note: so i had a lot of fun writing gou in third-person limited POV. she's adorable. and mako just makes me swoon.

soundtrack: hate to see your heart break - paramore

i need to know, is there a place for love in modern hearts?

"Will you train me to be a better swimmer?"

For the agonising few seconds after she asks the question, Gou wishes she could stuff her words right back into her mouth, sprint away, and pretend she never said anything.

She feels silly for worrying, though, when Mako's lips slide into an easy grin and he answers with a warm, "sure."

Gou breathes a sigh of relief. What was she expecting? After all, it's Mako, and he isn't Iwatobi swim club's resident sweetheart for nothing. "Thanks! You can give me my first lesson tomorrow after the team's swim practise, okay?" Upon seeing his affirmative nod, Gou turns to begin walking home, about to lift her hand to wave goodbye-

"If you don't mind me asking, why do you want swimming lessons?"

Gou looks down at her hands, fumbling with the textbook she's clutching. "I- um," she stammers before whirling around, "I'm the manager of the swim club, I don't need an excuse to try and improve!" Sweat gathers on her brow and Gou swears Mako can see right through her.

He blinks in surprise at her outburst and raises his hands in a placating gesture. "I guess you're right." He laughs - a little uncomfortably, Gou thinks - and gives her what is probably meant to be a disarming smile. "I'll see you tomorrow then."

Gou nods and can't help but think she's dodged a bullet. "See you."

It's not until she's standing in waist-high chlorinated water next to a shirtless Mako, seeing stars for the umpteenth time, that Gou wonders whether this was such a good idea after all.

"Have you been listening to me?"

"Of course!"

"Okay, then what was I just talking about?"

"Biceps- uh, b-backstroke?"

Mako stares for a second, looking a little frazzled, before he nods. "Backstroke. Yes." He leans over the water's surface so he's floating on his back, a toned arm extended behind his head, and Gou's eyes are drawn to those perfect biceps, dear Lord, nothing could be more beautiful than those rippling muscles- "Make sure your chin is tucked, and rotate your arms like this. Keep your legs straight and kick. Now you give it a try!"

Gou leans backwards into the water, shivering as the chill gives her goosebumps. She welcomes the wave of nostalgia as the image of a young Rin pops into her head - remember to take deep breaths when you're swimming, imouto! - and Gou frowns. She cups her fingers and pushes against the water as hard as she can.

After a week of tutelage under Mako, Gou loses her shit.

"Two minutes?" She seethes. "You think that's fast?"

Mako takes a step backwards, eyes wide. "It's not bad for your first time trial, Gou-chan, and it's only been a week since we started-"

"'Not bad' isn't good enough," she grinds out. And when did he start calling her Gou? "My name is Kou!" With an exasperated sigh, she flops down onto the wet tiles by the pool and wraps her arms around her legs, hugging them to her chest. Taking her bottom lip between her teeth, she glares at the placid water in front of her.

At least a minute drags by before, out of the corner of her eye, she sees Mako sit himself next to her, keeping a few inches between them. Yet another minute passes before she lifts her chin from the tops of her knees and blinks away the tears. "I'm sorry, Mako," she says. "I know you're doing your best. I'm just... frustrated with myself." She peeks at him from underneath her lashes. He's smiling gently.

"It's alright. Everyone gets a little mad at themselves sometimes. Remember when Rei kept sinking to the bottom of the pool?" He chuckles, and Gou watches his sea green eyes shine.

She gives him a wobbly smile in response, and the pair are quiet. Early evening settles, the sunset glow draping a blanket of orange warmth around their shoulders.

Mako turns so his entire torso faces her, and Gou has to pry her gaze away from his glorious six-pack. "Can I ask you something? Promise you won't get mad. And please be honest."

With those abs, he could ask her whatever the hell he wanted and she'd be all for it. "Uh-huh."

"What's the real reason you wanted me to help you with your swimming?"

Gou inhales sharply through her nose and just sits there, speechless and stiff-shouldered.

Mako's eyes widen. "Oh, you don't have to answer if you don't want to! I never wanted to make you uncomfortable, Gou-chan. It's completely fine, it really is-"

"My name's Kou. Nagisa's been rubbing off on you too much," she says, voice soft and low, "and I'll answer your question. I... I wanted to improve my swimming for my brother."

Mako sputters. "F-for your brother?"

She sighs and her shoulders sag. "When we were little, we went to the beach every weekend. I used to be too scared to swim in the water until Rin taught me how to float." The nostalgia tugs the corner of her mouth into a lopsided grin. "We used to play there for hours. We were so, so close. But now," the words grow bitter on her tongue, "all he cares about is swimming and winning. I have nothing to do with his goals, so he has no time for me. I thought that maybe I could fix it - maybe if I got good enough, I'd be important to him again?" Her inflection makes her sentence sound more like a question than a statement, and she swipes at her dampening eyes with the back of her hand.

Mako is quiet again, and Gou wonders if he's thinking about his own siblings. He must be a fantastic brother, she thinks, especially with that boundless patience of his.

"It's not fair."

Gou jumps at the ice in his voice. Guess that patience isn't so boundless after all. "What do you mean? And why do you sound so angry?"

Mako breathes in, lungs expanding, and exhales through his nose. "Sorry," he says, calmer. "What I mean is that you can't fix this by yourself. You can't make it your responsibility." He looks up at her, and she's never seen him so sombre. "Rin has changed a lot. He upset Haru, too - Haru thinks I haven't noticed, but I have - and the only way to make things better is if we get the whole group back together, I think. But listen to me." He places a hand on her shoulder and holds her gaze. "I don't like seeing anyone feeling like this because of Rin. Especially not you, Gou-chan."

By this time, the pool is reflecting the night sky - a canvas of ink, sprinkled with stars whose brightness is rivaled only by that of Mako's eyes, Gou thinks. Lips slightly parted, she looks up at him before throwing her arms around his neck and burying her face into the crook of his neck. "Thank you, Mako-kun." She then pulls away with a soft murmur of "I thought I told you to call me Kou."

And when Mako throws his head back and laughs, Gou realises she's looking at something much, much more beautiful than toned biceps.

note: i regret nothing when it comes to these two. these ship is my guilty pleasure and i lovelovelove it.

and please, if you're going to fav/follow my work, drop me a line! it doesn't take much effort. i'm happy to talk to you guys :)

thanks a bunch for reading! lots of love to you beautiful people xx