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Hawkins sees him every day and it’s the same every time.
At dawn, he swims to the surface when his bright scales are least likely to be seen against the golden, shimmering waters. The shores are rocky and they provide cover, behind which he can hide and look up at the people passing by. At first, he was just curious, brought here by boredom after years spent in dark and cold depths. He wanted to feel the sun and see those people that he has heard so much about. Unfortunately for him, that got boring pretty fast too.
He enjoyed toying with humas after that, luring them over and watching their reactions to his mere existence and amusing himself whenever they'd gawk at his magic. Hawkins was curious about them too, but of course, that didn't last. He got bored again.
Despite being bored and after his curiosity was sated, he continued to come up every single day at dawn.
All because of him.
A soldier, doing his rounds with his unit on the rocky beach. He must be the captain because he is always leading them and barking orders. Even from so far away, Hawkins can see his strength. He is tall, with a broad back and a powerful voice that carries out over the ocean when he is training his recruits.
It’s that power that Hawkins craves more than anything. He has conquered countless sailors and pirates and drunks, all those who have dared look upon him have perished and whether Hawkins loved them or despised them, they have all met the same fate.
He is not sure he wants the same thing for that soldier.
So every morning he comes up to see him. Sometimes he is alone, training by himself, probably confronted with deep thoughts that Hawkins will never know about, but most of the time he is leading new recruits through training exercises. Every few months those recruits change, but no matter how many of them he sees, they are completely insignificant compared to him.
Sometimes Hawkins wishes that the soldier will see him.
Sometimes he wishes that the soldier will never see him.
What’s constant though is that at the end of the training, the soldier stands on the edge of the rocky shores staring out into the ocean. Hawkins always has to dive deep under the water in order to avoid him, but sometimes he wonders what would happen if the man really saw him truly. Of course, it is a silly question because he knows in the end the soldier will follow him into the water, never to come out again.
Still, he can dream.
This time it's no different and after training is over the soldier walks to the edge of the shore and stares out into the ocean. He looks the same as he always does, somber and focused. Maybe Hawkins is more enchanted this time than he usually is because he makes no move to dive into the water.
And the soldier notices.
They see each other and the soldier’s eyes light up in recognition.
“It’s you!” he calls out.
Any other time Hawkins would have disappeared back into the waves, but now he remains watching as the soldier makes his way down the rocks and to the edge of the water.
“Don’t go!” the soldier calls out again and something compels Hawkins to swim over.
The soldier’s eyes are wide from surprise and finally, upclose, Hawkins can see their blue color, reminiscent of the ocean on a quiet, sunny day.
“You’re here… I can’t believe it.” The soldier reaches for him, cupping Hawkin’s face in his large, strong hands. “I’ve been looking for you for so long.”
“Looking… for me?” Hawkins’s voice can barely be heard over the loud waves washing up on shore.
“Yes… yes… I saw you, ages ago and since then I’ve been looking for you every morning at dawn,” his voice is raspy and he speaks slowly, like he can’t even think enough to speak those words faster. That’s how they all get when in the presence of a merfolk.
“I’ve been looking for you as well. I came out to watch you every morning.”
The soldier looks handsome from a distance but it’s nothing compared to how he looks right now, while holding him and even smiling gently.
“Finally.”
Hawkins is pulled into a kiss that leaves him breathless. In his long life, he has kissed hundreds of sailors and fishermen, but none of them have ever kissed him with love like this. He pulls back, not because he wants to but because being out of the water, literally leaves him out of breath.
He tightly grabs onto the soldier’s forearms.
“I can’t breathe-” Hawkins says as he tries to lower himself back into the water.
The soldier looks concerned, finally breaking out of that blissed out expression he wore earlier.
“Don’t go…” He tries to keep Hawkins upright, but Hawkins will always be stronger. It almost makes his heart ache when the soldier lowers himself in the water as well.
It must be freezing cold for him, but the soldier makes no indication of feeling it, instead he just chases that purple shadow.
Hawkins shakes his head. “You have to stay. You can’t follow me, you’ll be ruined. You have to stay on shore, do you understand?”
Drake nods, but Hawkins has a feeling that it’s not getting through to him. It’s too late… He has made a grave mistake.
The soldier reaches for him again, pulling him into another kiss. Hawkins reciprocates, holding onto him as the soldier pulls him closer.
From a distance, they look like one entity as they begin sinking deep into the depths. The kiss lasts forever, Hawkins doing what he can to provide his soldier with that air he so desperately needs, but soon, it’s not enough anymore and the soldier begins struggling in his arms.
He knows it's time... Hawkins slowly rubs his back in a comforting gesture and hums softly, enough to relax him.
The soldier floats next to him, not struggling anymore, while staring upwards at the water’s surface, a place he will never reach again.
As they finally touch the bottom, Hawkins carefully lowers the soldier on his back while gently closing his ocean eyes. He leans in and presses a kiss to his forehead.
His soldier, now gone…
And despite knowing that this would be the outcome, for a moment Hawkins let himself believe that this time it would be different.
Finally, he swims away, basking in the lingering feeling of the soldier’s kiss as the only thing that brings him warmth.