A/N: Sadly, Inktober has come to an end and what better way to send it off than with a ficlet from another word prompt that you guys suggested on Tumblr? This is yet another little drabble based off of Ringochuu's (Tumblr) art and the word of the day is 'Peek'. This isn't very long because I'm behind on my homework for school and I couldn't spend much time on finishing up the rest of it so the other part will show up as a new chapter. Sorry! Hopefully I can add that chapter soon!

Full Story Summary: In this AU,Whale Island is not only famous for its marine resources but as a destination that attracts merchants from all over the region for the many trading opportunities that it offers. Gon lives on this remote island with his aunt Mito, who is the only parent he's ever known since his dad, Ging, who travels extensively, left him with her soon after he was born. With this much responsibility, Mito takes caring for him seriously and as a result is very strict with his lessons. Gon, on the other hand is easily distracted and has recently become enamored with a strange merchant that has been visiting their island as of late. What happens next is the story of how Gon met a mysterious man by the name of Hisoka...

Chapter References: Hunter x Hunter 2011 anime episode 90. Math isn't Gon's best subject...

NB.: Time - 3pm Location - Whale Island...

"He's here again," Gon whispered, his trembling voice betraying his excitement. Neither wanting to face his feelings nor give more meaning to his actions than he was willing to admit to, had him convincing himself that he was crouching by the window of the Stockhouse, like he did every week, watching the strange merchant only because he was intrigued.

"He's quite handsome...I think."

Gon squinted, trying to angle his body so that he could get a better look at his face without revealing his location.

"This is useless..."

Huffing when his new position didn't allow him to see much more than the side of the man's face, he settled for letting his gaze travel down to the redhead's fancy clothes; from his colourful, intricately embroidered waistcoat to his slim-fitting pants and tall, garish boots. The redhead looked more like the prince of an opulent small island than a trader. Many merchants were wealthy due to the rich trading opportunities provided by the region, but something about this man felt different and oddly magnetic. "Is he really a merchant?" Gon pondered absently with a sneaky little smile. What he was doing made him feel as if he was on some kind of secret mission that was both exciting and mysterious, but he could not shake the feeling that what he was doing was also wrong.

Mito-san, I'm sorry.

A weighted sigh left his lips.

Despite having made up his mind to do this, to be sneaking around like he was and not doing his math lessons like his aunt Mito had instructed him to, was causing a bit of guilt to seep into his consciousness.

He did not want to disappoint his aunt, or cause her any trouble and make her sad, but he was beginning to realize that after three months of sneaking around to observe the same merchant every time he came to trade, that his behavior was becoming...

"Addictive..." Gon whispered into the cool afternoon breeze that floated into the room to carry the scent of the ocean and the cries of the nearby seagulls to him. "I'm addicted to everything about him."

His cheeks flushed at that admission.

Ah.

It was the first time that he had admitted this to himself and with the merchant standing not too far away, it felt as if he had just awkwardly confessed his feelings to the man.

"What am I saying?!" Gon grumbled under his breath when a bit of awareness seeped into his overheated brain. "I don't even know him!"

But I can get to know him...

"..."

Groaning, Gon shook his head to eliminate the sound of his heart pounding in his ears, reminding himself for the umpteenth time that what he was doing was not bad at all because he had decided long ago that spying on the man was a useful venture and not something he was doing for himself.

"If I happen to like looking at him, that's just a side effect...it's not why I'm here."

"Right...?"

"Yeah...I'm not curious about him."

Gon shifted a bit as the merchant looked briefly in his general direction to speak with one of the workers standing idly by near the window. "This isn't about him...I'm here again only 'cause I need to make sure that the workers are doing their job properly...y-yeah that's it..."

His heart remained troubled though because he hated that he had to lie to his aunt in order to get away from his lessons. It could not be helped though, he had been on the verge of pulling his hair out from having to sit still and do a plethora of math questions when suddenly one of their workers had come in to tell his aunt that the fruit merchant had arrived. At that news, his mood had immediately brightened up and as soon as the worker left, he had made up a quick excuse about having a tummy ache and needing to use the bathroom.

That was two hours ago.

Aunt Mito is probably looking for me right now, he thought without a hint of worry in his voice as his eyes squinted, trying to get a better look as the man he was carefully watching shifted, turning his head to speak to one of the workmen who was unloading the cargo from a nearby pirogue. It was clear that he was too focused on the man to worry about getting disciplined by his aunt. If she finds me, I'll just explain to her that I needed to do this to—

At that moment, as if sensing his ardent appraisal, the redheaded merchant looked over at the low window sharply and their eyes met briefly before Gon slipped quickly away from his hiding place and to the side. There, against the solid, yet worn Birchwood panels, he pressed his back, breathing heavily as if he had just been caught in the act of taking something that did not belong to him.

He listened attentively for any sound that would indicate that the man was coming his way, but instead of the sound of footsteps, all he heard above the pounding of his heart was the crying seagulls and the foamy water lapping at the docks as the workers bustled about noisily.

Damn...

Sliding down the wall to sit on the dusty floor, Gon gave no thought to the fact that he was ruining his good pair of shorts or that he'd get an earful from his aunt for doing so. Instead, he lowered his face into his hands and groaned. "I can't believe that I let him catch me looking at him..."

Three months I've been coming here to look at him and I let him catch me this time...

Urgh.

But maybe...he did not see me...maybe he was looking at something behind me... A little voice in his head whispered and with that hopeful thought, Gon got on his knees and crouched low, making sure to remain underneath the window, before slowly raising his head so that he could peek out again over the docks.

As soon as he looked out over the ledge though, his eyes met a decidedly curious golden stare and his heart skipped a beat. In that instant, Gon felt as if he could not look away, as if he was a prisoner held captive by those hypnotic eyes and his heart thumped with anticipation, overwhelmed by the uncertainty of what was about to take place.

What would the man do? Would he leave the workers behind and come to that Stockhouse to confront him? Or, would he turn away as if they weren't currently staring at each other?

Gon bit into his bottom lip, realizing that he actually wanted the man to come to him.

He wanted the merchant to speak to him, he wanted to be wrapped up in that man's bountiful intensity and to receive the attention he had been giving away to the workers prior to becoming aware of his presence.

He wanted to experience all of him.

This is weird...

Ah... I should do something before he leaves, I should—

Before either of them could make a move though, one of the workers came up to the redhead and whispered something, to which the man finally broke their eye contact to address.

After speaking with the worker, the merchant looked back to the window to give Gon a sexy smirk before heading back to his pirogue to leave.

He's leaving?!

"Wait...!" Gon started, but stopped when he noticed that most of the workers were still bustling about, stacking cargo and writing up notices. He realized then that if he were to call out to the merchant, he'd have nothing to say to him and no reason to explain why he was trying to talk to him.

It would be awkward.

"…"

Maybe next time... Gon finally acquiesced, his fingers biting into the solid wood of the window sill as he remained in that spot for a while, crouching on the floor, long after the redhead had left and the workers had dissipated, carrying the bartered cargo up from the dock.

The Stockhouse that he was in held only non-perishable items so no one came in to disturb him as they went off to store the goods and as a result, Gon ended up sitting there for a long time, his eyes glued in the direction where the man's pirogue had disappeared. Eventually, as the evening drew closer, the passage of time was marked by a retiring sun that slowly started to slip beneath the horizon and a sky that was bathed in a rustic glow as the sea shone like a million diamonds.

And Gon, instead of feeling concerned that it was getting late, only exhaled dreamily, muttering absently, "He...looked at me. He's even more handsome than I expected him to be..."

Gon knew that he should be hurrying back to finish his lessons, but he could not move and was unsure if this was because he was more frozen by the fact that he had finally seen the merchant's face or if he was simply still consumed by his lingering excitement.

Maybe it was both.

Either way, since he could not (or did not want to) move, he settled for looking out at the sparkling water that had carried the strange merchant back to where he had come from. A body of water that he had never crossed before, that was an indomitable foe that he hoped to one day conquer.

"The ocean," Gon mumbled as he gripped the window ledge harder. "I wonder what the other side of that horizon looks like..."

Most likely, the merchant either lived on the main continent that he had read so much about or one of the nearby islands, but there was no way to tell for sure unless he asked some of the adults who had actually left Whale Island.

Maybe Aunt Mito knows where he's from since we buy his goods.

Maybe she's even been there!

He paused.

No. I can't ask her...I can't ask anyone without making them suspicious about why I'm asking.

But I want to...no I need to know more about him.

That place, where he comes from...maybe it's a nice place?

Is it like Whale Island, or is it more like one of those cities Mito-san has told me stories about?

I wonder if I could visit?

Gon blushed hard as he thought of being shown around the place where the merchant lived, meeting his friends and spending time with him.

Does he have relatives?

Maybe I can meet them too...

But what if he's married?

Gon's lips turned downward.

I hope he isn't married and—

His blush intensified. What am I thinking?! I don't even know his name or where he's from! We've never even spoken and I want to meet his family?!

And...why is it so important whether he's married or not?!

Why do I care?!

I...

No...

His hands left the rough windowsill to press themselves into his cheeks.

My face is so hot...

Why have I been thinking about him so much?!

Why do I want to know more about him?

Why do I miss him whenever he leaves?

Why do I want to see more of him?! To talk to him, to know what his voice is like?

But...maybe this feeling—he brought one hand to his chest—maybe that man wants the same of me?

In the midst of his feverish thoughts, the memory of the sexy smirk that had been directed at him when he was caught peeking suddenly invaded his mind and Gon's heart started beating faster as if the redhead's touch had been imprinted on it.

He...smiled at me...

So maybe he really does want to get to know me too?

But he doesn't know who I am...so maybe he was just being friendly but... I couldn't have been imagining things...

He was definitely interested!

Caught up in his thoughts and thoroughly red faced as a result, Gon was startled when the door to the stockroom suddenly flew open.

Gasping in surprise, he scrambled up from the floor and turned around to face the newcomer. "Um... I—"

"What are you doing here, young master?" The worker, dressed in worn slacks and a T-shirt soiled from carrying heavy cargo, asked when he observed Gon in the corner near the window. "Your aunt has been looking—"

"Gon Freecs!" A woman's voice bellowed, cutting into the workman's sentence as she stepped into the room. Her orange hair caught the fading sunlight pouring in through the door and glinted like brass as she shook her head. "You're in big trouble young man!"

AN: 03/11/16 I vote for Gon to get a beating. If I was Aunt Mito, I'd have walked with my willow switch -.- Books before boys Gon. Books before boys...

Thank you so much for reading! I will have the next little chapter up very soon, which is another word prompt from Ringochuu. I just have to get a head start on my school assignments first so that my brain doesn't self-destruct from the anxiety caused by rapidly approaching deadlines and also so that I don't get a beating with my own willow switch for putting boys (yaoi) before books ^^;

Anyway, enough of my silliness... I hope you guys had a Happy Halloween!

Take care :*