Published: September 30, 2020
Rewritten: May 20, 2023
Word count: 3,335
DO NOT read or interact if you're under 14
The ocean breeze blew through your hair and brushed gently against your skin as you made your way down the beach with a pep in your step, the weight of impending due dates having been lifted off your shoulders.
You had just finished your finals for the spring semester and decided to treat yourself and celebrate by having a small picnic on the beach near your house. College had you so preoccupied you didn't have much time to visit the sandy shores you called home.
You packed with you a sandwich, some freshly sliced fruit, and a small bag of chips. For beverages, you poured some lemonade in a tin canteen to keep it cool in the sweltering heat. Besides the food items, you brought along your portable speaker to play some music while you ate.
Your eyes scanned the beach in search of a good place to set up, noting the lack of private areas to sit. Huffing out a sigh, you squinted your eyes, bringing a hand up to shield them from the sun's brilliant rays as you peered off in the distance, scoping the area for the ideal picnic spot. You caught sight of a small cluster of rocks near the edge of the water. It didn't seem like there was over there, appearing to be vacant.
Perfect.
You trekked along the beach to your new destination and were pleased to see that there was no one is loitering around the area. You grinned triumphantly to yourself and started climbing on the rocks, finding one that seemed to have a decently flat area for your one person picnic. You draped your beach towel over the rough rock before sitting down and unpacking your meal, giving a small nod of approval once everything was spread out. You retrieved your speaker from the bag you brought along and set it up, choosing the perfect song from your playlist of chill songs, adjusting the volume to a comfortable decibel.
The scene was picture perfect; the brilliant sun beaming down and reflecting off the limpid waves, creating a sort of glittering illusion. The rock beneath you was warm from sitting in the sunlight all day, feeling like a heating pad from nature. You began your solo picnic by unwrapping the sandwich you had prepared and started eating while watching the beautiful scenery before you, the music superbly fitting the mood.
Once your picnic was nothing but wadded plastic wrap and empty chip bags, you decided it was time to relax and allow your food to settle for a few minutes. Repositioning yourself by scooting further down the rock, you brought your toes closer to the water and dipped them in allowing the waves to lap over your feet, drenching you in tranquility. You took a small sip of lemonade before leaning back on the towel below you, eyelids sliding closed while you allowed to heat from the rock to soak your muscles, the intense warmth seeping into your bones.
The soft music playing through the speaker mixed with the serene sound of the waves seemed to be in perfect harmony. You released a relaxed sigh, feeling a wave of drowsiness wash over you much like the waves lapping your feet. Just as you started to doze off, the sound of nearby splashing reached your ears, feeling the aftermath of it as the water hit your shins. You didn't think much of it, assuming it was just a kid playing nearby, that is, until you heard a low, mellifluous voice speak up in the most polite tone.
"Excuse me. This is my rock."
You shot upright, surprised by the voice, your eyes meet those of a young man hanging out in the water, his arms resting against the rock you currently occupied. His hair was a pastel peach hue and appeared to have colorful beads scattered about on some strands. His face was bright, eyes innocent and puppy-like. He donned a silver cuff on his arm, dangly earrings, and three or four necklaces lined with pearls, shells, and other trinkets hanging from his neck. He was dressed a little flashy to be swimming in the ocean, you noted.
"I'm sorry, what?" You asked, blinking a few times, caught off guard by not only his statement, but his breathtaking appearance.
"This is my rock." He repeated a little quieter that time.
"Your rock?" You echoed.
He nodded.
You weren't sure how to respond to him. Someone can't claim ownership of a rock... then again, he looked so nervous you thought maybe you should let him have his rock.
"Sorry. I didn't know it was yours." You started getting up only to be stopped.
"Wait." He called. "You don't have to go."
You frowned slightly, feeling bad for the sweet-looking boy.
"How about we both share the rock?" You suggested.
"Oh. I don't know." He looked away timidly. "I'm not really supposed to be doing this."
Your brows tugged together. "Doing what?"
He stayed quiet, not providing an answer to your inquiry.
"C'mon. Have a seat." You motioned for him to sit down and make himself comfortable.
"I don't want to freak you out." He mentioned.
"Freak me out? Don't be silly." You chuckled softly. "Come on."
He let out a reluctant sigh, heaving himself up onto the rock. Once you saw what he was hiding under the water you're unable to suppress the gasp that left your mouth.
"I knew it, I knew it. You're freaked out." He whimpered, preparing to slide back into the water.
"No, don't." You spoke a bit louder than intended.
He froze, looking at you with wide, worried eyes.
"I'm not freaked out. Just... surprised. Please don't leave."
"Are you sure?"
You nodded.
He slowly situated himself on the rock, his peach-colored tail glimmering in the sun, grabbing all of your attention.
"So, you're a merman." You stated the obvious, eyes never leaving his stunning tail.
"Yes."
"I guess that explains all the jewelry." You murmured mostly to yourself.
"This is what I wear every day. Is there something wrong with it?" He questioned.
"Not at all." You shook your head. "It's very pretty."
His big puppy eyes seemed to sparkle as his soft-looking cheeks began to show a light pink tint, almost resembling mochi.
"Your legs are pretty." He complimented you in return.
A small giggle left your lips while you muttered a shy, thank you.
His body started unconsciously swaying to the soft beat coming from your speaker.
"I like this."
"My music?"
He nodded.
"Do you have music where you're from?"
"Yes, but it doesn't sound like this. This is different."
You watched as the very attractive merman looked off at the horizon, the sea breeze blowing his damp hair that was looking fluffier as it dried.
"I'm Y/n, by the way." You mentioned softly, hoping to help him feel more comfortable by introducing yourself.
He turned to you, blinking a few times before a gentle smile spread onto his pink lips.
"I'm Yunho."
"Nice to meet you Yunho."
He flashed you a brilliant, beaming grin, seeming happy to have made a new friend. Not only that, but he liked the way it sounded when you said his name.
"Do you come here every day?" You asked.
He shook his head. "Not always, just when I have time and am able to get away."
Your gaze drifted to the ocean, momentarily watching the cresting waves.
"What's it like down there?" You inquired curiously, referring to his home.
"It's beautiful."
"Does everyone dress like you?"
"Mhm." He nodded. "You dress very..." He trailed off.
"Casual?" You tried to help him out.
"Plain."
"Oh." You deadpanned.
"I don't mean it in a bad way." He frantically tried to explain himself, waving his hands in a rushed manner. "You just don't have any jewelry on."
"Ah." You started to laugh. "Humans don't usually wear jewelry on a daily basis. Well, some do." You explained. "Jewelry is more for special occasions or outings."
"Ohh. What would a special occasion be?"
"Well, like on a date, to a fancy restaurant, to a party, a concert, going shopping." You listed.
"We have parties." He piped up.
"Parties?" Your posture straightened. "Are they fun?"
"Yes!" He nodded enthusiastically. "My friend Mingi can do really cool tricks with bubbles. It's lots of fun to watch."
He seemed so happy to be talking about his friend, his eyes glimmering with enthusiasm, so you decided to ask him more questions pertaining to the subject.
"Is Mingi your only friend?"
"No. There's also Hongjoong, Seonghwa, San, Wooyoung, Yeosang, and Jongho."
"They're all close friends of yours?"
"Mhm." He hummed. "I consider them my brothers."
"Sounds like you guys have a good relationship."
"We do." He smiled warmly. "Hey, maybe you could meet them!" He piped up excitedly.
"Meet them?" You parroted.
He nodded eagerly. "I'd love to introduce them to my new friend!"
My new friend. That was too cute.
"When?
"How about tomorrow? Same time as today?"
You took a quick peek at your phone to check the time, noticing Yunho give a confused look at the device, but he didn't say anything.
"Okay. Tomorrow." You smiled.
"Yay!" He grinned adorably. "I need to go, but I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
You nodded in affirmation.
He gave you a tiny smile and a small wave as he dove into the water, his peach-colored tail briefly splashing above the water before it disappeared under the surface. You bit your lip to try and keep the huge grin from spreading across your face but it didn't work. You grinned like an idiot while packing up your things and heading home with thoughts of Yunho swirling around in your mind.
The following day, you found yourself pacing nervously in your bedroom. You were going to meet seven other mermen and to say you were nervous was a major understatement.
Was it seven? He listed so many names you weren't sure. What would you wear? Did it even matter? You wanted to make a good first impression, especially assuming that mermen didn't interact with humans. You wanted Yunho's friends to like you and not see you as a threat.
In the end, and after much debating, you put on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, which was your typical attire. Yunho's comment about jewelry came to mind so you grabbed a pair of simple earrings and a minimalistic necklace. You weren't sure why you bothered to wear jewelry, maybe a part of you wanted to impress him.
After checking the time, you slid on your flip flops and headed down to the beach, trying to ignore the way your heart was hammering anxiously in your chest, thumping faster as you neared the rocks. You climbed over to the exact same boulder you were on the previous day spotting Yunho sitting in the other side, his peachy colored tail shimmering in the sunlight.
"Yunho?" You called.
He turned around, his face instantly lighting up when he saw you climbing down onto the rock with him.
"You're here." He beamed, visibly happy to see you.
"Of course I'm here. I said I would meet you today." You said taking a seat beside him, eyes drawn to his magnificent tail. It was hard not to look, the shimmery pinkish orange scales were too pretty not to stare at.
He cleared his throat which made you tear your eyes away.
"I brought my friends with me. They're waiting to meet you. They wanted to wait until you got here before they showed themselves. Some of them are a little nervous."
"That's completely understandable." You nodded. "I look forward to meeting them."
"I'll go get them." He started sliding himself into the water, stopping for a moment. "Your jewelry is pretty by the way." He commented before disappearing into the ocean.
You covered your face, feeling warmth rush to your cheeks while mentally giving yourself a pat on the back for deciding to put the jewelry on.
Yunho's head popped up out of the water a few moments later followed by seven others. Your body stiffened as everyone's eyes landed on you, feeling both shy and anxious under their curious gazes.
Yunho lifted himself out of the water, returning to his seat beside you on the rock leaving a wet spot on the stone from where he splattered water.
You watched as his friends climbed up on the other rocks close by, some getting on the flat rock you and Yunho were on. You could hardly believe your eyes, unable to fully comprehend the fact that you were in the presence of actual mermen. Glancing around at the group, you saw an array of colorful tails glimmering under the brilliant sun just like Yunho's.
"Y/n, these are my friends." Yunho gestured to the group, allowing them to introduce themselves one by one. Some offering bright and confident smiles while others seemed a little nervous. Nevertheless, they all appeared to be happy to meet you.
"It's nice to meet you all. Like Yunho said, I'm Y/n. We just met yesterday."
"He told us all about it." The one named Jongho spoke up. "He literally wouldn't shut up about you."
"Alright, alright." Yunho piped up, cutting in before the youngest could continue embarrassing him. "I think that's enough."
"Can I touch your legs?" Wooyoung asked you forwardly, not paying attention to the prior conversation.
"Um."
You weren't sure how to answer, caught off guard by the extremely forward question.
"Wooyoung, you don't ask someone if you can touch their legs." Seonghwa scolded him.
"Sorry." He mumbled.
"Yunho, did you see her jewelry?" San, who was sitting near you, asked pointing to your earrings.
"I did." He smiled gently.
"After seeing all of Yunho's jewelry yesterday, I wanted to wear some and impress you guys." You admitted. "Though it's not as extravagant as what you're all wearing."
"Aw." Mingi and Yeosang gushed, finding it endearing that you wanted to make a good first impression.
"You should keep her." Jongho whispered to Yunho, earning a shush in response as his cheeks turned a deep shade of pink.
You watched the two bicker not-so-quietly, holding back an amused chuckle.
"Yunho really likes you." Hongjoong mentioned, making sure to keep his voice low so no one heard him.
"He does?"
"Yeah. He was really excited yesterday. He said he met a human while going to lounge on his rock and went on to tell us about how much fun he had and how nice you were. We can already tell he has a crush on you. He's so easy to read."
"Crush?" You parroted, trying to keep your voice down.
He nodded with a smile.
You were caught off guard hearing that, but at the same time you weren't upset to hear it. If anything, you were flattered—very flattered. Yunho was an absolute model. From his gentle round eyes, to the pretty bridge of his nose, to his naturally deep pink lips. He was tall too, that much you could tell, even with the tail. Not only was he tall, but he had broad shoulders that made you melt and knowing that someone like him was into you made your stomach do somersaults.
"Yeosang was a little nervous to meet you and I was a little wary, but I can see that you're a good person and it's obvious that you make our Yunho happy." Hongjoong mentioned, grabbing your attention again.
"You think so?"
"I know so. Like I said, Yunho is easy to read."
After getting acquainted and spending some time with the guys, you learned quickly that they were all extremely fun and had lots of energy, often getting so noisy you worried they might draw attention of people walking along the shoreline. Wooyoung found a lot of things funny and had the cutest laugh. It was very loud, but cute. Mingi and San liked to goof around playing games and flicking each other on the forehead. All of them liked to harass Seonghwa, which you learned was the oldest out of the friend group, thus why he was usually the one targeted.
At some point, Hongjoong mentioned that it was getting late and they all needed to head home so no one would suspect anything. Though you were saddened at their departure, they agreed to come back and hang out again which meant this wouldn't be the last time you'd see them.
You watched from your spot on the rock as the mermen dove into the water, colorful tails swishing as they swam deeper and deeper into the blue waters, leaving you and Yunho alone.
"Thank you for bringing your friends to meet me." You voiced your gratitude. "They're a lot of fun."
"Of course. They seem to really like you."
"That's good. I was a little nervous since I assume they're not used to humans."
"Most of them have seen humans from afar, but none have ever interacted with one. Wooyoung is very interested in humans which is why he asked to touch your legs earlier. Sorry about that, by the way."
"It's fine." You waved him off with an easygoing smile. "He's curious. I understand."
You yourself were curious about Yunho's tail and what it felt like, but pushed away the want to ask if you could feel it because you didn't want to seem impolite.
"There's never a dull moment with those guys." He chuckled softly.
"I can imagine."
The silence that settled between the both of you was filled with the sounds of gentle waves lapping against the clusters of rocks. You had only met twice, but you knew for certain you liked Yunho and wanted to meet with him as often as possible. You wanted to learn about him and his interests, what he liked and what he didn't, his favorite place to explore, and even things as simple as his favorite color.
If Hongjoong was right and Yunho had a crush on you, then there was no harm in telling him how you felt.
You took in a deep breath, opening your mouth to speak only for Yunho to say something.
"I like you, Y/n."
He was avoiding eye contact, nervously fiddling with one of the pearls on his many necklaces, his cheeks dusted pink.
You held back a smile as you responded. "I'll let you in on a little secret."
Yunho looked up at you with round, expectant eyes as he waited to hear this secret of yours.
"I like you too."
The look on his face was akin to that of an excited puppy. "You do? You're not weirded out that I'm a merman?"
"Not at all. I find that very interesting and unique actually."
He let out a small giggle that made your heart flutter with adoration.
Yunho was over the moon hearing your confession and had to fight the urge to ask if he could kiss you.
It's way too soon. He told himself.
His gaze moved to the horizon, noting how the sky was painted with pastel hues of pink and purple indicating the beginning of sunset.
"I'd love to stay and spend more time with you, but I should head home." He frowned softly.
"I understand." You nodded.
Yunho lowered himself into the water, resting his arms on the edge of the rock gazing up at you.
"Let's keep hanging out, okay?" You asked.
"Definitely." He nodded gleefully.
You decided to make a bold move, leaning down towards Yunho to place a quick peck on his cheek before standing up. He blushed furiously at your action, his soft-looking face sporting a deep pink hue.
"I'll see you tomorrow?" You inquired.
"Y-yeah. See you tomorrow." He nodded, lowering himself further into the water to cover his red cheeks.
You gave him a wave goodbye, which he returned albeit shyly, watching as you walked back home.
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