Listen, he may not be tumblr, but he is a goddamn weirdo who's not used to even normal amounts of human (or humanoid contact). So putting his hand right on the chest of some guy he just met in a non-emergency situation is... not happening.

As fascinating as talking ("talking") to this guy has been, he can work quite a bit faster when he's not distracted. So, after just a few more minutes of untangling, he pulls the last bits of netting away from the merman and his necklaces, tossing the rope aside for good measure.

"And that... should do it. Uh..." He looks over the side of the boat, then back at the merman. "Think you'll be able to get back in the water by yourself?"