The Quiet Boy

Disclaimer: I own nothing!

…Okay then first, please tell us how the two of you met!

Rin: When we were in Elementary School we ended up in the same class so I took an interest in him I guess…

Sousuke: Also our houses were very close so we thought we would be able to play together as well

Rin: That's right. The fact that we were in the same swimming club also played a large role.

Character Interview Vol. 2 - Rin X Sousuke

Published with the DVD Volume 2

Sosuke was a quiet boy. He kept mostly to himself in school, it had always been like that and he more or less liked it that way. His parents would worry and Sosuke would often overhear them discussing his lack of friends. The conversation would always be fraught with tension with his mother worrying that Sosuke would be an outcast and a loner. His father would usually end the argument by coming to Sosuke and asking him if he was happy. Sosuke always answered yes.

He was happy. Having never had a friend, he didn't really miss not having friends. From what he could tell, having a friend meant having someone to talk to and play with. Sosuke didn't like talking much or listening even and was happy to just play by himself. He was happy and told his father as much. His father would be satisfied, his mother not so much.

As a result it was not a great surprised when his mother, while kissing him goodbye for his first day of the new elementary school year begged him to make at least one friend, "Please Sosuke," she said to him, "At least try to make a friend."

Because he didn't want his mother to be sad, Sosuke replied, "I'll try," but really, the thought of trying to talk to others did not fill him with joy. He didn't dred it exactly but he wasn't looking forward to it. But, if only for his mother, he would try.

Sosuke's mother walked him to school for the first day. But it seemed that he wasn't wasn't the only one from his neighbourhood heading to school. Shortly after they left their house, another little boy with the same black school bag as Sosuke emerged from a side street. He was walking with his father and they were chatting animatedly together. Sosuke thought he heard the word swimming getting mentioned a few times. Sosuke had taken swimming lessons last summer and his mom had enrolled him at the local swim club. It was another one of her plans to get him to make more friends.

Sosuke wasn't sure how swimming was supposed to help with socialise. The thing he liked best about swimming was how when he entered the water, he was all alone and could just take care of himself. If his mother had wanted him to socialise, she should have put him in the soccer team or something. Although he was glad he was in the swimming club. He really liked swimming.

At the school gates, Sosuke's mother once again reminded him to at least try and make friends this year. Once again, Sosuke promised he would, all the while wishing his mother would just leave him be. It didn't really matter. Even for class projects he assumed that if there was an even number of students someone would end-up with him and even there wasn't, he could just work by himself. He didn't mind. These were the thoughts Sosuke was thinking when he got to his class and took a random seat but didn't bother taking anything out. First thing that would mostly likely happen is that they would be reseated once the teacher got there and told them their assigned seating plans.

"Hey!" came a cheerful greeting, Sosuke looked-up to come face to face with a redheaded kid beaming down at him, "You live in my neighborhood right?" he asked, "I saw you walking with your mom this morning. Did you notice me? I was with my dad!"

"Umm… yes," replied Sosuke, he hadn't really paid any attention to the little boy walking with his father, except to note he had red hair, but then a stray synapsis fired and Sosuke remembered overhearing the boy mention swimming, "You guys were talking about swimming?"

"Did you hear us?" wondered the boy, pulling-up a chair and sitting down at Sosuke's desk, "I guess I was pretty loud," he said with a big smile, "I am Matsuoka Rin. It's a girly name but I am all boy!" he explained with a grin.

"Yamazaki Sosuke," Sosuke introduced himself, all the time wondering why this boy was bothering him but then he remembered his promise to his mom and added, "Nice to meet you. Do you like swimming?"

"I love it!" replied Rin, "I am going to be #1 and swim in the Olympics."

"That's umm… good," replied Sosuke, already out of things to say.

Rin, however, was not done talking, "I am going to master all the strokes! Right now I can swim free and back. I am going to start learning breast and butterfly soon. My dad was teaches me. He used to be #1 in Iwatobi. I wanted to go to Iwatobi swim club, just like he did, but that's a bit too far away. So I joined Sano swim club instead."

Sosuke was surprised and blurted out, "That's the club I joined."

"Eh? That's great!" declared Rin, "Let's swim together!"

"I don't want to," Sosuke had said the words on reflex. He wasn't even sure why he said the, what even to his ears sounded like, hurtful words. It's just that he didn't really understand or what to understand how they were supposed to swim together. Inside the water, Sosuke was alone and he liked it like that.

Rin was phased but only for a second, "Oh? So you want to be my rival huh? Well you'll have to be good for me to acknowledge you! Let's meet-up at the club and race! I go almost everyday! I am going to run to the club after school today. Are you going today?"

"I…haven't started at the club yet," replied Sosuke, embarrassed.

"I got that! Because I hadn't seen you before and I thought I knew all the kids my age," replied Rin, "But you can swim right?"

"Yes," replied Sosuke, "I learnt Free and Back last summer."

"Come with me today and we can race Free," replied Rin.

"I didn't bring my swimsuit," Sosuke said, feeling himself being overpowered by the boy's exuberance.

This deflated Rin a bit but then he perked-up, "We can stop by your house after school and pick-up your swimsuit. It's just a little detour. Plus I'll be able to stop by my house and see how my sister liked her first day," he said, grinning wide, "You'll do it right?" he asked, looking at Sosuke expectantly.

"Sure," replied Sosuke, he did like the idea of going swimming. No doubt this boy had lots of friends at the swim club, even if he didn't seem to know anyone else in class at the moment. With luck, after their race, the boy will fall in with his friends and forget all about Sosuke.

"How was your day, honey?" Sosuke's mother asked when he came home.

"Okay," replied Sosuke, "Where are my swimming suit?" he asked, "I want to go swimming today."

"Today? But I have to go shopping! I can't take you there today," replied his mom.

"It's fine, I can go by myself," Sosuke assured her.

"You have never walked there before! How will you know the way?" demanded his mother, "That's why I was going to go with you on your first day. Plus I wanted to make sure all the paperwork was okay. It always pays to double check," his mother added in, hoping it was a lesson Sosuke would take to heart.

"Someone from my class also goes to the club," Sosuke finally admitted, "We are going to meet at the convenience store around the corner and go together."

"Huh, you… you made a friend?" before Sosuke could reply his mother ploughed on, "Why didn't you say so! I'll help you get your things together right away!"

Before long, Sosuke had his swimming bag ready and on his way to the convenience store where he had agreed to meet Rin. The latter was already waiting at the store but with a little girl with the same shade of hair as Rin, "What took you so long?" wondered Rin.

"Sorry," mumbled Sosuke, "We couldn't remember where we put the goggles."

"But you have everything right?" asked Rin, a tad anxious. Sosuke nodded, Rin grinned in response before turning to the girl, "Gou, this is Sosuke, he's in my class. Sosuke, this is my little sister Gou," he introduced her.

"Pleased to meet you," replied Sosuke politely.

"Please to meet you too!" said Gou, before she could add more, their father appeared out of a side street and called Gou's name, "Ah, I have to go. Take care of Onii-chan," she charged Sosuke before running off.

"Let's go!" replied Rin, "Last one to get there has to take the end lane!" before taking off running.

Sosuke wasn't sure why taking the end lane was bad but from Rin's tone and phrasing he knew it was bad. So he took off after Rin and did his best to try and overtake him.

Six months, it had been six months since Sosuke met Rin at the start of spring. Spring had given way to summer but Rin was still hangout with him. Even teaching him the butterfly stroke, which Rin mastered almost straight away but Sosuke was having difficulty grasping.

Summer was now giving way to Autumn and Rin was in Sosuke's room. They were playing video games together, both were talking and listening in turns. With everyone else, Sosuke still hated doing all those things. Wanting to be left alone after only a few minutes. But with Rin… Rin made Sosuke not want to be the quiet boy who is always alone.