were one of the cutest she had ever seen. She adored his pierced nose, which was something peculiar to see. The scales didn't hide the tattoos, they weren't clear, but they were visible.

"Nick?"

He had made a noise, the first in hours.

"Sweetheart?"

His eyes slowly opened, his thin pupils adjusted to the light, and finally he looked at her.

"Hey..." His usual soft voice was raspier and deeper in this form.

"Hi"

A big smile broke into her lips and tears filled her eyes.

"How are you feeling?"

Nick nodded slowly.

"Good?"

He nodded again and Petra cupped his cheek. She kissed the side of his head and then pressed their foreheads together.

"I'm so glad you are fine... You scared me so much, Nick..."