Ocean's Descent ||| Woosan (Ateez)

3

Wooyoung felt himself starting to panic when the boy in front of him wouldn't wake up.

He looked around the beach and bit his lip. He didn't see any other people around... Maybe he would be more help if he could change.

It was something he had never done before, but he had read about it several times.

Wooyoung closed his eyes and let his mind open. He reached for the magic deep within him, calling on it and willing it to come forward.

He could feel his scales starting to heat up as a result of it. They almost itched and he had to fight the urge to claw at them.

Focus. He needed to focus.

The magic pressed against him, asking him what it was he wanted.

Wooyoung envisioned his tail turning into two human legs, making sure to add in a layer of what they called clothes, and asked the magic to grant his wish.

Suddenly, Wooyoung was levitating above the sand and his scales were glowing even brighter while purple streams of light swirled around his legs.

It was strange... The magic seemed to numb everything. He didn't feel his tail splitting in half and shrinking down to the legs he was sporting as soon as the magic had finished.

His mouth opened when he noticed the thin layer of cloth covering his legs and he spent a few seconds wiggling his toes.

Then he turned back to the boy next to him and moved to a kneeling position.

It was SO much easier moving around now! Wooyoung had to contain his excitement to focus on the task at hand.

He pressed down on the boy's chest several times. "Wake up. I need you to wake up."

After one particularly hard push, the boy suddenly spit up several mouthfuls of water. He rolled onto his side and clutched his stomach.

"It's ok. You're ok." Wooyoung said. It just now dawned on him that he was speaking in a human tongue. It must be another gift from the magic.

The boy took another moment to collect himself, then sat up so he could hang his head between his knees. His breathing was still ragged and shaking, but he seemed to be ok.

Wooyoung sat back, patiently waiting. He took the time to study the other's lean frame. From what he could see, the boy was fit and incredibly handsome.

"Thank you." He finally said, ruffling his wet, blonde hair. His words scraped against his throat and Wooyoung saw him flinch.

"It's ok. I'm glad I could help."

The boy slowly lifted his head and turned to glance at the merman. Wooyoung felt his gut flip the instantly he locked eyes with the beautiful, golden brown irises in front of him.

Everything seemed to stop. Wooyoung felt his mouth fall open a little and his heart started to pound, almost as if it was just starting for the first time. Even the sound of the ocean grew distant.

He was... stunning.

"You didn't get hurt at all, did you?" The boy asked, taking a look over Wooyoung. "I don't remember seeing you on the ship. Did everyone make it out ok?"

Wooyoung rubbed the back of his neck and looked down. He still felt like he was under a spell but looking away seemed to help. "I don't know. I wasn't on it; I just saw you go under the water."

"You... risked your own life... for mine?"

The merman peeked up at the boy and felt his cheeks heat up a little. "Well, yeah. I couldn't just let you die."