Aquata Cove Ch. 94

"You know Nick, I would, but I'd never get the taste of nickel out of my mouth from your Prince Albert." He retorts as he throws the pillow at him.

"It's fuck-gold, bitch." Nick retorts.

"Yeah right. Your dick turn green yet?" Merrick says as he turns to get something from the back.

"Get on your knees and fuckin find out~!" Nick called.

"You're a SLUT!" Merrick shouted back.

~~~

"Things are... Feeling great, actually..." Adam says he and Donna walks along the aquarium, hoping the oceanic exhibits might jog a few memories... "I love working at the Fish House, it just seems like the kind of thing I go for."

"That's very good to hear." She said with a smile, "You've really come a long way. Has your head been hurting at all?"

"No, not since I came home." Adams with a smile, "Though... I had this horrible nightmare last night..." He says, "I can't remember much of it, but I just remember I was in a lot of pain."

"Oh no..." Donna looks to him, "What else do you remember?"

"None of anything, really." Adam answers, but he ponders a bit, before bringing up something that's been on his mind... A lot. "Hey, Mom... There's this... One thing I've been wondering. I've been thinking about it for a while."

"Oh? What is it, honey?"

"Well... You know Merrick, right?" As he was mentioned, Donna's hesitates as they walk, "He used to volunteer at the psychiatric ward, right?"

"Yes he did. He came everyday... Well, except when he pulled that stunt with you. What about him?"

"Could you uh... Tell me what he's like?"

"Merrick?" Donna thinks for a moment, "Well, he's a hard worker in several ways. He's rather energetic and active, but reserved and collected at the same time. He shoulders an immense innate sense of responsibility - he has a tendency to be a lot harder on himself than he should be when something goes wrong. He is also on the naïve side when it comes to direct situations, but he is very self-aware. He can be a bit difficult to talk to at times - he and I tend to disagree and argue, but that's just because we don't always see things the same way. He is very reliable in terms of morals and behavior, though. From what he says, he comes from a strict upbringing by his Father, while his Mother nurtured his softer side in feeling to other people."

"Oh... Anything else?"

"That's him in a hundred words or so. Why do you ask?"

"Well..." Adam shifts around, and sits up, "He's been spending some time around me, and I... I want to know, is he... Like, dangerous?"

"Dangerous?" Donna looks at him curiously, "I wouldn't exactly say that. He does have a bad temper on him - when he's angry, he lets everyone know. He's a lot stronger than he looks too; I've seen him punch a wall of wood logs down, but that was when he was absolutely furious, and that was just once from all the time I've known him."

"Um... Anything else? Are you, are you sure he's a... You know, good guy, or something?"

"On the whole, yes, Merrick is a good man. He and I clash heads time to time on a personal level, but he's rather upfront and forthcoming, if a little headstrong." Donna glances at a large, cylindrical tank of rays and sunfish, "Was there something he did that concerned you?"

"Well, uh... I know you don't want to talk about too much of my past, but..." Adam shifts a little more, "I was told that... He was the reason I was put in the hospital."

Donna stops walking, causing Adam to stop a couple seconds after, and turn to her as she blinks curiously at him, "Adam, who told you that?"

"Oh- uh... Just... someone I know, who visited me a while back..."

"Hmph," Donna scoffed as she adjusts her purse, "I highly doubt is was any friend of yours if that's what they said about Merrick. That isn't true at all."

"Really?" Adam asks as he looks at her. He can't help but feel relieved and reassured.

"Well actually... I can only think of one person who would say something like that - a coworker of yours at a nightclub with a rather obnoxious attitude, I never know just what might come out of HER mouth, but I can't imagine her making that sort of statement, joke or not."

So Jessica did lie... About every single little thing... Merrick didn't hurt him... He wasn't the reason he nearly died...

"Though, if you want to know a strange tidbit," Donna said, getting Adam's attention again, "If you were to ask Merrick himself, I'm sure he wouldn't disagree."

"Huh?" Adam looks up at her, "What do you mean?"

"As I mentioned, Merrick has a tendency to hold a lot of responsibility. It's really not hard for him to put the blame on himself when something horrible happens that concerns him. And I can tell you that you and him..." Donna looks intently at Adam, hesitating, before sighing, "The two of you were really close. He was away at the time you were hospitalized, and he blames himself for what happened."

"That doesn't make any sense." Adam says, "You said I was beaten up in a parking lot, right? He had nothing to do with it, and if he wasn't there at the time, how can it be his fault?"

"That's just the way he is." Donna says as she shrugs, "You could ask him yourself, if you want HIS side of it."

"Maybe..." Adam trails off while they walk to the otter exhibit. He chuckles as he looks up of the glass wall of the tank, seeing the otters jump in and dive down, spiraling down...

His head gets foggy again as he blinks. He can imagine a different kind of sea otter swimming in the tank. This one's fur is imprinted with tribal designs along his sides, where the brown meets a cream-colored underbelly. It's also wearing a belt and straps around his body made of seashells, right before a large, blue fish looms around the otter, swimming playfully with it.

"W-What the??" He blinks again, but sees no such fish, or the peculiar otter - just the ones playing with the plastic toys inside the water, before he walks with Donna away from it.

~~~

"Aight, you ready to head home?" Jamal asks as he and Adam walk out of the surf equipment shop - Adam wants to hit the beach soon, and needs some new stuff for it.

"Sure, I..." Adam glances, and spots Merrick from across the street, "Oh wait, there's Merrick!"

"Ah shit, no kiddin?" Jamal raises his eyebrows as he sees Adam start to run off the curb.

"HEY! Merr-"

"ADAM, shit!" Jamal yanks him back, just as a car drives by, honking his horn, "Man, are you crazy?!"

"W-What, I-I"

"We take the cross-walk, man!" Jamal scolds him as they jog over to it. "YO MERRICK!"

"Huh?" Merrick turns around, and smiles as he sees Jamal and Adam across, "Oh hey!" He beams as they cross the traffic lights, and come to him, "Are you guys heading back home?"

"Yeah, we was bout to go home. You wanna come with?"

"Sure, I'm done shopping." Merrick smiled.

"A-Actually, would it be ok if uh..." Adam says, "If we uh... If me and Merrick stuck around here for a while? Maybe show me some of the stores around here?"

"Uh, you sure, man?" Jamal says, "You know Merrick doesn't drive, right?"

"I do know the bus routes though," Merrick said, "I never take my moped to this part of town, it's too crowded to ride it."

"Well..." Jamal shrugs as he thinks about it, "I gotta git home and walk Sally, but I don't think Adam should be here without someone without a car."

"I'm find, Jamal." Adam says, "I, ahem..." Adam looks sheepish, "I trust Merrick."

"Egh... Still don't like it." Jamal says, "I think you should come home with me."

"It's fine, Jamal. I can look after him." Merrick says as he holds Adam's shoulders. "He's safe with me."

Jamal takes a deep breath, before answering after a huff, "Aight, you guys be careful then. If anything happens, I want you to call me now, like yesterday. Or if I can't git to you, call Bertha or Jerry from the club, they're the closest."

"Got it. I have their numbers." Merrick nods.

"Aight... Be careful now, both a'yall." He tells them before he turns to leave.

"So," Merrick says as Adam turns to him, "Where do you wanna go?"

"Um... Where ever." Adam grins with a shrug, "I think I'm getting a little hungry."

"Ok, sure. Lets go to Magic Dragon Teriyaki, you love that place."

"Ok, lead the way." Adam says as they walk together.

As they go, Adam doesn't try to take in scenes and surroundings like he usually does wherever he goes. He's more preoccupied at Merrick. He steals glances at him every chance he gets... Images of his hand inside Merrick's pants and rubbing his dick is still swimming in his head. The way Merrick moved, the way he moaned, the sounds, how he just laid there and let Adam play with him like that...

It's almost like what Jessica did to him. She told Adam to trust her, and then she molested him. Nothing about what she did felt right or good. She made him feel terrified and filthy.

But Merrick... He didn't tell Adam to do anything. He just... Accepted things as they happened. He cuddled with Adam and touched him in a way that makes his insides feel so light and flustered. Adam reached to Merrick's groin, and it turned into something thrilling and suspenseful, and it makes him want more. His own dick was so hard while he pleasured Merrick...

Adam's hand twitched as he moved it to the side, his face feeling hot as they two of them walked, glancing down at Merrick's free hand. His chest pounding, his hand moved, and his fingers brushed against Merrick's.

"Hm?" Merrick turns his head, and down to see Adam's hand carefully touching his fingers. He looks up to see Adam's face in a mixture of fear and uncertainty. Merrick chuckles as his hand grips Adam's palm and brings it up. Adam blushes as Merrick kisses his fingers, before letting them back down.

"Hhh... Okeh..." Adam muttered as they continued to walk, holding hands. His chest and stomach feels wild and excited, shaking all over his body as they continue on their way.

"Omhf!" Suddenly they bump into somebody, a man with dark hair and white skin. He shoves at Adam as he leers at him, "Watch it, freak." He scowls at him.

Adam suddenly feels a lightning bolt shoot inside him. Everything goes into slow motion as he looks at this passing aggressor's face. His eyes follow his as everything gradually progressed around him, even as the man's eyes stayed into his peripheral angle.

Glimpses of darkness and echoes ring and flash across Adam's eyes. His chest feels cold and solid while his limbs go numb.

'Get him! Hold him back, dammit!' He can't move, his body jerked about. His wrists hurt as his arms are yanked back. Adam stands in horror as all sorts of sensations of agony jump through his head.

A crowbar swings quickly. Cracks of pain explode invisibly everywhere. Adam screams, only to have a thick, wet brush shoved in his mouth, and take in a horrible taste.

'Paint him nice and pretty.' Echoes a sadistic voice.

"Adam? Adam, are you ok?" Merrick's voice distinctly reaches out. He can't even feel his hands grip his shoulders.

'Geheh, fuckin faggot.' Says a grin under a black handkerchief, covering all of their faces, leering at him as the sounds and noises echoes around all of the parked cars.

-BAM- -PUNCH- -GKKLL-

He punches and beats on him as Adam is held wide open for the attacks. 'I've wanted to do this for years, fuckin fudge-packer!'

"Hah... Wha, oh my ghoh, fuck..." Adam pants, his chest starting to hurt. "Hoh my fucking God." He whimpers loudly, his arms twitching as he walks backwards.

"Adam! Speak to me! What's going on with you?!" Exclaims a flash of bright yellow hair as he feels yanks and tugs around him.

A fist flies directly into his stomach. 'Like old times, eh fishboy?' Says an antagonizing voice. Adam shrieks his voice out before his pink dribbling mouth is blocked by a strip of duct tape, a hand smoothing it. Adam chokes as the vile paint rolls down his throat.

'Here, lemme spell it out for you.' Says one of them as he takes a black sharpie, and wrote across Adam's sealed mouth. The metal weapon is winded up like a baseball bat, and it swings down Adam with raw force!

Adam coughs as he doubles over, holding his stomach, gagging on nothing as he turns around, falling down onto one knee, and held his hand onto the pavement.

"Adam! Adam, what's wrong?" Merrick asks with worry, "Adam-"

"HHH HHH HHH HHH." Adam hyperventilates as he tries to sprint off, stepping up while looking back, but only manages several steps before he trips, "AH!" His hands and knees scrape into the pavement, "I can't breathe, I can't breath!" His voice strains out in a high pitch, still scrambling as terror lashes inside his stomach. "Hgh hgh hgh hgh hgh!" Adam yanks at everything he can get his hands on, trying to escape... Something, what is going on?!

"Adam! Adam, Adam, Adam, calm down!" Merrick catches up to him, putting his arms over him.

"What's going on?" Asks as a random stranger.

"Is he gonna be alright? What's up?"

"What happened??" Some of the passersbys are starting to notice, stopping as Adam accidentally knocks a patio chair down.

"Adam, what's going on?! Talk to me!"

"There's... Hhh hhhffffuck, I can't..." He whines, wheezing as he grips whatever he can hold onto. "I don't know! I don't know!"

"Here, hang on, settle down." Someone says as they help pull Adam to his feet, and have him sit on a patio chair. Adam pants as he ducks his head down, digging his fingers into his hair.

"It hurts. It hurts, it hurts." Adam growls with fear, clenching his eyes shut as he curls tighter.

"It's ok, sir, it's ok." Says the waiter who helped him, "Wane! Get some ice and water!"

"Adam, it's ok, calm down, I'm here." Merrick tells him, holding him gently as he brings up his face, "Adam, look at me. Look at me, you're with me, you're ok, I'm here." He says as those brown eyes show every ounce of pain and shock as Adam processes this panic attack.

"Ghuhhghghgh." Adam ducks his head down again as Merrick holds him, rubbing his back gently as he feels his lover's fear pulsing through him.

What is making him so afraid?

Merrick turns his head to the direction where that jerk was walking, the one who bumped into Adam, whose already walked pretty far. His eyes lock onto the man himself as he seems to look at Adam along with a few more other people.

His blood thickens with focus and anger as his instincts whisper into his mind. His eyes narrow as he memorizes that face, his throat rattling, knowing as little as he does right now.

'Hiiiiimmm...' Merrick locks that man into his mind as he turns away to leave further.

-The Next Day-

Belinda coils inside her dark, cavernous Sea Spot, giggling as she ponders on the glittering jewelry she might wear for her and Harold's rendezvous. He says he's gonna surprise her with a little something~

-Slap slap slap-

That should be him now, slapping upon the rock to summon the reptilian mistress. She smiles as she unfurls her long body, and slithers through the very narrow tunnel of rocks, and out to the bright and open outside of the beach under the docks. Her body recedes as she hisses mystically, turning her body into her human form while the sand coating the opening of her cave gravitates to her skin like a magnetic veil, and forms into an elegant yellow blouse as she emerges from the entrance.

"Hello, my lov-" She begins, turning her head, and seeing Merrick leaning his back against the rock, his arms crossed and staring at the shore, "Merrick?" His aura seems... Aggressively troubled. As if he just received some irritating news. "What are you doing here?" She asks as she stands up.

Merrick turns his gaze to Belinda's violet eyes, "Belinda. I need a favor."