Love Found Deep Within

Coral lives in the shallow coral reefs—a place where everything is crystal clear, and every flicker of longing anyone feels is visible to all. Her body is covered in bioluminescent coral receptors that glow whenever her heart races; every time she grows infatuated, her entire village witnesses it. From childhood, she has been taught to “contain your light.” Her childhood friend Seahorse guards her gently. His soft orange glow calms her, yet it has never quickened her heartbeat. By chance, Coral drifts to the boundary between shallow and deep waters. Suspended before her in the darkness is a flickering pale blue glow. It belongs to Angler. His light holds a hypnotic pull, and for the first time, Coral craves a desire that does not lay bare for everyone to see. She begins slipping past the dividing line in secret, venturing deeper each time. Meanwhile, Octavian, a roguish drifter who travels between the shallow and deep seas, takes notice of her. The tips of his eight arms can read the frequency of pleasure in anyone he touches—and Coral’s frequency is unlike anything he has ever encountered. By the story’s end: Coral has spent time alone with Angler, drawn to him almost hypnotically by his glow; she has been teased by Octavian, whose suckers touched the glowing receptors on her wrists for the very first time; and she cannot bring herself to answer Seahorse’s confession. Her body now radiates a different hue of light for each person she meets—she can no longer hide the many tangled desires burning inside her.