Chapter 14

"Haru? I'm coming in!"

Makoto slid open the front door to Haru's house and stepped in. An overwhelming feeling of nostalgia hit him as he closed the door behind him. He headed straight for the bathroom and opened the door, seeing Haru soaking in the tub. He sighed and shook his head happily. He walked to the tub and extended a hand.

"Good morning, Haru-chan," Makoto said, tilting his head.

Haru furrowed his brows. "Lay off the –chan," he said, reaching up for Makoto's hand and grasping it. Makoto pulled him out of the tub and he deadpanned.

"Wearing your swimsuit again? Really, Haru?"

"It's comfortable," Haru said, stepping out of the tub. He dried off and headed towards the stairs, still clad in his swimsuit.

"Haru, wait!" Makoto called. "Put some clothes on!"

"Why?"

"Because—"

"Good morning, Nanase-kun!"

Haru froze at the bottom of the stairs. Kanade was sitting in the living room, dressed in shorts and a t-shirt. A huge smile was on her face and her blue eyes shined brightly. Haru cut a glance back up at Makoto, glaring at him. Makoto put up his hands in defense.

"I-I tried to warn you!" Makoto said. "We made plans to show Kanade around Iwatobi today, remember?"

Haru hesitated, turning his glance to the floor. "I didn't think she would be here," he mumbled.

"Ah, no worries, Nanase-kun," Kanade called. Haru glanced back at her. "Makoto told me this might happen, so it's no big deal."

Haru furrowed his brows. Don't say his name so casually, he thought.

"Fine," Haru said. "I'll go get changed…" Haru started to go back up the stairs, but he then he stopped. "After I make mackerel."

"Haruu!" Makoto whined as Haru put on an apron and went into the kitchen. Kanade giggled, covering her mouth to stifle a snort. Haru felt his chest jolt at her laugh. It was a pure laugh, almost like Makoto's.

"It's fine, Makoto," Kanade said. "I could go for some mackerel, too."

"Eh?! Not you, too!"

Rei stared at the paper in front of him and lowered his brows. At the top read the words "Career Path Survey." He sighed, holding the paper in between his fingers.

"Now, you must turn these in when we get back from break," the teacher said at the front of the classroom.

Rei turned his eyes to look at Nagisa, who was also staring hard at his paper. He had a troubled look on his face.

"You all are dismissed for lunch."

After the class gave proper bows, Rei put the paper down on his desk and stood to his feet. He walked over to Nagisa, noting how he put the paper face-down on the desk.

"Ready for lunch, Nagisa-kun?" Rei asked tentatively. Nagisa put on a nervous smile.

"Yep!" Nagisa said, grabbing his bento.

They both made their way up the stairs to the roof, both silent. Rei thought about what Gou had told him.

"Just talk to him!"

Rei stole a quick glance at Nagisa and then furrowed his brows, grimacing. It's not that easy, Gou-san!

Rei stopped on the step, making Nagisa stop and look at him.

"Hm? What's the matter, Rei-chan?" Nagisa asked, breaking the silence. Rei took a deep breath and then turned to Nagisa.

"What are your thoughts on the career path survey?"

There, finally, it's out in the open. Sort of.

Rei fidgeted with his bento in his hands, staring into shocked magenta eyes.

"Wha?! Rei-chan!" Nagisa exclaimed. "W-Why are you asking?!"

"B-Because we got that paper today!" Rei shouted back.

"Uhh, r-right," Nagisa said, chuckling lightly. "I'll probably just put whatever! Isn't it too early for the teachers to be asking us this stuff anyway?"

"O-Oh, r-right, I s-suppose so," Rei answered. He started up the steps again, his eyes on the ground. He had missed his opportunity!

Then, he remembered what Kanade had told them the other day.

"Even though you don't know what you want to do now, just keep going."

Rei stopped again, feeling his heart jump in his chest.

"Keep searching, keep working hard, so when you do know what you want to do, your ship will already be on its way. You'll be ready to start doing what you want to do."

Rei turned to Nagisa, feeling his heart in his chest swelling painfully. Nagisa was staring at him nervously.

"It's okay to not know."

"Ah, Nagisa-kun," Rei started. "What… what did you think of what Shizumi-san said yesterday?"

"Huh? You mean… not knowing about the future?" Nagisa asked.

"Y-Yeah," Rei answered.

"W-Well... I thought it was good advice," Nagisa said softly. He lifted a hand to rub the back of his head and chuckled nervously. "I definitely needed to hear that!"

"Yeah," Rei responded. "Me, too."

"You, too, Rei-chan?" Nagisa asked, his eyebrows rising. "You're usually pretty confident in what you want, aren't you?"

"What makes you say that?"

"You're Rei-chan!" Nagisa said with a cheeky smile.

"Nagisa-kun! Be serious!" Rei shouted, throwing his hands by his sides. Nagisa's smile dwindled down to a frown.

"What about you, Rei-chan?" Nagisa asked quietly. Rei looked at him, his face softening. "What do you think about the survey?"

Rei's grip on his bento hardened. His thoughts started to plague his mind.

Just tell him. Tell him you're uncertain. Tell him you have no idea what to think.

Tell him… that you're afraid.

"I…" Rei stuttered.

"Oi."

Nagisa and Rei turned and looked down the steps to see an agitated Dai. He had one hand in his pocket while the other held his bento.

"They won't leave me alone," Dai said, pointing a thumb behind him to show the two other first-years quickly coming up the stairs. "Let's go eat lunch so I can escape them." Dai brushed past Nagisa and Rei and headed to the roof, the two first-years following and dragging Nagisa and Rei with them.

Once they made it up to the roof, Gou was impatiently waiting for them, a clipboard in her hand.

"Hey! You guys are late!" she shouted.

"Sorry, sorry!" one of the first-years said.

"Come on! We need to discuss the training regimen for this afternoon. Haruka-senpai will be joining us today."

The first-years all sat around Gou, while Nagisa and Rei waited at the doorway. Rei looked down at Nagisa. He saw an apprehensive look on his face. Rei sighed, feeling like a coward. The opportunity was gone again, and he still had not had a proper conversation with Nagisa. He put on a smile.

"Should we join them?" Rei asked. Nagisa glanced up at him, saw Rei's smile, and he put on a smile.

"Yeah!"

"So this is where it all started, huh?" Kanade asked, peering at the front of the Iwatobi SC.

"Yep!" Makoto said, opening the door. Haru and Kanade walked through the door. Kanade was immediately drawn to the pictures on the wall. She smiled and walked over them.

"Oh, wow!" she said, pointing to a picture. "Aw, look at you guys! You're so cute."

Makoto and Haru joined her by the picture. "Oh, yeah!" He said. "That was when we did the relay when we were kids!"

Kanade smiled at him and then studied the picture. "Who's this?" she asked, pointing to the small redhead smiling brilliantly in the picture. She noticed Haru's eyes focusing on the boy.

"Oh! That's Rin," Makoto answered. "He's in Australia right now for swimming."

"No way!" Kanade said. "That's awesome! What's he like?"

"Actually, isn't he coming later this week?" Makoto asked Haru.

"Yeah," Haru said immediately. Makoto chuckled lightly, his voice piercing the air.

"Haru's pretty excited for him to come back," Makoto said. "Did he challenge you to a race yet?" he asked Haru sarcastically.

"Yeah," Haru said.

"Oh, seriously? I was just kidding," Makoto said with a chuckle. He gave him a warm smile. "Some things never change."

"Oh, look!" Kanade called. She had moved down to a different picture. "It's you guys at nationals!"

Makoto and Haru joined her by the photo of the four of them at nationals. Three of them were smiling brightly while Haru avoided eye contact with the camera.

"Ah! I remember this!" Makoto said. "This was so fun. I loved that relay!"

Haru cracked a small smile. "Yeah," he said softly.

Kanade watched Haru's expression change, the look in his eyes turning less hostile and more affectionate. Kanade felt her heart melt at the sight and she smiled at him.

"Ah, Makoto! Haru!"

The three turned around and saw Goro Sasabe approaching them.

"Oh! Coach Sasabe!" Makoto said.

"I didn't expect you boys to be here so early! How are you two?" Goro asked.

"We're doing well," Makoto said. "Haru is doing well on his swim team!"

"Is that so? Well, it's good to hear it," Goro said. He was about to say something else when he saw Kanade standing behind Makoto. Goro could barely see her behind him and he raised a brow. "And who is this?" Goro asked with a small smile.

"Oh!" Makoto said, moving out of the way. "This is Kanade Shizumi. She's a friend from my university. She's on the swim team, as well."

"Nice to meet you!" Kanade said, bowing.

"Oh, nice to meet you, too, Shizumi-san!" Goro said, bowing slightly. "So what brings you all here today?"

"We're just showing Kanade around the town. Thought we would stop by here," Makoto answered.

"Oh! Good! I was meaning to talk to you guys when you got back, actually," Goro said. "I've been swamped here. And now that summer break is coming up for the kids, I won't be able to help out much with the Iwatobi High Swim Club. I was wondering if you all could really help them out, especially at their training camp next week."

"Oh, yeah, of course! Gou-chan said that you've been getting more kids to join, so you've been really busy here," Makoto explained. "She's already asked us to help out."

"Great!" Goro said. "And I'll give you guys a ride again for the camp."

"Oh, yeah, I forgot about the training camp," Kanade said. "It sounds like a lot of fun, though."

Makoto chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. "It should be fun," he said.

Haru peered over at Makoto, noticing his strange reaction. He furrowed his brows and stared at the ground. Maybe going on this training camp was a bad idea after all.

"All right! You guys did really well today!" Gou said at the afternoon practice.

Everyone had worked really hard at the afternoon practice at Iwatobi High's pool. Nagisa and Rei were standing next to the first-years, who were all panting and resting their hands on their knees. Makoto, Haru, and Kanade stood next to Gou, barely wet. Haru's eyes flitted back and forth between Makoto and the pool, restless about just watching.

"Just one more thing before we end today's practice!" Gou said.

"Ugh, haven't we done enough today, Gou-senpai?" one of the first-years asked.

"Don't complain!" she said. "Now, I think it's time for Haruka-senpai to show us his swimming!" Haru's eyes snapped to Gou, shimmering slightly.

"Oohh, a demonstration from Haru-chan!" Nagisa said, his eyes bubbling with joy.

"This will be good for you to watch, Dai-kun," Rei noted with a smile.

"Okay, let's see it, Haru-chan!" Nagisa said.

Haru glanced back at Makoto, who gave him a reassuring smile. Haru's eyes sparkled as he glanced at the pool, and he quickly took off his shirt.

Makoto could see Gou out of the corner of his eye sparkle as she lifted a hand to rest on her cheek. Her face wore a whimsical expression as she blabbed on about Haru's "amazing triceps." Makoto felt himself cowering slightly away from her after that.

"I'll time you, Haruka-senpai," Gou said, holding a stopwatch.

"Yeah," Haru responded as he stood up on the block. He put on his goggles and adjusted his swim cap.

Makoto watched him as he bent down at the starting block, remembering how fast he was at the joint practice. He took a deep breath, feeling excitement rise in his chest.

"Ready!" Gou shouted.

Haru braced himself, holding onto the block.

"Go!"

Haru flung himself from the starting block, his body soaring into the air gracefully. He dove in the water elegantly, his head popping up to the surface as he started his stroke. He was racing down the lane at his lightning speed, causing gasps from the first-years. Dai dropped his jaw.

"Wow, Nanase is amazing!" one of the first-years yelled.

Haru took the turn at the far end of the pool, making his way back quickly down the lane. His arms tore through the water, making his body glide down the lane with precision.

"Haruka-senpai's swimming is as beautiful as ever!" Rei said. Nagisa nodded and bounced in excitement.

Haru pounded down the lane and slammed his hand on the wall, his head rising from the water as he gasped for a breath.

"Wow, Haruka-senpai!" Gou shouted. "That beat all of your records last year!"

Haru took off his cap and goggles and whipped his head back and forth, shaking off the excess water.

"Haru!"

"Haru-chan!"

"Haruka-senpai!"

Haru glanced up from the water and his heart jumped. Standing in front of him was Makoto, Nagisa, and Rei, all waiting for him at the end of the pool. Haru put on a small smile, remembering nationals. They were all waiting for him, then, just like this.

"You really are the best in the water, Haru-chan!" Makoto said. He was extending his hand down to him, the same big smile on his face.

Haru was about to lift his hand up to him, when Kanade walked behind Makoto, a huge smile on her face. Haru's smile faded, seeing that his perfect picture was now distorted. He lifted his hand and begrudgingly grabbed Makoto's hand.

"Lay off the –chan," he grumbled as Makoto pulled him out of the pool.

"That was awesome, Nanase-kun!" Kanade said.

Haru lowered his eyebrows at her and turned his head. Makoto's smile turned from excited to tense, seeing Haru's reaction. His brows knitted together, worry creasing his forehead.

"Ohh, I'd like to see Kana-chan and Haru-chan race!" Nagisa shouted. Gou and Rei looked at him with concerned expressions.

"Huh? Race?" Kanade repeated.

"Nagisa-kun, I'm not sure that'll be a fair race," Rei said.

"Do you even know what you're saying, Nagisa-kun?" Gou asked.

"I don't mind!" Kanade said. The others stared at her with wide eyes. "I'm sure I'll lose, but it'll still be fun. You up for it, Nanase-kun?"

Haru glanced at her and then Makoto. Makoto gave him his usual smile and a shrug. Haru sighed and walked over to the starting block. Kanade followed, getting on the block next to him.

"Well, if you're sure," Gou said to Kanade. Kanade nodded as she put on her swim cap. "All right! Here we go."

"Good luck, Haru! Kanade!" Makoto called. Haru ignored the comment and stood solemnly on the block. Kanade glanced over at Makoto and gave a cheeky smile along with her usual thumbs-up.

"Ready," Gou called. Haru and Kanade bent down at the block, their hands grasping the edges.

Makoto stared at them. Haru had his usual expression on his face, his furrowed brows resting over his goggles. They had a slight hint of annoyance, which worried Makoto.

Makoto then looked over at Kanade. Her usual sparkly charm changed into a serious expression. Makoto's heart jumped. She seemed so focused, determined… it was as if a whole new person had taken over. He loved Kanade's usual cheeriness, but the face she made when she was about to swim was something that shocked him.

What other expressions can you make?

"Go!" Gou yelled.

Kanade and Haru dove off of their starting blocks, hitting the water and stroking through the water at full throttle. Haru started out in the lead.

"Yeah, I bet Nanase will win this one," one of the first-years said.

"Go, Haru-chan! Kana-chan!" Nagisa yelled.

Haru was halfway down the lane when he felt some excess water splashing next to him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a shadow next to him, and his heart jumped.

Kanade was right next to him.

"Ehh?! Shizumi-san is keeping up with Nanase!" a first-year yelled.

"H-How?!" the other first-year yelled.

Dai, Gou, Rei, and Nagisa stood on the side with dropped jaws, watching as the two made it to the far side to make the turn. Makoto's eyes widened as Kanade still managed to keep up with Haru even after the turn.

"Unbelievable," Dai whispered.

"Mako-chan, did you know she was this fast?" Nagisa asked.

"She's at a completely different level!" Gou added, looking at Makoto.

Makoto stood speechless, staring at the two of them. He shook his head at his friends.

"I didn't know," Makoto said softly.

Haru felt something prick his heart when he could not shake off Kanade. He surged forward, pushing his shoulders further and harder. He pulled ahead of Kanade, water splashing all around as he violently tore through the water.

"E-Eh? What's wrong with Haruka-senpai? His swimming is… different," Rei noted.

Makoto lowered his brows and his lips turned into a worried frown. He watched as Haru was ripping through the water.

"Haru…" Makoto whispered.

Haru could see the starting block getting close. He turned his head and gasped for breath.

What is this? Haru thought. Why am I fighting the water?

His hand reached the wall and he slammed it hard, creating a huge splash. He jerked his head back and gasped for breath. He glanced over to the other lane and watched Kanade slam on the wall, she also lifting her head to gasp for breath. Haru tore off his goggles and swim cap and shook the water off of his hair.

"Ooh, wow!" Nagisa shouted. "They were neck-and-neck the whole way!"

"You're right, Nagisa-kun!" Rei said.

"Great job, you two!" Gou said. "You were a little over a second apart! That's amazing!"

Haru stared up at Gou, something inside him breaking. Something felt different about how he just swam. Was it because it was a race? Haru remembered the time he raced last year and stopped in the middle of the lane, feeling something wrong inside. Why did it feel that he was starting to feel the same way again?

Haru stared down at the water, watching as droplets fell from his hair into the water.

"Nice race, Nanase-kun."

Haru turned his head and saw Kanade leaning on the lane divider, flashing him an exhausted smile and a shaky thumbs-up. That's when Haru felt it.

He felt that way because of her.

"Haru?" Makoto called from above his head. Haru turned to look up at him, watching Makoto's worried face. "Are you okay?" he asked as he extended his hand.

Haru stared at him for a moment before grabbing Makoto's hand. "Yeah," Haru replied.

Kanade rested her arms on the edge of the pool and watched the two of them as they spoke quietly. Her breathing was sporadic, her raspy breaths preventing her from hearing their words. She saw a worried look on Makoto's face, and Haru's eyes looking away from him.

"But I realized that competitive swimming was best left to my best friend."

Kanade jumped, remembering Makoto's words. She stared at the two of them one last time and lowered her eyes back down to the ground.

"You sure you're okay?" Makoto asked him again.

Haru nodded. "I'm fine."

"Good job, Haru-chan!" Nagisa said, jumping on him.

"Nagisa!" Haru whined.

"That was great, Haruka-senpai!" Rei said, joining his side and pulling Nagisa from him.

"Yeah," Haru said. "Thanks."

"Okay, okay! Good job today." Gou said. "You guys can get changed. I'm going to get my bag and then I'll be ready to go!"

Gou disappeared into the locker room, leaving the swim team to pack up their things. The first-years disappeared into the locker room, while the others stood around the pool. Makoto was talking to the other three when he noticed Kanade still hanging on the edge of the pool. He walked over to her lane and extended a hand to her.

"You were pretty amazing, Kanade!" Makoto said. Kanade smiled up at him and grabbed his hand.

"Thank you," she said quietly. She stole a glance at Haru. "Is he okay?" she asked. Makoto followed her eyes and glanced at Haru.

"Yeah, I think so," Makoto said, turning back to her. "You about ready to go home?"

Kanade nodded at him and headed towards the locker room. "Yeah, let me go get my things!"

Gou walked into the locker room and grabbed her bag from a bench. She turned to walk out the door when her foot kicked a bag on the ground. Gou tripped on it and stumbled forward, almost falling. She glanced down at the bag, and her eyes widened. She knelt down to the bag.

A portable oxygen tank with a mask connected to it had rolled out of the bag, along with a few pill bottles. Gou lifted the tank in her hands and stared at the labels.

What… what is this? She thought.

She read the label, and her eyes widened. On the label was a name.

SHIZUMI, KANADE

Kanade's name? On this oxygen tank? What is going on?

Several prescription bottles had rolled out as well, and Gou reached to grab them. All of them had Kanade's name on them, but Gou did not recognize the scientific names of the medicines. Gou furrowed her brows in concern.

Is she...?

Suddenly, the door to the locker room opened and shut, and around the corner came Kanade. She stopped in her tracks when she saw Gou on the ground, holding the tank and the pills.

"Shizumi-san…" Gou whispered. "What… what is this?"

Kanade's eyes widened and she gripped her swim cap in her fist. She felt her chest swell in pain.

"I…" Kanade started. "Please… don't tell Makoto."