A cold, wet splash against his face slowly dragged Kui from his slumber. His dull, still-sleepy eyes fluttered open, gazing unfocused at the ceiling of the cave where thin streams of water trickled down the stone. Another drop fell directly onto his cheek, leaving a cold trail against his skin.
Blinking heavily, Kui tried to sit up, but a strangely heavy weight pressed against his chest, making him pause. Confused, he lowered his gaze.
Long, braided black hair was coiled loosely around his neck, strands tickling his skin. His eyes followed the braid downward until they landed on the stunningly handsome face of a man sleeping peacefully on top of him.
For a second, Kui simply froze.
Then it hit him.
There was a man sleeping on his chest!
"W-What the—?!"
Gasping, Kui hurriedly pushed the stranger off him and scrambled backward until his back hit the cold stone wall on the other side of the cave.
The young man, who looked to be in his twenties, merely grunted softly as he stirred. Slowly, he lifted his head and gazed at Kui.
Those striking blue eyes looked awfully familiar, but with the faint light coming from behind him, Kui couldn't make out the man's face clearly.
"Who are you…? W-What do you want? How did you even get in here…?"
The man suddenly began crawling closer to him.
Stunned, Kui frantically searched the cave for something—anything—he could use as a weapon. The only thing within reach was a rotten branch lying beside him.
Gripping it tightly, he raised it threateningly in front of himself and glared at the approaching man.
"Don't come any closer. I… I won't hesitate to hurt you."
The man stopped.
"Kui… don't you recognize me?" he asked softly.
That voice sent an inexplicable shiver down Kui's spine.
His heart skipped.
There was something painfully familiar about it, something that stirred memories buried beneath the fog clouding his mind.
But he couldn't place it.
Swallowing hard, Kui shook his head.
"I… I don't have anything valuable with me. Just… just go. Leave me alone…"
The man sighed, and there was a faint trace of helplessness in that sound. Slowly, he sat down in front of Kui. His slender hands reached forward and gently wrapped around Kui's feet.
"Ugh! What are you doing?! Let go!"
Kui kicked in panic, trying to pull himself away.
But the man simply caught hold of him again.
"Shh… it's okay. Don't flail around. You'll hurt yourself," he whispered, leaning closer.
Kui's fogged brain cleared up a bit and by now he remembered something he had forgotten. "Aok! what did you do with Aok! Fuck!" he pushed the man away searching the entre cave for the small young boy. But he could not see him anywhere. "What the fuck did you do to him!"
Kui snatched up the rotten branch again and pressed it against the man's throat, his hands trembling with fear and anger.
"Where is he?! What did you do to Aok?!"
Finally, the man shifted into the light.
Kui's breath caught. Now he could see his face clearly.
Those striking blue eyes. That impossibly handsome face.
His heart seemed to stop.
It… it was—
"Aok?"
The branch slowly slipped from Kui's trembling fingers, dropping uselessly to the ground. "What…"
The man sat up, staring at him with hurt lingering in his eyes. "Kui…" His voice was soft, almost painfully familiar. "It's me, Aok."
"Aok?" Kui moved closer, taking a good look at his face. The young boy who had looked about ten had miraculously grown into a twenty-year-old young man. 'How the hell is it possible?'
His brain could not comprehend it.
His gaze roamed from the handsome face before him and slowly drifted down to his chest. The young man was wearing a tight shirt that had ridden up to his ribcage, exposing his belly button. The pants that little Aok had once worn loosely around his legs now clung tightly to the man's powerful legs, accentuating his muscular thighs.
This was Aok?
'But how?'
"I always looked this way," the young man said, scooting closer.
Kui instinctively backed away. "What do you mean? You're not a ten-year-old kid?"
"No, I'm twenty summers old." The man gently grabbed his hand and, while peering into his eyes, kissed the back of his palm. "And I'm the prince of the northern merfolk. I apologize that I didn't tell you this previously. It was to protect you only," he whispered, rubbing his face against the back of Kui's palm.
Kui blinked, his eyes wide. That was far too much information for him to process so early in the day. "So you're not a kid?"
"Hmm…"
"You're a prince?"
"Yes, Kui." The man scooted even closer.
Kui could only gape up at him. "Why were you so small then?"
"I was badly wounded, so my body instinctively changed back to its juvenile stage to use my powers to heal myself," he whispered, peering down at him with those striking blue eyes.
Aok moved a bit closer, "Kui… you said that you would have me as your mate after I grew taller than you." He said it with a knowing smile.
"Huh…"
"Huhhhh!!"