#c-lifflings

pairing: luke/reader (y/n) rating: pg - some swearing 
requested: nope 
word count: idfk 
summary: (Y/N) is on vacation in paradise when she meets an enchanting merman

merman!luke au for c-lifflings and anarchyaustralia‘s merman!5sos night 

I was in actual paradise. 

The trees around me were lively and green, the sand beneath me was soft, the water in front of me was glimmering so blue and bright. A huge smile spread across my face. I could stay here forever.

My family and I were on our annual summer vacation trips. This year we had decided to visit Kauai, Hawaii. This place was absolutely gorgeous. Everywhere I turned I was surrounded my lush trees and beautiful scenery. I kept taking mental images of whatever I saw, making sure I would never forget the paradise I was currently in. 

We had arrived mid-afternoon so we were on a hunt for a good place to stop and grab food after we checked-in to our hotel. We found a local burger shack that was pretty popular. There was a line out the door and a picture of Robert Downey Jr. hanging near the entrance. We took seats outside facing the ocean and we happily snacked on onion rings and french fries and I happily sipped on a vanilla milkshake.

Later that night, while everyone was in bed, exhausted from the flight, I was sneaking out to do some night walking on the beach. I had put on my swimsuit under my favorite sweatshirt and denim shorts. I slipped on my sandals and I was out the door before anyone could even mutter a word.

merman!ashton had always been careful to avoid letting his secret slip. for years he had managed to stay above ground as often as he could, avoiding the transformation whenever possible. however, merfolk could not survive if they were without saltwater for an extended time; they would grow sickly and weak rapidly. so it was once a month that ashton visited, slipping under the waves for just a night to keep himself healthy. his family appreciated his visits, sometimes too much, to the point of asking him to remain with them and not return to land, but ashton always refused. the world above was limitless, he explained to his mother. if she had the nerve to leave the water, she would understand. in his pursuit to keep his true identity a secret, ashton kept himself very secluded, keeping his nose down in school and avoiding creating too-close of relationships with others. and that all was going well… until he met her. her. the most beautiful, fascinating creature he had ever seen, above or below the surface. he was entranced by her, the way she walked, the sound of her voice, the curvature of her body and the planes of her face. and in return, his obsession was returned. she didn’t understand the beautiful boy who watched her, or why he only talked to her out of everyone in the world. she didn’t understand why it was her. she didn’t understand him, why he was the way he was, quiet and brooding and isolated. it took him months to work up the nerve to ask her on a date, and even after she agreed, he felt horrible the day of. in his body, in his mind… what was he thinking? she was human, it couldn’t work, he was insane for ever believing that he could be with a girl, a human girl. as the hour approached, ashton couldn’t bear to go. he laid in his bed, curled into a ball, too overcome with worry and a rock in his stomach to even move. an hour passed from when they were supposed to meet. sitting in a coffee shop, she was sick with worry. worry for herself, that she had been stood up, or for him, that he was okay. she had always heard that he lived alone on a houseboat docked in a nearby harbour, and after a few minutes of sitting alone, she couldn’t stand it anymore. she practically ran to the harbour, searching through the sailboats and fishing boats to find the little houseboat, moored in the very last slot. taking care not to fall in on the narrow walkway over the water, she approached the door and knocked on the door loudly, unsure of how how to proceed. anger, if he had stood her up? more worry, if he was ill? inside, she heard a lock click, then the door swing open to reveal ashton. he was hanging onto the doorknob for dear life, and she couldn’t help but gasp at him. before her very eyes, he was turning a deep shade of green, nearly emerald. as she reached out to help him, to hold him, he collapsed, falling atop her and knocking them both to the ground; over the edge of the boat. she screamed as they fell to the water, but as ashton slipped below the surface, the effect was instantaneous. his legs pressed together, and then taken over altogether by shiny, emerald scales. it took him a moment to gather his bearings, to strengthen and breathe in the ocean water he had been unconsciously craving. as the seconds ticked by, it became clear to him; his secret was out. he had taken her down with him. he opened his eyes, searching desperately for a sign of her… then to have his eyes fall on a strikingly familiar face, with confused but comforting eyes that were staring back at him. her tail was a silvery blue, but other than that, everything was was the same. the curvature of her body. the planes of her face. the sound of her voice.

and then suddenly, everything became clear to them both.

you’re surfing in the ocean and as you’re riding one of the waves, you see a ripple in the wave beside you. you look over and see a silhouette and you freak out because for some reason, you think it’s a shark. so you fall off the board and the wave comes crashing over you. you lose all sense of direction after being buried under the water. you don’t know where’s up so you don’t know where to swim. your board is lost and you don’t know what to do so you just keep flailing your limbs until you feel a pair of arms wrap themselves around you. they lift you to the surface quickly and as you’re gasping for air you turn to see a boy looking worried. “you okay?” he asks as you cough out water. you nod your head and he says “we gotta get you back to shore. stay here!” he dives down into the water and right behind him, a shimmering scaly tail breaks through the water and you immediately freak out. you don’t know what to do so start swimming away but you run into him again. “where you going?” he asks. he’s holding your surfboard. you look up at his innocent face and realize he means no harm. “you’re a mermaid,” you mutter shakily. he chuckles and is like “well, merman.” he pats the surfboard and is like “i’ll push you to shore so you can catch your breath.” you climb on and he propels you towards the sand. he slows down as you both approach shore. he stops and says “this is as far as i can go.” and you understand because he doesn’t want people to see him so you nod. as he gets ready to go under, he holds his finger up to his mouth and says with a sly smile “let’s make this our little secret.” you smile and nod and say “alright.” he laughs as he dives down into the sea leaving you in amazement as you paddle yourself to shore.