I stared at him, momentarily speechless as I completely forgot about all the fear I’d experienced in the past thirty seconds. He was, without a doubt, the most beautiful creatureI'd ever seen. His face was angular and perfect, with high cheekbones and full lips. His hair, slicked back with water, appeared to be a deep teal color that shifted to navy in the shadows. But it was his eyes that captivated me. They were luminous and green, the same that had stared up at me from beneath the water, now framed by thick lashes.
"I... yes," I finally managed, still catching my breath. "Where are we?"
He smiled, revealing teeth that were just slightly sharper than human ones. "My private grotto. Connected to the bathhouse, but nobody can get here except me." He moved closer, and I could see the iridescent scales trailing down his arms and neck. “This is where I entertain when I find someone I want.” He took my arm, leading me over to the edge of a rocky platform at the edge of the grotto. “Someone thatcallsto me.”
I swallowed hard, mesmerized by his touch on my arm. His skin felt smooth but slightly textured, like fine wet silk with the barest hint of scales where his fingers wrapped around my wrist.
"I call to you?" I asked, my voice embarrassingly breathy.
He led me to sit on the rocky platform, which was surprisingly smooth and comfortable. As he pulled himself partially out of the water to join me, I got my first real look at him. His torso was that of a perfectly sculpted man, with defined muscles that gleamed with droplets of water under the phosphorescent light. But where his legs should have been was a powerful tail covered in iridescent scales that shifted between teal and silver as he moved.
"From the moment you entered the bathhouse," he said, his voice like liquid velvet. "I felt your presence. Your... longing."
"My longing?" I repeated, suddenly self-conscious. "I didn't even know merfolk came here."
He laughed, the sound musical and light. "We are particular about who sees us. Who hears us." His fingers traced a patternon my wet arm, sending shivers through my body despite the warmth of the water. "My name is Cyrus."
"Kyle," I managed, unable to tear my eyes away from his face. "I'm Kyle."
"Kyle," he repeated, making my ordinary name sound like poetry. "You've been hurt recently." It wasn't a question. He reached out slowly, placing his hand over my heart. “I can feel your pain. It’s still fresh.”
I nodded slowly, wondering how he knew. "My boyfriend left me. Seven years together and he just... walked away."
Cyrus tilted his head, studying me with those glowing green eyes. "His loss," he said simply. Then he smiled, revealing those slightly pointed teeth again. "But it feels like you’ve been ready to move on for a while. So… perhaps my gain."
My heart hammered in my chest. Up close, I could see that his skin had the faintest shimmer to it, like mother-of-pearl catching the light. His hair, now drying slightly in the warm air of the grotto, was revealing itself to be more complex than I'd first thought—deep teal at the roots transitioning to a lighter aquamarine at the tips.
"Your song," I said, remembering what had drawn me here. "It was beautiful. I've never heard anything like it."
"It is how my kind calls to those who interest us," Cyrus explained, moving closer so that our shoulders touched. "Only certain humans can hear it. Usually those with whom we share a... compatibility."
"Compatibility?" I echoed, suddenly very aware of my naked body and the lack of towel that had been lost somewhere during our underwater journey.
Cyrus’s smile turned mischievous. "My kind can sense certain qualities in humans. Passion. Openness. A willingness to experience pleasure beyond the ordinary." His fingers traced upmy arm to my shoulder, leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake. "And a need to be touched that runs soul-deep."
I shivered at his touch, my mouth suddenly dry despite being surrounded by water. "Soul-deep," I repeated, the words barely audible. "Yeah, that sounds about right. That’s something I’ve been missing for a long time.”
Cyrus's fingers continued their exploration, tracing the line of my collarbone with feather-light pressure. "Your previous mate didn't understand this need in you, did he?"
"No," I admitted, surprised by my own candor. "Mike was... conventional. Safe." I let out a humorless laugh. "He thought my interest in non-humans was just a phase I'd grow out of."
"Some humans never understand the depth of pleasure that exists beyond their limited experience," Cyrus said, his voice taking on a hypnotic quality. "But you've always known, haven't you? That there was more, something you craved."
I nodded, mesmerized by the way the light played across his scales. "I used to come here all the time before Mike. I missed it. Missed... this." I gestured vaguely between us, not even sure what "this" was yet, but knowing I wanted it desperately.
"Tell me, Kyle," Cyrus said, moving even closer so that my thigh touched his tail, his scales cool and smooth against my skin. "Do you know what it means when a merperson sings for a specific human?"
"No," I breathed, my heart racing.
"It means we've found our fated one," he said simply. "The one whose soul resonates with our own."
My eyes widened. "Like... soulmates?" The concept seemed fantastical, something from fairy tales rather than real life.
Cyrus laughed softly. "In your human terms, yes. Though it's more complex than that. More... fundamental." His hand moved to my chest again, resting over my hammering heart. "I felt it the moment you entered the bathhouse. A pull I couldn't ignore."
"But we've never even met before," I protested weakly, even as something inside me recognized the truth in his words.
"Time is irrelevant to such connections," he said, his fingers now tracing lazy circles on my chest. "And don't worry. Being my fated one doesn't mean what it might in your human stories. We're not monogamous by nature."
