The Tail Of Taekook

2 - Golden Maknae

There's a moment of silence, before Taehyung, this new kid, frowns in confusion. "I'm not the only one who thought they were dead when they got thrown in, right? Or am I just the only one tha-"

"Don't worry," I reassure him, "there's a lot of people who have experienced pretty much the same thing as you. I did, ten years ago, and so did quite a few of us. It's pretty much normal. And it hurts like hell when your tail starts to emerge, right?"
"Ten years ago?" he asks incredulously. "You must have been a kid. You can't be much older than me."
"I was six," I tell him, and his eyes widen.
"You're younger than me!? I'm eighteen!"

I shrug. "Guess I'll have to call you hyung, then," I say cheerfully, and that strangely boxy smile returns. It's a nice smile, actually. I like it.
"That would be nice." Then his expression becomes worried. "Is my mother okay? I feel awful, I haven't asked after her yet!" He tries to completely sit up, and groans at the pain in his head.

I place a hand on his shoulder. "Don't sit up," I warn him, "your body is still getting used to the salt here. It's gonna hurt for a few minutes, until you've transformed completely into a merman. She's fine, we've put her in a safe place not far from where you are. She's not woken up yet," I tell him carefully.

He nods, looking down at his ripped shirt, and I sigh. It's not really good enough, so I'll have to let him use mine. Even if I'll get questioned for the abs. He's worth it.

"Take that off, you can use mine," I say firmly, and his eyes widen. He looks up at me, surprised, and I just nod. "A lot of guys here go shirtless anyway, so don't worry. I'm not losing any of my dignity or anything like that." Then I smirk slightly. "It's not like I have anything to be ashamed of, anyway."

He shrugs, giving up and pulling the article of clothing off after a few seconds, only half sitting up still because of his headache. I lift my shirt over my head, passing it to him the moment it's off, ignoring the shocked response to my unusually muscled torso. His jaw drops, and he has to look away for a second to compose himself. "My word," he mumbles, "you certainly don't have anything to be ashamed of. Damn."

My eyes widen in surprise, and there's a sound of surprise from behind me.

"Did new kid just compliment Jungkook? What's happening here?" I hear Penelope ask.
"You've been obsessed with me for the last three years, shut up," I return, and roll my eyes.
"That's not what's bugging me," she snaps, "it's the more the fact that he's complimenting a guy. That's not normal. Guys are supposed to fight over the girls they're into, instead of being nice to each other."

"What makes you think that?" I demand furiously, moving closer to her so that she is forced to listen to me. "Who gives you the right to force a stereotype you created yourself onto him? Wake up, Penelope. This place is supposed to be friendly. Deal with the fact that there are guys who are able to avoid murdering each other." Her eyes widen as something changes, and my heartbeat doubles for some reason.

"Jungkook," she stutters, "your eyes. They're the same colour as your tail."

"What?" Taehyung says from behind me, and I turn around, causing him to gasp. "Oh my god, they are. You've got golden eyes. That's pretty cool. And I've never seen that."
"What colour are your eyes?" I ask him curiously. He shrugs.
"I don't know. I guess we'll find out."

There's a silence, and everyone looks at Taehyung's fin, which is extremely close to being fully grown. You can actually see the last parts of it growing, as if it's sped up almost.