About a month into Jin's new life in the castle, two things became very apparent: 1) Jieun and Eudes were not lying about him being included in the family. He had a private tutor who taught him for at least two hours a day about life underwater and royal customs that he had to know. It was overwhelming at first but he found that he had a thing for the history of sea folk which led to Jin spending many nights in the castle's library. Around the same time, Jin found himself eating lunch with Y/n almost every day, the two often going on walks around the castle gardens afterwards to ward off midday naps.

Which was where he was now, swimming next to Y/n in utter silence, their shoulders occasionally brushing. It wasn't always this quiet but as of late, he has had a much harder time talking with Y/n. At first he didn't realize why his heart was fluttering and his tongue feeling like it was tied for no reason, but now he knows. Jin has developed romantic feelings for Y/n. During this walk she was also quiet but for a much different reason: Jin had also told her that Namjoon asked him to become his royal assistant.

Jin didn't know how to react and it seemed as if Y/n didn't either.

"I think I know why I am so apprehensive about this offer." Y/n spoke after almost five minutes of them slowly walking around the garden.

"Why?" Jin asked, glancing up at Y/n as he did. It was a mistake though because the second he did, his heart started beating faster.

"It is a ton of work for any sea person... but you have only been a sea person for a month. I mean, you say you have tons of knowledge of transactions and buildings but that is in the human world, not our world. You have only had one month of tutoring for stuff in our world too." She sighed and stopped swimming, turning to face Jin.

"Don't get me wrong, Jin. You're very smart and you are learning so much so quickly. It would be a lot for anyone and you. There are just so many nuances that one needs to be aware of when running a whole civilization that you just don't know yet. Maybe in like ten or so years you might be able to help, but right now? I don't know."

Jin nodded, taking a deep breath before speaking, "I agree. It is a ton, but I wouldn't be running the country. Namjoon said that right now he works more as an apprentice and he said that he would love me to join him in the work so that when he becomes king, I can help run the country. I could make mistakes because I would have both Namjoon and his parents to watch what I do.

I am scared though." Jin started, looking out towards the homes outside of the castle grounds. He hasn't left the grounds yet. The were distant and scary looking, "What if they see me as an outsider? What if it is too much work? I..." I don't want to lose time with you for this opportunity, "Would I ever be qualified? What if I do really mess up and can't stay here anymore. What if-"

"Jin, stop worrying. You seem to have thought this through well. I highly doubt that Namjoon would have asked if he didn't think you could do the job." Y/n went in to hug Jin tight, "I could see you thriving in a job like that. I just hope that you don't get too overworked. You do so much work already that I could easily see you forgetting to eat or sleep." Jin's heart was beating furiously at this point, so much so that he was worried Y/n could feel it and if she could, she didn't say a thing about it.

Jin couldn't remember if he hugged Y/n back or not but he did know that when she moved out of the hug, Jin felt cold. He wanted her in his arms again. He didn't voice it though, the two of them awkwardly walking a little more before Jin left to go to his next tutor session. If only Jin was able to fully focus on the session, his tutor not being able to let Jin be alone to work because every time Jin had a minute to think his mind would run back to his hug with Y/n. It was frustrating to say the least as Jin was looking forward to the lesson all week and he most definitely saw his tutor sigh multiple times when Jin had to be pulled back to the present. At one point, it was so bad that Jin was fairly positive he spent thirty minutes staring at the sutures in one of the books before his tutor brought him back to the lesson at hand.

Eventually, Jin got out of the session and made his way straight to Namjoon's office. Even if he wasn't focusing much, Jin wanted to accept Namjoon's offer and start working on that training as soon as possible. It was eight at night and Jin knew that many of the residents were often finishing dinner at this time, but he also knew that Namjoon often skipped dinner to work in his office on stuff. Namjoon's office was one of the few rooms Jin has seen in a more public area of the castle that had actual doors separating it from halls. They were made of some sort of sand stone and were much heavier than Jin originally thought they would be. On them it seemed as if someone had taken the time to carve intricate designs onto them that at some point or another was eroded away into faint ghosts of what once was.

Jin stood in front of the door for almost five minutes, his heart beating anxiously at telling Namjoon about accepting his offer. His mind was already made up and yet the idea of accepting the offer was more scary than actually making up his mind. It was like the next part of his like was teetering towards stepping over the line and starting in this moment and Jin felt too frozen to properly step towards. What if this was a mistake? In the end, he was forced into action by the door opening.

"Oh! Hi Jin! I didn't expect to see you today." Namjoon said, his voice an octave higher in shock and eyebrows raised, "What can I do for you?"

"Uhh... I... Wanted to say that I would love to accept your offer." Jin said with a coughed, awkwardly rubbing his neck, "Of becoming your royal assistant."

A large smile grew on Namjoon's face, "I am glad. I think we will be a really good team. If you want to wait in my... our office for me to return from the bathroom, I would love to talk about what I was hoping what us working together could look like for now."

"O-Ok!" Jin stuttered out, sliding into... his and Namjoon's office. He jumped as the door slammed shut behind Namjoon. Turning around to see the closed door, Jin took the time to look through the office. One wall was lined with file cabinets, some of which were overflowing to the point that Jin was worried about the kelp pages breaking. Namjoon's desk was no better, overflowing with even more paperwork and books, his drawers partially open and full of lord knows what. On the adjacent wall was a large and bookshelf that seemed to be overcrowded as well. The only thing that wasn't overcrowded was a window that looked out onto the gardens and the town. Jin couldn't see much out of it now but he could only see a few places that must have a lot of nightlife as there were glowing sections in the town.

"I am back. As you see, we will need to rearrange the office so that another desk can easily fit and everything will still flow well. How much work do you want to do while starting off?" Namjoon said as soon as he slid back into the office. Jin turned around to see Namjoon starting to clean up his office.

"Uhh... I think right now, I would like to take on smaller roles. I still don't know too much about sea culture and wouldn't want to do anything too crazy yet." Jin said, watching Namjoon flounder around the office.

"Of course. I am not even allowed to do much yet but we can start you with smaller work and maybe also some community work so that people start getting used to you and your presence. How does that sound?" Namjoon asked, stopping his movements to give a solid look around the room. 

"I like the sound of that." Jin said with a sigh, "Is there anything I can do to help out around here now?" 

Namjoon seemed to think a little before speaking, "Not really, no. Maybe come back in two days and we can start working together. I want to reorganize the office to accommodate two people before you're here for long periods of time with me. Thank you for accepting though. It means a ton to me to know that someone is willing to help me out." Namjoon was now leading Jin out of the office, gently opening the door. Right behind the door though was Y/n who looked shocked to see the door open. As soon as Jin saw Y/n, his heart started beating faster, the room he was standing in suddenly too small for him. He wanted to hug her. He wanted to kiss her.

He wanted to date her. 

A deep blush rose onto his face at that thought. It made sense but he didn't like the idea of that. What if she, as a resident nurse and sea witch, wasn't allowed to date? What if-

"Oh! Glad I caught you two here! I was just checking to see if Jin agreed on working with you. Oh, well that and... there are some important things we need to talk about, Namjoon." Y/n said, her eyes widening as she said important. 

What was it that was so important? What if they were dating? Jealousy bubbled in his stomach at that thought before he shook his head and spoke, "Well, I agreed to working with Namjoon but I was just hit with this wave of exhaustion and I think I am going to get some early rest tonight. Have a good conversation." Jin said, swimming past Y/n and down the hall. He couldn't even appreciate the wonderful architecture and art he passed this time around, his mind swimming with the epiphany of him liking Y/n. What would he do if she was with Namjoon?... Jin didn't know. He knew that that idea left a bitter taste in his mouth. 

At one point or another during his night, Jin must have fallen asleep as one moment he was thinking about his crush on Y/n and the next it was morning and he needed to prepare for his tutor session. Before long, Jin found himself thinking up a plan to confess to Y/n, his hand drawing crazy schemes of hosting a party and confessing in a speech to her. It would never happen. It was just so much work and would most likely embarrass Jin more than it would benefit him. Besides, it took Jin two years to confess to his ex, he could never... 

"Oh! Hi Jin! Crazy seeing you here!" Y/n's voice rang through the library, causing Jin to jump, his pen falling. He fumbled to catch it only failing slightly and feeling the sharp pain of it slicing his finger. 

"Oh! Jin! Are you ok? I can get a wrap for your finger!" Y/n said, quickly coming to Jin's side as his red blood slowly left his finger and floated in the water.

"I... should be ok." Jin said, putting his finger in his mouth and on it gently in an attempt to stop the throbbing pain he was now feeling. Soon enough, the throbbing went away and he took his finger from his mouth, Y/n quickly reaching up to inspect the cut.

"Where did the cut go?" She asked, looking at Jin with scrunched eyebrows, "I saw the blood. I can still smell the blood... but there is most definitely no cut on your finger now."

Jin brought his finger closer to see for himself and didn't see any cut himself, "I don't know. There was most definitely blood. I tasted it." Jin said slowly, looking over his whole hand to see if there was any blood there. 

"Jin... the fact that you have a silver tail is magical in itself... but I think you might have some magical powers." Y/n spoke slowly, "I am going to talk to Eudes about this." 

Y/n got up to leave, Jin reaching out to stop her, "I... Before you go, would you want to talk a little?" 

"Sure, Jin. I always have time to talk to you. How are you today?" She asked with a smile, quickly sitting down next to Jin. 

He felt a light flush rise up with him and started to play with the kelp paper, "I am doing decent... apart from you scaring me!" Jin said with a laugh. Confusion filled him when he saw Y/n's eyes drifting down to the kelp paper he was playing with.

"That's an interesting drawing..." She started, "Can I see it better?" 

It was the paper that he drew his crazy scheme of confessing to her. Jin paled and pulled the paper closer to him in an attempt to hide it from Y/n's prying eyes.

"Awww. Is little Jinnie embarrassed of a drawing he made?" Y/n cooed, leaning forwards to grab the kelp paper. 

"Ahhh... Please don't look." Jin said but by then it was too late, she had already grabbed the paper and was now looking intently at the drawing Jin had made. His heart was beating rapidly as he tried to read Y/n's body. Was she shocked? Disgusted? Mortified? Jin had no idea and that made her even more worried. "Wow..." Y/n started, her face growing a few shades of pink, "You wanted to confess to me? Like because you had a crush on me?" "Yeah." Jin sighed, looking down, "I am sorry. I also never meant to confess to you that way... or this way." 

"Oh, Jin. Please don't ever apologize for how you feel. I... I think I might like you too." Y/n whispered, setting the paper down and looking Jin in the eyes. At this, Jin's heart rate sped up and for once he was stilled into doing nothing. His mind was moving a mile a minute but all he could do was sit there and stare at Y/n with his jaw slack. There was no way that he didn't look like a shell shocked idiot at that moment but he didn't care one bit. 

"Jin? Are you ok?" Y/n asked, waving her hands in front of Jin's face with a giggle, her blush deepening as she did so, "Wow... I must have shocked you a lot." 

Slowly, Jin nodded, his mind refocusing to Y/n, "I really wasn't expecting to hear that from you." 

"Why? You're a wonderful person, Jin. I had actually been planning on confessing to you for a little while... I was just waiting for the right time." Y/n said, a small furrow growing between her brows.

"If I am a wonderful person then you are a goddess." Jin said before thinking, immediately blushing, "Sorry. It just slipped out." 

Y/n giggled again, "Don't apologize... so if you like me and I like you... would you want to go on a date sometime... maybe tomorrow morning?" 

"I... yeah, but you will have to plan it. I know nothing about the area we are in." Jin said with a shy grumble at the end, looking down. 

"I can do that. Now, I really should talk to Eudes about your powers. See you for our midday walk, if you're still up for it that is." Y/n said, getting up to leave but not turning around even as she slowly left the library. 

"I can do that." Jin whispered, feeling even more butterflies grow in his stomach. How was he supposed to act around Y/n now? Was he supposed to act the same way? More cuddly? More macho? Could he even be more macho? He wasn't some crazy masculine man. Did he have much strength as a siren? Jin sighed and looked down at the desk he was working at. The paper with his drawing on it was staring at Jin and he felt the need to tear it up or throw it away or do something with it. It was dangerous. It was very dangerous. The thing is though, Jin was a sentimental man and even though one part of him wanted to tear it to shreds and make sure no one could possibly find it again, he simply folded it up and slid into one of the books he was studying. He could hide it in his room later. 

Taking a deep breath in through his gills, Jin tried to relax. He needed to focus on studying. If he was going to be the King's apprentice at one point, he needed to know as much information as possible and if he was possibly going to be loved by the citizens, he needed to have an understanding on what is classified as respectful or not. 

Somehow unbeknownst to him, Jin managed to focus on preparing for his tutor session, his mind slowly filling up with knowledge on an old treaty made between Sirens and another race of underwater dwellers. The treaty marked the end of almost a century of fighting. Soon enough, Jin had another piece of kelp paper filled with notes and questions for his tutor. Once he finished the chapter in his book on the treaty, Jin set his pen down and looked out at the library. His eyes were tired and his mind felt like mush. He would need to be ready for even more studying with his tutor but for now, all Jin wanted to do was relax his eyes and eat something. Looking over at the clock, Jin noticed that while he missed the large lunch that the royal family, his family, often ate, he still had time to go into the kitchen and snag something before he walked with Y/n. 

Slowly, as if Jin was doing something he wasn't supposed to do (he totally could get food from the kitchen though) Jin made his way towards the private section of the castle and turned down the first hall. Staff were bustling in this area, quickly moving past Jin with dirty dishes and full dishes for the next course of the lunch meal. For a moment, Jin simply sat there and stared at the many people who were moving around and making the castle work as it normally did. For a moment, he was struck by how little Jin had thought of the staff working in the castle. He never really thought of the staff when he was a child, but he also often found himself making a ruckus for them to worry about while also doing their job. Soon enough though, he shook himself from his stupor and made his way into the pantry to grab a handful of seaweed and clams. It wouldn't be much, but it could hold him over until he made it to dinner. He slid into a seat at a large and empty table that was also in the hall. From what he knew of this area, many of the staff ate their meals here or out in one of the nearby gardens. It was a nice area, the ceilings low and arching, a simple painting done in a red pigment gracing the walls with calming imagery of nature. It might be his favorite part of the castle he had seen so far, his mind once again turning to the staff. He hoped they were treated well and if they weren't, Jin would change that. 

The food itself was on the bland side, the seaweed and clams unseasoned as he was too lazy to, and the clams themselves on the harder side to eat as they weren't cooked. Jin stomached it though and after that quickly left to drop some of his supplies off in his room. He didn't want to have anything he didn't need with him. He simply wanted to spend time with Y/n and enjoy it without anything else. As soon as he made it to his room, he practically threw his stuff onto his bed before swimming quickly to Y/n's office. He was sure that anyone who passed him would think that he was a madman, but he didn't care. He was so ready for his daily walk with Y/n. Maybe they'd hold hands. Maybe they'd kiss.

Jin blushed at that thought, slowing as he neared Y/n's office. He didn't want to seem like he practically sprinted her-- even though he did. He wanted to seem like he kept his cool at the thought of being with Y/n. 

Just as he made it to the closed door of her office, the door swung open to reveal Y/n standing there and smiling broadly. 

"I take it you're ready for the walk, Jin?" She asked with a giggle, gently moving a piece of her hair behind her ear. It didn't stay there for long, the gently moving water seemed to have a mind of its own. 

"So ready." Jin said with a smile, holding his hand out to her to take without even thinking. At that she blushed lightly and grabbed his hand, the two slowly making their way to the garden. 

"How was the rest of your morning?" She asked as the two exited the castle and wandered around the garden.

"It was... tiring. My head is so full of the... I forget the tready's name actually. See? My brain is fried." Jin said slowly, looking over at Y/n with a large smile as he did, "I am glad to start my afternoon by talking with you though." 

"Aww. Jin you are way to kind to me." Y/n said with a sigh, looking to Jin as she spoke.

"You deserve all the generosity in the world, Y/n. How was your morning?"

By now the two had stopped next to a vibrant patch of flowers, "It was an amazing morning. Everything seemed to go my way. Including getting to plan and reserve stuff for our date tomorrow." Y/n said with a large smile, she grabbed Jin's other hand and was gently swinging the two. 

"Oh? Will you tell me anything about it?" Jin asked, tugging her closer to him as he spoke, a small smile growing on his face. 

"I am thinking no, but I could be swayed to say a little something." She swam closer to Jin as well, one hand releasing Jin's to wrap around his shoulders.

"Yeah? How could I sway you?" Jin asked, now moving in to hug her fully. Enjoying Y/n's body heat warming him up. 

Y/n hummed gently, the sound reverberating against Jin's chest as she started to sway the two, "I think just staying like this might sway me to give a small hint." 

Jin laughed and nodded, a full on goofy smile gracing his lips as he squeezed Y/n closer to him. The two must have stayed like that for two or so minutes before Y/n leaded back, her hands sliding down Jin's chest and eventually pushing against to lean further back and look Jin in the eye. Jin mourned the loss of her warmth but let her completely untangle from the embrace.

"I have decided to tell you a little something... well... yeah... I wanted to ask you this tomorrow but... I figured that now would be just as good of a time to ask. Jin, will you be my boyfriend or whatever you land folk call a monogamous relationship?" Y/n asked, a small and uneven smile spreading on her lips as she continued to talk. 

"I would love to, Y/n." Jin responded as Y/n pulled him into a hug once again, a happy laugh reverberating through her. He loved this. He loved having Y/n so close and so happy. He could stay here for a lifetime and if all went well between him and Y/n, he very likely will. In that moment, Jin felt like he could take on anything and everything that came his way. He wouldn't have an easy time fully adjusting, but with Y/n and his new family by his side, Jin sure could handle it.