Under the Sea | Minsung

ψTwenty-Sixψ

Forewarning: Details on drowning. If you read this story before, it's this chapter again but you know.

Worse.

∴∷∵

The merman was unusually quiet the following days. Especially on this particular day. By now, he was usually complaining about being neglected of attention, sprinkled in with flirt after flirt and bubbling conversations in hopes to grab the other's attention off the laptop but on this day there was none of that. Instead, he simply titled his head to obtain a better angle, and called in a soft voice, "Mr. Handsome? Have you been okay recently? You look upset?"

Minho didn't really respond. Instead, throwing a mere glance over his shoulder as he pounded on the laptop's keyboard at the desk set up only for him, Obviously I'm upset, I've been lying to you this whole time when you've been nothing but genuine to me.

"Is it because I kissed you without your permission?" Jisung clenched his fists in his lap, bringing one of the tightly wound bundle of fingers to his lips as he thought, "I knew I should have asked first. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable, if that's why you're upset."

"No, I'm not upset about that," He quickly denied, spinning around in his chair to fully face the younger as a heat rose in his ears. Minho sucked in a deep breath, the butterflies in his stomach wouldn't go away no matter the amount of gulps of air he took. His toes and fingers curled up then relaxed, over and over again as he fought the nerves back. This was it. This was the day. Jisung wanted to go home, Jisung kissed him, he liked him, and it was about him he stopped denying the fact that yes, he liked the merman as well. As strange as it was, he was catching feelings for the creature he was supposed to be cutthroat researching relentlessly. Tirelessly. Day in, day out, his purpose was to study Jisung and provide the information for the top.

I can't keep this up. He pursed his lips as he spun back around and typed away at the computer, cleaning up the last of the research documents before the deadline which he was now hoping to circumvent. I'm going to tell him, I'll destroy my research, and... And I'll find a way to help him escape. No matter what he thinks of me after, he needs to know.

"Jisung?" Minho addressed him, finally coming to abandon his laptop as he stared the merman down. His hands shook against his knees, the fabric of his jeans absorbing every drop of sweat spawned by the haywire nerves bringing him nothing but an unsure sickness and the overwhelming feeling to run away. It would be so much easier if he could simply run away from it all. But Jisung couldn't, and that thought alone rooted him in his spot.

The mentioned squeaked, "Yes?"

"There's something I need to show you."

"Something bad?" Jisung laughed lightly, a teasing tone to the edge of his voice telling the other how completely unaware the merman was. He trusted him, he trusted Minho so much, and yet all the older did with that was use it as a means for an end. A way to gain, and nothing more. It's wrong, all of this was wrong. None of it was fair to Jisung, no matter how much he wanted to become a serious researcher or a scientist, the way all of this laid on the table, it was wrong. But Jisung grinned at him, his usual one that filled every inch of the space around them with an overwhelming joy, "Am I going to be thinking of you differently after?"

It would be a miracle if you didn't. Minho's eyebrows furrowed together as he search for a response, and upon finding nothing, settled on the blunt truth of, "Yes, but I hate lying to you like this."