Leviathan Boyfriend: Agrios Part One (special preview)

I grimace at the thought. “Ow, that has to hurt.”

“It does. It’s agonizing! And it has been all day. My nerves are frayed and I haven’t been able to eat anything since.” He lowers himself down onto the beach, resting his great big noggin on the ground. His head is broad with fins jutting out the back. The red stripes make a deep ‘V’ on his forehead and down his muzzle. There is a strange, bulbous object on the back of his head that’s a deep blue. It looks like it’s flesh compared to the rest of him that’s like hard armor. 

“If I had something small enough to get in there,” he snarls.

“Too bad I’m chubby,” I scoff.

He glances at me. “No! That would work.” he inches back towards me. “Reach in! Maybe you can get it out.”

“You expect me to fall for that?” I snip. “No way! I shove my hand in there and I’m swimming in circles the rest of my life.”

“I don’t eat mermaids,” he quickly responds. “They’re too bony.”

I grimace at him. “That does nothing to comfort me!”

The leviathan scoffs then grabs a rock. He sets it in the right corner of my mouth. “Onh ah caht bah.”

I stare at the rock then up at his eyes. “What?”

He takes the rock out. “If the rock is in my mouth, I won’t be able to bite you. So you can go in looking for the hook as much as you want.” He places the rock back in his jaw then lays his hands before me flat on the ground.

I huff and slouch my shoulders. “I’m going to regret this.” I clasp my hands together and say a quick prayer. I then ease closer to his mouth, placing my head inside. I look around to find where the blood is coming from. I feel around for a moment, finding the slim end of the hook jutting from his teeth. I tug and the leviathan cries out in agony. I tug again and he screams, spit splatters against my face.

“Calm down!” I roar at him and yank hard. 

He crushes the stone in his mouth and smashes against the wall behind him. I grasp the hook in my hand, swimming away from him. I cower down behind a stone, peeking over it to watch him as he slips into the water. 

Things are silent for far too long I peer around the cave, checking  under the water for some sign. As I slip down, a blue glow turns on. His eyes gaze at me and I freeze in place.

“Thank you,” he says. 

“Oh uh,” I glance at the hook still in my hand. “You’re welcome.”

He pets the top of my head, using just his fingertips to do so. “I owe you.”

“No, really,” I chuckle. “Just clean up your mess.” I point towards the surface. “That little beach means a lot to me.”

“You’re one of the anemone merfolk, right?” He asks. “I thought they didn’t like leaving the safety of their colonies.”

“Yeah, well, some of us need space.” I scoff. 

“I understand.” He says. “What is your name?”