Splash of Love | j.hs au

Chapter 18

"I guess you were right." Jisoo said, looking up towards the sky.

Here you were, packed with a bag for a three day trip to a tropical island. You were excited to be on a boat and couldn't wait to get on one. All you had to do was wait for Jimin who was running a little late.

Jinhwan adopted an attitude of confidence and shrugged his shoulders. "What can I tell you? I know how to tell the weather."

Ae Ri and Hoseok were quiet as you watched Jinhwan and Jisoo talk - well more like Jinhwan bragging about how he told Jisoo that the weather would be good. You could tell that Jisoo was ready to toss Jinhwan into the ocean. At last, Jimin arrived a bit out of breath.

Jinhwan began to lead you down the boardwalk. It was at a different beach and this was a bit of a surprise for you. Apparently this city was big enough to have another beach. Jinhwan stopped at what you think is a boat. "I got the biggest one I could. Are you still okay to go on Hoseok? Cause I could call someone to fly you there."

Hoseok shook his head. "As long as I'm inside."

Inside? You took a look at the boat. It was quite large with a spacious area. There was a small room in the middle and what looked like a bench around the end of the boat. So, you're a bit confused. Did he mean in the boat itself? Why does a boat have an inside like a house?

You let everyone get on before you then it was your turn. Carefully, you got on it and felt it rock a bit. This was kind of weird. You glanced to see movement out of the corner of your eye as Jinhwan opened some type of... door in the floor. Jinhwan went into it first and then Hoseok followed. When he said inside, he did mean inside the boat. You didn't think there could be space under a boat. Moments later, Jinhwan returned up to the floor of the boat and he went to some type of space where there was another person! You totally didn't see him there. Maybe your mermaid instincts were dulled on land.

Jinhwan then returned to where everyone else was at with a big grin on his face. "Let's have some fun!" That earned him some applause in response, well mainly Jimin who was just as excited. Your eyes glanced towards the door on the floor, wondering if Hoseok was okay. Maybe in a few minutes, you'll check on him.

One hour later, you think you had too much water to drink. "Where's the bathroom?" You asked Jinhwan. He got up and opened up the door on the floor.

"Once you get down there, turn around and it's the first door on the right."

You nodded and began your descent to the inside of the boat. Once your feet landed on the floor, you had no time to look around. You quickly rushed to the bathroom. After doing everything you needed to, you finally looked around the inside. Huh, it was like a little apartment. Besides the bathroom, there was another door, a small kitchen, the ladder you came from and a small area that had small couches. Hoseok was sitting on the couch, his head resting on the back of the couch with a blindfold - is that what it is? - on his eyes.

"Are you doing okay Hoseok?" You hesitantly asked. Except you got no response. Venturing a bit closer, you noticed that he had some... things in his ears. You were curious about them but decided to leave him alone to rest. You were about to go up the ladder when Jisoo came down instead.

"Sorry, I have to go to the bathroom." She apologized that she was in the way and headed to the bathroom.

Your foot got on the first step of the ladder when a noise stopped you. Was that Hoseok? You watched for another moment and he twisted around. "N-No..." He whispered and then jerked once.

"H-Hoseok?" You quickly went over to him as Hoseok gasped and clawed at the blindfold. He was in a panic to get it off and you rapidly took it off of him. Hoseok's eyes were wide as he tried to regain his breath. He was sweating a bit and you kneeled in front of him. "Hoseok? Are you okay? Do I need to get you something?" You prepared to do whatever he wanted fast.

"No..." He panted and his expression made you frown a bit. There were streaks of wetness down his cheeks. Was he crying? Then he snapped his mouth close and got up, slightly knocking into you. You knew it wasn't that hard but you were not steady kneeling down like that. You fell back and looked to see him knock on the door.

Jisoo called out she would be in a minute. Hoseok panicked and then rushed up the ladder. Like a puppy, you quickly followed him to where he spooked Jinhwan coming around the corner and then threw up over the side of the boat.

Worriedly, you went over to him, ignoring everyone else who gathered around. Awkwardly, you stood there unsure what to do in this situation. Not a mermaid or merman threw up so you were unsure if your next action would prove to be useful. Thankfully, Jimin took control and patted his back. "Could we get a cup of water? You need to rinse your mouth out after you finish." This time, Ae Ri went to grab one.

"Sorry." Hoseok apologized after he was done. "I think I got a bit seasick." He looked over to Jinhwan just as Ae Ri returned with some water. Hoseok accepted it and rinsed out his mouth. "Are we almost there?"

Jinhwan nervously laughed. "Well, you know how unpredictable the weather is?" Jisoo finally returned and all of you waited to hear what his next words were. "Well, um, we might have a small storm coming our way..."

"What?" Everyone said at the same time.

"It popped out of nowhere!" Jinhwan replied. "The captain is turning back right now so we won't get caught in the storm." You could sense the disappointment in the atmosphere but there was no choice. Though it seemed like an unlucky day today.

There was a loud clap of thunder that made you jump. You looked up to the sky to see dark clouds above. When did that even get there?! The wind immediately picked up and you could feel the boat rock with the starting to be angry waves.

"Oh shit." Jinhwan said and normally you would not curse in fear of your sisters or parents glaring at you, but he was right.

It looks like the storm reached you before you could run from it.