#193: Put your lips on mine (if that is what it means to be alive): Part Two

[selubrationmod]

“God, what in the world was he thinking?”

“I can’t believe he saved the stupid human-”

“When will he learn that what he’s doing is dangerous?”

“Keep it down, the boy might wake up.”

“He’s bound to wake up sooner or later.”

Blue. That’s what Sehun first saw when he opened his eyes. A huge expanse of blue. It took him a moment before he realized that it was the sky. Big cumulous clouds were floating peacefully by and Sehun felt like he was floating himself.

He looked to his left and saw a blue plane of-water?

The realization had Sehun bolting up into a sitting position in fear. He almost backed himself to the other side of whatever he was on, but when he looked to his right, he was also greeted by the same thing.

Panicking, Sehun looked all around him and all he could see was the ocean.

“I advise you to calm down and stop moving if you don’t want to fall in the water.”

Sehun flinched, startled. He looked around again and tried to find where the voice had come from, but he couldn’t see anyone. He was all alone.

“Who are you?” He whispered.

“Look down, you’re sitting on me.”

Only then did Sehun notice that he wasn’t floating on top of the ocean or riding a raft. He was on top of something else, something that had smooth rubbery skin. A whale, he realized. He was on top of a whale. And the whale just spoke to him. Sehun started to feel lightheaded, because this could not be real.

“T-This is a dream.”

“I’m sorry to tell you this, little human, but no, this is not a dream, and no, you’re not going crazy, if that’s what’s worrying you.”

“This cannot be real…” He closed his eyes. He murmured the sentence over and over and over-

“You better start believing it; we’re talking to you, after all.” A different voice suddenly said.

Sehun blinked. Slowly, he turned his head behind him and lo behold, there was a seagull looking at him with its head tilted.

“Kyungsoo, the human is staring at me like I have two heads.”

“He’s in shock,” the whale replied.

“You-you’re the s-seagull in the ship…” He mumbled.

“What? No!” Sehun watched as the bird started squawking and flapping its wings, “That’s not me. How could you mistake me for Jongdae? My feathers are far more superior!”

“Cut it out Jongin, you and Jongdae look exactly the same. Little human, don’t mind him. Please cooperate with us if you wish to get back to wherever you’re from. Our guardian will be back shortly and we’d appreciate it if you don’t get yourself killed by falling into the water.”

“None of us have hands, if you get what he means.” The bird flew to the front and landed on what Sehun assumed was the whale’s head.

Sehun could only look at them with a dumbfounded face on.

“I’m Kyungsoo, by the way. And the annoying bird-”

“That you love-”

“-on top of me is Jongin. See? I told you he’s annoying.”

Suddenly, a burst of water shot out of Kyungsoo’s blowhole, surprising Jongin enough to fly off. Jongin landed again when it stopped spewing out water.

“Kyungsoo!”

Sehun could basically hear the whine in Jongin’s voice. How in the world was he hearing the voices of these animals in his head? Sehun wrapped his arms around himself and shivered.

“I-if you’re real, how did I get here? Where am I? Why am I hearing your voices in my head? What is happening to me?”

“Wow. Wait. Hold on a minute,” Jongin flitted towards him with his little feet, “Too many questions at once.”

“Little human, don’t you remember what happened to you? You were on a pirate ship, I think. Our patron merely saved you.”

“H-How?” Sehun closed his eyes and tried to drown out the sight of the ocean around him, “I jumped in the water. There was a storm. There was a voice telling me to jump. I thought I drowned-I-I shouldn’t be here right now.”

“And you’re right, you shouldn’t,” the whale seemed to sigh, “I’m sorry to say this, but our guardian shouldn’t have interfered with your fate. What he did was dangerous. Now, he has opened your eyes to our part of your world… ”

“His heart is too soft for his own good, I tell you,” Jongin seemed to shake his head, “You should be thankful.”

To that Sehun, Sehun opened his eyes and looked down at himself. Thankful? Why should he be thankful to someone who had saved him when he was finally ready to accept death? When he was finally going to die like he was supposed to all those years ago?

~

Being mentally and physically exhausted did wonders for Sehun. Miraculously, he had managed to fall asleep and disregard the sea sickness he got from being in the middle of the ocean. It was amazing how calm the waters were, as if the storm had never come.

When he opened his eyes again, he could see a half-moon hanging high up the sky littered with thousands of twinkling stars. It was so beautiful that he had almost forgotten where he was, if this was even reality in the first place. It took a few moments of being awed by the night sky before he realized that there was a hand caressing his head.

Carefully, he turned his head to the side, and then, his breath was literally taken away by the ethereal being beside him.

At first, Sehun couldn’t even tell if it was a man or a woman, but the slim build, flat chest, and the faint outline of muscles through the sheer clothing gave it away.

The man’s skin was as pale as white moonlight and his garb looked like it was made from silk woven from a spider’s web. His view travelled to the wet turquoise hair that parted in the middle, framing the man’s face perfectly; and then to those doe eyes that twinkled and regarded him like another star from another universe. Finally, his eyes settled on the man’s pink and soft-looking lips that curled up into a subtle smile.

He was so beautiful that it was inhuman.

“Are you god?” He said unintentionally.

The being’s eyes crinkled into crescents and the fingers that had been threading through Sehun’s hair retracted in order to hide its owner’s mirth.

“What in the world gave you that idea?”

Sehun was rendered frozen. Even the man’s voice was lovely. Everything about him seemed so foreign yet so familiar…

“Were you the one who told me to jump off the ship?” He asked quietly.

The man’s expression immediately transformed into one of sheepishness and guilt, “Yes. I was.”

Silently, Sehun observed the man as he turned away and procured a couple of fruits and some sort of wooden container that was sitting beside him, “You must be very thirsty and hungry. Jongdae’s been telling me how badly they were treating you in the-”

“Who are you?”

The being stilled, but then picked the container up as he sighed, “Drink first.”

Reluctantly, Sehun took it and took a sip. Water. Soon, he was gulping down its contents like a camel would in a desert. He hadn’t realized how thirsty he was until the being reminded him.

“My name is Luhan,” the man suddenly said, “I’m the guardian of the reef thriving off the coast of Zaphirr.”

The reef. Zaphirr. Those words registered in Sehun’s mind. This beautiful being…was the guardian of the reef he had discovered?

Luhan pushed a fruit towards him, “Your ship was near my reef when the pirates attacked you. I wasn’t there when it happened, because I was away seeking advice from my fellow cousins. I only heard what happened from Jongdae-”

“The seagull.”

Luhan nodded, “After that, I told him to keep an eye on the pirate ship…to tell me where it was headed.”

“…Why?”

“I just…I just wanted to watch over you,” Luhan fumbled around rest of the fruits, “I caught up to the ship, and though getting you out of it was not my initial intention, those men started to get violent and I couldn’t just-” Luhan sighed, “I couldn’t just leave you there…”

“And so, you decided to talk to me when I was most vulnerable…Coerced me to jump off.”

Luhan looked at him with a stricken face, probably not expecting Sehun to take it that way.

For the next few moments, they sat together in silence, with only the occasional sound of the passing water. Sehun didn’t know what to say when there was this beautiful being in front of him and yet sadness was filling his heart.

“I thought I was hearing my mother…” He said as he hugged his knees tighter, “But it was just you.”

“…I’m sorry.”

Somehow, hearing the sincerity in his voice rendered Sehun unable to get mad at his savior. He didn’t have it in his heart to get upset at a being that simply wanted to help him. The truth was, Sehun couldn’t exactly tell whether he was disappointed or relieved, and that was what frustrated him.

“You told me to trust you when I jumped,” Sehun decided to close his eyes, “I’m expecting you to see through your promise.”

~

“Gooood Morning!” A loud voice woke Sehun up from his slumber. He blinked his eyes open to see a hyperactive seagull looming over his face. It looked almost exactly like the one he saw yesterday, but the voice echoing in his head did not sound the same.

“HE’S UP! HE’S UP!” The bird squawked.

Sehun only narrowed his eyes at it.

“Oh dear, here he goes again,” Kyungsoo murmured, “Good morning, little human.”

Deciding to sit up, Sehun rubbed his eyes and looked around him; he was still in the middle of the ocean, but he was strangely starting to get accustomed to it, “I have a name. But yes, good morning. This isn’t Jongin, isn’t it,” he stared at the tiny creature.

“Pssh, why would I want to be Jongin when I can be me,” the bird said haughtily. Sehun was amazed by the sheer amount of self-confidence these birds had.

“This is Jongdae,” Kyungsoo sighed, “He’s even worse than Jongin.”

“I think I can see that,” He replied as Jongdae started to dance and sing something about what love is, “My name is Sehun.”

“Well then, it’s nice to meet you,” Kyungsoo said as a steam of misty air came out of his blowhole, “We’ll be headed to the reef soon, so you’ll have no problem returning home. We’re in Skyx Ocean, in case you were wondering about where we are.”

Skyx Ocean? A heavy feeling settled in Sehun’s chest. If what he remembered from his geography books was right, then they were currently very far from where he came from when he was abducted by those pirates. Had three months really passed since then? It would take another three months to get back to the Quzalt Waters, the closest sea to Zaphirr, and that was by boat. By whale, however, would probably take even longer, an estimated five months at the very least…Just the thought of staying even longer on water brought back an unsettling feeling.

“Lulu’s out gathering seaweed to help you breathe underwater, so you don’t have to look so terrified,” Jongdae suddenly landed on his shoulder, “For someone who was pretty eager to die, you’re really fainthearted.”

By this time, Sehun felt absolutely lost, because how does seaweed even help you breathe underwater? Deciding to forgo asking the question in favour of hearing the answer from the guardian instead, Sehun started his day by eating the left-overs from yesterday night. It wasn’t much, but it filled his stomach, at least.

At one point, Jongdae situated himself beside Sehun and started babbling stories out like a chatterbox. It was rather amusing. Sehun found himself thinking that he could get used to this.

“And then I was like, ‘hell no, Jongin’s not even in love with the same species!’ and then the look on that female’s face was-LULU!!!” Jongdae suddenly flew off and when Sehun turned his head, he saw a glistening wet Luhan getting out of the water onto Kyungsoo’s back.

Again, Sehun couldn’t help but marvel in how stunning Luhan looked like as he came out of the water. Seeing him at night was one thing; seeing him in the full light of dawn was another. There was just something captivating about his presence, and much as Sehun didn’t want to admit, he just couldn’t stop staring. Luhan looked even better than he remembered from last night.

His translucent skin seemed to glow even in daylight and if water gods existed, Luhan would have definitely fit the description.

“Good morning Jongdae!” The said person greeted enthusiastically, “Kyungsoo, Sehun.”

For a moment, their eyes met, and then Luhan’s lips broke into a smile. Sehun couldn’t fathom how he could smile at him so genuinely as if Sehun hadn’t been rude to him at all last night.

“GOOD MORNING!”

“Good morning, Lu.”

The two animals chorused, and when Sehun finally got a hold of himself, he murmured “Good morning,” back quietly too.

After a few moments of Jongdae fussing around the guardian, Luhan turned to Sehun and shooed the bird away to give them a little bit of privacy.

“I’m sorry I took so long,” Luhan said as he wrung the excess water out of his garments. There was a faint flush in his cheeks as he put down a wet satchel made out of linen, “I was out gathering-”

“Seaweed,” Sehun supplied and Luhan looked surprised.

“Yes,” He nodded, “How did you know?”

“I told him, of course,” Jongdae quipped rather happily.

“Jongdae,” Luhan turned his head and tried to look reprimanding, “What did I just tell you?” Luhan then looked at him apologetically, “I’m sorry if Jongdae has annoyed you in any way.”

“…It’s fine,” He blinked, “I think I’ll get used to it.”

“I’m glad you think that way. So how are you holding up so far?” Luhan beamed at him and Sehun averted his eyes because he couldn’t allow himself to stare at Luhan’s face too long, “I’m not sure if Kyungsoo’s told you yet, but we’re very far off the reef. This journey is going to be long and I wouldn’t want you to feel uncomfortable.”

“I’m fine.” Though being in the middle of the ocean is uncomfortable enough, Sehun thought dryly.

“You don’t have to be so tense, you know?” Luhan reached out and ruffled his hair; Sehun merely froze.

“I’m not going to eat you,” the guardian laughed at his reaction and Sehun couldn’t understand why he felt heat travelling up his neck.

~

Luhan, Sehun finds out throughout the week, is a relatively young guardian. He is less than a hundred years old but a deity in every sense, born to foster the growth of the reef he protects. When Luhan talks about the reef, about his stories with his surrounding friends from the other waters, his eyes light up and glow so brightly that Sehun can’t help but be transfixed at his dark blue irises.

That isn’t the only thing that makes Luhan so charming though, because Luhan is kind, immensely so. Sehun sees this when Luhan leaves some days and comes back with food and water for him. Sehun is fairly certain that Luhan doesn’t go all the way to land to get these rations, but he doesn’t question where he gets them because he doesn’t have the right to. Luhan also makes Sehun eat the seaweed he gathers as frequently as he can. It’s strange, because they claim it’s magical and yet nothing about it looked out of the ordinary. There’s nothing incredible about its taste either, though there is a minty tang that Sehun thinks shouldn't be there.

“Bear with it. “ Luhan only laughs when Sehun scrunches his nose later, “It will enable you to breathe underwater, so sacrificing a bit of comfort won’t hurt.. Didn’t Jongdae mention that to you?”

“I think he mentioned it in passing…”

“Well, do want to give it a try?” Luhan’s face seemed to light up in excitement, “Breathing underwater, I mean?”

When the words came out of Luhan’s mouth, Sehun had immediately paled. He had been avoiding that kind of suggestion for days. As curious as he was on whether the magical seaweed worked, he did not want to find out if it meant going into the water.

Luhan, unfortunately, didn’t seem to mind Sehun’s petrified face, “Come on, Sehun, try it.”

“I don’t think I’m ready for that.”

“There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

“Well, there is. I’m afraid of the ocean,” he deadpanned, “I won’t jump in. I can’t.” He said it with such conviction that there seemed to be no room to convince him otherwise. Sehun had been so anxious about being forced to get out of his safety zone that he missed the brief flutter of sadness in Luhan’s eyes…

~

Sehun doesn’t understand himself.

He’s getting accustomed to being in a body of water, and yet he was still so terrified of it. Here, Sehun couldn’t deny or dismiss his fear of water anymore, unlike the days at the castle where he didn’t have to interact with it, or go even remotely near it.

It was strange how comfortable Sehun was becoming in the ocean whenever Luhan was around, or near. As long as he isn’t going to be directly in the water, he seemed to be fine-relaxed even. But just the thought of falling into it had Sehun feeling queasy.

Luhan’s presence, however, seemed to comfort him, though he doesn’t know what it is about Luhan exactly that puts him at ease. There’s just something about Luhan that draws Sehun to him, that makes him feel better, and he doesn’t know whether it’s a good or a bad thing.

Sometimes, when Luhan doesn’t return for days, Sehun finds himself immediately feeling anxious, the seasickness coming back in waves.

Fortunately, Kyungsoo, Jongin and Jongdae are good company, and the fear of water somehow dissipates around the presence of all these ‘friends’ that Sehun had never had.

Sehun’s also learned to distinguish the two birds’ personalities by now. Jongdae is noisier, sings at random times, and the bird just loves poking fun at Sehun whenever he can. Jongin has a considerably milder temperament-he loves quietly standing on (or flirting with) Kyungsoo, and practically strives for the attention of the whale. It’s a strange kind of companionship, but one that Sehun admires.

The last time Sehun had ever felt this peaceful was when his mother was still alive. He never ever felt lonely, or the need for friends when she had been present to shower him with all the affection he needed.

“Do you want to know how I met them?”

Sehun turned his head, startled. He didn’t know when Luhan got there, but he might have caught the intense staring that he was doing at the two birds bickering way up front, with Kyungsoo intervening once in a while.

Luhan just giggled, leaning back on his hands, and said, “There’s a reason why you can hear their voices in your head.”

“…Is that part of your power?”

“You can say that,” Luhan nodded a bit, and Sehun was surprised to see Jongdae suddenly appearing and wiggling his way into Luhan’s lap. “I have a select few companion animals. And being my companions mean they are the only ones who have voices. Not every single animal or fish that you meet will talk to you and have a consciousness like my companions,” Luhan ruffled Jongdae’s feathers affectionately, “My powers ensure they are protected too.”

“Do you have more companions?” Sehun asked as he stared at Jongdae who was singing again.

“I actually have six,” Luhan’s eyes turned into cresents, “You’ve met Kyungsoo, he’s the whale you’re staying on. He’s the first mammal that ever visited my reef. And then there’s Jongdae and Jongin.”

“YAY!”
Luhan chuckled, “They’re brothers, by the way. They help me keep an eye around the surroundings of my reef from the air. Jongin was injured when I first found him and Jongdae refused to leave his side. I nursed him back to health and they’ve been attached to me ever since,” there was a soft expression on Luhan’s face, before he looked at Sehun again with enthusiasm, “For my other three companions, you haven’t met them yet, but they’re underwater.”

“Underwater…”

“I’m looking forward to introducing them to you,” Luhan said eagerly and Sehun couldn’t stop his lips from turning into a frown.

“What’s wrong?” Luhan looked at him with concern, “Are you okay, Sehun?”

“I’m fine,” he said curtly and turned his head away.

“Hey,” Luhan touched his arm and Sehun flinched, “That’s not the face of someone who claims he is fine.”

“I said I’m okay, didn’t I?”

“Did I say something to offend you? If I did-”

“It’s not you, okay???” Sehun finally snapped in an angry tone, and Jongdae and Jongin seemed to freeze at his harsh tone, “It’s me! It’s always been me. I’m the one who has a problem. I won’t see your little underwater friends because I CAN’T. Don’t you get it? I’m afraid of the water!”

When Sehun finally finished his ranting, he immediately regretted his outburst. It was simply embarrassing and all of their eyes were on him. Luhan had this stricken expression on his face and Sehun hated it.

“Can I…Can I have some space to be alone?” He mumbled weakly, “I want to be alone right now.”

~

It was night time, but there were no stars in the sky. Only the half-moon was visible to him and Sehun stared at it because he couldn’t do anything else. He was stuck here, for the next four months.

“Sehun?”

He looked down and saw Luhan emerging from the water.

“Can I sit beside you now?”

He nodded.

Slowly, Luhan moved to sit beside him, close enough that their shoulders touched. He didn’t open his mouth, say anything, or ask questions. He just sat beside him, and Sehun appreciated it. He appreciated the comfortable silence that Luhan gave him, because it didn’t pressure him to speak, to explain himself. For years, he’d been kept in the castle, but no one had ever just been for him like this.

For ten years, Sehun had no one. No one who’d listen. No one to talk to. Only now did he realize how much he just needed someone, and the longer they sat beside each other, the more feelings bubbled up inside him, brimming around the edges and threatening to spill over.

He wanted to explain. He wanted Luhan to know.

“My mom…”Sehun choked out and Luhan had turned to him, surprised, “She…was the most beautiful woman in the world to me.”

He took a shaky breath and closed his eyes, “She’s everything I’ve ever loved.”

“Sehun…”

“She’s a sweet woman, who tucks me into bed and sings me to sleep. She stays up at night to tend to the fire just so that I won’t be cold. Do you…”Sehun fists his hands, “Do you see that?”

“I do.”

“My mother, she was in love with the king of Zaphirr. But then he got married…to another woman. And my mother-my mother was that woman’s servant. So she had me, the child who was born out of a love affair with the king who had no courage to fight for her. But even if she regretted having an affair with him, she never regretted having me…”

“What hurts,” Sehun then says, “Is that I’ve never done anything for her. I was forced to pretend that I was the son of someone else. Forced to be the son of a woman who wanted to make my mother miserable…and I didn’t even realize it,” he gave a sad and bitter laugh, “and on an evening where a storm wreaked havoc in which noblemen were gathered, I fell. I fell into the ocean.”

“My mother saw me fall. They said she ran to the railings, calling out my name. Calling out for help. My father didn’t even know because he was too busy ushering the real ‘royal family’ to safety. She kept screaming at the noblemen around her to save me, who was not just the son of a king, but her son.”

“No one would believe her, did you know that?” Tears rolled down his cheeks, “All because she wasn’t anyone important. And because no one tried to help her save me, she tried to do it herself. She jumped in after me because she would have rather died than to live without me at all. And no one stopped her. No one tried to save her…”

“I was found three days later on the banks of Hoarfrost Bay. I don’t know who had saved me but my mother was gone. I’ve been having nightmares ever since. And I’m afraid, of the ocean, of the sea, no matter how beautiful it is because my mother drowned here. My beautiful, loving mother who’d never done anything to deserve the hurt, the shame…”as more and more tears cascaded down his cheeks, his shoulders shook and he found himself in Luhan’s embrace.

“Why didn’t anyone try to save her, Luhan? Why? Why did she have to die for me?” He sobbed as he buried his head in Luhan’s chest, and Luhan simply shushed him and carded his fingers through his hair.

“I know, Sehun, I know…”Luhan closed his eyes, but a tear slid down his cheek, “but it’s not your fault.”

~

It was a week after he’d opened up his past up for Luhan to hear when Luhan first suggested he teach Sehun how to swim.

“Swim?”

Sehun shook his head and immediately scooted away from the guardian. No. No. No.

He didn’t want to swim. He didn’t know how to, and he had no plans on learning how to do it. How could Luhan even suggest such a thing, when Sehun had just disclosed to him how traumatized he was? How afraid he was of drowning? He should have known that something suspicious was going on this morning when Luhan kept staring at him with that excited glint in his eye.

“Come on,” Luhan rolled his eyes at him, “Stop being such a wuss. I’m going to help you get over your fears. You just need to get in the water!”

“I’m not being a wuss. I’m not getting in either,” he said with a straight face. He knew he was throwing a tantrum, but he couldn’t help it.

Luhan sighed, “You said you trusted me right? Let me teach you how to swim. Let me help you get over this fear.”

“I don’t need to learn how to do that,” He said stubbornly.

“But what if you fall into the water when I’m not here?” Luhan’s eyes softened, “What if Kyungsoo gets tired of swimming this way and flips to his back?”

Luhan’s questions rendered him silent, “See? You need to learn how to swim, Sehun-ah. We’re nowhere near any piece of land right now.”

Sehun felt like a chastised child. Admittedly, the guardian had a point. He knew why Luhan was so adamant at making him learn how to swim but he just couldn’t bring himself to do it.

“Can’t I just eat the magical seaweed?”

“And sink to the bottom of the ocean?” Luhan countered back, “Besides, how will you even have time to chew the seaweed? You’d be too busy panicking.”

“But-”

“Sehun.”

“I-I cant.”

“How will you know that if you haven’t tried it?” Luhan frowned, “I know you’re scared. I know you’re traumatised by your mother’s death. But isn’t it time to move on? Honor her memory by getting over this. Your mother would want you to be strong.”

Sehun kept silent for a minute but he knew that Luhan was right. He had dwelled in the past for so long now that he hadn’t really done anything else but to live in it.

“Alright,” Sehun finally relented, albeit dejectedly, “But if something happens to me-”

“Nothing will happen to you,” Luhan grinned as he assured him.

Despite his mind telling him to run away, Sehun steeled his nerves and crawled closer to the edge of Kyungsoo’s back, where Luhan was waiting. Slowly, he placed his hands on Luhan’s outstretched ones.

The feeling of holding on to Luhan, touching him, at least, made Sehun feel ten times more at ease. If Sehun had to compare him to something, he’d say that Luhan resembled a soft breeze, or maybe the little dancing waves that lapped the edge of a beach. Luhan wouldn’t let him drown.

“Okay,” Luhan beamed at him, “I’m going to put your hands on my shoulders, and then I’m going to back away from Kyungsoo so that you’ll get pulled in the water. All you have to do right now is hold on to me. Are you ready?”

Sehun gulped, “Actually, I’m not quite-AHHHH!”

Sehun screamed, terrified, as his body was dragged into the water. His first instinct was to thrash around, but then he remembered that he had to cling onto Luhan for life.

“You-” He spluttered and coughed as they resurfaced, “-almost,” another cough, “killed me!”

“Now that wasn’t so bad, wasn’t it?” Luhan was giggling.

“You could’ve given me a better warning!” Sehun wanted to get out of the water but he couldn’t let go of Luhan.

“It would’ve taken us forever if I didn’t do that,” Luhan tilted his head in a cute manner, “You don’t have to be afraid, I won’t let you drown.”

“Says you,” He sulked, “God, the water is cold!”

“You’ll get used to it,” Luhan cackled as started swimming backwards by kicking his feet; “This isn’t too bad, isn’t it?”

“…I guess,” At least he wasn’t thrashing around in panic…it was daylight and there was no storm so the ocean was calm. In this kind of weather, it was less scary than he thought it would be, but maybe that was just because Luhan was around. Although his heart was still pounding from anxiety, he was already in the water. He might as well go through with it, “So what now?”

“Aren’t you the eager one,” Luhan raised an eyebrow and Sehun glared at him, “I was joking! Are you really alright? Do you want to go through with this? If you’re too uncomfortable-”

“I’m fine. Just tell me what to do next.”

“Well then, I’m going to teach you how to breathe when you’re swimming,” Luhan smiled as he stilled, “You hold your breath when you’re underwater, meaning you don’t breathe through your mouth or through your nose.”

“Okay.”

“But you can exhale air through your nose underwater and make bubbles,” Luhan demonstrated, “Like this. You try.”

Sehun took a big gulp of air. What Luhan did looked easy enough. He dunked his head underwater and just made bubbles come out of his nose, but then he accidentally breathed in and immediately came up coughing.

“I-it hurts…” He wheezed out as Luhan patted his back with one hand.
“Hey, it’s alright! Hurting is part of learning! You don’t get everything right in the first try. Just remember to only breathe when your head is above the water.”

Finally, after three tries, Sehun was getting it right.

“Now, I want you to try floating by holding on to me and letting the water float you up horizontally, like a starfish.”

“Okay, okay, am I doing it right? I think I’m just sinking.”

“Relax,” Luhan encouraged, “We’re really close to Kyungsoo, so if you ever need to get out of the water, I can get you there. You have to relax and let the water do its thing. The key is stop being so stiff. Close your eyes, Imagine that you’re a leaf floating in a river…”

“I think,” Sehun nodded, “I think I’m getting the hang of it.”

“Great! I think you’re doing really well. Now, I’m going to swim backwards, and I need you to just float and submerge your head under water and do the bubbles. And then come up when you need to breathe for air.”

“Okay,” Sehun muttered nervously. As Luhan started swimming backwards and kicking his feet, Sehun followed Luhan’s instructions. When he finally came up for air, Luhan looked surprised.

“You’re a really fast learner,” Luhan looked at him with awe, “Not that I’ve taught anyone how to swim before.”

“Really?”

“Really,” Luhan smiled, “I’m using my control of the water to help you keep afloat, but other than that you’re actually doing pretty great. Let’s do that again a few times, and then I want you to start kicking your feet the way I’m doing it.”

After two hours of practicing, Luhan finally decided to tell Sehun to let go.

“Let go?” Sehun looked extremely apprehensive, “I don’t think I can-”

“I’m going to assist you,” Luhan laughed, “don’t worry.”

“But what am I going to do with my hands?”

“Have you ever seen um, a turtle swim?” Luhan asked as he wracked his head for a way to explain this step.

“I don’t think so…But I have an idea of how it does? If it helps, I’ve seen a dog swim?”

“Then, well,” the guardian pursed his lips, “Can you try to imitate either one of them? What they do with their upper limbs?”

“Maybe?” He hesitantly answered, “But…”

“It wouldn’t hurt to give it a try!” Luhan exclaimed cheerfully and Sehun couldn’t help but comply.

“Okay,” he took a deep breath, “But if I die-”

“You aren’t going to die,” Luhan smiled, “I’m here, remember?”

As he stared into the other’s eyes, he said, “…I know.”

When Luhan started swimming backwards, Sehun didn’t take his eyes off him until he took a deep breath and submerged his head underwater.

He didn’t breathe in, but he let go of the guardian’s shoulders and started to move his arms the way he remembered seeing the palace dog do when it was submerged in a bath.

He wasn’t sure if he was sinking or if he was moving forward, but he vaguely managed to resurface. Gasping and looking for Luhan, “Did I do it? Luhan?”

He was moving his arms and floating on his own; somehow his body was actually keeping itself afloat. Was it possible to learn how to swim so quickly? When he maneuvered around and saw the Luhan behind him displaying an amazed face, it dawned on him that he had just done it. At that moment, he couldn’t help but feel a surge of happiness, of relief, of pride. It all felt surreal.

“I did it, didn’t I?” He asked. Luhan merely nodded.

Quickly, he threw his arms around Luhan’s shoulders in overwhelming happiness. He couldn’t help but laugh and shed a few tears because he felt like he did something impossible.

“I did it!” He shouted to the world, “I’m swimming!”

Luhan couldn’t help but get infected by his laughter, “Yes, you did it.”

“Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!” He kept repeating.

He finally did it. He’d conquered it, after ten years. The fear seemed to be gone. Somehow, he learned how to swim on his own and he was relieved, so very relieved. And this was all because of Luhan’s support. In his thankful state, he didn’t even think twice to pepper Luhan’s face with kisses. When he finally realized what he was doing and saw Luhan’s shocked face, heat overcame his face. He didn’t even know why he did that.

Why did I kiss him?

“I-I’m sorry,” He ended up stuttering and offering a lame apology, “I stepped over the line,” he hastily tried to move away and put some space in between them, but Luhan, who seemingly got over his surprise, merely shook his head.

“It’s okay,” He smiled at him, “You were just too happy. Your mother must definitely be proud of you, Sehun-ah. Now come on, you still need practice.”

~

“Sehun,” a hand was shaking his shoulder, “Sehun, wake up.”

When Sehun blinked and his eyes focused, he saw Luhan’s face hovering over him, water droplets falling onto his cheek from Luhan’s wet cerulean locks.

“What is it?” He asked as he sat groggily.

“We’ve finally arrived at the great artesian plane!” He heard Jongdae exclaiming as he landed on his shoulder.

“Great…Artesian Plane?” Luhan nodded at him and pointed a finger to the front.

What Sehun saw next looked absolutely magnificent. There was a white piece of land that extended through the distance and there seemed to be a dip in the middle of it that made it look like a crater. This was probably the first time Sehun had seen land in five months (from the day he was kidnapped) and he hadn’t realized how much he missed the comfort of stable ground at his feet.

The Great Artesian plane was something that Sehun had only read about in books. It was like an underground basin of groundwater in the middle of Skyx Ocean. He didn’t remember passing by this when he was at the pirates’ ship.

“It’s amazing, right?” Luhan put his chin on Sehun’s shoulder and Sehun could only nod.

“Why are we heading directly to it?” He asked, eyebrows meeting together in the middle as he frowned, and Luhan brought a finger up to his forehead to shoo away the crease.

“Because I’m going to show you something even more amazing,” Luhan grinned at him.

“…But what about Kyungsoo?” Sehun patted the whale under him in worry, “Kyungsoo can’t go near the plane. There’s a possibility that he might beach.” In response, Kyungsoo blew a gust of water out of his blowhole.

“I’m going to round the Artesian Plane. I can’t go directly through it after all either unless I dive deep underwater, and I don’t want to risk drowning if need to come up for air.”

“Uh huh,” Jongin quickly agreed from his position up front. The seagull seemed to be nodding furiously.

“Okay, this is as far as I’ll go. Be careful, alright? Luhan, are you sure you want to show him-”

“I’m sure. You can stop worrying, Kyungsoo. We’ll be fine. We’ll meet you on the other side,” Luhan tickled Jongdae’s chin, “So, are you ready to swim?” Luhan then looked up as he gave Sehun a lopsided smile.

Sehun was a bit confused though, he just woke up and they were going to what? “Swim?”

“Yes, Sehun, swim,” Luhan leaned his face close to his, almost teasingly, and smiled, before quickly backing off. He grabbed his satchel and said, “Let’s put your practice to good use.”

When Luhan jumped in the water, Sehun took a deep breath. He had no choice but to follow.

~

“Hah…hah…” Sehun panted when he flopped to the clay banks of the Artesian Plane. It wasn’t real land, but it was as close enough as it could get. Sehun missed it so much that he was even tempted to kiss the ground he was on.

“Already tired?” Luhan laughed at him and stayed on the edge of the beach, where the water was up to his ankles. This was the first time Sehun ever saw Luhan standing upright and he found himself just staring at Luhan’s strong thighs. Sehun blinked.

“Aren’t you going to get out the water?” He really had to stop having those inappropriate thoughts.

“I’d love to, but I can’t,” Luhan said as he shrugged his shoulders.

“You can’t?” Sehun sat up and narrowed his eyes, “But you…on Kyungsoo...”

“I always position myself so that either my toes or another body part is submerged in water. I’m technically a water related guardian, so I’m not really allowed to leave. You didn’t notice?”

Sehun thought for a moment and shook his head, “No…I guess I didn’t.”

Luhan ended up chuckling, “So, are you done relaxing now?” Luhan looked at him expectantly and Sehun just scowled.

“Wait. This wasn’t where we were going?”

“No, silly,” Luhan pursed his lips and threw the satchel to Sehun, “Eat the seaweed. We’re going underwater.”

~

When Sehun dove into the ocean after, Sehun was amazed. He couldn’t wrap his mind around what just happened. He breathed, the way Luhan told him to, and expected to splutter and choke on the water coming up his lungs, but he did not feel a thing. He breathed normally. As if the water was just air.

How? How is this possible? He thought and Luhan seemed to hear him.

As the guardian of the reef, I have the ability to give life through oxygen. As long as I’m near my reef, the water stays rich in it. When I infuse my powers and transfer it to anything on the other hand, I allow it to thrive or breathe normally in the water. Even mammals…

That’s amazing.

Wait till you see what’s under the plane.

As they swam deeper under the plane, Sehun fought to keep up with Luhan. The guardian was just so graceful and fast; Sehun would feel that pull to the long piece of twine tying their wrists together every time he was lagging behind.

They seemed to be swimming for forever, until they were finally under the rock. There, Sehun saw towering colourful corals that glowed, extending from the underside of the plane itself, as well as on the sea floor. Everywhere he looked, he saw schools of fish, from little black flitting Marionettes, to giant fiddle Tangs. Fish that he had only ever seen in books were right in front of him, alive. Sehun could even see a passing sea turtle in the distance. The whole underside of the Great Artesian Plane was a hidden ecosystem come to life.

Luhan this is…

Amazing, isn’t it? Luhan smiled at him. There’s someone I’d like you to meet.

Luhan pulled him along and Sehun couldn’t help but notice that schools of fish seemed to acknowledge the guardian’s presence. All of the aquatic animals seemed to get livelier with Luhan there.

When they settled in front of a hole in the underwater rock, Luhan called out.

Lay? Lay are you in there?

Sehun could only hear soft snores coming from the hole. Slowly, Luhan put his hand in it and then he brought out a sleeping fish. A sleeping Chilapia.

Lay, Luhan cuddled the fish in his arms, Lay wake up.

Huh? Huh? The fish started opening its eyes. When it saw Luhan it seemed to start processing what was happening around it, Luhan?

Yes. It’s me. Wake up, Luhan looked like he was about to giggle and Lay literally woke up with a start, as if he was electrocuted.

LUHAN! YOU’RE BACK. YOU’RE BACK. OH MY. I THOUGHT YOU LEFT ME. WHERE DID YOU GO? I WAS SO WORRIED.

Calm down. There, one at a time, Lay. I missed you too. I want you guys to meet someone.

Who? Oh. OH MY.

Hello. I’m Sehun. Sehun raised his eyebrows. It seemed strange, talking to a fish.

It’s a human.

Uh yes? Sehun replied.

Luhan why do you have a human with you? Lay seemed to blink his sleepy eyes at Sehun in shock. Wait. You saved a what? HIM? AGAIN? Kris is going to flip.

~

Lay is a funny fish, one that immensely amuses Sehun.

His personality is one of an easily distracted one, and as a fish that hibernates, his struggle with not falling asleep in the middle of conversation makes Sehun want to laugh.

The Great Artesian Plane, apparently, is a travelling destination, a spot in the middle of the ocean where many aquatic animals meet and congregate to rest before they continue their journeys.

Kris should be somewhere around, Lay said, And from what I know, Tao and Minseok should be nearby his person, since you did tell him to take care of us. Oh wait! I think I see them!

Together they swam to a spot in the bottom of the seabed, where there was a black looking rock and a floating creature beside it.

TAO! MINSEOK!

Lay? You’re awake?

Luhan?

I’m Tao, nice to meet you.

Hello, I’m Minseok. Please don’t say I’m cute.

Now, two more underwater creatures were introducing themselves to him. The first one, Sehun realized, was a black sea urchin, while the second one, was an immensely small but adorable octopus that Sehun had never seen or read about before. While Tao was the literally a spiky unmoving ball, Minseok was literally the epitome of adorable. Sehun even felt the strange urge to coddle him.

These are my other companions, Luhan smiled at him.

So you’re the reason why we had to be stuck here.

Stop being so mean, Taozi. Luhan will bring us back to the reef after he…

As the two small creatures started bickering, Lay sighed, Where’s Kri-KRIS!

Sehun squinted his eyes at the direction Lay headed to. He seemed to see a figure in the distance, a human figure. But…not exactly. From the man’s waist up, it was a human. From the waist down, however, it was a tail, a fish tail.

Kris was a merman.

~

What are you doing here? Kris asked.

After Kris had seen them, he had taken them all to an underwater cave etched on the Plane’s rock. If Sehun were to be honest, Kris intimidated him. He looked tall, and handsome. His body toned and his golden blond hair looked good underwater. His green tail shined whenever there was light and it looked immensely strong. Sehun had never seen anything like him before; he hadn’t even known they existed. Sehun had a feeling that Kris disliked him though, if the glare Kris fixed on him wasn’t blatant enough. It was petty, and if Kris was going to be impolite to him, Sehun might as well glare back.

And why did you bring a human with you?

Um, Kris, can you be a little bit less rude? Luhan gestured to him, He’s just right there and could hear everything you’re saying.

Then I’d rather I speak to Luhan in private. I have no wish to be respectful to this human you’ve brought.

At those words, Sehun felt Luhan tense up. He’d never seen Luhan annoyed or angry before and he looked like he wanted to hit Kris.

I’ll just stay outside, Luhan, he touched Luhan’s shoulder to tell him he was okay. The string is long enough anyway.

When Sehun left, Luhan turned to Kris with a scowl and Kris merely rolled his eyes
.
Luhan, are you out of your mind? Do you think I won’t recognize him? Why did you take him again?

He was kidnapped by pirates and I couldn’t let him die there. Luhan threw his arms up exasperatedly.

He’s a human for god’s sake and you shouldn’t be interfering with their lives!

I know that. Luhan sighed, but you don’t know how much I owe him. I saved him, Kris, but he lost everything that actually mattered to him. Do you how much he hurt when I returned him back to his land? He was ready to die on that pirate ship because he hurt so much…

And yet you repay him by prolonging his misery.

I’m not prolonging his misery. I’m trying to fix my mistakes. Can’t you see? That’s the reason why I brought him here…That’s the reason why I’m showing him our world. I want to show him that there is so much that the world has to offer beyond the walls of the castle he lives in, and that he shouldn’t waste his life on being trapped in the past…

Are you sure that’s the only reason? Are you sure it’s just because you want to fix your mistakes? Or are you getting attached?

Luhan fell silent, …I don’t know.

Luhan, Kris widened his eyes at him, You shouldn’t have these feelings for a human…

I know.

You shouldn’t-you can’t fall in love with him, Kris murmured dejectedly.

Who I fall in love with is none of your business.

No, Kris shook his head, You have to promise me that you won’t fall in love with him.

Luhan just looked at him with sorry eyes, I’m sorry Kris, I can’t-I can’t promise you that.

~

When they left Kris behind, along with Luhan’s three other companions, Sehun couldn’t help but look at Luhan worriedly. When he came out of that cave, he had looked at Sehun with a smile that Sehun could only describe as melancholic and told him he was fine.

Sehun knew that face though. He could recognize that mask anywhere precisely because he’d been using it long enough.

It was also hard to forget the words Kris had told him before they left.

Kris had stopped him, when Luhan wasn’t looking, and said, If you hurt him, I will not hesitate to find you and make you suffer. You do not belong here, human. Remember that.

Those words plagued Sehun’s mind and it annoyed him to no end, because in some way, Kris was right. He didn’t belong in these waters. He never did. And yet here he was, becoming even more of a part in Luhan’s world. Kris was wrong about one thing though, because Sehun would never hurt Luhan, at least not intentionally.

Look, Luhan tugged on his hand and pointed to something that looked like a huge underwater boulder, That’s the great big dome. It’s the biggest coral here, Sehun! Come on, let’s stand on it together.

Sehun nodded.

When their feet touched the top of the coral, Sehun could see everything around in them in an even better light. Fish were swimming, weaving in between their feet, and Luhan looked like he was about to giggle. As he started babbling about all the kinds of fish around them, Sehun could only listen half-heartedly because he was too busy staring at Luhan’s smiling face. Here underwater, he looked even more beautiful. He glowed brighter. Why was Sehun only noticing this now? For some reason, his chest felt tight. Somehow, it was becoming hard to breathe and he didn’t know if it was because Luhan was that breathtaking.

Luhan.

-that’s a Scaphirhynchus! Oh and tha’s a school of Fairy Wrasse-

Luhan.

Luhan finally turned to him, noticing that Sehun was now using more force in his hand.

Luhan, it’s getting harder to breathe.

It took a moment for Luhan to process what Sehun said and when he did, his eyes widened, Oh no. The effects of the seaweed must be wearing off. Quick, you have to chew another one before it totally wears off. Luhan started rummaging through his satchel urgently, only to realize that there was no more seaweed left.

I’m so sorry, Sehun. I forgot to harvest some yesterday, and I didn’t notice. I’m so stupid. We have to go. Now! We have to get you above the water for air.

Luhan grabbed his hand and started swimming and Sehun couldn’t keep up with him, the feeling was too uncomfortable. He tugged on Luhan’s hand, once, and then twice. And as Sehun watched Luhan’s back, he couldn’t help that small voice in his head that said, I may not belong in these waters, but I want to belong with Luhan.
He wanted to make Luhan smile. He wanted to stay with him.
Luhan turned his head towards him with a panicked face, Sehun, we don’t have enough time-

And then Luhan was utterly caught by surprise when Sehun looked at him with an unreadable expression before tugging his hand, cupping his face, and pressing his smooth lips against his.

It was as so fast. At first, Luhan didn’t know how to respond, but as Sehun’s mouth continued to press insistently on his, he found himself relaxing, opening his mouth and melting against Sehun. It was as if butterflies were fluttering around his stomach and that was impossible. When they finally separated, Sehun leaned his forehead against his and looked at him with half-lidded eyes. Luhan, on the other hand, had his wide doe eyes fixated on Sehun’s lips.

Why did you do that?

Well, wouldn’t it have been easier to kiss me? And then Sehun gave him a small smile as he brushed his nose against his.

~

Chanyeol’s wedding was in a few days. It was supposed to be held three months ago, but with his brother’s disappearance, their wedding had to be postponed. Chanyeol didn’t exactly expect that it would happen, his brother getting kidnapped.

His father was distraught, when the ship came back and there was only James, the guards, and a handful of petrified crew members and advisors. When he had demanded to see his son, everyone had cowered. Only a tear streaked James had been courageous enough to inform him that Sehun had been abducted, for being mistaken as the crown prince, and for sacrificing himself in exchange of their lives. Shakily, the butler had also told his father about the ransom, and even Chanyeol had been shocked by the hefty sum they were asking for.

As disturbed as his father was, he refused to see Chanyeol for a week, preferring to lock himself in his study. In the end there was nothing they could do. They couldn’t sacrifice half of the kingdom’s riches because as a good king, he had to put his people’s welfare above his son.

And Chanyeol knew this. He understood the pain his father was going through because he knew his father was just like him. If Chanyeol had been nothing but a bad older brother, his father had been an indifferent and cold father.

Sighing, Chanyeol decided to stop brooding about the things that he didn’t have power over of. He still had to check the preparations for his wedding after all. He stood up and walked to the door of the library but someone opened it from the other side before he could.

“Your highness,” a palace guard panted, “Prince Sehun has been found.”

When Chanyeol saw Sehun for the first time in seven months, he almost didn’t recognize him. His brother’s hair was a little bit longer and though it didn’t look like he changed much, there was something different about him. He wasn’t smiling, but there was something about the way his eyes looked when he met his gaze.

The blank or angry stare was gone, replaced by something lighter, more animated than before.

Chanyeol didn’t know what to feel, especially when his father reached over and hugged Sehun. It was so out of character that even his brother looked surprised, before he too reached out and wrapped an arm around their father’s back. The old Sehun wouldn’t have done that. Chanyeol was sure.

Now, they were in Chanyeol’s new office, Sehun standing in front of him.

“Am I supposed to be surprised that you came back alive?” He scanned Sehun’s face for any kind of reaction but found none.

“If you’re thinking that I came back to ruin your wedding with Princess Minah,” His brother started, “I’m going to disappoint you as early as now because I have no plans on doing that.”

Chanyeol was surprised.

“I don’t want your throne or anything,” Sehun said seriously, and it baffled Chanyeol about how serious his brother was.

“Why did you come back then?”

“I’m saying this, not as a prince, but as a brother who has never asked anything from you. I only have two requests,” Sehun, who has never bowed down to anyone his whole life, went down on his knees, and said, “I’m asking you to not push through with the vacation house at the reef, and second, I’m asking permission from you to lead our naval fleet instead.”

~

Today is a good day.

It’s Chanyeol’s first day as king and he crawls out of bed, careful not to wake the sleeping beauty beside him. He walks toward the window at the edge of his room, using one arm to move the curtains aside. His window is one of the windows that face Hoarfrost bay, and he has a clear view of the people moving about the edge of the coast.

He tries to spot his brother in the distance, scanning the crowd of bustling fishermen, seamen, and travellers that were near the Amphitrite. He couldn’t seem to find him.

Squinting, he finally eyes a lone figure sitting in a secluded and unpopulated spot in the port. He could only see the man’s back but it did look like he was wearing the naval general’s uniform. Suddenly, Chanyeol’s eyes widened. From the water in front of his brother, he saw a beautiful being come up from the sea, pulling his brother into a kiss.

“Today’s Sehun’s leave, isn’t it?” Arms were suddenly wrapping around his waist, “We should find someone for him so that he won’t be lonely,” Minah chuckles as she perches her chin on Chanyeol’s shoulder.

Chanyeol only ends up smiling, “I think he already has someone at sea, someone who makes him feel alive.”

~

epilogue

“I have something to tell you,” Luhan holds his hand as they sit and watch the sunset, “That night, ten years ago…that was me. I saved you.”

“I kind of figured that out already,” Sehun chuckled.

“H-how?”

“Well, for one, how could I forget your face? Second, you knew my name even if I didn’t tell you-”

“What if I was a mind reader?”

“You aren’t,” Sehun shook his head, “Third, my nightmares stopped when I met you, and fourth, I overheard some of your conversation with Kris.”

“So…you aren’t mad at me?”

“At first, I was,” Sehun leaned his head against Luhan’s, “But you had your reasons. I know that you were protecting the reef, and you couldn’t save the both of us. It might have been painful, all these years without my mother. But in the end, how could I not forgive you? After all, weren’t you the one who showed me what it really means to be alive?”

Author’s Note: I’d like to thank all of you for reading this fic and supporting hunhan. This fic was supposed to have more drama, but I ran out of time so maybe I’d extend it in the near futur. (Thank you mods for having such patience with me!)

Fun fact: I got the word Zaphirr from Sapphire, but coincidentally, it sounds similar to Zephyr, which is related to wind! Anyways, Writing Animal exo was quite fun, so I hope you all liked the characters! In case you need help visualizing them, Minseok is supposed to be that newly discovered adorabilis octopus, and Lay’s supposed to look like a forever sleepy fish. (Chilapia=chips=Lays OK BYE.)