Dark Waters ✓ tk

NINETEEN

The van wobbled on the bumpy highway, making the water in the little kiddies pool splash onto everyone huddled up in the back of the vehicle. Jeongguk had been trying to take a nap ever since the little boy had fallen asleep on him, but the road's condition made his dreamland shake and pop like a bubble.

Taehyung was trying to get the water back into his pool while Lily stared at the little drops of water reacting to the merman's powers. Wide-eyed & in awe the ten year old clapped when Taehyung managed to lead a big pool of water that had been on the van's floor, back into the confinements of the blue pool.

The merman brightly smiled at the applause and did a dramatic bow with his head, cheeks a little flushed since he wasn't used on being praised like this. Jeongguk smiled at the scene in front of him, his arms tightly wrapped around Bobby, trying to stop the boy from slipping off his chest. He hoped his body would act like a cushion, blocking the annoying bumps so Bobby could stay asleep.

"Shouldn't you rest too?", Jeongguk spoke up, referring to Lily. The girl tore her gaze away from the blushing merman and scoffed. "Like I'd trust falling asleep with you people around", she spoke harshly, rolling his eyes at the hurt look that appeared on the merman's face.

"Bobby seems to trust us", Taehyung mentions, watching the sleeping boy still tucked underneath's Jeongguk's chin. He smiled, knowing exactly just how comfortable that spot was & how safe it could make you feel.

"It's not because my 5 year old brother trusts your asses, that I immediately should too", Lily mocked the two supernatural creatures, "Besides, it's not like I could sleep, knowing what sorts of dangers lurk outside".

"But you're safe with us", Taehyung told her, making her scoff for the second time.

Lily rolled her eyes, "You look like a bunch of idiots to me".

"Hey, maybe we are- but, we are a bunch of idiots who fought against a bunch of bad guys already", Jeongguk piped up, keeping his voice low so he wouldn't wake the littlest out of them, "And don't call Taehyung an idiot".

Taehyung smiled dumbly at Jeongguk's request and rolled his eyes afterwards, "That's true, Jeongguk has saved me from evil scientists who tried to experiment on me. And we killed a bunch of mutants when we passed through town".

"What? You want an applause for that", Lily spoke with a bored tone, "I've seen plenty of people kill mutants while me and Bobby were looking for safety. That didn't mean they were good people. They shot normal people too, even kids. They tried killing Wally but luckily he was faster than them, even though he's pretty old". She blew a strand of hair out of her face, leaning back against the van's interior, "So don't tell me to trust you guys so soon. I don't want Bobby nor Wally to get hurt".

She was too serious for a ten year old, had seen too many things a child should never see. Jeongguk felt bad for her, exactly knowing how it felt to be young and have your childhood & innocence get taken away from you in a blink of an eye.

"How long have you two been wandering on your own?", Taehyung asked in a soft voice, shifting the subject. Jeongguk had gotten silent, lost in thoughts and the merman could only guess as to what his mate was thinking about.

Lily shrugged, "I have no idea. The virus reached us quite slowly because we lived on a farm far away from town but once it did, all our cattle died and our parents were the ones to get infected because they worked with the animals".

"What happened to your parents after that?"

"At first we just thought they were sick and I cared for them. But one day when I was heating up soup to bring them some for lunch, dad had gotten out of bed. I was surprised to see him on his feet & tried to hug him until I realized he wasn't my dad anymore. He attacked me & I poured the boiling soup on him as defense. He didn't take it well". She lets out a sad chuckle, remembering the dark red face of her father, his skin almost melting because of the heat.

She had felt guilty, so guilty. But there hadn't been any time for guilt. Her father had already gotten back up and her mom seemed to have changed as well, causing the stumbles heard from upstairs. Her mind had to work quick because she knew Bobby was playing in his room and she now had two parents roaming around trying to eat her brains.

"I grabbed the closest thing I could and made my way upstairs, trying to find Bobby and get out", she smiled, though nothing in her voice made the same emotion, "We managed to trick our parents into going into the cellar and locked them up in there. We couldn't kill them, of course. But I don't know if they're still alive. It seemed so long since that happened".

Unshed tears were visible in her eyes, shining like the stars in the sky used to before they faded away. Jeongguk felt terribly sorry for her, the memories of his own past bubbling up. He remembered his whole family looking at him like he was a monster, and he was, he truly was. He had killed his own nephew for fuck's sake and the only thing he could do was run away from his problems. Lily probably felt the same way, having to hurt her parents and running away from them.

"I felt horrible", she spoke, her voice wavering with sadness, "Maybe we could have done something. Maybe it didn't have to end like this. I feel so guilty-".

"It isn't not your fault", Jeongguk's voice boomed in the moving van, "It was and will never be your fault". The emotions clear in his voice surprised everyone, even the werewolf himself. He quickly fell silent again and looked down at the sleeping boy on his chest.

Lily also fell silent at that, tears running down her cheeks. Taehyung stared at Jeongguk with an unknown emotion in his eyes.

Big bad wolf Jeongguk had his issues too, and even though the merman had already guessed his mate hadn't had the best past ever, he never guessed for his emotions to suddenly run so deep.

Seems they still had to face each other's painful pasts before they could get to their deeper feelings.

⋇⋆✦⋆⋇Sorry for the long wait & boring chapter ⋇⋆✦⋆⋇