And here we are with another original. Although, as you can see this is just a second part of a one-shot I had already done.

Judging from where we left off last time with this one shot, it was mostly based on comedy and fluffiness, entirely the theme of the Index-san manga and where most of the 'feeling' of this type of one-shot came from. There's not much that can be said here but if you want more of this type of stuff with various characters, really check out that manga. But, as you are here and reading this, I will do my best to fill in the gap you might have now that that manga has ended.

Let's hope I can do the best I can for that!

Whatever the case, here is the Q & A:

onilink500: Sí, no puedo imaginarme a nadie más que a Touma teniendo una vida tan mala y luego alguien todavía resultando ser un buen tipo al final de todo. Pero imaginar a Dark Touma es algo aterrador ...

BlueJack22: I think last chapter was pretty mild considering some of the stuff I've done to Touma… But getting crushed by a cherry blossom tree isn't fun for sure.

Anime-ted Life116: I have to agree with you on many fronts when it comes to touching the actual events when Touma is a child. We don't really want to do it, because there are just some things that we are uncomfortable doing and don't really want to think about so having last chapter being something I wrote was both a good and bad thing for me as an amateur writer I think. I think of myself as being aware of what I wrote and wanting to cover that; but last chapter was definitely one of the hardest chapters I wrote given a lot of the time I was genuinely uncomfortable hurting a child. Aleister though planned for Touma to come into Academy City although I'm pretty sure he didn't go as far as determining the METHOD of doing so. As for your request, I think this chapter sort of covers the entire reason Touma went to Academy City in the first place? Unless you're talking about something different.

whwsms: Hell is a dark place my friend. A dark and deep place.

craytherlay: Thank you for your kind words, they really mean a lot given how 'intense' last chapter was.

jonathanblade00: Man, me and despair know each other too well by now…

Aminadab Brulle: Hey, thanks for your comments there – sometimes there are just things that don't go down well with others and this was just one of those times for you. I respect that. I've never opened someone's mail personally, but I've never realised that it was a crime needing a 10 year sentence! Man, my post box just got heaps more terrifying… But last chapter, the tapes were burned so it doesn't matter if they were rewound or not (they probably weren't so Index and Mikoto deserve a special place in hell for this atrocity!).

LoneVirgo98: Touma being alive is because has the best type of armour: Plot Armour. But in all seriousness, maybe I went too far?

wildarms13: One of these days, I'll write a family friendly chapter for the holiday season. I remember when the Silent Screams came out…

DimensionalReapers: I have to agree entirely with what you noted here in how Mikoto and Index let the tapes burn. It wasn't their place to do anything of what they did and even if they felt what they did was justified, there is really nothing backing that thought process. If anyone were to decide what would happen with them, it should have been Touma, but in part, that was what made last chapter be one 'without heroes'. There was nothing last chapter to prevent the erasing of history and because of that, Touma's past has been entirely destroyed by those two girls who shouldn't have had that power. I think having that ending be one where you felt it 'sucked' was the right answer for last chapter, but thank you deeply for your comments here.

paeluclucas: ¡Muchas gracias! ¡Espero poder seguir viniendo aquí!

fencer29: Man, imagine if I wrote Touma being sent off to Academy City without his parents – that would have been a feels stab right in the gut. But thank you for your comments there; Touma probably would have had his entire dorm burn down from what happened, but we have to stop with the misfortune some time, right?

WwEpsilonwW: Thank you so much for your kind words! I was really unsure whether to include the stabbing scene but I'm glad that it paid off in the end. But whenever you write, you're the star but thank you for following me all the same! I hope your year up ahead is a good one!

Pepperjack: I read your review, laughed and then I realised you were right. Like, Touma's parents only ever filmed him with something bad was happening to him?! That's pretty sus! I realise that it sort of came off as being entirely his parents' fault, but now I can't get that knowledge out of my head.

ArmoredCoreNineBall: Man, I need some light heartedness in these chapters again… I want to do more Index and Mikoto stuff outside of them being antagonistic towards each other so this gave me some ideas here and there. Thanks so much for your comments though!

And the thanks. Firstly, to my beta reader, PokeRescue18. You guys have no idea the amount of work he does for me and for everything he does, I have the utmost gratitude and hold his support as one of the best things that has happened to both of my Index projects. Seriously, each chapter is a goldmine of problems (not a good thing) and the way he fixes them is something that has deserved my endless thanks.

And to you, the reader. BTL has a lot of chopping and changing. The themes are in constant cycle and never consistent (usually), but you still come back here and read. You sometimes get gems, you sometimes get coal but you miners and how you dig through each chapter makes me hope that no matter the result, you think of yourself as a winner. Because you always make me feel like one when you read and that means the world to me. Honestly, thank you.

But enough of this sappy stuff! I only hope you do what you always do when you read these.

Enjoy.

Mr Question Mark.


Somehow, There Is Something Wrong with This Picture. First_Days_Are_the_Wettest.

Swimsuits.

While that word would have elicited many cries of excitement from normal high school boys, the word only drew a dead stare from Kamijou Touma as he sat in the high chair overlooking the pool. In front of him was a multitude of swimsuits, ranging from bikinis, one pieces, two pieces, monokinis, daring, plain, simple, school swimsuits and even the basic swimsuit that covered everything that needed to be covered in a rather plain way. But for Kamijou right now, the sight in front of him was one that made him incredibly bored.

Swimsuits meant nothing to him right now.

That was how he truly felt.

"…I want to swim."

The heat beating down on Kamijou came from an electronic source overhead and it was because of the heating element that made him sweat even though the temperature outside was fairly cool. Meant to ensure everyday felt like summer within the pool and allowed for swimmers to go whenever they felt like it for the change of season no matter what time of year it was, this private pool was not only high class but also a place where the air stank of the high echelons of the world.

And yet, due to his own misfortune, it was Kamijou Touma who could only watch the people swimming in front of him with a dead stare, unable to join in no matter how much he wanted to. This desire was increased only by the heating around him making it feel like it was summer, and the extra temptation of the cool water made Kamijou want to cry and reach out to the waters. Despite them being so close, they felt so far.

"Touma… It's right there. It's right there and yet…and yet! Is this what the Lord felt when he was in the Wilderness?!"

Kamijou did not even have the energy to stare at the person sitting by his side in the same high chair, clutching the front of her swimsuit and looking teary eyed at the pool and frolickers in front of her.

Index's eyes looked and held the same desire as Kamijou to merely let loose and jump into the pool and yet, it was with the same lack of energy that Kamijou gave a reply, not even bothering to raise his voice to respond to her complaint.

"This is our job. You're the one who wanted to come here. So this is your fault. Suck it up."

"Today's Touma is lazier than one I've ever seen before. I want to swim! I want to feel the cold water against my skin and I want to let myself melt in the pool so I can enjoy myself fully. I want to swim, I want to swim, I want to swim!"

"S-Stop shaking the high chair, you idiot. Stop wasting energy by crying out like that, you're going to make us both tired! And stop giving me the knowledge of the temptation right there in front of me and yet I can't reach! This is worse than sitting on a mark of 49 out of 100 on a test! It's right there… It's right there! IT'S RIGHT THERE!"

"Touma…"

"Fine. You want me to say it even though I just did!? Let's do this, Index!"

"I WANT TO SWIM!"

"I WANT TO SWIM!"

Kamijou and Index roared that across the pool, everyone in the private establishment staring at the two of them with a rather surprised look on their face. The two of them did not even glance at the people staring at them, slumping within their seats and feeling the heating of the establishment press down on their bodies, sweating despite the cool temperature outside.

It was advertising that had brought them into this scenario in the first place.

That stupid advertisement which both Kamijou and Index had seen while he had been doing housework with the television on that had made them aware of this torturous establishment.

'Come and play with your friends! Even though it isn't summer, spend the time of your life doing what you couldn't during summer break! Our establishment opens from the standard hours of 9 to 5 and for those of you thinking your summer was somewhat lacking, don't worry! We have everything you could ever want within our walls!'

What was he supposed to do?

Thinking back on his summer, Kamijou Touma had been filled with nothing but chaos and hospital visits.

July 28th, he had woken up in a hospital with no memories.

August 8th, he had stormed the Misawa Cram School with some red haired magician bastard.

August 21st, he had fought Accelerator for the sake of Misaka Mikoto and her Sisters.

August 28th, he had been kicked out of Academy City and stopped Angel Fall.

August 31st, there had not only been some Aztec magician after him but Yamisaka Ouma had captured and threatened Index.

So, looking on all that, was his summer fulfilled? Did he feel as though he had celebrated summer vacation in the way he deserved?!

He wanted to go to the beach without some magic crisis! He wanted to spend some time staring at girls in swimsuits without anyone noticing and he wanted to be left with some good summer memories that would last forever!

So, there had been no hesitation in his actions in going to this pool, Index coming with him for the sake of making sure they had a 'summer vacation experience' the two of them could enjoy without there being some borderline end of the world crisis.

And yet, when they reached the establishment in question, the realisation it was a private facility instead of a public had wavered their decisions to go inside only slightly. Realising there was a fee for the sake of feeling fulfilled with some 'summer' memories, Kamijou and Index had reluctantly gone inside.

And it was there where they had been presented with an offer that was simply too good to be true, something the two of them had learned the hard way.

Upon trying to haggle prices and bring them down, the staff members had generously given Kamijou and Index a way to get in for free: simply working for them as lifeguards in the establishment for the day. Through some family related troubles, it seemed the lifeguard on duty was not able to make it in today and although the chances of an accident were small, the private pool wanted to make sure they at least had the image of there being a lifeguard for the sake of at least making sure they were somewhat committed to keeping the visitors to this pool safe.

And as a result, because the normal high school boy Kamijou Touma had a wallet whose emptiness matched that of space, they had given him an offer he could not refuse. Namely that he could go into the pool with Index, with the two of them acting as part time lifeguards for today, for no charge at all. With the benefits of free food and the ability to wear some swimsuits provided by the establishment being thrown into the mix as well, there was no reason not to decline.

However, as the two of them sweat while sitting in the high chairs, the obvious problem with them being part time lifeguards for the sake of avoiding any fees, was obvious.

They could not swim as they had to watch out for anyone who was in any danger. For the purposes of keeping everyone safe, they needed to ensure they stood on the high ground and kept a watchful eye over everyone for their own safety.

Swimming, the entire reason they had come here, was entirely banned without good reason.

With the heating beating down on them, the sweat covering their bodies and the temptation sitting right in front of them, for Kamijou and Index, what was happening to them now was borderline torture.

Kamijou, in his lifeguard cap and with his whistle and megaphone in one hand stared out into the expanse of the pool without even caring. His soul had left his body ages ago and while he was in a swimsuit, it truly felt as though it meant nothing.

Index was in a swimsuit as well but she, like Kamijou, had had her soul leave her body ages ago. She slumped in her chair, the same cap on Kamijou's head being on her head as well.

"Touma."

"What is it?"

"…Why can't someone almost drown?"

"I-Index-san, those are some pretty dark thoughts coming from your mouth! Don't give into the Dark Side!"

"I-It's not like I want someone to drown. Someone has to almost drown. And then I can go into the pool and save them and swim! I want to swim! Why can't I swim, Touma?!"

"Stop rocking the high chair, damn it! The heat is getting to me too so I'm not in the mood to put up with anything right now! And after being cockblocked when I was going to be surrounded by swimsuits, finding out that I'm not even able to do that has seriously destroyed my motivation to do anything. I'm hot, angry, filled to the brim with misfortune and I can't even cool off! So I don't want to have to deal with your crap!"

"Today's Touma is surprisingly sharp tongued as well! And speaking of swimsuits, why isn't mine getting any narration at all? It's one of those special events where a girl is in a swimsuit and yet it gets a lazy reference!? Has the world gone mad?!"

"I don't care anymore. The word swimsuit has no meaning at all to me. I was so excited but now, I just want to cry! I feel nothing in the face of this amazing event, and I can't find myself excited about it all! And you kids over there! Stop running or you'll go home in an ambulance!"

The annoyed Kamijou yelled out towards the running children with his megaphone and they trembled in the face of the fearsome lifeguard. Even though Kamijou had meant running would result in them going home in an ambulance due to the injuries they would receive, the horrors of misunderstandings meant the children thought Kamijou was threatening them and, if they continued running, would send them home in an ambulance himself.

Whatever the case, the kids stopped running and Kamijou's job as a lifeguard was complete.

The boy himself, in swim trunks, lazily stared at the pool in front of him with those same dead eyes. After seeing so many different swimsuits and in so many different forms, the novelty of it had disappeared entirely. Instead of the clothing that covered the same skin as underwear, exposing the parts of the body usually meant to be hidden from prying eyes, after having seen so many swimsuits for so long in the heating of the private pool, the only thing Kamijou now saw was nothing but pieces of cloth meant to prevent others from seeing important bits.

He felt nothing and for that alone, Kamijou felt like a small bit of his adolescence had died.

He had been excited originally. The heat on his skin, the sweat on his body; the feeling it gave him paired with the swimsuits and the high chair had given him the perfect vantage point for paradise. He was a normal high school boy and not a saint so if he was given the option to look under the pretence of making sure no one was in danger, then he was going to look! He was in paradise and the high class people who chose to spend some money to come to a private pool had definitely been a feast for the eyes.

The mature women as far as the eye could see had definitely been enough for Kamijou to think he could die happy. And despite Index being next to him, the fact he could give the excuse that he was 'doing his job' prevented him from receiving punishment! It was truly a wonderous system and being the lifeguard, surrounded by swimsuits, had felt the best.

But now?

There was nothing.

A zen state had come over Kamijou and he had achieved a state of enlightenment not many high school boys his age had managed to receive. Looking out over the pool, he saw one of the swimmers lifted her head above the water. Your average high school boy would have blushed as he saw the water caress around her long hair, her breasts jiggle slightly after leaving the water and how her swimsuit gave sight to things usually unseen.

But to Kamijou Touma the only thing he thought was this:

(Oh. That's her third lap. Keep it up, you're doing good time!)

"It's too hot to do anything…" Index complained as she stared out at the pool with tears in her eyes. Kamijou eyed her out of the corner of his eye, realising the awkward atmosphere over the two of them had been entirely dispelled.

For all intents and purposes, no matter what anyone said of Index, she was still a cute and beautiful girl. And seeing her in her swimsuit which comprised of a pink two piece with polka dots and frills, Kamijou had definitely felt a blush rise to his face and his heart skip a beat when she had asked Kamijou cutely, while fidgeting, how she looked. Kamijou had given her a half hearted response but the red of his face had only been mirrored on that of Index's as they moved to the high chairs to watch everyone.

But, as time had passed and Kamijou had entered his state of zen and enlightenment in that swimsuits were nothing but clothes, the atmosphere around both him and Index had dispelled. No red faces were shown anymore and a calm and complaining atmosphere surrounded them.

"Why did we even come here, Index?" Kamijou asked that existential question.

A high school girl wearing a bikini and clearly worried about the male high school lifeguard fidgeted with her swimsuit in an endearing way. Again, if this was anyone else, the high school boy would have either ogled her or turned away blushing but Kamijou kept her in the corner of his eye thinking to himself she should decide whether she was going to swim or not. Either get into the pool or move away! Pick one already!

"…We came to have fun. But instead you and I are sitting here in this heat and not even able to enjoy swimming." Said Index with a bored tone.

"The narration mentioned your swimsuit by the way."

"OK…"

The heat was clearly getting to Index as she slumped further into her chair, her legs moving back and forth. It was clear her exhaustion was reaching high levels given her response to an issue that had previously bothered her but Kamijou was too tired to care. Instead, there was something else that bothered him.

"Why did you even get a swimsuit in the first place? We have the old one you used during our beach trip in August back at home." Kamijou asked that easy question. For the first time in a while Index's face went a tiny bit red. She pouted, her face turning away from Kamijou and was silent for a tiny bit before she spoke.

"Well, that's only natural, Touma. I'm a growing girl…in various places." Index seemed to drop the topic, her face still red as Kamijou stared at her, his eyes moving to the place most likely to grow. He was silent for a moment before turning his eyes back to the pool, nodding slightly.

"It's nothing to be embarrassed about, Index. It was bound to happen sometime or later. Just know that no matter what size you are, you'll always be the same to me. Nothing will change that. You'll always be Index."

Index's face went a bit redder at that, the girl sitting up slightly and playing with the edges of her hair. She turned her head away at the same time.

"But even so, you can't complain about it. After all you eat, what did you expect?"

Only for her gaze to freeze and her eyes go dead as Kamijou spoke some more, lifting a finger and waving it around as if he were giving a sermon even though they were not on the same page.

"You reap what you sow. After everything you've eaten, I'd say this is your divine punishment, as you would say. You chug it in every day and you don't do any exercise, so I'm more surprised it's taken this long for the changes to appear. Your stomach growing was going to happen sooner or later so keep in mind that if you want to change that, you'll need to – I-Index?! What are you doing, leaning over the gap in our high chairs like that!? Y-You're too close! W-Wait, just a minute, we're in public and if you unleash your biting attack like that in the middle of a pool we're going to – Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah?!"

It was a strange sight as the high chairs were knocked over, but even so, it gave some of the regulars something new to stare at given their new lifeguards.

After all, none of them had ever seen the sight of one lifeguard attacking another using their teeth as the two of them rolled around on the ground and one of them screamed.


"I'm not talking to you."

"I said I was sorry!"

Kamijou, sweating and feeling the heat from the attack only added to how uncomfortable he was, yelled at the girl sitting next to him. She pouted and folded her arms, turning her head away and looking into the distance, her face still a bit red. Kamijou felt nothing but question marks dance over his head at Index's mood, turning back to the right of the swimming pool and doing the same as Index was doing to the left: observing and watching for any trouble.

"(…This day can't get any worse. Such misfortune.)"

He mumbled underneath his breath, staring out into the water and the people playing, feeling nothing but resentment and jealousy in his heart. It was somewhat ironic, but the cool tiled floor of the private pool had meant that when Index had bitten him for whatever reason, the rolling around they had done had actually served to cool them off. The sour mood he had been in before only compounded now he was forced to head back into the high chair as he stared out over the pool with a sigh.

He glanced at the nearby clock, noting the two of them had been sitting in these chairs for something like four hours, grimacing at how long the time had passed since they had been here.

"Index – "

"I'm not talking to you."

"I already apologised on my hands and knees so there's nothing else I can do! A-Anyway, I thought I'd let you know you can collect our free lunch at any time." Kamijou said carefully, trying to be diplomatic and speaking slowly. "Even though we're basically getting a lunch to sit around and do nothing, in this heat, you must be starving."

"…I'm not hungry."

"I-Index?! Are you feeling OK?!"

"How can you suddenly talk about food after you just said I was fat?" Index turned back to Kamijou, her eyes flaring with a tiny bit of anger. Kamijou feet the sweat on himself suddenly go cold. He shook his head back and forth and waved his hands in front of him as well.

"I didn't say that!"

"Touma, sometimes it's what you don't say that has meaning. I wasn't talking about growth in my stomach! That's the same size as always."

"I-I know that now. (Although that is more of a surprising thing in itself.)" Kamijou whispered the last thing underneath his breath before turning back to Index. "I say we move on from that and – "

"Move on!? Are you still thinking I'm fat anyway?! You need to be more aware of how girls prioritise their body image, Touma. It's become more of an important thing for other people nowadays that you can't just pass everything up and to the side. As a girl, I have some things I pride myself on! You want to know what grew, Touma!? You want to?!"

"I-I have a feeling what did! And you're too close!" Kamijou, for the first time in a while since the two of them had been sitting together, went red faced and turned his head away but not even noticing the hardships the spiky haired boy was going through, Index spoke.

"It was my chest! That's why I needed a new swimsuit!"

"I already figured that out but I'm more self conscious about it now you've mentioned it!"

"Do you get it now, Touma!? I wasn't fat!" Index held a hand to said chest as she leaned over the gap in the high chairs.

"I didn't say anything! And you've just made it worse in your own way, so I have no idea what you even expect from me! If you don't want lunch in the first place, just say so!"

"I didn't say that."

"You just said you weren't hungry!"

"And I just said that it's what wasn't said that is just as important!" Index retorted back to Kamijou who looked as though he had been hit in the face with a wet fish, unsure of what to say or think. Not even bothering to say anything on the matter because of how hot and tired he was, it was the wise choice he made to slowly pull away from Index and walk down the ladder of the high chair, nothing but confusion in his mind as he walked over to where the food they were to have for lunch was.

Index did not watch him go, although kept him in the corner of her eye, pouting slightly.

…She knew the heat was getting to her, making her irritable and had caused her to act in the way she was. But even so, the way she was feeling was only in part because of the heat and also because of how truly irritated she actually was.

Index had wanted today to be special.

Not just because she was wearing a swimsuit but also because this was just her and Touma together, spending time having fun. What had started with a plan to get in for free had ended with the two of them having to do something and not really enjoying themselves at all in the process, essentially ruining the day she was going to have.

(Is it really too much to ask?)

Index, sitting in the lifeguard's chair and doing her job all the same, thought that in the back of her mind with a solemn tone and disposition.

(I just wanted to have fun with Touma. I just wanted to spend the day with Touma doing something fun. I just wanted…to make the both of us smile.)

And yet it had turned into this: the heat beating down on them and turning them both rather irritable as they were banned from swimming because they had to look over and watch everyone else below. Naturally, although that was the case, there were two of them meaning it was entirely possible for one of the lifeguards to stay with the chairs and the other to swim and observe the others in the pool while being in the water.

However, in the back of their minds, both Index and Kamijou had rejected that option as they looked over the expanse of the pool and kept watch.

After all, both had the same thought as they had thought about who was going to be in the chair and who was going to be swimming.

If they chose to swim, then the person up in the chair would surely not be able to have any fun.

Alternatively, if they chose to sit in the chair, then it was possible for the other lifeguard to have fun.

For that reason alone, Kamijou and Index had been unable to send the other into the pool. Despite telling the other to swim and enjoy themselves, the other had refused because they were certain that whoever stayed behind would not be able to have fun. Index had refused to go into the water because she thought Kamijou would not be able to enjoy himself and had told Touma to get into the water to which he had refused for the same reason.

Which had led to the only compromise being they both had to occupy the same spot: the high chair.

For Index right now, there was no point in only her having fun. Having fun by herself would have been no fun at all.

She had wanted to have fun with Touma; the only fun she knew she could have today. She wanted to ensure she and him could smile together as they had worked.

But the heat had gotten to them and had made them irritable. The situation they had found themselves in was one they both disliked. She sighed, leaning on her hand and looking out over the pool tiredly.

"…Why did it turn out like this?"

"Hmm? What are you doing here?"

A voice by her side made Index turn her head, but not fully as she realised she still had the task at hand to do: watching the pool. But even then, she already knew who had spoken; her perfect memory associating the voice spoken with a person in her mind.

"Ah. It's Short Hair."

"…What's up with that reaction?"

"Misaka-san, do you know her?"

Index turned now, fully seeing the girl she had expected to see but even then, the mood she was in meant she only soured a tiny bit more upon seeing her. Although this was a private pool, it was not impossible for people she knew to have arrived. But because she and Touma had been doing basically nothing the entire time they had been here and had not even had the chance to relax, Index did not care who was standing in front of her, even if she knew them.

Misaka Mikoto looked at Index with a complicated expression, unsure of how to respond to the question. Even though this was a place Index thought one would come alone or with a friend, the group surrounding Mikoto was definitely expansive.

Within an instant, Index had already memorised and analysed each of the people in front of her but with the exhaustion she was feeling, she did not really put much of an effort into the process.

The one who had spoken to Mikoto had black hair with a flower accessory in her hair. However, by no means was she the only person there with Mikoto; there was a twintail girl, a girl with a flower headband on her arm, another girl with long black hair with an impressive forehead and two other girls who seemed rather close together, one of whom had wavy light brown hair and the other having dark hair.

All of them wore swimsuits, however, much like Touma, Index was far too tired, hot, bored and exhausted to bother making a note of each individual pattern. They were wearing swimsuits, the clothes meant to cover oneself when swimming. That was all. Her eyes were dead as she stared at everyone before turning to face the pool once more with the same bored expression.

"Um…sort of? She's…an acquaintance." Mikoto responded with those hesitant words as she stared at Index who did not bother looking back at her.

"You know someone who works at this famous establishment?! A-As expected of Misaka-san! Even though this was a spur of the moment thing for us to come here, to think you had such connections!"

"I didn't take you as someone who worked here." This time, another voice came into the air, one that Index recognised and attributed to the girl who had the twintails.

"Well, this certainly has been some good fortune! Misaka-san, would you not take the time to introduce your acquaintance to us?! Working at a private establishment such as this means they certainly must be high class in terms of their work ethic! Especially since she has the role of lifeguard."

"W-Wannai-san, aren't lifeguards supposed to wear proper clothes and not swimsuits? Although I'm not too sure whether someone from the Tokiwadai swimming team would know much about it."

"It's certainly…unusual, Saten-san. As far as Awatsuki-san, Kongou-san and I have seen, lifeguards usually wear a shirt over their swimsuit, but it appears to not be the case in this instance."

"A-As expected of Tokiwadai ojou-samas! You seem to know everything!"

Although many people in the group of seven were talking, Index was not paying attention at all as she looked out at the pool. She waved a hand with some form of energy but the heat getting to her made her words all the more bored and unenergetic.

"We hope you enjoy your stay and swim. Please, feel free to use the facilities within this pool as much as you like. Such as the water slide. The spa. The inflatable rafts… We even have lanes with a current provided for swimmers, although in water cooled to a perfect temperature… I want to swim…"

"H-Hey, are you feeling OK!? You're crying!"

Mikoto seemed as flustered as everyone else as she stared at the nun who was usually in a habit. Small tears came from her eyes, Index listing off everything she realised she could not enjoy. Mikoto walked up the ladder and checked on Index as she sat on the left of the high chairs, looking in concern at the nun who seemed deader than anything before shaking her a tiny bit.

"What are you even doing here unsupervised? Are you seriously working? By yourself? It's rare to see you without that idiot."

"Huh? What are you doing here, Misaka?"

"Gbyah!?"

A single voice came from the crowd of people around the lifeguard high chairs, Mikoto making a strange sound as she heard that voice. Upon the high chairs and with slow movements she turned her head towards the source of the voice, going wide eyed as she looked at the spiky haired with swim trunks and holding two large boxes of what looked to a be a lunch from the pool cafeteria.

Her voice stopped within her throat, staring wide eyed at Kamijou who had appeared and was wearing the same cap as Index. Sweat was running down his body and his overall face seemed to suggest he was rather uncomfortable, what semblance of energy he had left regarding the people around the lifeguard chairs with some interest.

Mikoto flinched, the awareness she was in a swimsuit hitting her full force as she hurriedly tried to cover herself with her hands to avoid Kamijou looking at anything he otherwise should not have. Her face burned red and it was her nervousness that rose the volume of her voice into that of a shout.

"Wh-What the hell are you doing here?!"

"Wh-What the hell are you doing here?!"

The question was also asked by Shirai Kuroko who stared with both anger and disgust at Kamijou who seemed to flinch at the words, the other girls looking at Kamijou with interest now they had determined both Mikoto and Shirai knew him.

"I'm a part time lifeguard here. Misaka, you're on my chair so if you could get off?"

Kamijou responded with that bored and unenergetic tone, walking past the girls in the swimsuits without even giving them a second glance and staring up at the girl who was on the ladder of his chair. Now, if this had been the normal Kamijou, the narration would have described the sight before his eyes in a rather large amount of depth while also explaining that Kamijou was trying to hide what he was seeing and prevent others from noticing what he was staring at.

But for the Kamijou Touma who had become a Sage and lost all interest in swimsuits due to his inability to swim and the exhaustion of what today was, when he looked up at Misaka Mikoto's small butt in a swimsuit, he truly felt nothing.

The lack of energy and the outright dead look in his eyes made Mikoto rather apprehensive to even talk to him but with her face burning red and her mind unable to process how the two of them were in swimsuits, she obediently moved down the ladder in silence, fidgeting slightly.

Naturally, this was not ignored by the two girls among the seven who had been invited here on a spur of the moment decision, Saten Ruiko and Uiharu Kazari. They grinned to themselves and stared at each other, giving each other a slight nod as they grabbed Misaka by the shoulders as she reached the bottom of the ladder and Kamijou climbed it in response.

"Hey, hey, Kamijou-san!" Saten called at the boy she knew briefly, holding Mikoto by the shoulders a bit more tightly to hold her in place.

"What do you think of Misaka-san's swimsuit?" Uiharu grinned at the same time, something flashing within her eyes as she stared up at the boy who had now reached the top of the ladder.

Mikoto within their arms seemed to freeze in response, turning back around to her friends with wide eyes and a frantically moving mouth, her eyes seeming to spin in their sockets as she struggled to come to terms with what they had said. However, the maiden within her meant she put her head down and fidgeted, face burning more than it had before as she stared at the ground.

"Misaka's swimsuit?" Kamijou spoke up as he sat on his chair and placed the two boxes of food in between him and Index. "What about it?"

"Huh?!"

The universal shout from the girls staring at Kamijou given his dead response did not even make him flinch, the incredulous glares sent his way bouncing off his dense self.

"W-What do you mean, 'what about it?' A-A swimsuit is the life and soul for any event when it comes to a pool!"

"Not to mention the amount of time that goes into choosing such an item for the sake of swimming requires dedication and analysis of the impact it is going to have!"

"W-Wannai-san?! Awatsuki-san!? Calm down!"

"No, those two are right, Kongou Mitsuko! This ape just throws off the image of Onee-sama in a swimsuit and doesn't even given a damn? See Onee-sama, this is exactly why he is not fit for you!"

Mikoto though seemed to have taken major damage, her expression dead as she stared at the ground, looking like a stone statue of herself. Kamijou and Index stared back at the depressed girl, not even noting the state she was in and staring into space with those same dead eyes that viewed nothing.

"It's just a swimsuit. There's nothing to be excited about."

"Just a swimsuit. There are so many of them I don't even care anymore."

"You guys are just another drop in an ever-expansive ocean."

"Another drop…"

"…I want to swim."

"I want to swim but I can't do it anymore Touma…"

Kamijou and Index started mumbling to themselves in a rather dark tone as they stared out across the pool, unsure of what to think. Although they had come here to have fun, with their lifeguards in the state they were in now, whispering words that utterly destroyed the point of the fabled swimsuit event and one of the people who had come with them for the sake of having fun having been torn to shreds and now entirely despondent after Kamijou's words, it was unsure what was going to happen to their group now they were here.

One thing was for sure though.

"A-Ahahahahahaha. I'm just another drop in the ocean. I'm a Level 5 and yet I don't matter at all. That's right. What did I expect? Swimsuits? Appeal? What is that? If you look and see the pool in front of us, what is another swimsuit?"

Now that Mikoto had turned into the same type of dead creature as their lifeguards, it was uncertain whether anyone was safe.


"Misaka-san, if you want to charm into that lifeguard's heart, you're going to have to make an impact!"

"Indeed! For that reason alone, you need to get into some trouble. His job as a lifeguard will require him to save you!"

"Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeh?!"

Saten and Uiharu joined Mikoto in the pool, the girl going bright red as she swam backwards, shaking her head back and forth. While Wannai Kinuho and Awatsuki Maaya appreciated the pool as members of the swimming team and Kongou Mitsuko and Shirai Kuroko bickered back and forth with their pride as Level 4s on the line, it was with those mischievous comments who spoke to Mikoto in the pool.

Mikoto herself glanced back at the lifeguard station, noting how Kamijou and Index were staring despondently out into the pool. The food boxes Kamijou had gotten for them were slowly being pecked at but the dead faces as they ate made it uncertain whether they were even doing their job properly.

The only indication they were even alert was the comments every now and then the two of them shouted through the one megaphone at the children running or adults doing dangerous things in the spa or water slide but apart from that, it seemed they had lost interest in everything.

"Misaka-san, are you satisfied with the way you were just treated? You chose that swimsuit especially for this occasion even though it was just a whim and yet Kamijou-san didn't even note it! Not to mention it didn't get a narration! Are you OK with things being settled like this?!"

"It's time to show Misaka Mikoto is a girl who can charm anyone's heart. So, you need to get into trouble and that lifeguard-san save you! You know you want to do it! So unleash your inner self and show him there is something in this pool he can get excited about!"

"W-Wait just a minute! I-I'm not ready for this. I mean, I didn't even know that idiot was going to be here, so I don't have to feel bad about my choice of swimsuit at all! So, what he said doesn't bother me! It doesn't bother me at all!"

"Misaka-san…" Saten said as she placed a hand on the girl's shoulder and shook her head.

"You've been doing nothing but floating this entire time, staring at the ceiling and mumbling things underneath your breath. You've been scaring away the children for some time." Uiharu gave a wave of her hand towards the water around her, Mikoto looking and noting she was entirely isolated in the small part of the pool she was in.

That in itself stung more than she expected and she rose her head out of the water, her eyes shining with some more energy than she had before.

"…He didn't say anything about my swimsuit, did he?"

Saten grinned and shook her head, placing a finger underneath her chin. "No, no he did not."

"…And I have to make sure he does his job properly, don't I? F-For the sake of everyone ese in this pool as well."

Uiharu nodded and put her hand on Mikoto's shoulder. "This is for the good of everyone else in the pool. Look at…what was his name again? Kamihou? Well, look at Kamihou-san over there. Does that look like a lifeguard who belongs in a pool? They're supposed to be buff, slightly tanned and good looking and yet, all we get is a barely muscular, barely tanned and dead eyed looking lifeguard who does not understand the importance of a swimsuit! He's not even good looking! What you would be doing would be a service to everyone inside this pool, Misaka-san."

Mikoto stared at Kamijou in the distance, noting how he had somehow mixed up his hat and a chip in his hand, wearing the chip on his head and munching on his hat. The fact he had yet to notice made her truly worried for the lifeguard and the safety of everyone in the pool.

So, trying to get his attention and trying to make sure he saved her was just to make sure he was doing his job. It had NO ulterior motives whatsoever! None at all!

"B-But even if that is the case," said Mikoto in a mumble and fidgeting beneath the water. "What am I even supposed to do to get that idiot's attention? F-For the sake of everyone else, of course."

"Leave that to us."

"Leave that to us."

Both Saten Ruiko and Uiharu Kazari fist bumped behind Mikoto, grins on their faces.

By the end of the day, Kamikoto was surely going to be the final pairing of this fic.


Step 1 in the Kamikoto Plan: create a crisis that Lifeguard Kamijou would have to respond to.

"H-Help! Someone's drowning over here! Somebody help!"

Kamijou Touma had finally realised the expression 'Or I'll eat my hat' was one he had put into actual use without realising but it was the shouting through the air that brought his dead eyes up. They flashed with energy, his eyes spotting something in the distance of the pool.

Something new came into his vision in the otherwise calm pool, splashing in the distance he immediately picked up. Two girls, from the group Mikoto had been in, were waving their arms in the distance and pointing at the splashing with frantic expressions on their faces, clearly ones of distress.

Saten and Uiharu pulled out their best acting skills as they cried out at the top of their lungs, pointing at one thing in the water. Kamijou scanned the water of the pool immediately, seeing if he could identify who was in the water at a glance but noting something in the people currently in the pool.

(Where's Misaka? Don't tell me that underneath that ojou-sama aura is a little girl who can't swim but is too proud to tell anyone about it!?)

Kamijou gritted his teeth, not hesitating to move before something rose up in the back of his mind.

As the lifeguard of this establishment, if he was to save Mikoto, then that would mean he would have to dive into the water and fish her out. It was his job and what he was required to do but one thing in all of that stuck out to him.

Yes.

He would have to dive into the water.

He would finally get the chance to swim, under the pretence of doing his job.

And yet…he was not the only lifeguard.

He felt a soft hand grab his as he gripped the edge of his chair, feeling another hand push against his chest and back into his chair now he was ready to move. He paused, staring at the person who had touched him and spotted Index, a perfect smile on her face although the look of pure desperation to get into the water, no matter the excuse, was clear in her sparkling eyes.

"Touma," Index said in a soft but also a hurried voice. All thoughts of having fun with Kamijou had disappeared and only the temptation to give into the desire to swim remained. "You got the food for us so you must be tired. Let me do this. Let me save this precious life."

"Index…"

Her words, despite the intentions behind them, were sincere. Kamijou could feel that hidden with the words and while he had doubted Index and her seriousness in doing this for a tiny bit, what she had said and the way she had said it entirely dispelled his thoughts on the matter. The girl in front of him truly wanted to save that life and truly wanted to do the job set for her properly.

She certainly had grown and it was with some misty eyes that Kamijou stared at the girl in front of him and her desire to truly do some work now she had the chance to. There was a small bit of silence between them as Kamijou closed his eyes, letting himself sink into his chair as he fully let Index take over.

Yes.

Index was just as serious about this as he was. It was not fair to her to think he had to do everything by himself. Even if she did get to swim and had the clear desire to do it, it was the job she had on her mind and Kamijou had to respect that, respect her desire to charge into the fray and do her job properly as well as her desire to save the life of the struggling Mikoto.

Even if she did get to swim, for her, going into the nice, cool water so she could let go of all the pressures of today, was only a bonus of the job she was focused on. Even if she did get to feel the liquid course over her body and her swimsuit, it was all about fulfilling her role as a lifeguard and nothing else. Even if she did experience her true desire of wanting to swim, it was all about making sure she did what she had been hired to do.

And so, looking at all that, there was only one thing Kamijou Touma had to do.

"Screw that! You only want to swim! Misaka is going to drown over there if I leave it to you anyway!" Kamijou yelled as he moved his hand from underneath Index's and clasped it over hers, using his other hand to touch her stomach (not her chest) and pushed her back into the seat while lifting up himself to jump into the water.

Only for Index to lift her hand from underneath Kamijou's, place it on his and move his arm out of the way to push him back into his chair once more.

"Like you're one to talk Touma! Haven't you been saying you want to swim all this time!?"

"Weren't you the one who said you wanted someone to get into an accident because you wanted to swim? There's nothing good about your intentions and hence, saving Misaka is up to me." Kamijou moved away Index's hands and arms and pushed her back into the chair now she had stared to rise again.

"Hah! Just because you saved that Short Hair once doesn't mean you have to do it again. As a pious nun who clearly did not have the dark thoughts you think I did, I want to ensure the Lord's Will is done as I save Short Hair." Index moved Kamijou's hand and arm in the same way she had done before but Kamijou grabbed her arms before she could fully move them.

She stopped, staring at Kamijou and the two of them held their gaze for only an instant, before their arms and hands started flapping around and striking each other.

"I'm doing it, Index!"

"I'm doing it!"

"Get – "

"Back – "

"In – "

"Your – "

"Seat – "

"Now!"

"I want to swim – I-I mean save!"

"I want to swim – I-I mean save!"

"O-Onee-sama is in trouble?! Your herald, Shirai Kuroko shall leap into action for you!"

"Ah!? Kuroko, what do you think you're touching!? I-I wasn't actually drowning so get away from me!"

There was shouting behind Saten and Uiharu but neither of them cared, the two of them staring at the sorry excuse of a lifeguard who was fighting the other lifeguard for the sake of swimming. Sweat poured from their faces as they stared at the failure in their plan, only clenching their fists, their eyes burning with intensity as they stared at Kamijou and his fighting with Index.

(O…Ohohohohohoho, you want to make this hard, do you Kamijou-san? Challenge…)

(Accepted.)

Saten and Uiharu had those respective thoughts, staring at each other and nodding with the fire burning within their eyes.

The tutorial was over.

It was time to play the game properly.


Step 1 in the Kamikoto Plan (Post-Tutorial): create a crisis that Lifeguard Kamijou would have to respond to and that the other lifeguard could not respond to.

Misaka Mikoto ran across the length of the pool, realising what she was doing was entirely foolish and with everything she had, she wanted to drop everything she was doing, go into the corner and cry.

The words from a few moments ago raced through her mind, making her realise just how foolish she looked and felt.

"…How is this going to work?"

"Simple, Misaka-san. You simply run across the length of the pool and trip bad enough that you injure yourself and have to be taken to the lifeguard chair to receive first aid. Naturally, if you hurt yourself bad enough, you'll have to be lifted and the girl lifeguard can't do that."

"Y-You guys never said anything about hurting myself! Th-This is stupid."

"B-But, Misaka-san. If you get first aid from Kamihou-san, won't he be touching you in order to see where it hurts? Touching your body to give you the proper treatment you need, all the while staring at your body and lightly pressing it while you wince when it hurts? T-To imagine a Tokiwadai lady in that position goes beyond anything I can even imagine!"

"Uiharu, your nose is bleeding."

Uiharu quickly tried to calm herself but her imagination when it came to the higher class ladies of Tokiwadai seemed to skyrocket and she went limp on the ground, twitching slightly while red in the face.

Kamijou's shouting through the megaphone at her to stop running made Mikoto realise that, even though it was foolish, this plan was working to some degree despite her initial rejections. She turned her head to look at both Saten and Uiharu watching her intently and waiting for her to trip but the fact they were waiting for her to injure herself (while Mikoto was rather averse into it and realised they were more waiting for the consequences of it) made Mikoto rather nervous.

As she ran, she stared at the wet tiled floor and the natural rejection she felt for the pain she was about to inflict herself ran through her. Even so though, despite the chill that ran down her spine and every single cell in her body telling her it was a bad idea, she forced herself to clench her fist, steeling herself for everything she had.

(You didn't even have the consideration to look at my swimsuit! So you better pay attention to me now, you idiot!)

Her statement could have easily have been interpreted as being that she simply wanted Kamijou to notice her as a girl instead of looking at her with dead eyes but the fact that that was exactly what she was doing made her almost falter and collapse as the heat went to her head. What had today turned into when her meeting with Kamijou had been nothing but a coincidence!?

"Oi! Misaka! How many times do I have to tell you? If you run, then other people are going to do it as well and someone is going to get hurt. And you idiots doing the same as Misaka, if you don't stop doing that, I'm going to have to unleash the super pissed Kamijou-san! Are you prepared for that!? Are you even listening to me!?" Kamijou yelled at her through the megaphone and Mikoto turned, seeing that, as Kamijou had said, other people were running through the pool as well now; specifically, Wannai and Awatsuki.

While she felt somewhat bad she was making Kamijou's job more difficult in the first place, this was technically his fault in the first place. Even so though, whether it was her sense of balance or just because she was averse to hurting herself on purpose, it was with some frustration that Mikoto did not end up falling no matter how much she ran.

(Come on, Misaka Mikoto! He didn't say anything about your swimsuit and said you were nothing more than another drop in the ocean! Are you really going to take that?!)

Mikoto already had an answer in her mind as she clenched her fist, preparing herself to take the fall she needed to, and yet, it was the sound of something else behind her that made her stop and turn.

The cry from behind her and the sound of something hitting the ground hard made her stop and pale, her face going white and her heart feeling as though it was going to stop. Behind her, running only because they had seen Mikoto doing the same and felt confident in their ability to do so as well, Wannai Kinuho and Awatsuki Maaya were sprawled in a heap on the ground, faces contorted with pain as they sat sprawled along the ground.

"Wannai-san!? Awatsuki-san?!"

Mikoto cried that out with guilt given this had indirectly happened because of her as well, Kongou hearing her cries from within the pool and looking in her direction, going to her friends as fast as she could. Mikoto did the same, heading towards the two fallen girls as well as the other members of their group, the five of them crowding around the two fallen girls and looking on with concern.

The mess the two of them had fallen in had resulted in Awatsuki falling on top of Wannai given they had been running together. Who had fallen onto whom or whether they were both at fault was unknown, but it did not seem to matter to anyone as they crowded around the two girls lying in a heap and wincing.

"A-Are you OK?" Kongou was the first one to ask. Wannai, below Awatsuki, gave a small smile.

"S-Somewhat, Kongou-san."

"I-I'm so sorry, Wannai-san! If only I hadn't been running…!"

"It's no one's fault, Awatsuki-san. If you at least get off me, that would be much appreicat – Ow?!"

"Ouch!?"

Wannai never let out another word and Awatsuki was unable to comply with the request Wannai have given her, the two of them wincing loudly in pain as they held their wrist and ankle respectively. The two of them, with faces twisted in expressions of pain, held those limbs of theirs and trembled, holding those parts of them close to their bodies. Nothing seemed physically wrong with them but the reactions they had just had gave the story that something was desperately wrong and it was with concerned glances that the girls around them stared at each other.

"A-Are you actually OK?" Saten was the one to ask that, her face pale as she stared at the two girls. Given how Awatsuki was holding her ankle, it was clear she had been the one to trip, her landing on Wannai's wrist having caused some kind of damage. Their pain filled expressions gave way to the answer but with strong gazes the two girls tried to stare at their friends without the pain showing on their faces.

They did not succeed.

"W-We're fine. It's just that…we shouldn't have been running." Wannai said with a fraction of pain in her expression.

"I could have told you that. In fact, I did."

A voice from behind the girls and something lightly hitting the back of Mikoto's head made them all turn around to see Kamijou standing there while looking with an annoyed glance at Mikoto. She shied her face away in shame and Kamijou removed the hand from where he had chopped her head, kneeling down and looking at the two girls.

"Honestly, it was going fine today until this. Let's have a look here…" Kamijou moved to both girls, seeing Wannai had moved and was holding her right wrist which had previously been underneath Awatsuki while Awatsuki was holding her left ankle. There was no bruising or swelling of either sort from what Kamijou could tell but the boy moved closer, reaching out and stopping as he held out his hands towards Awatsuki's ankle.

"May I?"

Awatsuki nodded slightly, Kamijou reaching out and lightly touching Awatsuki's leg. She winced and pulled back but Kamijou only reached out one more, touching an area higher than her ankle, staring at her straight in the eye.

"Is it only this part of your ankle that hurts? Nowhere else?"

"Y-Yes."

"And how badly? On a scale of 1 to 10?"

"Maybe…a 6? No, a 5." Awatsuki said with a pained expression, Kamijou reaching for her foot and slowly grabbing it with both hands.

"I'm going to have to ask you to move both your legs out. Get the other one out first. I'll help with this one so just take it slow and easy." Kamijou's words were steady while Awatsuki moved her right leg easily enough but winced as soon as she tried to move her left.

"Easy."

There was light force within the words of Kamijou and it was somehow hypnotic in the way that he commanded Awatsuki and slowly moved her leg with his other hand, making sure he supported her foot and leg with both hands. The movement was slow and sure enough, it was in a short time that her legs were out in front of her. Kamijou held her leg in its outstretched position, slowly moving it to the ground before gently placing his hand on her leg.

"I need you to stay like this for a little bit. Are you OK with that?" Kamijou asked, staring straight into Awatsuki's eyes. The girl nodded slightly as she felt the warm, strong yet also gentle touch of the boy's hands against her leg.

Kamijou nodded in response, looking over and held out his hands to Wannai before stopping. The girl nodded at the silent offer and Kamijou gently raised Wannai's hands by the fingers. The movement was gentle and the warmth that came from the touch was not intrusive whatsoever, Kamijou gently rising his other hand and touching her underarm lightly. He stared at her the entire time, the girl saying nothing as she stared right back into his eyes which had entirely lost their dead appearance and were filled with a strong serious focus.

"The same for you. Just tell me when it hurts when I apply pressure. Same questions as I asked your friend apply; just tell we when it hurts and how badly. I'll try not to put too much pressure, but just for now, if you could withstand it, I'd appreciate that very much." Kamijou's words were easy but the concern for Wannai clear. The girl said nothing, only averting her gaze lightly and nodding all the same as Kamijou commenced applying pressure while holding her hand.

Gently stroking her underarm while suspending her hand with his own, he traced a gentle line underneath her arm until her reached her right wrist, Wannai immediately wincing from it and pulling away. However, with Kamijou gripping her hand, the action seemed impossible and Kamijou stared at her with a serious expression.

"Don't move it too much; if it's your wrist hurting, you want to make sure you limit the movement as much as possible. Now, is this the only area that hurts? And how much, from 1 to 10?"

"N-No, only here hurts." Wannai said with a small wince. "And maybe a 6 in terms of pain."

"Right. I'm going to gently lower this to the ground, OK?" Kamijou said that, Wannai nodding in response and without even waiting, Kamijou lowered the hand of Wannai back to the cool tiled floor. He stood up, observing the two girls in front of him with a somewhat frustrated expression before Kongou spoke up.

"U-Um, how is it? They aren't seriously hurt, are they?"

"The fact they can feel pain in itself is good. It means the adrenaline within their system isn't numbing it. Nothing is broken from what I can see, just their pride. And if it was a sprain, they would be feeling a whole lot worse. Best case, it'd say a twisted wrist and ankle so nothing too serious." Kamijou said with a nod before turning back to Index in the high chair who was staring at Kamijou and the rest of the pool. "Index! Get the first aid kit! Ice packs and two pillows! As well as three beach chairs, one of them with an armrest!"

"Touma, are you going to keep an eye on the pool!?"

"I'll have to make do! Just get to work!"

Index nodded upon the high chair, the dead expression in her eyes and body gone as she leaped from the high chair and slid down the ladder, careful in her movements as she made hurried but slow steps towards a different part of the private facility for the equipment Kamijou had suggested.

Kamijou turned back to the others and stared at the two girls, leaning down as they sat at the edge of the pool, smiling slightly.

"I'm going to have to move you two. Are you OK with that? It's not really treatment but it's the best I can do. Would you rather I call an ambulance and have a professional check it out? Or are you good with just me giving you the treatment?"

"An ambulance? Even if that is necessary," said Shirai as she stared at the two girls. "Isn't that going to poorly impact the image this private facility has?"

"Your friends or this facility's image: which is more important to you?" Kamijou did not even bother waiting to reply as he gave out those few words. "Because I know what's more important to me right now. So, would you like for me to call an ambulance?"

The girls who stared at the blunt Kamijou only blinked, Wannai and Awatsuki speechless. They seemed silent for a moment before they shook their heads.

"N-No, I'm sure that won't be necessary." Wannai said.

"You look like you know what you're doing so…" Awatsuki said to which Kamijou only gave a small smile.

"Well, I'm glad I can look it. But before this Kamijou-san gets himself in gear…" Kamijou turned and pointed at Mikoto who suddenly flinched as she, like everyone else, had been staring at Wannai and Awatsuki on the ground. He thrust a finger into her face, his face telling the story that he was entirely serious, his tone suggesting such too.

"What aren't you going to do?" Kamijou asked with a raised eyebrow. Mikoto felt herself bristle with anger at how she was being treated like a child but kept her head down, realising she had no reason to be angry when she had entirely been childish. It was a small while before she actually answered.

"Run."

"Misaka," Kamijou said with a nod. "I'm not against you having fun. Do what you like and however you like it. But the rules are in place to make sure everyone else can have fun as well. So, in your quest for fun here, just remember that this place is for the smiles of everyone. You just forgot that for a tiny bit."

Kamijou reached out for Mikoto's chin as she held it down, lifting it up slightly as he smiled while bringing her eyes up to meet his own.

"So, chin up. And have fun for the rest of the day. The same naturally goes for all of you as well. I'll deal with your friends and while they'll have to sit out for a bit, that doesn't mean that they won't have fun. You can spend time in the spa or the sauna and I think it'll be fine!"

Kamijou released his hand from Mikoto's chin and placed it on her head, rubbing it slightly. He let go of the contact, turned and grinned at everyone else, not even noticing the burning red expression on the face of Mikoto, something that had appeared so suddenly that even Saten and Uiharu felt surprised to see it.

Not even noticing it though, he turned down to the two girls, sighing slightly.

"H-How are you going to get them both to the lifeguard's chair?" asked Kongou in concern. "Do you want help?"

"As much as I would like that, having you help would only mean I'm not doing my job properly. And in this case, it doesn't seem as though there's any faking. As such, I have to do this properly." Kamijou said, Saten and Uiharu turning their heads to the side and pretending as though what Kamijou had said had nothing to do with them.

How had he known what they had tried to do this time and last was fake?

It was hard for those two to know, but perhaps they had underestimated the boy lifeguard and his attentiveness despite his seemingly dead eyes.

"Well, how are you going to move them?" Kongou asked once again however, Kamijou was already moving.

He walked over to Wannai, squatting and turning his back to her, pointing at his back with both hands.

"Get on."

"E-Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!?"

Wannai went red in the face but it was clear Kamijou was unfazed. Whether that was because this had to do with the fact she had an injury and was a serious issue with no time for embarrassment or that he had simply truly been desensitised to swimsuits did not matter to everyone who was watching and making that sound. Wannai's mouth going open and closed with a rapid pace. She trembled, Kamijou turning back to her and frowning.

"Are you going to sit there all day? Your injury isn't going to get any better if you do. And the only way I can carry you both is through this method."

"Y-You're going to carry us both like that?!"

"M-My heart isn't ready for this!"

Awatsuki went red and Wannai shook her head back and forth rapidly as she spoke, Kamijou turning back to Awatsuki who had spoken first.

"No, I'm not going to be carrying you like this. You've got your ankle so putting you on the back is only going to stress it. And having your friend on top of you while I give you both piggy back rides is going to hurt her wrist."

"Th-Then how are you going to carry me!? Like a bag of rice!?"

"No! What did I just say about your ankle?!" Kamijou cried to Awatsuki's ridiculous suggestion.

"P-Phew. And here I thought you had no tact at all."

"No, you're being princess carried."

Awatsuki's face exploded red and she fell backwards, her head hitting the ground with steam coming from her ears. Mikoto was in much the same state, trembling as she stood in front of the idiot who had rejected one ridiculous suggestion and made one of his own. Saten and Uiharu trembled, coming to realise how truly shocking the event of being saved by a lifeguard was.

Wannai had hurt her wrist so was carrying her on Kamijou's back even necessary!?

What was even happening!?

Was no one going to address this?!

No one at all!?

Shirai twitched and wanted to make that comment while Kongou stared at Kamijou in concern, only thinking of her friends and not the situation.

"Is carrying them both in that fashion going to help?"

"Sure," replied Kamijou. "By carrying your friend with the ankle injury princess carry style, I can stress it the least and carrying your friend with the wrist injury on my back places her hand on my chest which means she can have a proper support while we move."

"O-On his ches – ?!"

Wannai's face exploded red now and she collapsed backwards with steam coming from her ears as well. Mikoto was trembling fully now and entirely red in the face, everyone having forgotten entirely about the power of Awatsuki, Float Dial, which allowed her to lift fairly heavy objects by affecting buoyancy, even Awatsuki herself. Complicated feelings ran inside the heart of the Level 5 as Kamijou seemed to realise this was no time to be focusing on the method of carrying the two of them but instead of get right into it.

"Look, we have to get to the lifeguard chairs, so if you please."

Kamijou turned and lightly grabbed injured Wannai's arm, draping the right arm over his shoulder such that it touched against his bare chest. The girl let out a small squeal but Kamijou either did not hear it or was paying attention to something else entirely, grabbing her other arm and draping it over his shoulder in much the same fashion.

He grabbed her legs which had been sprawled out after her fall, grabbing them in his hands and shifting Wannai upwards but instead of using his hands to support her thighs and butt, used his forearms instead, leaving his hands free.

Wannai seemed on the verge of collapse as her head rested on the bare back of Kamijou as the boy shifted her once again. This time though, now that he properly had her in position, he used his spare hands and grabbed Awatsuki by the legs and her back.

"This is going to be a sudden shift, by I'll do it slowly to make sure we put as little pressure on your leg as possible. A-Are you even listening to me?!"

"Please…be gentle with me."

"? I just said that I'd be doing things slowly, didn't I?!"

Realising this was no time for embarrassment, Kamijou did as he said, slowly lifting Awatsuki. She trembled as her legs dangled from Kamijou's arms, Kamijou having to bring her closer because of how his arms were pressed against himself due to also carrying Wannai as well. He stood up, facing everyone else who only stared in either admiration (Saten and Uiharu), concern for Wannai and Awatsuki (Kongou), annoyance and a bit of scepticism given this was extremely stupid (Shirai) or just pure shock (use process of elimination).

"Well, for everyone else, enjoy yourself."

And with that, Kamijou slowly walked away, supporting both Wannai and Awatsuki in his arms, slowly moving but clearly finding the dual weight of the two girls a bit more than he could handle, even though he never showed it on his face.

However, what was clear on the faces of those injured girls was the redness as they leaned either against his back or were pressed against his chest, silent and touching what they were leaning against while their faces showed fondness and embarrassment.

One thing was clear.

Misaka Mikoto was never going to run in a pool again.

If only to avoid another miracle like this.


"There are so many things wrong with this picture. How can he carry both of them like that? Why does he need to? Is no one going to comment on this? …No one?!"

Shirai Kuroko's comments and complaints were entirely ignored.


The day had ended and with it, the chaos that had been the day as lifeguards.

Kamijou and Index sighed as they sat, but not at the chairs, but instead at the side of the pool. The leftover chips not consumed had been given to the both of them to eat along with permission to stay until 7 where the pool was cleaned in preparation for tomorrow. And given the chaos while Misaka Mikoto and her friends stayed, both lifeguards knew they were never going to do something like this again.

There had not just been Wannai and Awatsuki being injured.

There had been incidents involving fire extinguishers, urine, the water slide and other things and it was beyond what Kamijou and Index felt as though they had to handle as mere lifeguards. But as the cleaners moved around them and the two of them sat at the edge of the pool with their feet in the water, it was with a silent groan that Kamijou spoke.

"Today…let's never do it again Index."

"Agreed."

Index slowly reached for the chips next to her, the chips being in the space between Kamijou and her, the silence only being filled as Kamijou and Index groaned, leaning backwards and letting their bodies hit the cool tiles.

"…Did you have fun though, Index?"

"?"

Index turned towards Kamijou, seeing the boy was staring up at the ceiling with a look of melancholy.

"I realise today didn't go to plan. But you stayed through it the entire time despite it being nothing more than misfortune. So, I was just wondering. Because you could have left at any time. Yet you didn't, because of me. So I just wanted to know whether you had fun."

Was there regret in his voice? Index could not say but even so, she knew the words were true. She could have left her post at any time and swum, however, she had not. She could have relieved herself of the misfortune handed to her at any time, yet she did not. Despite her complaining, despite how lethargic she was and despite how today had clearly been a day where nothing went the way she wanted, Index stared at the ceiling and closed her eyes.

"…Today was really tough, you know that Touma?"

"…I know."

"I mean, ever since Short Hair and her friends came over, it was problem after problem. Even before that, with the heating and the lack of energy and the outright rude children who laughed at me and my swimsuit, it was hard. I didn't know what being a lifeguard meant and I know now it is a serious thing I can't ignore and pretend is easy. Because it isn't. Today was hard."

"…"

"But also fun."

Kamijou frowned, turning to the girl with silver hair beside him as she stared up the ceiling and kicked her legs in the water, feeling how the wet cooled her off more than she could say and smiling as she looked up at the ceiling.

"Nothing went to plan and I couldn't predict aaaaaaaaaaaaaanything. But that wasn't what made it fun. I think even the people here thought today was very out of the ordinary. And the person who made it such, the person who made it fun with how crazy today was and how I couldn't guess anything that was going to happen, the person who gave me the chance to experience such a thing? That was you, Touma. Today was hard and today was tough. But I definitely think that today was fun. Only because you were here with me, Touma."

There was a small bit of silence as Kamijou looked up at the ceiling. He said nothing for a small while, Index having no idea what his thoughts were but the way he looked at the ceiling was entirely different from the melancholic way he had looked before. Index did not look at him straight, only in the corner of her eye. But as she lay there on the tiles with Kamijou, looking at the ceiling, Kamijou eventually spoke.

"It was fun, even with the misfortune? It was fun even though nothing went to plan, we didn't get to swim and we didn't do anything we wanted?"

"The only reason we can think those things is because we had a go at it. And it was fun. You made it fun, Touma. It might not mean much and it might not exactly be the best thing to say to you, but I'm glad you have that misfortune of yours. Without it, I don't think each day would be as exciting as they are. Without it, I don't think you would get into the trouble you get into, something that makes me worried about you. But more importantly, without it…I don't think you and I would ever have met."

"…"

"Your misfortune is what has given me this life, Touma. So, when I say it was fun, even with the misfortune, I mean it. That misfortune saved me. And today, I had fun. With you, Touma. And no one else."

Index turned her head to face Kamijou, the boy seeing the action in the corner of his vision and doing the same. They sat there, looking at each other before Index broke into a small smile, Kamijou doing the same. He reached out with his hand for a chip, taking another one and holding it out to Index as they lay together on the floor of the pool. She took it and Kamijou tapped his chip against hers, grinning all the same.

"Well then. For whatever happens and whatever is going to come next, the only thing I hope is that we can continue to have fun together. Despite the misfortune and the magic and the chaos that happens around me. You and me, Index. You and me. I hope we can…enjoy what is to come for a long time."

"Same here. You and me, Touma. You and me."

Index tapped her chip against Kamijou's, the two of them smiling at each before they turned back their gazes to the ceiling, simply the two of them.

There was nothing more that had to be said.

The only thing that had to exist right now was the two of them, finding fun and worth in the existence of the other. Today had been hectic, crazy and chaotic in so many ways but most of all, for the two of them, simply there and in the presence of each other, it had been one thing.

Fun.

Fun for Index because Kamijou Touma had been there.

Fun for Kamijou Touma because Index had been there.

Wasn't that all they needed?

Being part time lifeguards had not gone the way they had wanted at all and yet, it was merely because of each other being there they had those true thoughts run through them, the smiles they shared being the mark of a happiness rarely found anywhere else.

A happiness found merely in the presence of each other.


And there we have it!

So, what did you think?!

Was this stupid? I think it was stupid, but being able to turn my brain off for this one and let loose was what made it fun.

Like the previous one of this, I think this more was written because of the relevant dress wear needed for the 'occupation': in this case; swimsuits! However, at the same time, I rarely mentioned what those swimsuits were so it's questionable whether this was a true 'swimsuit' chapter or not. Not to mention there were heaps of times where I could have gone further with the explanation but with the fact there was a desensitisation to swimsuits from Touma, there was an interesting dynamic here in that I had swimsuits yet did nothing with them.

Again, that's another reason this was pretty stupid.

However, the focus of this definitely had to do with the idea of a 'first time job', despite this being the second of the 'series'. This time, they were lifeguards and yet, from the get go, I had the situation be that of one where both Touma and Index had no desire to be them, with the heat, how irritable it made them and the fact that there was literally nothing to do. It was somewhat interesting to have it done this way in that, for the first time, both Index and Touma WANT something to happen so that they can swim and yet, they are unable to do simply because of the chaos the two of them find themselves in.

In this way, you can think of this being as 'pre-lifeguarding' and 'during lifeguarding' in that we had the moments before Index and Touma were doing their job and the moments after. But with how serious and dead Touma and Index were throughout the process, I hope you found it somewhat fun when they had their reactions to Mikoto and the others appearing in that they wanted nothing to do with it and did not care in the slightest they were there.

But I guess what makes this 'series' fun is how the people that appear only serve to mess things up and cause some excitement for the two part timers. Because of how insane the two of them were being in how dead they were acting, I felt as though trying to get their attention was something fun to do with the both of them. And hence, we had Mikoto trying to at least get Touma to comment on her swimsuit using various methods although, as to be expected with misfortune, it ended with either Touma focusing on something else or him actually doing his job. If anything, I hope serious Touma here when this is mostly for comedic purposes had its own appeal for you guys.

But the last section definitely had to be a small nod of the head to Index. At the beginning, I sort of had her question what she was doing and how she was acting as well as questioning whether what she was doing was fun. But, at the end of all that, I resolved it by having Index saying what she did WAS fun simply because she could not predict what was going to happen and how nothing went her way, much like her reflections and feelings in OT 1. Although we sometimes forget because of her biting and other things, the connection between Index and Touma is definitely a strong one and one built on a more founded trust and connection than most characters have in the series with another character. And hence, that was the point of the final scene; that she is not all about food but also about the things she has with Touma and how Touma also finds worth in her being by his side. Even if you find it platonic or romantic, Index and Touma was where it all began and part of me feels that returning to this idea once in a while is always a good thing. I hope that you felt so too.

And as always,
Review if you please.

And I'll see you when I see you and I won't if I don't.

The parts here were pretty short at times which I definitely think is a good thing. The story itself was still stupid though so sometimes I worry about what my brain churns out…