Penned Sea Hearts

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Rami asked for what had to be the tenth time at least. And Kai found it increasingly endearing.

“You want our first date to be memorable, right?” he joked, staring at the volcanos on the horizon, adjusting his grip on their box of picnic food. “I’ll protect you, don’t you worry.”

“Don’t mock me,” Rami mumbled half-heartedly. Clearly, even he wasn’t interested in pretending he was concerned about getting near the volcanos. But if he were actually afraid, Kai wouldn’t have suggested going here.

It was more that he’d said how much he’d wanted to see the volcanos up close, and Ramos deciding that he was going with him so he, in Rami’s words, didn’t do anything stupid and get hurt.

And so it was suddenly the place for their first date.

“I just don’t understand why you want to go up there,” Ramos continued, shaking his head as he looked at Kai. “It’s just lava and heat.”

“It’s got those magic shields around it, right? I bet that blocks the heat too, sort of.”

Ramos mumbled something under his breath, clearly having no counterarguments but not wanting to give in either. It was truly adorable.

“It’s gonna be fine and awesome, Rami.” He wiggled his eyebrow. “And inspiring? You know, for writing? Maybe the fantasy kind?”

Rami shook his head, but there was a small smile on his lips. “Very well. I don’t see what you find so fascinating about the volcanos, though.”

“They give us heat and energy. And I understand nothing about them. Why wouldn’t that be fascinating?”

Kai was actually non-ironically interested in the volcanos. They weren’t possible to see from the capital, the dark water obscuring them despite being located higher up than K’arhan.

Sneaking a glance at Rami, Kai could see that the other merman was trying to hide a smile. He was so adorable.

“I didn’t know you were interested in such things in general.”

Kai took Rami’s hand gently into his own as they approached the rocky peaks of the volcanos, Ramos immediately interlocking their fingers.

He was still pretty shy about most touches, but he seemed to really like handholding and had very quickly warmed up to it to a point where Rami himself sometimes initiated it, which was very cute.

“I’m a man of mystery,” Kai joked, winking, making Ramos chuckle.

“That you certainly are,” he replied, smiling so softly it almost disarmed Kai. He wasn’t yet used to Rami letting his guard down so much—it had only been a few days, after all—but it was incredible.

“I never imagined you to be the way you are,” Ramos continued, his eyebrows drawing together in a little, sad frown. “I apologize for being so rude to you when you arrived. I—”

Kai shook his head, rubbing Ramos’ hand with his thumb. “Hey, stop that. We’re good now, okay? We moved on from that.”

Ramos nodded, though he didn’t look completely convinced. But that was a conversation for another time.

“Well, I suppose I just wanted to say that I am most grateful for your efforts to befriend me despite my…reluctance.”

Kai smiled sadly at that. Reluctance was one way to put it. But the important thing was that they were together now. And Kai had never been happier.

“Obviously. I was into you immediately,” he said, grinning, to which Ramos scowled in confusion. But Kai didn’t let him even question it, immediately continuing. “You’re cute, really smart, talented, a snappy dresser…. Your grumpy ways seduced me immediately, what can I say?”

He put his hand on Ramos’ chest, stopping his swimming. “And you are really soft under all those layers.”

Ramos stared at him, his cheeks flushed red as he finally turned his gaze away, smiling softly to himself. “Uh.”

Instead of actually following that up with a sentence, Rami wrapped his arms around Kai, still holding their drinks which were now pressing uncomfortably into Kai’s back. But he didn’t care, ruffling Rami’s hair with his free hand.

“Come on, let’s find a nice spot to look at these things,” he said as he gestured to the volcanos.

They were now close enough that the blue, translucent shields were visible, shielding the whole area so that the lava escaping from the peaks didn’t hurt anyone. It was really fascinating to look at.

They made their way above them, Kai leading them to a flat part of the mountain ridge, far enough away from the volcanos that they could watch them, hear the rumbling, while also not scaring Rami too much.

Kai kept looking over his shoulder, seeing the trepidation on the other merman’s face as he looked back at the lava, but he dutifully swam after Kai without argument, a spark of interest behind his glasses, despite his concern.

As they reached the place Kai had been heading to, Kai settled down on the rock, putting down their food, Rami joining him a moment later, still staring at the volcanos.

“The water is very warm here,” he said as the ground shook a little under their tails, making him startle. Kai kissed his cheek.

“Yeah, a bit. It’s comfy, right?”

Ramos looked around, relaxing a tiny bit. “It’s…less insane than I thought it would be.”

Kai chuckles, looking at the volcanos before them, fascinated by the magical shield protecting the lava-spewing peaks.

“I can’t believe you’ve never been up here before. Ara told me she comes here from time to time. Apparently, K’arhan isn’t that interesting.”

He chuckled, though he immediately stopped when he saw Ramos’ surprised face. “She…never told me that.”

Kai frowned, wondering how he could put this gently. “Well, she told me you never really seem like you wanna talk. So I guess it didn’t come up.”

“Oh.” Ramos said nothing else, just staring down at the drinks he was still holding, blinking before handing one to Kai.

“Hey, don’t worry,” Kai said, taking it with a smile. “You can figure it all out. No rush.”

Ramos stared at him for a moment before dropping his gaze to his drink, taking a sip through the straw, blinking at the taste.

“It’s my favorite! Red coral blossom flavor,” Kai said proudly.

Rami nodded, taking another sip with a small smile. “It’s good.”

Kai grinned back, putting an arm around Ramos’ shoulders, slowly enough that he could push him away if he wanted to. Rami just leaned toward him, though, putting his tail over Kai’s as they both watched the lava ahead.

The whole place was very well lit thanks to it. It was almost bright enough to obscure K’arhan below, but Kai could still see the roof crystals from here.

“This is nice,” Ramos suddenly says, leaning his head against Kai’s shoulder and closing his eyes.

“Ah, liking those volcanos after all?” Kai grinned, but Ramos shook his head.

“No, I just…like spending time with you.”

Kai blinked, surprised at Rami being so direct for once while the other merman’s face went pink.

Kai tackled him into a hug, grinning ear to ear, making Ramos let out a startled noise. He did hug back a second later, though.

“I like spending time with you too!”

Ramos smiled at him shyly, his expression immediately turning alarmed when another small earthquake shook the ground beneath them. Kai readily hugged him close, Rami hiding his face in the crook of Kai’s neck.

“I’m not scared,” he mumbled, making Kai chuckle as he petted his hair.

“Of course not. I just like hugging you.”

They sat there in silence for a while, just happy to be near each other, content as the light from the lava danced around them. It really was beautiful to behold.

“Hey, I gotta tell you something,” Kai said, immediately cursing himself for starting this discussion this way because it sounded like he was going to say something horrible.

And judging by Ramos’ suddenly very blank face, he was no doubt thinking it too.

“It’s not bad, I promise,” Kai tried to save this, sighing. “I just have to go back to the capital for a bit. I got a letter from my publisher. Some paperwork stuff. Boring.”

Ramos nodded, looking very disappointed, but Kai didn’t let him wallow, hugging him tightly. “It will just be a few days, okay?”

There was a moment of silence before Rami said anything. “And then you’ll come back.”

It was a statement, but there was a hint of a question right at the end of it, an unsure waver in his voice.

“Yeah, obviously. You think I can stay away from you?” he replied softly, wanting to reassure him. And it seemed to work, Ramos growing less tense as he gave Kai a hesitant smile.

“Okay. Good.”

Kai leaned in to kiss the top of his head. “I wouldn’t leave. Not voluntarily. And I’m gonna stay here indefinitely after I return, hm?”

Rami stared wide-eyed at him as if surprised by that. Hadn’t Kai already told him as much? “Y-yeah?”

Kai grinned. “Yeah, of course. It’s not like my job requires me to stay in one place, right?”

Ramos nodded slowly. Kai could almost sense him processing this as if the concept was some kind of impossible-to-solve equation.

“I bet I’ll write better when you’re around, anyway,” Kai grinned, nuzzling Rami’s cheek with his own, making him blush.

“I…bet I will too,” Ramos said, smiling softly. “I’ll miss you.”

Kai chuckled, kissing his forehead. “I’ll miss you too. But I’ll be back before you know it. Besides, I’ve been distracting you from fixing up the library.”

Ramos huffed, but it was clear by how his lips twitched that he was very amused. “Yes, well, the library can survive for a few more days without repairs, I’m sure.”

Kai chuckled again, grinning at him. “Wow, being in a relationship changed your priorities completely.”

Ramos huffed again, but then he laughed too, shaking his head. “I just care about more things now.”

Kai snorted, deciding to tease Rami a little. “Oh, I’m a thing, am I?”

Ramos rolled his eyes, making Kai laugh harder, Rami joining him almost immediately.

“Hey, Rami?” Kai smiled, leaning in closer. “I really like you.”

Ramos swallowed, nodding seriously, which was about the most adorable reaction he could have had. “I like you, too.”

They both leaned in closer, staring at each other’s lips, slowly but surely meeting in a mutual, gentle, sweet kiss. It was just their lips being pressed together, and yet it made Kai’s heart race. It was perfect.

When they pulled away, Kai opened his eyes to a blinking Rami.

“Was that okay?”

Ramos nodded slowly, his eyes wide, apparently shocked by this. Kai couldn’t help but grin, a giggle making its way out of his mouth.

“That was…nice,” Ramos finally said, smiling without restraint at Kai, even showing his teeth, which completely disarmed Kai in turn. He was so beautiful when he smiled.

“Uh-huh,” is all he managed, laughing. “It really was.”

Ramos hugged him again, hiding his face in Kai’s shoulder, Kai hugging immediately back, cradling him.

“Is it okay if I stay with you until I find another place?”

Kai asked, having been avoiding this question ever since he found out the only place with vacancy in this town was the hotel, and he didn’t really love the idea of paying for a room for months.

He would have done it, of course, if there was no alternative, but, though blushing, Rami had pointed out that Kai could stay with him.

Ramos had been pretending it was simply a logical, practical decision, but Kai could see through all that flustering.

“I think it’s okay if you never find another place,” Ramos replied, making Kai frown for a second before blushing, realizing what Ramos was saying.

“Oh, Rami.” He hugged him tighter, kissing his forehead. “Okay. I’d love that. Thanks.” He smiles at him, giddy. “I’d really love that.”

Rami smiles back, laying his head on Kai’s shoulder again. And as they sit there, Kai’s chin on top of Rami’s head, Kai can’t stop smiling.

He’d never been happier, or so at peace before. He’d written about characters feeling like this because of their partner so many times, but he’d never experienced it himself.

Whatever awaited him in the future, he somehow knew he’d be okay with just Rami by his side. He felt like he could take risks. And he certainly would.

And he knew what his first risk-taking venture would be. He certainly had a lot to discuss with his publisher.