The Merman From Ashore-A Bakudeku Love Story(Ao3 Version, New and Improved)

Chapter 2

How many days has it been since I've been punished? I do not know. Pretty soon, the darkness of this very room will consume me into nothingness. Oh, how cold indeed it is. I sighed dramatically, laying down on the bed-like rock.

I'm not joking! There's nothing to do while I'm in here. I did ask a merguard if my friends could come and visit me, but they said nothing to me. Nothing! I'm starting to highly doubt that'll happen.

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I am so bored!!! A loud clatter at my door could be heard from the other side. A merguard came in with another merguard guarding the door. The merguard coming towards me had some dead fish in his hands. He places them beside me as he keeps glaring at me, swimming backward while doing it. He closes the door and locks it.

Dude... Was that necessary? I shook my head and grabbed a dead fish and ate a couple of bites. I gulped it down. Mm. Tasty fish. My stomach grumbles, and while I'm still holding the dead fish in my hand, my free hand hovers over my stomach. Patting it lightly, don't worry I'll try, no! I will get more food. My eyes avert to the door.

I clear my throat for a moment, "Excuse me, but can I have some more food? Because the least you could do is give me more food, so I don't starve to death!!" Nothing, nada, no response. I make popping noises with my mouth, bubbles sprouting out of my mouth. I take another bite of my fish, chewing it with my mouth open.

What do I care about? Everyone has always treated me like I'm just a disease. Wait a minute, couldn't I just swim away? I could but... I get to be lazy for once, so I'm staying here. It's not like I have anything better to do anyway.

That's what I thought until, not so long after, I heard the door knock again. Jeez, what the hell do they want? You know what? I am not moving, plus I can't even let anybody in because I. AM. THE. PRISONER! The knocking soon stops and I hear a click on the door. Oh, the purple-haired guy. That's weird.

I set my unfinished fish down to the side, "Can I help you?"

"Hm? Oh, uh, I wanted to introduce myself. My name is Hitoshi Shinso." He holds his hand out for me to shake. I hesitantly shake his hand for a moment, pulling it away from him.

"So... What are you doing here exactly?" I ask him with my arms across my chest.

Shinso tilts his head to the right, "I wanted to get up close to the cursed merman my father keeps talking about." He goes forward and examines me as he swims in a circle around me. "You don't look like you're cursed."

"Oh, I'm supposed to have a look now?" I arch my eyebrow at him with a grin.

He backs away from me, "That's not what I meant. I'm just saying that what I've been told is that if you look straight into its monstrous eyes, you'll be cursed with bad luck for life." Shinso sighs disappointedly, "But they lied to me."

"Wait... Who the fuck told you that I have monstrous eyes?"

He blew little bubbles out of his mouth, averting his eyes away from me. "Some old mermaids that work for my father."

And of course, it's old merpeople spouting bad things about me. "Did they say anything about me having glowing eyes, sharp claws that could pierce through their skins, and has a disfigured face?" Shinso nods in affirmation, "Old merpeople like to make things soooo dramatic."

"I can tell, because you're nothing like what I've heard." I noticed that Shinso was fidgeting with his hands together.

Hold on, we just met. But he could be uncomfortable socially, so I shouldn't jump to conclusions. "Did you just come by to get an up-close of me?" I lean back against the rock bed I was sitting on, with my hands supporting me from behind. I lift my tail on top of the bed to let it sit on top of it.