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The summer day was shining and warm along the northern coast of the island, filled with the salty humidity of a slight ocean breeze and sparkling sun rays bouncing off the waves lapping over the sand. It was a perfect day to stretch out on the beach, forget the worries of the outside world, and let the soft, calming sounds of the ocean carry you somewhere else. To just be.
Phichit Chulanont was not headed to the beach. Instead, he drove along the coastline towards a glistening, three-story brick building that sat perched on a low cliffside overlooking the vast expanse of the ocean.
The Cialdini Marine Conservatory was a brand new facility on the island dedicated to the conservation and research of the nearby marine life. Phichit had joined the faculty when he’d been fresh out of college, dragging his best friend closely behind him, and had been working there for the past four years. He’d loved every second of it. The research in the labs, the diving expeditions, the faculty Christmas parties. Plus, the view wasn’t bad either.
When Phichit arrived at the Conservatory, he got out of his car and entered the building with a slight skip in his step. Today was a rare and exciting day, because today Phichit and his fellow coworker, Chris, were going diving to collect pictures and samples from a nearby coral reef habitat they’d been studying. And not only was today a perfect day for a dive, but he also got to spend time with Chris, who he definitely, most certainly, did not have a crush on. Their relationship was totally platonic. Totally.
After he officially clocked in, Phichit beelined towards the locker room, dumped all of his stuff into his locker, and began changing into his scuba gear.
“Excited?” came a familiar chuckle.
“Absolutely,” he told Chris, who had already changed into his wetsuit. An image that should be illegal in Phichit’s eyes, because Chris in a tight, form-fitting wetsuit was more than his poor heart could handle.
A brilliant smile spread on Chris’ face and Phichit could feel his heartbeat flutter. Yup, definitely platonic.
“Okay, well, we’re all ready when you are. I got Yuuri and Sarah to come with us, just in case.”
“Awesome! I’m all set here, so let’s go!”
Together, Phichit and Chris - joined quickly by their coworkers, Yuuri and Sarah - loaded their equipment on a golf cart, drove down to the Conservatory’s docks, moved their equipment onto one of the Conservatory boats, and headed out onto the wide ocean. It didn’t take long to reach the spot, just two miles out from the Conservatory, and roped off by bright orange buoys weighted in place.
As soon as the boat came to a stop and was anchored in place, Phichit and Chris donned the rest of their diving gear while Yuuri and Sarah raised a white and blue diver’s flag over the boat.
Finally, Chris and Phichit plunged into the icy waters of the ocean, camera and clipboards in hand. After a couple of minutes of carefully controlled sinking, the bright vibrancy of the coral reef finally came into view, buzzing with life and swaying gently with the push and pull of the ocean currents. It was absolutely beautiful, and if Phichit could’ve smiled, he would’ve. The giddy excitement in his chest would have to do.
As a beautiful, swirling array of fish wove through the reef, Chris and Phichit set hard to work recording all the activity they could. Their job, above all, was to ensure the reef was healthy and safe from the pollution of human activity that was becoming so painfully common. They took water samples and surveyed the temperature and captured pictures of the reef's visitors and residents, carefully searching for any sign that the reef was in trouble. Thankfully, there weren't any.
Phichit raised his camera for another picture, but before he could snap one, something blocked his view. He lowered his camera, ready to playfully swat Chris away, but instead was met with the bright orange of a young, curious octopus. He internally squealed, because oh my god it was so adorable.
The little octopus seemed to revel in the attention and began twisting and turning in the water to show off its tentacles as soon as Phichit raised the camera and focused on it. The octopus in front of him would move, pause for a couple of seconds, and then begin to move again. It only took Phichit a couple of times to figure out what was going on - the octopus was posing for the camera.
He snapped photos of the octopus for as long as it let him, fawning the entire time over the little sea creature who decided to steal the spotlight. Even Chris looked up from his clipboard long enough for Phichit to make eye contact with him. Phichit could see the amusement in his eyes.
After a couple of minutes of posing, the octopus swam towards him and latched on to the camera. Phichit gave the little guy a light pat on the head as a small thank you for its time and watched as it swam away, disappearing into the reef with an odd aura of happiness.
A giddy feeling bubbled in Phichit’s chest as he watched the octopus go. He gave the camera an excited glace, already anticipating spending time with Chris and fawning over their new friend.