•Y/N: Your Name
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Author's POV:
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Heavy. He felt so heavy. So heavy, in fact, that he hardly had the will to shift his tail across the sand he had partially buried himself under. He waited and he waited, each minute passing by longer than the last as his fingers played with the minerals to keep himself busy. It felt so dark and lonely in his new nest. Flaring his gills in a sort of sigh, Neil forced himself across the sea floor, letting the sand roll off his back and tail, to a rock formation where he propped himself up and laid his head in his arms.
During the night, his scales had dulled as they had once before, starting to form grey spots amongst the patterns of black and blue. It had hardly been a day since Y/N had left him there, but already, he was feeling the effects of being away from her. It was strange. Merfolk tended to be solitary creatures, but when it came to their mates, they longed to be at each other's sides more than anything. Being so far away from her felt like a tear in the heart, like a piece of him had disappeared.
He wondered if he should check on the sun's location to tell if she would be coming around soon, and just as the thought crossed his mind, he heard the familiar roar of an engine. His scaled face lit up with joy as he went to check it out, fighting past the aches of the physical effects of his depression to shoot through the water and peer out the entrance of the grotto. Looking up, he beamed at the sight of the belly of a boat that looked to be the right size as Y/N's. It just had to be hers.
'Y/N's back! Y/N's back!' He cheered, swimming in excited circles under the shadow of the boat. If he had the ability to cry, his cheeks would've been soaked with tears of relief.
'She didn't leave me! My mate! My mate! She's here!' The life struck back into him as he shot upwards towards the vehicle, unable to wait any longer after the motor had stilled. His speeds didn't slow, even as he reached the surface, causing him to rocket out and over the small boat in a graceful leap, nearly scaring the poor woman to death as she held the brim of her sunhat to protect herself from the falling droplets of water that fell from his figure. Y/N let out an amused giggle when she looked overboard to find the merman swimming circles around her while singing a chorus of chirps and trills in greeting. She had never heard him so chatty.
"Y/N here!" Awing at him, his desired mate watched as he took ahold of the boat to hoist himself up enough to lean on it with his elbows while wearing a great, big grin to show how happy he was to see her.
"I told you I would come back." Neil's chest felt lighter as she leaned over to pet his cheeks, giving the woman a delighted purr as he melted within her tender grip. He had missed the warmth of her dearly. "Did you find me a shell like I asked?" She questions as she slicked his mess of black hair away from his face. At that, his eyes widened because of his forgetfulness before he quickly pulled away to dive back under in search of the treasure he found for her last night, leaving Y/N to shake her head with a smile. Inside his cave, Neil searched frantically for the gift, combing over the sand and weaving around rocks, feeling more distressed when he couldn't remember the spot he had placed it in. Suddenly, he was cursing the place for being so big. Fortunately, he was able to find it, and as soon as it was snatched in his webbed claws, he brought it up to the surface before tossing it into the boat. Due to not receiving prior warning, she fumbled the brown and white, cone-shaped shell but thankfully, didn't drop it, nor was it cracked from her clumsy catch.
"Oh, wow! You really did find a big one. Nothing's living in it, though, right?" She questions once the man's head poked out of the water beside her. Pulling his torso up with the boat as his crutch, the creature leaned in towards her, a motion for her to bring the shell to him. Catching the hint, Y/N holds the opening to his ear, and after a moment or two, Neil confidently shook his head, claiming it to be empty. "Good find, then. I'll even keep it by my bed. Now, I have something for you."
As if he couldn't get more excited, she pulled out one of his favorite toys, holding it up for him to see. The merman leapt back into the water to gain some distance so she could throw it, not hesitating to go for the kill as soon as it reached him, gnawing on the ball as he scratched at it with his claws. Y/N laughed at the display, finding it cute, as she took off her hat and pulled off her shirt to reveal her swimsuit underneath. Standing up, she removed her shorts next before jumping in to join him. Neil abandoned his ball after hearing the splash, his eyes sparkling with joy as he raced over to wrap himself around her smaller frame with both his arms and tail. She felt smothered as he chirped and cooed, struggling to stay afloat as he vigorously rubbed his face against her while squeezing her tight.
"Neil, drowning! Drowning!" She shouts, and immediately, he let go, cursing his forgetfulness once again, but he wasn't quite done showing her how much he's missed her. Neil took in a deep, exaggerated breath through his mouth after gaining her attention, as if to tell her to hold her breath. Curious, she quirked a brow at him but did what he said, sucking in air and then waiting for what comes next. She was nearly tempted to yelp when her legs were suddenly dragged down after he disappeared under the water, but thankfully, she was able to slap her hands over her mouth and nose to keep the air contained.
He didn't pull her down far, just enough to give him room to circle and snake around her figure again. She relaxed her body, leaving it in his hands as he brushed against her lovingly before giving her room again to swim up to the surface for air. To help her stay afloat, he lent her his massive tail, allowing her arms to drape over and hold it as she gasped. Her laughter warmed him as she rested her cheek against his scales before, faintly, a frown touched her lips as she skimmed over the small, grey patches on his skin, knowing they stemmed from his depression.
Neil cocked his head at her as he turned onto his back to face the warm sun, dipping his tail lower into the water as she swung her leg over it to straddle him in a way to assist her as she carefully made her way onto his chest, where she rested upon him. Neil smiled and touched her head as his other arm came behind her back to embrace her. She had missed him too, having worried all night about how he was doing in the ocean.
"How was your first night, Neil?"
"Sad." He pouts, squeezing her in his arms with a low coo as his tail gently pushed them in the direction of the ball that floated aimlessly with the small waves. "Not same without you."
"It might take some getting used to." To comfort him, Y/N rubbed a hand up and down his chest, earning a small purr from the fishlike creature. "I'm sure you'll get used to it in time." Removing the hand that was on her head, the merman reached out in attempts to grab the ball only for the water to push it out of reach, making him huff. Chuckling, Y/N slid out of his arm and off his body to get it for him, tossing it his way. He caught the toy with ease and threw it back towards her to play catch, as they sometimes would back in his old nest.
His playmate often played games with him, especially when she was younger. She was always excited to show him the new toys they had gotten for him, and while he used to play rough, she never minded. Over time, he learned she was more delicate than him, though, and thus, he had to train himself to hold back his strength as well as he can. Sometimes he would forget, but Y/N would always forgive him when it happened. When her legs grew tired of kicking to keep her head above water, they ended the game, and she returned to the boat, which he helped her get into, so that she could rest for a while. She was sure to take the ball with her to make sure it wasn't carried away. Besides, it seemed like he was done playing also.
Once settled, she popped open the lid of the cooler she took with her to enjoy some of the snacks she packed along with a refreshing drink of pineapple juice to sip on. With a sigh, she basked in the glow of the sun before turning towards Neil, who watched her intently from the water as if she would disappear the moment he took his eyes off her.
"Have you eaten today?" He answered with a vigorous nod before holding up all ten of his fingers, proudly showing off how many fish he captured before meeting her. Truthfully, it was more than ten, he just didn't have enough fingers to show the rest. Then again, Y/N wasn't so sure how well he knew how to count either. Regardless, she giggled at his enthusiasm before ruffling the man's hair to reward him. She had been worried he might be too upset after she left to hunt for himself. "Good job. I bet all those fish were very tasty."
Momentarily, her eyes shifted to his swaying tail, and she began to feel a bit guilty after spotting the grey patches again. It was unfortunate how much her presence effected him, but she tried to push it out of her head. Once he got used to the new routine, things should get easier for him. She understood how tough this was, so she wanted to make it as easy as possible. She would see him as often as she could and play with him, as they always had, until it no longer felt like they were so far apart. From there, she hoped he would fall in love with the ocean enough to feel free to step away from her from time to time. Meanwhile, she would be there for him in any way she can to make this change more comfortable. If they split off from there, then it happened, and it would be over, but if he was still so determined to be mated to her, he would remain, and she'd have her friend with her for longer still. She felt this was the better way for them to live. Now, she won't have to worry so much about what-ifs. Dipping her hand in the water, Y/N smiles as he comes up to hold it and rub her arm.
"See, I told you. Living in the ocean isn't so bad. If you're ever missing me, just remember, I'll always come back to this spot." Her hand brushes into his dark locks as he coos and looks up at her.
"I lahv you, Y/N."
"I love you too, Neil. I promise, you have nothing to be sad about. I know this is hard, but I'm not going anywhere if I can help it. You're too important to me, and I know I'm too important to you. So, do you think you'll be alright out here from now on, or do you still need some time to think about it?" Neil lowers his face into the water, leaving only just his eyes to stare at her from the water level as he thought. He supposed it wasn't horrible living in the new nest, and he still gets to see her most every day. A part of him still didn't like being away from the old nest. He definitely didn't like being separated at night, especially when he was starting to get used to them sleeping in the same place. He enjoyed being close to her, but she seemed much less stressed seeing him in the ocean. Though a little disheartened, he raised his lips out of the water to speak.
"You alright?" He counters, earning a small smile from her lips.
"Yes, I'm doing alright, but I want to know how you feel, Neil. I know you didn't really want to be out here. I'd rather you live where you're free, but if you're not okay with it yet, then I can take you back home and we can try again some other day." He looked down a little at the water, watching how it washed up against the side of the boat before looking back at her with a bit of a forced smile. If I'd make her happy. If it would gain him any points for her to consider mating him.
"Okay. I'll stay."