She keeps getting more bandages and marks as the story progresses, but the then suddenly she loses almost all of them. In the later pages, the undershirt which covered her neck is gone, and all that's left under is a mark on her neck and collarbone.

last edited at Mar 25, 2024 1:49AM

This is all senpai's fault.

I often dislike stories with toxic characters, because usually it amounts to "bad people do bad things and get away with it lmao". But the execution on this story was exceptional, the ending felt very deserved and had a greater point besides "toxic people lol". And it's really nice how you can sympathize with both characters while at the same time despise them for how they are.

Still a little sad though, the first chapter left off on a note of realistic hope, that they could perhaps live better lives apart. And while the second chapter essentially says the same thing, it does so in a much sadder way. I was rooting for the blonde to live life well without senpai, but I suppose the damage had already been done. The only consolation is that at least the blonde is not at the butt end of the relationship anymore.

last edited at Aug 20, 2022 2:45PM

That's the one, thanks so much! I was searching "mermaid" instead of "mermaids" so I wasn't able to find it.

A little help please!
A oneshot where a quiet girl transfers into a school. She talks with the protag and gives her a piece of plastic and calls it a mermaid bone. They spend a day on the beach, asks protag to never forget, and transfer out of the school. The last line involves the protag thinking she disappeared like the sea foam of a mermaid

I was also a bit confused by senpai "realizing what she wanted as thanks". Because of course she absolutely knew that the blonde wanted to be with her, so it must be something else. So my best guess is that the blonde wanted senpai to at least change, perhaps on her behalf specifically. After that incident the blonde takes a hit for senpai, she internally laments that afterwards absolutely nothing changed about senpai's behavior, or their relationship. It's not until much later that senpai reflects and literally takes a look at herself in the mirror. After changing, she sees herself unblemished by hickies & bruises, feels liberated for once, and finally understands what the blonde wanted. Just like the title implies, the blonde made her own mark on senpai, both literally with the hickey before leaving forever, and more importantly, figuratively with her permanent departure from senpai's life.

I didn't find a good place to insert this above, but I do like how it's not until senpai is free of bodily marks that the mark the blonde left is apparent, paradoxically.

I enjoyed this story, not only because of it's introspective & melancholic slant, but the fact that it ends hopeful like Koveras explained very well above. Most stories like this end up with characters never growing for the better and remaining trapped in their toxic circumstances, which never personally sat too well with me, even if that was the purpose.

I think this chapter stands well on its own, and I wouldn't be dissatisfied if it ended here. I'm mainly worried the second part of the twoshot will involve a relapse with the blonde and end pessimistically, invalidating the message of this first chapter. But after this chapter I'm confident the author will deliver quality like this.

Need more blob Ayu