A Heart Made of Coral Pearls (Hualian Mermaid AU)

Chapter 4: Love

"Is gege back already? Tell me about your trip." Hua Cheng smiled, sitting down on the deck with his legs hanging over the side to meet his mermaid companion.

"I am! I ran into a few old acquaintances while I was collecting scraps." Xie Lian looked up at the human and his eyes sparkled.

He spoke brightly, "San Lang, before I met you, there was no one who was ever willing to listen to me talk! Thank you."

The sun sunk below the waves and the stars emerged in the sky as they stared at each other. Golden eyes to matching dark ones. It should have been uncomfortable, but Xie Lian felt that this was the only place he wanted to be in the whole world. He had only realized it after he had met Mu Qing and Feng Xin again, but Xie Lian wanted to stay with this human.

"Gege...your acquaintances...they told you about me, didn't they?" Hua Cheng spoke deeply. His face seemed confident on the surface, but his voice shook lightly like he was nervous to speak.

"Mn. They did. They told me that you're the pirate king, 'Hua Cheng', and an enemy to the Ocean Kingdom." Xie Lian smiled softly, his golden tail splashing in the water.

"Oh. I see."

Hua Cheng looked down, and Xie Lian almost laughed. Could humans be so insecure?"

"San Lang, you don't want to hear what I think about this?"

"Could you...not tell me?"

Xie Lian really couldn't take it anymore. He giggled. "I don't mind that you're so infamous, in fact, I think it's rather cool. That kingdom probably deserved anything you could possibly do anyway. I also haven't been completely honest with you."

Hua Cheng lifted an eyebrow at this, the ever present amused smirk returning to his face.
"Oh really? Pray tell."

Xie Lian started recounting his time as a prince as the waves lapped lazily against the ship. He told the pirate about his family and his kingdom, and how they had all come to an end eventually.

As he continued his story, sometimes Hua Cheng would frown, or even grasp his fingers lightly in comfort. It made Xie Lian feel like he truly understood everything, from his good points to his bad decisions. He thought, if there's really someone who could care for me, even after knowing anything, they would be a remarkable person.

"That's why I was there, that day, to save you. It's been so long since I have seen anyone at all. I came out because of my curiosity, but I guess if that is what saved your life, it's not a bad thing." He placed his arms on the deck and lay his head on them, staring at Hua Cheng.

"Gege- I mean, Your Highness, is it really okay for you to tell me all of this? What if I am really an evil person?"

Xie Lian tapped his chin and looked up at the handsome man. "I don't know what it is, but I really can't believe that you would be a bad person, San Lang. I thought at first I only followed you because I was interested in humans, but it must be something else."

Hua Cheng's eye curved into a crescent shape, showing his obvious happiness.
"Am I the first human you've spoken to?"

Xie Lian thought for a minute, and then nodded. "Once, there was a human I saved. He was a little boy, maybe around 6 or 7? His body was so small, so he couldn't have been much older than that. A large boat had come through here with crowds of people during a storm, but he was the only one I had managed to pull to shore because he was the smallest. That was my first encounter with a human, though I never had the chance to speak with him."

Hua Cheng's expression looked complicated, and his handsome face was contorted in a frown. Xie Lian hates seeing him unhappy, but even his frowning face was extremely attractive!! His dark eyebrows created shadows on his face that made him look like a powerful being, too gorgeous for this mortal world.