Chapter 15 Teddy
Teddy
Ifelt like a teenager sneaking out my bedroom window as I crept down the hallways of the dorm near midnight. Most everyone was asleep and even the RA’s were tucked away for the night. I was on my own, but I still felt like I was about to get caught at any moment, like I was doing something… wrong.
But I wasn’t, was I? I was allowed to leave the dorm whenever I wanted.
And I was allowed to have sex with whoever I wanted too.
Maybe it was against the rules to do it in the athletic building after hours, but I was willing to overlook that.
My parents had eyes everywhere it seemed, and that required desperate measures to avoid their gaze.
And if I was being honest, it felt… good to do something I knew they wouldn’t approve of.
After all, I’d been working my ass off to impress them and to meet their expectations for my whole fucking life.
Wasn’t it about time I got something out of it too?
That didn’t seem like too much to ask. Of course, I’d already gotten my week of freedom, the one that I told myself would be enough.
But it wasn’t enough. And the more I thought of Nerion, the more I realized it would never be enough. I’d tasted the forbidden fruit and there was no going back.
So I headed across campus, keeping to the shadows. The night air was cool against my skin as I moved across the quad. My heart hammered in my chest, each beat a reminder of what I was about to do. Of who I was about to meet.
The athletic building loomed ahead, dark except for the faint blue glow that emanated from the pool area. I tried the door, surprised to find it unlocked. My heart skipped a beat. Nerion must have already arrived.
I slipped inside, the familiar chlorine scent hitting me as I made my way through the darkened halls. My footsteps echoed against the tile, and I winced at how loud they seemed in the silence. When I pushed through the double doors to the natatorium, my breath caught.
The pool was illuminated only by underwater lights, casting rippling blue patterns across the ceiling and walls. And there, cutting through the water with graceful strokes, was Nerion. His red hair looked almost black when wet, plastered against his scalp as he surfaced.
When he spotted me, his lips curved into a smile that made my knees weak.
“You came,” he said, his voice carrying across the water. “I wasn’t sure you would.”
I set my bag down and approached the edge of the pool. “I told you I would.”
“People say a lot of things they don’t mean.” His blue eyes seemed to glow in the dim light as he swam to the edge where I stood.
Without thinking, I began to undress. His gaze traveled over my body as I removed each item of clothing, and the weight of his attention was intoxicating. When I was down to my underwear, he reached up.
“Wait,” he said, his voice suddenly serious. Water dripped from his outstretched hand. “There’s something you need to know about me before we go any further with this.”
I paused, confused by the sudden shift in his demeanor. Nerion wasn’t the serious type usually. “What is it?”
Nerion pushed himself partially out of the water, sitting on the pool’s edge. In the blue light, I could see water droplets glistening on his fair and clinging to his freckled skin.
“I’m not...” he began, then swallowed hard. “I’m not a human.”
“Yeah,” I nodded. “This is Widdershins, so that makes sense.”
“No, I mean…” He paused, taking a deep breath. “I’m not a witch either.”
“Okay.” I was getting a little worried now. “So what are you then?”
It took him a moment to work up the courage, each passing moment only adding to my anxiety. Finally, he shook his head and let out a sigh. “I’m a siren.”
I stared at him, waiting for the punchline, but his expression remained deadly serious. “You’ve got to be joking.”
“I wish I were,” he groaned, his gaze anywhere but on me. “But it’s true, though only a few people know it.”
My mind reeled. I should have been terrified, should have backed away and run. But instead, I found myself kneeling beside him. “Am I…” I wasn’t sure how to ask it nicely. “Am I under your spell then?”
Nerion looked at me then, his blue eyes intense. “Have you ever heard me sing?”
I shook my head. “No.”
“Then you’re not under my spell.” He gestured to the pair of us. “Whatever this is between us, it’s natural. No magic involved.” He paused, his jaw working like he wanted to say more, but he remained silent.
“Will… Will you show me?” I whispered.
Nerion’s eyes widened. “You’re not afraid?”
“I don’t know why, but I trust you,” I admitted. “I don’t think you’re trying to hurt me. And…” I hesitated. “I’ve never seen a merman in person before.”
Nerion reached over, grabbing me by the back of the neck and kissing me hard. “If you ever meet a hungry siren in the wild, you’re a dead man. You know that right?” He was grinning from ear to ear. “You’d be so easy to enchant.”
“But you won’t hurt me,” I replied.
“No,” he said softly. “I won’t hurt you.” He paused again, his lips close to mine. “But there is one thing you have to understand. This… thing between us. It can never be anything more than just friends. The moment it becomes more, I… I’ll disappear.”
I looked up into those blue eyes, a maelstrom of emotions in their depths, far out of my reach. I didn’t know what he meant or why he’d chosen such cryptic words, but I understood what he meant. And I couldn’t help but feel a little sad.
“Okay,” I nodded, sealing my words with a soft kiss. “I understand.”
Nerion smiled, though it didn’t reach his eyes. He was scared of something, though I didn’t know what. And since we barely knew each other, it didn’t seem right to ask.
“So you want to see my true form?” he asked, slipping back into the water. “Scales and all?”
I nodded, pushing away the swirling questions in my head. “Yes. I’d love to.”
“Well, then I won’t need these.” He reached down underwater and slipped off the swimming shorts he’d had on, probably for my sake. Then he wadded them up and tossed them at me playfully. “Take yours off too. You won’t need them.”
I hesitated only a moment before slipping my underwear down and stepping out of them. The cool air raised goosebumps across my skin, but it was the heat of Nerion’s gaze that made me shiver. He didn’t hesitate at all, his eyes lingering for seconds on end as he stared at my exposed cock.
“Come in,” he beckoned, extending a hand. “The water’s perfect.”
I lowered myself into the pool, the warm water embracing my naked body. As I slid in, Nerion moved back, giving me space. The blue light from below transformed everything, making this midnight encounter feel even more dreamlike.
“Ready?” he asked, an unexpected vulnerability in his voice.
I nodded, treading water a few feet away from him.
Nerion closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and submerged himself completely.
For a moment, nothing happened. There were just ripples where he’d disappeared.
Then the water around him began to shimmer with an ethereal glow, like moonlight trapped beneath the surface.
The light pulsed for a few moments before fading slightly, the shape below the water significantly changed.
When he resurfaced, he was transformed. Where his legs had been, there now stretched a magnificent cerulean tail that caught the pool’s light and refracted it in dazzling patterns.
The scales gleamed like polished sapphires, transitioning from deep blue near his waist to lighter, almost translucent hues at the elaborate fin that fanned out at the end.
“Holy shit,” I whispered, unable to take my eyes off him. “You’re beautiful.”
Nerion’s expression softened. “You’re not frightened?”
“I’m... amazed,” I admitted, slowly moving closer. “Can I touch it?”
He nodded, floating on his back so his tail was near the surface. Tentatively, I reached out and ran my fingers along the scales. They were smooth and cool, firmer than I’d expected, yet somehow still supple as his powerful tail moved gently to keep him afloat.
“It feels like nothing I’ve ever touched before,” I murmured.
“That’s what they all say,” he teased, but his eyes remained watchful, gauging my reaction.
“Swim with me?” I asked.
A genuine smile broke across his face. “Try to keep up.”
With a powerful flick of his tail, Nerion shot across the pool, leaving me in a swirl of bubbles. I laughed and gave chase, though it was hopeless. He moved through the water like he was part of it, while I struggled against it with my human limbs.
After a few laps of him circling me playfully, he surfaced beside me, close enough that I could feel the current his tail created.
“Not fair,” I panted. “You’ve got an unfair advantage.”
“Life rarely is fair,” he replied, but his tone was light as he reached for me, his wet hand cupping my cheek. “But I can even the playing field.”
Before I could ask what he meant, he pulled me into a kiss. His lips didn’t taste like chlorine like I expected. Instead, they tasted of something wild and salty, like the ocean. I melted into him, wrapping my arms around his shoulders as we slowly sank below the surface.
Within moments, the pair of us were sitting on the very bottom of the pool’s deepest portion.
I couldn’t help looking around, taking in the underwater world I was part of, but never really got to enjoy.
From down here the pool looked so different, like it was something separate from the rest of the academy above the surface.
I glanced at Nerion and he just smiled as if he understood what I was thinking.