Author notes : Sooo it's already a week after Kyungsoo enlistment y'all 😣 I'm sorry for the delay but coming up to the last 'scene' of this chapter was tough , also military stuff: it's hard to find accurate info of S.Korea so I used some from U.S army and 'recreated' some other to suit my story. Real korean salutes : Joong Seong! - Loyalty!  Dan Gyeol! - Unity! Solidarity!/ Jongdae & Minseok arrived!! YOU MIGHT GUESS WHO COME NEXT ? 😄

CH 2

Saturday June 1st

Four years ago, before college, Kyungsoo’s astigmatism of 3.5 diopters case was term to be revised after he would undergo lasik surgery, so he could pass the physical exam after finished. Now he just use his black rimmed glasses to rest his sight while reading or using his phone. When he showed interest in the south coast University projects they thought his brilliants academics would serve well as the new biologist specialist in the base. 

Fulfil you military service as a specialist has its perks. A four years degree can guarantee you a short 3 weeks basic training instruction on a military school camp,a little less hard than the regular, then there’s the chance to work in your profession while accomplishing your service. 

But there are drawbacks too. You’re due to serve for 24 months instead of the regular recruits 18 months. In many countries you get a very mild military instruction and also a decent salary, but not in South Korea. Constricts specialists only get small commissions here. Also, the daily training is more thorough. 

Kyungsoo didn’t expect them to make him sweat blood,tho. He could bare for a month with some pain in the , or in every single part of his body, -honestly, he wasn’t a gym fan or anything-  if only later things could get ‘lighter’. 

But in this base things are different. Being a small recint that scarcely reaches a total of eighty people, every new recruit here enters at the lowest rank : private, even the specialists, and there’s only one way to earn anything here : working your off. 

So much if they want to rise in rank, as Corporal Park Chanyeol (26) does. 

He is Kyungsoo’s squad leader now, ten months older than him, promoted on the 7th month of his service, right after the previous Corporal of the squad just finished his time last month, and before Kyungsoo’s…’incident’.  

He’s an easy going giant, an A+ soldier with the highest physical results in the base. 

With a huge derp handicap however.

“You know...if you tell me I could reduce it to 20 laps. The instructor is not watching anymore.” 

Kyungsoo hates that condescending tone. He’s about to lose his decorum after doing fifty flexings alternating knees with a tree trunk piece over his shoulders. He’s now in his 10th lap of crawling on a sopping mud field thirty meters long,with his bare hands while carrying same tree trunk tied to his feet.  

It’s still his 5th day on this hell, 10 repetitions added per day. And each passing day he’s more determined to not let down his guard, cause he’s that kind of guy. He has discipline and can put up with whatever life brings on him with stoicism. And class. 

But mostly because, NO HE WON’T LOSE TO PARK CHANYEOL!  

Pride is a good incentive in this live or die proof, he notices.

Chanyeol acknowledges it too, and seems more impressed by day with Kyungsoo’s stamina. He can’t even laugh at that man’s stubbornness for not try to send him, at least, a murdering glance.

Kyungsoo remembers the first time he entered the dorm, backpack on his shoulder, walking behind the instructor. 

“Hey Genies, new brain cells for you.” 

There are four squads in each dorm of the this base, each formed by four to six recruits. A doctor was the previous soldier occupying his assigned bed, which together with the Corporal, a lawyer, completed a squad of five. But he was really impressed by the tall guy standing in attention with the other soldiers at the end of the room. 

“Private Do Kyungsoo, Squad 12, bed 2. Joong Seong!” He presented himself in the most formal way he could. 

“Dang gyeol!” The whole squad responded, and the first one to approach him was the leader with a warm smile and an offered hand.

“Corporal Yoon Doojoon, your squad leader. Welcome.” 

The guy nicely excused himself out of there having something to do, commending the others to present themselves.

“Whoohooo, finally we have the missing piece.” Said lively the loudest of them while doing a little dance with his arms in the air and then ing a finger inside a circle on his other hand.

“You mean, thankfully someone to keep up with Chanyeol’s nightly endless yackety-yak?”  This guy seemed more lay down.

“Hey,hey don’t corrupt the squishy ears with your nonsenses.” The tall guy said, running theatrically to him, covering his ears and actually squishing Kyungsoo’s head on his chest. Cause yes, that was Kyungsoo’s actual height.

“Listen. I’m the only first class private here, from who you will only learn a thing. You know like... climbing a coconut tree when you feel really hungry? Believe me, THAT will happen. So, meet your fun provider.” The guy was tight-lip smiling proudly, like a teacher giving the high school certificate to his student.

Kyungsoo was not that impressed anymore.

But strangely enough, they made a good bond since day 1, mainly talking about animals and music, given that the giant uses to singsong around and play the guitar,which Kyungsoo likes.

The giant used to partner him in his weekly mission around before assuming the new Corporal responsibilities, but keeps their weekly trip to Mokpo city- where he’s from, driving the oldest crankiest van from all the vehicles on the base, as if he were in a Formula One race. 

“We need to save time.”

“For what? “ Kyungsoo asks impatiently every times he protests for the high speed.

“For new experiences.”

“And I want to save my life. Please.” 

Kyungsoo knows already that Chanyeol has a certain kink on bothering his zen, so the dumb likes to end up throwing a laugh fit at his tart act. 

Kyungsoo feels like to strangle him sometimes, but then he knows he can’t, not only because it’s his superior but because that giant is always helping him after all.

The city trips are also assigned with several errands from the base, even if Chanyeol’s occurrences always find time. Like when he took the shorter to that old second hand store he claims as his favorite. That’s when Kyungsoo started to check on bicycles. The thing is that the ty old van’s engine, that only Chanyeol knows how to start on, sometimes doesn’t want to, and more than once Kyungsoo’s had to suffer in another ty old bicycle that was stored in the base not longer used.

The tall guy felt sorry for Kyungsoo, but more for himself for not been able to keep learning more from his nerdy companion.

~~Thursday June 6th ~~

Ten days of Kyungsoo’s penitence, and Chanyeol is going around the base after the afternoon training, happily humming a tune while looking for Kyungsoo, who someone points is in the kitchen. 

He jumps like 3 meters behind the kitchen wall after stepping in, seeing Kyungsoo sharpening a large machete. Methodically.

After a few seconds of a one-eye creepily watching behind the wall, the tall needs to asks.“Are you planning to quarter Sgt. Kim’s not so juicy body for lunch?”

Kyungsoo keeps checking the edge with his fingers. Carefully.

“Not today.” He deadpans looking thoroughly at the entire big knife. “I have better bodies in mind.”

The giant does this questioning crazy eyes of him.

“Not mine I hope. Since there’s nothing better around here…I mean, I’m THE Corporal” he ends up mumbling.

Kyungsoo sends him a devilish smirk. “You’d be surprised.”

Chanyeol does another of his antics : the supersonic head twist, as if he were thinking. Nope, he does not want to think in bodies. 

“Chicken.”  the biologist then begins to chop head after head of an mount of those birds clean bodies with fearful precision. “ Stew.” Then continues with the legs. Then the other body parts. “What other thing can I chop to add more flavor?” Kyungsoo turns around looking at his comrade with a tight lip smile while pointing ‘cutely’ at his cheek with the tip of the machete.

The superior soldier looks not so melted when he automatically hides his jewels with his hands. “I bring good news.”

The private  -yes Sgt. Kim relegated him to be called just ‘private’ until he proves his ‘specialist’ rank with some hard training results,The Nerve- shows a distrustful interest when he continues chopping.

“Have you seen the new bridge, right?”

“Unfortunately only from afar.” He looks at Chanyeol again when the guy doesn’t say anything.

His fellow has that funny zero-lips smile.

“Not anymore.”

Ok, that got his full attention. Kyungsoo places the machete in the counter and turns his full body, waiting. Chanyeol gets closer now that the potential butcher is disarmed. 

“Well, seems like you have earned your personal Godfather.” Chanyeol sounds a little jealous, perhaps. 

The private raises an eyebrow and drop his lips.

“Junmyeon seemed worried about you last week. Uhm... Sorry I had to tell him about the siberian musk deer, since that seems like a great discovery, right? and he was really interested. Hey, I’m too. Those long fangs look dangerous but cute.”  Chanyeol waits for a reaction but he only gets a dry ‘mhm’ mumbled inside a tongued cheek. 

“So, guess what, he’s coming over this Wednesday, the day your calvary it’s over.”

“What for?”  Kyungsoo frowns.

“Oh no, I won’t tell you.”  The giant shows him a ridiculously indignant pout and marches away like a steadfast tin soldier.  Kyungsoo follows the action a little fed up when he sees one eye of his stupid Corporal reappear behind the wall. 

“I will tell you if you tell me.” Yep, Kyungsoo has not trusted him yet with the strange episode of his last escapade. The giant’s hurt.

The private blinks as slow as he can emanate annoyance, and the giant eye disappears.  

And appears.  “A trip.” And disappears.

And appears. “Genies squad.”  And disappears.

And appears.  “To the islands.”  Chanyeol sees the new shine on Kyungsoo’s eyes now and waits for his longed answer. 

The short guy just turns around and continues his kitchen tasks.

“You are the most ungrateful human being!” Chanyeol tries to sound really mad but somehow Kyungsoo knows he’s not, when the guy finally disappears for good. 

While chopping various vegetables he starts to think in the possibilities. Crossing the bridge. He has been thinking about it many times. How much new material could there be. 

The waters are deeper in the outer islands... 

Watching the vanishing marks on the arm -he took off his uniform shirt and is wearing only the white singlet- they look cured, but the strange white translucency remains.

The cooker enters the big kitchen and Kyungsoo resumes his task to then go to the showers before supper.

“Wowww, boy is getting thiiick!” 

There are two other members on the “Genies Squad” -as everybody calls them. 

It’s been 6 months there for Kim Jongdae, 26 y.o, the lively chemical, eight months olders than Kyungsoo. He graduated two years ago and was doing some personal projects before the call. 

“Chicks be like ‘mmm daddyyy.” The other guy, who rubbed down a finger over his own chest is Minseok, 29, a brilliant geologist been there for a year now. According with his A+ test result he could be a sergeant already. He declined asking to remain in the private rank alleging he doesn’t want more responsibilities cause he needs all his spare time to upgrade his studies in order to find a better job when he goes out, since the one he had before in a small company was not good pay. 

These two knew each other’s faces before coming here; they studied in the Ulsan Institute of Science. They are also here as specialists and seem to have already what you could call ‘a special bond’.

He likes them both, for several reasons.

“Ahhhh, I need a strong dongsaeng that scrubs my back.” Jongdae is kind but likes skinship too much.

Kyungsoo rolls his eyes. “Technically, we are the same age right now. Get your suga’ daddy over there.”

“Meanie!” The chemical slaps the shorter’s booty before each one get on their own shower stall. 

“What are those samples in the tiny freezer, by the way? Normally you don’t use it. Are you hiding a piece of the siberian musk deer there?” Minseok is also gentle and more quiet, but sometimes his tongue is too sharp. A wise man you must be minded of, Kyungsoo would say. 

Both fools laugh at the idea.

He pours some wash gel over his head as the water runs down his body and closes his eyes. The coconut fragrance brings images of waves washing pearly skin across his mind.  

“Hiding what?”  Kyungsoo jumps internally hearing the sudden close voice of their Corporal in the shower at his right.

He keeps his eyes close to not show any change.“ Maybe. Nothing.”

~~ Sunday June 9th ~~

Seems like Sundays are slow everywhere in this planet. 

In the base is a cleaning day for everyone who doesn’t get a holyday. It soothes Kyungsoo’s heart when he puts order in things, sweeping dust away, making objects look like new again.  

His squad is doing their job in an old storage hut at the back end of the base, a huge metallic container where all kinds of items are saved, a variety of supplies like : food & kitchen stuff, uniforms & boots, cleaning & personal hygiene, office,even the trashy old bicycle is there, waiting for a tire replacement, and Kyungsoo’s ‘new’ one too. 

Chanyeol is downloading stacked boxes from two high piles. 

“This is our task for today guys. Sgt. Kim wants these to set a library in the mess hall. ‘Time to leave your phones and start using other parts of your brains’. ” He imitates the right high tone of their superior, which is the norm in this base everytime someone speaks of their chief.  “We have to clasificate them the best we can, put them numbers for register, etc.”

They start first mounting the improvised shelves in the mess hall that consist in disused plastic boxes as support legs for wooden boards, then seat in one of the big tables to check book by book.

Kyungsoo is checking a pile, when the cover of the book that Jongdae is leafing through in front of him catches his eye. He snatches it from his hands.

“You like me a lot, right? That’s why you’re so rude with me?” the slanted eyes guy asks him, sweetly teasing with his cutest face holded by a hand.

“Pt!”

They are allowed to take books to the dorms before the lights out at 22:00 hs. He’s in his bed at 21:30 hs with said book in his hands.

He the picture in the cover that looks like a drawing made by a child. The author just have the initials K.S. Must be a pseudonym.

It’s actually the story of a boy who went to the islands with his parents and is dragged by a current to the open sea. The book letters edition are smaller than usual, like an old typewriters style, and the light is dim in the bedroom…

He hears the strange whimpering and puts himself on guard. 

Following the sound, he’s is getting closer to the shore. The scene before his eyes stunned him backwards.

In a tiny sandbar at the northwestern tip of Aphaedo island, that forms a sort of peninsula, where the bottom of the sea is a bit deeper than the rest of the coast, bordering a small forest where he was making his weekly tour, a figure is lying on its side.

He can’t even tell if it’s human, but it’s clearly injured, considering the blood he got to see running from his hip, staining the water.

He peeks his head out again but the creature feels his presence and raises his head.

It’s not a face that someone can forget. Ever.

Its eyes flash a strange luminescence just like the body. 

He hides quickly again. But he knows he needs to see more, closer. He sneaks down through a small slope and this time the creature sees him when he approaches slowly. 

Kyungsoo simply can’t believe his eyes. This is a dream, right?

He realizes it’s not when taking one step closer the creature gives him a fierce look of threat. Automatically, he raise his hands in peace sign.

The creature raises his torso leaning on his hands, Ksoo does not know if preparing to flee or for a frontal attack.

But something in its face changes, becomes fragile, human. The creature looks at him scared, then to the horizon. A shark fin is barely visible there.

Yep, that’s a bite on the hip- or what looks like one- just where its body ends up being something human and starts to be a fish. The indigo blue and violet colors fade from the tail all the way to its torso, that actually,

looks like any other man’s torso, but incredible perfectly toned and ...not s. 

The skin is madly glowing with multi-tones now that the soldier approaches.

He discards the idea of some lunatic wearing a makeup costume or even the dream idea, a moment later when he can’t help to drive his hand towards that wound -in part still numb with the wonder/ the scientific curiosity of wanting to check the realness of it all / and a strange eagerness to touch he can’t manage to pinpoint. The creature, fast as light, swepts his hand away furiously, leaving five scratches on the inside of his forearm, since he had his shirt sleeves rolled up. Kyungsoo notices the pearly long nails after jolting an ‘ouch’. 

The creature looks at the scratches and then at the guy with sorrow. Its eyes are incredibly beautiful, not a defined tone in them. 

He tries to hand-sign he’s going to get something to cure the wound.

He came back bringing his backpack and a plastic box. He takes out a gauze tissue and puts some herbs ointment on it that it’s known for stop bleedings. He points the creature’s wound, who lets him slowly put the thing over it, even if it hiss after.

Kyungsoo stays kneeled there, watching the creature let its guard down, resting its upper body again on the sand, the speed of its breaths a bit agitated yet, its tail half-submerged on the shore while the gentle surf covers and discovers his body, its bluish tone starting to fade somehow into a pearly tan.

He can now observe the beauty in front of him calmly. The eyes look at his again. The creature signal him to put some cure in his forearm too.

He feels himself smiling, subtly, but doesn’t know if his still shocked state shows it.

The scratches are not bleeding, just stinging. But he puts some ointment over it anyway.

The sun is almost touching the edge of the sea. 

The creature drags its body further up to the sand so his tail is no more touching the water. Kyungsoo follows and seats beside it. 

He’s tired. And wrecked. So he lies down on his back.

The creature looks calm now. Sleeping?

The summer brise is starting to get warmer these days. He turns on his side looking at the sleeping beautiful face...

He does not know where he’s. He feels a sensation on his hand touching something strange, softer than silk. A warm air ghosting his face. And another silky touch on his lips. It’s smells like the sea, the sun and herbs in a parfum.  Could this be heaven? 

He might be wrong but what he does feel now is a wet drop on his cheek.

He opens his eyes, drowsy. 

A face is almost glued to his. The creature face. It has its eyes closed. But they open when the soldier’s face begins to detach. 

They look at each other for few seconds. Kyungsoo see the changes now. The dried dark hair is falling around the face, not too long, not too short.  The iris are dark too, lips juicy red, no more bluish skin, but a golden shine all over it. Yes, all over his body. A human body. With human legs. 

That’s when Kyungsoo sees his hand over the hip that was once injured. There’s no tissue, just healed tanned skin.

The now turned into man follows the sight and freaks out. He crawls away, horrified.

Kyungsoo have heard of some fables, but never, ever could believe them. He doesn’t have time to think. 

The man is trying to stand up but fails. His legs can’t do their job. So he’s even more scared by second, and just ends up dragging himself to the water. Just few seconds later the legs disappear and the tail appears back.  

Kyungsoo does not want him to disappear. He comes near the water but realizes his condition. He’s a recruit in a uniform. He looks at his watch. It’s morning already. He needs to go back to the base, quickly.

But he’s still there, watching the creature that is also watching him from a distance in the water.

He finally decides to signal seven fingers pointing at the sun.

“I’ll be back in seven days!” he screams...

“Kyungsoo”

He doesn’t know who’s talking now.

But someone is shaking his arm.  

“Kyungsoo-yah!”

He knows that voice. It’s Park Chanyeol. Patting his face.

His eyes flip open as fast as his heart is racing.

“Did you take some pill last night or what?”

He seats on his bed and glances at his squad already half dressing, and at the instructor walking to them with two young guys behind him.

“We have new mates.”