Page 75 of Music of the Ocean

Indigo stopped at a stall where a trio of elders debated the merits of two different fermentation cultures, their conversation lively but respectful. Saxby lingered at a nearby table, his attention caught by a display of seed pearls suspended in sweet syrup, the vendor offering him a sample.

They drifted from one stall to the next, sampling and considering. Indigo finally selected a portion of smoked algae rolls, their outer layer crisped and aromatic, and added a scoop of marinated tuber slices, their color shifting from indigo to pale gold.

Saxby picked a kelpbread folded around pickled vegetables and a sphere of translucent protein, its surface shimmering.

They found a space at a communal table carved into a petrified branch, and Indigo arranged the food between them. Saxby’s eyes widened at the first taste, and he made a satisfied sound low in his throat.

The crowd ebbed and flowed around them. Indigo watched his people for a moment, then turned his focus back to Saxby, who was methodically dissecting his protein sphere and humming softly to himself.

When they finished eating, Indigo stacked the empty trays and placed them in the return slot built into the wall. He stood and waited for Saxby to join him.

The city’s current tugged at their bodies, urging them onward, and together they drifted deeper into the heart of the city, blending into the flow of citizens with practiced ease.

SEVERAL HOURS later, Indigo found a bench grown from interwoven coral and sat, tugging Saxby down with him. They’d spent the day exploring, and Indigo could sense Saxby’s tiredness.

The afternoon light cycle had deepened toward evening. Citizens returned to their quarters or moved toward the dining chambers for the evening meal.

“Ready to go home?” Indigo asked.

“Yeah, I am. Think we could have our meal in our chambers?”

“If that is what you wish.”

“Yeah. It’ll be less time.”

“Less time?”

Saxby grinned at Indigo. “Yes. Less time to get you into bed.”

Indigo stood quickly, pulling Saxby up.

Chapter Twenty-Three – Saxby

LAUGHING, SAXBY let Indigo hurry him along. Indigo’s pace was relentless. They wove through the main corridor and the crowd parted around them. They didn’t so much swim as slice through the current, and Saxby could only follow, the desire in him burning as bright as the phosphorescent veins threading through the walls.

They’d barely finished their meal. At least, Saxby thought they’d eaten. He remembered the taste of something fishy, a hint of something briney, and maybe a mouthful of kelpbread.

Indigo had watched him the entire time, his gave never leaving Saxby’s face. The conversation devolved into little more than grunts. Needless to say, people avoided them. Although, they got some interesting and knowing looks.

One of Indigo’s tentacles had pressed against Saxby’s knee under the table, warm and insistent. Saxby’s pulse had stuttered with every accidental brush of their hands. He’d wanted to kiss Indigo right here, to taste the salt on his skin and the hunger, but he resisted. Barely.

Fuck, they needed to get back to their chamber.

He remembered little of the trip. All there was were flashes of movement and the rising heat between them. It’d taken days for him to understand why his heart beat faster every time Indigo drew near, why his skin prickled, and his thoughts fluttered like startled fish.

He liked Indigo as a person and respected him. But it was more than that. Much more. Like had turned into affection. Respect had turned into desire. And somewhere along the way, his heart had gotten involved, and he wasn’t going to be satisfied until Indigo was in the same boat as him.

Because, by all the gods, if he was gonna fall in love, so was Indigo.

Indigo plowed into a wall, but he quickly straightened and kept going. Only how he was practically flying down it. Thankfully, the corridor to their chambers was empty. It’d be funny if Saxby wasn’t so hard it hurt to swim.

The membrane at the entrance parted at their approach, and they rushed through into the familiar space. It sealed behind them with a soft hiss. The sound echoed briefly, then faded into the chamber’s ambient hum.

The chamber was dim, lit only by the slow pulse of the coral veins overhead.

Saxby tugged Indigo into the alcove where their bed waited. He turned to Indigo, whose face was flushed and full of longing. The scent of sea-salt caramelized hit Saxby hard. That scent. It wrapped around Saxby’s mind and wound him tighter with each breath.

Saxby’s fingers found the clasp at his throat. The catch released with a soft click, and the fabric parted, sliding from his shoulders in a slow, deliberate motion. He shrugged it off, letting it drift to the floor, where it settled in a pale pool of woven kelp.