After getting settled in, Youngjae left Jaebum in the shower to meet up with Yugyeom in the lounge.

"Do you feel comfortable doing this?" Yugyeom asked as they turned down yet another corridor.

"Sure. I mean yeah. Not like I'm performing a belly dance in front of the boys."

Yugyeom looked away while a blast of heat tore over his face. Meanwhile, Youngjae contemplated his words. What in science's name had probed him to say something so embarrassing? Shrugging the thought off, he turned to Yugyeom who was still looking off to the side.

"Everything alright?"

Yugyeom jumped in his skin. "Fine and dandy. Dandy fine." He chuckled before turning his head back around. "Thought I saw an ant on the ground."

Youngjae cocked an eyebrow. "In the lodge?"

Yugyeom laughed. "You'd be surprised. Mother nature has a way of showing up in the strangest places."

Jaebum's face flashed before Youngjae's mind. "Tell me about it."

They arrived at the sauna in time to see a bunch of semi- college boys running out through the back door. The sound of a loud splash followed suit. Youngjae and Yugyeom looked at one another with utter bewilderment.

"A hot spring," Youngjae mouthed as Yugyeom shouted it loud and clear. He was quick to tear off his clothes. Youngjae suddenly felt embarrassed as he began to slip his own clothes off but he couldn't very well make a big deal out of it so he kept his comments to himself. When the towel was secured around his waist he turned to see Yugyeom gazing at him from the door's miniature window.

"That's creepy."

Yugyeom drew back. "I- No. I mean it probably does look like I was staring at you but I wasn't. This up close you can see the other side. The glass loses its reflectiveness from over here."

Youngjae smiled. "So defensive."

"I don't want you to misunderstand. I'm not a creep or anything."

"Than your nothing?"

Yugyeom stomped his foot on the ground. "You're really making things difficult for me."

"Let's go already." Youngjae said as he slid open the door to the steaming hot pool of water.

#

Jaebum wandered the halls in search of the sauna. He was nearly about to give up when he spotted a group of familiar looking girls. He ran after them and was nearly stopped by a staff member for being thought of as a stalker when Eunji ran up to him. As usual, she was all smiles and touches.

"Hey, there handsome. Where you headed?"

"The sauna."

"Well, let's go together then."

Jaebum said nothing as Eunji slipped her arm into his own.

"Have you seen Youngjae?" Jaebum asked when the sauna's entrance came into view. There were two separate entrances—one for females and another for males.

"I haven't. But enough about that. Are you feeling unwell, Jaebum?"

Jaebum froze. Every nerve in his body grew heavy. No one could have known he was fatigued unless they could see his bioluminescence and the only ones who had that capability were other... fish.

"Eunji, why are you doing this?"

Eunji giggled. "Doing what?"

"Being so friendly with me."

Eunji frowned and blinked a few times before responding. "Can't I?"

Jaebum tensed his jaw. "Tell me. Are you by any chance a... a..."

"A?"

"Do you know Ocean's Death? Sea's Revival?"

Eunji reached up to lay the back of her hand against his forehead. "I really think you should get some rest. You're saying some of the strangest things."

Jaebum felt the muscles in his shoulders relax. He was dumb to think she had any connection with the sea. "The hot spring will help. Goodbye, Eunji."

"Until later!" Eunji shouted. She waved ecstatically until Jaebum disappeared beyond sight. When he had gone, she dug her fingers into her palms until the tips of her nails carved crescent-shaped marks into her flesh.

Jaebum was eager to be with his sprite. After having spotted him through the door's window, Jaebum hurriedly disrobed. He nearly left the comforts of the sauna without a towel around his waist.

No one paid him any attention as the boys in the spring were all either too busy roughhousing or chatting about things ranging from how much fun the arcade was going to be to the latest developments from whatever games they were currently playing.

Jaebum spotted Youngjae's mess of brown hair at the same time that Yugyeom stepped in front of him.

Jaebum his teeth. They hadn't spent a single moment together since disembarking. There wasn't reason to wait any longer. He would make Youngjae smile right this instant.

Taking a deep breath in, Jaebum moved towards the spring with newfound confidence but less than a couple of inches from the lip of the pool, he tripped on an uplifted part of the concrete and slammed into the water with as much grace as a broken sailboat.

Heads turned and bodies shifted to stare at a flailing Jaebum.

"Jaebum!" Youngjae rushed over and stepped on Jaebum's leg before he could kick him. "Jaebum, stop. The water's not that deep. You can stand."

Jaebum stopped thrashing about in time to see his sprite flick a strand of wet hair away from his face. "So beautiful," he mumbled.

"Not here," Youngjae hissed.

"Right." Jaebum righted himself and planted his knuckles firm on his hips.

"Yo! Dude. You lost your towel."

Jaebum gazed down at his crotch. Youngjae facepalmed. Yugyeom pursed his lips in a failed attempt at a smile.

Jaebum retrieved the towel and returned to his spot by the boulders. Youngjae shook his head.

"Was that embarrassing for you?" Jaebum asked with downcast eyes. But Youngjae's attention was elsewhere.

"Jaebum. You're burning up."

"Am I that hot?"

"Quit messing around. Why are there tendrils of mist curling up around you?"

"Because the spring is hot."

Youngjae crossed his arms over his chest. "Out. Now."

Dejected, Jaebum pulled himself from the spring. Immediately, a wave of relief crashed over his senses. He had been burning up in there but he wasn't about to admit it to Youngjae.

The two left in a hurry. As soon as he had his clothes back on, Youngjae texted an apology to Yugyeom. He had wanted to say goodbye to him in person but that would have attracted even more unwanted attention.

Yugyeom's phone stayed lit until Youngjae closed the door behind him.

#

Back in their room, Youngjae slid a chair out for Jaebum to sit in but he refused to take it.

"What were you thinking?" Youngjae asked. "If you knew the water was too hot why would you dive in like that?"

Jaebum kept his gaze on the carpeted floor before him.

" your shirt."

Jaebum did as told. When his fingers moved to unclasp the second button, he spoke up. "You didn't see me trip."

"What?"

Jaebum bit down on his inner lip. "You didn't see me trip. I didn't do that to attract attention. I really did fall into the water."

"Oh." Youngjae cringed as his lips popped over the o. The tension in the room made every sound all the more extreme. "I didn't-" Youngjae stopped talking when he heard Jaebum's shirt rustling. He looked up in time to see the fabric slide off his broad shoulders.

Youngjae's breath caught in his throat. With a shaky hand, he reached out to touch Jaebum's skin. "What's happening to your body?"

Jaebum shivered when Youngjae's soft fingertips brushed against his throbbing skin.

Youngjae couldn't fathom the sight before him. Thin lines ran across the length of Jaebum's shoulder blades. They formed a pattern reminiscent of the scales on a fish's flesh. In certain areas, the patches of skin were beginning to peel away.

"Have you been taking your vitamins? The algae?"

"That's not it."

"If your upper half looks like this then what does your lower half look like?"

Jaebum clenched his teeth. "I'm fine. Or I will be."

"Great assurance you've got going there." Youngjae pressed down into one of the nearly invisible lines. Jaebum in a breath. He turned around to face Youngjae who had yet to lose the surprise on his facial features. "I'll be fine. All I need is a soak in the tub." Jaebum headed for the bathroom.

"Why can't I know what's happening to you?"

Despite his unwillingness to disturb Jaebum's privacy, Youngjae ventured after him. His curiosity had won. He needed to know what was wrong with Jaebum.

"Because it's nothing serious," Jaebum said. "I'll be fine. A cold soak is all it takes."

"Why is your skin peeling? Why does it look like this now?"

Jaebum clenched his fists. "It's just what you see, Youngjae. There's nothing more to it."

"There's a reason for everything. What are you afraid of Jaebum?"

"Brush it aside, Youngjae." He lowered himself into the tub.

Youngjae looked aghast. Jaebum had never before spoken to him with such a calm detachedness. Youngjae swallowed the ball of saliva in his throat. Something was wrong but he couldn't be bothered to help those who didn't value his sympathy.

He turned and walked out of the bathroom.

Jaebum watched as Youngjae disappeared beyond his line of sight. As soon as he heard the door close, he knocked the back of his head into the wall behind him. A prolonged sigh escaped his lips.

He hadn't wanted to tell Youngjae because he knew that he would have worried. He didn't want to place any burdens on his sprite's shoulders.

Jaebum closed his eyes and recalled their first meeting. A weak smile played over his lips.

Maybe he was being selfish for concealing the truth. But not this truth. Because this truth was simply that. Fish can't be in hot water or their flesh will burn.

No. It was the other truth. The one that would bring this unimaginable dream to an end.

#

Youngjae stormed off to the party room reserved for them. He nearly stumbled into a female student as he turned the corner. Apologizing profusely, he ducked into the room and felt the tension in his body dissipate when he saw the seat next to Yugyeom empty.

"Hey," Youngjae mumbled as he took his seat.

"Hey," Yugyeom exclaimed. He excused himself from the girl at his side before giving Youngjae his full attention. "What's up?"

"I sent you a text. Did you read it?"

"Of course. Everything okay?"

"Everything's okay. Jaebum's stomach was hurting a little so I told him to stay in and relax until he felt better."

Yugyeom hummed along to Youngjae's confession. When he was done speaking, he pursed his lips. "Quick recovery."

Youngjae furrowed his brows. He turned in the direction Yugyeom was pointing to see Jaebum standing in front of the doorway. A loose silk shirt hugged every inch of his arms and pectorals. He looked as stylish as he had ever seen him in the few weeks since they had been together.

Youngjae frowned and turned back to Yugyeom before Jaebum could catch his eyes in the crowd of students. "Guess he won't listen until he's puking all over the table." Youngjae reached for a bottle of soju. He slapped a cup down before filling the glass up to the brim.

"Woah. Woah. Isn't that a little too much?"

Youngjae gulped the first sip down. The taste scathed his esophagus. He brushed the fire aside with sip after sip until the taste became bearable. "Never. My alcohol tolerance level is high. I used to go out drinking with my dad before..."

Yugyeom reached for a cup. Youngjae shrugged his shoulders. "Before he left."

Yugyeom dipped his head low in affirmation of Youngjae's declaration. "Let's not talk about those things. We're here to have-"

A loud squeal cut through the air around them. Everyone turned to see Eunji swatting at Jaebum's arm with her manicured hand. "Jaebum, you're so silly." She reached over and dipped a strawberry into the pool of white chocolate before her.

Youngjae stood and excused himself from Yugyeom before heading off to the bathroom. He wasn't jealous in the slightest. He was angry that Jaebum had it in him to flirt when he couldn't have told him what was wrong.

Minutes later, Youngjae returned to see everyone had already begun eating dinner. He hurried back to his seat.

Yugyeom leaned in close to Youngjae. Bringing his hand up to his mouth, he whispered, "They have steamed dumplings."

Youngjae smiled. He appreciated Yugyeom's readiness to alleviate his troubles with some humor. "What about the dipping sauces?"

"They're here, too." With a grin on his face, Yugyeom placed the black spinning wheel before Youngjae. Everything from soy sauce to melted cheese graced hi