One Yesterday Chapter 10: I'm Latching Onto You, a free! - iwatobi swim club fanfic

Chapter 10: I'm Latching Onto You

Makoto had enough time to appreciate the traces of dim lights scattered about the hallway. This was a particularly isolated hallway that could become crowded and then isolated in an instant. When it was isolated, boy was it isolated. No living soul walked around this area and when Makoto spoke to Haru as they walked to practice, his voice would echo along the walls. Sometimes when he waited for Haru, he would utter random words to himself just to hear the echoes, all to relieve his boredom. But perhaps being bored was much better than what he had coming that day.

"...um...Tachibana-kun..." An apprehensive voice lightly echoed along the empty hall, surprising the distracted Makoto. The voice belonged to a young female student.

He looked about him and noticed a girl standing beside him. Makoto immediately stood upright and faced her properly, not expecting someone to talk to him at all. "Oh hello," Makoto hastily replied. That's right. Makoto knew her.

She was a classmate from his homeroom.

He remembered her clearly. She had a small head and charmingly short golden-brown hair. She was of average height, just short enough to fit him perfectly. Her waist was small, her breasts round and just right. Her hips were the same width of her breasts. His classmates often referred to her as being cute with a very "voluptuous" personality. Whatever that meant. Not only was she physically beautiful, she was also kind, proper, feminine and very capable. She was the class beauty. However, he didn't remember her name to his dismay. He felt guilty about that, but he couldn't summon the courage to ask her name. Not when everyone in homeroom knew it.

Her emerald eyes were large and apprehensive. Her lower lip quivered insecurely with the rest of her body. Why is she so tense? Makoto wondered. He didn't bite. If anything he had a reputation for being the most polite boy in the class. He could only wonder why she wasn't more confident in herself. Wait...is she going to-?

"I just wanted to tell you something...important," the young woman continued, fidgeting and avoiding his gaze as if she had done something embarrassing. Or as if she were about to.

"Sure, what is it?" Makoto replied, wanting to make the situation as light as possible. She looked like she was ready to faint at any moment.

"Well," she continued, twirling the short ends of her hair, "I...I've noticed you in class a lot and I've come to like your personality. You're so kind and polite. I really like that about you and I know this will sound blunt but…I think I'm falling for you every day." She then summoned the courage to look straight into his eyes and she stated in a slightly louder voice, "Please, will you go out with me?!" Her voice faintly echoed throughout the hall.

Makoto froze for a moment. For a second, he thought she was going to bow. Or worse yet, kneel down on her feet. Thankfully she didn't do that, otherwise he would've felt like a heartless person if she would've done something like that.

But at least now, it was slightly easier to reject her.

"I...well," he began nervously as well, not liking the prospect of breaking another girl's heart, "I'm flattered by your feelings but..."

"Please wait!" The girl abruptly interrupted. This is a surprise, Makoto thought. After she recomposed herself, the girl continued, "I know what you're going to say. For some reason or another, you always reject any girls love confession, don't you?"

At that, Makoto fell silent. She had hit the hammer right on the nail. This girl was more observant than he realized. He wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing, but what she said wasn't wrong. The truth was, for some reason or another, he never accepted any confessions from girls. He didn't want to break their hearts. It wasn't that he hated their confessions or their feelings. He simply…could not accept them.

He didn't want to sound arrogant but now that he was in high school, he often got many confessions from girls. They were mostly from his grade, but sometimes he got confessions from girls of higher grades. It was flattering, but he never wanted to go out with them. He always declined their confessions as politely as possible. Eventually, it became a habit. But now it seemed that this girl had caught on with his habit.

Makoto gulped lightly and answered honestly, "yes. That's true. It's just that..."

"You don't have to explain, Tachibana-kun," she said, "I understand you have your reasons. But please, won't you think about it? At least give it a thought for five days! That's all I ask for. If you really don't like me then you can reject me on the fifth day, but, I beg you, please think about it."

Makoto wasn't sure how to reject her when she was being so earnest. She was such a beautiful girl, she was wasting her efforts on him. But at that instant, Makoto began to wonder, why was he the one hesitating? If he thought she was beautiful, if he knew that she fitted him perfectly, if he was aware that the class beauty was confessing to him, why was he already thinking of rejecting her? And it wasn't just her. There were other beautiful girls he had already rejected. Was this habit of his so embedded that he wasn't thinking about the person's feelings even if he told himself otherwise? Did that make him…an asshole?

Suddenly, a laugh echoed in his head. A familiar laugh. His mind formed a familiar face of a certain boy. Crimson hair. Volcanic red eyes. Prominent canine teeth. An impish grin. This was Rin's face. He was staring right at him with his impish smirk. It was kind of funny, however, since Makoto didn't always remember seeing him look so malevolent. The Rin in his mind moved his lips and mouthed a sentence Makoto had not forgotten to this day.

'You really like Haruka, don't you?'

Makoto didn't like the way his face looked. More importantly, why did he still remember those words after such a long time? He decided that there was no time for this. What was he thinking about of all times?!

Makoto cleared his throat, clearing his mind from the distracting thoughts. He didn't want to lie to this girl. But maybe it was okay to give her a chance. When the girls began to form an even more concerned look on her face, Makoto finally managed to speak one sentence before the door of the classroom beside him opened.

"Okay, I'll consider it."

"This girl…she confessed to me," Makoto announced, both stopping midway as they opened the doors to the locker room. The two boys stood still in the entrance of the locker rooms. They said nothing. They simply stared at each other. Makoto quickly became unnerved. He could only gulp as he tried to read the other boys unreadable gaze. Was he surprised? Was he angry? Was it taking him a moment to process the information? What was Haru thinking at this point in time? Makoto's mind rolled with these questions. But amidst all this wondering, Makoto noticed something about himself that he had never noticed before. Why did the prospect of Haru being hesitant about this matter make him feel...excited?

That was the bluntest way to phrase it but Makoto could find no other way to phrase his feelings. In that case...were these truly his feelings? Did he really want Haru to feel that way? If so, why? He didn't understand himself, but the more the staring contest went between each other, the more awkward this situation was. Makoto immediately regretted his decision. But as he opened his mouth to change the conversation, something odd occurred.

Haru's lips lightly curved into a smile. It was…strange.

"That's great," he finally said, "congratulations." And then he walked ahead of him, heading for their lockers. Now Makoto truly did regret his decision. Makoto simply stood there, unmoving. Then as he forced his legs to move, his body felt heavy. No. It wasn't his body. It was his chest. His chest was heavy. His heart was heavy.

Before, if Makoto had to choose a particular day to lose his head over the worst thing Haru had ever done to him, he would've thought about it for a long time until he had no choice but to say "no." After all, Haru had never done anything to wrong him. To this day, Haru had always been a good friend. Sure, he wasn't always talkative. On bad days, he wished Haru would say more than what he usually said. But luckily for him, he often had good days. That is...until now.

Now, if Makoto truly had to choose a day in which his heart ripped into a million pieces because of Haru, today would've made the cut. But why was he so upset? More specifically, why was he so upset over what Haru had said?

None of this was making sense to him.

As he stood next to Haru, he noticed something a little strange. Haru seemed different. He didn't mean the way he acted now. He had noticed that part of him a long time ago. This time he meant physically. Did he lose a little weight? Was he always this lean? No. He had simply grown taller. But...at what point did he grow?! Haru said nothing as he pulled his shirt over his head, his back facing Makoto.

Huh. He had never noticed what a pretty back Haru had. The curve of his spine that ran down his body was perfectly aligned. The perfect lines that were carved on his back made it seem like an angel. Like his perfectly sculpted shoulder blades which might as well have had wings growing out of them. The lines marked around his tailbone. But the most intriguing part of his back was probably his nape. Just there, Makoto could see the small bumps of his nape as Haru leaned down to pull down his pants. Underneath were the unmistakable black and purple swimming trousers which Haru had taken a liking to. Ever since they started their freshman year, Makoto noticed that Haru took up a couple of new habits.

For starters, he bought a new pair of black and purple swimming trunks. Since then he only bought swimming trousers of that style. Secondly, he always wore them underneath his pants. Thirdly, his parents were not usually home nowadays, so he began cooking for himself. The only thing he cooked for himself was mackerel, however. Fourthly, every morning before school, and sometimes in the evening, Haru would soak in the bathtub while wearing his swimming trousers. Fifthly and lastly, Haru's body was changing right before him. He knew that wasn't a habit. That was inevitable and yet for some reason, Makoto could not understand why he hadn't noticed earlier.

"Tachibana!" An abrupt voice disrupted Makoto's train of thought. It was none other than coach Sasabe, who had left middle school coaching to coach in Iwatobi high school. What a twist in fate. "What are you doing standing there like an idiot?! You're late one more time with Nanase and I'm making both of you swim extra laps, got it?"

It was then that he realized he was still in his uniform. His shoes were not even off yet. How embarrassing! Makoto was about to say something when Haru spoke up. What a surprise.

"How are you liking your new role as high school coach?" Haru asked, his expression same as ever, "All that screaming must be taking its toll on you."

It was a bold statement and Makoto expected the coach to yell at him for being insolent. Instead he began to laugh as if he had made his day. Sasabe then patted Haru's back, which mostly meant he slapped his shoulder with his heavy palm. "Good one Nanase!" He replied with laughter in his eyes and face.

Now that was the coach Sasabe he remembered.

Soon the coach stopped laughing and stated, "Being a high school coach is tough. You have to yell at the youngsters. You have to keep track of papers and plan events. It's more responsibility than I would prefer. Middle school coaching was easier."

Makoto interjected, "but isn't that what adults do in general?"

"What a great mouth you have there, Tachibana," Sasabe retorted bitterly, "I hope you'll be out of this locker changed and starting the warm up with the others in approximately...two minutes and ten seconds." As irresponsible as coach Sasabe was when it came to paperwork and organizing, he proved to be one of the best coaches when it came to it. Makoto was not dissatisfied having him as a coach. He knew that Haru felt the same way. Sasabe was firm and kept his promises

On that prospect, Makoto hurriedly began taking off his uniform. Sasabe laughed and began walking away. However, he stopped and inspected the two boys. Makoto looked at the coach and asked, "Is there something wrong?"

Sasabe said nothing at first. But then he grinned and stated, "You two go way back, don't you? I remember when I first coached you two. You were still short, skinny punks. Not that that has changed about you, Nanase. You're still a skinny punk. And short too."

"That's because Makoto looks taller standing next to me," Haru simply replied, his pride clearly hurt.

Sasabe laughed and replied, "Is that right? But you might have a point actually, Nanase. Tachibana here is pretty tall, isn't he? He's almost reached my height!"

Huh? Is that so? Makoto wondered incredulously. For all he knew he felt the same as always. But now that he mentioned, Haru was a deal shorter than he remembered. And his size. Everything about his and Haru's body fit perfectly. And then an image appeared in his mind. That's right. He had thought the same thing about the girl from before. Wait! Wait! What was he thinking about now of all times?! Did he really just compare Haru to a girl?!

"I'm not surprised you haven't noticed," The coach continued, "most people don't notice their own assets until someone else points them out. I mean, I may be old but I will think I look twenty until someone mentions I'm thirty-seven!"

"And you sure act like it too," Haru muttered.

Sasabe only laughed at his remark as he walked out. "By the way, Tachibana," the coach remarked in a louder voice.

"What is it coach?" Makoto asked.

"You and Nanase have one minute."

The day was growing darker as the shadows seemed to stretch toward infinity and the Orange sun slowly descended toward the other side of the world. The sky had a plethora of tints and hues, from pinks to oranges to purples. It was quite a beautiful sight. But as expected, Makoto and Haru had ended up staying longer doing extra laps.

Makoto knew that Haru didn't mind. He lived for swimming after all. Plus, swimming with him wasn't so bad. If anything, he was so used to it that every time they left the lockers, Makoto dreaded getting home. Parting to each other's houses was getting harder and harder by the day. The notion made him feel ridiculous however, since they saw each other every day. When did he start feeling this way? Since school began? Before? Something must've been wrong with his mind.

As they walked, his mind could only linger on what Haru had said earlier. 'That's great, congratulations.' That was what Haru had said and for some reason, Makoto was unnerved. He couldn't put his finger on it but he felt more defeated by that statement than he felt "congratulated." It was as if a spear had pierced right through his chest and then through his back. Seriously, what's up with that?! He thought annoyed. What was he thinking about now?! First in the locker room, now in the middle of the sidewalk? Could his mind be any stranger today?!

He sighed inwardly and then his gaze shifted to the quiet Haru, who had not said anything since they left the pool. In fact, he wasn't even looking at him. He was looking at the ocean, like he did every time they walked to and from school. This wasn't a habit he took up recently. This was something he did for as long as Makoto could remember. It seemed that they were an odd pair of friends after all.

But then again, this was their nature. Haru had always been the defensive type, never speaking unless absolutely necessary or if it was about the matters of water. As for him, he was just so used to Haru's presence that he didn't need to guess what he was thinking unlike other people. Somehow, despite that he wasn't the eloquent speaker, Makoto liked this side of him. They didn't need words to understand each other.

At least that was what he used to believe.

Ever since the incident with Rin in middle school, it had become harder to read Haru. There were times that Makoto had no idea what Haru was thinking. Or who he was thinking of. Nowadays he felt as if he were further away from him, despite that they hung out on a daily basis. And nowadays...he was in his mind more than usual. But the worst part was these thoughts of him were troubling his mind. Just watching him stare at something mundane like the ocean made him feel...insecure.

This was the first time he had used that word to describe his relationship with Haru.

And the more time passed between them, the more insecure he felt. At this moment in time, what was Haru thinking about? Now that he thought about it, did he truly understood what he was thinking? How could he be so sure he understood him? This wasn't the first time he questioned himself and his innate ability to "read" Haru. It was almost like back in the incident with Rin, where he questioned their friendship for the first time since they had their first fight. And that was also a long time ago. This was a blunt thought, but with Rin gone, Makoto noticed that their relationship was back to the way it was before. And yet why did that make him feel sad?

Even more now, he felt uneasy. His mind felt like speaking on its own. He wanted to clarify something to Haru before he had the wrong idea. "H-Haru," he said, getting the other boys attention, "about that girl..."

"What is it?" Haru asked, seemingly surprised that he was bringing up the subject again.

"I just wanted to tell you that I'm not actually dating her," Makoto continued. He felt like a person trying to convince their lover that they weren't cheating.

"Oh?" Haru said as the two walked along, "Is that so?"

Makoto explained to him the situation. It was a beautiful girl from his class that had decided to ask him out. But she saw through him and in a sense forced him to think about it for five days. "Yeah, she's very cute, too. It's Furukawa-chan from my class," Makoto explained.

"I have no idea who she is." Clearly Haru wasn't impressed. He simply walked alongside there and listened to him, turning his head to look at the bright orange ocean next to them.

And yet, for some reason, Makoto found himself speaking a little louder than usual. And a little bolder, too. "But I'm not going out with her, I'm actually not that interested in her to begin with," Makoto continued nervously, "I was going to reject her at first, but she asked me to think it over. I think she caught on with my habits and stuff."

But Haru wasn't amused. He didn't laugh or react for that matter. Instead, he looked at Makoto's face for once, albeit his gaze was somehow...distant. His friend asked him, "Why do you reject every girl that asks you out?"

There wasn't any judgment in his voice. Simply curiosity.

And yet, Makoto didn't know how to respond. "Well," he began, trying to find a good reason himself. But in truth, what was his reason? He could go on and on about how it was a habit of his, but that justified nothing, did it? Using a habit was not a reason, simply an excuse. Did that mean that he was using his habit as an excuse to wriggle out of those situations? On that prospect, Makoto felt like the worst human being alive.

But that was the least of his problems. The haunting voice was overwhelming his other thoughts. 'You really like Haruka, don't you?' All he could hear was Rin talking in his head, the promise ricocheting inside his brain. "It's just that none of them really seem to know me that well," Makoto replied.

"Well, isn't that the point of dating? To get to know each other?" Haru remarked.

He would know. Makoto thought a little bitterly. He wasn't sure why he had felt that way.

"Yeah, that's true but I'm always busy, so I don't even have time to think about that." He laughed again, brushing off the issue.

But Haru wasn't fazed. Instead, he looked back at the ocean. He didn't shift his gaze from it as he said, "I think you should do it."

"Do what?"

"Give her a chance."

In that moment, Makoto felt his heart break into a million pieces again. Rin's promise ricocheted louder and faster. But…why?! He wondered desperately. "I'm not…sure," Makoto replied as they went up the stairs leading to their homes.

Haru wasn't pressing the issue but the more he spoke, the more Makoto felt dejected by his words. "Maybe you're just not sure because you're always rejecting everyone without giving them a chance," Haru stated, "I'm not sure about your reasons, but it's possible that it's time to give someone a chance. See you tomorrow."

And with that, his childhood friend parted ways and went the up the rest of the stairs. He did not look back once. But Makoto knew he wasn't trying to be rude. That was just how Haru was. But knowing this, why did Makoto's heart ache a bit?

The words echoed in his mind again. 'You really like Haruka, don't you?'

That night was filled with nothing but nightmares. From random swirls to dark sceneries to distorted people. In his dream, Makoto ran around from a dark shadow that loomed over him. Except that no matter where he went, the shadow would follow him. This shadow had no other form. The only thing distinctive about it was its red eyes. The monster had red eyes.

And no matter where he went, it was always there, waiting to attack him. Makoto could only wish this nightmare could end soon. He'd give anything to wake up soon. But he didn't. His mind remained tortured by the stalking shadow, its hissing voice and the ricocheting promise.

'You really like Haruka, don't you?'

That phrase repeated itself time and time again. At this point all Makoto wanted to do was block it out. But as he covered his ears, the promise only repeated itself by his eardrums.

'You really like Haruka, don't you?'

Makoto ran away in the darkness, with his ears covered. Not that it was of any use, since he could still hear it loud and clear. But he feared that if he uncovered his ears, that the loudness of the phrase would eventually make his ears bleed. But that wouldn't be such a bad thing, would it? After all, he was sick of hearing that phrase.

'You really like Haruka, don't you?'

The voice was distorted. It was eerie. It made Makoto's skin crawl. Whoever was saying this had nothing but malevolence in his voice. But…how did Makoto know it was a he? Why did he assume that the shadow was a male? For a moment, he hesitating and slowed down his pace, he ventured to look behind him. His gaze was met with the red gaze of the dark shadow, who stretched his arms toward him, urging him to come to him.

'You really like Haruka, don't you?'

No! Makoto screamed, but no voice came out. Completely driven by fear now, he only kept running in the darkness, feeling the rocky ground beneath his feet, but nevertheless seeing nothing but darkness. It was more than he could stand. He quickened his pace, wanting to lose the monster as soon as he could. He wanted his voice to stop echoing.

'You really like Haruka, don't you?'

And then he saw it. Just beyond the horizon. He saw the sea. The moon shimmered above it and he could see its reflection on the calm, unmoving sea. Not stopping once, Makoto took everything off. His pajama shirt, his pants, his socks, his underwear. Everything came off and he found himself running naked toward the edge of the cliff. But the shadow did not slow down one bit. If anything, it had gotten much faster, and its voice echoed like a broken record.

'You really like Haruka, don't you?'

The voice continued to violate his ears, until Makoto dove from the cliff and found himself falling and falling. In that moment, he felt peaceful as he looked up and saw the shadows gaze rest upon him. But there was something different about this gaze now. Makoto had no time to think about it when his body broke through the ocean's surface. His body sunk to the bottom, and it wouldn't stop sinking. Makoto moved his arms, wanting to swim his way out of there. But he was not reaching the surface. He felt a tug on his foot and he looked down. There was nothing but darkness below him and a dark tentacle had caught his ankle. It was the shadow! No…that wasn't right. This shadow was different. This one had lifeless eyes, like a person with cataracts. This shadow was much more frightening, and yet…it wasn't as bad. This shadow wasn't chasing him. It wasn't saying anything. It was simply pulling him down. Makoto couldn't breathe. His chest hurt. He closed his eyes. And yet it felt so much easier to do what this monster was urging him to do. To simply fall into the darkness. To become blind to everything. To deny everything.

But…deny what?

His eyes suddenly popped open and he found himself flailing his arms, realizing that the surface was much further away than before. He screamed and shouted but could only see the bubbled foaming about the salty water. Whatever this darkness was, he didn't want it anymore. He wanted to reach the surface! He wanted the light of the moon. And then, he felt it on his wrist.

The firm grip of a solid hand which had caught his wrist. The hand was dark and transparent, it could've been a ghost. But then Makoto knew exactly what it was. It was the same shadow with red eyes. With an incredible force, the shadow pulled him away from the darkness until they reached the surface and suddenly, everything became light.

It took a moment for Makoto's eyes to adjust to the light. But once he opened his eyes, he found himself staring into the eyes of the shadow. Except, this was not the shadow.

It was Rin Matsuoka.

Rin was standing right before him. Makoto was confused momentarily. But the scenery around him did not feel unnatural, it felt familiar even. The dazzling trees in spring. The chilly breeze that left his cheeks red. The gate of the school. And then Makoto remembered. This was the very spot he and Rin had last spoken. When he first said those words. At this point, however, Rin was just looking at him judgingly. Was he angry with him?

"R-Rin…" Makoto was surprised to have found his voice was there. He had expected nothing but an empty echo.

But Rin said nothing. He merely frowned at him until he opened his mouth and stated, "You know what your problem is?"

Makoto had expected him to say the words "You really like Haruka, don't you?" and was very shocked to hear those words instead. Not that they sounded like Rin. They sounded slightly robotic, as if he had heard them before. "Huh?" Makoto could only utter.

"You never do what you want," Rin replied, as if repeating recycled words.

"What do you mean?" Makoto asked.

And finally, Rin did something more Rin-like. He smirked. It was a smirk that made him feel nostalgic. Now he truly felt like he was talking to Rin. "You need to stop finding excuses," Rin replied, "after all, you like Haru."

It was the same as those words. But they were different. They weren't a question. They were a statement. He liked Haru. He liked Haru. He liked Haru!

Makoto wanted to say something to Rin. But his world was turning brighter and brighter. Everything was slowly enveloped in white. The trees. The ground. The school gate.

Until finally, the only essences left were Makoto and Rin. But Rin had no intention of staying. Just like in his memory, he turned around and began to walk away for good. But Makoto didn't want that. He didn't want Rin to disappear like that time.

"Rin!" Makoto cried out, "You don't have to leave! You could stay with all of us!"

Rin craned his head to look at him. His smirk was gone. Instead, on his lips was a genuine smile. But it seemed…sad. And quickly, the lightness enveloped him as well. Makoto could only watch as he mouthed something. But he never learned what he said at that moment in time.

Makoto flailed out of bed as he forced himself to wake up. The sun shined brightly inside his bedroom. His bed was a huge mess with the sheets scattered about everywhere. He must've been moving a lot that night. Frankly, he didn't remember much about what he had dreamt last night. But something did remain embedded in his brain and heart.

Now he finally knew what the right thing to do was.

"I see," the girl muttered disappointedly, "but you didn't even wait five days like you promised! You said you would think about it." He had asked her this morning to meet him after school by Haru's homeroom. Not one day had passed since he had promised to fulfill her proposal. But he was determined. Nothing could change his mind at this point.

Not even himself.

"I'm very sorry," Makoto replied, "But I'm afraid that there's nothing to think about."

"Then I suppose it can't be helped," she stated, "Could you at least tell me, Tachibana-san?"

"What is it?" Makoto asked kindly.

"Well…do you like someone else?" She asked shyly.

Makoto's lips curved into a smile. "Yes, that's right."

She gasped, seeming to be upset. "T-then why didn't you just say that when I asked you?" She demanded, her anger threatening to boil.

"I'm sorry," Makoto apologized again, "I didn't realize I was in love with this person until recently."

The girl asked, "Well, since when?"

Makoto watched as Haru stepped out of his classroom with the other students. He knew that they would be late as usual to practice. They would have to do extra laps. Then they would go home later than the other boys. But that was fine with him. Because in the end, he liked him. It turned out that shadow in his dream was not a monster. But that shadow was also not Rin either. It took Makoto a while to realize it, but ultimately, he discerned that Rin and the shadow were actually himself. He had been denying his feelings all along. Apparently it took a severe nightmare like that one to understand his complicated feelings for Haru. And now, his mind was made up as he saw the slender boy wait for him, his blue eyes resting upon him

"Since this morning."

Epic A/N: I. Fucking. DID IT! I finally published something! Oh my god. For a moment I thought that I would never get past this chapter and that I was going to end up discontinuing this story. I gotta tell you guys about the HELL I had to put up with this chapter since the last time I update. I owe you at least that much. So last time I updated, I started working on my other fanfics because I had left them alone for a while, then there was university stuff blah blah blah. I was actually very excited about exploring how Haru's relationship with Makoto would evolve while Rin is gone off to god-knows-where ;) At first, I was pumped up about writing in Makoto's POV and writing about how he realizes his feelings for Haru. But as I came back to this fic, I couldn't come up with anything. My mind was failing me and I just reached a wall! like a BAD wall, because i couldn't crack it for months! It was so bad that I actually THOUGHT of posting some shit chapter even though it's been a long time since i last updated. On the worst case scenario, I was going to stop updating altogether. But I simply couldn't do it. I worked too hard on this story to just abandon it so early on. Finally, seeing I HATED everything I had typed so far for this chapter, I erased EVERYTHING and started this chapter over. It was then that I realized that I had forgotten what Makoto was feeling in this chapter. I know that sounds very strange, but I base my writings off of emotions and I put a lot of effort into them. In any case, I stopped caring about the number of words, the plot and everything and I just wrote what Makoto felt in this chapter. And finally, I came up with this! I hope you all like it and I hope you see the effort I put into it :) I had also promised shorter chapters but after not seeing from me for so long, you all deserved a long chapter (if I still have any readers left xD)

Now...for those of you worried about this fic turning into a Makoharu fanfic, don't worry about it. I have everything planned out between the Free boys. If this were a Makoharu fanfic, I would've made them the main pairing x) however, the reason I write a lot in Makoto's perspective is because he's an important character in this arc and I have no intention of making him seem flat or ooc. I have no intentions of portraying him as a villain that's getting in the way of Rinharu. I simply want to portray what the Makoharu fanbase seems to love about makoharu which I truly respect to an extent. Also, I want Rin to be a mystery to you guys ;) so don't worry. You will see more of Rin very soon. Much sooner than you might think. Thank you all for reading and I hope that this chapter was genuinely decent. Til next time.

Song Title: "Latch" by Disclosure ft. Sam Smith