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The still waters were immediately perturbed when the boat slid on the surface, gaining weight as he hoped on with his equipment. The young man set the huge fishing net on the small wooden boat and sat on the opposite side of it, wiping the sweat off his forehead.
He had expected the sun to fade as the day went off, yet its almost aggressive light still shone bright. He knew the other fishermen in town did not sail at this hour as they mostly worked early in the morning or later on during the warm afternoons. For him, though, it was his favorite time of the day, when the sky was slowly painted in sweet colors, soft pink and purple merging with the orange and yellow of the clouds. He was at ease with the quiet of the water, completely deserted of any human presence.
Sarawat rolled up his sleeves before taking a firm hold on the net, hands working automatically from the thousands times he had performed the gesture. Without waiting, he threw the net in the shiny waters, the material colliding with the surface and slightly spattering his thin shirt. He did not mind to be granted with some water when the sun was burning his back.
Carefully, the young man moved the net until it sunk in deeply. The only thing he had to do was to wait, and so he did. Tying the extremity of the material around his wrist to feel any movement from the fish that would be caught in the net, he leisurely laid down, one arm resting under his head.
He realized a whole hour must had passed, maybe a few, when the sunlight made itself softer. He opened his eyes to be met with a dark blue sky still gleaming weakly from the golden horizons. The young man rose from his position to look at his wrist, remaining in place, unmoved. It looked like he would not eat tonight.
Repressing a resigned sigh, the fisherman untied the net around his skin and began to pull it up. Yet he knew there was something wrong when he felt he was using more strength than needed to retrieve a supposed empty net from the water. He sighed again when he understood it was not heavy from the eventual fish it had captured. It was simply stuck in the waters, probably tangled around a rock. The young man knew it was a bad idea to leave the net without checking it, yet it was a thing he always did. It had to backfired one day.
Sarawat cursed under his breath before grumbling inaudibly as he tried to pull with more strength, hands warming from the contact with the rope.
“Come on,” he muttered before giving up. It would probably end up ripped if he kept pulling, and he could say goodbye to money and food until he got a new one.
The young man sunk an arm underwater but could not even see his hand as the night gave a black shade to the sea. He turned around to lighten the lantern he had wisely brought with him and held it above the water to examine the problem.
Just as he was about to dive completely, his body that was leaning above the water stilled. The young man turned his head slowly, an odd feeling suddenly arising in his body, as if he was being watched. Eyes following the move of his head, he looked at the end of the boat, where a pair of eyes was hiding behind it, shimmering in the night.
“Holy-” he breathed as his heart jumped in his chest. He thanked his composed temperament for remaining quite motionless in front of whatever was there. Maybe if he did not move, it would go away.
The fisherman gulped loudly, throat suddenly dry and breath hitching. He moved oh so slowly his left hand until he felt the tip of the paddle touching his skin, eyes never leaving the two shining pupils in the water.
What in god’s name was that? A crocodile maybe, it was the only plausible animal that could swim all the way here. Yet, if it was indeed a crocodile, he was not sure he would return to town alive.
He finally managed to see clearly what was in front of him when he carefully raised the lantern forward, and he surely was not prepared to be met with human’s eyes.
A second passed and these shining eyes did not disappear. After another loud gulp, Sarawat decided to break the silence.
“Uh- hello?” he said unsure, his voice hoarse from the countless hours he had not speak.
Really, what in god’s name was that?
The young fisherman was met with silence and looked awkwardly to the side before speaking again. He was usually the one who avoided talking.
“Are you uh- do you live in town?” he was met with silence again, and he would be lying if he said he was not beginning to feel scared. Who went for a little bath at this hour of the day? In this area of the seashore? Not the kind of people that were reasonable, obviously.
“Uh- this area is not safe for swimming,” he tried, thinking it would finally make the individual– a boy it seemed– move away. It did not seem to trouble the stranger whatsoever.
“Do- do you understand me?” he finally asked, realizing the language was perhaps the key to the one-way dialogue.
Surprisingly, he did receive a response, just a small nod from the other.
The fisherman found himself speechless, not knowing what to say nor what to do, and ended up looking at the net still tangled underwater. When he tilted his head up to ask the stranger’s name, the latter had simply disappeared, nowhere to be seen. Sarawat rubbed his eyes and furrowed his eyebrows in pure disbelief.
Was he hallucinating? The harsh sun had perhaps messed with his senses.
But he was startled one more time when a pair of hands emerged from the dark waters, the fishing net resting on the two palms. The young man set the lantern next to him and leaned over the boat to see the same eyes looking at him curiously.
The boy –it was indeed a boy– was patiently waiting and Sarawat had the chance to take a better look at him now; his eyes were still shining with an unknown sparkle, a sparkle that lightened the warm charcoal of his eyes, visible despite the darkness. His hair seemed to be the same warm color, falling graciously on his forehead and on his sides but never hiding the perfectly sculpted cheekbones that led to his prominent jaw. Without realizing it, Sarawat laid eyes on the other’s lips, his plump and full rosy lips, glossing with water.
He was beautiful, the fisherman thought. In fact, it was maybe the most beautiful person he had ever laid eyes on. There was something almost unreal about his beauty and it made the young man blink suddenly, tearing him out of this odd trance.
Right, his net.
“Thank you,” he cleared his throat and reached out for the ropes at last.
The contact of skin made the other boy tense abruptly, as if he had never touched anyone before. His reaction made Sarawat lift his fingers unsure, lips parting in surprise.
“I’m sorry I-” but the other kept his eyes on him, round and soft eyes watching his every move.
The fisherman could not really define the reason of these long stares as heat crept on his cheeks. He was not used being scrutinized this way, yet he could not say it made him uneasy. The boy seemed to be genuinely looking at him with a naive curiosity typical of children when they discovered something new.
He managed to take the fishing net from the boy’s hands without causing any flinch or discomfort, and looked back at the other, who was still staring at him.
“I’m Sarawat,” he thought the least he could do was to introduce himself. “I live in town. You?”
The boy’s face was lit up with a small smile, almost shy as he slowly shook his head. He pointed to the open sea with his chin before capturing the fisherman’s eyes with his own again.
Sarawat was not sure he understood what was going on.
“Okay, then- well then I’ll take my leave,” he said awkwardly after a pause and began to reach for the paddle. “Thank you for your help,”
But a hand grabbed his loose sleeve, tugging lightly to make him stay. The fisherman widened his eyes as the other boy used the boat to rise from the water, the sudden weight of his body making the wood incline slowly. Sarawat was leaning with the boat automatically, meeting the boy’s face halfway. He let out a shuddered breath as they gazed at each other, the hand on his sleeve circling his arm delicately.
The fisherman thought he was dreaming, his limbs feeling suddenly lighter and his heart beating softly against his chest as the other stared at him with gentle eyes. Soft glitters seemed to decorate his cheeks, going down his neck and covering the tanned skin.
Slowly, the stranger met his lips, barely a touch at first before their mouths pressed firmly against each others’. The boy tasted bittersweet, Sarawat thought, eyes closing as he moved forward, leaning more and more toward the water. The young man never wanted this sensation to stop, their shared breaths bringing an unknown euphoria to his blood. It was as if his entire body was lit up by the boy’s kiss, mind dizzy and skin burning.
Just as he was about to fall into the sea, Sarawat felt the lips leave his quickly, as if they had never been there. He opened his eyes to see the boy smiling softly, his tanned skin suddenly lighten by the moonlight.
He took Sarawat’s hand between his, letting something fall on the fisherman’s palm before closing their fingers together. And with one last look, the boy dived in the now black waters, leaving the fisherman starstruck, mouth half-hanging.
Sarawat was still not sure he understood what had happened.
The fisherman opened his hand to see a shining pearl resting on his palm and raised his head rapidly in hopes he could still see the unknown boy.
He only had the time to see bright scales emerging to the surface before the sea went still again.