The Surfer and the Merman CH19

It was early in the morning, the sun was not even out in the sky yet. In the dark, Zain attempted to put on his shoes. Without light he could not manage to tie his shoelaces, so he left them unlaced. He did not grab a bag or anything, all he needed was the clothes on his back. The pale merman stared out the window and wondered how many hours of darkness he had left. He could see a sea gull flying in the sky; he didn't have much time.

"Mnnh...." Arun groaned as he woke up from his deep sleep.

"Why is he awake? I was being silent!" Zain thought. He watched as the young merman rubbed his sleepy eyes, and decided not to panic.

"Zain, are you up?" Arun mumbled as he saw the dark silhouette that was Zain.

"Yeah..."

"Can you get me another blanket? I'm cold..." Arun asked. He still looked like he would fall back to sleep at any second.

Zain reached for a folded blanket on the couch, and walked over to Arun to hand him the blanket. Judging by his footsteps, Arun could tell Zain had shoes on.

"Are you going somewhere?" Arun asked.

"No, my feet are just cold," Zain lied.

"That's.... an odd way to... warm your feet..." Arun said and quickly fell back to sleep.

Zain made sure he was tucked in properly and gently ruffled his thick, curly hair.

"I'm going to miss you too," Zain thought in his head, as if he were speaking out loud to Arun, "even if you can be a pain in the ass."

He then glanced over at the bundle of blankets that was Nagisa. His beautiful face was covered; Zain couldn't even see it one last time. The albino then approached a switch on the wall that controlled a heating device. Skye had previously showed him how to operate it, just in case the nights got cold. It was a particularly cold night, but that was not the reason Zain turned it on. The heater made low, humming noises, which would be just loud enough to hide the noises of him sneaking out of the house.

"Should I leave through the front door of the shop?" Zain thought. He hadn't thought this far ahead. He still couldn't believe he was still going through with his plan.

Zain quietly descended the stairs and maneuvered around the isles of the antique store. After unlocking the front door, he then proceeded to open it, causing the bell above the door to jingle. Zain froze in place. He slowly turned around and listened for the noises of anyone stirring.

"They couldn't have heard that from that far away," Zain reassured himself.
He left the shop and went down the short path to the ocean. It wasn't long before his feet reached sand. He decided to discard his shoes and left them beside a beach safety sign. He wouldn't need them where he was going, for he wouldn't have feet for long. Once he reached the water, the realization that he was going through with his plan had finally hit him.

"I can handle this..." He said out loud to himself, "I can take care of myself."

He stared down at his feet as the water brushed against them. Any more wet, and his legs would transform. The white-haired boy couldn't bring himself to step forward.

"I'll just wait until my feet get wet enough," he thought, "then I'll be able to leave."

He decided to leave the choice of leaving up to nature. A few minutes passed, and he began to feel a tingling sensation in his toes, as if they had fallen asleep. The sky was gradually becoming lighter.

"I can't wait like this," Zain realized. He didn't want to risk anyone seeing his transformation. He remembered how Skye mentioned how he enjoyed surfing in the mornings, when the beaches were empty.

"The surfers might show up at any moment," Zain said, and began to step forward.

"Wait!" Zain heard a voice call from behind him.

He turned around to see Nagisa, quite a distance away, still on the sand dunes. He was running towards him, but not fast because of the slippery sand. Zain could hardly believe his eyes.

"Damn it..." Zain cursed after seeing the shoes in Nagisa's hands, "That's probably how he found me..."

Nagisa was finally close enough to Zain where he didn't have to yell anymore. Before speaking, he had to catch his breath.

"Going for... a swim?" Nagisa asked in between gasps.

Zain didn't answer.

"I heard you leaving the store," Nagisa continued.

"You heard that?" Zain replied in disbelief.

Nagisa smirked and glared at Zain, an expression Zain has never seen directed towards himself.

"Its a skill that I've developed over the years, after all the nights of sleeping out in the ocean. Have to make sure you and Arun are safe, you know?" Nagisa said. His tone had hints of anger.

"Shit... he knows I was running away..." Zain realized.
"Why are you running away??" Nagisa suddenly yelled.

Zain stared at him in awe. He'd seen his companion yell at Arun multiple times over the years, but he's never raised his voice at him.

"I..." Zain began, still in shock.

"Well??" Nagisa yelled, and tossed one of the shoes at him, missing him by inches.

"I-I just have to go...." Zain began, and looked down at the sand beneath him.

Nagisa breathed heavily and angrily as he waited for Zain to continue.

"Why? What are you trying to prove?" he asked.

"I just.... I can't stay here with you anymore," Zain explained, and heard a quiet gasp escape from Nagisa. He looked up at the smaller merman across from him, and could see that he was trembling.

"Why?" Nagisa asked. The shoe slid from his hand, falling to his side.

"Damn it... that came out wrong. He looks devastated," Zain thought. He took a deep breath before continuing.

"I'm not... I feel like I'm not fully grown up yet. I'm tired of being a burden. I-I just wanted to leave, and learn to take care of myself, so that when I returned....." Zain paused and looked at Nagisa directly in his sad, blue eyes, "You could see me as more of a man, than just a kid, like Arun...."

There was a long pause. After awhile, Zain wasn't sure if he should go to Nagisa to comfort him, or head out to sea.

"So... this is your answer? Without talking to me about it, you decided to just LEAVE?" Nagisa's voice grew louder and angrier as he continued, "You think you can just do that to me?? Just, leave my life whenever you want?"

As Nagisa continued to yell at him, he reached down to pick up the shoe beside him.

"--And just DISAPPEAR? Leave me wondering if you're okay or not??" Nagisa tossed the shoe at Zain with all his might, but the taller merman blocked it with his arm. Nagisa then went down on his knees to grab the other shoe.

"Running away is NEVER the answer to any--" Nagisa's yelling was interrupted by Zain grabbing his wrist, preventing him from picking up the shoe. He used his free hand to grab Nagisa's other wrist, holding him still.

"You don't know how painful it is, to live like this. Just like your 'good-night' kiss from last night, it hurt me so much," Zain's angry eyes stared into Nagisa's fearful ones, "And what would talking about it prove? It still wouldn't change who I am, and how much left I have to grow."

"But you should have just talked to me," Nagisa whimpered, "I wish I had known all of this sooner."

"It doesn't matter. I'm still leaving," Zain said angrily.

"You can't leave me," Nagisa sobbed as tears fell down his cheeks. Zain's expression became pained.

"Damn it... I made him cry again..." he thought.

"If only you just told me this sooner... this is what I wanted all along..." Nagisa cried.

"What, you WANTED me to run away?" Zain questioned.

Nagisa shook his head, and then brought both hands to Zain's face. As the red-eyed boy felt Nagisa's small, smooth hands touch his face, he could feel his heart beat already begin to quicken. His calming touch had nearly washed all his anger away.

"I wanted to.. all this time.. to be able to kiss you like this."

Nagisa leaned forward and kissed Zain directly on his lips. This was nothing like the kisses Zain had ever received. He could tell that instantly by how the kiss sent a shiver through his whole body, by how hard his heart was pounding... and simply by how inexplicably happy it made him.

After the kiss, Nagisa chuckled.

"All this time.... I thought you enjoyed being treated like a kid, getting all that attention," Nagisa then cracked up laughing.

"What...is this..." Zain thought, his mind still a blur.

"And even then, I wanted more..." Nagisa continued to smile and wiped away his tears.

"What... is he saying..."

"...but I couldn't bring myself to say anything, because I thought you were happy like that..." Nagisa continued, "but know... after your confession, I...."

Nagisa brought his hands to his chest.

"I don't know what to do... I'm so happy!" He exclaimed.

"Does he..."
"I love you, Zain!"

Nagisa placed a hand back on Zain's face, bringing him back to reality. He gently wiped the corner of his eye.

"You're crying," Nagisa smiled.

"Ah.." Zain brought a hand to his face, and realized that he was indeed crying.

"Why don't we go for a swim?" Nagisa suggested as he kissed the tears away.

"A-Alright..." Zain responded. He was feeling a little slow as he processed everything that was revealed.



As the two mermen drifted through the ocean, they held each other close. Nagisa's pearly pink tail and Zain's pale white, finned tail curled around each other as they embraced. They sunk deeper and deeper into the vast, blue sea as the morning sun brightened the sky.