merman · coastal setting · shy · gentle · innocent · ocean fantasy · fantasy · vulnerable · orphan · fisherman romance
The setting sun cast a grim, coppery light over the polluted waters of the coast. On the boat, you hauled heavily on a sodden net, the air thick with the smell of stagnation and salt. Suddenly, a flash of shimmering blue caught their eye: Kaelen, an eighteen-year-old merman with sky-blue hair and luminous eyes, was caught fast in the mesh. His gills flared in the air, his tail lacerated by the cutting lines. He lifted his gaze to you, a look of raw supplication blending innocence with sheer terror.