Hyusung would swim a little too much to the East when she was hungry.
“The fish tastes better there.” – she would say.

As usual, there was a young fisherman trying to catch a fish or two.
As usual, he had a relaxed expression on his face.
The unusual was the fire he had lit.
Maybe he would be eating his fishes there this time…

Hyusung took a look at the baby blue sky before diving to catch her own lunch, and she would have, if not for that unfamiliar delicious smell…

She turned around to look on the shore’s direction.
The usual fisherman was there.
She saw it when he put a fish on a stick and placed it close to the fire. What was he doing?
Not long later, Hyusung smelled that again… that scent… it seemed delicious.
She tried to swim closer, but there was somebody else with the fisherman. Another young man, about his age, just not as tranquil and pleasant.
He insisted on throwing those heavy small bags into the sea.

“Stop throwing these things on the water, Woohyun!” – Hyusung heard the fisherman shout – “You’ll hurt someone!”

“Someone?” –  the one named Woohyun laughed – “Sangguy… You are talking about mermaids, are you not?”

“They’re real…” - Sanggyu replied. A mix of hope, respect and amusement on his voice. Or at least, that had been what Hyosung had captured.

“They’re a tall tale!” – Woohyun laughed, throwing another heavy bag on the sea. That one had gone far…

“When you hurt a mermaid, and she comes after you to eat your legs in revenge, don’t you dare asking me to save you” – Sanggyu spoke. His attention was all for his fishing stick. A relaxed expression on his face.

Hyusung watched him from behind a rock. He was always so sweet… his words were always so relaxed, like the sea is in the early morning. He would always share the little he had with whoever got close…

It had been just too bad that Hyusung had missed the words Sanggyu had said when the other boy threw another heavy bag into the sea.
She was too busy trying not to suffocate.
The damn bag had hit her. It had been right on her right .
It hurt like hell.

The day next, Hyusung had gone to the same place, on the East. Sangyyu was there and, good, that brat was not with him.
Her still hurt, and the damage had been worse than she had thought.
There was a bruise that had been caused by the small sharp rocks in the bag, and a purple mark that went from under her to her ribs. The small heavy bags were filled with wet sand, sharp rocks and small balls made of steel.

She observed from far.
She was hungry… all fishes had tasted bad ever since she had smelled that… that delicious unfamiliar smell.

Hyusung watched it from far, from behind the rocks, when Sanggyu lit a small fire. There weren’t any fishes yet, but, as she had heard him say: “God helps who help themselves”

Sanggyu… sweet fisherman.
He was always so tranquil and pleasant… so sweet… he would always share the little he had with whoever got close.

Today, though, it would be different, Hyusung noticed.. Her sweet fisherman had only one very small fish.

“GIVE IT BACK!” – he shouted when a mischievous dove stole his fish, flying to the rocks, standing there as if in some kind of provocation.

Sanggyu ran after it, determined to get his lunch back, but the closer he got, the further the dove flew.

It had now reached the tallest of the rocks, but Sanggyu was so focused on getting back what he had worked so hard to get, that he had not noticed it.

He ran as fast as he could, and as obvious as it may sound, the clumsy fisherman fell on the water, sinking right away.

Hyusung watched it from far. The hurt close to her made it difficult to swim.
She waited for the fisherman to go to the surface, but it didn’t happen.
When enough time had passed, enough for a human to drown, Hyusung swam on his direction.

“Clumsy fisherman! Can’t you swim?!”