the siren's call | felix lee

ix.

"Are you crying again?" Felix asked, "You seem to cry a lot, my darling."

"What are you doing here?" you snapped, your sadness being replaced by a rush of anger. You scrubbed at your tearstained cheeks, trying to hide the fact that you had, in fact, been crying.

"I was waiting for you," he said, pulling himself further out of the water. Your gaze drifted down to his tail, realizing that his wounds had been totally healed. New scales were covering most of the faded scar. "I thought you wouldn't ever come back."

You pulled your knees in closer to your chest, looking away from him and avoiding eye contact. "I didn't want to."

"Then why are you here?"

"I had to get away." You felt tears starting to form in your eyes as you thought back to Hyunjin's proposal.
Felix hesitantly reached out to you, wet fingertips grazing your cheeks as he tried to get you to look at him. "Please look at me, (Y/N). Please." He tried to grab your chin and turn your face towards him, but you resisted. The gray waves noisily crashed onto the cliffs, darkening the mood. "I'm sorry," Felix blurted out, "I'm so sorry, (Y/N). But please, just look at me!" His voice rose at the end, his words dripping with desperation.

You gave in to his charms yet again, looking him straight in the eye. His violet eyes were brimmed with dark bluish purple, veins showing through his pale skin. His cheeks were hollow, and his lips were chapped and stained with purple blood, likely from biting them. His eyebrows were furrowed as he caressed your cold face with his wet hands, expression somber. "I missed you so much," he whispered, tears brimming in his eyes.

You stiffened under his touch, and he retracted his hands, feeling your wariness. "I'm still mad at you," you said quietly, "I didn't come back here for you."

Felix smiled sadly. "Are you sure about that?" he asked, toying with the lace on your skirts.

"Maybe," you replied, his charms already getting to you and melting your anger away.

"I really am sorry," Felix mumbled, "I'll never do it again. I promise."

"If you do I really won't ever come back," you murmured, taking his webbed hand and bringing it back to your face, yearning for his touch.

"You really can't resist me, can you my darling?" He grinned, sharp teeth revealing themselves once again.

"Not in the slightest," you whispered, leaning into his hands.

You stayed there for a moment, enjoying the feeling of his touch, until your legs begun to cramp from the odd position you were in; trying to lay down while also making sure to stay out of the water. "You know," he said quietly, "the last time I saw you, the wisteria trees were still in full bloom." He swept his hand through the surface of the gray water, gathering wilting purply-brown petals in his hands.

"There's still a few trees with blossoms," you reported, looking back at the path that led to the forest. "Although it really is strange, there being so many flowers so late in the season. It's never been like this before."

"Strange indeed," Felix hummed, "but I do recall a time when the blossoms lasted late into the autumn."

"Why don't you tell me about it?" You readjusted yourself, gingerly laying down on the sand, clasping his hands in yours. "We have time."

Felix smiled at you, tightening his grip on your hands as he moved them back and forth, making you giggle. "It's a bit of long story, and not a very happy one," he admitted, smile fading.

You cocked your head to the side, curious now. "Tell me," you said simply, "Most stories don't have happy endings anyways."

Felix directed his gaze up to the sky, looking at the gray clouds that had just begun to part, revealing the sun, which was lower in the sky than he thought, it must be late afternoon judging by its position. He cleared his throat and looked back at you, waiting patiently for him to begin. "A long, long time ago, I fell in love," he said, eyes far away as he immersed himself in his memories. You felt a pang of jealousy at the mention of his past love, but said nothing, allowing him to continue. "She sort of reminds me of you," he said sheepishly, and you squeezed his hands reassuringly. "I think she was a part of the royal family here too, actually. Long ago, of course."