The request

Today, he was going to do it. Rei inhaled deeply, then stood from his school desk. The blue-haired swimmer had thought about it long and hard, and his mind was made up.

He could leave the school unhindered. Nagisa-kun had an errand to run today, so the blonde boy had bolted the moment the schoolbell had chimed.

In the yard, Rei looked around to see wether anyone knowing him was around. Noone was. No trace of Makoto or Haruka either. The students heading for the gate were all people he didn't know. Good. The blue-haired boy slipped around a corner – into the opposite direction of his way home. Then he headed for a near bus stop, where a bus would take him to a certain school.

At Samezuka, he got off.

As expected, Rin was in the school's swim hall. Rei found him shouting stuff at the members of the Samezuka swim club. He seemed to have a fire, just like his predecessor Mikoshiba, but of a different kind.

,Ha ha, he doesn't look bad as captain, does he', the blue-haired swimmer couldn't help but think bemusedly.

Loud, he called out: „Hey, Rin!"

The redhead looked around. When he saw Rei, a grin broadened his face, exposing his pointed teeth.

„Yo, Rei. What brings a lone Iwatobi student into Samezuka territory?"

Rei grinned back, bemused at the jest. But then he got serious again.

„Actually", he said, „I came to talk with you about a matter that is important to me. Can we talk somewhere in private?"

Rin studied him for a moment, then nodded.

„Hang on a moment."

The captain of the Samezuka swim club bellowed a few commands to his team, what they were supposed to do in his absence, then waved at Rei.

„Come on. Let's talk in my room."

The blue-haired Iwatobi swimmer followed him through the corridors of Samezuka's living quarters, until they reached Rin's and Niitori's room. Since Rin's grey-haired room-mate was swimming with the rest of the club, they had the room to themselves.

„So, what's it you wanna talk about?", Rin asked and sat astride of his desk chair, leaning down on it back.

„Well…"

Rei looked around, trying to decide where to sit down. In the end, he found he preferred to remain standing. He felt more comfortable that way. For, despite his determination to pull this through, he suddenly had trouble to continue.

„It's like this", he went on hesitantly. „You do know that I am unable to swim, except for the butterfly style, right?"

„Riiight…" Rin frowned, puzzled.

Rei breathed deeply once, then looked at the redhead with a decisive look on his face.

„I want to change that. I want to be able to swim properly. However, I do not want to ask any of the other three, because, well, reasons. And I would kinda like to make a suprise for them out of it. The only person able to help me I could think of, was you, Rin. Please teach me how to swim!"

The red-haired captain of Samezuka stared at him, red eyes wide from perplexion. Then he grinned. He didn't know Rei as well as Haruka, Makoto or Nagisa, but he might yet get to actually come to like the guy. It took guts to admit one's weakness like that. And Rin liked the fire, the determination in those amethyst-colored eyes. Rei seemed prepared to go the extra mile to reach his goal. One that wasn't actually easy to reach in the first place.

Furthermore, there was kind of a debt he owed Rei, for what he did to re-establish and keep the Iwatobi swim club together. For enabling Rin's old friends to swim regularly again, and for helping them through the time when Rin had been mean to them, before he realised his mistakes.

„Very well. I'll do it." Rin's grin broadened a little more, giving him resemblance to a shark more than ever before. „But I still gotta ask: Are you sure about it? You'll have to work hard, and you can be sure that I WILL work you hard. Are you prepared to do this?"

„Of course I am!", the blue-haired boy replied without hesitation.

„Alright. From today on, daily, after school. And no backing down, no slacking off!"

There was a slight glint in Rin's red eyes that sent a shiver down Rei's spine. For a second, he had the image of a shark's maw closing around him before his eyes.

,I'm totally gonna get bitten.'

But what he did was bowing and saying: „Thank you, Rin."

Then he left, in fact glad that things had gone so smoothly.

He was going to learn how to swim properly, and nothing was going to stop him from that. Not even a certain red-haired shark.