Idol(s): Zhang Yi Xing / Lay of EXO / EXO-M

Genre: Family

Inspiration: I was asked by leebyungiee to write a (1) comedy (2) Lay one shot with (3) dolphins and (4) alpacas. I got 50% of the requested criteria: Lay and dolphins.

Synopsis: Yi Xing helps his younger brother smile again.

Individual Story Link: Dolphin's Charm

Note: This story may contain some Korean terms. If so, their definitions are provided (to the best of my knowledge) when they first appear. You can hover over the hyperlink for a definition if you’re on a desktop computer or click on the link to be directed to a Glossary of Korean Terms if you’re on other devices.

~//~

It was a full house at the Beijing Aquarium's daily dolphin show. Families, couples, and friends were all seated on the bleachers, ready for the highly anticipated performance to begin. And when the grand lights placed strategically around the water to give the water a stage-like feeling to signify the beginning of the show, the crowd responded with applause and cheers.

The dolphins swam out into the open with their trainers holding on to their fins. Among them, Zhang Yi Xing surfaced to the water, waving at the audience and smiling, his signature single dimple creating an indentation in his right cheek. His eyes scanned for his younger brother, frowning slightly when his eyes locked with the dark brown eyes of his target, who sat in the far left corner: alone, estranged, and cheerless.

But Yi Xing couldn't worry about that right now; he had a show to do. So with professionalism, he swam to the edge of the pool and joined the rest of his fellow trainers on land. Using fish as treats, he got the dolphins to do numerous flips, like jumping through hoops, "walking on water", and various other jaw-dropping feats. They ended the performance by allowing a volunteer from the audience to interact with one of the dolphins.

It was Yi Xing's turn that day to clean up after the show. After putting away all the props used during the performance, he guided the dolphins back to their tanks and performed a routine checkup. By the time he returned to the front, only his brother sat in the back corner bleachers, shuffling his feet to create random shapes on the ground as he waited for his older brother.

"Yi Cheng!" Yi Xing called out to the small boy. He waved grandly to the small boy, motioning for him to come down to the poolside. Yi Cheng slowly stood up and made his way down. "Did you enjoy the show?" Yi Xing asked him once he was within hearing distance.

"It's the same thing every time, Gēgē," Yi Cheng answered with a shrug.

Yi Xing crossed his arms and frowned in disappointment. "We added a new trick though. The one where the dolphins were in a circle doing "Ring around the Rosie" with their fins reaching out to each other. Today was the first time we showed that."

Yi Cheng stared back with a bored pout. "Gēgē, can we go home now?"

Yi Xing sighed to himself at his younger brother's lackluster response. However, it was to be expected; Yi Cheng never enjoyed coming to the aquarium after school on days that their mother had to work and couldn't be home to watch him, and he especially disliked watching the dolphin show every time he did have to come. Yi Cheng disliked big fish, even though Yi Xing had tried many times to explain that dolphins weren't fish, they were mammals.

It didn't matter to Yi Cheng though, who hated all forms of sea life after a traumatizing incident when he was five. He had been playing in the ocean and dared to venture further into the water when a floating ball of his was pulled away by the waves. But the five-year-old Yi Cheng wasn't scared. He had his floaters on his arms to help keep him afloat and boldly kicked towards the toy gliding on the water. Except, the floating ball suddenly plunged under water and Yi Cheng stopped swimming, confused and lost at what he had just witnessed, until he saw the snout of a shark appear where his ball had been only moments ago. Yi Cheng screamed at the top of his lungs as he tried to swim away with all his might, which proved difficult with his small legs.

Luckily, Yi Xing was nearby and saw the heart-stopping sight. With a rush of adrenaline, he swam towards his younger brother, praying that he got to him before the shark. Fortunately, he did, but not before the shark lunged for Yi Cheng's foot, leaving him with a large cut that left a scar to this day, three years later. Ever since then, Yi Cheng never went to the ocean and found any and all animals resembling sharks terrifying.

To this day, Yi Cheng still had nightmares from time to time of the shark attacking him. His overall demeanor had also became noticeably morose; it was rare to see him happy, which was a shame since like his older brother, Yi Cheng also had a single dimple when he smiled, although his was on his left cheek instead of his right, and was only visible when he grinned broadly or laughed heartily. In fact, the two had often been referred to as the "dimple brothers" because of the mirror-image indentations on their cheeks, but that name hadn't been used in a long while, especially since Yi Cheng seldom had anything but a frown or blank expression on his face.

Still, Yi Xing wasn't going to give up on his younger brother. He would make Yi Cheng face his fear of sea life and show him the charm and beauty he witnessed every day of the extraordinary creatures, particularly the dolphins. So without warning, Yi Xing grabbed hold of his younger brother's hand and dragged him towards the "Employee Only" section.

"Gēgē, I want to go home," Yi Cheng demanded, having had enough of the fishy smell of the restricted area as his older brother continued to drag him to an unknown location.

Yi Xing ignored his pleas and only let go of Yi Cheng's hand when they arrived in an area with a glass window looking into a pool. "Yi Cheng, I brought you here because I want you to meet someone." He pointed towards the window where a lone dolphin swam around. "She's beautiful, isn't she?" Yi Xing asked with a soft smile. Yi Cheng's stoic expression remained as he watched the dolphin swimming around in the tank. "I found her stranded on shore about a month ago. Her tail had been bitten by a shark, and she would have died if I didn't rescue her in time."

Hearing that the dolphin had a similar experience as him, Yi Cheng's expression softened and he stared at the dolphin with more intrigue, taking note of the painful-looking, large gash on her tail that reminded him of his own scar on his foot. "What's her name?" he softly asked.

"Yín," Yi Xing answered.

"Yín," Yi Cheng repeated to himself. It was a fitting name for the beautiful creature. It symbolized water, femininity, softness, and this animal encompassed all that and more.

"Would you like to meet her?" Yi Xing asked. Yi Cheng looked hesitant to get any closer than he already was. "I promise, she won't hurt you," Yi Xing assured. Yi Cheng slowly nodded his head and followed his brother up the steps to the top of the tank.

Yi Xing whistled and the dolphin obediently followed the familiar sound of her savior. He slowly held out his hand and the dolphin tapped it with her nose in a friendly gesture before Yi Xing petted her head, making her click her tongue in pleasure.

"Do you want to know how she recognizes me?" Yi Xing asked.

"From your scent?" Yi Cheng guessed, trying to apply his knowledge of cats and dogs on the dolphin. His brother shook his head. "Your whistle?" he guessed again. Yi Xing continued to shake his head. "I don't know then."

Yi Xing smiled and pointed to his right cheek. "By my dimple," he answered. Yi Cheng furrowed his eyebrow in disbelief. "Here, I'll show you." Yi Xing leaned forward and gave the dolphin his left cheek. Yín shook her head at him, splashing water around as she did. Yi Xing turned his head to reveal his right cheek where his dimple was visible. Yin whistled and pressed her snout on his cheek, giving him a kiss. "See," Yi Xing said with a big grin. "You want to try?"

Yi Cheng was hesitant to touch the animal, let alone let its mouth near him. "Don't worry, as long as she can see your dimple, she'll like you," Yi Xing said, pressing his brother's left cheek where his dimple would have been.

Yi Cheng gulped and slowly leaned forward, giving the dolphin his left cheek. His lips quivered slightly as he forced a smile until his dimple was visible. Like she had done for Yi Xing, Yín clicked and whistled in excitement as she pressed her beak against his cheek. Yi Cheng giggled at the ticklish feeling, making his dimple more prominent.

Next to him, Yi Xing smiled at his younger brother; it was the first time he had seen him laugh like that in a long while, and he had missed that dimple greatly. But he had a feeling that he would be seeing it more often from now on.

~//~

Author's Note

This one shot has made me realize I fail at doing requests, which may just be an indication of my limited imagination -_-;

December 19, 2012, 12:03 AM