Gou sits by the side of the pool with Amakata-sensei. It is one of their first practices and both women are lounging under Amakata-sensei's umbrella. Gou watches as the boys arrive, stretch, and start warm-up laps. She tries to not stare, but it isn't easy. She can't help but appreciate how fit and athletic they are.
"Hey, Gou!" Nagisa shouts at her from the end of the pool.
Gou's head whips around to where Nagisa is pulling himself up and out of the water. She likes Nagisa a lot most of the time, because he is funny and enthusiastic, but he can also irritate her faster than any of the other boys. She has stopped trying to get him to call her Kou, because it is an impossible feat.
When Gou ignores Nagisa, he just comes over to her. He has a towel wrapped around his neck and he is motioning to the pool. "I'm supposed to help you get out the lane lines out since we're timing today."
Gou nods and follows Nagisa into the storage room. There are several stacks of boxes. Nothing is labeled, and honestly the entire room is a disaster area.
Gou wrinkles her nose at the mess. "This place needs cleaned up."
Nagisa is already digging through a couple of the boxes and searching behind shelves. He stops long enough to wink at her and say, "Sounds like a job for our team manager."
Gou glowers at him and thinks about throwing a kickboard at his head, but Nagisa holds up a large box. "Found them! Here, you take this other one."
Nagisa stacks a box in her arms and the two of them go out to the pool to set things up so they can time a few races. When Gou is done she just looks at the door to the storage room and shakes her head. It is far too hot to clean that out right now. She decides to come back in the morning before school when it's cooler.
Gou goes to the office to retrieve the pools keys the next morning. She is dressed in her gym clothes so she doesn't get her uniform dirty or sweaty. Amakata-sensei is sitting at her desk reading a book. Gou taps her on the shoulder and asks for the keys, but Amakata-sensei just shakes her head.
"Nagisa came by a while ago and took the set. I think he went to clean out the storage room," Amakata-sensei says, and then drifts back to her book.
Gou is confused. Nagisa had clearly delegated the work to her, but he also came to clean it out. Gou wanders down to the pool and sees the gate open and boxes stacked around the entrance to the storage room.
"Nagisa," she calls out when she steps into the pool area. She doesn't receive an answer and puts down her school bag that had her books, homework, and uniform inside.
"Nagisa," she tries again, and finally sees him as he carries out a stack of kickboards and sets them on the ground.
He looks up and his eyes get wide. "Gou-chan," he murmurs, "What are you doing here?"
She glares at him. She really hates her name. It is so masculine sounding. Kou is so much nicer.
"What?" he asks when Gou doesn't say a word.
"Call me Kou," she says. She knows this is pointless, but she reiterates her preference anyway. She punctuates her point by putting one hand on each of her hips and giving Nagisa her most serious of looks.
"I can't call Gou-chan that. Gou is Gou-chan."
Nagisa says this so earnestly that it is hard to stay mad at him. Still, Gou doesn't back down.
"Kou is what I prefer," she says, and moves her hands from her hips and chooses to cross her arms over her chest instead. "Gou is a boys name."
Nagisa pouts a little. "Nagisa is usually a girls name, but you don't see me complaining." Then his face lights us. "Besides, I really like Gou. It suits you."
Gou's eye twitches a little, and she kind of wants to strangle Nagisa, but then she looks and sees how he has already cleared out much of the storage room. There is a trash bag sitting in the middle of the room and it is already half full.
Distracted by this, Gou mumbles, "I thought you said it was my job to clean out the storage room."
Nagisa wanders back into the storage room and grabs one of the few remaining boxes. "Yeah," he calls out, "But you do a lot for us already. I didn't want to overwork you."
As if she was that weak. "I can handle cleaning out a storage room," she says as she stomps into the room and takes the box from Nagisa. "I am not some weakling."
He laughs and grabs the trash bag and follows her back out. "No, Gou-chan is definitely not a weakling," he says happily and sets the trash on the cement.
"Kou!" Gou shouts and drops the box to the ground. She startles when she hears the contents jingle and she hopes she hasn't broken any equipment.
"Kou is a girl who is weak. Gou is a girl who is strong," Nagisa says in a soft and resolute voice. Nagisa almost sounds completely different than the energetic boy who aggravates her to no end.
Gou also notices how Nagisa looks at his feet while he says this. He blushes and then Nagisa snaps out of his mood and shoots her a wide, toothy grin.
"We should finish up," Nagisa says. "Classes are going to start soon and we still need to go change." He motions at their clothes, and she realizes he is wearing his gym clothing as well.
Gou nods and peeks into the storage room. "What should we do now? It's all cleared out."
Nagisa holds up a roll of tape and a permanent marker. "We're going to organize the boxes, label them, and then put them back on the shelves. We have..." he checks his sports watch. It is his waterproof one he uses to time himself in the pool. "We have 34 minutes until classes. Think we can get this done?"
He smiles at her and motions toward all the boxes sitting on the cement. Gou raises her eyebrows and shrugs.
Nagisa and Gou finish all but two small boxes. Gou had pushed them into the storage room and told Nagisa she would get to them at practice.
Today's practice is lively. Between making sure the boys stayed hydrated, getting the necessary equipment from the storage room, and running an errand with Amakata-sensei to the hardware store; Gou doesn't have time to finish going through the last two boxes, so after the boys go into the locker room to change Gou steps into the storage room to finish cleaning up.
"Just take the keys to the office when you are done," Makoto tells her as he waves and heads for home and Haruka trails behind him, looking longingly at the pool he is leaving behind.
The last two boxes are full of random stuff and Gou isn't really sure what to do with it. Were these items even necessary?
Gou startles when someone puts a hand on her shoulder. She turns around and holds her hands in front of her in some ridiculous karate pose.
Nagisa snorts and points at her. He also can't seem to stop laughing. "What...what is that?" he asks through broken breaths and errant giggles.
"That is how I would kick your butt if I needed to," she says in all seriousness. Okay, she probably couldn't kick anyone's butt, but she would darn well give them hell anyway.
Nagisa laughs harder when she explains this to him. He can be such a jerk sometimes. Gou chews on her lip, it is a habit she does sometimes to abate her temper. Her mother is always mentioning how she should find someway to calm herself, and some crap about being more ladylike. Well, she thinks, maybe her mother and father shouldn't have named her Gou if they wanted a docile daughter.
Gou realizes this may be the first time she is grateful for her name. Usually she is loathe to admit her name might suit her, but today she embraces it.
"Gou-chan," Nagisa says, and there is still lingering laughter in his voice. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, Nagisa," she says, and she realizes she answered to Gou.
Gou wants to glare and spit fire at Nagisa, but something stops her. Something about Nagisa and how he smiles when he says her name makes her pause.
"W-we should finish this and get the keys back to the office," she says and turns her attention to the last two boxes.
Nagisa kneels down on the ground beside her and helps her decide which of the equipment to throw away, and where to sort the stuff they keep. At one point they both reach for an old stopwatch and their hands brush. She pulls her hand away and blushes hard.
She looks over at Nagisa to see if he noticed her reaction, but he hasn't. Gou then realizes Nagisa is only wearing his swimming trunks and team jacket. Also, his jacket is unzipped and his bare chest is right there.
"Excuse me, Gou-chan," Nagisa apologizes for bumping her hand. He moves to pick up the stopwatch and then tosses it over into a different box.
Gou doesn't answer, she just keeps her eyes glued to Nagisa's bare chest. She wants to look away, she really does, because if she gets caught gawking at Nagisa's body it is going to be really embarrassing. She tries, but Gou just can't.
How had she not noticed this before now? She usually is taken aback by the beautifully sculpted triceps and abdominals of the boys on the swim team. And honestly, she has never been so near to any of them while they were in any state of undress. Nagisa is so close to her that she could reach out her hand and touch his abs if she wanted. She could run her fingers over Nagisa's hard, lean stomach. Even with him being the youngest and smallest member of the swim team, Nagisa is still an athletic marvel.
Finally, Gou averts her eyes and she picks up an old flyer from the box and tosses it toward the trash bag. Nagisa pulls a few more things from the box, and soon they have emptied it. They move to the second box and sort through it quicker than the first.
"All done," Gou says and brushes her hands together a few times and then gives Nagisa a big smile. She stands and reaches for the keys, but Nagisa was doing the same thing. For the second time their hands brush. This time, when Nagisa's fingers flit over her own, he reaches out and takes her hand into his.
Gou is confused at first, but then Nagisa pulls her hand close to him. "Gou-chan..." he murmurs and looks at her with the strangest expression. Gou would say she didn't know what it was, but shes does.
Nagisa-who always looks as if he is out to wreak havoc on the world, because he is the classic innocent troublemaker type who can get away with anything-is looking at Gou earnestly and there is a softness in his expression that surprises her.
"Haz...uki..." she whispers as he steps towards her and leans in slowly.
Gou isn't surprised when warm, slightly chapped lips press against her own. She lets Nagisa kiss her. She wants him to kiss her.
Gou instinctively leans into him and Nagisa's hands reach tentatively around her waist and pull her body flush against his own. Gou chokes a little when she realizes she is pressed against his bare skin.
His mouth moves away from hers, but doesn't go too far. She feels the air on her lips as he asks, "What? Are you okay? Did I do something wrong?"
Gou shakes her head and looks at him. His cheeks are so red. Even the tips of his ears are reddening. She giggles and leans in to kiss his lips again. He smiles against her mouth and kisses back.
They kiss a long while. Gou lets Nagisa press his tongue into her mouth. She melts as he gently rolls it against her tongue and then nibbles at her lips playfully. He finally pushes away from her breathless. He gives her a sheepish look and makes space between them. Gou isn't sure why until Nagisa pulls his team jacket around his front. She looks down, and then realizes he is covering himself.
She could die. She could die right now, because Gou realizes too late that Nagisa is attempting to hide a very obvious erection. Not an easy thing to do while wearing a swimming jammer, mind you.
"It's okay!" she blurts out. Nagisa glances down at his own crotch and looks mortified. Calling attention to it probably isn't the smartest thing Gou could have done, but that's just the kind of person she is.
Nagisa's fingers pull at the edge of his jacket's hem, desperate to stretch it lower to hide his arousal's bulge.
"It's okay," Gou says again, calmer this time, her voice steady and soothing. However, she is blushing and her face is just as red as Nagisa's. She reaches for his hands, the ones gripping the edge of his jacket and pull them to her.
Gou's gossips about everything with her best female friend. This includes sex and boys, and yes, even erections. Gou might be a little embarrassed about this, but she isn't clueless.
Gou leans in and kisses Nagisa. He freezes, like he isn't sure what to do. His mouth doesn't move against hers, and she reaffirms, "It's okay," and guides his hands around her waist.
She can feel the long, calming breath Nagisa takes as he allows himself to once again pull close to her. Gou notices the heat of his body through her clothing. Gou is wearing her school uniform. Her jacket is sitting outside atop her bag. It was too hot to wear it throughout the entire practice, but even with it off, here in the storage room with Nagisa the temperature feels stifling.
He kisses her again, and this time it is an urgent, needy kiss. His fingers grip Gou's hips and pull her against his body. She gasps when she feels his arousal pressed firmly against her abdomen.
"This is okay?" Nagisa asks her. His mouth is trailing kisses along her jaw and then his lips press tenderly into the crook of her neck. He sucks at the delicate skin of her pulse point and she gasps.
Nagisa stops when she makes this sound, but she wraps her arms around his waist and pulls him close and whispers, "This is fine, Nagisa."
His fingers flex possessively when she says his name. He groans into the skin of her neck and his hips push against her body. He whispers again and again into her skin, "Gou...Gou...Gou," and Gou's only response is to try and pull him closer to her.
Her entire body is warm and her knees feel weak, like they won't keep her upright for much longer. She thinks how ridiculous that is, until she notices Nagisa trembling against her as well. Nagisa, a capable, strong athlete is shaky and groaning.
Gou smiles and likes that she has this effect on Nagisa. It emboldens her, and with this new found braveness, Gou pushes away just enough to maneuver her mouth to the hollow of Nagisa's collarbone. She licks the skin and sucks on it gently. Nagisa tastes a little like sweat and chlorine, but he also smells of summer and sun and tastes warm and Gou wants more.
Nagisa laughs and then groans and finally lets out a small moan.
"Please do that again, Gou," he asks.
Gou is surprised by Nagisa's request. She presses soft kisses to his bare chest. She makes her way downward. She brushes her lips gently against his pecs and she even flicks her tongue over one of his nipples. Nagisa gasps and Gou can't help but be a little mortified. Did she really just lick his nipple? And did she actually like it?
Nagisa's fingers pull at her shirt and untucks it from her skirt. His fingertips press under the shirt hem and carefully explore the soft skin of Gou's waist. He slowly moves his hands upward until his fingers bump the silky material of her bra. He cups a hand over one breast and gives it a tentative squeeze. She gasps and moans as he becomes more bold. Nagisa pushes her bra up until her breasts fall loose. His fingers gently squeeze and pluck at her nipples.
There is a warmth that floods Gou's body and she feels dizzy and warm and sated. Nagisa leans in and captures her mouth again and he kisses her hard. It is a needy, sloppy kiss, but Gou matches it.
She feels as Nagisa repositions his hips so that his arousal is more against her hip and thigh. One of his legs is now between her own and she grinds down on it, trying to relieve some of the building pressure.
Gou, thoughts clouded with need, can't find it in herself to be embarrassed as Nagisa's right hand moves from her breast to her skirt. He wedges his hand between them as their bodies grind against each other. His fingers work between the apex of her thighs. His fingers tentatively stroke atop the fabric of her panties. The friction feels wonderful and Gou shakes and gasps as her head rests against his chest. The pleasure builds and then ebbs slightly and then explodes.
"Nagisa," she moans.
"Gou," he answers and she feels his hips jerk. She holds him close as he shudders.
The two of them stay close together for quite some time. Nagisa presses a light kiss to Gou's forehead.
Gou wonders-Now what? Did they really just do that? Did Gou really just...what did she just do with Nagisa? Gou starts to panic, but Nagisa keeps his arms tightly around her and repeats what she said to him earlier. "It's okay, Gou. It's okay."
Is it okay? Is it really okay that they did this? Gou finds it hard to think when Nagisa leans in and kisses her again. It is soft and sweet, and his lips linger on hers.
Nagisa continues to hold her for awhile, then he moves away and looks at himself. "Um, I need to go change," he says as he looks down at himself. There is a wet stain in the front of his jammer, and Gou understands and nods. They both flush red at the same time.
Nagisa heads for the locker room and Gou notices how his hair is sweaty and plastered to his forehead. There are several red patches on his chest, one is even blooming into the dark purple of a bruise. Oh geez, did she do that? Did she really give him those hickies? Gou covers her face with her hands. What kind of pervert is she?
From the doorway Nagisa says, "Wait for me. I'll walk you home."
Gou isn't sure they even live in the same area. But it is sweet. That's the kind of thing boyfriends do. Then she inwardly groans. Is Nagisa her boyfriend? Or did she do all this with a boy she isn't even dating? Gou feels awkward and silly. How will she ask Nagisa if they are dating? Gou worries over her thoughts for a few minutes. When Nagisa returns she isn't any closer to understanding.
"I'm ready," Nagisa says, tearing Gou from her thoughts. He is changed into his school uniform.
Nagisa is still acting less boisterous than normal, and he barely looks her in the eye. What if he thinks badly of her? Especially when she was so forward.
Nagisa walks over to Gou and takes her hand. Then he leans in and kisses her cheek. He pulls back like he isn't sure if he was supposed to do that.
"Nagisa..." she starts, but can't really find the right thing to say. "Um..."
"I like you," Nagisa interrupts. He says this confidently. He grabs both of her hands and squeezes them, as if this will help make his point. "I really like you. I've liked you for awhile now."
Gou blushes, but she doesn't know how to respond, so she just let's Nagisa keep talking.
"I remembered how I used to like going to Rin's house in elementary school when he and I were in swim club together. It was because you were there, and you'd always help me tease Rin. But I also liked teasing you, because it was fun, and you'd always get mad."
Gou remembers this. She always liked all of her big brother's friends, even Nagisa. Nagisa was always this strange mix of delight and aggravation to be around. It is even like that now to some extent.
Nagisa looks at her expectantly. Gou isn't sure what he is waiting for. His face becomes serious when he asks, "Gou, do you like me too?"
Gou scrunches her eyebrows at Nagisa. Of course she likes him. Sure, he is infuriating sometimes, but he also goes out of his way to make her smile, and help her clean the storage room, and help her set up the lane lines, and he picks her up a sandwich at the cafeteria at lunch when the lines are really long.
"I do like you, Nagisa," she says and then kisses him on his cheek, just next to the corner of his mouth.
Nagisa looks relieved. His grin gets so big that Gou can't help but mirror it. He is really cute when he smiles, Gou realizes.
"And," he begins, still grinning from ear to ear, "Do you like me enough to be my girlfriend?"
She laughs at his silly question. The fact that she was worrying about this just moments before makes it funnier somehow.
"Yes, I'll be your girlfriend."
He jumps up and pumps a fist in the air excitedly when Gou tells him this. She laughs at Nagisa's jubilation. He smirks at her and declares, "Gou is officially my girlfriend."
Gou shakes her head and giggles. What exactly has she gotten herself into?