(A/N: We get some Rin in this chapter! More notes at end of chapter)

Disclaimer: Free! does not belong to me.

It Has Always Been You

Chapter 4

It's been three weeks since Haru left. Rin has been a total mess. He scared away the one person he'd ever loved. He's tried calling and texting Haru, but he hasn't been answered once. He doesn't even know where he went. His mind immediately jumped to Makoto, but they hadn't talked in years. Because of Rin. He knew this was his entire fault. He misses Haru more than anything. He needs to win him back. He'll stop at nothing to get his boyfriend back into his arms.

Haru was lying on the couch in the place he now called home. He felt safe, for once. It's been two years since he felt like this. He knew what was happening. He was slowly falling for Mako. While the feelings had been there before he chose Rin, he had ignored them, convinced they were only one-sided. He saw the way Makoto looked at him, now, however. While everyone else around him looked at him with pity and sadness in their eyes, Makoto looked at him with pride and, no doubt about it, love. Makoto was proud of him. He constantly told him how strong he was, how not many people could've survived through the pain of being hurt by someone they thought loved him.

Haru had thought he was done with seeing Rin. He thought that when he didn't reply to any messages, Rin would get the picture. Apparently, not. A knock came on the door, disrupting Haru's peace. He got up and walked to the door, glancing through the peep hole. He froze as he saw who was on the other side. Hesitantly, he opened the door.

"Rin.." He mumbled, trying to avoid eye contact. He desperately wished the Makoto was home. He wasn't ready to face Rin, not by himself at least. "Come in." Haru stepped to the side and gestured for Rin to come in. Rin stepped in and looked around as Haru closed the door. "Why are you here?" Haru demanded, giving Rin a cold stare.

Rin sighed, looking back at Haru. "I miss you, baby. These three weeks have been hell without you." He reached his hand out to caress Haru's cheek. The second his hand touched Haru's face, Haru flinched away. Rin looked wounded, dropping his hand back to his side. "I'm sorry. God. I just miss you, so much. I hate that I hurt you. I feel so terrible about it." He looked at Haru, who stayed silent. "Please say something.." Haru just stared at the ground. Next thing Haru knew, he was pinned against the wall and Rin's lips were on his, kissing him fiercely. Haru whined and put his hands on his shoulders, trying to push him away. Little did they know, Makoto was about to walk through the door.

Mako had gotten off work early, happy to be able to go home and be with Haru. He was improving, and Makoto saw it. He was glad that Haru was opening up, talking to him more. They'd caught up on everything over the last two years, and there were no hard feelings harbored between them. He got to the house and immediately knew something was off. There was an unfamiliar car parked outside. He shrugged it off as nothing, thinking it must have been someone at the neighbors. He walked into the house, looking down as he slipped his boots off. "Haru, I'm—" Looking up, he saw Rin and Haru, in what looked like a passionate kiss. Rin finally gave up and let Haru push him off, keeping his head down with a smirk smeared across his face.

"Makoto, this isn't what it looks like. He- I-" Haru was at a loss for words. Feeling like he was going to be sick, Haru pushed past Rin and ran to the bathroom, unsuccessfully trying to keep his sickness at bay. Rin just snickered, picking his head up to smirk at Mako.

"Little knight in shining armor, eh?" Rin remarked. Mako clenched his fists, trying to stay calm. He didn't know what to believe about Haru right now, but seeing Rin made his blood boil. Especially in his house, kissing someone he definitely didn't deserve.

"I think you need to leave, right now." Mako hissed out through clenched teeth. He had never felt angrier in his life than right now. Rin just shook his head, letting out a bitter laugh.

"He'll come back to me, we both know it." Rin smirked. "He's naïve. I show him the love he craves. It's just a matter of time." He laughed and walked past Mako, hitting his shoulder with his. It took every shred of self-control Makoto had to not turn around and punch Rin. It wasn't until fifteen minutes after Rin left that Haru finally came out. Makoto had left a bit after Haru came out, just saying he need time to breathe. Haru felt terrible for what happened. He can't help but wonder what would've happened if Makoto hadn't walked in at that time. Would Haru have left with Rin? Of course, he still loved him. But it was a deranged, sick kind of love, and Haru knew that. How could he possibly love someone who had hurt him so much? And then Makoto was here. He was perfect, and practically everything Haru had ever dreamed. Haru was so confused, so he did what he knew best. He put on his swimsuit and sunk into a warm bath, letting the water calm his nerves.

Makoto went out for a drink with Rei, the one person he could confide in and know he'd get no bullshit back. They were sat up in their favorite little bar, Makoto nursing his third drink. He felt bad for leaving Haru at home alone, especially after Rin was there, but he knew he needed to let himself calm down, or he'd take out his anger on Haru. While Makoto was never a physical person, he was very verbal, especially when he was angry.

"God, Rei, I don't know what to do anymore. I love him so much, but he's still all about Rin. I know that's all he can think about. And that kiss looked pretty fucking real to me." Mako gushed, taking a long sip of his drink afterwards. Rei just looked at him and frowned, pushing his glasses up on the bridge of his nose.

"You've just got to tell him, Makoto. He's never going to know how you truly feel if you keep it locked in." Rei looked up at Mako, pursing his lips a bit. "And drinking won't help either of you, so don't make this a habit." Makoto sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.

"I know, I know. And you're right. I just need to man up, and tell him how I feel." Mako smiled slightly and then frowned, letting out a whine. "How am I supposed to do that?" They spent the next ten minutes just discussing ways for Makoto to let Haru know. He ultimately decided on just sitting the boy down and talking to him—much to Rei's dislike, because that confession was much less beautiful than his other, extravagant ideas. They parted from the bar, Makoto thank him profusely and telling him to tell Nagisa he said hello.

Makoto got home as fast as he could. He came into the house and slipped his shoes off, calling out for Haru. Frowning when he got no reply, he went around the house, looking for him. He couldn't find him anywhere, so he assumed he just went out for a bit. While making his way to his bathroom, a paper on the bed caught his attention. He walked over, and found it was a note from Haru. As he read it, he felt his heart breaking into pieces again.

"I've gone to Rin's. Not sure how long I'll be there, but I needed to talk things out with him. Thanks. For everything.

-Haru"

(A/N: Don't hate me! I needed something to stretch the fic out few chapters, because I was running out of ideas and I didn't want to end it so soon! I promise there will be a happy ending. There will be Rin x Haru in the next chapter, obviously. It will be flashbacks mainly, for their part. Some fluffy and maybe some a little darker. Might add a snippet of smut. But thanks to everyone following my story! You guys are the reason, I'm continuing on with this! So I hope you enjoy this chapter. Next couple will probably be out next week! After that, I start school (August 5th) so I won't be able to write much, but hang in there and stay with me! Okay, enough of this long authors note. Love you guys!)