A/N: Hallo there! I didn't think I'd actually jump on all the Free! shipping madness that's been going on for quite a while now. But, after reading a number of doujins and seeing the overwhelming fan art on tumblr and Pinterest, I've finally given in to the urge to write something and put this entire shipping craze to rest.

I hope you enjoy this one shot as much as I enjoyed writing it...

O.o.O.o

The entire building seemed to be alive. Vibrations pulsed beneath the floor and along the walls, banners stretched across each wall, words written in a bold font with vibrant colors that Haru found lacking: "2014 Graduates' Reunion". The auditorium was packed and strobe lights above twisted rays of colors across sweaty faces – some familiar, others unknown to Haru. He watched them jump up and down, sway and move to the rhythm of pop and techno music. The entire atmosphere pulsated with a tangible energy, alluring and contagious.

Except for Haru. Though the room swam with such energy, it wasn't the kind that compelled him to engage himself. After five years, nothing seemed to really change about Iwatobi. Everything appeared to be the same, mundane way he'd left the school. This event didn't change the way he felt about Iwatobi, nothing about the school had impacted his life – though some of the good memories he had made with his friends were based here. Nothing had changed about it, and in some same way, he felt it as a sort of reflection of himself. It was why he didn't want to come here.

He'd received the letter through the mail a couple months back, when he had returned home from work. Instead of reading the contents, once he saw the address of the sender, he had crumpled it and thrown it in the trash. It was Makoto who had worked some miracle to get him to come to the reunion. Though he was reluctant, Haru didn't regret it. He saw Nagisa and Rei again and it was an emotional moment – especially for Nagisa, who spent almost a full five minutes, sobbing into Haru's shirt. He guessed he hadn't really changed, though there was something notably mature about his blonde-haired friend. Rei had held back his tears and talked excitably about the field of study he now pursued. Sciences. Haru thought it made sense. They had all moved on, and swimming was now something of a latent passion shared between them now that their lives took different paths. Before the reception had transitioned into the dance period going on now, Nagisa had incessantly suggested they all go to the beach. They agreed but the date was yet to be worked out.

He leaned against the wall, looking down at his drink and swirled red punch around in the plastic cup. He had been dancing with them before but, growing a bit tired of the party had pulled away to the food and drink table to take a rest. Halfway in bringing the cup to his lips, he heard a female voice shout his name.

"Haru!"

Lowering the cup, he looked around for the source of the voice and blinked in surprise when he saw Gou running towards him, a wide grin on her face. Her red hair was loose and bounced around her beautiful face as she came to him. He'd barely set the cup down before she jumped on him and hugged him tightly around the neck. He thought she'd snap it with her strength but despite the slight pain of it, he hugged her back and smiled.

She pulled back and grinned up at him. "You look so…" her eyes trailed down to his exposed hands from the rolled up sleeves of his white, buttoned shirt tucked into his black trousers "…so handsome." The short time she had been pressed to his body, Gou already had her feel of his firm muscles. "I'm glad you didn't let yourself go over the five years." Her eyes seemed to sparkle as she reached out to touch his arm. Haru's chuckle was interrupted by the hand that gently slapped Gou's hand away.

"Gou, cut that out."

The voice was deep and the annoyed tone was all too familiar that it shook Haru, caused his heart to throb a second and his eyes to widen slightly. Five years after and that reaction stayed the same. He hesitated to look up, wanting to deny that the voice was one he knew. Or maybe he was over thinking. With blue eyes that appeared timid, Haru lifted his gaze and felt his chest tighten as those same red eyes - from memories that had been haunting him - stared back into his. Both gazes didn't falter and Gou was oblivious to their silent communication of thoughts as she rubbed her hand a bit.

"Rin…" Haru was the first to break the silence between them and Rin looked him over, with something close to disdain.

"Where are the others?" Gou asked, glancing from Haru to the crowd.

He finally looked away from Rin and blinked down at Gou, "They're dancing."

"Are they all here?...Oh! I see them."

"Ha-…Oi!" Before Rin could finally say what he had to, Gou yanked him behind her to go and speak to the others. Haru looked after them and felt as if he would collapse from the energy it took not to reach out to Rin. Five years and he still hadn't matured from that internal reaction whenever he saw his childhood friend. A few days before his graduation, Rin had visited him at his house and told him that he'd be leaving. He'd finally been scouted and given a scholarship to attend an American college with a strong swimming team. A select few of those swimmers had gone on to be Olympic swimmers and it was the path Rin had found best. The visit had ended with a bitter exchange of words from Rin after he had tried to convince Haru to be more serious with his swimming and unlike that first time when he had left Haru's life, this had felt absolute. It had felt as if Haru had really lost Rin forever.

Seeing him again now, twisted deep and unwanted feelings inside his chest that overwhelmed him. And suddenly, he felt as if he couldn't bear to be here anymore; in this confined space packed with people he didn't care to be around. Instead of telling anyone that he was leaving, Haru walked out of the auditorium, out into the humid night air and started on his way home.

He slid the door closed after him and loosened the pale blue tie and tugged it from around his neck. Formal clothes really weren't for him. He toed off his shoes at the step before crossing the threshold inside the house. His mind taunted him, calling him a coward repeatedly but he tried to ignore it, to block the truth that made annoyed him. He wasn't a coward. He had just had enough of the party. He'd just send Makoto a text to tell the others that he had left.

Taking the phone from his pocket, he flipped the screen up the same time as a call was coming in. The number was new and he frowned slightly and answered the phone as it was on the last ring for the caller to be directed to voicemail.

"Hello?"

"Where are you?"

The same voice. It brought the same reflexive tightening in his chest and he swallowed. His nervousness irritated him slightly and he couldn't really understand the root of it. It couldn't really be passed off as the feeling you'd get when you saw a really close friend after a period of years; because what Haru felt wasn't a sense of immense excitement. It was a mix between agony and longing.

"I'm at home."

"You left?"

"Yes."

"Why? I thought you were happy to see me."

Was that sarcasm? Rin's dry tone told Haru, yes it was. He said nothing and heard something like a sigh on Rin's end of the line.

"Do you still live at the same place?"

"Why?"

"Yes or no."

"Yes."

"Okay."

"Wh-.." The line went dead and Haru frowned and took the phone from his ear and looked at the screen. Rin was coming here. Rin was coming and Haru wasn't sure if he was happy…or made miserable by that fact.

He actually sat at the step, facing the door, and waited to hear Rin's first few knocks on the door. A couple of times, the thought to leave the house and go take a walk until it was too late for Rin to bother with waiting for him, but instead he decided to face him and get it over with. Probably this time would be no different from the last couple, or it would be the last. The latter thought depressed Haru and he jumped slightly when those first few knocks came against the door.

He looked up and took a deep breath but the tremors rippling through his body would not subside. Finally, pushng himself to his feet, he waited a few seconds – in his mind he was running down from the stairs to answer the door – and slid the door open. Rin stood there, his hair looking a bit tousled – perhaps from running his fingers through it too many times. His attire wasn't as formal as Haru's had been. He wore a pair of dark blue jeans and a plaid, fitted shirt that was buttoned down the center with the sleeves rolled back just like Haru's.

"Are you going to let me in Haru?" Rin asked, his brows drawn together and his lips tilted in a frown. Haru moved aside and closed the door slowly behind him, with the latch. The sound was inordinately loud, seeming to echo through the house. Rin toed off his black sneakers and walked further inside Haru's house, glancing around the interior as if checking to see if anything had changed but it was the same. Same old things. Same old Haru.

"Did the party end?"

"No but you weren't there."

Rin turned to look at Haru, who's eyes dropped to the floor then lifted again but didn't meet Rin's gaze. The awkward silence hovered for a moment but Haru finally broke it. "Do you want anything to drink?"

"Yeah. Water is fine."

Haru nodded and walked into the kitchen, Rin waited for him in the small hall where he ate and sat on the mat around the table while he waited. A cup of tap water in hand, Haru walked over to Rin and handed it to him then sat across from him at the table.

"What are you doing with yourself now, Haru?"

"Working."

Rin pinned him with a droll stare and Haru shrugged. "I'm working part-time at this restaurant and as a swimming instructor at Sasebe's club."

"Ahh, so you're into the culinary arts after all…" Rin mused aloud and Haru glanced at him, noticing the slight look of wonder and disappointment.

"Mmm, mackerel is my specialty though."

"I'd figure."

Silence again. The clock in the hallway ticked loudly, as if mocking them for wasting precious seconds.

"How's college? And swimming?"

"Good, good. The competition is exhausting but I'm finally off reserves and I'm a part of the representing team for an International swim meet in Berlin. It's a lot of work, with practice. I'm leaving tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Haru's eyes snapped to his but there was nothing else that told Rin that this news wasn't what Haru wanted to hear. The melancholy that shimmered within those cerulean orbs though was profound.

"Yeah. So, I wanted to ask…are you really not going to pursue a swimming career, Haru?"

Haru dropped his gaze, "Like I've said…as long as I can swim-"

"-free you don't care. That's what you're going to say, right?"

Haru looked at Rin, whose gaze was now downcast and his hair formed a semi-curtain that obscured the emotion within his eyes.

"You're still saying that? After all this time? Why are you just throwing away your talent? Don't you want more than just this?" he gestured around the room - of bland colors and little to no furniture that embraced a sense of plainness. "You always talk about being free but you aren't. You're holding back, you're not doing what you love!"

"Rin…"

His anger built and the hand he rested on the smooth surface of the table, balled into a fist. "You're an idiot. You're not the Haru I knew back when we swam together at Iwatobi. The Haru that had fun competing and took swimming seriously. I've never wanted to stop swimming with you but I get it now. I get it now. I'm leaving." He got up abruptly and stumbled slightly on his way out the room.

"Rin!" Haru got up quickly and ran out to stop Rin. He grabbed his wrist and pulled him back before he reached the step where his shoes were. His grip was firm and Rin paused but didn't pull away or move.

"I've always…I've always been chasing you. I keep thinking that something might change." He laughed softly, a mirthless laugh that cracked from the sob that choked him. Haru heard it and opened his mouth to say something but Rin wasn't finished.

"I've had enough. I won't do it anymore. I'll leave you alone. Be free, it's what you do best." His tone was so bitter but even as he moved, he allowed himself to be tugged back into Haru's arms. The embrace was so foreign and unexpected that it made Rin gasp and even flinch away in surprise.

Haru hated seeing him cry. Did he always have to be the reason for Rin's tears? He'd promised himself that he would never make Rin cry again, but his decision to stay out of competitive swimming just for the sake of Rin had repercussions he'd never expected. Was his act of kindness, really just a selfish one, on his part? All this time, he'd deliberately allowed Rin to walk out of his life, thinking that it was for the best. But this time, he wanted to keep him, and was desperate to do so.

"I'm sorry," he said softly.

"Haru…" Rin wanted to say he was leaving but being caught up in Haru's embrace was something close to what he'd longed for, for so long. His face was turned by the gentle pressure of Haru's fingers and warm lips covered his. His eyes shot open from the shock and he pushed Haru away and stared at him, almost staggering back against the wall.

"What are you doing?" Rin's face was flushed, his cheeks burning a bright red from Haru's kiss.

"You didn't like it?" Haru asked with a frown.

"Ye-…you can't do something like that Haru. I'm a guy."

"So?"

"What?"

"Rin…I love you." He advanced towards him and Rin, who wanted to react and push him away, stood frozen in shock when those words were given voice. "I thought staying away from competitive swimming made you happier, even after you came back from Australia and wanted to compete against me, I just thought that was to settle the feelings you had from when we were kids." He also remembered the words of Rin's friend, Sousuke, who had threatened him to stay away from Rin during high school, after they had both settled their feelings and rekindled their friendship. All of those things had led Haru to believe he was doing Rin justice by being as nonexistent in his life as he possibly could. A sacrifice that had been in vain.

"You're an idiot for thinking I wanted to stop swimming with you." Rin was glaring at him but there was something soft and compelling in his gaze.

Haru nodded and came closer, lowering his face slightly, his lips hovering close to Rin's. "I know that now." Rin closed his eyes, the resistance that Haru had been expecting was gone and their lips met in a chaste kiss that quickly turned urgent; years of suppressed feelings finally given release.

Rin's hands pressed to Haru's back, gripping the fabric of his shirt in his fists as their tongues met and rubbed together. Rin's mouth was warm, damp and sweet; evoking a lust that burned deep inside Haru for him. His hand ran up over his chest, feeling the hardness of skin beneath the cotton material of Rin's shirt. Their kiss deepened as their hands moved over each other, pushing off the other's shirt and tugging at the one beneath. Haru pushed Rin back against the wall with slight force and pulled his undershirt over his head, to reveal his tanned and muscled chest. There was a tattoo over his chest, the kanji characters for shark over his left pectoral.

Haru ran his fingers over the black marking and lowered his lips to Rin's neck, kissing the skin and sucking it into his mouth. A light moan left Rin and he bucked slightly when Haru's fingers closed around his nipple, rubbing the hard and puckering nub. It sent sharp sensations of pleasure through his body and made him swell inside his pants and press against Haru.

It was wrong; rubbing against Haru the way he was, the sounds that came tumbling off his lips with each tender kiss and stroke from Haru. Wanting him this way wasn't like Rin. But he wanted Haru, all of him; his naked flesh against his and everything else that came with the pleasures of having a lover. He wanted this because he'd never had Haru try to hold him back before. He needed him. Rin lifted his face to his and kissed him deeply, stilling rubbing against him and ran his hand down to the front of Haru's pants, feeling the hard evidence of his need.

The ringing of Rin's phone almost made them jump back from each other at the sharp interruption and Haru growled low in his throat – annoyed. Rin moved his hand from Haru's crotch and reached for the phone in his pocket. Grabbing it from him, Haru answered the phone.

"Hello?" His voice was rough, as if he'd gargled nails and he listened to Gou talk for a few seconds. "He's with me. He's staying the night…yeah. Bye." He switched the phone off and threw it down on the floor.

Rin looked at him and accepted his hard kiss and the press of his body against his. He reached down and unbuckled Haru's pants then unbuttoned it and pushed it down from his hips, along with his underwear. He wrapped his hand around the girth of him and could feel it pulsing in his grip. It was warm, the skin soft and smooth over his hard length. Rin started to pump him and Haru moaned low in his mouth, his hips bucking involuntarily from the pleasure that Rin's stroking hand brought.

His hands braced on the wall beside the sides of Rin's hand. His head hung low between his hands as he watched Rin's hand continue to move up and down over him. He was still bucking, moaning still and almost on the verge of an orgasm. He shoved Rin's hand away and roughly turned him to face the wall. Haru didn't want to come in Rin's hand…but inside of him. He quickly undid the snap and zipper of Rin's jeans and shoved them down, along with his boxers, down his hips. They fell on its own to his ankles and Haru gripped Rin's hard length and stroked him as he kissed his neck, the tip of his own cock rubbing against Rin's butt.

The sound of Rin's moaning was the most erotic sound for Haru and he wanted to continue hearing it. His thumb rubbed over the tip and precum leaked over his fingers as he pleasured Rin.

"Haru…"

Rin turned his face to Haru and their lips met in a hard, wet and passionate kiss. Rin's hips shifted and bucked as he pumped himself into Haru's hand, the motion grew faster and his breath became choppy, his moans mixed with whimpers as his body tightened. Haru's free hand ran up his chest, squeezing over his right pectoral and pinching the nipple which triggered Rin's orgasm. He moaned loudly, over and over again as he came in Rin's hand. He shuddered against him, his hips still lightly thrusting as goose bumps prickled all over his flesh from the sensations that seized his body. He'd never felt something so overwhelming…it was almost too hard to describe for him.

His head fell back against Haru's shoulder and his eyes raised to the blue, languid pools that he was sure he would drown in. His shudders had subsided but his erection hadn't gone down. He still wanted more, he didn't want it to end right here. He could feel the engorged head of Haru's cock rub against his butt again and again, the sensation provoking and making him want Haru to possess and own him.

"I want you inside me…" His cheeks flushed with his admission and Haru's gentle and amused gaze made Rin blush deeply.

"We should do it properly then."

"Hmm?"

Haru led Rin up the stairs to his room and before Rin could move to the bed, Haru pulled him back for a kiss and walked him back towards the bed. They fell together on the tousled sheets and he lifted Rin's leg as he settled between his thighs then massaged his cock. He kneeled up and reached over to the night table beside his bed to get his body oil. It was his only substitute for lube and, squeezing some into his hand, he massaged it over his hard flesh and groaned low in his throat.

Rin's breath caught in his throat and he closed his eyes and moaned when Haru started to massage his anus with a finger then slipped it inside him. Rin arched up, the strange feeling soon becoming pleasurable and he moaned Haru's name as a second finger slipped inside him. His lids fluttered open and he looked at Haru through his lashes.

"Haru…stop playing around." He managed to make his voice sound stern, though his last word was drawn out into a moan. A smirk lightened Haru's face and using his hand, he guided himself inside Rin. He did it slowly, pushing himself inside by measurable degrees. Rin grasped at the sheets, squeezing the fabrics tight in his palm as Haru filled and stretched him.

Their restrained moans echoed each other and Haru lifted Rin's other leg and his hip, so that he could slide inside him easier. Rin moved up on one hand and kissed Haru, their moans muffled into each other's mouths. Haru's thrusting was slow and gentle as he gave Rin time to adjust to his size but soon Rin urged him to go faster, and his moans spurred him on.

His hips started to roll faster and the friction between them caused a thin sheen of sweat to damped their bodies as they moved together. Haru's hand squeezed into Rin's hip, marking him as his own with his fingers and scattered love bites across his neck and over his collarbone. Their hips slammed together again and again as both their bodies started to tense with the close feel of orgasm. Haru braced his hand on the bed, looking down at their bodies as he sank into Rin again and again with fast and hard involuntary bucks.

Rin's eyes rolled over in the back of his head and he gripped his cock, stroking himself roughly as he felt it pulse harder. He cried out Haru's name as he came again, his body shuddering violently from the throes of his orgasm. His release triggered Haru's, who moaned loudly above him and grinded into him, emptying himself inside Rin.

Haru felt his body grow weak and collapsed against Rin, both breathing heavily as the aftershock of their orgasm subsided. Their hearts, like one, hammered wildly and blood roared through their ears. Rolling away from him, Haru rested on his back and looked up at the ceiling, illuminated by the moonlight from the open windows.

There were no words spoken between them, their soft breathing the only sound that filled the room. Exhausted, Haru closed his eyes and Rin come closer to him, his hand draped over his chest. Haru thought that maybe he should have thanked Makoto, in some way, for persuading him to go to the reunion. That was his last thought as he drifted off to sleep.

He woke up to Rin's clothed back facing him. Rin was sitting up on the bed, slightly hunched over and though Haru couldn't see his face, he was sure he was waiting for him to wake up – or was probably deep in thought.

"Rin?" He stifled his yawn and rolled over, sitting up. The sheet covered the lower half of him and he guessed that Rin was the one who'd thrown it over them at some point while Haru had been sleeping.

Rin turned to look at him and smiled but it seemed forced. "Hey…I'm gonna be leaving now. My flight's later in the evening and I want to say goodbye to the others before I leave."

"Oh…"

Silence replaced words that should have been Haru's response but this time, it wasn't an awkward bit of silence nor was it tense. But there was something heavy about it. Rin waited, hoping that Haru would say something to hold him back. Just as he had done the night before.

"Rin."

He thought his heart stopped in just that second when Haru called his name. "Yeah?"

"Wait for me."

"What?" Rin raised a brow at him, genuinely perplexed by Haru's simple words.

"Last night…what you said, I thought about it. I don't want to give up swimming – I've never wanted to. I've never wanted to stop swimming with you either and…" Haru trailed off as his eyes lowered to nothing in particular but he just needed to avert his gaze for the moment. "Just wait for me…I'll let Sasabe help me out with some things. So…"

Instead of listening to the rest of what he had to say, Rin tugged his chin towards his and kissed him deep then pulled back to punch his arm. "I'm happy you've changed your mind, man. Don't worry, I will."

Haru smiled and watched as Rin got up. "Good. Have a safe trip then."

"Yeah." Rin grinned wide, baring those serrated teeth that Haru knew he'd see again soon.

O.o.O.o

A/N2: AHHH! We've reached the end. I had planned for this to only be 1200-1500 words long but then the scenes expanded and I thought it would be okay to just let them express themselves. I hope it wasn't too long. Please remember to let me know what you thought of it.