{ seven }

Beneath The Surface

{ chapter seven


In order to avoid suspicion, Jongin alternates between going under with Taemin and disappearing off by himself – but Taemin knows that Jongin can break through without assistance now, and he’s quite sure that his friend has been doing it without telling him. However, he’s wholly unaware of Jongin’s acquaintance with Kyungsoo, so he sees no need to question him about his visits to the Sea by himself. After all, he respects Jongin’s space and need for independence.

Jongin has no trouble finding the rocky hide-out that Kyungsoo always seems to be lost in now. He can recognise the coral and rocks that lead towards it, and it doesn’t take him too long to navigate through the boulders to find Kyungsoo’s favourite little corner.

Jongin likes how open and curious Kyungsoo has revealed himself to be – he doesn’t act at all like Taemin did when he first met him. Kyungsoo asks the most intrigued questions about the Surface, despite his pronounced fear of his father, and takes great pleasure in comparing Jongin’s world to his own. He loves watching Jongin open and close his legs or wiggle his toes, the same way Jongin is fascinated by the strength in Kyungsoo’s tail. Days turn into weeks and Jongin finds the distance grows between him and all of his other friends – he hasn’t spoken to Sehun in forever, and only realises when his friend calls him a while after he returns from visiting Kyungsoo.

Jongin greets him with a shy “hey, Sehun” when he hears his friend’s voice over the phone.

“Hey. We haven’t talked in a while. Is everything okay?”

Jongin wrings his bed sheets in his hands, recalling the last time they spoke, remembering the way Sehun accused him of being ill when he tried to talk to him about Taemin. Now, he’s visiting his Mer friends every day behind his back – how is he meant to come up with an excuse for his absence?

“Everything’s fine. I’ve just been busy.”

“On summer break?”

Jongin lowers his head, silent. He can’t tell the truth, but he can’t bring himself to lie, either.

“Jongin, it’s been, like, a month.”

“I just have nothing to talk about.”

“We’re best friends!” Sehun fires back. The line falls quiet, and Jongin stares at his feet. He never realised how much his detachment was, and is, affecting his friend. Sehun doesn’t know that Jongin has been with his Mer friends every single day, but he feels replaced nonetheless.

“I don’t even know if we’re best friends anymore,” Sehun says quietly, his voice choked. “I’m sorry if I’ve angered you, Jongin, but I just wanted what’s best for you.”

“Sehun—”

“I know I’m not the perfect friend,” Sehun whispers, “but after all these years, I didn’t think something so small would ruin us.”

The line finally drops, and Jongin is left with reverberant beeps ringing in his ears. A part of him is stunned, a part of him wants to cry – all of him drops his phone on the bed emotionlessly, and he stands up, leaving his bedroom.

“Mom? Dad? I’m going down to the beach again.”

“Why, honey?” his mother calls back.

“I left something behind. I’ll be back in fifteen.”

The sun has set when he reaches the beach. There’s no reason why Taemin should be at the shelves, and there’s not enough time for him to go down and find him. Instead, Jongin hops up onto his hidden rocks, and sits down, looking out into the ocean.

“Something bothering you?”

Jongin gasps, and leans over the shelves, spotting Taemin hiding in a cranny, out of his view. His friend smiles cheekily, and Jongin returns the gesture.

“Taemin!”

“Hey. You didn’t come see me today.”

“Sorry. Parents.”

Taemin swims into view and props his arms up onto the rock, looking up at his human friend. “It’s getting late. What brings you down?”

Jongin grimaces and releases a long sigh, and Taemin raises his eyebrows. He can tell something is wrong.

“My best friend—he got kind of…upset at me. I haven’t been talking to him.”

“Why’s that?”

Jongin shrugs sheepishly. He has no idea how to respond lightly, or sugar-coat the truth.

“I’ve been spending so much time with you, so…I guess I just forgot.”

Taemin chuckles, shaking his head in disbelief, and Jongin only feels worse, not expecting his amused reaction.

“You’ve been spending an awful lot of time at home lately, though. Didn’t you have time to meet with him then?”

He flushes once he realises Taemin has found a loophole in the story. In reality, Jongin has been visiting Kyungsoo more than he’s been seeing Taemin, and definitely more than he’s been seeing Sehun.

“I was just…so caught up with other things…” Jongin blurts unconvincingly.

Taemin gazes at him with an unreadable expression of avid attention, completely cynical about Jongin’s nervousness.

“Is there something you’re not telling me, Jongin?” Taemin says softly, and Jongin finally cracks under the pressure, unable to stay with his friend any longer. He stands up quickly, claiming he needs to get home, and runs off immediately.

* * *

“I want to show you something,” Kyungsoo whispers, excitement twinkling in his eyes, taking Jongin’s hand and tugging him away from their usual spot eagerly. He swims them through the jungle of rocks and finally stops by a cluster of loose stones and pebbles, piled up to fill a small cavity between two boulders.

Kyungsoo swims down into what would be a kneel if he had knees, and motions for Jongin to come closer. He slowly begins to move the stones away, placing them beside him, and Jongin peers over the prince’s shoulder, squinting to try and see what’s behind them.

At first, he sees something twinkling, and frowns at the strange metallic appearance of the object beneath. Then he sees something glassy, and something rubbery – that’s when he realises, Kyungsoo is showing him a collection.

They’re objects from the Surface.

“Artefacts like these are destroyed if my father finds them,” Kyungsoo breathes, “but I’ve hidden away my own findings. They’re the only contact with the Surface I have, apart from you.”

Kyungsoo gently takes the metallic object from the dark crevice and holds it out to Jongin, hands cupped around the object as if it’s precious and fragile, but Jongin laughs when he sees what’s being shown to him.

“Kyungsoo, that’s a fork,” he chortles, picking up the utensil between his fingers and wiping the grime from its prongs. Kyungsoo watches his friend handle the fork carelessly, appalled, but trusts that the human knows more about the object than he does, and doesn’t protest.

“We eat with this. It’s not precious at all. I can bring you thousands of these, if you want.”

“But—it’s so shiny. I thought it was a small trident.”

Jongin hands him the fork back, cheekbones burning from smiling so hard. He finds it incredibly endearing that Kyungsoo is so fascinated with things Jongin regards as typical and invaluable, and a sudden desire to gift Kyungsoo with articles from the Surface overwhelms him in his state of entertainment.

Kyungsoo pulls out more from his precious stash – broken alcohol bottles, children’s swimming goggles, aluminium cans and deflated volleyballs – and to the young prince’s horror, Jongin claims he’d throw out every item he reveals.

“I’ll tell you what,” Jongin says, once Kyungsoo has displayed everything and begins to hide them all away again. “Next time I come down, I’ll bring you something you’ll have never seen before. Something from the Surface that’s truly precious.”

“Really?” Kyungsoo asks, his delicate features lighting up at the notion of obtaining more things from the Surface. Jongin nods, and Kyungsoo beams one of his rare smiles that never fail to make Jongin’s heart race. He has no idea how the prince has so much control over his head and heart, and he knows Kyungsoo has the ability to manipulate him into doing anything with just a single smile, but it doesn’t deter him in any way. Jongin loves the thrill of being close with Kyungsoo, the adrenaline rush he gets when they touch, the secrecy and the mystery of their unlikely friendship.

“I’ll find you something special,” Jongin assures, taking Kyungsoo’s hand and squeezing it to seal the promise. Kyungsoo’s eyes are glittering, and he stares up at Jongin dreamily, as if he’s faced with a living, breathing angel.

“Let’s go explore,” Kyungsoo suggests, whipping his tail and propelling them forward through the rocks. Jongin clings onto his arm and laughs into the water streaming past his body, Kyungsoo’s excitement seeping through his skin and into his veins.

“Are you sure we should be leaving?” Jongin asks, once they’re out in the, admittedly isolated, but open nonetheless, water. Kyungsoo shrugs, a mischievous glint lighting up his eyes, and continues forward.

“If your father—”

“He’s in the palace. We’ll be safe. I promise.”

Kyungsoo releases Jongin’s hand and does a somersault in front of him, and laughter bubbles from his throat, a light and lilting giggle that makes Jongin dizzy with adoration. In that moment, he concludes that nothing in the world could ever make him happier than seeing Kyungsoo b with joy.

Whatever he’s going to find for Kyungsoo needs to be perfect – something that will make Kyungsoo smile, laugh, something to brighten the sadness that devours him whenever he’s alone.

Jongin has no idea why all the ideas running through his head have a romantic essence about them, but strangely enough, he doesn’t dislike them, not at all.

* * *

“Welcome back, Kyungsoo.”

The prince looks up and smiles at his personal servant, nodding in acknowledgement as the curtains into his quarters are parted for him. He gestures for the servant to follow him, permitting him entrance into his room.

“What happened while I was gone, Jinki?”

“The King asked for you while you were absent,” the servant says, his tone hushed in order to keep their conversation private. “I told him you had requested to be alone for the day and would speak to him before nightfall.”

Apart from Jongin, Kyungsoo has little interaction with any other people besides his brother and his father. Growing up, the only person he ever considered a real friend was his servant, Jinki. He’d been with Kyungsoo for many years of his life and their mutual trust for one another enabled them to share secrets and help each other slip past the King’s strict behavioural guidelines without being caught.

Jinki is the only person that knows about the young prince’s acquaintance with Jongin. He covers for Kyungsoo when his family questions his whereabouts, and protects him from the prying and discriminating eyes of his father. He knows the punishment of lying to the royal family and permitting Kyungsoo to commit such a crime is cruel and harsh, but he values the prince’s happiness and freedom over his own life, having witnessed Kyungsoo’s loneliness and suffering too many times before.

“Did you specify what I was doing?”

“No, but I believe he suspects you were upset and wanted time to yourself.”

“Thank you, Jinki,” Kyungsoo says kindly. He’s genuinely appreciative – if it weren’t for his friendship with the servant, he’d never have gotten the opportunity to leave the palace alone, let alone meet Jongin. “I’ll go see him now.”

Kyungsoo slips through the curtains once again, but not before placing a hand on Jinki’s arm and smiling at him softly.

“Please, retire to your room and rest. You’ve been up all day.”

Jinki returns the smile and bows his head. “Thank you, Kyungsoo. Call for me if you require my assistance.”

Kyungsoo’s smile lasts until he swims to the entrance of his father’s quarters – only then, his heart begins to pound, and he feels anxiety and loathing bubbling in his throat. A part of him finds immense satisfaction in knowing that, behind his father’s back, he’s doing exactly what is forbidden of him, but it angers him that he has to face his father all the same. He’d never say the words aloud, but he truly despises his father – he hates everything about him. The only time he could ever stand his father when his mother was alive, but ever since her passing, every confrontation with him has been dreaded and tense.

He sighs and bows his head, preparing himself for the worst, before calling out to his father and entering with a heavy heart.

At least he has Jongin in his mind to lighten his mood.

* * *

“I have something for you,” Kyungsoo says bashfully, tracing his fingers along his tail, too flustered to meet Jongin’s eyes. Jongin can’t resist smiling as he swims over, settling down on the rock beside the shy prince.

“I have something for you, too.”

Kyungsoo looks up eagerly, and Jongin can tell he was looking forward to the gift. He hadn’t forgotten about the promise made to bring something special from the Surface – and Jongin is just as excited as he is.

Jongin reaches into the pockets of his shorts and his fingers close around his gift securely, and Kyungsoo watches his fingers move inside the material, twisting his hands together to relieve his burning impatience.

“You have to close your eyes,” Jongin requests, and Kyungsoo squeezes his round eyes shut, the corners of his lips tugging upwards in delight.

Jongin gently pulls out a fine gold chain from his pocket, stringing it between his fingers to unfurl the necklace. A delicate pendant hangs from the chain – a small, indigo-purple gem, encased in a golden frame.

Jongin didn’t go down to the beach at all the day before, instead spending it searching for the perfect thing to give to his friend. When he spotted the necklace hanging in a jewellery store window, he knew it was beyond compare. Mer couldn’t make chains from gold, nor find gemstones that formed on land, and since Kyungsoo had such a fascination with shiny things, Jongin’s heart had immediately settled on it – not to mention the fact that the gemstone’s colour rhymed wonderfully with the colour of Kyungsoo’s tail, and the subtle but definite romance harmonised with the personal touch of the gift.

Jongin moves to kneel behind Kyungsoo, and tenderly places the chain around Kyungsoo’s milky-white, slender neck. He doesn’t realise how strained Kyungsoo’s breathing is until he sees the pendant rising up and down with his chest.

With careful fingers, Jongin fastens the clasp and allows the chain to fall from his fingers and settle on Kyungsoo’s skin. His hands brush Kyungsoo’s shoulders as he pulls away, and he purses his lips together, the contact feeling like electricity on his skin.

“Open your eyes,” Jongin whispers, blushing as he watches Kyungsoo take the pendant in his hands and look down at it. He wants to see Kyungsoo’s reaction but is too shy to face him, so he waits behind him, watching him the gemstone with dainty fingers, head tilting slightly to the side in awe.

“Oh, Jongin…”

Jongin covers his smile with a hand, and Kyungsoo finally turns around, his eyes crescent in shape as he beams in pure delight.

“I thought—it might match your tail…” Jongin says weakly, his tongue weak and struggling to form words under Kyungsoo’s doting gaze.

“It’s beautiful,” Kyungsoo gushes, swivelling back around to admire the necklace. Jongin shuffles around to sit beside Kyungsoo again, watching his facial expressions change and move, pleased with himself at how much joy he’s brought upon Kyungsoo.

“Thank you, Jongin,” Kyungsoo whispers, letting go of the pendant to throw his arms around Jongin’s shoulders, pulling him close in a grateful embrace. Jongin’s cheeks burn up despite the cool water around him, but he manages to wind his arms around Kyungsoo’s waist and hug him back modestly.

Jongin shuts his eyes once he’s relaxed into Kyungsoo’s arms, a gentle smile resting on his lips. Kyungsoo is shy and reserved, but Jongin can tell he has a lot of pent-up emotion and doesn’t hug people often, just by the way he clings and buries his face into his neck. Jongin finds himself struggling to breathe, self-conscious about his erratic heartbeat, hoping that Kyungsoo can’t feel it.

Jongin doesn’t know why his body goes into panic mode like this, but he doesn’t dwell on it, instead focusing on how nice it feels to have Kyungsoo resting against him, fingers playing with the hairs on the back of his neck.

Finally, Kyungsoo pulls away, and Jongin clears his throat awkwardly, embarrassed that he was so caught up in the moment.

“I want to show you what I have for you, now,” Kyungsoo breathes. “Although, it’s quite inadequate in comparison…”

Kyungsoo slips off the rock and digs around beneath a few sprigs of seaweed, before pulling out a well-camouflaged wreath, bowing his head shyly. An array of shells are woven through the seaweed, strings of plant moving gently with the movement in the water – it looks like a beautiful angel’s halo. Jongin’s eyes soften, and Kyungsoo quietly tells him he’d been working on it for a few weeks.

“You made it yourself…” Jongin whispers.

Kyungsoo smiles timidly, and rests the wreath upon Jongin’s head tenderly, Jongin’s brown hair before his hands fall to his sides. The fit is perfect, resting on him like a crown, and Kyungsoo is struck by how beautiful and royal the human looks.

“You look—lovely,” Kyungsoo chokes, ducking his head to hide his flushed cheeks. Jongin notices how nervous Kyungsoo is, and rises from the rock, entwining their fingers together.

“I love it,” Jongin whispers, rubbing his thumbs against the backs of Kyungsoo’s hands. He stares into Kyungsoo’s sparkling eyes, and sees something in there, something more than just friendship that makes his heart hammer and overcome all of his senses. Before Jongin can process his thoughts, he breathes a dreamy “I love you”, and Kyungsoo’s eyes fill with radiance.

His hands move without thought, reaching to cup Kyungsoo’s cheeks in his hands, leaning forward as he presses a kiss on the prince’s tender lips. Kyungsoo grips Jongin’s arms tightly, but doesn’t resist him at all, instead tilting his head and pressing against the human.

At last, Jongin pulls away, his head pounding, and confusion and distress begin to wash over him as realisation dawns. He has no idea what overcame him, and it alarms him at how wrong it is for him to be kissing another male, but just how right it felt to be kissing Kyungsoo. He doesn’t understand why all the puzzle pieces seem to fall together, and why he finally understands his feelings towards the prince – nothing and everything makes sense at the same time, and Jongin is terrified.

Kyungsoo’s eyes open slowly and he swallows hard, releasing his grasp on Jongin and bringing his hands to his heart. He can see the discomposure in Jongin’s expression and decides not to speak, letting the boy gather his thoughts without interruption. After all, Kyungsoo himself knew from the moment their gazes first connected, he was hopelessly infatuated with the human boy.

“I’m sorry,” Jongin blurts as he backs away from quiet Kyungsoo, unsure of what to think, dizzy with bewilderment. “I should—I should go.”

Kyungsoo’s face says “no” but Jongin ignores his imploring eyes, wanting to be alone, wanting to reverse everything that’s happened between them to put his mind at rest. He’s not gay. Kyungsoo isn’t even human. This can’t be happening.

“I’m sorry,” Jongin repeats, less for the kiss and more for his perturbation, before he turns and swims off as fast as he can. He knows Kyungsoo’s powerful tail could easily outpace his legs, but the prince doesn’t follow him.

When Jongin reaches the surface of the water and swims himself out onto the beach, heaving himself up onto the rock shelves, he crumples to the ground and bursts into tears.

In the few short minutes it took him to swim up onto land, he realised just how hopelessly head-over-heels he is for the Mer boy, and how all of his muddled feelings and attractions pieced together in what can only be love. It doesn’t bother him so much that he’s developed feelings for another man for the first time, but more that he knows whatever he feels for the prince is utterly forbidden, and there’s no possibility of them ever being together.

Jongin knows how bittersweet Taemin’s affection for Junmyeon is, and how terribly it pains his friend to be so besotted with the royal prince, bound to royalty, outlawed from unconventional romance.

Only now, the agony that surfaces in Jongin’s heart is not for Taemin, but for himself – and for Kyungsoo.


 [ a/n ] HAHAHAHA SUFFER WITH THIS ANNOYINGLY FAST-PACED DRAMA, CHILDREN...SUFFER...HEEHEHEHEEHHEE

word count: 3453

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luci1995
#1
Chapter 17: I went into this thinking that it would end with a taekai pairing but I love this so much more! I've never thought that a taeminxsuho pairing would be so adorable but I was so wrong!

This story is seriously great! I wasn't sure what to expect when I started it but it surprised me in the best way possible! I love it so much!
milkyboy_khun
#2
Chapter 17: Wow. Just ... Wow.
This is amazing and so damn good and I love you so much too authornim unnie!!!!!!
Waahh Taeminnie got Junmyeon now!! Yayyyyyyyyyy I was hoping ... Tae is somehow my favor character in this book (and ohmygod he is SOO CUTE when he's embarrassed and excited! Keke ;)) and you had me panicking when you said that Kyunggie was dead. I was like, NOOOOOOOOOO then our Taeminnie came along and helped, with Minho and Jonghyun. (btw, why is there no Key? You've got Jinki *Onew* and 2min and Jjong, but no Key? *pouts*)
this is so well written, I love your fantasy even more than your "dark, depressing fanfic" so ... If it isn't too much on your plate, please can you write another one?
And even tho there is no reason for a sequel ... Maybe? Sequel? Please? Like, with Tae and Junmyeon at the palace and kaisoo and stuff?
Anyways gotta go, luv your fic you r amazing unnie
^_^
mbk
milkyboy_khun
#3
Chapter 2: Yep. I knew it. Well done!! Kaisoo? When is Kyunggie gonna come?
Mbk
milkyboy_khun
#4
Chapter 1: First chappie luv it and I'm guessing Taeminnie is a mermaid? Or merman, I guess. Keke.
;)
mbk
Chrisalys238
#5
Chapter 17: Oh. My. Gosh. I cried, I really did I loved Jinki. And Taemin and Joonmyeon were absolutely ADORABLE. Thank you for writing this, I'm glad I stuck with it.
TruArmy1 #6
Chapter 17: congrats for finishing!!! this was honestly so good >< i don't really read fantasy but i loved this so much
goojayhee #7
Chapter 17: I know it's late but I was super busy and sick at the same time.
Honestly speaking I'm left speechless, I have no words to say. Perfect fic.
Happy ending... My feelings all over the place!
Your writing style is one of a kind, you made the story had a special element which is straightforward yet this straightforward thing made the story perfect!
This story made so happy am gonna miss it! ㅠ.ㅠ
I really hope you're planning on writing another story 'cause surly I'm going to miss your writing. Are you planning on writing a new one?! Pleeeeeeeeeeease say yes, pretty please.
Thank you for this amazing peace of art hon. Ilysm<3
infinitaehyung
#8
Chapter 17: MOTHERFUCIAEGN HELL YEEEAAAAAH KYUNGSOO AND JUNMYEON MEETING
HAPPY ENDINDG IWEKHJGEAH NYEHEHEHEHEHEHE i am sO HAPPY rn you dont even know man
like wow this whole fic has been a rollercoaster ride of emotions and FEEeeeEEeeEELs ~( ̄▽ ̄~) ~( ̄▽ ̄)~ (~ ̄▽ ̄)~ youre hands down one of my fav authors ever ok and i'm not being biased
NYEHEHEHEHE happy shawn is happy
kinda sad this fic is over now tho ;_; wHAT DO I LOOK FORWARD TO NOW
THANKS FOR THE UPDATE AND FOR MAKING MY HEART WHOLE AGAIN <3
Iheartyou1004 #9
Love this fic :)