Wheel of Fortune
Title : Wheel Of Fortune
Prompt : #68
For: kouyou_x3
Pairing : Jongkey
Author : >anonymous until reveals<
Word count : 3333
Rating : PG-13
Warnings : swearing
Summary : In which there's a sassy merman caught in the net of Captain Jonghyun's crew.
>><<
Jonghyun had always loved the sea. Ever since he had first seen it as a kid he had been dreaming of ships and pirates, of the sea driving him where his sword would be needed.
Becoming a pirate wasn’t too realistic though, not when he was far from being into violence. But the sea was still as seducing as ever and the call only got stronger as the years passed. And one day Jonghyun just gave in and boarded a ship. It wasn’t magnificent, just a fishing ship but it was all that he had ever craved for.
He started working as a sailor and fisherman, slowly working his way up the ladder of the ship. And only four years later he found himself as the newly appointed captain of the ship -the Shining Pearl.
Most of time his crew and he would leave the port for a few days before coming back with the ship filled with fish -minus the one they would eat themselves. It was a good life: it didn’t pay badly and even if Jonghyun’s parents were complaining that their son was almost never around and that he would never get the time to find a girl for himself, that ship was freedom to Jonghyun and the sea was his mistress.
Everything was fine until a certain afternoon that shook up Jonghyun’s world to its core. They had gone a little further than their usual fishing point, had thrown the net overboard and sailed until the net was considered as heavy enough for the day. They had then proceeded to load it on board, Jonghyun helping his crew as he always would. The net had been opened and they started to take a look at the fishes, making sure that they hadn’t caught a turtle or something like that, that would be unsellable and therefore useless to keep.
But then the biggest pile of fish started to move, sending the youngest member of the crew screaming and backing away. The rest watched, expecting a seal to have been caught -it wouldn’t be the first time. But it wasn’t a seal; it was nothing like Jonghyun had ever seen and he had to admit that he could do nothing but stare at first.
The creature he was staring at was most likely the most breathtaking man Jonghyun had ever laid his eyes on. He had blond hair that seemed to have turned greenish from being in the sea for too long, high cheekbones and a delicate heart-shaped mouth with the prettiest tint of pink. His skin was pale, only disturbed by a few gashes from where blood was dripping out.
But when he pushed himself into a seated position, eyes burning with unleashed rage, Jonghyun realized his mistake. The creature wasn’t a man; instead of legs he was sporting a fish tail -whitish on the front and black on his back.
“A mermaid…” One of the sailors said, shaking the rest of them out of their dazes. The words attracted the creature’s attention who opened his mouth to answer -or at least it seemed so; Jonghyun had no idea whether the merman was able to talk.
He had heard stories of the deep blue, rumors of people living underwater. He had seen some fishes coming up in the net with arrows planted into their flesh, as if they had been hunted by something else than humans. And he had no doubt that he was facing one of those people.
“It’s not a mermaid dumbass. It’s a merman.” Another member of the crew pointed out, taking a step closer to the creature -already reaching out to touch it.
Jonghyun had always felt proud of his crew; they weren’t like those sailors in movies or books, only caring about gold, fishes and women. But seeing them at the moment, with their eyes burning with desire and barely hidden lust, he couldn’t recognize the men he had hired and worked with for quite some time.
“Don’t fucking touch me.” The merman snarled, snapping his teeth at the daring hand -making the man back away in fear but it didn’t deter him from coming closer again.
The move had been enough for Jonghyun to notice the sharp teeth the merman was sporting and he tilted his head to the side, his fringe moving away from his eyes. He was feeling curious about the other -how was he breathing, how long could he stay out of the water? It was one thing to have an inkling that humanoids creatures were living into the ocean; it was something else to see one. And it seemed that only Jonghyun wasn’t affected with lust.
Maybe it was because he was curious above anything else, because he loved the sea and had always known that he belonged to it somehow -his crew was maybe made of fishermen but they didn’t belong in the same way he did. They didn’t have this utter love for the sea filling them nor did they respect her like Jonghyun did.
But the thing that mattered was that, though he wasn’t unaffected by the charms of the creature before him, he was aware that the others would only try and ruin the merman.
When Jonghyun stepped forward, the gaze of the creature turned to him, piercing through his very being and for a second nailing him there, breathless. But he shook the feeling off; he had to get the merman away from his crew. He was after all bleeding quite heavily and he needed to be treated.
“Are you hurt?” Jonghyun asked as he took another step closer, eyes fixed on the merman just in case. He had no idea what the other was usually having for dinner but he sure as hell wasn’t planning to become the creature’s next meal.
“Oh I don’t know, does it look like I’m fucking hurt?” The merman replied as he rolled his eyes, looking pretty pissed off. But that could be understandable somehow couldn’t it? He had been caught in a net made for fish, had been hauled up into a ship and was now being ogled at by a dozen men. No wonder he wasn’t crying of joy.
“I can treat you inside, I have a first-aid kit. Just let me carry you there.” Jonghyun said, wanting to take another step closer but the fire burning within the merman’s eyes was deterring him from doing so.
“Right and I eat humans for breakfast.” The other replied sarcastically -yet the whole crew apart from Jonghyun took a step back as if the merman was about to jump on them. Which he would have been in difficulty to do considering that he didn’t have any legs to propel himself forward.
“No way I’m letting any of you touch me or take me anywhere. You’ll just try to experiment on me. I know it, I’ve seen it!” The merman said, his voice growing hysterical. “I won’t fall for it, you won’t have me!”
“Calm down, we- I won’t hurt you. I’m Jonghyun. Captain Kim Jonghyun.” The sailor said, his eyes fleeting from the merman’s face to his wounds. “Please let me help you okay? I can treat you on the deck if you prefer. And I promise nothing will happen to you and we’ll let you leave this ship unharmed.”
“And why should I trust you? You could be like all the others. You are like all the others. I know what you really want. What you’ll really do.” The merman replied with a hiss -but his voice didn’t seem as confident as earlier. Maybe it was because he was feeling his strength leave him due to his wounds, maybe it was because he was scared.
Or maybe he could feel in his very being that Jonghyun was indeed different and that he would hold his words no matter the cost.
“Please. Let me help.” Jonghyun repeated, the plea in his voice seemingly having an effect on the other considering the suspicious look he got in return. “Okay everyone, I want you to go to your quarters. Now. And Taemin, bring me back the first-aid kit.” The captain said as he turned to face his men.
A chorus of protest answered him but he didn’t sway.
“I said. Return to your quarters. Now!” Jonghyun said louder, his voice cold as ice and the order undeniable. His gaze was hard and the men slowly obeyed, looking back every few seconds to glare at their captain and mutter curses under their breaths, saying that Jonghyun only wanted the merman for himself.
“Better now? I don’t plan to hurt you or do anything to you. Just let me treat your wounds and I’ll let you leave afterwards.” Jonghyun said, crouching down to be on the same level as the merman’s eyes.
“I don’t know if you’re slow or just plain stupid but ordering your crew to leave the deck isn’t going to change anything. I’m not letting you touch me. You’re not putting your dirty hands on me.” The merman said as he rolled his eyes once more, pushing himself away with his hands when Jonghyun tried to get closer. “Get the fuck away.” He snarled this time -but the captain could see panic starting to seep into his eyes.
“Okay, I’ll stay where I am then. I’m not moving anymore.” Jonghyun said, putting his hands up and stilling. It seemed to work as the merman relaxed after a few moments of staring suspiciously at him. “What’s your name?” The captain asked softly, hoping that it would help the merman trust him.
Once again there was a silence during which the other stared at him, as if trying to understand why Jonghyun was asking such a question.
“Key.” He eventually said, his body tensing again when the youngest member of the crew came back to the deck and handed Jonghyun the first-aid kit.
“There you go captain.” He said, his gaze falling on the merman and he stood still until Jonghyun nudged him.
“Go back inside. Make sure no one is leaving their quarters until I say so.” Jonghyun said and Taemin nodded, his gaze returning to Key for a brief moment before he turned around and left.
“Here. You can take care of your wounds yourself if you don’t want help.” The captain said, pushing the kit toward the merman. The moment his hand was away from the box Key grabbed it, opening it and looking through its content. But he was quick to push it away again with a frown.
“What?” Jonghyun asked, not getting Key’s reaction. He was pretty sure that there was everything the other needed to treat his wounds in the box.
“I don’t… know what those are. How to use them.” The merman replied -seemingly sulking due to his lack of knowledge. But before Jonghyun could tell him, Key pushed the box back to him with a glare. “You do it. But if you fucking try to do anything I’ll kill you.”
His gaze was nailing Jonghyun on the floor, cold and wild. It made no doubt in the captain’s mind that the merman would do just that if he were to fuck up. Therefore he was careful as he grabbed the box and opened it again, looking through the different things to take out some disinfectant and cotton.
“I’m going to start with your arms okay? It might hurt a bit; tell me if I’m too rough.” Jonghyun warned the merman as he damped the cotton with the solution and then reached out. He carefully dabbed a cut Key had under his shoulder, worriedly eyeing the other’s face as he searched for signs of pain.
“I’m not made of sugar dumbass. It hardly stings.” Key said with a snort. But it soon showed that even if he was putting on a straight face and was determined to pretend that it didn’t hurt, he was in pain. Treating the second wound brought tears in his eyes -Jonghyun pretended he hadn’t noticed them.
Key wasn’t sporting that many wounds -but the few he had were quite serious. Thankfully only one needed stitches -and Jonghyun waited until every other wound had been cleaned and treated to take care of it.
“I’ll have to stitch it up. Will that be okay with you?” He asked as he put the cotton damp with blood to the side, his gaze finally leaving Key’s wounds to land on his face. And for a moment he lost his breath, his mouth opening as he stared at the beauty before him.
Small tears had escaped the merman’s eyes and were rolling down his cheeks. His eyes were closed, eyelashes pressed against his milky skin -and there were no words that could have described the sight, nothing that would have been close enough to the truth of what Jonghyun was experiencing at that moment.
Jonghyun stayed still, staring as if in a daze -and maybe he was. It was only when Key opened his eyes to look straight into his eyes that he looked down, unable to hold eye contact.
“Go ahead.” Key said after a while and Jonghyun nodded, grabbing what he would need before looking back up and carefully shuffling closer to the merman. His heart felt like it was beating too loudly in his chest -maybe it was a natural reaction to being close to danger, maybe it was because he was about to touch the other’s skin for the first time. He didn’t know and he didn’t have the time to figure it out.
Already his fingers were ghosting over the other’s skin, carefully pressing the edges of the wound back together while he focused on stitching the wound. It was a long and exhausting task, the captain often stopping to brush his hair away from his face and check that Key was okay.
But his worries of the merman blacking out or being in too much pain weren’t well-founded; in fact it even seemed that Key wasn’t in pain anymore and wasn’t minding the stitching at all. There was a ghost of a smile on his lips, his features relaxed unlike before. And it was distracting Jonghyun a little bit more every time he was looking at the merman’s face, not understanding why the other was reacting like that.
Thankfully he was done before he started to make a mess and after cutting the thread he shifted back, giving the merman his personal space back.
“Are you okay?” Jonghyun asked softly after a while, seeing that Key wasn’t moving anymore except from his chest rising and falling steadily with every breath of his. It allowed the captain to stare, trying to figure out how the other was breathing when he was underwater -did he have gills that were only opening when he was in the water or did he have to go back to the surface to breath every once in a while?
He was distracted from his thoughts when Kibum opened his eyes though, his smile having disappeared.
“Thank you.” The merman said, ignoring the question he had been asked. But he looked a lot better than when Jonghyun had first seen him. He was standing a bit straighter, his tail twitching every now and then -a constant reminder to the man that the other wasn’t fully human.
“You’re welcome. I’ll carry you to the rail so you can get back into the ocean.” Jonghyun said, pushing the first-aid kit away to stand back up. He was about to bend down and pick up the other when the few members of his crew appeared, looking pissed off.
“You got him for long enough, it’s our turn now!” One of them said, making the merman beside Jonghyun tense.
Key’s gaze turned into a glare as he looked at Jonghyun but before he could accuse the other of anything he was picked up in a rush. He kicked and tried to get out of Jonghyun’s hold, thinking that the other was holding him down. But when he was seated on the rail on the ship he stilled, blinking a few times as he came to the realization that things weren’t happening in the way he had been expecting them to happen.
“Go now.” Jonghyun said, not daring to push the other overboard -and he looked behind him, seeing the surprised faces of his crew twist into hateful expressions when they understood what he was doing.
He turned back to look at Kibum one last time, ready to urge him to go once more but his words were forgotten the moment he felt two lips cover his owns in a short and soft kiss.
“Thank you.” The merman whispered again, his fingers caressing Jonghyun’s cheeks -and the captain faintly noticed that his fingers were webbed and then the other was gone, sliding overboard.
There was a splash of water as the crew reached the rail and they all looked overboard, trying to catch a last glimpse of the merman -but he had disappeared.
When they got back to the harbor, Jonghyun fired the members of the crew who had overlooked his order and had tried to get Key before the merman vanished. He couldn’t help but feel resentful toward them; he had just met the most interesting creature on earth and they had ruined everything, forcing Key to flee.
The captain was bitter. There were many things he would have liked to ask the merman, many things he would have liked to do. They had ruined his chance to learn so many things about the sea -and all he was left with was the memory of Key and of that kiss.
It was filling his mind, making him wonder endlessly -and he was stuck in the harbor, unable to sail due to the crew being too small. It took over a week for him to hire reliable sailors and even then he didn’t trust them enough to go back where they had captured Key.
But eventually he got too curious and gave into the temptation of going back there. He had no assurance that Key would be around of course… yet it was still worth a try.
They didn’t throw the net overboard, Jonghyun telling everyone to stay inside while he was checking something. And they all obeyed; some having understood what their captain was hoping for while the newbies were a bit confused but happy to have some time for themselves.
Jonghyun leaned against the rail of the ship, his gaze roaming over the water as he tried to see something -anything that would show the presence of Key. He saw fishes schooling under the ship before disappearing, listened to the sea rocking the ship. As time passed his hopes of seeing Key again decreased.
He was about to give up and go back inside when he heard a splash on the other side of the ship -and he ran to the other rail, his breath hitching when his gaze landed on Key floating on his back with a smile. The merman’s eyes were closed but he seemed to be aware of Jonghyun being there for his eyes immediately found the captain when he opened them.
“I knew you would come back.” Key said, his eyes twinkling.
“I wasn’t sure I would find you.” Jonghyun answered, looking around briefly -it felt weird to be so far from the other.
“You’ll always find me if you’re looking hard enough and wait long enough.” The merman said.
“Now how about you join me in the water or you find a way to get me on board? I believe you have questions for me. Questions I might have an answer to.” He added with a smile -and he was aware that there would always be more questions than he would ever have the time to answer to. But he didn’t mind.
It only meant that Jonghyun would return every time to seek his presence.