Ocean Kisses

Princess

Me and this figure, we just stood there, staring at each other, the tension in the room thick and suffocating. His presence was overwhelming, like the pressure of the ocean itself had taken human form. I could see him more clearly now—his features sharp and angular, his skin faintly shimmering with an almost iridescent hue. His eyes held a depth that seemed unnatural, like they could see right through me.

Then he spoke, his voice a deep rumble that seemed to echo through the stone walls and into my chest. “You shouldn’t be here.”

The words sent a shiver down my spine, my blood running cold not just because of what he said, but because of how he said it. That voice wasn’t just deep—it was resonant, like the very ocean itself was speaking to me through him. I didn’t need a second glance to know what he was. A Guardian hybrid. It was in the way he moved, the way he seemed both human and not, his presence somehow tied to this ancient place.

But I didn’t have time to stand there gawking. Before I could say anything, the crackle of my radio broke the spell. “Keralis? You there? You’re cutting it close—oxygen’s running low. Get back now,” Beef’s voice called, a mix of concern and impatience.

I hesitated, torn between the pull of the strange figure before me and the reality of my situation. My air supply wasn’t infinite, and I couldn’t risk getting stranded down here. With one last glance at him—his beautiful, almost otherworldly face—I made my decision. I wasn’t staying, but it wasn’t because I was scared. Totally not because I was scared.

“Don’t follow me,” I muttered under my breath, as if he could even hear me. And then I dove back down, the water rushing around me as I swam away from the room, away from him. My heart was pounding, the rhythm almost matching the heartbeat of the ocean I had been chasing.

I surfaced at the boat, gasping as I pulled myself up, greeted by the concerned faces of the others. Beef asked if I was okay, and I nodded, brushing it off with a wave of my hand. “Just lost track of time, that’s all,” I said casually, though my mind was still reeling from what I had seen.

I didn’t tell anyone about the figure in the monument. Not about his voice, or his eyes, or the strange pull I felt toward him. It wasn’t that I was scared. No, it wasn’t that. I just… couldn’t explain it, and I wasn’t sure they would understand even if I tried.

As we headed back to shore, I found myself leaning against the railing, staring out at the waves. The ocean’s pulse was still there, faint now, but persistent. And I couldn’t help but wonder if I’d see him again, that strange figure with the deep, resonant voice and those piercing eyes.

It would be about three weeks before I saw that face again. This time, it wasn’t in the depths of the ocean or surrounded by the haunting echoes of a monument—it was on land, walking through the front door of my bookstore.

I almost dropped the stack of books I was shelving when I saw him. Those piercing teal eyes were unmistakable, searing into me even though he wasn’t looking directly my way. He didn’t have the shimmering skin or any other fish-like features that had marked him as a Guardian hybrid when I saw him underwater, but there was no mistaking it—it was him. That face, those eyes—they were burned into my memory.

I stood there, frozen for a moment, my mind trying to make sense of what I was seeing. Had I imagined it all? Maybe I’d been oxygen-starved in the monument, and my mind had conjured up something that wasn’t real. But no, I couldn’t shake the certainty that it was the same person. Yet, here he was, walking around as if he were just an ordinary guy.

He didn’t seem to notice me right away. Instead, he wandered into the fish section of the store, casually thumbing through some books. I watched him from behind a nearby shelf, my heart racing as I tried to piece together what was happening.