Makoto is used to the strange rounds of the ocean, the ones that you can hear when have been swimming for a while, eyes squinted, ear canals full of water, the setting sun glowing more than shining at his back. After a while, the roar of the waves almost disappear and becomes white noise, his mind turns blank, too, and there is only peace, the strong beatings of his own heart, the next armful that will cut the density of water; not with violence but with elegance, with grace, as in a dance. Makoto can be doing it for hours.
But although he is used to the bubbling and scratchy sounds that sometimes erupt from the white noise of the waves, he could swear that lately those natural odd sounds resemble voices. All that last week he has been hearing a pitched voice, giggling and murmuring half formed bubbly words, nothing that he could understand, but that has made him curious. He is aware that he is now swimming with his senses sharp and focused on trying to hear again that voice. He needs to know if they are really words, arriving to him by who knows what strange sound distortion, or if all of this is only a trick of his own imagination. Realising this somehow destroys his mood, and he retreats to the narrow shore of the rock island located a mile from the coast. He will climb the sharp rocks and sit down to watch the lights of the harbour. The streetlamps of the promenade will be lit in less than half an hour, according to the position of the sun in the sky, and the small town will look at its best. That will be relaxing, and will make do for the lack of blank mind swimming that Makoto needed today. Although he is a peaceful and easygoing person, sometimes the stress of the final exams, taking care of his little siblings and, above all, trying to decide what he is going to do with his future, with the end of prep school so close now… is too much for him.
The small island is U shaped, and the only accessible part of it is a narrow stony beach in the inner side. He reaches the shore, but he never accomplishes his intention of climbing up the rocks, because at the very moment the pitched voice says, quite clearly now:
"He is quite good at swimming, isn't he?"
Is the voice talking to him? Or about him? Makoto searches around with his eyes, but he can't see anybody in the island. Perhaps at the other side of the rocks, perhaps someone is perched on the outer side facing the ocean (because he has come from the harbour-oriented side of the island, and nobody was there).
"…And what an impressive back! Have you seen those shoulders?"
If the voice is talking with someone, Makoto can't hear any answer. But the one-sided conversation follows up:
"Of course I like him! Because I have EYES!"
And then, at last, Makoto thinks he hears another voice, a grumpy low murmur, with the same bubbly quality as the first voice. After a moment, although he can't understand all the words, he more or less catches that the grumpy voice is accusing the high pitched one of liking everything that moves. The first voice mimics the grumpy words and then giggles. Makoto turns and his gaze sweeps the whole inner island, desperate to find the owners of those voices. The second voice raises a bit his tone, exclaiming:
"No! Wait!"
And suddenly there's a splash directly behind Makoto. When he turns there's a blond head smiling over the surface of the water; it's a kid, a teenage guy perhaps three or four years younger than Makoto. Where has he come from? There wasn't anybody at sight, and Makoto would have heard him if he had approached the island swimming. All that he can see is the boy's face and hair, but is plain obvious that he isn't wearing any diving equipment. The boy is smiling widely, and his eyes are a strange rosy-violet colour. Before Makoto can decide what to say to the strange kid, he realises the boy is checking him blatantly, from head to toes, and his smile turns into a smirk that reaches his eyes with a mischievous glint. OK, add two or three years to his age, Makoto thought, feeling a bit alarmed.
What happens next is still stranger and Makoto finds it difficult to accept what he is seeing: there's a strong splash behind the kid, at the place where his legs and feet should be, and a big fishtail sticks out off the water before plunging again. Only that Makoto's eyes are now focused in the silvery blue glow of the fishtail scales that undulate behind the blonde boy. The same boy who comes closer to him, giggling at his astonishment.
"Don't be afraid…" he says, and it's the pitched voice of before, free of the bubbly quality now that he is out the water and mere inches from Makoto.
The boy's torso is out of the water, too, and Makoto can't help admiring the beauty of the well shaped muscles and the tanned but fair skin. His movements are deliberate and graceful, and he is evidently aware of the effect he is causing on Makoto, because his smile widens and his hand reaches to touch his cheek. Makoto leans back in the rocks, trying to avoid the touch, but his eyes keep pinned in the boy's violet ones, beautiful, alluring eyes… Before he can react and snap out of it, the boy's lips are on his, while that fishtail wriggles and Makoto can't take his eyes off the silvery scales, glowing in the golden weak light of the setting sun. The blonde boy smirks in his kiss, and his tongue pokes Makoto's lips, forcing them to open slightly, while one of his arms winds up Makoto's shoulder and the other hand caresses his cheek. He can't deny that it feels surprisingly good.
While a I shouldn't be doing this thought nudges his mind, Makoto finds himself drawn into the kiss, closing his eyes and embracing the slender but strong body of the boy, inhaling his salty scent, feeling rivulets of water down his own face, probably coming from the boy's wet locks. The boy's hold turns stronger, his hands exploring Makoto's upper body but definitely grabbing him and pulling. His mind takes a while in register that movement. Pulled? Where? Why? He opens his eyes and his body, previously mostly on top of the stony shore, is now inside the water again. The kid is still snogging him, and while it's really pleasurable, Makoto is well aware now of the quick movements of the tail, which is dragging them further from the shore and inside the sea. When he tries to part from the kiss, the boy's mouth latches on to his again. Makoto struggles, starting to panic, seeing that they are now almost out of the protective surrounding of the rocky island, and the young boy is still holding him tight, one hand on his nape and the other around his waist, and meanwhile swimming with his tail, hauling Makoto deeper and deeper into the ocean, until the moment he was dreading arrives, and the half fish boy drags Makoto downwards, his tail dancing around them, and his tongue still savouring every corner of Makoto's mouth.
He tries to keep a cool head and not to panic. He closes his mouth and holds his breath, and pushes the boy's torso from him with all his might. The boy's reaction is just laughing at him, and even down the water Makoto can hear him, can hear his giggle and his words:
"Don't be silly! Why doing that? Aren't you enjoying the kiss?"
And then he tries to join their mouths again. Desperate, knowing that he doesn't have much time left, Makoto opens his mouth to the merman boy, inviting, and sucks all the air he can get from him, before closing his lips again and trying to impulse himself upwards, above the ocean's surface. The boy gasps, breathless, but doesn't let him go.
"Nagisa! That's enough, he's drowning!"
Before Makoto loses the battle to consciousness, he hears the other voice again, the bubbly grumpy one, and the arms that chain him to the water loosen at last.
He awakes to the unpleasant sensation of air entering his mouth by sheer force. He tries to lean back, to move his head, to push the unwelcome source of air, but he ends coughing and finally retching. He curls onto his side and vomits water and more water, feeling his stomach cramp and his lungs aching hard.
But I'm alive.
When he can bear to open his eyes, he almost closes them again at once. There's a pair of incredibly gorgeous eyes mere inches from his, slanted and the same colour of the ocean. Makoto tries to focus on his breath, still laboured and painful, trying to regain an easy rhythm that doesn't make his lungs and his trachea hurt with the effort. He realises he is on the rocky shore again, and the sharp stones are digging in his back, so he sits up, feeling awkward and uncomfortable with the owner of those ocean blue eyes still staring at him with an inquisitive gaze. When he can breathe again, he dares to study the young man in turn: one quick look behind him confirms what he was half expecting; that is, that he is not a young man, but a young merman. Dark locks frame a face as handsome as those eyes, and the bare torso and arms on top of the silver fishtail are slender and delicate, but with defined muscles underneath. All in all, Makoto decides that he's the most beautiful creature he's ever seen.
After what seems ages, and without quitting staring at Makoto, the young merman says:
"Are you alright? I'm very sorry, Nagisa is not evil, he's just young and naughty…"
"I just wanted a kiss!" the pitched voice arrives from behind the dark-haired merman, and when Makoto looks there, he can see again the blonde boy, floating near the shore, smiling sweetly. "I'm sorry, I hope you can forgive me. I didn't intend to almost drown you…"
Makoto raises a hand in an "it's alright" gesture, but a fit of coughing bursts suddenly, and he spends the next couple of minutes coughing and grabbing his aching throat. The blonde merman looks at Makoto with concern, but the other one glares at him and the younger boy finally mutters a goodbye and swims away.
"Better?"
Makoto nods, feeling that he can finally breathe with little to no pain.
"Thank you. My name is Makoto Tachibana, by the way."
He doubts about what social nicety should he use, because pleased to meet you sounds a bit weird in this situation, but he should definitely add something else… Or not, because the gorgeous creature just nods but remains silent. At last, Makoto asks:
"What's your name?"
The merman turns to look into the open waters beyond the rocky island, and Makoto is afraid that he has already fulfilled his curiosity, examining him at his leisure for minutes, and now he has grown tired of him and is ready to go.
"You can call me Haru", the young merman says softly, his voice a mere whisper over the ever present sound of the waves. He turns again to face Makoto, but his face is still blank and faraway, his inquisitive eyes now glowing with an impatient glint. "Come on, I will help you to arrive to the coast."
And he takes Makoto's hand and pulls him to the water again. Makoto feels his limbs numbed, at first, but the cool water soon awakes them, and he thinks he can swim to the town beach on his own without difficulty. But Haru is holding him very close, an arm around his back, keeping him over the water by his armpit, and swimming only with one arm and his strange fish tail.
The sun is almost kissing the horizon, dying the sky in beautiful pink and peach colours, and Makoto looks at the empty beach (it's still springtime, after all), and he decides he doesn't want to say goodbye to Haru so soon. He looks at the merman, at the same time that Haru turns to look at him in the eye, and he is mesmerized again, getting easily lost in the merman's gaze. He barely notices it when Haru stops swimming and simply rests there, floating in the golden light, their eyes locked. He only realises they are not advancing towards the coast anymore when Haru turns to look the sunset.
"We still have a moment before the sky turns dark", the merman whispers. "I'll help you to the beach when the sun sets, because I don't want to risk being seen."
Makoto quickly calculates they have around five minutes before the sun hides completely. Only five minutes more of the sliding touch of smooth skin against his. He can feel his heart pounding madly, and he is usually shy, but won't have the chance to talk to mermen soon again, so he better says something.
"I have heard stories about your kinfolk, but I have never found someone who had actually met you, you know?" he comments. Haru looks at him for a moment, curious again, but he turns to watch the sunset quickly.
"Some of my folk like to come to the rocky island from time to time", he explains. "To… watch the humans, your harbour and the fishermen's boats, and your houses too, I suppose."
"Do you like to watch us?" Makoto asks, curious.
"No."
"Oh". Makoto is disappointed. "I thought you would be curious about us". The merman simply shrugs, without looking at him, and Makoto sighs. "We are not so interesting, after all."
"It's not that, your people are very interesting. It's only that I personally don't like to come here to watch the boats."
Makoto smiles lightly.
"What do you like doing, then?"
"Swimming."
"Mmmmm… But you live in the sea, you must do that all the time. Are there more things to do in the ocean?"
"Not many, now that I think of it", Haru admits, frowning.
"You never grow tired of it?"
The merman turns and looks at Makoto as if he had said a sacrilege.
"Of course not!"
Makoto tries to apologise with his gaze. The sky is mostly dark blue now, the first stars glistening like small diamonds, but the moon is nowhere to be seen. The harbour looks cheerful, with all the lights on and some couples strolling by the promenade, but the beach is dark and empty. Nobody will see them if they swim towards it now, so the moment has arrived. Before Haru can open his mouth to say so, Makoto hurries to say:
"I am, in fact, very curious about your folk. Would you mind to tell me more? I promise I won't tell anything to anybody, you can trust me!"
Haru looks to the sun, a mere inch of yellow light on the horizon, as if meaning they have no time left, but Makoto adds:
"I'm not meaning now, of course, but tomorrow? Or another day. We could meet tomorrow at sunset inside the rocky island again. If… if you… if you are amenable, of course", he stutters a bit in the end, but it's said now, and Makoto feels great for having taken the chance. He feels so great and confident that he smiles widely to Haru, who, in turn, seems more than a bit puzzled, and Makoto can almost swear, although the light now is so weak that he can't properly see it, than Haru is watching him with that inquisitive gaze again. He feels him nod in agreement, and suddenly Haru's arms let them go.
"I think you can arrive to the beach on your own now that you have rested."
"Yes. I'm really grateful, Haru, thank you very much. See you tomorrow?"
He hasn't intended it as a question, but the merman nods again, with any doubt, and Makoto's heart starts pounding fast again, as he turns and swims the short distance to the beach.
When he arrives to the shore, he spends some minutes scrutinizing the horizon, vainly, searching for a silvery glow. He sits on the sand, bracing his knees, looking at the immensity of the dark blue over him, the darkness that is almost sad without a moon, that swallows the black waters of the ocean and the slender creatures that swim beneath the waves.