An Italian model was attacked by an octopus as he swam in the sea before making friends with the eight-legged sea creature.
Milan-based model Federico Cola was on holiday in the Seychelles when he encountered the beast.
In a video shared to his Instagram account, Cola can be seen bathing in the Indian Ocean when suddenly an octopus emerges from the water and wraps its tentacles around him.
The model looks taken aback at first, and is seen falling over after the octopus tugged on his leg.
But a separate clip revealed how he and the octopus became fast friends, as he can be seen picking up the creature and letting it glide over his body as he takes the sea beast to shore to show the camera.
The hunky model is then seen ripping the animal off his body before returning it back to its natural habitat.
Sharing the clip with his 134,000 Instagram followers. Federico wrote: ‘What a magical surprise’.
‘I found my love (actually she found me)’, he joked.
Several of Cola’s followers were touched by the interaction, and the video soon went viral across social media.
‘I love that this guy was so brave, settled, and enjoyed the interaction. What a cool moment!’, one Instagram user wrote.
Another said: ‘This is officially the cutest ocean friendship ever’.
