Free! Iwatobi Swim Club

Well, here I am now. After spending my entire summer watching titans and swimming anime, I'm finally gathered my courage to write this story. It's my first Free! story, so please don't go to hard on me. My only knowledge is the anime since I haven't gotten around to read the light novel. I have heard the CD dramas, but I still fear that some of my characters will be OOC.

Anyways, thanks for checking out this story! Please feel free to leave any reviews or suggestions! Flames are welcomed even though they'll make me sad. I'm writing this just for fun and because well, I just love Gou. So, please excuse my grammatical errors and I hope this meets your expectations!

Disclaimer: Free! doesn't belong to me (sadly).

Taking Chances

Chapter 1 - Mistaken

She should have known better. She should've known what the answer was going to be. It was obvious from the beginning that her confession was going to be turned down. How could she compete against him? It wasn't even possible. She would never be able to win Makoto's heart because he only had eyes for Haruka. He devoted himself to Haruka ever since they were little. They were always together, giving each other undying support and friendship. She could never beat Haruka, the same way her brother could never beat him either.

Gou sighed as she hugged her knees tightly. She couldn't believe that she had actually gone up to Makoto. It had been out of impulse since she just couldn't bare the feelings she had developed for him. He was perfect in every way. Any girl could fall for him and she was clearly no exception. She liked him so much and she just wanted to see if he felt the same way about her. That's why she had gotten the courage to confess to him.

Of course, she never expected such big disappointment. Even though he tried to break it to her nicely, it still hurt her. It hurt her so much that she even shed a few tears. However, she managed to pull herself together and ended up giving him an understanding smile after he had turned her down. Who was she to tell him he was wrong? If he didn't want to leave Haruka-senpai, then she was no one to complain. She just needed to accept it and move on.

How could she, though? She liked Makoto so much and it was only until then that she was starting to realize it. They had been through so much together as team and she was able to see what a wonderful person he was. There was never a day she didn't think about him. There was never a day she didn't smile because of him. He was the perfect man. His personality was flawless and he was gorgeous. There was nothing to hate about him. Gou leaned her chin on top of her knees as she looked around her darkish room. Makoto was her ideal man, but he belonged to Haruka. With that in mind, Gou began to remember everything again...

"Makoto-senpai!" Gou called out to him as she walked in his direction. They were all by themselves since everyone else was already in the pool practicing. She had caught him by the lockers by pure chance. He was holding his swimsuit in his hands and Gou figured he was just about to go change. "Everyone's already in the pool. We have to work on your times today. The tournament is just around the corner. We have to work hard!"

He smiled at her and Gou could feel an ache inside her chest. She smiled back at him before she looked out the around a bit nervously. She wondered if she should take her chance. "That's great, Gou-chan. I'll catch up with you all in a bit. I'm going to go change first."

She saw him turn around, but her hand suddenly reached out to grab the sleeve of his sweatshirt. He turned back to look at her with surprise and Gou couldn't believe what she had done. "Umm, Makoto-senpai," She told him and for the first time ever, she could feel her cheeks burning red. It was either now or never. "There's something important I need to tell you."

"Oh, what is it?" He replied, turning back to look at her. She had caught his attention, meaning there was no turning back. She either told him how she felt or she would have to swallow her feelings for who knows how long. Gou let go of his sleeve and shifted her gaze away from him with embarrassment. "Gou-chan? Is there something wrong?"

"Well, let me see. How should I put this?" She said quietly to herself as she placed her hand over her chin. She needed to act natural. She needed to act like she always did. Once she had assembled the words she was going to say, Gou looked at Makoto again to find him patiently waiting for her. "Makoto-senpai, I really admire everything about you. You're a great person and I don't think we could have a better captain than you. The point is that I like you, Makoto-senpai."

He stared at her with surprise and Gou didn't know what to do next. A part of her wanted to run outside while another part of her wanted to hug him. Silence surrounded them for the next couple of seconds or so and Gou could tell Makoto wasn't handling her confession too well. "I like you more than a friend, Makoto-senpai." She suddenly added with blush. "I like you in the romantic sense."

"I see." He told her, but his voice sounded so distant and cold. Gou looked up at him and they both stared into each other's eyes for what seemed like forever. She gulped when she suddenly saw him lift his arm. He left it in mid-air before he gently patted her on the head. "Thank you for liking me, but I don't think I can respond back."

"What?" She said, letting it slip out of her mouth along with a gasp. Her heart was pounding loudly beneath her chest and she couldn't help but wonder if she had heard wrong. Had she just been rejected or was she imagining it? "I'm sorry. What?"

"There's someone else I need to be with." He told her, looking toward the small windows. Gou took a step back and a part of her still couldn't believe what he was saying. "I don't think I can be in a relationship with you, Gou-chan. I'm very sorry. There's someone else I need to be with, but you can always count on me as a friend. I will always be here for you, okay? You're very important to me, Gou-chan, but I can't see you the way you want me too. I hope you can forgive me. I don't want to hurt you. Please forgive me, Gou-chan."

She didn't say anything and she just stared at him with awe. Her heart was breaking into a million pieces. After debating about it all day, she had finally confessed her feelings only to be rejected. Gou held in her tears with all her might and she somehow managed to hold them in. She didn't want to be looked down and she definitely didn't want Makoto feeling guilty. It was her fault for falling for the wrong person. "It's because of Haruka-senpai, right?"

Gou watched Makoto's face filling with surprise, but his silence confirmed her suspicion. Makoto could never like her because he was in love with Haruka. She could feel a bit envy, but she quickly pushed it away. She could never in a million years go against Haruka. Compared to him, she probably meant little to Makoto.

"All well. It's okay, Makoto-senpai." She gave him a smile which seemed to put his mind at ease. "It's fine. We have other things to worry about at the moment. We need to practice now! So you should go change so we start properly! As your manager, I will try my best to support you all!"

"Thank you, Gou-chan." He told her, giving her another pat in the head. Then, he quickly turned around and started running toward the restrooms. "I'll be right there."

Gou waved goodbye to him and she was glad that he didn't turn back around to see the tear that was crawling down her cheek. She wondered how long she would be able to keep up her fake smile for the rest of the day. She couldn't let anyone know that she had just been turned down by the club's captain.

Just what had she been thinking? Gou became angry with herself as she thought back to the moment she had been rejected. She had never confessed to anyone before. In fact, she had never had a boyfriend in her entire life. She was new at all of that and she didn't know how to deal with her first rejection. She didn't know how to deal with her first heartbreak.

There was no one she could talk to about it. Her mother was out and her best friend wasn't picking up her phone. Gou looked down at her cellphone again before she picked it up. Once again, she started looking through her contacts when she came across her brother's number. She could text him, but the chances of him replying back were close to zero.

Even so, Gou didn't lose anything by paying him a little visit. She scooted herself to the edge of her bed before she stood up. She walked over to her mirror and stared at her reflection. She really did look horrible. Her eyes were swollen from all the crying she had done earlier and her nose had a small tint of red on it. Did she really like him that much? Had Makoto's rejection hurt her that much?

Letting out a sigh, Gou walked over to her closet and started looking around for a light sweater. The sun had already disappeared and the night had already fallen over the city. Still, it didn't matter to her. She knew that if she held onto her pain, she would never be able to sleep. She needed to talk to someone before she went crazy. After a long search through her clothes, Gou finally found a cute pink cardigan that seemed to go well with her current clothing. She slowly put it on before an image of Makoto appeared in her mind again. She could also hear his words circling in and out.

Gou walked out of her room and headed down the hallway. She passed by the living before she finally made it to the front door. She grabbed her shoes and quickly put them on. Placing her hand on the doorknob, Gou turned to look back at the kitchen. She could smell the food her mother had especially made for her. It smelled delicious, but in that moment, she didn't have time to think about that. Feeling sadness again, Gou opened the door and walked outside into the cold chilly air.

She hugged her body with her arms before she started walking away from her house. She needed to go talk to her brother. He was the only one she could turn to. She remembered always going to him when she sad back when she was little. She just hoped he wouldn't turn her away now. She needed someone to talk to. She wanted to let out some of her pain with someone and her brother was the only person she could think of.

With that in mind, Gou started walking toward Samezuka Academy. She pulled out her cellphone from her pocket and she began to dial her brother's number. However, her brother never answered and she wasn't entirely too surprised. It wasn't long before his voicemail picked up and Gou was left with no choice but to leave him a message.

"Hey, Brother." She began even though her voice came out as a squeak. "There's something I want to talk about with you." She paused and she could feel herself choking in her tears. Once again, though, she managed to pull herself together. "I need some advice, Brother. I'm heading over to your school right now. I just couldn't stand being in my room." She paused, hoping she hadn't given herself away. "Please call me back."

After that, Gou ended the call and placed her cellphone back in her pocket. There was no way she could tell her brother that she had been rejected by Makoto, his once friend. It would be way too awkward, but she could at least try to feel his support and comfort in a different way. He could advise her on what to do. He could tell her whether she should hold on to her feelings or not with reference to someone else. The least thing she wanted was for Rin to hate Makoto because of her. But, in that moment, she didn't know what else she was suppose to do.

It wasn't long before she finally made it to the academy. However, she headed over to where the swimming team usually hung around which was their indoor pool. Gou opened the entrance door to the pool and she was surprised to find the entire place empty. She let out a sigh since she figured her brother probably wasn't around. She continued on walking down the hallway before she came across the long glass window. She looked through it to find the pool completely still with nobody in it. There was clearly no one around.

She didn't know why she felt so surprise after all it was pretty late. Still, she had hopes that her brother would be swimming, practicing like crazy for the tournament that was coming up. His ultimate goal was to beat Haruka and she figured he would be practicing his heart out. Letting out a sigh, Gou turned around to walk back the way she had come from. She needed to leave before someone found out that she had barged inside the school without permission.

Before she had a chance to walk away, she heard a loud splash coming from inside the pool area. Her head immediately perked up with joy and when she saw a red head swimming in the water, she quickly headed toward the pool. She couldn't believe her luck. Her brother was actually there.

"Brother!" She called out to him with a loud voice, a smile appearing in her face. It was amazing how just seeing her brother could bring her so much strength and happiness. She really loved him and she was glad she would be able to talk to him. "Thank goodness I found you."

However, when he stopped swimming and when he took off his goggles, Gou realized that he wasn't the red head she was looking for. He turned to look at her before he excitedly got out of the pool.

"Gou-kun!"

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