Free! doesn't belong to me. Neither does High Speed!

This fic was written for the RinHaruWeek 2015 (Day 1, blue).

They didn't say I'd love you more

.

There were many things no book or movie had ever told Rin.

They always talked about nerves, about the excitement of becoming one with your partner (how could they be so corny was a mystery for Rin); but they didn't say anything regarding the embarrassing conversations that would precede that moment, or about the technicalities they'd have to solve before doing anything and the stuff that need to be prepared if they wanted to do things right.

And even though he knew it was silly, Rin couldn't help but feel a bit resentful towards the dozens of stories he'd read for nothing. If he had known, he wouldn't have made a fool of himself and Haruka wouldn't have laughed so much. As if he knew any better.

(Although Rin kind of loved the sound of Haruka's laughter, those little noises he made at the back of his throat and tried to hide turning his head to the side with a hand over his mouth.)

But it... hadn't been bad. It had been awkward, sure, but a lot less than That One Conversation they'd had some weeks ago, the one that started with a blunt I want to have sex with you as Haruka offered him tea. It had been short, when Rin considered how long it had taken them to find a rhythm that fit their bodies, hearts and minds, but Haruka's drowsy, tiny smile didn't seem to mean it had been terrible.

Another thing fiction didn't talk about was how messy it was afterwards. Rin prided himself on having thought about it beforehand, at least, and despite Haruka now looked like he didn't want to move for the rest of his life he'd agreed to clean up a bit.

Usually, Rin would have tried to come up with something to say, something to fill the silence that only some stray cat's meowls broke. But not only he felt like sleeping for a week; it was incredibly comfortable laying next to Haruka on his bed, with his hand loosely curled around Rin's ring finger. Rin wasn't sure if it was just the weariness, or if Haruka, too, was enjoying the little eternity they had created in his bedroom.

But the air felt light and Haruka kept looking at him between increasingly slow blinks, keeping Rin's smile in its place. And Rin couldn't bring himself to feel embarrassment, not when his chest was flooded with affection.

It was Haruka the one who spoke first. And as per usual he didn't say anything that Rin was expecting:

"I want to play Deep Sea Crossing."

Rin frowned. Tried to speak. Emitted a breathy, inarticulate sound, then another one when Haruka brushed red strands off his face.

"N-Now?" he eventually forced out of his throat.

Haruka huffed, sitting up and looking around as if he had suddenly forgotten how his own bedroom looked.

"If I play for thirty days non-stop my character will level up and it'll be able to explore deeper parts of the trench." He sounded irritated when he let go of Rin's finger, as if it were Rin's job to know how that absurd videogame of his worked.

"I still can't believe that game is real."

Haruka's look was more than disapproving. He walked to the wardrobe and threw some clothes at Rin's face after a short search.

Rin wasn't surprised when he found their –at this point he had earned the right to call it his– Northern Stoplight Loosejaw-kun t-shirt, long-sleeved version. It surprised him, though, that Haruka pinned him back into the bed after they were both in their unusual pyjamas. He giggled at the tickling on his neck.

"What, do deep sea fish turn you on?" he joked between sloppy kisses, freeing his wrists to pull Haruka closer. The red that had slowly faded from his face returned, making his cheekbones stand out even more.

"No, but apparently slow swimmers do."

The retort got his lower lip caught between Rin's teeth until the redhead decided kissing his jawline instead.

"What about your game?"

Haruka pulled back until he was straddling Rin's hips and looked at the clock on the headboard, pensive. "Today has still some hours left," he decided before bending over Rin again.

Rin kissed his smile, making it wider with every brush of his lips. It was almost endearing, watching Haruka's half-lidded eyes, too stubborn to close them and miss anything even though every caress made it harder for him to keep looking.

Eventually they found themselves out of breath and pulled apart for some seconds. Rin hugged Haruka closer, taking in how bright the oceans in his eyes looked against his flushed face, the way strands of dishevelled black hair seemed to stick out in all directions. He supposed he didn't look any more composed; his cheek felt as red as Haruka's looked, and he couldn't supress that stupidly happy grin that mirrored the one before him.

"Stop staring," Haruka ordered. Rin flicked him in the nose. "Ah–"

"You look the same." Haruka tilted his head to the side, his smile changing to a confused frown. "The same as when I got here, I mean." Rin knew he wasn't being clear; it wasn't as if Haruka would understand, anyway. He had probably never read about how sex was supposed to make one an adult; and the more Rin thought about it, the more absurd it seemed, something that, like everything that afternoon, was different from what he'd believed.

Haruka blinked.

"I am the same as when you got here."

(He was the same, indeed: eyes that kept skies hidden behind apparent indifference, a storm disguised as quietness and a complete lack of awareness about opinions he didn't ask for. The only difference was the calm in his posture, as opposed to the nervousness he had failed to conceal earlier.

The same way Rin had; it was good to know that even Haruka got nervous sometimes.)

Rin smiled and raised his head for a new kiss.

"I thought so," he replied, running his fingers up Haruka's sides just to make him squirm and muffle a quiet laugh into his lips.

And it wasn't as if he had much more experience on these fields than Haruka (because books and movies, he decided, didn't count), but Rin could tell those kisses weren't as desperate and furious as before; that his hands now didn't want to sneak under Haruka's shirt, but just hold him close. That Haruka's eyes weren't clouded with hunger anymore.

It had been so hot before that now they just wanted to bask together in their quiet warmth.