Hello everyone! This is my second fic in the Free! fandom and it's going to be long just like my other. I planned to finish writing it before I posted it and just call it a oneshot, but I realised that it would need to chaptered. There will also be more characters from the fandom in later chapters. Rating might go up and pairings will be added after time :)
Anyway, this is a story about grim reapers, soulmates, angst and more. Just bear with me and if it gets confusing I'll try to do my best to explain it (unless it will be cleared up in another chapter) Thoughts on it is very much appreciated :)

When Makoto died he got two choices; either he could start working as a grim reaper, or he would disappear completely from the world. Apparently the whole 'heaven and hell' thing was in fact something that man had made up and therefore that wasn't even an option. Of course, the thought of disappearing forever was terrifying, even more so than the fact that he was dead. Almost as in panic he agreed to take the job, with a smudge of hope that he might be able to live again someday. As soon as he signed the contract though, all of his memories from his life were erased.

They told him it was better that way.

In no time at all, he had his first job. One of his colleagues, Kisumi, accompanied him to it. It had been a strange experience, standing in a bedroom of a dying old woman, without being noticed. Kisumi had patiently told him things that was necessary to know while the woman wheezed out her last breaths and suddenly the bedroom was gone, replaced with an empty, old-fashioned coffee shop. While Makoto had been prepared for it he was still startled, but not as much as the old woman who sat opposite of him. She looked around her and when her eyes landed on him and Kisumi, a sad smile found itself on her.

"Let me guess. I'm dead, right?" she said softly as her hands cupped a coffee mug that suddenly appeared. The words weighted more than Makoto had realized and even though she already knew the answer he couldn't confirm it for her.

"That's right. You're dead." Kisumi, who sat calmly beside him replied with a kind smile. The woman looked down into her coffee and mumbled a bit to herself, but her smile didn't falter. She must have known that it was her time but Makoto still couldn't help the lump in his throat or the stinging in his eyes.

They sat in silence for a while, Makoto glancing over her time and time again. Her wrinkled face looked oddly at peace considering the bizarre situation they were in, but Makoto saw another thing he couldn't keep his eyes of. From her left side, where her heart lay, a small orb of light that looked worn out and charred emitted light.

He had learned about souls before he was put to work, how everyone's looked different from another, but he hadn't been prepared to see it so vividly. However, he didn't have much time to think about it before he was nudged by Kisumi. He expected him to wrap it up. Slowly he tried to collect himself and then said her name. She looked up to him with a calm expression.

"You now have two choices. One is that your soul will be kept with us until it seize to exist. In other words," he took a shaky breath, on the edge of a sob but when the woman only nodded at him, still as calm and collected as she probably had been all her life, he continued. "you will disappear completely, no chance of returning. The other option, is to be reincarnated." he finished and gave a small glance towards Kisumi, who didn't meet his gaze.

The woman however twirled the still full cup in her hand, obviously considering both possibilities. With a small sigh she once again met Makoto's eyes.

"My life has been very good things considered, but I have no wish to live again. I don't want to be reborn. I want to disappear." the last words came out in a whisper but they were loud and clear in the empty room. Makoto was surprised at her confidence but Kisumi didn't bat an eyelash.

"Very well then." Kisumi suddenly said and smiled at her before he leaned forward and gave a small peck against her forehead. Slowly the woman started to fade away, until only a small sphere of light remained, the woman's soul, which Kisumi collected in a small glass jar. It was over so quickly that Makoto didn't even realise that the coffee shop was long gone and they were back in their bright office.

"See, that wasn't so bad? The older ones are usually the most calm about it. But this was the only time I will help you. From now on, every person you are assigned to help, you'll help them alone, okay?" he said cheerfully as he grasped the jar harder in his hand and walked away his room on the other end of the hall.

Makoto had too many questions. He wanted to ask Kisumi what he should do if he couldn't handle it. Why they collected the souls even though they hadn't a purpose of keeping them.

Why his two options had been different from the old lady.

Eight years had passed since his first day as a grim reaper. Most people just looked at him in wonder when he told them who he were and why they were there. The old idea that one should wear a black cloak and a scythe as a grim reaper was getting too cliché to hear nowadays, and regardless of what option the people chose he still felt guilty of his job. It wasn't like he had a choice anyway. His contract was set for literally an eternity and as a grim reaper he couldn't die, apparently.

He wished that he could set aside personal emotions when he did his job. He wished he could be as cold as Sousuke and not feel a thing, as bright as Kisumi and just be happy to help them. But the only thing he could feel when he set a soul loose or sent it away to be reborn, was sadness. When he had been there for almost a year, he learned that all souls were collected and put in a storage. The ones who were to be reincarnated were kept in a room until they found a body that would work for them. Usually they could send them away after only a few weeks, but some souls were in there for years.

The the souls that was meant to disappear were kept in a separate room in jars and Makoto still didn't know why, nor did he have permission to go in there. When he asked around his colleagues none of them wanted to answer and told him that he wouldn't find out until he had worked for over fifteen years.

Makoto had only worked eight years but he had already seen the same soul twice. The poor little girl was younger than the first time, had a different name and appearance, but her soul was still the same. His heart ached when he had met up with the five-year old brunette, who had no clue why she wasn't living any longer. Just remembering that her name was Chigusa from her first visit made it worse and he couldn't handle it and called in Kisumi, who only protested a little. He might have been the one to tell Makoto to help his own people, but he still loved to help children make their decisions.

It was easy with old people, explaining the situation and giving them their two options. It was never easy with children.

Which is why Makoto was feeling anxious when he saw the papers in his hands. Before he even could collect himself, he was in place. It was always horrifying, watching a human die. No matter how many deaths he saw he would never get used to it. This time, it was a young boy with black hair and pale skin, struggling to get to the surface in the water. He couldn't have been more than twelve years old and was now drowning in front of Makoto and he could do nothing to stop it. Another boy wasn't that far away and were swimming towards the scene, yelling out the boy's name. However, Makoto already knew it was futile and he felt bad for the other who would probably live with this for the rest of his life.

He watched helplessly as the dark-haired boy finally gave up, no more air in his lungs or strength in his arm. As the body stilled and the other red-haired boy reached the lifeless body, the scenery changed. Though the deaths were always painful for Makoto, he didn't want to think about the ones who actually knew the dead. He couldn't even imagine their sorrow.

Makoto looked around him. When the person died, the grim reapers had decided that their options would be presented in a familiar place. Most people's subconscious presented their childhood homes, forests, their schools or even a public place that meant a lot to them. The boy's subconscious showed a large outdoor swimming pool, the sun set high in the sky and the water clear as glass.

It was all an illusion of course, but Makoto found it beautiful.

The boy suddenly stood in front of him with a shocked expression on his face, his clear blue eyes wide open. Most of them didn't realise they were dead and it was obvious that he hadn't.

"What happened to me? Who are you?" the boy eventually managed to croak out. However, before Makoto could answer him, the boy froze. He was used to this kind of reaction and calmly stepped forward a few steps, crouching down so he could look the other one in the eye.

"Don't worry about it for the time being. What is your name?" he gently said with a smile on his face, though he wasn't sure how about genuine it looked. Of course he already knew the boy's name, it was always written down when he got his papers, but the dead ones always preferred to say it themselves. With only a little bit of hesitation, the boy opened his mouth again.

"Haruka. My name is Haruka." he said and looked around him quickly. "What happened?" he asked once again, a little bit calmer but still on edge. Makoto felt his smile disappear. He always tried to stall that question, even after eight years of telling the same thing. However, when the dead ones started to panic and demand to know what was going on, his job became nearly unbearable.

"You were swimming in the ocean," Makoto started as he memorized what the paper had said. "and you got cramps in your legs and you drowned. Do you understand, Haruka? You died." he waited for the little boy's reaction as it was always unpredictable. "I'm sorry." he added quietly, honestly apologetic. Haruka however didn't seem to get scared or even angry as most of them became, instead he just seemed sad. It looked like he was trying to speak, a bit hesitant before he finally managed to form words.

"Oh." he said when it sunk in, almost in surprise, though there was no real emotions behind it. It would have felt more in place for him to say "Is that so?" in that tone instead, but Makoto didn't say anything about it.

"Is... Is Rin okay?" Haruka mumbled in question and Makoto vaguely remembered the other boy in the ocean. The boy would probably never be alright after witnessing his friend's death, but he was certain the boy wouldn't die yet. Therefore Makoto nodded at Haruka in reassurance and the boy visibly relaxed.

Silence settled between them. The boy was probably still confused but to Makoto it seemed as if he didn't worry about anything else. The dark haired boy hadn't asked about his parent's yet and for some reason Makoto believed that he wouldn't.

"What now?" Haruka asked after a while, a more curious tone than he had before which actually surprised Makoto. He had never helped a child who had been so calm before, and he was at loss of what he should do. The calm blue eyes of the boy rested on him as he patiently waited.

"You get two options." he composed himself, stood up and put up two fingers. "One is that you let go and stops existing. The other option is that you are reborn. You will live again but you won't remember anything about who you are now." he wasn't sure how much the children understood of the two options, but Haruka simply nodded.

"I choose the second one." he said without an ounce of hesitation. No further questions, just a determined expression. Though Makoto hesitated a bit, he still bent down and leaned forward to give the boy a small peck on his forehead and watched as the boy faded. When only the soul remained he collected it and couldn't help the lingering melancholic feeling. The boy had looked at peace but Makoto had during his years started to question if anyone was really happy. Was he a good person for helping them or a bad person for only giving them two choices?

He didn't know, neither could he do anything about it.

The swimming pool disappeared into thin air and the bright sun transformed into the bright lamp in the endless corridor at his workplace. In his hand Haruka's soul laid in a small glass jar which now had an etiquette, stating when and where he would be reincarnated. It would be a couple of years until then Makoto thought, as he entered the unlocked storage room. He put down the jar on the spot of the shelf where the boy's name was written and walked out of the room, not sparing a glance at the empty spots.

Just as they made their choice, their names were placed on the shelf and then the only thing left was to wait. Makoto wondered what happened to the other souls, but he knew by now that asking was futile. He always gave those souls to Kisumi or any other that could access the other room. He headed over to his workstation to calm himself down. He didn't know when he would be sent out again and he desperately wanted to just call it a day, but it was still to early to be excused.

Just as he managed to sit down on his chair in front of his simple desk, Sousuke stopped in front of him.

He didn't know much about Sousuke, other than what he'd heard from Kisumi. Apparently the tall male in front of him had been here for over a century and never lost his cool, no matter the situation. Under the eight years as a grim reaper, Makoto had never seen him smile, but considering the job they did he wasn't all that surprised.

"Want to take a break?" Sousuke nodded to the break room. Before he could agree the taller one was already on his way and Makoto was quick to follow. The usually chatty and loud break room was at the moment empty, too early for a real lunch break and most of the staff were on the field. With a small sigh Sousuke placed two cups under the two different coffee machines and pressed the buttons. At the same time, Makoto sat down at the table in silence, listening to the rustling and hums from the machines.

The sound died out and a cup was placed in front of him. The coffee was black and Makoto silently placed two sugar-cubes in it and stirred with a plastic spoon. Sousuke sat down across from him, seeming to contemplate something. He vaguely wondered why the taller, dark-haired man had suddenly decided to take a break with him, who he hadn't spoken more than maybe three words to at most. The silence was broken by a cough from the other and Makoto moved his gaze from the table to the teal-coloured eyes that looked back at him.

"That boy you helped today, he will be back again you know?" the taller man's gaze didn't leave his and Makoto simply nodded. He knew that by now and Sousuke knew that as well. Was that the reason he wanted to talk to him? However, he wasn't finished and after taking a sip of his coffee, he spoke again.

"It's not the first time I've seen his soul around. He rarely makes it past his teens, be it from accidents like today or health problem." Makoto swallowed the sudden lump in his throat and lowered his gaze back to the table. Why was he telling him this? Everyone in the office knew that he didn't want to talk about the souls he was assigned. He found it easier if his connection with them were kept as small as possible, because it was hard enough for him as it was. Just by knowing their name was painful enough for him.

"The point is, you have nothing to do with it. You don't cause their deaths, they do that well enough themselves. You simply allow them to choose a last time what they want. That's your only job. Do you understand?" Sousuke finished talking and put his mug down, eyes never leaving Makoto, as if to make sure would understand. Of course he understood that, he just didn't know how everyone else could take it so calm. All of the others had been here longer than Makoto. Where they just used to it?

A small creak came from across the room as Sousuke pushed back his chair and collected both of their mugs and placed them in the sink, Makoto's practically untouched. He didn't look up as the taller one stopped by the door and turned around, nor when he opened his mouth to add a last thing.

"Don't get attached to them, it will only get worse." he mumbled and then he was out of sight, back to his own desk probably.

For a few minutes, Makoto just sat there, to caught up in his own thoughts that he almost didn't notice when someone put some papers in front of him. He glanced up towards the person and wasn't surprised to see Kisumi stand by the coffee machine with a small smile.

"The break's over, back to work." he said cheerfully, pretending not to notice the distressed expression Makoto wore.