Jamie is vibrating with excitement. He can't help it, though the way Mason is rubbing his back does calm him down a little.
"Deep breaths, Darling," Mason says, kissing Jamie's shoulder. "You'll need to breathe steadily when you have the tank on, so try and match my breaths." He guides Jamie's hand to rest flat against his chest, and Jamie turns away from the edge of the boat to face him.
"I know, but… sharks. We're going to be in the water with sharks. This is the most exciting thing to ever happen- not counting our wedding, obviously."
Mason smiles and places his hand on Jamie's, their fingers lining up and slotting together. Their wedding rings touching. "Obviously."
Their wedding was a week ago, something Jamie is still buzzing over; he is married to Mason, the love of his life. Mason is his husband. Jamie doesn't think he'll ever get tired of that word. Now they're on their honeymoon in the Maldives, and Jamie is having the time of his life with his favourite person.
Mason was the one to suggest coming here, and Jamie was fully onboard, not even bothering to suggest going anywhere else. He loved the idea of endless clear skies and beautiful blue water. Then, this morning, Mason finally told Jamie why they had to keep their schedule open for the day. He organized a surprise dive into the open ocean to swim with sharks, Jamie's favourite animal. Of course, they'll be in a safe cage, but the amazing animals will be right there. At first, Jamie just stared at him, his mouth dropped open, thinking he heard wrong, but then Mason showed him the reserved tickets, and Jamie squealed and threw himself at his husband and kissed him senseless.
"But also, sharks. Like, actual sharks. And not tiny ones."
Mason smiles. "I know."
"Like, sharks. We're going to see them. Today."
"Yes."
"I just… this is incredible. I mean…" He rubs his jaw and looks back out at the water. "If you told me sooner, I probably could've processed and would be acting like a normal human being, but…"
Mason turns his face back to him. "I like this better. The raw excitement and eagerness of looking forward to something so incredible about something you're really passionate about. You love sharks so much, and you're going to remember this for the rest of your life. Your eyes are dancing, and you haven't stopped smiling since I told you where we're going, and I love it. It's like watching a kid on Christmas."
"Remember that Halloween we convinced Londa to take us out farther than our parents ever had before, and we got twice as much candy as we usually did, then ended up on that insane sugar high that lasted what felt like hours?"
"I remember," Mason says with a chuckle. "I thought your mom was going to kill us when she told us to shut up and go to sleep."
"To be fair, she was exhausted and just wanted to go to sleep, and we weren't exactly being quiet. Anyway, my point was, that buzzing sugar high? That's how I feel right now. So yes, I do feel like a little kid again." He cups Mason's cheek in his palm and kisses him.
"If I could have your attention for a minute, folks," one of the tour guides says, "We'll be approaching the location soon and Steven here, a marine biologist, will tell you about the sharks we're going to see today as we start baiting the sharks to the surface. Following his presentation, we'll review the diving instructions with you."
Before boarding the boat, everyone taking the tour was sized for wetsuits and shown how to use an oxygen tank. After a couple practice rounds, they had boarded the boat where they were given different coloured wrist bands to divide them into groups. It was then that it sunk in that they were going to go diving with sharks.
Jamie already knows a lot of the information Steven gives them about blacktip reef sharks, whale sharks, scalloped hammerhead sharks, and great white sharks, but he still hangs onto every word said. Steven also informs them that it's unlikely that they'll see a hammerhead, let alone a great white, but it's not impossible, and tourists like to ask about two of the most well-known sharks.
"I'd love to see a whale shark," Jamie says to Mason. "They're so pretty with the white spots decorating their skin like stars."
Underwater stars, now that's an idea Jamie loves. Maybe he'll draw something with whale shark-inspired underwater stars when they get back home. He can already picture it. He brought his sketchbook, of course, but what he wants to do requires doing it digitally. He'll be able to have the underwater stars lit up in neon turquoise, lighting up the scene in a beautiful, magical glow.
"Just like you."
Snapping out of his thoughts, Jamie says, "What?"
"You said the whale sharks are pretty with the spots decorating their skin like stars. That's like your freckles. You're pretty with your adorable freckles that remind me of stars."
One would think that, after all the years they've been together, Jamie would be used to Mason's flirting. One would be wrong. Instead, his smile goes soft and shy as his cheeks go pink. They are on their honeymoon, though, and it's expected to be flirty and loveydovey the entire time. No one can blame him for kissing his recently-turned husband while they're on a boat to see-
"Sharks!"
Jamie pulls back at the enthusiastic cry of the tourist a few seats away from them, and his head snaps in the direction she's pointing. Jamie sees two triangular fins moving quickly through the water on the starboard side of the boat. Underneath the dorsal fins, there are dark figures of the rest of the sharks.
With wide eyes and his mouth hanging open, Jamie doesn't take his eyes off the sharks as he flails his arm in Mason's direction. His hand hits firm muscle, and he keeps hitting him quickly to ensure he sees the sharks too.
"I see them," Mason says, taking Jamie's hand to link their fingers together.
Lips press against the back of his hand.
The next however-many minutes are a blur as the boat stops and anchors, and the workers get the cages ready. Then they're asking the first group to come forward, the people with blue wristbands like the ones Jamie and Mason have on.
Jamie does a little happy dance as he jumps up, tugging Mason to the cages. On go the weighted belts, flippers, oxygen tanks, and goggles. There are also underwater disposable cameras with mini floaties available, and Jamie grabs one. There are cameras on the cages that are recording the entire dive that they'll have access to, but Jamie wants to take pictures of his own, too.
Heart fluttering with excitement, Jamie has a brief moment of holy shit- they're getting in metal cages in the middle of the Indian Ocean and are surrounded by sharks- before he slips into the cage. It takes a second for the bubbles to clear and for him to get his bearings, but then Jamie gasps.
He literally stepped into another world.
The water is clear and blue, lit up by the sun shining far overhead. Around the cage are at least seven-no, eight- blacktip reef sharks. There are more further out and some underneath them, but they're there and beautifully graceful.
A hand touches his arm, and Jamie turns to see Mason next to him, smiling at him with his eyes. Jamie puts his hand on Mason's back to tug him close, then rests his head against Mason's.
Over the next hour, Jamie keeps one hand on the camera and the other holding Mason's as they watch the sharks. For the most part, the sharks are calm and are just minding their own business, but every once in a while, there are pieces of meat thrown from the boat to lure them closer and to stir up some action. Two of the blacktip reef sharks fight over one piece, both taking bites while trying to scare the other off.
To Jamie's delight, a whale shark swims by underneath them, and its spots really do look like blue underwater stars.
Suddenly, the number of blacktip reef sharks dwindles down as they swim away, and Jamie doesn't understand why. He's more than pleased with the trip and the number of sharks they've seen so far, but he was hoping to see them for as long as possible. He suposes the sharks had other ideas, and that's okay. They're wild animals and can't be expected to put on a show for humans invading their territory.
But then he turns around and, oh. That's why.
Swimming towards their cages is a great white shark.
He honestly wasn't expecting to see a great white- he thought the waters around Maldives was too warm for them- and he is both awed and over the moon at its presence.
It swims around the cages, circling a few times before getting closer. Curious, it approaches the cage Jamie and Mason are in, nudging and bumping into the metal bars a few times. It backs off, then comes close again.
Jamie can barely breathe.
It's bigger than he thought great whites were, having only seen them through pictures before today. Before this very moment. It's close enough to touch, and Jamie desperately wants to let his fingers run across its huge body as it swims past, but they were given explicit directions not to reach outside of the cage or touch the sharks under any circumstances. There's a professional diver in all three of the cages who will take charge should any problems arise.
So, Jamie floats there, gripping tightly to Mason's hand as he watches the great white until it swims out of sight the way it came.
Jamie is smiling- he can't stop smiling- the entire boat ride back to the island. It feels like they're docking only minutes later, and he's still in a daze when Mason guides him to their hotel with a hand on his back.
Back in their overwater bungalow, he flops back onto their king-size bed and closes his eyes. The sound of the gentle waves is soothing white noise he'll never tire of.
Gentle hands wrap around his ankle to tug off one sandal, followed by the other. The bed dips next to him and Mason's warm body brushes his. Then fingers run through his hair, and Jamie is so happy and content he swears he could melt into the plush mattress.
"How do you feel?"
"Like I can take on the world. Like I can do anything I want." Jamie giggles as he relives the surreal feeling of being only inches away from a great white shark. "I can't believe we really did that."
When he finally opens his eyes, he sees Mason is holding a shark plushie over him. Mason touches his nose with the shark's. "Boop."
Giggling again, Jamie giggles again and pets the soft animal. "I never thought, I mean… today has meant so much to me, and it's almost too much for me to take. I love you so, so much. Thank you."
Propped up on an elbow above him, Mason watches Jamie with a loving smile and Jamie smiles back. He loops his arms around Mason's neck and tugs him down, kissing him deeply. His words aren't enough for him to convey what he needs Mason to know, and he gives his husband a very thorough thank you for the wonderful, thoughtful surprise.
He cuddles into Mason's side after, curling up and using his shoulder as a pillow, his shark plushie abvoce their heads.
"So you enjoyed the sharks, then?" A teasing twinkle in Mason's eyes says he already knows the answer.
Jamie kisses him again and mumbles into his mouth, "Yes, and it's all thanks to you."
Two weeks after they get back home, their pictures are developed and ready to pick up. Sitting together on the couch, they go through the pictures one by one until they reach the last one, which makes their jaws drop. The last picture in the stack isn't one they took but is clearly one of theirs. Somehow, someone else took a picture of their first moment in the water together, sharks in the blue water background and the focus of the picture; Jamie and Mason embraced, their foreheads pressed together.