It has been two months. It is high time for an update. This chapter has been arranged and rearranged and just... If we waited for it to be perfect, we would never post it, and never get to the *less* troublesome sections. But now we don't have to worry-no turning back. Enjoy, or not.

We do not own Free! or any of these characters. We just like to think we do.

A Change in the Tide

"Oi, Haru-chan!" called out Kagari. "Do you have that new shipment checked yet? I'm running kinda low out here."

"I'm almost done," Haru replied from his spot in the back of the stand, his hands deep in a pile of mackerel.

"Alright, hurry it up!" Kagari commanded. Haru grunted in response.

Haru continued sifting through the fish, sighing. He wasn't particularly focused of them, however, and instead his mind kept drifting to the previous weekend and the night he spent at Makoto's house. A lot had happened that night, and Haru was still struggling to wrap his mind around it. It felt strange to be in the house that Makoto lived in, the room that he slept in. Makoto had seen Haru's apartment plenty of times, but it was a new experience for Haru to see what Makoto went home to every night. He had wondered about why Makoto had never invited him over or spoke much about his family, but he had figured that he would tell him something eventually, so he had decided to wait until Makoto felt comfortable.

Although he couldn't really say that Makoto was comfortable that night. Haru hadn't seen him act so anxiously before, with his stammering rants and tumbling apologies occurring every other sentence. It was amusing at first, but eventually it grew wearisome. Haru couldn't understand why Makoto felt like he needed to explain every reasoning behind his family's actions and words, or why everything justified an apology. Has he not seen Rei and Nagisa? Haru thought, biting his lip in bemusement. Talk about a justified apology. In a strange way, he could see a resemblance between his roommates and Ren and Ran, certainly in the way that Makoto acted around them and how they affected him. Maybe they're the equivalents of Rei and Nagisa in Makoto's life. He shivered at the thought, now beginning to understand Makoto's incessant waterfall of "sorry"s.

But despite his nerves and misgivings about meeting Makoto's family, he had enjoyed himself and had enjoyed being with them. Even though Makoto was a jumpy, nervous wreck, Haru could tell how close he was with his family, how close he had to be with his family. Haru knew that the situation they were in with Makoto's dad could have easily caused a rift and made the family fall apart, but instead of weakening, the Tachibanas had grown stronger.

While watching them interact, Haru felt guilty at the bridling feeling in the pit of his stomach: envy. It was not an uncommon emotion for him, having felt it at times when he went to Nagisa's house in high school, or when Rei's parents visited. But it was even stronger an envy with the Tachibana family, as their love and trust was obvious. He'd never had that. The closest thing he'd had to family were Rei and Nagisa, but they weren't blood related and he hadn't even met them until high school. Seeing families together pained Haru, reminding him of what he didn't have and surfacing memories he didn't want to remember.

However, Haru was surprised when the envious feeling began to subside as the dinner and evening progressed. He felt like he was actually being included equally and that, despite never meeting him before, Mrs. Tachibana and the twins treated him like he was a part of the family. They joked with and trusted him like he had eaten dinner with them every night for five years. It didn't really surprise him that this was the family Makoto had grown up with. The understanding and acceptance prevalent in Makoto's character was obviously instilled in him from a young age, probably by an example set by his parents.

Haru assumed that Makoto's dad was also of the same gentle, kindly caliber, based off of the family's obvious love for him. Makoto never talked about his own issues or struggles and only seemed concerned or interested in others', so it surprised Haru for the easygoing, lighthearted walls to finally come crashing down and to see the actual pain inside. It hurt him seeing Makoto struggling, but at the same time he was honored that Makoto trusted Haru enough to be willing to show that side of himself. Haru felt a surging wave of frustration at the unfairness of the world. Wonderful people like Makoto and his family didn't deserve any of what happened to them, and there was nothing they or Haru could do but accept it and try to move forward.

But there was another presence of guilt in Haru; a more crooked and uncomfortable one than the one regarding his envy. Images of raging flames and blaring sirens resurfaced with a wave of paranoia. Makoto confided in him and told him of his most painful secret, the one people had strayed from him because of, yet Haru couldn't tell him his. Or rather, the one that directly affected Makoto. Makoto had gotten over his fear of being left or pitied because of his dad's condition to tell Haru, but Haru was too selfish and cowardly to tell Makoto anything. He was absolutely sure that he would not stay with him if he knew. Haru couldn't picture Makoto calling the police and selling him out, but at the same time, he didn't know how Makoto would react to the news.

He didn't want to lose the only person he had ever he had ever… what? Liked? Liked seemed too informal a definition now, too commonplace. Whatever he felt for Makoto certainly pushed past the beyond the confines of mere "like" into something that Haru didn't have a word for. At one point, it could have been classified as a one-sided obsession and fascination, but with mutual feelings involved, Haru was lost. He now had new feelings he didn't really know what to do with, as they made him feel different around Makoto and changed how he acted. While sitting on Makoto's bed, he had a sudden desire for Makoto's skin to be in contact with his, more so than just holding hands or kissing. He hadn't had any idea how to convey this odd new feeling to Makoto, who seemed very uncomfortable around touching him in any way other than he had already done so. He didn't even want to share a bed with Haru, despite it being the only bed in the room. It almost seemed irrational to Haru; they were already dating, so what was he afraid of?

Haru had been trying to wave away his new emotions, considering Makoto's timidness, but it hadn't seemed to be working for him. The image and sensation of Makoto being on top of him, gently trying to fix his clothes, kept popping into his mind and giving him a rush of adrenaline. He had enjoyed Makoto's touch and felt disappointed whenever Makoto had fixed his clothing and stepped away, so Haru purposely kept messing it up just so Makoto would continue touching him. He thought that he'd given Makoto a pretty clear message that he wanted him to touch him more and given him plenty of opportunity, but Makoto remained painfully oblivious to what Haru wanted. Although, Makoto's light, innocent touch was soothing, and Haru found himself quickly lulled to sleep in warmth and comfort. He awoke underneath the covers of the bed early the next morning, a snoring Makoto on the floor below him.

Haru sighed, longing to spend time with Makoto again, who had been slammed with work all this week and unavailable (much to his constant apologies). Staring at the bucket of fish still before him, Haru's mind flashed with inspiration. He slipped off the gloves from his hands and surreptitiously pulled his phone out of his pocket, knowing that Kagari would probably kill him for using his phone while working. Not that Haru had ever really used his phone before Makoto, but he figured Kagari wouldn't appreciate it, so he typed quickly.

To: Makoto Tachibana

Do you want to go swimming again with me?

He quickly locked his phone after sending the text and put it back in his pocket, glancing behind him. After putting back on his gloves he immediately delved back into the fish, hoping to feel a buzz from his pocket.

That buzz didn't arrive until later that day, when Haru had finished up work at the fish market and was walking home. Blood pounding, he pulled it out to read it.

From: Makoto Tachibana

Yeah! I really enjoyed swimming with you last time! :) I finally have a day off on Sunday if that works for you.

Haru smiled and typed a quick affirmation before putting the phone away. He lifted his head, a new excitement in his chest. After that one time he had swam with Makoto, he had been looking for an opportunity to do it again. The combination of his two favorite worlds gave him a new feeling of exhilaration. Sunday couldn't come quickly enough.

"They won't get away this time."

Rin sighed, slamming the door of his car shut, switching on the flashing lights. He rolled down his window and stuck his head out as he backed out of the garage. Sousuke stood in the emptying bay, eyes full of fire and aimed at the ground. He was trapped in the swirling vortex of his own thoughts and hunger for justice, and the sight of him made Rin more uneasy than any arsonist. If they ever did catch the culprit, which Rin was starting to doubt they would, they would really have it in for them. Rin was fairly certain that if they knew Sousuke was investigating their case, they would have stopped with the fires a long time ago.

"We'll do what we can," Rin called, exasperated with the hunt already. When Sousuke didn't respond, Rin rolled up the window and turned the wheel, sounding his sirens. He sped off away from the city lights to the sight of the newest fire. Just please let this be the end, he wished, running a hand back through his hair. The case was going to be the death of him.

The call had come in at exactly 12:53 A.M., reporting that an old gas station had been set on fire on the city outskirts. half a mile from any currently operational businesses. Apparently it had only gone out of business two weeks prior, and still had active gas pumps. But, the very reason it had shut down in the first place was because of the lack of traffic to the area, making it the perfect place for the serial arsonist's next strike.

Naturally, Sousuke had completely flipped when he heard there was another arson strike, still an avid believer that their culprit was still out and active. Sousuke was just waiting for them to run out of the satisfaction from gaining whatever it was that they wanted, and decide it was time to demand more. Rin, however, was apprehensive, seeing how the strikes were so far apart. Arson did, despite their particular circumstances, still occur in the outside world-and not serially. Every instance of arson didn't automatically become a part of the serial case, no matter how badly Sousuke wanted it to.

Upon reaching the site, Rin pulled over his car and turned off his sirens. When he stepped out of his car, he immediately identified the Fire Chief, and headed over to talk to him.

"Thinking about reinstituting 'The Serial Situation' after this?" Rin yelled over the chaos around them, prompting Sasabe to turn around. After processing Rin's statement, he shook his head and pointed at the flaming gas station a hundred feet or so away from them.

"It's not their style," Sasabe stated, leaning over to Rin who by then stood by his side.

Rin surveyed the scene in front of him and nodded, grimacing. "Jesus," he muttered. Despite the fairly desolate location and characteristic time of the evening, Sasabe was right. Just the act of lighting a gas station seemed unintelligent and unlike the arsonist, who made a point of lighting buildings that wouldn't be very dangerous and have minimal damage. Rin noticed the fire squad was at a farther distance away, wary of a gas explosion. Even if the location wasn't enough to place the blame elsewhere, the style of this arsonist was sloppy and violent. The columns of flames were erratically placed around the station, some completely consuming pumps and others lapping up the sidewalk. It looked like some of the nozzles from the pumps were hanging haphazardly on the pavement while others were twisted around poles. The flames littering the ground seemed to be arranged in a sort of pattern and Rin wondered if the arsonist had written a message with the gasoline. The serial arsonist's style was much more clean and methodical, leaving the buildings looking virtually untouched, and it was clear that someone had done a lot of tampering with the station before Rin showed up. He groaned-Sousuke was going to be pissed.

"Dammit," Rin growled, gaze still pulled in by the flames in front of him. Sasabe tapped his shoulder and Rin tore away his focus to see three other officers and what appeared to be a very drunk man between them walking towards them. Rin crossed his arms. Of course a careless fire meant a careless culprit, and his co-workers had already caught them. If only Sousuke hadn't been so whiny when I was trying to leave, I could have caught him first… The officers directed the man over to a cop car and cuffed him before easing him into the vehicle. The man was certainly beyond reasonable alcohol consumption for the evening, and was belligerently yelling something.

He saw that one tall fireman walk over to Rin's co-workers to speak to them about something- what was his name, Tachibana? Tachibana gestured back at the fire, and the other police officers all sighed and looked annoyed. Rin frowned, curious as to what Tachibana had just said. He quickly walked over to the police car, and as he drew closer he heard Officer Nitori groaning.

"This dangerous a fire for that?" Nitori exclaimed, shaking his head. "You think you've seen it all…"

Rin stopped next to them. "What's going on?" he asked loudly, over the man in the back of the car still shouting vehemently.

Tachibana pointed back to the fire. "I think we can make safe bets about what his motive was," he said, almost chuckling.

Looking back at the flaming gas station, Rin saw something that he hadn't been able to see from his previous vantage point. What had just been strangely placed flames in almost a pattern, was now very clearly forming a word. Glowing in the darkness of the night, probably visible from a mile away, for all to see, was 'SLUT'.

"N' she wasn't even fuckin otherr men!" the drunk man yelled, finally managing to form a halfway articulate sentence. He swung his head out the open door of the car, letting it droop over the seat between the arms of the struggling officers. Wagging a finger, he directed his glassy-eyed gaze at Rin and he shouted,"She was fuckin otherr chicks!" before the officers gave him a final shove and slammed the car door behind him.

Rin sighed exasperatedly, rubbing his forehead. This was getting worse by the minute- not only was the fire obviously not from the serial arsonist, but it was from a drunk, angry middle-aged man leaving a message for his cheating girlfriend. Sousuke was going to be… well, Rin didn't want to think about that. He'd just avoid him for about a week to let him cool off.

A little explosion went off, making everyone jump. Tachibana turned to them, shouting "That's my cue!" before running back down to Sasabe and the rest of the firefighters. Watching the flames wave treacherously, Rin grimaced. At least I don't have to take care of that, he consoled himself. But looking back at the sweating, furious man in the back of the car, and Sousuke avidly waiting for their return, suddenly staying behind didn't seem so bad.

"You guys go on ahead- I'll take care of the stuff here," he told Nitori and the other two officers.

The two nodded and clambered into the car, flashing on the lights, while Nitori stepped towards Rin. "I'll behind stay with you," he told Rin, who opened his mouth to protest, but closed it when he saw the other car pull away, sirens blaring.

"Fine," he grumbled, walking back to his car to sit on the hood. Nitori scrambled behind and sat down next to him. The two sat in silence, watching the firefighters take care of the gas station. After about an hour, the fire was out. Rin and Nitori put up "do not cross" tape around the perimeter, and waited for the investigators and the second group of police to arrive. Once there was nothing more for him to do, Rin left and headed back to the station.

Rin tiptoed in through the heavy, metal doors, hoping that Sousuke was steaming alone in his office and wouldn't see him. Although Sousuke wasn't on his shift, Rin knew he would be at the station all night, unable to sleep. Sousuke was the ultimate workaholic. Often the other investigators and officers would joke that he didn't have anywhere to go home to, which was why he spent so much time at the station. Rin winced internally when he heard these jokes, and made sure never to relay them to Sousuke. He might not mind being called a workaholic, but homeless was another thing.

Rin's shift didn't end for another six hours, so he would have to be extra cautious to not attract the attention of Sousuke. He walked to the break room, glancing left and right for signs of Sousuke, and quickly slipped in the doorway, neck craned to watch behind him. He turned forward and his stomach suddenly filled with dread. Sousuke stood there, filling a cup of coffee.

He looked over at Rin, expression dead, and then back at his cup. Rin swallowed, glancing towards the dingy gray table beside him. He carefully took a seat at it, not wanting to seem like Sousuke's presence in the room was deterring him from whatever he needed to do, which it was, but Sousuke didn't need to know. It would probably piss him off, and he looked like he was pissed already. Rin sighed.

"I heard," came a low voice behind him. Rin tensed, accidentally biting his lip, which naturally started bleeding. Shit.

"Yeah, it was some crazy drunk guy who wanted to show the world his girlfriend was a whore, gas explosions and all," Rin muttered, trying to keep it casual. He didn't need Sousuke to notice how honestly scared he was of him. That would just make things worse. He heard Sousuke inhale, as if he were about to speak, but then he stopped. Rin turned around and saw him staring at the wall, idly swirling his coffee. The faint hum of the overhanging fluorescent lights buzzed in Rin's ears as he awaited a response. He flicked his eyes down to the ashy plastic table, his fingertips absentmindedly tapping a rhythm, and for lack of a better thing to do, snatched up his white styrofoam cup of water.

"I'm glad I don't have to deal with that," Sousuke said finally, making Rin sputter in the middle of his sip of water. Since when did Sousuke not want to deal with arson? Sousuke broke his staring contest with the wall and pulled out a chair across from Rin, setting down his coffee and leaning back in a stretch. The collar of his shirt tugged down to reveal a rare bit of his defined collarbone which Rin stared at dizzily, before snapping out of his trance just as eagerly as he had gone in.

"Wh-What?" Rin finally managed, remembering he was supposed to be having a conversation. Sousuke didn't seem to notice the stammer, taking a sip of his drink and clasping his hands together.

"A crazy, cheating girlfriend." Rin was glad he had stopped drinking his water because he was sure he would have spat it out again. When did we start talking about girlfriends? Right, right. The drunk guy with the fire and the slut thing.

"Well," Rin replied, leaning back to match Sousuke. "I wouldn't call the girlfriend the crazy one. She didn't exactly set fire to a-"

"I'm still glad I don't have to deal with it," Sousuke stated, cutting Rin off. He sighed and took another sip of his coffee. "What about you, Rin?" he asked.

Rin swallowed, eyes widening. It didn't feel like so much of an open-ended inquiry as it did a challenge. "Uh, yeah, I mean, it's nice not having someone make me want to set fire to an old gas station…" But it's not so nice having someone make me want to gouge my eyes out with a coffee stirrer. Rin eyed the coffee supplies across the room. Unless Sousuke gouges out my eyes first…

"Hmm, I believe you," Sousuke said, pointing at Rin with his pinky finger. "Women are crazy."

Rin let out a bitter laugh. "Like you know women so well," he jabbed, rolling his eyes. Sousuke chuckled.

"Maybe not…" he admitted, glancing downwards. "But I do know men, and I know you." Sousuke's eyes flickered dangerously as he met Rin's, making Rin immediately regret whatever he had done to deserve whatever was about to happen. Sousuke suddenly stood up and leaned forward on the table with his arms, pushing his coffee cup aside.

"Just earlier, I leaned back in my chair to stretch, which I never do, and you were staring-not looking, but staring." Sousuke raised an eyebrow, waiting for a response, but Rin simply squirmed under his gaze. Of course Sousuke would whip out some investigator shit on him. Sousuke was the single most observant person Rin knew, so some idle staring was sure to be detected. Sousuke had just decided to be all manipulative and pretend he didn't notice at the time. Damn him to hell…

"And I know for a fact that you weren't just staring because I rarely stretch," Sousuke continued, sounding more enthusiastic with every word. "No, the thought didn't even cross your mind. Your pupils dilated when you looked at me, the way they're dilating now, the way they have been dilating for the past two weeks when you've looked at me." Sousuke stood back and crossed his arms. "You're not just sexually attracted to men, Rin. You're sexually attracted to me."

Rin sat, gaping at the man before him, frozen by his accusations. Sexually attracted? To Sousuke? He kept trying to summon back his wits and say something snarky in response or at least not sit still like an idiot, but nothing was working. It was as if his mind had been shut off, trapping all thoughts from being carried through to action.

"Okay," Sousuke said, either not noticing or not caring that the walls of Rin's world were caving in around him. "Maybe that's not enough evidence for you, so I will now turn to various other, collected, specific events that support my case." Sousuke extended his index finger to symbolize the first, specific event. "When Nitori complimented my tie the other day, you purposely pointed out that it brought out my eyes, and then you blushed."

While Sousuke was talking, Rin had time to regain a bit of his composure, and the last comment sparked enough of his ever-present anger summon a snap back. "My eyes and hair are red. It always looks like I'm blushing."

Sousuke smirked, seeing right through Rin's excuses. "Let's move on to another example. Three days ago, you changed the wallpaper on your phone to a picture of the two of us at the department's Christmas party. And it's almost summer."

Rin shrugged. "Yeah, so what? It was a fun party. And what were you doing looking at my phone?!"

"I don't know," Sousuke spoke, words coming calmly and easily, unlike Rin's frantic retorts. "Maybe I saw it when I glanced over your shoulder while I was adjusting the flashlight holder on the back of your belt!"

"I was in a hurry and had to text Gou!"

"Yeah, right, like you couldn't have taken two seconds to fix it on your own."

Rin clenched his teeth, simultaneously wanting to punch Sousuke and disappear into thin air-he couldn't decide which would be more satisfying. He opened his mouth to contradict Sousuke, but Sousuke pointed his index finger at his face before he could say anything.

"Wait, this one is my personal favorite!" he exclaimed, laughing mercilessly. "You-" he stopped, choking on his own laughter. Rin's scowl increased. "Yesterday my shoulder was bothering me and I was rubbing it to relieve the pain, when all of a sudden you came up behind me and began massaging it for me!" His pale eyes twinkled menacingly. "And… I swear I heard you let out a little moan…"

Rin stood up, pushing aside his chair, anger roaring in his ears. Ouch! In his furious state, he accidentally chomped on his lip with his sharp teeth, causing another drop of blood to form and drip down the bottom of his chin. A metallic, bitter taste filled his mouth as he glared at Sousuke, who looked up at him with a raised eyebrow.

"You're bleeding," Sousuke said calmly, standing up. "When will you learn…" he continued, slowly sauntering towards Rin. "That kind of anger never leads to anything productive." He drew closer and closer to Rin, who despite himself, began to blush. Sousuke stopped about a foot away from him. "See?" he bragged. "You begin to blush the minute I come closer to you."

Rin scowled and exhaled sharply. "Yeah, I don't like it when people invade my personal space," he rebutted defiantly.

Sousuke moved a step closer. "Yet I don't see you moving away," he said slyly. He smiled wickedly at Rin, who only grew more flustered. Why am I not moving? he asked himself angrily.

Suddenly he felt a hand touching his chin. With wide eyes, Rin looked up to see Sousuke looking down at him cockily. "Look how dilated your pupils got at a little physical contact," Sousuke murmured, smirking. "Honestly Rin, I'm just taking care of the blood for you." He came even closer to Rin, putting them chest to chest. He slowly, torturously, drew his thumb along Rin's chin, swiping the blood off. Rin's blush, much to his despair, deepened, and his skin tingled where Sousuke had touched it.

"Oh Rin, there's no need to redden like that," Sousuke purred, his turquoise eyes jauntily staring into Rin's angry red ones. Even though the blood was gone, Sousuke's hand was still on Rin's chin, absentmindedly stroking it. Rin felt a jolt through his body every time Sousuke touched him again. He frowned at himself. Why am I frozen like this? he fretted. Why haven't I punched him yet?

Sousuke, still holding on to his chin, drew his face closer to Rin. Rin could feel his breath on his face, making his heartbeat quicken. Sousuke slid a finger underneath his chin, resting lightly on his neck. Rin desperately tried to ignore him and control himself, but for some reason he felt dizzy and weak.

"Look at that," Sousuke mused, glancing at his finger on Rin's neck. "Elevated pulse." Rin cursed silently. Of course he would think to check my pulse, he thought bitterly. But even he couldn't deny that his heart was beating faster than it should have been.

Sousuke smiled, his face almost touching Rin's. It was the smile he made when he had found a culprit, the gloating, "I'm better than you" smile. Rin stopped breathing for a second- he had seen that smile countless times before, but it had never made him this uncomfortable before. He suddenly felt blood rushing through his veins, going to a certain place…

SHIT. Rin began to panic, frantically trying to distance himself from Sousuke, but Sousuke kept his hand on his chin, refusing to let him move. Rin began to feel his pants tighten slightly. Oh no. He quickly tried to think of something to get rid of it. Something, anything! He racked his brain. And image of bowling pins at the end of a lane popped into his head. Bowling is the least sexually arousing thing on the face of the earth. He pictured the alleyway, young children screaming, and families cheering when some lucky bastard got a strike. The issue miraculously began to subside, and Rin breathed out a sigh of relief. But then, another image popped into his head- Sousuke awkwardly tossing the ball, getting gutterball after gutterball. Bending over in his tight pants, rolling his shoulder and… Immediately at the thought of Sousuke, Rin's problem returned in full force, pressing up slightly against Sousuke's leg. Rin shut his eyes and prayed for the ground to swallow him up. Well, this is where it ends.

Sousuke's eyebrows raised pointedly. "Oh…" he breathed, his face just inches from Rin's. "I'm just having a conversation here- what are you thinking about?"

Rin gritted his teeth, still a faint taste of blood in his mouth. "Fuck you," he snarled at Sousuke.

Sousuke chuckled. "Oh, wouldn't you like to," he said coyly.

After a few more moments of heated eye contact and willing away a certain issue only for it to grow stronger, Sousuke decided to take pity on Rin and release him. Walking back over to his original side of the table, Sousuke scooped up his coffee cup and carried it with him out of the room, completely disregarding the interaction that just took place.

"I'm still pissed about that arsonist," Sousuke muttered as he exited-a statement to which Rin could only respond by dropping his jaw and standing stunned, feeling violated somehow. He had wanted Sousuke to leave him alone, but… He sighed and glanced down at the uncomfortably obvious bulge in his pants.

Damn you boner-killers forever being ruined by Sousuke's shitty bowling skills…

Makoto swam to the wall of the pool. "It's getting kind of late," he said, looking back at Haru, who was still swimming with ease. They had opted for a more… free… structure to their time in the pool this time, which Makoto hadn't minded at all, except it led to Haru being even more sucked into his aquatic world than the first time they had gone swimming. Nevertheless, he still got quite the workout trying to keep mildly close to Haru as he twisted and twirled through the water, barely surfacing to take a breath before diving right back in.

"Oh," mumbled Haru, a look of disappointment flashing across his face. Makoto laughed. Just as expected.

Makoto pulled himself up onto the deck of the pool, water dripping off of him into tiny puddles on the floor. He walked over to the towel he had set out earlier and picked it up before turning back to Haru. "I'm going to go change," he announced, nodding his head toward the locker room and hoping that his words would somehow reach Haru through his pool-induced daze.

Thankfully, Haru seemed to register, and he nodded. "I'm going to swim another minute longer,"

"That's fine," Makoto replied, smiling and wrapping the towel around his shoulders.

He turned away and walked into the dingy locker room. After drying himself off with the towel, he opened the blue locker where he had put his stuff and pulled it out. He looked at the clothes for a second before becoming all too aware of the chlorine on his skin and hair. He glanced back into the darkness of the back of the room where the showers were. If Haru was still going to be a while… It couldn't hurt, he thought. Dropping his things, Makoto headed back to the showers and flicked on a light.

"Ahh," Makoto sighed as steaming water hit his skin. It was a nice contrast from the cold water of the pool. As the warmth rained down on his skin, Makoto felt his muscles slowly relaxing. He didn't realize it in the moment, but swimming with Haru had worked his muscles into all kinds of knots. He reached up to his neck and began to massage a particularly sore spot, closing his eyes in the painful release.

So caught up in the expulsion of tension from his neck and shoulders, Makoto failed to notice a second pair of hands rubbing circles between his shoulderblades until moments after the initial contact.

"Wh-whaaaa!" Makoto gasped as he jumped out of the stream of water, every muscle he had managed to release tensing again. "Haru?" he asked when he caught sight of Haru, standing where he just was. He exhaled, relieved to know it wasn't someone else who had snuck up behind him.

"Who else would it be?" Haru asked rhetorically. Haru wasted no time in waiting for Makoto to recover from his shock, and instead turned on another shower and stepped underneath.

"I-I thought you were going to swim longer," Makoto stammered, trying to shake his startled expression. Haru tilted his head to the side, letting water drip onto his neck.

"I decided I'd rather take a shower," Haru said. Makoto tried not to stare as the water freeflowed over Haru's toned muscles, dripping off his swimsuit and down his legs. Makoto could tell in the pool, but he could especially tell then, with no goggles or quick movement muddling his vision, that Haru looked good wet.

"O-oh, okay…"

Stop staring at him, Makoto scolded himself as he shook his head and tentatively retook his spot beneath the adjacent shower. Despite his efforts not to get his line of vision plastered to Haru's taut, glistening, alabaster body, he had miserably failed. Somehow, as their relationship progressed, Makoto had been feeling increasingly uncomfortable in moments when he noticed or admired Haru's body. He mostly accredited it to the excitement he initially felt upon seeing Haru in a swimsuit or a towel, and the way that the images stuck in his mind, popping up at the worst moments. Makoto hid his red face beneath wet hair and tried to focus on getting clean.

A few minutes of silence later, Haru spoke up. "You're doing it again."

"Huh?" Makoto asked, pausing in the midst of kneading another painful lump on his back. He didn't notice me staring at him, did he? After carefully tracing Haru's gaze, Makoto realized that his eyes were focused on exactly that particular sore spot. Makoto laughed nervously, a little embarrassed. "Oh yeah, I just got a little sore from swimming so much. You really gave me a workout, Haru-chan."

Haru tilted his head, dark bangs falling to one side and revealing his eyes enough for Makoto to tell he was deep in concentration, as if lost in a conflict of sorts. Makoto shifted uneasily, wondering if Haru was going to respond, or if he should just continue washing. When the silence didn't cease, Makoto decided on the latter.

"You're just going to hurt yourself more if you try to get the knots out yourself," Haru finally said. He took a step out from beneath the water and flipped his hair to look up at Makoto, who had frozen upon hearing the remark. The sound of the water from Haru's shower was no longer softened by the shield of his body, and hit the tile in an uninterrupted hum.

"Oh." Makoto wasn't quite sure what to say, but Haru's purposeful look was suggesting that he should say something. "Maybe I should stop then, huh?"

Long, slender fingers extended themselves towards Makoto's wrist and trailed up his arm until they reached his shoulder, effortlessly removing Makoto's own hand which had gone slack with the gesture. "I'll help you," Haru offered.

Before Makoto could protest, Haru was standing beneath the spray of his shower and taking hold of his shoulders, drumming up a steady massage. Haru's deft hands wasted no time in attacking knot after knot in Makoto's back, kneading them relentlessly. Makoto opened his mouth to say something-anything-that would help him regain his footing in the situation, but all that escaped his lips was a moan.

"Ahhhnngghhhhh… Ah! Um!"

Makoto's face flamed as he registered his involuntary vocalization. In a split second, he found the strength he hadn't had before and shot out of Haru's grip, pressing back against the tiled wall, leaving a foot or two of space between them.

"Haru!" Makoto exclaimed as he bent over, letting water flow across the places that Haru's hands had been moments before. He looked up through the brown web of his hair with widened eyes, trying to communicate the obvious question to Haru. What was that for?

Haru wore a confused expression as he assessed Makoto, whose heavy breathing filled the thick air of the room."Is something wrong?" he asked, voice impassive.

"Yes! Well, no!" Makoto bit his lip and looked back down, not quite sure what to say. Haru seemed oblivious to his discomfort, and Makoto didn't want him to be offended. He was just trying to be helpful, and Makoto just wasn't expecting, well, an actual massage. But should he have been? It had all seemed so natural to Haru… The more Makoto thought about it, the less the words in his head made sense, and the more ridiculous he felt. What's wrong with me?

Haru raised his eyebrows expectantly and crossed his arms. "Makoto."

"Uh!" Makoto instantly yelped as he snapped out of his vortex of thought. When Haru's gaze shifted from impatient to concerned, Makoto waved his hands frantically in front of his chest and mustered up a half-formed reassurance. "No, no, nothing's wrong! I was just, um, a little surprised, that's all. You're really good at massages, Haru, and I wasn't expecting to-mmmm."

"You said I'm good at massages," Haru explained as he kneaded into Makoto's back once again, Makoto not entirely sure how he had flipped around so quickly or why. "I haven't really given one before…" Haru's hands paused for a brief moment before picking up their rhythm again. They targeted the areas on the sides of Makoto's spine, and the stiff muscles snapped and rolled with the movements.

"Yeah, it feels gooahnngghh…" Makoto arched back into Haru's hands as his fingers pressed deeper into a knot.

"You're tense," Haru remarked, working his way back up to Makoto's shoulders which rose at the contact. Makoto compliantly lowered them when he felt Haru's hands hovering above the skin. He sighed. He could resist Haru as he had initially intended to, but it seemed like giving in was the better option. The massage did feel nice, after all.

"I know," Makoto responded in between small outbursts of pain and relief. "I know I normally get pretty stiff from the ahhhhh-work at the...station. I lift a lot of hennnghh-heavy equipment and the hoses are prehhmm-prettyahhh...big. I think swimming today...did...a lot of thissss…."

The hands on Makoto's back suddenly grew lighter, allowing Makoto to relax and pull his chest away from the wall he had been so forcefully plastered against. When the hands started shaking, fingers grazing his skin in a rapid up and down, Makoto looked back over his shoulder and gasped.

Haru was… laughing?

"What?" Makoto chuckled as he took in the smirking figure in front of him. Water sparked off of Haru's skin in a light spray, forming a soft glow around his body. Makoto could tell Haru was trying to compose himself, but a few genuine laughs still slipped out. Haru's eyes flickered up to meet Makoto's, and suddenly the tables were turned-Haru was the one with the red face.

"It's okay, you don't have to explain," Makoto said, lighting up at the soft sound of laughter he had never expected to hear. "It's just… I've never heard you laugh before." At Makoto's speech, Haru immediately grew silent, looking at Makoto with wide eyes through the stream of the water. He looked almost surprised by Makoto's statement, as if he had been expecting him to say something else.

Makoto had figured out enough from nights spent on Haru's couch that Haru was a little bit ticklish, and that making him laugh was indeed possible, but the laughs themselves were always silent, more of short gasps and quirked lips than actual noises. Not until he was faced with the extraordinary sight of Haru smiling with an open mouth, chest convulsing, did Makoto realize exactly how rare a sight it was, and how lucky he was to see it.

Makoto smiled deep into Haru's eyes, and saw blue everywhere. "Thanks, Haru-chan." He tilted his head and laughed. Unable to resist, Makoto closed the gap between the two of them and placed a firm kiss to Haru's lips.

Warm water trickled into Makoto's mouth as he parted his lips to let his tongue slip from one mouth to the other. He lifted a hand up to caress the back of Haru's neck, indulging in the smooth slipperiness of Haru's skin and the way the muscles flexed at the base of his skull when he tilted his head to the side. The strangely pleasant taste of chlorine on Makoto's tongue from Haru's lips made him smile, as there was nothing more Haru-like than water. Haru seemed to have recovered from his earlier embarrassment, as he pressed back into the kiss without hesitation, which was exactly what Makoto had hoped for.

What Makoto had not intended, however, was the single kiss to turn into a thousand.

Haru reached his hands up and raked his fingers through Makoto's hair as his lips drifted down to Makoto's jaw and into his neck, his touch progressively growing more fervored. Makoto dropped his hand from Haru's shoulder as Haru became more forceful and controlling, pushing past lightness and ease to something more passionate and powerful. His soft, chlorine-tasting lips found Makoto's again and gave Makoto needy and hungry kisses, their noses and jaws awkwardly colliding as Haru's actions grew in excitement. Makoto put an arm out to Haru's chest in an attempt to soothe Haru's spontaneous frenzy, but it had no effect.

Suddenly, Haru gave a push and slammed Makoto into the tiled wall behind him, bare feet splashing in the water. Makoto let out a gasp and flinched in shock, his back stinging, but Haru barely gave him a moment to breathe before lunging in to continue his kisses. The back of Makoto's head pressed uncomfortably against the hard wall. Makoto felt little tremors of unease bridle at this new, unexpected side of Haru. He had gotten used to Haru's straightforwardness in his speech and actions, but he had never been this blunt or authoritative before, and as much as Makoto hated to admit it, it kind of scared him. He was surprised at the amount of force and power that radiated from Haru's slim, lithe body, somehow taking over his taller and stronger body with ease.

"H-Haru," Makoto gasped as Haru trailed kisses down his chest and arms, bending his knees to ease in the descent. Haru had pinned Makoto's hands to the wall behind him, and was using the grip as leverage as he raked his teeth over the sensitive skin of Makoto's nipples. Makoto let out moan after moan as Haru nipped and pulled and swirled his tongue. Whatever pleasure Makoto had felt from Haru's massage didn't begin to compare to the sensation of Haru's mouth on his chest, devouring his skin, kiss by kiss. With just a few touches, Makoto had completely forgotten his initial confusion and apprehension, and gave himself to Haru willingly.

"Makoto," Haru whispered, looking up beneath his bangs at Makoto with heavy eyes. Makoto might have said something, but he was too lost in the act that he couldn't summon words. All he had were hazy thoughts, both aware and unaware of what was happening at the same time. Haru slid further down Makoto's torso to his stomach where he traced the rivets of the toned abdominal muscles with his tongue. The sensation was a new and odd one, but Makoto enjoyed it nonetheless. Haru removed his grip on Makoto's wrists to dig his fingers into Makoto's back, leaving red trails as he dragged them down the freshly massaged muscles. Makoto wove his fingers through Haru's hair for support as he was released from the wall and pressed Haru into a low crouch.

Haru's right in front of… "Mmmmm..." Suddenly one of Haru's hands was pressed to the throbbing area between Makoto's legs while the other snaked its way into the spandex band of Makoto's swimsuit. Haru continued to mark Makoto's stomach with his lips as he palmed Makoto through his swimsuit and pulled the fabric of the waistband further down. Not quite registering, Makoto sank happily into the action, but when skin brushed against skin, his eyes snapped open, an overwhelming rush of panic crashing over him. He jumped back to his senses and out of Haru's hold.

"H-Haru!"

Startled, Haru immediately retracted his touch, letting Makoto's swimsuit snap back against his skin and turning his head up to face Makoto, his shimmering blue eyes filled with concern. "Makoto?" he breathed, his brow furrowing.

Makoto's jaw clenched. "I-" he choked, averting his eyes from Haru's in embarrassment. Carefully looking down at feet, a bright red blush spread uncontrollably over his face. "I've never…" He trailed off, at a loss for words, hoping that Haru would somehow catch onto what he was trying to convey.

To his dismay, Haru simply sat in his crouch and narrowed his eyes in confusion. "Huh?" he asked, his eyebrow raising.

Makoto bit his lip and blushed deeper, his pulse thumping wildly in his ears. "I-I'm, uh…" he stammered, his discomfort and mortification growing. He sheepishly met Haru's gaze. "I'm a virgin." His face flamed painfully.

Haru's eyes widened. "Oh," he murmured. He took in a breath before his mouth twitched and he cocked his head to the side. "So? I am too."

"H-Huh?" Makoto blurted in surprise. "But you seem so… um… confident." He mentally cringed at his wording.

Haru shrugged and stood up, unaffected by Makoto's complete shock. "You make me feel confident," he said quietly. He gave Makoto a serious look, his eyes sincere and unblinking.

Makoto's mouth dropped open. "Eh?!" he exclaimed, his face somehow burning an even deeper crimson. "What do you- How can I- I'm not- A-Ah-" He spluttered pitifully, unable to form a single coherent response to Haru's statement, falling further into the deep, dark pit of shame.

Haru huffed and glanced away. "It's not that big of a deal," he grumbled, a little blush on his cheeks despite his grumpy expression.

Makoto laughed. "Sorry," he bubbled, losing some embarrassment in his amusement. Haru's frown softened a little. "I've just never had someone say something like that to me before." He sighed, the laughter in his voice slowly fading out. After a moment of silence Haru's eyes flicked to him, a questioning expression in their depths. Makoto took a breath in. "Look, I've never had anyone that I've ever felt comfortable enough with to ever do… anything." He coughed awkwardly. "I just get really nervous when it comes to stuff like that…" He trailed off, hoping that Haru would understand that it wasn't that he didn't like him, but that anything sexual was such a foreign land for him that he needed time to collect himself and process it.

Haru's lips twitched. "I'm sorry," he murmured. "I didn't mean to move forward too quickly for you." He gave Makoto a small, apologetic smile. "If you want to go at a slower pace, then I'll do that."

A rush of relief filled Makoto, finally exhaling and smiling in response. He gazed warmly at the smaller man before him, taking a deep breath in. "Thanks, Haru," he whispered. He reached his hand forward to take Haru's, pressing lightly against the soft, pale skin. Haru's eyes flicked down to his hand for a moment before they returned to Makoto. They stayed there a moment, simply gazing at each other, Makoto lightly rubbing his thumb across Haru's hand before Makoto exhaled, letting go.

Haru turned away and stepped back under the nozzle of his own shower, going back to letting the water fall over him like nothing had happened. As Makoto watched him, he envied his coolness and unflappability, because for him, everything had just changed.

A/N:

Look at that convenient sensual shower. Just look at it. If you ever want to laugh, do a dramatic reading of Makoto's dialogue.

MufasasPride: Jesus christ, it's been awhile. Most of this was written months ago, most notably the Sourin section, which was first written in May?! Jeez. Side note: I was writing Rin getting a boner and Sousuke being predatory around 11 the night before my AP English exam. Nothing like writing about boners to prepare you for an exam about rhetoric and language. Though somehow I did well on the exam? Anyways, ARSON LIVES AGAIN HOOOO. Hopefully the next chapter won't be as long of a wait as this one, lord. Peace, y'all!

sexythroatbitchohyescats: Ahhhh, it feels great to type my pseud again. So, this happened. The chapter of awkward boners and self-cockblocking. The whole third section has been eternally dubbed "shower not blowjobs" and I sincerely apologize for that tease but I couldn't resist. This Sourin section was so fun to write (they really all are) but getting some headway with those two is always exciting, and the Makoharu speaks for itself. Ohohohohohoh the Makoharu... And the serial arsonist is just as elusive as ever.

Going two months between updates was honestly hell-let's never do that again. Forgive us, and thank you for reading!