Noah covered his still very itchy and sensitive belly with his hands protectively.
“Brother, you are too much!” he indignantly splashed some more water towards Levi. “You can’t do this kind of thing! I’m no longer a child!”
However, to Levi, his mewling sounded coquettish instead of reprimanding.
“Mn. I know,” Levi lightly sprinkled back.
Seeing that the only reaction he got back was a purr-like admission of guilt, followed by a doting smile and a superfluous sprinkle, Noah’s fighting spirit got extinguished.
‘Ah, forget it…’
His brother-in-law must have really wanted a younger brother all these years. As an only child, he had grown up all alone without having anyone to dote on. He didn’t even have any younger cousins. Astars, to avoid fights for succession, only had a single child every generation. Thus, Levi's father was also an only child, while his mother’s side of the family… well, it was complicated.
In his heart, this brother-in-law must have always felt lonely, wishing for a sibling to be close to. It’s not that this imposing brother-in-law disliked company; it’s just that he couldn’t stand superfluous relationships. He was looking for heartfelt care and real intimacy.
Loner wolf Levi: (・―・)
Blackie: (◞‸ლ)
Levi: ಠ‿ಠ ‘Yes, yes, I’m very lonely! Baby, come comfort me!’
Blackie: (눈_눈) ‘…’
To sum it up, it seemed like Noah would need to slowly reeducate Levi about what was appropriate and what wasn’t considering their respective ages.
Noah let out a heavy sigh, shot Levi an exasperated look, and then…
…tossed the entire matter to the back of his head, because his attention was grabbed by the change in the calm waters around them.
Though there was no wind, small waves started to form on the surface. Something was approaching them from the open waters. It would surface briefly, but before its form could be seen, it would dive back into the water, leaving behind only the white foam.
The splashing sounds got louder and louder. A dark-gray fin emerged from the water, cutting through the surface like a knife.
One fin, two fins, three fins. Fins kept appearing one after the other. In mere seconds more than half a dozen fins were gliding through the waters towards them.
Noah, who had just gotten out of Levi’s hold, was once again pulled into a protective embrace by the latter. Levi knew that the aquarium shouldn’t contain anything dangerous. Still, the sight, which looked like it had been pulled straight out of a shark horror movie, was too alarming to just ignore.
Trey, who had moved to do the same, was forced to awkwardly lower his raised arms back down. ‘Bro, are you trying to put me out of a job? QAQ Why must you fight with me over everything?!?’
Levi responded with a derisive sneer, ‘Oh? Why are you not using your energy shield, “bro”? What- you think your flesh would be better protection? Or is it that you want to be paid for eating my baby’s tofu? Heh heh, then come here, and I’ll definitely “pay” you in full.’
Trey faltered. What could he possibly retort with? The other had hit the nail on the head.
Noah’s fluffy head wiggled out of Levi’s bosom to reveal his curved eyes, sparkling with amusement. This tall brother-in-law of his was really cute at times.
“Don’t worry, brother. They are friendly.” Noah patted Levi’s arms, signaling the other to unwrap them and let him out.
Levi pretended not to have understood his meaning, ‘Are you kidding me?’ Unidentified shark-like creatures were approaching them, no way is he going to let his baby out of his arms! He, Levi, was the only one allowed to take a bite out of his darling!
Noah could no longer hold in a chuckle, “Ah, brother, they are the reason why I wanted to bring you here in the first place. Just watch.”
“Eekekekekekekeke!” A piercing cry tore through the air, followed by several others joining in as if laughing joyously.
The owners of the fins finally surfaced, jumping through the air very gracefully. It was a pod of lively dolphins – massive lively dolphins! The biggest among them was closer to the size of an orca than a dolphin!
“The dolphins in the resort are several times larger than their compatriots in the wild,” Noah finally managed to wiggle out of Levi’s arms, “It’s because they have been raised in a safe environment abundant with food for many generations.”
The dolphins surrounded Noah and Levi, ‘kekeke’-ing with great excitement. They pushed one another around as they struggled to get a better spot around Noah. And those with a good enough spot kept shoving their smooth heads towards Noah’s bosom, asking for a rub.
“We made this beach into a private beach of our own precisely because the dolphins have made this area their home.” Noah giggled like a little kid, rubbing one head after the other, “They are especially sensitive to the presence of Soothers.”
One dolphin rose his nose high in the air in front of Noah, as if trying to give him a kiss. Noah laughed and dropped a quick peck on its nose, much to its delight.
Levi’s mouth twitched, and abruptly all dolphins in his vicinity scattered away.
Levi’s heart was bleeding, ‘My baby’s first kiss!! Taken, right in front of me!!! Stinking fish! Watch how I’ll grill you for lunch!’
Dolphins: QAQ!!! ‘Wu-wu-wuuu, what kind of scary human is this??’
Blackie: ‘And just when I thought you couldn’t sink any lower, you prove me wrong. (◞‸ლ) Now you are even feeling jealous of a fis– uh, dolphin.
‘Hehe, oh how the mighty have fallen!’ (¬‿¬)
The biggest of the dolphins pushed his way through the crowd to dive under Noah. It nudged Noah’s bottom with its head and abruptly plunged upwards, making Noah slide onto its back.
Noah yelped in surprise but very obediently seated himself on top of the dolphin as it started swimming in circles.
His entire being was radiating happiness from every pore, “See? They are very smart and friendly!”
Levi didn’t know how he felt about all this. On the one hand, his baby seemed to be having fun, so by extension, Levi was happy to see his darling in such a good mood. But on the other hand, Levi had to watch his baby riding something that wasn’t him, Levi!
Ah, it was a bittersweet feeling…
Blackie: ‘Bittersweet? You mean sour?’ (¬‿¬)
“Brother, just approach a dolphin, pet it a little on the head, and they will let you mount them.” Noah patiently explained.
‘Baby, the only thing I want to mount is you!!’ Levi tried to hide his grouchiness, but not only was he unable to fool the dolphins, he couldn’t even deceive Noah, this perceptive Soother.
Noah eyed him, then glanced around Levi, where it was a dolphin-free zone. In Noah’s point of view, his brother-in-law stood there awkwardly, not knowing what to do. Like a little kid meeting a big horse for the first time, not only was he intimidated by the size, but he didn’t know how to approach it either. Not knowing what to do and afraid of making a mistake, he stood there stiffly.
Dolphins must have sensed his reluctance and nervousness and didn’t wish to agitate him.
The more Noah got to know this silly-awkward brother-in-law, the more adorable he found him. But what should he do? He couldn’t just go around, riding a dolphin by himself while the other watched and sulked.
And he definitely couldn’t bring up anything that would wound his brother-in-law’s pride, such as revealing that he saw right through him.
Blackie: ‘Host…’ ( ゚Д゚)’…from where are you pulling out all this crap?!?’
Author Note:
I have a ko-fi page. So if my work brings you joy and you want to both earn extra chapters for everyone and support my writing, sending a coffee my way would make a world of difference. 😘
ko-fi.com/lucypandora
Noah patted the dolphin he was riding, and it understood which direction Noah wanted to go from the pats. It slowly, carefully slid towards Levi until Noah was in arms reach of Levi.“Or would you prefer to ride together?” Noah very thoughtfully suggested.Levi’s dark eyes suddenly lit up into resplendent pools of blue. The gloom replaced by intense heat.“Ah, ah, Blackie, see that excitement? Gosh, he is just like a little kid!”
“I was wrong about you,” Levi apologized very sincerely.Then magnanimously added, “I forgive you for your transgressions. Actually, that from before…totally doesn’t count as a first kiss, so no need to worry. I won’t be eating you for lunch.”The conversation partner, whom Levi was talking to as he waited for Noah to fetch the unicorn float from his room, was naturally, a dolphin: ‘if you are apologetic… please… just get off of my back already– No, wait, the recipient of the kiss wasn’t even me!!’ QAQ
“No, let her sleep some more,” Levi spoke resolutely.However, the finality in his tone didn’t stop Noah from raising an objection, “Brother… it's nearly 12 o’clock, I'm pretty sure she is awake…”Levi’s arms around Noah’s waist unconsciously tightened, “But what if she isn't and your message disturbs her nap?”Noah… couldn’t argue with that. There was indeed a possibility of that happening... it’s just that the chance was so low!
By the time Noah had climbed back into the bungalow, the ringtone had long stopped. Though Communicators were waterproof, Noah really didn’t want to get sand and salt inside of his, so he had left it in his room when he changed.After putting it back on his wrist, and going through user authentication, he could finally see a missed call and several received text messages.The messages all came from his sister an hour ago. “Oh, sister is awake after all.”The first message was: “Mom told me Levi dropped in this morn
Remembering that Case was still waiting on the line, Noah resumed the call very apologetically, “Um… sorry, bro, my brother-in-law shot the idea down,” then he quickly added, “he is rather shy with strangers. You must have heard all about Astar Levi before, he isn’t really a social butterfly…”Hearing no response from the other end, Noah felt even worse about the whole matter, “Sorry…” Noah spoke tentatively, “But, we can go have some fun another day! My brother-in-law has taken several vacation days for this upcoming wedding, and I doubt he’d be spending all of them with me. He and sis will probably ditch me soon to go on a date somewhere.”
Levi kicked their table over to its side and ducked behind it with Noah in his bosom.The eruption coming from only two tables behind theirs reached their position within a moment.Trey’s shield had not finished forming before it was brutally shattered with a resounding crack, knocking him off his feet to the ground.Abruptly, all noises were drowned out by cracking of the concrete, the sizzling of water and hissing of steam. And then, a moment later, a hair-raising shriek of agony came from the center of the eruption, which was imm
Levi’s eyes burned holes in Noah’s back, completely forgetting the dangerous situation they were in, for in Levi’s mind, there was no situation direr than his darling disliking him, fearing him, staying at a distance.Did his baby notice the reluctance with which he had saved Trey? To be so coldblooded towards someone who was on their side… wouldn’t he have looked cruel and heartless to his kitten?? No one would want to keep a rabid dog by their side that might bite them at any moment with no provocation!And then, even his murderous aura had reared its ugly head. Putting the final nail on his coffin. His carefully craft
“Brother!” Noah turned his desperate gaze towards Levi, “Your power… can it target a region instead of a specific target?”Levi nodded urgently. Right now, even if his kitten asked whether he was retarded, he’d nod his head excitedly for a single smile. Anything to have his precious treasure looking at him with undivided attention, looking at him as if he, Levi, was the center of his world.Levi searched Noah’s gaze, but the other’s eyes were still as clear and pure as before. As if nothing had changed. Within, he found no fear, disgust, reservation, nor coldness. The only thing he saw within those larg