The merman, my man

I sniffed, inhaling the strong sweet scent deep within my lungs even as the repressed sensation of disappointment swelled over my chest, and I felt bitter once again.

Still, I forced myself to smile despite my pain as another thought occupied my head: I was no more important than a descendant to Dicken, just like the crystals he had spread across various lands. Though he searched for me and protected me, he did all that to protect his blood which flows in my body-I am one of his few descendants, and the most disobedient at that.

That being said, I also wondered what reason there was for me to be dissatisfied, and I would have been long dead as a child if not for Dicken.

And as the merfolk's leader, his duty was to protect his people and to ensure the perpetuity of the next generation.

F*ck! Why would my thoughts keep drifting away? What had it to do with me...

"Linda."

Dicken suddenly called me, interrupting my thoughts. Turning his head so that his ear brushed against my cheek, he asked, "What's on your mind?"

"You," I blurted out as if bewitched, almost choking when I realized how straightforward I was being and hence added, "I mean, how you've changed... and your identity. Uh, it really shocked me." "You'll have all the time to find out." Dicken turned to flash a meaningful grin at me, his voice echoing in the darkness of the sewers.

Although I understood Merinish, I was still a little unaccustomed since the accent resembled some ancient mystical chant no matter how I tried to describe it. Moreover, Dicken's unique voice, which seemed to reverberate powerfully and carried weight, always left me spacing out.

All I could do was nod in reflex while I kept my hands tightly wrapped around his waist-he was now in his merman form once again, and sprinted through the waters like he did as he carried me through the ocean. Suddenly, the sewers seemed to turn vast and open, with the walls being distant from us as we dived deep beneath the canals.

The lights around us were a warm yellow. As Dicken carried me rapidly through the pillars of various bridges, we would swim past the hulls of various boats floating above us, though the rain tended to cover it soon enough. No one would see us as we darted forward beneath the waters, as if we existed in a different world-a private space that only belonged to Dicken and I.

I couldn't help holding on tighter to Dicken then.

Dicken started to swim towards the surface just then, and we soon arrived at the top of an underwater structure. Then, he extended his arm and firmly pushed, opening a steel plate under a building with such proficient movement that one would think he was opening the door to his own house.

It was a classy tavern. Though it appeared that Dicken lived here, the front doors that faced a channel were locked with massive chains, virtually preventing entry. He clearly hadn't acquired it by legal means as it was quite old, with police tape pasted over various objects. While there was a signboard hanging over the wall that read 'Aquatic Organisms Research Lab,' it had clearly been abandoned for a long time without anyone entering.

That said, it was a place that suited Dicken, and I couldn't help feeling amused. "Aquatic Organisms Research Lab? Hahaha! You' re an oversized fish and the leader of your race, and yet you just planted yourself here. I never knew you had a flair for comedy, Dicken... Perhaps you should stay at a fish market too?"

Dicken narrowed his eyes as he studied me, as if wondering what I had meant by 'fish.' So, I explained by making a hook with a finger and pretending to bite it -I was aware that doing that most certainly challenged his dignity as the leader of the merfolk, but I couldn't help wanting to tease him in spite of the possibility of punishment.

And just as expected, he loomed over me in the next instant, pressing me over the underwater opening as he fixed his eyes.

Then, his lips brushed against the bridge of my nose. "Linda... You make me...

11

He gulped, his eyes seemingly ablaze as his Adam's apple bobbed and he spoke hoarsely, "You really make me..."

He was still wearing his leather gloves, but it was already caressing my spine and heading slowly downwards to my tail bone. Then, he grasped my bottom as he pressed his lower body between my legs, and while we were both dressed in layers, I could feel him getting fully erect, his body burning hot even as he leaned on me.