Page 108 of Storm and Sea

Leo was helping at the docks today rather than fishing himself. Nyel sensed he was eager to get away from the nets for a while, and watching him simultaneously work and joke around with Atreus solidified his suspicions.

From his vantage point, Nyel watched as Atreus nudged Leo with his elbow, almost sending him toppling into the water.

“Watch it!” Leo barked, stumbling but catching himself on a wooden post. “If you weren’t such a Gatto I’d shove you in just for that.”

Nyel’s shoulders stiffened at the playful yet detrimental threat. But Atreus didn’t appear concerned.

“You know the rule,” was all he said with a good-natured smile as they lifted a heavier crate of bait together.

“Yeah, yeah. You’ve only reminded me a million times. My pinky still remembers.” Leo said, but rather than being angry at the memory of his broken finger, he smiled fondly.

Atreus told Nyel that early in their friendship, he’d set the foundation of his ‘water phobia,’ earning himself the nickname Gatto. But Leo liked to push his limits, especially when they were young, and had tried dunking Atreus in the fountain despite the warning. Long story short, Atreus came out of the altercation perfectly dry, while Leo ended up with his head in the fountain and his pinky finger snapped in two.

Safe to say they’d settled on a healthy understanding after that. Atreus was Gatto - which meant no water.

Still, watching him and Leo shove at each other on the ever-shifting planks of wood made Nyel’s stomach twist with worry. With the tolling bells of the boats now far in the bay, Nyel could hear the pair’s conversation.

“Ugh, I hate low tide. Always brings that nasty smell.” Leo said, scrunching his nose.

“I don’t mind,” Atreus said, organizing a pile of buoys and fishing line.

“Don’t mind, huh? But wait till you get a whiff of this,” Leo said, pulling off his shirt and throwing the sweaty cotton with the proficiency of a fisherman casting line. It smacked Atreus square in the face.

“What the f—Leo!” Atreus barked, peeling the cloth off him like it was toxic. “That smells like it’s been marinating in bait and regret.”

“Regret? That’s the smell of a hardworking man,” Leo shot back with a grin.

Atreus shook his head and tossed the shirt to Leo with far less enthusiasm. Both of them looked up when Nyel broke into a fit of laughter. Leo waved, and Nyel waved back, but when his eyes met Atreus’s, the other Mer quickly averted his gaze, pretending to fuss with the already neatly stacked ropes.

Nyel returned to his work, though his mind strayed from sorting sardines. Occasionally, he glanced up, watching the pair deep in conversation.

Leo hadn’t put his cotton tee back on. He was lean, narrower in the shoulders, but Nyel knew his frame was deceptive—his muscles honed from years of hard labor. His sun-kissed skin was smooth, not a freckle in sight, with only the faintest tan line suggesting he spent most of his hours on the boat without a shirt. Nyel wondered if Atreus might follow Leo’s example and remove his. It was a hot day, after all—it wouldn’t be unusual.

Flashes of their night on the beach surfaced in his mind: Atreus, with his finest button-up reduced to rags, draped over his torso. Even in the dim light, Nyel would’ve had to be blind not to notice the sculpted ridges of Atreus’s body. Each muscle was perfectly toned, balanced against his broad shoulders. Freckles dusted his skin like the starry sky they stood beneath. Nyel found himself wondering just how far they went. Did they… go all the way down?

“You need to come with me.”

“Sharks!” Nyel yelped, jumping and sending a tray of sardines clattering to the ground. He scrambled like someone caught doing something indecent, though there was no way his brooding half-brother could read his thoughts. Still, the evidence was plain as day, glowing red on Nyel’s face as he struggled to gather the slippery fish.

“Spirits, Nephi! What was that for? Don’t sneak up on me like that.”

“You need to come home,” Nephi said, another stolen jacket covering his scars.

“What are you—? I’ve been trying to talk to you for days, and now you decide to⁠—”

“It’s your aunt. The baby is coming.”

Panic seized Nyel’s stomach. Had he been gone that long? How had so much time passed so quickly? On the heels of panic came guilt. He hadn’t thought about his aunt nearly enough in the passing weeks—Sonia, who was always on his side.

“Ny, what’s going on?” Atreus jogged up, his eyebrows pinched.

“I have to go,” Nyel said, spinning around, only to find Nephi already gone.

“Going? Going where?”

“I have to go home. My aunt, she’s— I promised I’d be there,” he said, every second ticking like a bomb.

The docks were unusually busy this morning. The fishermen were eager to get on the water, yelling for bait and supplies. But he couldn’t stay.