"Rin, come here," said a rough but kind voice that belonged to a man. Rin blinked up his wide, childish eyes at his father, trotting over to by the side of his boat. The man, despite the jovial smile, had a weary look in his eyes. "I need to tell you something very important.
"Someday, when you grow up, you will fall in love with a woman, and marry her. Then you'll become a father to a son."
"How do you know I'll have a son?" Rin asked. "I might have a daughter and only a daughter."
The man chuckled. "I just do. Now, listen carefully. In our family, the men are… cursed, so to say. When a Matsuoka man marries a woman, and she gives birth to a boy, the man will drown and die."
Rin's childish mind refused to allow Rin to be scared. "What if I like other boys, though? I don't like girls all that much."
Rin's father choked. "Wait, what? Oh…" He scratched his head before letting out a boisterous laugh. "Well… You see, the Matsuoka men who fall in love with other men usually_."
Rin couldn't see his younger self's expression; it was whited out.
The last thing Rin saw before the scene faded out was his young self, crying silently in front of his father's grave.
Rin's eyes opened, scarlet eyes clouded with sleep and burning with unshed tears. He stared up at the white ceiling of his room, and ran a hand through his messy hair.
Lately, he's been getting this same dream over and over again, as if reminding him that it was his fault that his father had passed away. Not that he needed any reminding, the pool was enough for that.
He covered his eyes with his forearm, and heard the door open and floorboards creak as someone came in.
"Finally awake, huh?"
Rin peered out from under his arm to see Gou, smiling at him sunnily. "Breakfast's ready—"
"I'm gonna go visit someone," he declared, and trudged into the bathroom to make himself more presentable, ignoring Gou's puzzled and worried gaze.
"Is this your way of having revenge on me?" Rin asked, gazing down at the tombstone's smooth surface. "Kind of late for it, though, don't you think?"
After a few more minutes, he bumped his fist lightly on the tombstone, and began to make his way down to the ocean.
Once he was in close proximity to the white foams, he took off his shoes, rolled up his pants and allowed the cold seawater to wash over his bare feet. He didn't know why, but the ocean looked particularly attractive today. He took a step forward without realizing it, water at ankle level now. Lately, he felt like he could understand what Haru felt whenever the blue-eyed teen saw bodies of water.
He found himself grinning fondly at the memories of Haru declaring his love for the water, and tried to erase it when he heard a voice behind him.
"Rin?"
The redhead turned around, startled by the appearance of the very boy he was thinking about. "Haru."
"What are you doing here?"
"Visiting someone," Rin replied simply, and motioned for Haru to come closer.
After a moment of hesitation, Haru took off his shoes, pulling up his pants before standing next to Rin, their shoulders touching. "Makoto said that the water's too cold for swimming."
Rin let out a chuckle. "I just wanted to feel the water a little. I know you wanted to, too." He leaned down and pecked Haru's lips. "Missed you."
"You're disgusting" was Haru's reply before the black-haired teen leaned against Rin.
Haru and Rin had been going out for a few months now, but Rin hadn't met up with Haru, because he felt that he would get too attached the more time they spent together. And the stronger the attachment, the harder it would be for the both of them when Rin moved to Australia.
"… When are you leaving?" Haru broke the comfortable silence.
"The day after tomorrow."
Haru pushed away from Rin with incredulous eyes. "And only NOW you're visiting me?"
Rin gave Haru an apologetic smile and pulled him into his arms. "I meant to visit earlier, but I was busy sorting out stuff for Australia."
After a few seconds, Haru let out a resigned sigh and buried his face in Rin's shoulder. "You're an idiot."
"Sorry."
"You should be."
Rin spent the night at Haru's that day.
Magenta eyes gazed out blankly through the tiny window and at the gray clouds. It was silent in the airplane, and most of the passengers were sleeping.
Rin thought back to all the small kisses he and Haru had exchanged in bed the day he stayed over at Haru's, and the ones at the airport. A small, fond grin stretched over his face, and he didn't bother trying to suppress it. He closed his eyes, deciding to get a little sleep.
The plane lurched.
All the passengers, Rin included, opened their eyes and murmured. Another lurch.
The murmurs grew. Rin looked out the window, unease growing in him.
His eyes widened at the clouds that engulfed the plane. They were supposed to be below them, not—
Alarms began to ring and oxygen masks dropped, and calls for life jackets to be put on was barely heard over the panicking chatters of the passengers.
"The plane is currently experiencing malfunction. We will emergency land momentarily. Please remain calm—"
The plane began to fall, and people screamed as they felt themselves get pushed back in their seats. Rin barely got his mask on after securing the life jacket on.
He clung desperately to the arm rests, sweat beading on his face as the window showed nothing but gray and white.
Time seemed to slow down when gray and white changed to the blue of the ocean.
Rin felt strangely comforted at the sight of the sparkling body of water.
More screams rang throughout the plane as they hit the water, and Rin closed his eyes. When the plane felt calm again, he opened his eyes to see the water stretching out before them.
"Please make your way calmly to the emergency exits to board the life boats."
People got up immediately, beginning to scramble for the exits. They all stopped when the plane rocked unsteadily, and the water seemed closer to the window than it had been previously. At the attendants' warning, people began to move slowly and orderly, one by one boarding the boat.
Rin let out a sigh as he stepped onto the boat. Everything seemed to be going well—
Nothing went well in these situations.
The plane gave a groan, and the whole tail began to creak and break away. Screams could be heard. As the tail began to sink, people attempted to float themselves back up to the surface, but many proved to be unsuccessful.
And Rin, being the impulsive person he was, threw off all his clothes but his boxers, and dove in.
He went for the closest person; a small woman who had her eyes closed as she flailed fruitlessly. He grabbed her around the waist, and attempted to swim up. It took effort, but soon, they broke surface and others who were able to swim and had followed Rin's example were present to take the woman from his arms.
One by one, Rin and the others rescued the drowning people. Cheers for the temporary rescue team resonated in the air. But with each person he dragged up, he was feeling more and more tired. His arms were aching, and his legs felt useless.
But he pushed himself. But the deeper he went for the one child who was drowning—possibly already dead, but Rin wanted to confirm it; that was a child drowning—the darker his vision got, and the less his limbs agreed to cooperate with his brain.
His body was shutting down.
The child's body disappeared into the murky depths of the ocean.
Tiny bubbles escaped Rin's body as he attempted to call his lover's name, because Haru was connected to the water, so he should be able to hear Rin's cries.
The last thing Rin saw was Haru's face, those sapphire eyes directed at him lovingly, the droplets of water on his body catching the sunlight and looking like jewels, the rare smile that stretched across his face as Rin left for the plane, and—
"Well… You see, the Matsuoka men who fall in love with other men usually
Die
A
Hero"
Tears refused to stop falling.
"Today at around noon, the plane headed from Japan to Australia experienced a malfunction in the engine.
The impact of the landing on the Pacific Ocean caused the back of the plane to snap off, causing many passengers to drown.
However
A certain man named Matsuoka Rin
Gave his life
For tens of others."
Haru hated heroes.
How Haru Came to Hate Heroes
Nonworth
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