(Leonel)
One moment, everything was black, and the next, my lips were on Tristan's. I really didn't mean for it to happen and I had no clue why it did, but looking back on it makes me realize that it must've been from the enchantment.
I didn't mind it. Maybe this is the way to make him trust me. A kiss is just a kiss, and we just met a day ago. I'm sure Tristan didn't mean for it to have that effect, but since it did, it can bring us closer.
The only real issue is dealing with a Lucca who's grumpier than usual. He's really making me question why the kiss is such a big deal. I'm not interested in Tristan and neither is he, so I wish he'd just step aside and let me make the merman fall for me.
He was complaining about Tristan since the moment we saw him. All I did was accidentally kiss him and now Lucca won't even talk to me. When he does they're just short, irritated responses.
I never talked to him much because I have a quiet nature, but he's always been one to ramble on and on about anything that interests him.
Now the two of us are in our hotel room laying on our separate beds. The only light is from the buildings outside. I hear him shift and turn to me.
When he does, all I see is the outline of his shirtless body and the frown on his face. "Why did you do it?"
"Do what?" I'm sure I know what he's talking about, but I guess he doesn't realize that it wasn't my fault, nor was it Tristan's.
He props himself up to get a better look at me, his movements making the bed creak. "Don't play dumb, Leo. What happened when the fireball and I left? You weren't yourself, and obviously it was a shock to see you kissing a guy. I didn't even know you were into that stuff."
I sigh and turn my back to him. I'm not really in the mood to talk about it anymore. I can hardly stand the fact that Tristan has made such an impact in my life already. "It's not a big deal. He sang a song and it made me kiss him. It's not like we're dating, okay? For the record, I have no idea what I'm into. It doesn't really matter when it comes to feelings."
"He seemed to enjoy it. Maybe you were wrong about him being attracted to me. He seems more smitten with you." Lucca mutters before moving to turn away from me as well.
I pull my covers up over my head and say nothing more.
I hope he's right. If my plan is going to work, I need Tristan to trust me. One way to get his trust is to get his love.
I wait for a while, finally hearing Lucca's soft snores.
I smile and pull my covers off of myself before silently climbing out of my bed. I put on my plain black combat boots, before wrapping myself with my jacket, not bothering with a shirt.
I want to see him again. It's cold and dark outside, and he's probably been working so hard. He's by himself out there. The best I can do is just be there for him. Somebody has to be, right? Maybe if it's me, he'll start to open up.
Just as I open the door, a hand falls on my shoulder. The rough hand makes me practically jump out of my skin. "It's late. Where do you think you're going?"
I sigh, but don't turn around. "Tristan is... you know. I feel bad. He's alone."
Lucca grabs my shoulder tighter and yanks me back into the room. He closes the door and pushes me down on my bed with a stern look.
I hate his attitude. He thinks that just because he's the Captain's son, he can push us around. He's always been this bossy. With the way he looks at me, you'd think he was my dad and I was sneaking out for a party.
"I'll handle it. You just stay here and get some rest. You've been working yourself too hard for the past few days. With him and that girl around I'm not too sure it'll get any better."
He doesn't care how hard I work. His father doesn't either. I bust my ass trying to be a good leader for the ships crew and Lucca and his dad just prance around and act like they run the world.
Tristan is a sweet guy and maybe I'm not into him. Either way, it still pisses me off that now Lucca is trying to take that too. He's a spoiled brat with some anger issues and that's just a fact.
"Lucca, I can't just-"
"It wasn't a suggestion, Leonel. Do as I say and stay here. I won't tell you again." He demands, glaring even harder at me.
I clench my teeth, keeping a poker face so as not to alert him of my disdain. Just because he's the captain's son doesn't mean that he can treat everyone like this.
I'm older than him. I'm more mature, smarter, kinder, and I'm a better leader. Hopefully his father isn't stupid enough to make him the captain. His dad doesn't have much time left and we all know it. I want to lead. I want to be the captain and Lucca is the only person standing in my way.
Sometimes I wish I could just get rid of him.
I pretend to be unbothered as I nod. I eye him up and down and raise a brow at him. "Sweatpants and no shirt? That's how you're going to leave?"
He lets out a growl of annoyance before yanking on pair of boots and throwing his jacket around himself. He zips it up to his neck and turns to me to hold his arms out. "There. Happy?"
I bury myself into the covers and pillows on my bed. "Happy. Careful, Lucca. You know how cities are at night."
"Yet you wanted to be in my place. Honestly." He scoffs and turns to leave the room.
I still may not get any rest. I'm stuck with this feeling that I don't understand, and I know I'll be up all night worrying about Tristan and Lucca. If Lucca gets him before I do then everything changes. I have to get that information.
Whether I have to coax it out of him or force it out is up to him. I can only hope that I haven't lost my chance to do it the easy way.
(Lucca)
I swiftly stride down the street, and it doesn't take long before I see my ship off in the distance.
It's mainsail is still torn and burnt a little bit as well, but the wooden planks seem to all be repaired. Once I near the dock, I hear nothing but calm waters swaying the ship.
It seems like Tristan either finish already, or gave up. I'm hoping for the latter because that means that we don't have to let him or the dragon lady come with us. We can leave them here and hopefully forget about all the problems they caused.
With a deep sigh I sit on the edge of the pier, letting my feet dangle off the side. "Why the hell am I out here?"
"Do you expect me to know that answer?" Tristan's soft boyish voice nearly scares me, but I'd never show it.
This kid really just showed up out of nowhere. His head popped out of the water right after I spoke as if he were just waiting for me to talk.
I wonder if he was hoping that Leonel would come. Why else would he still be out here? "How much longer until you finish? It's been hours."
"I'm done with everything you asked me to do, so we can leave in the morning. I just... I really like being out here. It's peaceful." When he smiles it's like his teeth and eyes are sparkling.
He's beautiful. Not in a gay way, but in a merman way. His features are nothing like a humans. Blonde people tend to have a yellow tint but his is pure white. His eyes are vibrant and bright like nobody I've ever seen. His skin is milky and smooth, completely unmarked.
You wouldn't find someone like him anywhere.
I easily ignore my thoughts, making sure that my voice is void of emotion when I answer. "It's also really fucking cold. You plan to stay in the water until morning? It would be best to get out soon. Someone might see you when you least expect it."
"My species of merpeople are born in the coldest waters known to man. This is warm for me." He stops for a moment, staring straight into my eyes as his smile falls.
I can tell just by looking at him that he's thinking of something that's making him feel like this. "Lucca... I didn't mean to do that earlier. I've never sung for a human before, and I wanted to try when Leonel asked me to. I didn't know that would happen."
He's unnecessarily nervous. Does he really think that I cared about their kiss? I guess I did just a little bit, but I don't know why. Maybe it's because Leonel never told me that he liked guys. Maybe it's because he said that Tristan was smitten with me when he obviously isn't.
Although, looking at him now almost changes my mind. He's staring at me with much wider eyes as if he's hoping I'll respond. His tail seems to glitter because of the street lights and his eyes are still so bright that it looks like they're glowing.
"Why are you bringing that up? I'm not the one you kissed."
He breaks eye contact to run his fingers through his wet hair. It only stays slicked back for a few seconds before flopping back down and sticking to the side of his face. It looks soft. I wonder what it feels like.
"I don't know. I thought you were upset about it. I just wanted to apologize."
I roll my eyes at him and pull my feet up so that I can stand. I look down at him for a moment before starting to undress myself. Yeah, sometimes I do dumb things, but I'm a pirate. What am I if not a risk taker?
"Apologize? You're really sorry for what you did or you're sorry that we saw you?" I ask.
After everything my dad says about merfolk, I find it hard to believe that he can't control the enchantment. He wanted Leonel to kiss him. That's how it works, isn't it?
"Honest. I didn't mean for that to happen and I'm sorry that it did." He looks up at me with a curious face, but when I unzip my jacket to reveal my bare chest, his cheeks flare up. "Umm... what are you doing?"
Once everything else is off, I drop my sweatpants and kick them into the pile with the rest of my clothes. I look down at the calm water in nothing but my underwear. It's cold. My underwear will be soaked and I'll have to walk back to the hotel with the wind practically freezing my long hair, but I don't really care.
Before I can think to much I hold my breath and jump into the deep water. When I resurface, I shake my hair out and give Tristan a shrug. "Merpeople aren't the only species that can swim, you know? I've got nothing better to do. You got a problem with it? I'm sure it's not the first time you've had a guy strip in front of you."
Maybe I do tease him a bit too much. Maybe it's because he's gay. I'm not a homophobic person but seeing his face turn red when I say those things makes me want to do it more. I saw how he looked when I mentioned Leonel taking his pants off. I thought he was going to explode with how red his face was, but now it's even brighter.
"Oh... yeah, you can do what you want or whatever. I haven't though. I haven't... seen that." He can't keep eye contact with me and his voice is shaking the slightest bit.
I want more though. I want to say something... do something that will take his breath away. Leave him speechless. "You can touch my chest if you let me touch your tail."
I turn and reach my hand out to touch the ship, feeling the smooth new planks as I listen for his response.
I hear him stutter for a second before just staying quiet. I actually have to bite my lip to hide my smirk as I turn back around. I'm itching to see just how red his face can get.
"No? It's a one time offer, you know? Leonel said something about you being attracted to me. Is that not true anymore?"
"No, it's just... I didn't mean for him to say that. I just meant that you're... cute. Anyway, the boat is all fixed and the boards are fine now. I'm excited for us to leave tomorrow." He rushes out, trying to change the subject and redirect my focus.
"Us. We, right. I still have no idea how I'll explain this to my father, but I guess I'll figure something out. Look, I want to show you around the ship. How long until your sight and voice go away once your out of water?" My dad absolutely can't find out about him. He talks about merpeople and sirens as if they're demons in disguise.
"When my hair dries, it all goes away." He responds, pulling himself onto the dock.
"No time to waste then. Put some clothes on when you dry up and meet me there." I climb up as well and quickly put all of my clothes on. I walk away from him to let him get dressed.
I'm pretty sure that when he changes back, he's not going to have clothes on, and I obviously don't want to stay because I'm not gay. I don't need to see a guy naked.
I'm starting to wonder why I even thought it was a good idea to jump in with him. Was it worth seeing his cute little flushed face? Yeah. That's why.
"Hi." Tristan says, coming up to me. I look him over for a second before nodding for him to follow me into the ship. I guess his friend didn't bring him a shirt because all he's wearing is a pair of jeans that hang just low enough for me to see the band of his boxers.
Once we're on the boat, I turn to him and hold my arms open. "Well? Is it as wonderful as you hoped?"
"It's beautiful. I've never been on a ship before but it's calming. I like how it sways. My parents always told me to stay away from them."
"Probably because they're mostly owned by pirates. Most pirates wouldn't hesitate to capture, kill, and torture your kind. That being said, nobody on this ship can know what you are." I guide him over to a dark wooden door before pushing it open to reveal a decently sized room with two queen beds.
There's two more doors, one that leads into the closet and the other that leads to a bathroom. The beds have large, circular windows that look out on the ocean.
"You'll be staying in here. I sleep on the left and Leonel on the right. Don't get too excited now, but you'll be sharing a bed with one of us."
"I'll have to stay in here the whole time?" He asks, giving me a pleading look.
I won't lie, it's upsetting that he's already learning to ignore my comments. Maybe I should keep him locked up in here so that I'll have him all to myself. Maybe I can make Leonel sleep somewhere else.
"You'll just sleep in here and speak to us when you need to. It'll be easier to keep your secret if you just keep your mouth shut and act like you can see and speak."
I close the door to the room and smirk slightly as I turn to face him. I don't know why, but I want to push him. My teasing is already losing effect so maybe I just need to do more. I can do more.
I walk close to him and reach out to tug on a short lock of his white hair. "You should keep track of how long it takes your hair to dry. It's the last wet part of your body... unless there's something you're not telling me about."
"I... there isn't. I'll keep track." His face was just starting to go back to its normal color, but once again he's starting to turn red. He crosses his arms over his chest and purses his lips into a pout. I don't think that he knows he's doing it, but it's adorable.
"Honestly, calling me 'cute' when you're blushing like crazy." I take a few more steps forward, chuckling when he takes a few back.
We keep going until his back is pressed against the wall. I put my hand on the wall right next to his head as I lean down slightly. I use my other hand to cup his cheek and lift his chin so he can meet my gaze. I don't think I'll ever get used to how blue his eyes are. "Do you still think I'm 'cute', Tristan?"
"I..." his breathing gets quicker as he continues, doing anything he can to break eye contact with me. "I just think you're attractive. That's all."
At this point even his ears are starting to turn red. He looks so nervous and embarrassed. I want to do so much more, but I'll have to save some for another day. Maybe tomorrow.
I trail my fingers down his neck and chest before moving them back up to brush my thumb over his bottom lip. His lips are so soft. No wonder Leonel liked kissing him.
As soon as I touched his lips, I swear he stopped breathing. He's not pushing me away or complaining about me being too handsy. His just staring up at me like he wishes I'd do more. He'll learn eventually. He'll have to ask if he wants me to keep going.
I take a step back and take my hands off of him completely as I smirk. "You're fun to tease. I hope you know that. Don't forget to be back here when the sun starts to rise."
He looks disappointed that I stepped back, but I just give him a little wink before hopping off of the ship onto the dock. Whether he and Leonel have something going on or not, I won't let it stop me from having my fun with him.