Myth
Home“Gather round, good folks! Behold a sight that is so amazing and terrifying at the same time. Are you all prepared to face a monster straight from the depths of the dark ocean?”
Jinki could not control the snort he most gracefully made at that statement. He couldn’t help it though. One would call it the exaggeration of the truth to make something seem more interesting than it really was, but one could only go so far. As if to prove the balding, aging show master wrong, Taemin came swimming right up to the glass wall that was facing the general direction of where Jinki was standing, smiling and waving with enthusiasm to him once he found Jinki among the crowd. Jinki waved back, swinging the snacks he had in his hands as a promise of treats to be shared after the show. Taemin’s face lit up even brighter, if that was possible, before it was his cue to swim up to the surface.
“It has keen eyes that searches for prey for it to devour-“ the man continued, keeping his audience hooked with his mystifying tone. “Its teeth are so sharp that it could tear through your flesh like paper, shredding it into pieces before you could even think of screaming. Argh!”
The man snapped at a little girl before him, making her jump back in fright. But that was about the only person the man actually managed to scare, something Jinki found incredibly hilarious. The rest of the performance went flawlessly like it did during every rehearsal; besides the fact that the scare factor was lost the moment Taemin had flashed his smile.
It didn’t matter to Jinki, though. He liked Taemin’s performance more this way, when he looked like he was actually enjoying it, even though he could never figure out what the other’s true thoughts were.
In the years that have passed, people at the circus started growing more and more fearful of the Mermaid Boy. It wasn’t anything Taemin did though. It was just that his canines had been going through the most abnormal growth that it now resembled fangs rather than teeth. No one knew why, but it was scary nonetheless. There were just so many things that were not understood when it came to Taemin, like how did he carry out basic human excretory functions with his legs fused or how the lines on his throat had sunken over time. Or why he had grown so fond of the water that he preferred the aquarium to his own caravan now.
No one bothered delving deeper, satisfied with the explanation of Taemin truly being of mermaid origins. Jinki himself had stopped being curious after countless nights of losing sleep over the matter.
However, what was scary to the servant boys and the other performers, meant money to the ring master. The Mermaid Boy act was changed into the Shark Boy act, the glass bowl was exchanged for a bigger aquarium as Taemin had outgrown it and the performance was changed up a little.
It was a brilliant change in tactics for it brought in more audience than ever. Fear, it seemed, was more attractive than just magic. Taemin never really changed though, besides the more aggressive show he had to put on for the crowd. He always had the same smile for Jinki, the same stubbornness to be woken up in the morning, the same dislike for cold, hard bread. Jinki would know. He was now more of Taemin’s personal assistant than a servant boy.
And it was the best thing that could have happened to him. Life in the circus wasn’t that dull anymore. Every day spent with the boy was a day well spent. They played silly games together, joked around and made fun of the show master behind his back. Jonghyun used to join in on the fun, but Taemin’s fangs began to scare even him away. He chose to keep his distance and was the one who was constantly reminding Jinki to be careful around Taemin. Jinki didn’t see the danger though.
How could this boy ever hurt him? He had grown into Jinki’s closest friends, the one that always listened to Jinki’s ranting. The one that cheered Jinki up whenever he was scolded by one of the ‘superiors’, the method he used being splashes of water at Jinki’s face until he was too pissed off to think about anything else. The one that annoyed Jinki whenever he refused to leave the water without resisting. (it was the only place he could move on his own.) Taemin was the only one that made Jinki’s life in the circus colourful.
But things were not always bright and cheery. Master Kangwoo, the master of the show never liked Jinki being too close to Taemin. He was always giving Jinki errands to be away from the other. He never really managed to get Jinki to work for someone else though. The ring master did not have the time to be dealing with petty things like that and so Master Kangwoo’s request always went ignored. Whenever Jinki had to go away for a bit, he made sure to get his work done fast because he did not trust the master with Taemin alone. Not after all that Jinki had seen of how he used to train Taemin.
The sounds of the cracking whips still gave Jinki nightmares till this day.
“Jinki! Come here!” the angry voice of Master Kangwoo boomed in the now empty tent, just as the last audience left. Jinki knew he was in trouble the moment he saw the man grasping onto the end of his cane tightly, swinging it wildly as he cussed at Taemin. Jinki climbed up to the aquarium, bracing himself for the onslaught of angry insults.
And it came just as expected, barraging like bullets over him. He was being scolded for distracting Taemin and ‘ruining’ the show. Taemin simply stared up at Jinki from where he was sitting on the edge of the pool behind the man, lower lip jutted out in a pout unconsciously. Taemin did that when he was upset, for himself or for Jinki.
“No dinner for you two! I’ll tell the cook to make sure you two die of hunger tonight!” the man finally finished off, climbing (stomping) down the stairs. Jinki waited till he was out of earshot before he turned to Taemin with a conniving smile.
“We won’t die of hunger, Minnie. ‘CAUSE I’VE GOT SNACKS!!!” Jinki pulled the hotdog he brought from inside his pocket. It might have been a little disfigured from being squeezed in a small space but it made Taemin happy anyway.
Jinki handed the food over to the boy, knowing that he must be starving by now after all that vigorous exercise in water. He grabbed Taemin’s kit from the side of the stage, grabbing the towel before climbing back up to the aquarium’s ledge. He dried Taemin up while the other ate away happily, refusing a bite when Taemin offered it. Taemin was all skin and bones as it is, he couldn’t afford going to sleep without dinner.
“He mean. I don’t like him. Always scolding…” Taemin said, mouth full. It was amazing how much progress he’d made with saying these simple phrases, considering how he had seemed like he did not know how to talk at all in the beginning. It was another one of those mysteries with Taemin. How could someone born with the ability to talk, not know how to?
What could the place that Taemin came from have been like, for him to be this way?
A couple of days later, the circus had already packed up and moved to a new town as scheduled. This was Jinki’s least favourite town of all, but also one that he sometimes felt grateful towards. This was the place they had first discovered Taemin. Whether that was a blessing or curse, Jinki did not know, but he was glad nonetheless that Taemin had him now to protect him.
As if it was a bad omen for returning to such an unfortunate place like this, Taemin had fallen ill once again after a very long time, just moments after arriving. And when he gets sick, he turns into this giant baby that only Jinki could ever manage. Sometimes. There were times when Taemin would simply choose to be difficult. Like now, as he stared Jinki down in a fierce glare-off to decide if Taemin should leave the aquarium or not.
“Taeminnie! I’ve already informed the ring master about you being sick. If you still insist on making yourself sicker before the show begins, then I’m sure he’d…. you know, do something!” Jinki said, kneeling on the edge of the aquarium. Taemin swam away from him, splashing water at him.
“Don’t want!” he exclaimed before diving in deeper where Jinki could not reach and pull him out. Well, it was a matter of time anyways. Taemin may be able to hold his breath underwater long, but he can’t forever.
“Fine! I’ll just wait here… Till you’re all pruned up and can’t even feel your fingers…” Jinki said, sitting down and crossing his legs. He lifted his nose high in the air, just for effect.
“Oi, boy! Get down from there!”
Jinki was almost startled into falling forward into the water. He turned around to find the ring master standing near the aquarium with a classy-looking man in a suit, briefcase, top hat and all. Jinki immediately scrambled onto his feet and rushed down.
“Now, go do something else. The doctor’s gonna need some time…” the tall man ordered, eyes set on Taemin who was in turn, eyeing the three of them questioningly through the glass.
Jinki glimpsed at the man, thinking why the ring master was being so kind suddenly so as to have a real physician here for Taemin.
“But sir, I must-“
“LEAVE BOY!” he bellowed, making Jinki jump a little before he was scampering away, throwing Taemin worried glances as he left. The ring master’s personal bodyguards kept their eyes on him till he had really left the tent.
Bummed about being kicked out like that and feeling left out of the loop, Jinki sulked his way to the caravan. That was how Jonghyun found him; being mad at the dust on his feet.
“Yah, Jinki! I heard there’s an upper-class in Taemin’s tent…”
“It’s a doctor…”
“Ooooohhh… The old man’s heart is growing mellow for his people…”
Jinki wanted so badly to scoff at that. Jonghyun took notice of his bad mood and immediately started trying to cheer him up. It didn’t work. Jonghyun was just being his annoying self again today.
“Okay… How about…-“ Jonghyun glanced around, coming closer to Jinki’s ear, “-we sneak out?”, he finished loudly.
Jinki pushed him away, looking around in panic. No one was around, thankfully.
“Why don’t you announce it to the world, Jjong?!” Jinki whispered harshly.
“What? I used my inside voice!” Jonghyun continued, using the complete opposite of his ‘inside’ voice. The suggestion may have come from a preposterous person, but the suggestion itself wasn’t that bad. So Jinki and Jonghyun ended up sneaking behind the guard’s backs and somehow managed slipping out of the circus grounds and into the stream of people in the town just outside. It wasn’t that hard actually, not when you were experts like Jinki and Jonghyun at this breaking out business.
They usually had a game plan for whenever they snuck out like this. They were to set certain goals for their trip and accomplish these goals within the frame of time it would take for someone to notice them gone. Jonghyun’s eyes were always set on the girls and Jinki’s on food. Anything he could get for a bargain, it would be Jinki’s treat for the day.
It was an ordinary town, this one. Jinki’s love-hate relationship with this place was the only thing that made it a little special. By the end of the day, Jinki had only discovered a new type of snacks that he had never seen before and gotten to know the love of the people here for seafood, as rare a treat as that could be for them here since the sea was far, far away. Jonghyun, on the other hand, made an acquaintance with a local teenage girl, at whom he kept smiling like an idiot. Jinki didn’t want to interrupt the lovefest, but he got attracted by the shop the girl seemed to working at.
“Hey there, that’s my frined over there. Why don’t you go over and chat him up? He’s too shy to approach you first…” Jinki said nonchalantly, not even paying her proper attention but still making the girl blush as he walked around her to get into the shop.
There were plenty of fishing-related equipments in the shop, ranging from traditional to modern and everything in between. Jinki could recognize the fishing rods. And that was about it. It had seemed interesting from outside, but Jinki guessed wrong. Nothing much to see here.
“Can I interest you into buying something, young man?” an old lay appeared, multiple layers of gold chains hanging around her neck and a ring on each and every one of her fingers. She walked with difficulty but did not use a walking stick. She approached Jinki from behind her counter, fingers clasped in front of her and moving in this wave pattern that was very distracting.
“Ugghh… No, no thank you. Just…just looking around…” Jinki said, smiling sheepishly as he backed away, surprised when he was caught by his wrist and pulled forward with a very wide grin on the lady’s face.
“Come on, young man… I have many gadgets to interest a young bloke like you…Do you like fishing a lot? If go fishing often, I’ve got these long-lasting rods made out of all light-weight and robust materials. They have reels-“
“I’m sorry. I don’t like fishing…” Jinki said, trying to escape the death grip around his wrist.
“Really? I have the perfect remedy. The beginner’s kit, comes complete with a manual on how to use the-“
“I don’t even have the money.”
That seemed to catch the woman’s attention.
“Oh,” she said drily, releasing Jinki’s hand and walking away with a distasteful expression on her face. Jinki almost sighed in relief, turning to run away while he had the chance when his eyes fell on the signboard of the shop behind the counter. A mermaid’s outline, made out of neon light bulbs, weeping just two drops of tears onto the words ‘The Slain Sirens.’
“That’s an odd name for a shop that sells fishing equipments,” Jinki observed loudly.
“Well, that’s my granddaddy’s legacy right there. Got a problem?” The old woman cocked an eyebrow. Jinki shook his head immediately.
“Legacy? What kind of legacy?” Jinki asked, unable to take his eyes off of the mermaid’s outline, though it was obscure and amateur.
The woman snorted in pride (and very unattractively) first before she answered.
“My granddaddy killed all those nasty little fish freaks in the lake and brought this place peace and safety. Damn right I’m gonna use his legacy to make my own legacy…”
Jinki bit his lip thoughtfully.
“But isn’t that just a myth? Mermaids, I mean…” Jinki said, being distracted by the opening door.
“Jinki, let’s go. We’re late…” Jonghyun said, seeming to be in a hurry, which was unlike him. Jinki simply nodded, turning to follow him, awkwardly glancing over his shoulder at the woman to see her staring after him strangely.
“Myth, boy? Have you been to the circus? Visit it. You’ll be surprised…”
Jinki stopped abruptly at that. Surely, she can’t be-
“Jinki hurry up!” Jonghyun murmured, going behind him to physically guide him out. They both half-ran away from the place as the girl from earlier called after Jonghyun.
“God, that girl was suffocating me! I think she just wanted money from me…” Jonghyun began complaining once they had safely snuck back in. Jinki would have replied with something along the lines of ‘like grandma, like granddaughter.’ But he had something else on his mind. A weird itch to know the truth, sparked by the old woman’s statement.
So he ditched Jonghyun in the middle of his ranting, running right past the guards as if he had been a good boy the whole day, just running errands inside the circus grounds. He saw that some of the older guys were having trouble with getting the Big Top up since the wind was really strong. He also came across the magician and the clown going at each other’s throats again over ‘best tent spot’. Jinki only stopped to say hi to Kimsoo before he was on his way again.
Reaching Taemin’s tent, it came to Jinki’s immediate attention that no one was going in or out of the tent. Taemin should have been training then. And the other boys should have been finishing up with the fastening the tent to the ground. But no one was moving about the place at all. Jinki took the hint and decided to go around to the back and try to sneak in behind the bleachers.
Jinki hid himself well and listened carefully to the conversation that he could barely hear from here, even though it really was very quiet.
“…a medical condition called Sirenomelia. Very rare condition but not unseen…” the doctor was saying.
“Well, that’s great and all. But what do you need from him?” the ring master questioned, impatient.
“Nothing. He is just an ordinary human with a curable condition. It takes an extensive operation but it’s plausible. You are oppressing him from his rights by subjecting him to this…”
Jinki listened in awe. So the woman had been wrong after all. What the doctor was saying, it was something he had hoped someone would say for him all those years ago. It was incredible to see someone who saw Taemin as a fellow human and hear that Taemin could have an ordinary life. That he was not just a freak of nature. Did this mean that Taemin would finally be free? Should Jinki be happy for that? Why isn’t he then?
“Good doctor, you must be delusional if you think I’d give up one of my biggest assets to you!” the ring master said in his famous passive-aggressive voice. No one dared challenge that tone.
“Ah, but is that asset worth the lawsuits for violation of human rights that you’ll be objected to? Not to mention that you’ve already had so many brush-offs with the law already…”
No one, except this doctor apparently. He left the ring master speechless for a few moments. Much to Jinki’s shock, It was the ring master that first gave in and walked away, showing his rage against the flap of the tent as he stomped his way out. Jinki didn’t hear the doctor leave for a few more minutes. Only after that did he finally leave his hiding place and approach the aquarium.
Taemin was lying on his back by the edge of the water. He seemed drained of energy and extremely pale, even by his standards. He attempted a small smile to Jinki when he saw him. Jinki smiled back, kneeling down beside Taemin and sliding him gently into the water, letting Taemin float on the surface with his head resting on Jinki’s lap. Taemin has always said that it made him feel better when in contact with water.
“What did they say, Taemin-ah?” Jinki asked, truly curious. Taemin seemed to struggle for words for a bit. Jinki allowed him some time, sliding the boy even further into the water so that he was almost all under water, except he was not. A few minutes later, Taemin was off rambling in his limited vocabulary about everything the doctor and the ring master had said.
There was a possibility that Taemin would be leaving. Soon, if that doctor’s immense interest in Taemin was any giveaway. It would be for his own good. Taemin would be able to escape this horrible life and lead one that’s much more rewarding. As a completely normal human being too. It was something all the poor boys here prayed for. Jinki should have been elated for Taemin.
But it didn’t feel right letting go. Who would be there to protect Taemin? Who would care for him? He was weak on his own, vulnerable to the cruelty of the world all by himself. He needed Jinki to be there for him.
What would he do without Jinki? Or rather, what would Jinki do without Taemin?
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