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"Hi! How are you?", Jongin ushers his new roommate through the door, "I've been waiting for you soooo long already!"
He's so excited.
"I'm Kim Jongin, it's so nice to meet you", Jongin beams and waits for some sort of a reply.
The guy in front of him is less excited. He keeps staring at Jongin, frozen in his footsteps. His mouth opens, and Jongin waits with a bathed breath. What is his new roommate going to be like?
Then he waits a some more. No one moves, no one says anything. Jongin can feel his smile faltering as the guy searches for words.
"Shut up, no reason to be so shy!" Jongin laughs loudly, startling the other, who turns his eyes. "We're going to be roommates so you can relax a little."
Jongin loves the sound of the word: roommate. His childhood dream come true.
Especially now that he's the only human student rooming with a non-human student. What an honor! He's so excited to share his culture and learn how sirens live and everything that comes with having a roommate.
The other guy keeps his guard high, flashing Jongin the tensest smile he has seen in a while. He seems like he has something to say but never follows through.
"So, how was your trip? It's getting kind of late so you can go straight to bed if you want to — I made your bed already, thinking it might be helpful." The guy looks at him weirdly. "Or you can eat anything from the fridge too, I get you haven't had the time to go to the store yet."
Jongin tries to keep the atmosphere light, even when the siren turns him his back and starts dragging his suitcases in, avoiding Jongin's eyes like plague.
It's like he doesn't understand Jongin.
He hoovers around the entryway, ready to help, as the job looks like a struggle for the other — legs wobbling and all. He doesn't get much of a chance to do that as the siren tenses every time he comes near.
"You sure you don't need help?" He fights to keep his tone light, but he's not feeling as cheerful as a moment ago. He's worried this guy will become one of those people who don't want anything to do with their roommate.
As he doesn't get a reply, Jongin walks to his bed and waits. Maybe he needs to give the siren a little time to adjust.
Giving him time doesn't end up doing shit.
First, he disappeared for a good thirty minutes with no warning, which is why Jongin is more than sure he doesn't want to communicate with Jongin regardless can he even speak the language. If he wanted to inform Jongin, he would've.
Secondly, after coming back from his little trip, they've been having a very long and painful silence of sitting face to face on the opposite sides of the room. Jongin has tried to gain some sort of connection with him through eye contact, but the siren is not having any of it — eyes wandering everywhere but on Jongin and he's had enough.
"What's your name?" He wants to go to bed and sleep the day and his crushed dreams away, but before that, he has to know his roommate's name for convenience's sake. "I am Jongin. What is your name?"
Jongin tries to speak as clearly as he can, gesturing a lot with his hands.
The guy finally opens his mouth and Jongin is ready to celebrate his quick victory until he hears only clicks, clacks and long sing-songy vowels coming through his sharp teeth. It was quiet but Jongin heard it loud and clear.
They're sounds Jongin obviously can't replicate nor understand. "What was that?"
The guy across him prefers to study the frilly cuffs of his overly long sleeves rather than to answer. His entire demeanor screams disinterested.
"Could you please repeat again, I didn't really hear you." Jongin pleads, frustrated, and gestures, hoping the siren will get what he's saying.
"Ma nimm icth Gyiʭfuu, ptak ihtst fayinee ifh jui jysi Kjumgksoi."
That's definitely a sentence. "I don't understand your language so could you just say your name. Jongin and-", he leaves the ending out, so the guy can fill in his name. To his luck — debatably — the same clicks come out of his mouth as on the first try and Jongin wants to crumble into pieces.
By now, he has to try; he can't ask again.
The gurgling glug his throat forces out definitely isn't the right word; his roommate's lips purse and he swears there's an eyeroll somewhere in there too. Jongin lowers his head in a mix of shame and frustration. This is not exactly what he wanted his life with a roommate to be like.
It's not this guy's fault his name is hard for Jongin to pronounce, but he could be more cooperative in the efforts and not sit there judging Jongin, who's really trying to be nice and welcoming from the minute he walked in.
The silence thickens again.
It lasts until his ears catch the slight chafing of the guy's sleeves hitting his cropped shirt and the high-pitched sound of his hair ornaments jingling into each other as he bends down. Jongin's full attention is now in the details of his roommate's outfit — not used to the level of effort — from the pale tinkers in his black hair, which is tied messily but with precision and purpose at the back of his head, to the net-like frills that reach his ears at the neck of his peachy shirt.
The guy approaches him clumsily, like he's not used to walking yet. Some of his steps are longer than others, but in general his steps are short. Though a little unbalanced, Jongin can read body language enough to notice he's still reserved, as his feet are close to each other, and his shoulders have a hunch to them. His hips sway with every step and Jongin wonders is that a siren thing or just a him thing.
The guy pushes a familiar piece of plastic onto Jongin's hands and shows him a specific line on it with his webbed fingers.
STUDENT NAME: DO KYUNGSOO ( }U GYIʭFUU )
"You know, I could steal your student ID number right now." He chuckles, an inside joke with his friend group popping into his mind. Kyungsoo doesn't understand but looks shocked Jongin is talking to him again.
The siren pulls the card away and quickly turns, walking back to his side of the room kind of like those speed walkers, wavering from side to side. If Jongin wasn't annoyed with him for not showing the card earlier, he would think it's fascinating.
Kyungsoo tucks the card into the depths of his bags, below many layers of clothes, his body rigid. Jongin has to admit that's a unique place to store a student ID.
Jongin watches, not surprised, as Kyungsoo puts on shoes slowly but with force, tying his laces neatly — and Jongin is slightly jealous. He should've guessed that his lovely roommate will leave the moment he gets another chance.
Kyungsoo's straight nose seems sharper than before and the creases in his acne-covered forehead are looking deeper than they were a moment ago. If Kyungsoo wants to ignore him, Jongin can do the same back.
No goodbye, no nothing from Kyungsoo and like so, the door beeps shut.
Kyungsoo, he has a natural glow to him — unlike Jongin; he's just sweaty. It might be a siren thing, Jongin has no idea. The setting sun is warming them up nicely, but he can sense an upcoming thunder as everything feels sticky and the air is heavy.
The heaviness of the air is not solely caused by the weather, the long silence between him and Kyungsoo full of Jongin's passive-aggressive ignoring of Kyungsoo's existence despite it was him who approached Kyungsoo first. Kyungsoo, once again, had no reaction other than to look away and stay quiet.
It was easy to know it was Kyungsoo blocking Jongin's path on the way to the dorms with his unevenly paced walk and a few stumbling steps. Jongin was quite literally walking glued to his heels. The only thing stopping Jongin from walking past him was Kyungsoo's everchanging speed. It would've caused them walk awkwardly close to each other from time to time, Jongin in front of Kyungsoo — unless he wanted to run home, which in this weather was a big no. So, he decided to walk home with him.
Out of convenience, you know.
They haven't said anything, Kyungsoo glancing at Jongin from time to time, but making no effort to talk to him. Or communicate by any other mean.
Kyungsoo feels more relaxed though, eyes skirting around like hummingbirds, feet stopping to take pictures when he wants to, not concerned with Jongin's pace. He thought Kyungsoo would be quiet and cold, and while he is silent, he's not cold per se. That might be the biggest problem Jongin has with him now — he's not concerned with Jongin while Jongin is out here actively ignoring him.
"It's not like the situation would get any better if he could talk with me; maybe it's for the best we don't have any reason to communicate", Jongin muses as Kyungsoo stays some steps behind to take another picture of the streetlamps.
It's getting dark.
"Jongin! Wait up!"
Jongin turns to look at the caller, the volume catching Kyungsoo's attention too. He waits with Jongin as Chanyeol jogs to them, bunch of Jongin's other friends following with slower steps.
"What's up?" Jongin greets him, a little caught off-guard by the sudden interaction; Chanyeol rarely comes to this end of the campus.
"Nothing much, you know, I just came to say hi," Chanyeol grabs his hand and slaps him in the back before his eyes turn to Kyungsoo, excited glint in them. "Is this the pretty siren I've heard about?"
Jongin glances at Kyungsoo, whose eyes flicker between looking at Jongin and the group of people in front of him. He opens his mouth, clearly aware he's being talked to but no words coming out. Jongin doesn't know why he decides to help Kyungsoo but does it anyways. "Yeah — this is Kyungsoo."
Kyungsoo looks at him for a quick second before waving with his hands in front of his chest, his webbed fingers on full display as his sleeves fall to his elbows. The movement reveals clusters of orange and pinkish scales on his knuckles and forearms.
"Wow! Your scales are so pretty! Can I touch them?" One of the girls exclaims and pushes her way to the front. Jongin recognizes her from one of his math classes.
The scales are cool and all, but her reaction is a bit excessive. Jongin hasn't even noticed them before, but to be fair, he hasn't been looking at Kyungsoo a lot as they keep avoiding each other.
Chanyeol lifts Kyungsoo's hand closer and nods in confirmation, running his finger over Kyungsoo's knuckles. "The rumor of sirens' beauty seems to be true," he lifts his eyes and Jongin feels uncomfortable. He gets Chanyeol is shooting his shot with one of the rare non-human creatures on the campus, but Kyungsoo doesn't even understand him for god's sake.
And why is Kyungsoo not pulling away?
If it was Jongin in front of him, Kyungsoo would've avoided his eyes long time ago and stepped away for a good measure.
Kyungsoo uses his hand to fluff his bangs the moment Chanyeol's eyes leave him. He scans the people around them, ending on Jongin, looking like he's studying his reaction, before tearing his eyes away sharply. To Chanyeol, he offers a polite smile.
"Jongin, you should come to our hangouts someday and bring him with you… It'd be good for Kyungsoo too, to get to know more people, you know?" Chanyeol laughs, but Jongin's sure he's only half joking. Chanyeol has always been a charmer, after the prettiest or the most handsome person on campus — infamous for being genuine with his affections but easily disinterested. "What do you say, Kyungsoo?"
Kyungsoo reacts to his name, 'ahh'ing all the while glancing at Jongin. He doesn't want to be nice and help him answer, but the thought of Kyungsoo joining his circle of friends when he's not friendly even with Jongin, doesn't sound fun.
"I'll think about it — the semester is only starting, and I know Kyungsoo already has a lot on his plate, right?" It's kind of disrespectful to choose for Kyungsoo, but it's not like he understands what Jongin is saying anyways.
Jongin turns to Kyungsoo and nods his head encouragingly, Kyungsoo mirroring him reluctantly, looking at the group in front of them, not smiling to them either. He pulls his sleeves down and crosses his arms, clearly ready to go.
"If you say so," Chanyeol shrugs his shoulders before signing towards the group behind him, who have little by little distanced themselves into another conversation. "We're about to go to my apartment, so if you want to join, you can."
"Sounds cool," It has gotten darker and Chanyeol lives on the other side of an unlit forest. It is quite close but walking that route doesn't sound too appealing right now — he's not feeling like taking the detour either. "But I guess I need to head home now… I have schoolwork to catch up on. You guys have fun though!"
He says it to the entire friend group, some of them turning to acknowledge that he's leaving. Kyungsoo waves them goodbye before turning away sharply and leaving Jongin to catch him. As Jongin reaches him, Kyungsoo makes sure there's an extra step between them and has his head straight forward, attention on the gravel.
He's lucky Kyungsoo can't expose his white lie about having schoolwork, choosing to reward himself by heading straight to bed to watch Netflix when they reach the dorms.
"You can't keep monopolizing him like this."
"Listen, Chanyeol, I honestly don't know what you're talking about", Jongin sighs, keeping an eye on Kyungsoo over the taller's shoulder. Kyungsoo got into the apartment with no problem, but he, already part of the friend group, got stopped at the door.
"It's been weeks since I invited the both of you… You know, I'm cool if you don't want me to make any moves on him — just say the words — but he's new here and it'd do him good to know more people at the uni." Jongin has heard these words before, the information not surprising him — he doesn't get why people keep telling him that. Why not tell it straight to Kyungsoo?
"It's not like that. I don't like him enough — he's okay… I guess — to want to have him be in our group. Although, I'd appreciate if you kept your distance. As his roommate, it'd be weird if you two got something going on."
"As his roommate? Sure", Chanyeol smiles in a way that makes Jongin feel like he's missing something important.
A familiar voice calls Jongin's name inside the apartment, cutting their conversation short as both of their attention turns to Junmyeon. Chanyeol pats his shoulder as he lets him in, offering a playful handshake before he pushes Jongin into movement from crowding the entryway.
He can't find Junmyeon immediately when he walks further into the apartment. There are some faces he recognizes next to his friends but no one he doesn't know — it's not a big get-together. At the end of the hallway, he has two doors to choose from, choosing the one on the right.
There's no Junmyeon inside but there's Kyungsoo sitting on the ground, his back facing the door. Recognizing him doesn't take Jongin more than seeing his intricately woven plait — their bathroom counter is full of the little seashells Kyungsoo hangs in his hair and Jongin swears there's no place he hasn't found long strands of hair from.
Kyungsoo is in the midst of learning the rules of a drinking game, too occupied to notice Jongin's presence. It's the perfect opportunity to observe how the siren acts around others, and to figure out is the looming feeling Jongin has lately had true or is Kyungsoo actually nicer to others compared to Jongin.
There have been a few times the thought has crossed Jongin's mind, when he sees Kyungsoo eating lunch with someone a few times in a row at the campus, or when a group of people drop Kyungsoo off at the dorms after he has been gone most of the day.
It doesn't take him more than a minute of looking at the group, when he hears Kyungsoo laugh — for the first time ever — and it tickles his ears the right way. It's a series of high-pitched clicks and it's like hearing wind chimes for the first time. There's no other way to describe the feeling.
He can't listen to it long, as someone's hand graces his shoulder, startling him and gaining the group's attention to him. It's Junmyeon behind him, in his classic navy-blue cardigan and straight pants — why does he dress so posh?
Briefly, Jongin glances back to Kyungsoo, who has turned around already. He's either really into learning the rules or he's not feeling well as has his head in his hands while leaning forward.
Jongin wants to say something, but nothing seems right.
"That's him?" Junmyeon tucks him into the hallway, closing the door almost all the way, leaving behind a little gap.
"Yeah." It is a rhetorical question as Junmyeon knows very well who Kyungsoo is.
The same day Kyungsoo moved in Jongin ranted about him to Junmyeon. Besides, there isn't a person in the university that has not heard about Kyungsoo, who a siren and the only one in the entire university at that.
"Are you still holding a grudge against him for ruining your roommate-dreams?"
"I am not… I think."
"Jongin, I shouldn't have to say this — you know yourself better than I do — but you hold grudges way too long and for the smallest reasons", Junmyeon leans against the wall and laughs, "I'm sorry you didn't get the gym buddy you wanted, or he wasn't as excited to meet you as you were to meet him, but, honestly, is any of that Kyungsoo's fault? Not to mention: He comes from a different culture and language, and he had already had a long day of traveling before getting to the dorms."
Jongin mulls the words in his head. None of his arguments will work against Junmyeon. To be fair, Jongin can't pinpoint more than a few instances when Kyungsoo has been unfriendly towards him after their first impressions.
It never feels good to hear things like this about yourself, but deep down, Jongin knows he's in the wrong this time. That doesn't mean he will suddenly be best friends with Kyungsoo, as the person himself is closer with random people than he's with Jongin. His roommate.
"I see you get what I'm saying", Junmyeon studies his face a moment longer, "He's a good guy. I talked to him and he's extremely nice, considerate and fun. You should have a good talk with him."
"I know, but you know… It's hard", Jongin sighs, "I wish he could understand exactly what I'm saying to him."
"Talking about your-" Junmyeon stops his sentence as Kyungsoo opens the door suddenly — his steps have become unnoticeable. "Hi, Kyungsoo. What's up?"
Kyungsoo taps his wrist a few times to signal that they should go. Kyungsoo definitely has a better memory than Jongin does.
Jongin agreed only to drop by with Kyungsoo, because he didn't want to give Kyungsoo too much time to connect with his friends — which he now sees is kind of childish —, but mainly just because Jongin really, really, doesn't want to walk through the forest in the middle of the night.
"Ramen, milk, chocolate," Jongin repeats, checking the cupboard and the fridge once more before he goes. "Ramen, milk, chocolate."
Kyungsoo watches as Jongin walks around gathering his stuff one by one, slowly eating his seaweed-on-seaweed sandwich as his feet are in a bucketful of water and salt from what Jongin understood.
Kyungsoo watches and Jongin pretends like if he doesn't notice. They do that a lot recently.
"R, m, c. Ramen, milk, chocolate." Jongin mutters to himself, patting down his pockets to check he has his phone, wallet, and keys.
He feels bad for ignoring the siren slightly, but he doesn't know how he should act. At first it was Kyungsoo ignoring him, then it was mutual. Now it's not. He has no idea how he should ease into being normal with Kyungsoo — he has been thinking about it since the conversation with Junmyeon.
The thought of talking to him about mundane things makes his stomach turn.
Kyungsoo seems to be a good guy — that's not the problem. He hums as he sleeps, and he eats the weirdest foods, and he leaves webbed handprints on their glasses. He keeps the night light on even when he used to close it before bed; probably because he noticed Jongin always turned it on after a while. The most annoying thing he does is not doing the dishes, but that's about it.
"I'm going now," Jongin acknowledges Kyungsoo briefly before turning his back to him, "Bye."
Kyungsoo hums familiarly, as if he's singing, and it carries easily to the entryway as Jongin sits down.
"Holy shit…", Jongin scans the rows of shoes, and his mouth looks for words in the middle of his confusion, "Kyungsoo?"
Kyungsoo's splashing steps find him and he squats next to Jongin as he shows Kyungsoo one of his own shoes.
"You tied all my shoes?" He points at the laces and mimics the movement of tying shoes.
Kyungsoo nods and fiddles with the hem of his sleeve. It's light blue and lacy this time as he's dressed in the color from head to toe. Kyungsoo offers him a timid smile, waiting for a response.
"Thank you, Kyungsoo." Jongin smiles and nods to assure that he's thankful. Taking in the shoes, some of them are better untied, but most of them are the opposite. "You must've noticed how I always stuff the laces inside the shoe. Even you can tie laces and you're a siren.
"Really, Kyungsoo-", his train of thought momentarily lags as he turns to thank Kyungsoo again and sees his genuine smile, for the first time, appear because of him. It's bashful and it's directed to his fiddling fingers before he reacts to his name.
Jongin learns a lot in that fleeting second, when he sees — doesn't just see, but properly looks at — Kyungsoo for the first time. His eyes are expressive, and they glimmer the same way as ocean does when sun shines into it. What Jongin thought was acne on his forehead are small translucent scales scattered here and there, forming little lines and groups on his skin.
And his smile is one of the most heart-warming sights he has witnessed. Observing him closely, he realizes that the way Kyungsoo studies his fingers is simple shyness, despite labeling it as disinterest when they met.
Kyungsoo is nice, and he keeps trying to slowly connect with Jongin, who keeps ignoring him. It breaks his own heart.
Kyungsoo shakes the arm he has lifted to his side, looking at Jongin like he's supposed to get what he's trying to sign.
They're already late from the school dinner, but Kyungsoo refuses to leave the house without these ridiculous pearls in his hair, no matter how Jongin tried to convince him otherwise.
Jongin is helping him, so he tries again, pushing one of the pins into the French braid just fine in his own opinion. Kyungsoo huffs as he checks his hair, reaching to take the pearl out again, and feels the braid up and down, exactly like he was doing when Jongin found him.
"What exactly do you want me to do?" Jongin spits out, getting frustrated. The first time he happily volunteered to help the other, his help seems to be underappreciated. "Why can't you leave it like this — you look perfect without all the tinkers."
Kyungsoo takes a sharp breath before he grits his teeth, giving Jongin a strong look through the mirror. Jongin's tone doesn't help the situation at all.
He's not even exaggerating, as Kyungsoo looks dashing — though tired — in his off-white suit jacket and matching high-waisted pants paired with one of his fancier peach-colored pirate shirts. He has shiny white shoes to finish the outfit and Jongin doesn't think he has anyone ever wear something so outrageously fashionable to the official school dinner.
He himself has the most basic black suit one can find, worn with his favorite pair of sneakers to be more casual.
His jaw dropped when he saw Kyungsoo — always impressed by his way of dressing up. Recently Kyungsoo had become sloppier with his outfits which made the getup pop even more.
Kyungsoo turns around in front of him and takes a calming breath, which Jongin follows on instinct. Kyungsoo points to the first bump of the braid and turns his right hand to the right, then he points to the second one and puts the arm down. He continues like that, changing his arm's position as he points out the first few bumps, eyes eager for Jongin to catch on.
"Kyungsoo, I don't get it." Jongin stops him at some point, this being a waste of time, "Can't we just go?"
"}o ivvʭ uv vujnʭ!"
That takes Jongin aback, this being the first time he has heard Kyungsoo say a full sentence to him in his language.
"I have no idea what you're trying to say to me." Jongin sighs the words, not realizing their irony until way later. "We would've avoided so many problems if you just spoke the same language as I do."
"Toi qyjyv nykki luqu ekep weolle myymic ivvip }nʭssʭ", Kyungsoo takes a defensive step backwards and Jongin is sure he's cursing him out.
"No matter how you yell at me I won't get you. We're late because you don't tell me what you want."
"Jongin, tʭ iv wuo tepqu pucp." Kyungsoo says his name for the first time with near-perfect pronunciation, the vowels a little too stretched. It messes with his head and makes him feel funny.
"Okay, I'm sorry. Let's try once more. What is this?" Jongin tries to replicate the hand movements Kyungsoo made earlier.
Kyungsoo thinks for a while and disappears from the bathroom when he seems to get what Jongin is trying to ask him. Jongin considers following him but decides against it. It's most likely better for the both of them to they get a little breather — and besides, he has his hands full of pearls, pins and seashells; now wouldn't be a good time to lose any of them.
Kyungsoo returns soon with paper and a pen and once again turns his arm to the right, before writing on the paper the number 1. Then he moves his arm down and writes a number two. He tilts his head to check if Jongin is following, and gestures towards the number on the paper followed by the bumps in his braid.
The arm movement is their equivalent of counting with fingers. The situation makes much more sense now.
"You want the jewelry in specific parts of the braid?" Jongin points towards the pins in his hand. Kyungsoo nods eagerly and Jongin sees light at the end of the tunnel. They can do this.
Kyungsoo wants a lot of pearls all around the braid, a few gems in the front and a few at the end, and a big seashell on the back of his neck. It's quite heavy, but the weight is nothing with how it looks. It's translucent like Kyungsoo's scales, and the colors are very similar. It has tiny specs on it that glitter even in the terrible lighting of the bathroom.
Honestly, Kyungsoo's sparkling eyes and his tired but grateful smile is enough for Jongin to forgive him for making them be late and for the stress the ordeal caused. Jongin might not get why he needed his hair to be like this, but he's sure Kyungsoo wouldn't waste their time for nothing.
It doesn't mean they have the entire day to get to the dinner, "Should we go now?" Jongin signs towards the door with his head. Kyungsoo nods but winces as he picks up the papers from the counter.
A paper cut right on his palm, which begins to push blood out the moment he lifts his hand.
Jongin stifles the chuckle threatening to come out because the situation is not funny at all. The universe never wants them to leave, apparently.
Kyungsoo stares at the hand as he thinks of what to do. Jongin is about to find him a band-aid so he doesn't make a mess out of his white suit, but Kyungsoo flees to the kitchen before he can even look for one. He has no choice but to follow him and see what's going on.
This time Jongin has to laugh.
Kyungsoo is hand-deep in a jug of water, labeled 'Kyungsoo'.
Jongin has always wondered what is it for in their fridge but didn't dare to question it. Kyungsoo smiles sheepishly back to him, half of the water on the floor. To make it more confusing, Kyungsoo unbuttons the top of his shirt and struggles the jacket off and leans over the sink.
He lathers the water onto his neck and Jongin gasps when he sees three slits opening there. His gills. Of course, Kyungsoo has them — Jongin just never thought about them.
As the water keeps splashing, Kyungsoo sighs with relief, humming a little under his breath. Jongin approaches him and starts drying the floor with a towel; they're already late, so he might as well clean before they go. He's not sure is any of Kyungsoo's antics necessary but whatever, it's already done.
Kyungsoo crouches to help him after he puts on his clothes properly. Jongin wants to stop him, so his cut doesn't get worse, but Kyungsoo surprisingly shows him a healed hand. He has no words left.
Kyungsoo looks back at his shocked expression with an amused smile, his entire demeanor like rejuvenated from his glittering eyes to his glowing skin. He doesn't know what's in the water, but whatever it is, it worked like magic.
The blue hue bathing the room makes Jongin momentarily disoriented.
He needs a moment to take in his surroundings, his mind hazy from his nap.
The movie he and Kyungsoo were watching is still playing on his laptop. He's lying under a blanket Kyungsoo ripped out of nowhere, so they'd stay warm.
Right — Kyungsoo.
Jongin doesn't need to look far to find him because he's literally lying on the siren. Head on his shoulder, cuddled onto his side. This is not what he meant when he said he wants to be close to his roommate, but he finds he doesn't mind it as much as he thought he would.
He takes a careful peek at Kyungsoo's face, realizing he's still awake despite how boring the movie was. They both already agreed on the fact ten minutes into the movie, but unfortunately it was one of the few that had subtitles Kyungsoo could read.
Carefully, he fixes his position, careful not to hit Kyungsoo's jaw or anything with his head. Jongin is not the one to be bashful, but this gets him quiet. He fixes his hair and stretches some, knowing he can't avoid Kyungsoo's face for long.
"Sorry", Jongin turns to him and scrunches his nose, cringing, "I guess I've been tired lately."
Kyungsoo looks at him with disbelief. Jongin has been sleeping through the entire winter vacation. While Kyungsoo, noticeably tired and stressed, has been barely sleeping at all. Jongin guesses it might be home sickness or the culture shock — or both — but from what he has gathered, there's something else going on too.
"Okay, I admit! The movie was way too long and pointless to stay awake. 'Should I do this? No. Yes. This other thing. Blah blah blah", Jongin imitates.
It makes Kyungsoo smile, but something about it is missing. Jongin wishes he could figure out what the thing is.
Kyungsoo gestures towards the movie playing and shrugs his shoulders; his expression tells Jongin he doesn't mind the movie after all.
"You like this?" He pretends to be appalled. "Well, maybe no more movie nights for us, grandpa."
Kyungsoo looks stunned for a second before his face falls into a smile he tries to hide so his disapproval would show. It's not working that well, so he punches Jongin. Not hard, but it's a punch regardless.
"Hey, what was that for?" Jongin plays along, "I'll forgive you just because I had a good nap."
Kyungsoo shakes his head a little and pats his own shoulder, taking all the credit. Jongin doesn't deny it, so they fall into a comfortable silence.
Arms pressed against each other and breathing in sync as they return to watch the movie. Jongin doesn't know what's going on, but he doesn't want to get up. Especially after Kyungsoo's head lulls onto his shoulder and the back of their hands grace. He's hyper-aware of Kyungsoo and how his scales feel cool against his skin.
The scene changes and a woman — who Jongin remembers to be the main character — is at the bottom of the ocean, caged in a what appears to be a glass box. He can't help but to shiver and tense up, alerting Kyungsoo who tilts his head, questioning what's going on.
"I- Uhm, no offence, but I don't really like the ocean." He likes Kyungsoo though.
Kyungsoo lifts his hands, clearly asking 'why'.
"Because it gets super dark very quickly." Kyungsoo's eyes twinkle a little and he has a hint of a smile on his lips. "Yeah, laugh all you want. I'm 22 and I'm afraid of the dark."
Kyungsoo keeps smiling, like he has a secret he wants to tell, and he shakes his head. Jongin can almost hear him say: "It's not like that."
Oh, how he wishes they could talk like other… roommates. The word doesn't describe how he feels about him and Kyungsoo — and to be fair, it barely ever has. Jongin would be happy to learn the language for Kyungsoo if it wasn't for the wild amount of sounds he can't pronounce.
Kyungsoo yawns and Jongin genuinely feels bad for keeping him awake by sleeping on him. Kyungsoo hoovers, sitting there and looking so off. He has bags under his eyes — they scarcely sparkle these days —, his skin is dull, and his hair is coarse and lacking the precision it used to have.
"Come here", Jongin opens his arms for Kyungsoo to lean on him and rest, "Take this as me repaying my wonderful nap."
Kyungsoo doesn't hesitate. He basically falls into Jongin's arms and closes his eyes. Jongin closes his arms around him and moves them around so Kyungsoo is sleeping on his chest, closer to lying down than to sitting.
He should help Kyungsoo sleep more often if it's this nice.
According to Google, the water is supposed to perfect. There's enough salt and a perfect combination of different minerals he had to find to make the water helpful to Kyungsoo. Even the temperature is spot on.
It was insufferable to watch by the sidelines as Kyungsoo slowly withered away when the exam season started. His energy and demeanor hit a rock bottom a few weeks ago, no matter how he cuddled Kyungsoo to sleep.
Only then Kyungsoo admitted that his body is resisting being on land for such a long period of time without any breaks.
And Kyungsoo, being just a student, can't leave the school for a little swim by the ocean whenever he wants — the drive being a good few hours.
So, Jongin did the only sensible thing imaginable and began his extensive research on the ocean water instead of studying for his actual exams. If he can't bring Kyungsoo to the ocean, he's bringing the ocean to Kyungsoo.
According to his calculations, Junmyeon is supposed to be here — in his own apartment — in a minute or two with Kyungsoo. They decided on this arrangement as only Junmyeon has a ridiculously big bathtub in his apartment while being a student.
After checking he has everything put in place from the towels to the water glass, he decides to go wait for them outside.
He has not thought how he should explain to Kyungsoo why he did all this — as he doesn't really know it himself. It's not because they're roommates, nor because he wants to be forgiven for his bad attitude, but because it's Kyungsoo. He can't imagine doing this for anyone else.
He gets to the front door when he hears talking from the hallway. The culprits probably being Kyungsoo and Junmyeon, right on schedule.
"…so I tried to focus on-" The sentence gets cut with a second's delay after Jongin opens the door. Kyungsoo's eyes are wide open from surprise.
Jongin is more shocked though. His knees get weak, and his words don't come out. Suddenly, he feels dizzy.
"What is this?"
"So — you talk." Jongin must hold the wall for support.
"Jongin wanted to surprise you and brought the ocean to you", Junmyeon pushes Kyungsoo inside the apartment so he can close the door, "Though I think you gave him a bigger surprise this time."
Kyungsoo takes a deep breath and Jongin gets distracted from his shock for a moment because Kyungsoo's entire body visibly relaxes, and his eyes grow hazy. It's like he's possessed as he takes his shoes off, leaving a trail of clothes behind him as he heads straight to the bathroom without instructions.
Jongin and Junmyeon exchange glances. Interesting.
Then Jongin's shock comes back, and he slides to the ground, speechless. "You knew?"
"I thought you did too. I always said I have talked to him." Junmyeon goes and gets him a glass of water too.
"I talked to him too — well, communicated, I guess is a better way to describe it." Jongin can't fathom what any of this means. He doesn't feel anything either. The water clears his mind a bit.
"Didn't you ever wonder how he got through the lessons?"
"…not really."
Junmyeon laughs, "Of course, you didn't. You wouldn't be Jongin otherwise."
He pats Jongin on the shoulder and offers him a hand. Jongin takes it and lets himself be pulled up.
"I don't know what to do now — what to think about any of this." Junmyeon usually gives the right advice — Jongin usually doesn't follow through, which lands him in situations like this.
"What is the thought that keeps appearing the most? Don't try to give me the 'correct' answer." Jongin bites his lip but the older sees right through his hesitation, "Don't tell me you want to resent him again, because it's not true. We both know it."
"Kyungsoo and I can talk freely now, and that makes me way too happy."
"There's your answer. Go to him."
Jongin doesn't need to be told twice. He speeds to the bathroom, knocking on the door and peeking in after he doesn't hear a reply. He sees the rest of Kyungsoo's clothes on the floor and only his hands are gripping the edge of the bathtub — other than that, he's fully submerged.
He walks next to the bathtub and takes Kyungsoo's hand into his own, stroking the back of it lightly. Kyungsoo opens one of his eyes and smiles before relaxing again.
Jongin got there just in time to see the end of Kyungsoo's transformation, as his feet grow into one, the scales still protruding at his feet. His tail is mainly a mix of peach and copper, but at the end, there's some gray fading into the matching four-sectioned fluke.
Kyungsoo's hair surrounds his head like a black halo, and he looks like he's at peace, like he's at home. It's barely noticeable, but he thinks Kyungsoo's features are slowly filling out and that his complexion is turning brighter by each passing second. Jongin is really happy his surprise seems to be working.
His gills open and close regularly, and Jongin knows their breathing are in sync.
Slowly Kyungsoo opens his eyes and floats his head to the surface, his lashes more prominent now that they're wet. He looks beautiful like this.
"Thank you, Jongin." Kyungsoo whispers, the silence comfortable but fragile under the weight of months' worth of unsaid things.
Jongin loves the way Kyungsoo says his name, with his unique way of pronouncing vowels and how he speaks with the back of his throat. The accent is thick but understandable.
"You better be. I have ingredients to make ten more of these baths for you." It makes Kyungsoo chuckle in a way that sounds like he's humming.
They stay quiet, studying each other and leaving the hard conversations for later.
Jongin doesn't know how much time passes but eventually, what might be an hour, Kyungsoo's skin starts to glitter, and his tail gets a glow to it. He's so incredibly fascinated by it all. He can't keep his hands inside tub, his fingers running on the rough scales and the smooth of Kyungsoo's skin. The siren lets him do research as he pleases. The glow gets stronger and stronger, the water almost amplifying it, and Jongin knows that if they would turn the lights off, he'd be able to see in front of him.
"I can be your light in the dark", Kyungsoo says after a while, half joking.
To Jongin, it means the world. With Kyungsoo, even the depths of the ocean don't phase him. They have a lot to talk about, but Jongin decides to start with the most important.
"I like you."
"I know you do."
They don't need to say more; they're already experts in speaking without talking. So, Jongin moves onto the next thing on the list.
"So, just to be sure — You understood everything I said from the very beginning?"
"I might've been speechless from the moment I saw you but I definitely understood. All of it." Kyungsoo hums and smiles, teasing him, "For the record, you were the one who told me to shut up first — which I did."