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Sehun had always loved the sea, he had a great admiration for it, watching the white sea foam sweep across the light brown sand. The sea was all he knew, growing up on his island beach town living just off the beach in his roomy bungalow. He grew up in a hut just a little farther down the coastline, his younger self would always swim in the warm ocean waters but never went beyond the first sandbar, it was a forbidden rule in his household. Sehun’s father made the rule since he traveled past the first sandbar to go fishing for their family market and for their family, always told Sehun wild tales of sharks and dolphins battling or beautiful creatures that lured men to their deaths with just the sounds of their voices. The sea always remained a mystery to Sehun, even now as he deemed every story of his fathers to just be fictional tales of the sea, he still allowed the blue water to be a mystery.
However, moving out in his own bungalow left him to have to provide for himself since he couldn’t rely on his parents to fish for him forever. He learned how to fish well enough from his father, knew how to make his own fishing nets and rods with bamboo sticks and wiring. The best bait wasn’t minnows or shrimp like the other fishermen used, they only got small fish for a reason, whereas Sehun would use a small fish to catch bigger fish. He preferred tuna, he knew tuna needed something more to consume than a weak minnow or measly shrimp.
Sehun sat in his boat with his white canvas shirt and shorts, bait prepared in a bucket with a lid overtop and a collection of fishing rods with nets, just in case. He even had his supply case of extra wiring for more fishing line, he couldn’t build a whole new extra net on the boat. He stood on his sailboat, double checking if the knots were tied tight for his sails before leaning over to the dock and untied his boat from the wood post, grabbing his oar on the side and pushing off to the sea. For the first time in his life, he was grateful he was muscular and in shape with strong shoulders, oaring himself out in the sea with a smile on his lips at the small rock of the waves against his boat.
Rowing himself on his sailboat made him think of the times his father would take him sailing up to the first sandbar, Sehun wasn’t ever allowed to stand on the boat which led him to lean over and with pudgy fingers point to the darker colored waters with an awe. “What’s out there?” Sehun would ask, turning to face his father who glared harshly to the dark sea before turning back to Sehun, patting his son on the back with an all knowing smile; Sehun wished to have an all knowing smile like that. “You’ll find out when you’re older, my son. I caution you to be safe when you do go, remember, beautiful voices lure men to their deaths. I wish a less brutal fate for you than the ones who were close to me.”
Sehun shook his head at the memory with a sigh escaping his lips, wiping the forming sweat away from his brow with a scowl at the sun beating down against him. “Crazy old man,” he muttered to himself before continuing, changing the sail to go with the wind to help carry him out against the current. The water was a clear light blue, small fish swimming in the reefs below or hiding in the bright colored coral, making a smile light upon Sehun’s lips. He could see the color of the ocean change from the light blue to a darker one as he approached the sandbar until eventually he couldn’t see a floor, and the ocean was an uninviting blue that Sehun felt fascination for.
He stopped at the sandbar marked by a buoy, staring back at the shore where the townies looked small roaming against the beach or the white boats looked like small white specks, then out to the cold sea he had been dying to plunge into since his youth. With one final sigh, he pushed his oars past the sandbar, wielding him out to the cold sea. The waters weren’t very different, if anything they were calmer, oozing with tranquility that made his rowing experience a lot more delightful than he originally intended. He carried himself out to sea, humming a song until deciding on a good enough place to stop where the water was calmer than before, putting his sail down to stay steady in the water and proceeded to set up his fishing line.
He got his bamboo rod out, setting up the wire before connecting the hook with the small fish at the end of the line and dropped the line into the water. The small waves rocked his boat, a small slapping noise against the white wood, but Sehun liked the noise. He reached his free hand in and cupped some water to slap on the back of his neck in an attempt to cool himself down from the grueling heat of the sun against his skin. He held the rod in his hands for a while, singing a song from his childhood quietly beneath his breath as he contemplated what all he needed to do this week. There wasn’t much now that he thinks about it, perhaps try to find a job so he could have some pocket change and maybe help his parents manage their fish market, small things of that nature.
A small tug appeared on the rod, making Sehun’s eyes widen, but he was patient. Sudden movements would only scare the fish away and Sehun couldn’t afford something like that. He waited until there was another nibble, watching the line move in the nearly still water until his rod bent down with a dip and then, Sehun yanked the line. His fingers grasped the wire, pulling the wire with one hand as he wrapped it around his knuckles, yanking hard on the wire with a slight wince as the wire dragged against his skin. He was used to this pain since his teenage years, but it didn’t stop him from having hopes that the pain would lessen. He pulled hard on the rod, dragging it up as he continued to wrap the wire hard around his hand until finally the splash of a small tail hit the water.
Sehun was disappointed but he pulled the wire up anyway until it finally broke the surface, setting the fish down on the bottom of the boat to watch it flail. He let out a sigh, unwinding the wire from his knuckles before moving to grasp the fish just beneath the gills and remove the hook from it’s mouth. He ignored the slap of water against his boat, figuring it was just another wave since there was no splash and it was silent around him besides Sehun muttering small words to the fish to hold still so he could smoothly remove the hook. The boat rocked more to the left, making him look up to see nothing, the slimy fish still squirming in his grasp as he looked around him, shaking his head before finally removing the hook from the fishes mouth and set it down on the base of the boat.
Sehun stared at it for a few minutes before picking it up and gently lowering it in the water, watching a small splash of it’s tail before swimming away again. Another slap of water sounded against the boat except far louder than before, making Sehun turn to face the sound of the noise, not noticing the trail of water leading to the side his back was facing. Sehun eyed the water, feeling his heart rate speed in his chest. The slap only caught his attention since the water was far too calm for something so loud, but he saw nothing and turned to face the water again.
“My father really got to me,” he muttered in disapproval of his fear and paranoid behavior and grabbed his line again, bating it once more and dropped the line in the water. He stared down into the water, eyes narrowing until he felt a small nibble, with Sehun’s luck it would be the same fish he thought with a sigh. Another tug made Sehun repeat the process of wrapping the wire around his hand as he pulled the wire up, but this time it was a bigger fish that Sehun considered edible and with a smile, he removed the hook from the fish and grabbed the spare bucket, filling it with water and dropped his dinner in it.
Sehun’s happiness was temporary as he heard a honey toned voice humming with the slap of water against the wood of his boat. It was beautiful, he thinks, the most beautiful voice he was sure to have ever heard in a long time. Sehun set down his fishing rod as he looked around, noticing he was all alone until he noticed the humming growing louder and his boat rocked on the side his back was facing. His heartbeat was thumping in his ears as he turned to face the source of the weight against his boat, inhaling quietly until he turned around. A man with thick wet black hair and tanned skin that Sehun could only describe as bronze and sun-kissed. Warm brown eyes with dark pink plush lips that were shiny from water, sharp jawline dripping with water, Sehun felt his breath escape his lungs. He peered down into the water, noticing his strong broad chest with abs that turned into a deep blue with a teal green at the end of his scales. Sehun blinked rapidly, noticing how the man was half fish, looking up quickly to see a smug smile playing on his lips. “You’re new, not one of the older fishermen who don’t have time for our tricks,” the honey voice made Sehun feel warm, safe even though he knew he shouldn’t feel that way.
“Are you a mermaid?” Sehun asked dumbly when it was clear the answer was right in his face but the man shook his head with a chuckle, lifting his hand from the water to brush his fingers against his chin. “No, but you’re close, I’m a lot prettier than a mermaid. I’m a siren.” Sehun felt his head nod, leaning into the touch of the stranger. “What’s your name?” Sehun asked in a rather dreamy state, his mind completely absorbed by everything the siren. It was almost like the words of his father left his mind of men being lured by voices alone to their deaths, instead he was entranced by the brown eyes in front of him. “Jongin, the better question is, who’re you? I’ve seen the same faces many times but never one as pretty as you.” Sehun felt his face heat, even if Jongin’s fingers retracted to rest on the side of the boat with a faint hum. “Sehun,” Jongin sighed in content, running a hand through his wet hair.
“Sehun, pretty, what made you come out here? Weren’t you warned?” Jongin’s voice came out melodic, almost a hum, Sehun felt his boat rock as he leaned closer to the siren who only stared up at him with all the light in the world bouncing in his eyes. “I was, but I have to eat somehow.” Jongin giggled, it was a giggle so beautiful that Sehun couldn’t help but sigh out in pleasure to the beautiful sound. “Brave handsome man, but I’m afraid you’re safe for today. I have no interest in killing a man with intentions so pure and a face so pretty. If I bring you more fish will you get going?” Jongin asked, and even though Sehun didn’t want to leave, he knew it would be for the best so he could avoid danger. His brain was already foggy and clouded with thoughts of joining Jongin in the water, kissing him and being near him, he understood how men were lured to their deaths.
Jongin dipped under the water, tail sticking out before dipping beneath the calm waves and for a moment Sehun broke out of his trance, leaning back into his boat as he cleared his throat. Surely Jongin was beautiful but there was no way Sehun had met the thing his father spoke fables of. Sirens couldn’t be real, his father’s stories couldn’t be true, that people as beautiful as Jongin were responsible for so many deaths at sea and why going past the first sandbar was forbidden. Jongin popped back up with a few fish in his grip, leaning over to dump it in the bucket, smiling up at Sehun who felt weak once more. “Get going, Sehun-ah. Only come back if you need anything more, I’d hate to see a beautiful man like you killed by one of my own.”
Jongin disappeared into the sea with the honey toned hum following him, Sehun was only allured until the hum faded completely into the water, shaking his head as he eyed the bucket of fish before rowing himself back to shore with a shiver down his spine at his father possibly have being right.
He couldn’t stop thinking about Jongin, even days after, even if his fridge was fully stocked he couldn’t help the itch to go back out there and see the beautiful face on the side of his sailboat. The only person he knew would understand would maybe be his father, but his father never showed signs of being entranced by the sirens or wanting to go see them, more of disgust and disdain of them. Sehun only ever remembered the disgust and fear in his eyes when he spoke about them, or told stories, whereas Sehun felt a need to be closer and hear jongin’s voice again and stare into the golden brown eyes.
Perhaps it wasn’t the smartest decision to get in his boat at night after he woke up from a cold sweat from his dream of Jongin’s lips and eyes. He fixed the sail on the windy night and grabbed his oar, fishing supplies on deck as he untied his boat and rowed himself past the first sandbar. The water looked dark and menacing, even beneath the full silver moon, but Sehun was determined as he put down his sail once he felt he was farther enough. He sat in the water, moving to lie on his back as he stared at the moon, noticing the small movements the gentle waves carrying his boat.
He almost dozed off in the water, feeling his eyelids droop and get heavier until a familiar slap of water slapped the side of his boat and dip to the left side, making Sehun sit up to look over to the left. Jongin sat with a blinding smile, almost brighter than the moon, Sehun felt weak once more as butterflies battered in his chest. “Did I put you under my spell, Sehun?” Sehun nodded, but Jongin giggled quietly and hummed softly. “Perhaps I should turn off my powers so we could talk normally, hm?” Sehun didn’t understand until Jongin closed his eyes for a few brief moments, opening them and the entranced feeling in Sehun’s chest disappeared.
He felt as if Jongin were a normal person now, just far too beautiful for anybody to ever compare to, the butterflies at that thought felt slightly natural. “Is that better? I can’t put a spell on you from the shore, so you came out here on your own to see me. Dangerous for you to do, especially at night since that’s when we feed.” Jongin said matter of factly, but Sehun wasn’t threatened or scared, if Jongin were to kill him he would’ve done it by now. “I wanted to see you, I’ve never seen someone as beautiful as you in my life.” Sehun said honestly, feeling almost victorious when a blush spread across Jongin’s cheeks. “I’m meant to be beautiful, humans aren’t however. You’re the most beautiful human I’ve ever seen. Too pretty to be eaten,” Jongin said quietly, brushing his wet thumb against Sehun’s dry cheek with a ‘tsk’ noise. “Unfortunate because you certainly smell lovely,” Sehun felt himself tense, but Jongin paid no mind and with one simple stroke of his thumb to Sehun’s jawline, he relaxed.
Sehun’s breath hitched, despite being relaxed and swallowed thickly as he looked down at Jongin. “Is this normal? For people to come back and see sirens?” Jongin giggled once more and nodded, Sehun shivered at Jongin’s thumb brushing down the vein in his neck. “Yes, my best friend Baekhyun has an admirer of his own. I think it’s in the human nature to admire or even try to claim beautiful things, even when it risks great danger. Like the Trojan War, the entire war was based upon Paris and his elopement with Helen of Sparta. She was wed to Menelaus but Paris insisted she was the most beautiful woman in the world and treated her right. Human nature is to admire and claim beautiful things, no matter the risk, and what’s more is that people believed that was a virtuous cause for war. Humans, you’re all silly.”
Sehun moved his hand to brush through Jongin’s hair, feeling slightly pleased when Jongin’s eyelids fluttered to the touch. “Do sirens not believe in chasing after beautiful things? What were to happen if a siren fell in love with a human? You think I’m beautiful, yet you come to see me without eating me, you may display human nature as well.” Jongin looked at him thoughtfully, moving his hand now to rest on his bare thigh, thumb brushing softly against his skin. “Sirens believe in chasing after beautiful things to eat them. I’m not displaying human nature for you, Sehun. I’m displaying an admiration for you and enough respect for you to not eat you, there’s a difference. Although, if a siren falls in love with a human, they’ve gained human nature. They turn into a nature and remain one until they die of old age. Sirens don’t have love, just admiration and respect, humans have love. In order for a siren to gain human nature, we’d have to feel love.”
“It must be empty to not feel love,” Sehun said absentmindedly, but Jongin shook his head with a chuckle. “Respect and admiration is enough. Love is blinding, sirens are predators, we can’t be blinded by feelings. Sehun nodded, tongue darting over his lips before looking to Jongin. “So what do you feed upon then? Blood? Morality?” Jongin shook his head, humming quietly. “Human nature is found within the soul, love makes human nature, love makes a soul. We feed on souls. Unfortunately, we have to kill the person in order to feed on the soul, we aren’t water vampires.” Sehun laughed quietly at water vampires, but nodded and dragged his hand to cup Jongin’s cheek, brushing his thumb over it. “What would happen if I continue to come out and see you?” Jongin’s eyebrows raised, resting his chin on the side of the boat. “I’d suppose I’d keep you company, like Baekhyun does for his admirer.”
Sehun’s eyebrows furrowed, shaking his head but Jongin swiftly cut him off with a smirk. “You’re my admirer, don’t deny it. It’s far too late in the night and you’re out here to just see me. You admire me, but if I tell you to leave, you must. You’re in danger or I’m hungry, so if I say to leave, please go.” Sehun nodded, dropping his hand back to his lap and Jongin retreated his own to the side of the boat, studying Sehun’s face in a way that left him feeling exposed and vulnerable. “You’re tired, go home, get rest. Come to see me when you can, admirer.” Before Sehun could protest, Jongin winked and swam back into the water, making Sehun pout but pick up his oar and row back to shore after setting up his sail once more.
Sehun only had one friend, tall and lanky with no sense of coordination and has fallen off a sailboat more times than Sehun could count, Park Chanyeol. He, like Sehun, moved into a small bungalow to live his own life away from his parents but he looked more worn out by the sun. He sat across the table from Sehun with a soju in hand, a sunburn speckled across his nose with a few sunspots starting to blemish the milky skin. Sehun found them nice however, Chanyeol didn’t share the same opinion but he was too carefree to spend too much time complaining about that or anything for that matter.
Sehun only invited Chanyeol to lunch because besides his father, Chanyeol may believe that sirens exist. Sehun couldn’t possibly tell his father that he’s become an admirer of a siren, especially since his father felt such a strong disgust. Chanyeol believed in all the fisherman tales unlike Sehun, even asked his father about things he’s seen in the sea when Sehun invites him over for dinner. Sehun figured his safest bet on admitting his admiration for a siren would be to his best and only friend.
It had been two days since he went out at night to see Jongin, and ever since that visit, he thought the thoughts of the siren would leave his mind but they didn’t. The internet wasn’t too useful since there wasn’t anything on the internet about a human having a little bit of a crush on a siren except to stay away or this is how they lure in prey. Baekhyun’s admirer didn’t seem to be that way in the brief description Jongin gave him, if anything, Sehun felt close to Baekhyun’s admirer if it was true the admirer went out to sea everyday and came back alive. Sehun couldn’t help but think about Jongin, get to know things about him, such as what he likes or how he spends his time, dreams or aspirations or anything of the sort. Sehun knew Jongin wouldn’t have much to say about dreams or aspirations, but there’s a whole other world that Jongin lived in that didn’t involve him, a whole other world that Sehun wanted to know about. He only wanted to know about it to know what Jongin’s world was like, he only wanted to know about Jongin, period.
Chanyeol sat in front of him with a gyro and lemon rice, humming quietly with a grin across his lips. Sehun only sat with a soda, watching as Chanyeol grinned down at his food in such a loving way that Sehun had to make effort into stifling his laughter. “Chanyeol,” Sehun began, watching as Chanyeol took a bite but raised his eyebrows to let Sehun know he was acknowledging him. “Do you believe in the sirens?” Chanyeol nearly choked on his gyro but managed to finish the bite smoothly, swallowing the food and scratched the back of his neck.
“The sirens? At sea? Past the first sandbar?” Chanyeol said in his deep baritone voice with his eyes comically wide, making Sehun nod slowly. “Do I need to go into further detail for you or do you understand what I’m talking about now?” Chanyeol snorted, setting down the sandwich and nodded, sighing quietly. “Yeah, you know I do, why?” Sehun rubbed his knuckles with his thumb, staring down at the table. “I’ve seen one, and I think I’m a bit enamored with him.” He said near silently, looking up when it was silent for too long; Chanyeol was never one to be silent. “You too?” Chanyeol whispered, making Sehun’s eyes widen before snorting out. “Don’t tell me we both admire a siren, please tell me it’s not the same one.”
Chanyeol laughed quietly, waving Sehun off. “Baekhyun’s not your type, and you’re definitely not his.” Sehun’s eyes widened, giggling as he covered his mouth with his hand. “You’re Baekhyun’s admirer? Jongin’s told me about you, says you’re Baekhyun’s admirer, guess that explains the sun burn and why you can’t complain about your sun spots.” Chanyeol kicked him beneath the table, making them both laugh but Sehun shrugged, scratching the back of his neck. “Should I pursue this? Is this even worth my time? I can’t stop fucking thinking about him, he’s taken over my entire mind.” Sehun breathed out, running his hands through his hair. Chanyeol sighed quietly and leaned his hand over to take one of Sehun’s in his own.
“I need you to listen to me,” Sehun looked at Chanyeol, resting his hand down on the table. “At first I thought it was the same, Baekhyun was really coy and seductive and flirty and it seemed like he was just a siren, nothing more. I was about to give up until I realized, there was a reason he wasn’t killing me and they may say its ‘you’re too pretty’ or ‘I respect you enough’ but they’re enamored with you as well. They don’t know that though, because they don’t know love. I took a month or two to learn about him, and he warmed up to me, and now I go out there everyday to make him realize he loves me, so he can gain his human nature and be with me on land. It’s very worth it, Jongin’s enamored with you too. Learn about him, be patient with him.”
Sehun nodded with a small smile on his lips, squeezing Chanyeol’s hand in his own with a soft giggle. “I hope he comes to land with you soon, Chanyeol. Thank you.” Chanyeol nodded and released Sehun’s hand to grip his gyro and bite into it again. Sehun smiled, watching his best friend eat like a mess as he thought through when to go back out to sea next.
Next happened to be that very night, sitting in the same spot or close to with the sail down as he stared into the dark water, waiting for any sign of Jongin. He noticed after looking into the water that air bubbles were made before the slap of water, and Jongin appeared before him with a blinding smile as he leaned against the boat. “We have to stop meeting at night, I’ll assume I’m just your late night booty call,” Jongin started coyly, Sehun noticed he didn’t have his power of charm on since he didn’t feel weak or simply entranced by every single word Jongin said, but he was still smitten and charmed.
“Admirers don’t call what they admire for booty calls, they call the side piece for that,” Sehun paused as Jongin raised his eyebrow, gesturing to Sehun. “Well, evidently you don’t have time for a side piece if you see me during the day and night, it’s nice to know it’s just me.” Sehun could’ve sworn there was a blush on Jongin’s cheeks, the silver moonlight shining directly on his face shed the truth that he was blushing. Sehun brushed his thumb slowly across Jongin’s cheek, cooing faintly. “Aw, is the little siren blushing?” Jongin hissed quietly but there was a smile on his face, swatting Sehun’s hand away from his face. “Shut up, Sehun.”
Sehun giggled, laying down in the boat but had his elbow against the baseboard to hold his head up and look over at Jongin. “Tell me about you, what things you like, your favorite things to do, tell me everything about you.” Jongin looked surprised, the blush deepening and Sehun kept his quiet since he wanted Jongin to open up to him, not run away. Or swim away, he should say. “Um, okay. I really like watching the sun set, and other than that, when I’m not causing havoc to fishermen, I collect seashells. I also have a really good relationship with sharks and jellyfish so sometimes I swim with the sharks and sometimes at night I watch them light up. I dance? I know I don’t have legs but I do those twirls and people call that dancing here.”
Sehun smiled at that, watching Jongin slowly become more comfortable and a genuine smile spread across his lips. Sehun could tell the difference, that it wasn’t coy or flirty, but a genuine smile since it met his eyes. “Everything else about me? There isn’t much, sometimes I swim out and get lost for a while when I feel like I have no purpose or when I don’t know what I’m doing, y’know. Other than that, I do what I told you before or I wreak havoc to fisherman and kill to survive.. it’s not the most eventful life. Yours sounds much better,” Jongin finishes quietly. Sehun couldn’t help but smile as he lifted his fingers to brush through Jongin’s wet hair, leaning forward to press a kiss to his forehead.
Chanyeol had a point about Jongin being enamored with him, since if he were just playing coy or having respect out for him. Sehun could have respect for someone and not open up to him like Jongin did, he could’ve played it coy and asked why Sehun wanted to know and flirt with him more to seduce him, be a siren in simpler terms. He didn’t though, he opened up to Sehun and even had a blush on his cheeks after Sehun pulled back. Sehun really liked the thought of Jongin being taken with him, so it’s mutual and not just something he’s experimenting with.
“You’re incredibly interesting, babe.” Sehun said, watching as Jongin giggled and turned his head away to look into the water before back to Sehun. “Don’t flatter me, I don’t do anything besides swim all day.” Sehun shrugged, scooting closer to Jongin, close enough to feel the warm breath against his cheek. “I don’t do anything but walk all day, we aren’t too different.” Jongin moved his hand, Sehun didn’t notice the cool water against his cheek but focused on the warmth against his skin instead. “I believe I admire you, baby.” Jongin said quietly, the quiet words were able to make Sehun’s heart flip in his chest. “Good, I’d hate for this to be one sided.” Jongin and Sehun smiled, and Jongin pressed a kiss to the corner of Sehun’s mouth, barely rippling the water as he moved smoothly. “Go, I know you’re tired, but please come see me tomorrow.”
Sehun nodded, mustering up all his courage and bravery he had as he leaned down to peck Jongin’s mouth before sitting up. Jongin’s fingers ghosted over his mouth with a wide smile, staring up at Sehun with a dark blush. “I’ll be back tomorrow, baby.” Sehun said confidently, picking up the oar and rowing off with Jongin watching him as he went.
Sehun sat with his legs swinging in the water at noon on his dock, staring at the ocean as a small white boat came sailing back in. Sehun noticed it was Chanyeol’s since half of it was blue, Chanyeol wanted one different from everyone else. A smile was on his lips as he realized he sailed out in the morning to see Baekhyun, it was nice to know he wasn’t alone. It was peaceful and tranquil, the only sound was his breathing and the crash of the waves into the roaring ocean. “Sehun!” Chanyeol shouted the minute his boat touched the sand, holding a body in his arms, making Sehun dart up and run off his dock.
“Chanyeol? Is everything okay?” He yelled, panting as he darted across the beach where Chanyeol had dropped down on the dry sand with the body resting against it now. Sehun stopped before he approached the body to not kick sand on it, kneeling down beside a handsome man who was breathing just fine, if his pulse was anything to go by. He was wrapped in spare sails that Chanyeol always kept, he was smart unlike Sehun who never brought spare sails but he was thinking he should. He was beautiful, certainly, and in Sehun’s mind it clicked as he looked up at Chanyeol with wide eyes.
“Is this Baekhyun?” Sehun pointed to the man wrapped in the sails, watching as Chanyeol nodded and ran his fingers through Baekhyun’s hair, leaning down to kiss his forehead with a soft sigh. “He loves me, he admitted it and he turned human but the transition took so much out of him that he’s been unconscious ever since. Help me carry him back to my bungalow, please?” Sehun nodded, looking down at Baekhyun as he helped Chanyeol put Baekhyun over his shoulder.
Sehun walked ahead, hands in the pockets of his shorts, walking down the sandy path as Chanyeol hummed until the taller spoke. “Did you see Jongin again?” Sehun nodded, a smile lighting up his features as he turned his head to look at Chanyeol. “He admitted to be enamored with me, you’re right. He opened up to me, too.” Chanyeol’s eyes widened, but he smiled. “He’s opening up to you fast, maybe it’ll be faster for you two than it was for Baekhyun to admit he loved me or had feelings for me. This was the first time today, and Baekhyun told me that even if a siren gets feelings for anybody, they’ll turn human if it’s mutual.” Sehun hummed thoughtfully before turning down to the bungalow at the end of the path, opening the door and letting Chanyeol enter first.
He laid Baekhyun out on the wicker couch, watching the sleeping siren twitch in his sleep. Sehun sighed quietly and looked up to Chanyeol with a hand running through his hair. “Are you happy about this?” Chanyeol nodded with a grin, leaning down before sitting on the floor, kissing Baekhyun’s temple. “Very, I can’t wait to feed him fruit. I brought him a pineapple one time, he was really into that.” Baekhyun stirred and stretched with a groan, making Sehun’s eyes widen until the man on the couch opened his eyes blearily. “Chanyeol?”
Chanyeol nodded with a grin, brushing his thumb softly along Baekhyun’s cheek. “Yeah baby it’s me, you’re in my house.” Baekhyun sat straight up, moving his hands beneath the sails that were moving lower on his body that Chanyeol tried to keep around him modestly. “I turned human?” Baekhyun asked, breaking through a grin as Chanyeol’s matched his. “You did, you gained human nature. Also, this is Sehun, Jongin’s admirer.” Chanyeol gestured to Sehun, making Baekhyun smirk and stand up while tugging the sails around his naked body. “You’re so his type, unlike me, Jongin will be coming around sooner. He has not stopped blabbing about you, I wonder what he’s going to do now that I’m gone. Junmyeon won’t listen, and Kyungsoo definitely wants to eat you.” Baekhyun spoke matter of factly, making Sehun’s eyes go wide.
“Um, nice to meet you too.” Baekhyun giggled before going over to Chanyeol and plopped down on his lap, bringing his arms around Chanyeol’s neck. Sehun’s heart swelled with warmth at the thought of this being him and Jongin, he wanted it soon. “Stay with us today, Sehun. You can go see him tonight,” Baekhyun said absentmindedly, and Sehun nodded because really he had no choice judging by the way Baekhyun and Chanyeol were pressuring him with their intense eye contact for him to stay.
Sehun settled his boat in the ocean at dusk, panting at how fast he rowed as he stared into the darkening water. Surprisingly, bubbles appeared quickly as Jongin darted out of the water, shaking his head quickly as he gripped Sehun’s wrist. “You need to go, right now, you’re in danger, hurry before they come.” Sehun’s eyebrows furrowed, shaking his head. “Are you okay? I’ll stay for you,” Jongin quickly shook his head with water filling his eyes as he let out a desperate pleading sigh. “No, I need you to go, right now. Leave, Sehun. You’re in danger, ever since Baekhyun turned human they’ve been going wild and making sure no one else turns, they know you’re a threat to me, they know how I feel.”
Sehun’s eyes widened, remembering how Chanyeol mentioned how even admitting Baekhyun had feelings for him vocally had made him transition. “Don’t say more, wait. I know what you’re going to say and that’s how Baekhyun transitioned.” Jongin nodded quickly, pushing Sehun’s boat now on the opposite end. “Go! Go! Don’t come back for me, I’ll be fine you need to leave!” Sehun picked up his oar as he heard a splash followed by a yell. “You’re letting him go?!” It was an angry voice, filled with rage, Sehun couldn’t look back as he pushed forward into the ocean until something stopped his boat hard. He was almost to the first sandbar, but a siren appeared in front of his boat with both hands on the wood.
“Going somewhere, lover boy?” A man asked, he was pretty with wide eyes that reminded him much of a deer and a small mouth with thin lips and sharp cheekbones. Sehun couldn’t admire though, he willed himself to look down at the baseboard of his boat and stay silent. “Suddenly you don’t talk much?” Sehun didn’t say anything but he could hear Jongin yelling to him, “hit him with the oar, Sehun!” Sehun didn’t need much more encouragement as he lifted the oar to smack the siren against the head, watching as he fell into the water before dipping the oar back in the water and pushed into the first sandbar, watching as the sirens stopped their movements.
There were five of them on Sehun’s trail, eyes glowing and piercing into the night as they stared at him from the dark colored water. Sehun didn’t question why they couldn’t pass into the first sandbar, and maybe it’s because it’s too shallow or they wouldn’t remain hidden, but they glared at him. Sehun lifted his eyes from them to see Jongin fighting with another siren, he could tell his tail from the others from the teal blue, the other siren’s tail was more purple in color. He sat and waited, keeping himself in the first sandbar, biting hard on his bottom lip until both sirens yanked up. Jongin had blood against the side of his face while the other siren had a bite mark on the side of his neck, bleeding into his shoulder.
“You’re choosing a human over us, Jongin.” The man didn’t phrase it as a question, watching as Jongin nodded. “I am, because he doesn’t deserve to die. Sirens come and go every single day, either being lone wolves or falling in love, what’s the difference if you lose a few more? We lost Yifan the other day, Tao’s planning on leaving next, why do you care if I fall in love with a human?” Sehun felt his breath stop in his chest, watching as the other sirens approached Jongin. The man was silent, Jongin was silent, until the man spoke. “Then admit you have feelings for him if it’s of no importance to leave us.” Sehun knew it was a risky thing to do, but he readied his oar and silently pushed back into the dark water to catch Jongin before he drowned.
“I have feelings for him, Junmyeon.” Jongin admitted it, making Sehun smile but he pushed faster, watching as a sudden light exploded from the water and a yell of pain startling Sehun as it emitted from Jongin’s throat. The other sirens coiled away from it, diving under the water but Sehun only pushed closer, watching as tears fell down Jongin’s face and pain seared through him. Sehun felt it in his chest, feeling the pain as well but not as bad as Jongin to let out loud yells as he started to curl into himself. Sehun dipped into the water, pushing up to the surface with a loud inhale and moved over to Jongin, swimming around him until the light started to dim. The yelling subsided but Jongin could barely keep his eyes open, making Sehun wrap his arms around Jongin’s waist and pulled him to the boat.
He carefully lifted Jongin onto the boat, cursing himself for not bringing the spare sails and climbed in the boat and gripped the oar to push back to the first sandbar, stopping midway to slip his shirt over Jongin’s resting body, leaving him shirtless as he continued his journey back to his dock. Once he got to his dock, he tied the boat to the dock and lifted Jongin up over his shoulder, carrying him into his bungalow and rested him on the couch much like Chanyeol did to Baekhyun. His fingers pressed against Jongin’s neck like he had done many times on the way home just to make sure there was a pulse, it was strong, it made Sehun feel relieved.
Jongin slept for a while as Sehun dried him off and slipped some clothes on his body, running his fingers through Jongin’s wet hair that was starting to dry. It was the first time Sehun had ever felt Jongin’s hair dry, or his skin for that matter. Everything about him was soft, even his lips that were spent in salt water were soft, Sehun ran his thumb over it gently a few times. Jongin was also warmer than Sehun could imagine, Sehun’s heart hadn’t stopped beating rapidly in his chest, the butterflies wouldn’t diminish.
Sehun fell asleep on the bed with Jongin after he had carried him in, snuggled close to his chest. Sehun didn’t know that Jongin had woken up with a smile on his face in being next to Sehun, he thought Sehun felt so warm and soft, he liked all the strong defined features of his body, he liked Sehun more than he’d like to admit. Jongin would also never admit to Sehun that he pecked his lips during his sleep and in Sehun’s sleep, he smiled.
Jongin sat in Sehun’s bed after he had showered with Sehun who gave him a quick tutorial of the bathroom, completely in awe at everything humans had that they didn’t. Their hands were laced together, thumb brushing slow over his knuckles and Jongin’s head rested against Sehun’s shoulder. Sehun was in disbelief that a man from the sea became his lover, and he wanted to give them a label since he just wanted to call Jongin his boyfriend, even if he was sure the siren had no idea what that meant.
“Can we be boyfriends?” Sehun asked, watching as Jongin moved his head with a furrow to his brow. “Is that a label for being lovers?” Sehun giggled, nodding, “yes it is.” Jongin smirked, sitting up and sat himself in Sehun’s lap. Sehun loved Jongin’s thighs, he had a hard time looking anywhere but the thick tanned thighs in his lap, but Jongin’s fingers guided his chin to make him look back up at him. “How can I have a label as someone’s lover if they’ve never kissed me?” Sehun smirked in return before leaning up after cupping Jongin’s cheeks, pressing his lips softly to Jongin’s. He could taste the natural salt in Jongin’s lips but with a minty aftertaste from the toothpaste. Jongin’s mouth was warm, his tongue was warm and strong as it flicked gently back against Sehun’s own after he initiated the movement. Jongin’s fingers brushed through the ends of Sehun’s hair, holding onto it, making Sehun sigh softly into his mouth.
Jongin’s full plush lips were made for kissing, Sehun decided, tongues softly grazing against one another. Their lips moved together in sync, Sehun felt like he could get drunk on the feeling and taste of Jongin’s mouth alone, but they pulled away to have Jongin rest his forehead against Sehun’s with a shy giggle. “I’ll be your boyfriend,” Sehun smiled, brushing his thumb over Jongin’s cheek. “I’m thankful you want to be.”
Sehun was told throughout his life that the call of a siren song was how men were lured to their deaths. But as Sehun sat on his bed with Jongin in his lap, listening to the melodious giggles, he was sure those tales had gotten it all wrong since the song of the siren led him to true love.