Gura SFW romantic fic for /vt/

												Shark Attack
	"Some good action shots we got, eh, mate?" says a man still using his fingers to comb water out of his thick hair, a beaming smile of satisfaction on his face. The other crew members laugh at his understated review of the events prior. The crew were watching as what looked to be dozens of tiger sharks started a feeding frenzy just off the port side - thrashing water in rapid motions - with two men under the surface, both pretending not to be a little scared in the diving cage.
Done drying his hair, the man looks just above the horizon to see how high the sun is getting. It was nearly pitch black when they started filming today, and with appointments to get to later in the afternoon, the crew needs to start sailing back to Perth soon. He turns his gaze back to Oliver.
"We're just gonna need some shots of you solo in the cage and then we can pretty much wrap up here. You're gonna have to take off the wetsuit and put your outfit on for these ones."
Oliver looks up and jokingly pretends he didn't know this already.
"I'll be bloody frozen by the end of it," Oliver retorts while going through his backpack to put on an Australian staple - beige short shorts.
	Oliver has his famous get-up of boots and shorts on, he's just checking his camera and breather before he finally climbs down and into the diving cage. Like all of the other dives he's done today, he is engulfed in a deep abyss of blue. Not much to look at besides the hull of the boat, the sunlight reflecting off the surface of the Pacific, and the few tiger sharks that have not left yet. Oliver rubs his arms to shake off the cold - which admittedly isn't as bad as he was expecting it to be without a wetsuit - and starts filming. He gives the camera a nice sweeping view of the sharks around him and points the lens at himself and his sopping wet boots. He figures he must look kind of stupid right now, but shrugs it off.
He resumes filming the sharks below, glancing up as he notices something at the edge of his vision. Right where the cloudiness of the seawater becomes almost entirely opaque he sees a small figure dashing  here and there in abrupt sprints -as if looking for something - slowly heading in his general direction. Oliver notices that this figure is much smaller than the tiger sharks, but much faster, too. The way this unknown creature can stop on a dime and rocket through the water is unlike any animal he has seen before. He remembers he has a camera and begins filming this oddity. As the creature continues to draw nearer, Oliver can begin to make out some detail. He sees a shark tail, that much is familiar. He sees something that shocks him so much it takes a moment for him to process. It's a... girl.
	Almost as if she heard him realize this, she stops dead in her tracks, sees Oliver and bolts for him. Oliver fears she will crash into the cage at her speed, but she stops just shy, and slowly approaches. Carefully, the girl-shark grabs hold of the cage for stability and peers in, keeping distance with the strange man inside. The girl's facial expression is that of astonishment and wonder as she looks the man up and down. He does the same. Her silver-blue hair and how it's tied into a ponytail with a decorative shark hairband. The white of her soft cheeks glowing in the sun. Her flat chest pumping deep and steady inside of her one-piece swimsuit - deep maybe because of physical exertion, maybe because of the muscular man in front of her, probably both. The cutouts in the swimsuit on either side of her torso revealing gills which rhythmically open and shut. Her toenails and fingernails are coated with blue nail polish that pops in contrast to her pale skin. Oliver's gaze drifts away from her delicate fingers clasped to the bars of his cage and his heart starts skipping not only beats but entire measures. His eyes lock with hers. Once again, he is engulfed in a deep abyss of blue. The intense, vibrant hue of her eyes is alluring to say the least. Time seems to slow and Oliver feels a great warmth inside his body, amplifying the dream-like environment as he stares into the eyes of this young woman. He begins to wonder if this is the source of the sailing legends from hundreds of years ago - hypnotizingly beautiful girl-creatures luring sailors into the sea - and if he is the next victim. Oliver debates calling for help from the crew onboard but fears scaring off or angering the girl.
Maybe to prove no harm, maybe because she knows he wants to see more, probably both, she backs away from the cage and slowly twirls in place. Oliver gets a better look at her tail. Bitten, scarred, but at the same time smooth and powerful. Her pale, bare legs almost glisten in the light.
	Pleased with her show, she returns to her spot at the cage and can't help but let a delightful giggle escape her lips, air bubbles passing through her sharp, jagged teeth. Oliver has remained virtually motionless this whole time, at a loss for what to do. He has altogether forgotten that he's holding a camera, forgotten why he's here, and is barely remembering his name. The girl reaches her hand into the cage which snaps Oliver back to reality. He hits the back of his head against the cage as he recoils in fear. The girl only makes a spinning motion with her hand. He doesn't move, frozen in place. Again she makes the spinning motion with her hand with a pout on her face. He is clearly too wary to turn his back to her, despite her attempts to lower his guard. The girl slumps with a disgruntled expression. They pause a moment, taking everything in. Each totally enamored by the other, tension filling the sea.
The girl suddenly stops as if she's had a thought, then puts on a sly smirk as she gets up. Once again Oliver's panic instincts tell him to back away, but he can't do that anymore so he grips onto the cage as if that will help him. Now, without as much as an inconvenience, the young shark girl has slipped through a gap between the bars. She is now in the cage. Oliver's grip tightens but at this point, without even a notion of a physical barrier between himself and this girl, he knows his safest option is to avoid sudden movements. As if she regrets entering and is suddenly afraid, she puts her feet down and stays put at the far side of the cage while she fidgets. The size difference is considerable. Oliver is pretty well built and not short by any means. The girl is slim and her eyes only meet slightly above his navel. The girl is visibly nervous but after some time she gets up off her feet and slowly drifts over to Oliver. He gets a closer look at her shark teeth as she gives him an anxious smile. Now within arms reach, the shark pauses and slowly reaches out her hand and opens her palm. She seems fixated on his chest. She looks up at him with the expression on her face that is immediately understood as a question. Still nervous, he provides an imperceptible nod as an answer.
	As if trying to touch a sleeping baby without waking it, the girl places her hand on his chest. Oliver’s heartbeat is in uncharted territory now. She looks up at him to gauge his reaction. His heart is still racing but the tension in his muscles has relaxed considerably. She returns her gaze to his chest. She feels his heavy breathing and heartbeat pulsing like mad. She traces his well-defined muscles and runs her hand through his chest hair. She slowly works her hand downwards and just as she touches his shorts, she pulls her hand away as if she just touched a hot stove. She laughs awkwardly but not much is heard through the water. After taking a closer look at him, she notices the military tags he is wearing and reads them. A bunch of numbers and what looks to be the name Kingsley.  Her face beams at this revelation. Miugba naueh gogauw is all Oliver can make out when she tries speaking. He shakes his head in confusion. Twice more she tries telling him something and then gives up. Using her finger, she begins to gently draw on his chest so he can pay attention. G…. U…. R….. A.
	Feeling obligated to make a move of his own, Oliver places his hand on Gura’s bare shoulder, and all of the built up nerves in her body seem to dissipate away at his touch. She leads his hand to hers, and they compare sizes. Oliver’s large hands, plenty raisin’d by now contrast to Gura’s smooth and soft hands pressed together. Her awe-struck expression shifts to one with a tinge of sadness. She takes his hand and invites him to feel her face. She nuzzles her cheek into his palm while her tail brushes up against his leg in comfort. Opening her eyes, she looks back up to him and seems to get another idea. She swims up a bit to be at eye level with him, and places her hands on his mask. Understanding what she wants to do (as uncomfortable as it may be), he braces. The mask gets away from his face and a rush of water flows in. Once it’s off entirely, he opens his eyes and tries to clear his vision. His vision is pretty blurry now, but Gura is still there, looking at his eyes very closely. He feels her tug on his breathing line, and he reluctantly prepares for another shock to his system. After one last deep breath, the breather pops out of his mouth and gets tossed aside. Gura puts his face in her palms and feels all of his details. She runs her finger over his ears, rubs his mustache with her thumbs, and runs her hand over his nose, all as if she is blind and trying to find a freckle.
	Oliver can feel her bangs rubbing against his forehead. In this moment, he wonders how he could possibly be so lucky. How life could ever be the same after this. How long this will last. In this moment, their lips meet in a passionate kiss. Gura wraps her arms around his neck while he places his hands on her waist. They kiss as if something is coming that will tear them apart forever, and they are making the most of their time. They kiss as if this is their only chance to say goodbye.
	Clang, and the entire cage is starting to rise. Gura tenses up and pulls away from the kiss. She briefly places her hand over his heart as a farewell. He desperately tries to grab her but can’t see to save his life and misses. She is a blurry figure again, slipping out of the cage and fleeing back to where she came. And that is the last he’ll ever see of her til the day he dies.
________________________________________________
“The hell happened down there, mate?”
“What’d you take the breather off for?”
“What did you do with your mask?”
“Where’s that camera you had?”
	These questions among others bounced off his ears. He didn’t speak much for a few days after that, and even for months after that, people who knew him well could tell that he was hiding something. A few times he would take his personal boat out to the same spot to search and wait. He would search and wait for the girl who keeps his mask beside her bed.