Between Sirens and Mermaids

Sleeptalk

Swim practice seemed to stretch on forever. Even at his most stressed, swimming had been a release. It didn't matter if he hadn't slept for days on end or if he'd worked himself up into a panic attack that had him on the verge of fainting; once he was in the water a sense of peace coated every part of him. The pool was another type of home to him. The water sang a song of joy to him, but today, the water had him struggling with his sense of self-preservation.

The only good part of practice was that he had managed to pace himself perfectly; so much so that the coach had praised him for his hard work. The mermish whispers of P'Spark and P'Wave ran on repeat in his head. As his arms pulled him mindlessly through the water, he thought he could feel an odd rippling sensation in the dip of his collarbone and the bottom edge of his ribs. A strange sensation that once caused him alarm but had slowly petered off into the mild annoyance of under-stretched muscles or over-extended tendons.

The coach called an end to their practices one by one and gave them their critiques. At any other time, Team would have been appreciative of the praise that the coach gave him, but his anxiety was spiking, and he didn't know what to do to stop the attack. He managed a polite wai towards the coach as he nearly ran to the locker room. He measured his breathing as best as he could as he dried off and changed. In just a few more minutes, he could anchor himself with the warmth of Hia's arms and the scent of warm ocean water and baked earth that Win's skin emitted.

🏊‍♂️ 🏅

He probably looked like a petulant child. He was practically dragging his backpack on the ground. He was struggling to hold himself together at this point; the tingle of tears pooling in the corner of his eyes was just winding him up further and the embarrassment of possibly being seen crying by his teammates had his face lightly flushing.

The sight of Hia's white shoes entering his line of sight had him relaxing, "Hey, baby." Hia's warmth seemed to float right into him even though they weren't touching. "Was practice hard today?"

He finally looked up at his boyfriend, the tears nearly overflowing. "Hi, Hia." He felt Hia take his bag and pull him to his side firmly. He knew that Win was talking to him, but he was on autopilot at this point, answering without thought as Hia talked to him and led him through getting into the car.

With Win's comforting presence and the soft, steady sound of their combined breathing, he was able to fight back his panic enough to realize they were stopped at the laundromat near the dorms. He didn't ask, just noted that Hia came back with a couple of bags that he placed in the trunk; and of course, with his luck, their way back to the dorm was slowed due to an accident. He grumbled vaguely towards Hia when he saw the motorcycle crushed between a car bumper and a sidewalk planter.

He disliked Hia's motorcycle. There was no need for him to voice his dislike, Hia knew what he thought of it. Win's next words confirmed his train of thought, "Next weekend we can go to my house. You drive the car, and I'll take my bike back and swap it out for my car." He very much liked the idea of Hia no longer driving his death trap.

"Can you grab that bag out of the back seat? I forgot to grab it earlier." Team got himself out of the car and grabbed his backpack and the other bag out of the backseat. He started towards the lobby, keeping his pace slow enough for Hia to catch up to him. Held the door open for him and pressed the button for the elevator, and in usual Team fashion, he fidgeted with the bag in his hand. "You can open it. I got it for you."

Team looked up in surprise. Even after months of Hia taking care of him; before they became official, Team was still surprised every time Hia gave him a gift. He opened the bag and looked fondly at the ocean-themed succulent terrarium that was inside. He gave Hia the first honest smile he'd had in days; it wasn't big, but it was genuine.