o-okay uhm so my friend ax bullied me into writing erikar and so i had this really cute au idea HIGH SCHOOLSTUCK where eridan is on the swim team and yeah. it's cute. i'm planning to hopefully write another chapter at some point...
a-anyway enjoy
It wasn't the smell of the room that he disliked, or the humid air or the wet slick floors that just felt sort of slimy under his bare free as he walked along. When he leapt into the pool it wasn't the warmth of the water or the chemicals that sometimes burned his eyes if he didn't wear his goggles.
It was the taste. You weren't supposed to drink the pool water, naturally, but sometimes it happened and you just couldn't help that. But it stayed on your lips, a salty residue that simply soaked into your skin, and he found himself spending a lot more time in the shower rooms sometimes than most probably needed to.
Eridan Ampora was a name synonymous with the swim team. He was the son of a man who had trained for Olympic swimming and now coached the high school swimming team. Swimming was his life, and he was determined to impress his own dream on Eridan, who, while good at swimming, preferred to read fantasy stories and write poetry (though he would never admit to either).
What could he do though but play the good son as his father lived vicariously through him. He didn't like it, and often times he cried because of the intense training he was forced to do; he used to cry more, in front of his father, but he learned quite quickly to resist it and save his emotions for later, in writing or in his pillow.
It was hard being the coach's son, and nobody really understood. They thought he was prissy, spoiled, that he had it better than everyone else. The swim coach made special preparations with the school so that Eridan had extra time to go and practice in the pool, he was given exceptions to rules, treated differently because of his father's position, and in turn was treated differently by students because he was different.
It was more than just dirty looks. People made straight up assumptions about him, they didn't want to associate with him, and some of the few people who did only wanted to hang around him to get something from him. His father was made of money, not him.
These were things that crossed his mind as he stood in the locker room, the warm water of shower running over him. His hair fell around his face and stuck to his cheeks, a streak of purple hair clinging to the bridge of his nose as he lifted his head. He finally turned the water off, the tips of his fingers pruned, and he ran his hand through his hair as he moved back to the lockers to get dressed and fetch his things.
Drying and dressing, he sighed and slung his bag over his shoulder, slipping into his shoes and heading for the pool area. He hesitated at the door when he heard a large splash and quickly stepped out onto the slick tile floor.
The surface of the pool was rippling violently and as he headed to the edge he could see a dark shape floating to the bottom of the deep end. Tossing his bag off to the side, he kicked off his shoes and threw his glasses to the side before taking a swift dive into the water.
Through the slight haze of light and water, he could see a person gradually floating down. Their long sleeved black shirt was drifting up slightly in the water, their body wriggling a little, eyes closed shut. Without a second thought Eridan shot towards the other, wrapping his arms around them, and began to haul them to the surface. There were the stairs and he struggled somewhat with getting the other up and out of the pool; he was a swimmer, scrawny and made for speed in the water, he wasn't exactly a physically strong person in general.
Once he had brought the other up onto the tile, he could see now that it was a boy, dark shaggy hair, it was lucky he was a bit on the scrawny side or Eridan would have had a much harder time getting him out of the pool. Another thing that was apparent was that the boy wasn't responding. Wasn't this one of those times when you did that whole CPR thing? How did you even do that? Eridan stared for a moment, slightly panic stricken, before he leaned in and opened the boy's mouth, bringing his own to touch his.
Eridan wasn't sure what he was doing. He breathed into the boy's mouth, he put his fingers on the bridge of the other's nose, hell he even stuck his tongue in the boy's mouth.
And perhaps he was doing the entire process wrong… but it seemed to work, whatever he was doing, because the boy started and sputtered, pushing Eridan away and turning over to cough and hack. Eridan straightened up, staring, relieved, at the other boy.
"fuck thank god youre alright i thought you wwere a goner."
The boy, still hacking and coughing, looked over at Eridan, covering his mouth with his wet sleeve, and meanwhile giving him the meanest, bloodshot eyed glare that Eridan had ever seen.
"WHAT THE FUCK, YOU DO NOT JUST FUCKING STICK YOUR TONGUE DOWN OTHER PEOPLES GULLETS," the boy shouted between coughing and wheezing. Eridan blinked and winced.
"i-im sorry, ivve nevver done cpr before i just thou—"
"WELL LEARN JACKASS. I CAN'T BELIEVE I WAS JUST VIOLATED AFTER ALMOST DROWNING…"
"wwell you could at least fuckin say thank you"
Eridan furrowed his brows, staring at the other boy as he glared back. The other seemed to be contemplating the notion, like he was judging whether it was worth it or not to show any sort of gratitude. Narrowing his eyes, the boy finally huffed and leaned forwards a little, glancing up at Eridan.
"THANKS." It was reluctant but at least it was something. Eridan frowned a little and shook his head, standing up and offering his hand out to the other boy.
"wwhat wwere you doin in here anywway skippin an wwhistlin dixie" He rolled his eyes. "i think you wwin the prize for first person to evver fall in the pool youre lucky i wwas here"
"I WAS JUST LOOKING AROUND, FUCK. IS THERE A PROBLEM WITH THAT? BEING CURIOUS OF WHAT THIS PIECE OF SHIT SCHOOL LOOKS LIKE? I CAN'T BE CURIOUS?" He did take the hand that was offered to him, however, and got to his feet. His clothes stuck to his body and he looked down at the limp fabric in disgust, grumbling to himself.
Eridan eyed the other a moment.
"if you wwant" he began, uncertain if he should really even be offering - for someone who almost just drown, he wasn't very thankful for being saved, "theres a dryer thing in the lockers you can stick your clothes in an yknoww dry them"
The other boy glanced up sharply.
"j-just a thought" Eridan added quickly. There was a moment of silence before the other boy scowled and motioned to Eridan.
"WELL LEAD THE WAY ALREADY, I'M FREEZING HERE."
The two walked around the perimeter of the pool to the other side, Eridan grabbing his things and pulling his glasses back on before leading the way inside the locker room. It was warmer and it didn't smell so strongly of chlorine. However, Eridan did, he was going to need another shower it seemed. Though for some reason his lips didn't quite taste like chemicals this time around.
"its just ovver here" Eridan motioned for Karkat to follow, the two leaving wet footprints in their wake. "by the wway wwhats your name"
The other boy perked up a little, glancing reluctantly up at the swimmer with a frown.
"KARKAT. I ASSUME YOU'RE GOING TO TELL ME WHAT YOUR NAME IS EVEN IF I DON'T ASK AND EVEN IF I DON'T CARE?"
The swimmer glanced over with a frown and decided, instead, not to answer, leading the other the rest of the way in silence. He pointed to the machine, a box with a cylindrical hole in the center, like a very tiny washing machine.
"just put your wwet clothes in there an itll dry" Eridan moved away, running his hand through his hair with a small sigh. "though i dont really havve any clothes for you to borroww in the meantime so" He pulled his own shit off. "youll havve to deal"
Karkat, meanwhile, was staring after the other, eyes wide.
"DON'T JUST FUCKING STRIP IN FRONT OF ME! WHAT THE FUCK MAN?"
Eridan huffed and glanced over at the other, eyebrows knitted together. This guy had such a bad attitude.
"its just my shirt calm dowwn im goin into the showwer anywway you dont havve to see shit"
He pulled his towel out of his bag and tossed it at Karkat, sitting down on the bench and proceeding to take off his wet socks.
"get your clothes dry so i can do mine i dont wwanna be wwaitin here all day"
Scowling, Karkat copied the other boy's action, pulling off his shirt then sitting to take his shoes and socks off; not much to be done about his shoes. He glanced over at Eridan, who was putting his clothes into a little pile on the bench. When the swimmer looked over, Karkat was quick to hide his face in the towel he'd been given, drying his hair and stopping to run his hand through it. It was gross and greasy from pool water. He didn't notice Eridan watching him picking at the clumps of chemical ridden hair.
"if you wwant the showwers are free to use an if youre nice ill let you borroww my soap"
Karkat turned swiftly to glare at the other.
"I DON'T NEED YOUR SOAP." He stopped, realizing the harshness in his voice, and added, "I CAN JUST RINSE OFF IN THE SHOWER. …THANKS THOUGH."
Eridan paused, watching the other boy for a moment longer before standing with his wet clothes and moving over to the dryer. He put them in, and held out his hand to Karkat to take the other's clothes. There was a brief moment of hesitation before Karkat finally slapped the wet bundle into Eridan's palm and stood up, heading for the showers while their clothes were put in to dry.
"wwait"
Karkat stopped and looked back.
"WHAT?"
Raising a brow, Eridan motioned to the other with a nod of his head.
"wwhat about your pants"
Color rose in Karkat's face and his eyes widened, eyebrows raising.
"EXCUSE ME? AREN'T YOU MOVING A BIT FUCKING FAST HERE? I MEAN, FUCK, YOU SAVED ME FROM DYING, THAT DOESN'T MEAN I OWE YOU A LOOK AT MY JUNK YOU CREEP."
"i dont wwant to look at your 'junk' but either wway youre going to be pantless at some point might as wwell do it wwhile youre in the showwer so you dont have to sit here with me fuckin pantless because theyre in the dryer" Eridan rolled his eyes. They were in a locker room, guys got naked in front of one another all the time; being a swimmer, he saw a lot.
Karkat stared for a moment before cursing and moving around to hide behind the wall of the showers. He came back a moment later, towel around his waist, and his pants in hand, jerking his arm toward Eridan and looking off to the side. He hurried away after and Eridan sighed and put Karkat's and his own pants away in with the rest of the clothes and set them off to dry. He moved into the showers, noticing Karkat's shape through the steamed glass stall, and the swimmer decided to stand just beside it, turning on one of the shower heads in the more open area of the room.
There was awkward silence, the only noise being the running of water, tiny splishing of feet in puddles on the tile, and there was a little noise from Karkat. Eridan looked over, raising a brow at the hand that was poking out of the stall.
"….CAN I BORROW YOUR SOAP?"
"wwhat do you say first"
"FUCK. I MEAN, PLEASE."
Eridan handed the bottle over, adding, "dont slip" before going back to his shower. However it wasn't long after that there was some crashing and swearing from inside the stall. The swimmer looked over swiftly, seeing a foot sticking out from under the stall divider and he hurried over, pulling the curtain open in one swift motion. Karkat was sprawled across the floor, hair and body still covered in soap suds, swearing, his eyes clenched shut.
"god wwhat the fuck are you okay you are just not havvin a good day are you" He moved in, hooking his arms under Karkat's armpits, and hoisting him up to his feet - with a little difficulty, being a weakling and having soap under his feet. He helped steady Karkat but came close to slipping right after, clenching the wall and Karkat's arm at the same time to keep him on his feet.
Karkat was rubbing the tears from his eyes, fuck that had hurt, and he glanced up at Eridan, whose heart was racing from nearly falling. The pair soon realized just how close they were,naked and covered in soap and water, and they quickly parted, looking away. Eridan hurried out of the stall and moved back to his shower head, his face burning and his hair falling down into his face again. Seemed they were both having a pretty weird day.
Once Eridan found himself finished with his shower, he turned the water off and took his towel off the wall hook, drying and wrapping it around his waist. He looked to where Karkat was standing in his stall and heard the water turn off.
"you done" Eridan asked, watching the other boy step out. Karkat didn't look at him.
"I WAS WAITING FOR YOU TO FINISH, FUCKASS."
Eridan winced and slowly followed after, stepping into the locker room and going to check the dryer. Still running. He looked over to where Karkat was sitting on a bench, arms on his thighs and looking off to the side. Eridan sat beside him, taking a similar pose, looking down at his toes.
"are you alright" Karkat didn't look over. "i mean you almost drowwn an then you fell do you feel alright should i take you to the nurse or somethin"
"NO. I'M FINE. STOP ASKING."
Eridan fell silent, wiggling his toes a little, lacing the digits together as he pondered.
Karkat's voice broke his thoughts apart.
"YOU NEVER DID TELL ME YOUR NAME."
"its eridan eridan ampora"
"ISN'T YOUR DAD ONE OF THE TEACHERS?"
The swimmer shrugged.
"yeah i guess swwim coach i wwas practicin earlier wwhich wwas wwhy i wwas here wwhen you fell in"
There was another moment of silence.
"ARE THOSE CLOTHES FINISHED DRYING YET? I'M FREEZING MY ASS OFF."
"a feww more minutes"
"FUCK… FINE."
Silence again.
"…ERIDAN, RIGHT?"
Eridan looked up, noticing Karkat had finally move a little, his gaze now positioned on Eridan's feet.
"yeah"
"THANKS FOR SAVING ME THERE. I THINK I PROBABLY… NEVERMIND. JUST THANKS."
Karkat's eyes drifted up and met Eridan's, who smiled gently. There was a beep as the dryer finished and he looked over and stood, retrieving their clothes. He handed Karkat his and took his own, moving away to start getting dressed. He didn't look while Karkat dressed himself, and only turned when the other said it was okay. After collecting his towels and packing up his stuff, they seemed ready to leave finally. As they walked out into the pool, Eridan idly walked on the interior, keeping Karkat away from the edge, heading for the exit.
Just before they opened the door, chlorine thick in the air, Eridan spoke.
"maybe ill see you around again" He glanced over at Karkat, who was finally looking at Eridan without contempt. "hopefully not at the bottom of the pool though"
"HA HA, REALLY FUNNY." Karkat scoffed but it wasn't as angry as it had been earlier. He seemed to have calmed down. "YEAH, MAYBE WE'LL SEE EACH OTHER AROUND. I DUNNO, I JUST FUCKING MOVED HERE, I DON'T KNOW ANY OF THE PLACES OR ANYONE HERE. FEELS FUCKING MASSIVE."
"its not so bad" Eridan shrugged. "if you wwant wwe can meet up some time an i can givve you a tour around the school you clearly need some kind of supervvision so you dont almost kill yourself again"
"FUCK YOU." Huffing, Karkat opened the door and stepped out, followed by Eridan, who stopped just outside and watched as Karkat began to stomp away. However, the angry teen stopped suddenly and he hesitated for a moment before turning around swiftly to glare at Eridan.
"…I KNOW HOW TO GET TO THE LIBRARY. I HAVE A FREE PERIOD TOMORROW BEFORE LUNCH. IF YOU WANT." He didn't wait for a response before starting off again down the hall.
Eridan watched the other's retreating figure, staring until the other finally disappeared around a corner, and then he began to walk. Well this was certainly an unexpected way to end his day; the nicest part was that his lips didn't taste like chlorine.
