Hi, I'm back! It's been like four months since that last author's note in Memories. If you're still here, thanks so much for waiting! The coveted sequel is finally here, completely reinvented, like I said I would, as you might have been able to tell because of that prologue. It's been a really, really long time since I've last published anything. I've been writing a lot, yeah, but this is the first time in a while that I actually allow other people to see it :). I'm super excited to be back to tell this story that so many people seemed to like, and I can't wait to read your comments! Please comment a lot, I will always read them and reply. I wanna interact with my readers.

Before you start reading, there's a couple things that I wanna clarify.

Unlike Memories, which was narrated in an omniscient point of view, Illusions will be narrated in a third person point of view, limited to one character in particular. The characters will change according to the situation and conversation that needs to happen, I will obviously clarify so you don't get lost!

Illusions will also include flashbacks like Memories did, but this time they will be separate chapters because they're longer. Each episode of the anime will encompass between 2-3 chapters, and the flashbacks (which I will refer to as illusions, in this case, to follow the theme:d) will be uploaded simultaneously with the first part of each episode.

Also, this is almost a complete rewrite of the chapters that I previously uploaded on Memories, but some descriptions and dialogues are still there, so if they seem familiar, that's why. You've read them before :)

A fair warning, this sequel is a bit more mature than the last one in the themes that it deals with, but there will be nothing explicit, don't worry. However, there will be mentions of underage drinking (just mentions, not descriptions) and things will get rather steamy at certain points but, like I said, nothing will ever be explicit. I will also put a warning at the beginning of the chapters when one of these themes appears in case you wanna skip that section in particular, which is totally understandable.

Anyway, imma shut up and let you guys go ahead and read in peace. Welcome back to Rosalya's world!

The sudden jolt of the car awoke Rosalya from her slumber, and she looked around, momentarily forgetting where she was, but when she saw her suitcase resting at her feet, she remembered.

She was in a taxi, on the way to the bus station, where her friends Makoto Tachibana, Haruka Nanase, Rei Ryugazaki, and Nagisa Hazuki were probably waiting for her to pay Samezuka Academy a visit.

"Sleepy, are we?" the friendly driver spoke from the pilot's seat, looking at her through the rearview mirror.

"A little" she replied, smiling nervously "Where are we?" she gazed through the window, to find that they were passing by a park, full of children playing and parents talking.

"Just a couple more blocks," he informed, and she nodded, as her phone began ringing. She reached for the coat pocket.

"Hey, Joy" she greeted, repressing a yawn.

"Did you land?" her best friend's voice came from the other side of the line.

"Yep, around forty-five minutes ago" her friend audibly sighed in relief. Rosa couldn't blame her, she probably went through quite a bit of stress when she told her what happened.

"Did you tell your parents yet?"

"Not yet"

Here's the thing: Rosa had spent the entirety of the month of her winter break in Brighton. She had booked an early morning flight that day so she would be home by 2 and get some rest, before going to Samezuka for the farewell party for the third-year-olds at 5, which the Iwatobi Swim Club had been invited to.

But her flight was delayed for almost five hours; it was currently 4:15 PM, and she wouldn't have time to go all the way home to get changed, so she was just heading to the bus station right now, suitcase and everything. She doubted the Samezuka guys would mind, and she didn't want to miss the party since she wouldn't see Captain Mikoshiba afterward; the guy had really grown on her. He was completely unpredictable and a very wild card, but it was exactly that which made him so memorable and fun to be around.

Besides, she was also kinda curious to see who he would appoint as the next captain. Nate had told her that it would happen at the party. She had a slight suspicion, but she wasn't ready to dwell on it yet, since it would bring about a lot of other things that she had done her best to keep buried for the past three months.

"I will when I get home" she added. She hadn't told her parents that she had a delayed flight, cause if she knew anything about them, she knew that they would freak out and she didn't want that.

"Are you heading there right now?" her friend asked curiously.

"I have the Samezuka farewell party first, remember?"

"Oh, yeah, Nate told me about it" she replied "A new team captain will be chosen, right?"

"Yep"

"Any idea who it might be?"

"Not really" her friend replied, her eyes going back to the window. They were getting closer "Maybe Nate?" she replied, avoiding the very obvious choice.

"Nathan might love swimming more than himself, but he definitely doesn't want to be captain" Joy replied "Trust me on that"

"I don't think that'll really change Captain Mikoshiba's decision" she commented "He's a pretty stubborn guy"

"Really?"

"Yeah" she nodded, as the car came to a stop outside the station "Hey, Joy, I gotta go. Talk to you later?"

"Sure thing" she replied from the other side "Have fun"

"Thanks, I will," she said back, before hanging up and placing her phone back in the pocket. She paid the driver, who kindly helped her get her suitcase out of the car, before walking inside. She was thankful she hadn't chosen to take many clothes this time around, cause otherwise it would've been almost impossible to walk through the busy place.

After walking around and going to the departure section of the station, she quickly spotted Nagisa and Rei by a bench, no sign of the other two anywhere. They saw her as well.

"Rosa, over here!" Nagisa's voice called for her as he waved, making her smile.

"Hey, guys!" she replied cheerfully, leaving her suitcase nearby and pulling both of them for a hug.

"It's been a long time" Rei commented before his gaze went over to the blue suitcase behind her "Why do you have a suitcase?"

"My flight got delayed" she explained "I came straight from the airport, so I didn't have time to go home"

"How was England?" Nagisa questioned.

"Good!" she replied with a nod, and her gaze then set on what he was holding in his hand "What the hell is that?" she pointed out to the pink pastry with what seemed some sort of violet filling inside. It did not look tasty.

"I don't even want to know," Rei said before the orange-haired could even reply "But he's definitely getting indigestion"

"You should try a bite, it's good!" he offered, but Rei's face scrunched up in disgust and Rosa just shook her head.

"I'm fine, thanks"

"How you load those calories and still have room for lunch, I'll never know"

"People like Nagi have around four stomachs" Rosalya stated good-heartedly "My brother was the same, and he was still the fastest in his entire class"

It took a long time, a very long time, for Rosa to be able to say something about Luke without bursting into tears. But, finally, she felt like she was actually over his death. Her grief was gone.

Of course, she still missed him, and probably always would, but she no longer felt the overwhelming pain and heartache she did nine months ago. Every time she thought of Luke now, she didn't see him drowning over and over again while she stood helplessly, watching the waves drag him away. Instead, she saw his smile. His laugh. The glimmer in his eyes. His imagination. The incredibly high hopes he had for his big sister and her dream of swimming at the international level.

"I'm sure we would've gotten along" Nagisa commented to her teasing, pulling her out of her thoughts.

"Oh, definitely" the girl nodded in agreement. Rosalya saw many similarities between Luke and Nagisa, starting first and foremost with the fact that they were both literal balls of pure energy and sunshine. No matter the mood, they always managed to light it up. They didn't even have to do anything, their sole presence was more than enough. Rosa could try to do the same, but her attempt would always be surpassed by theirs.

"Nagisa, Rei, Rosa!" they heard a familiar hasty voice, and all three of them turned around to find Mako and Haru sprinting towards them rapidly "Sorry, we kept you waiting!"

"Hold your breaths" the girl commented when they came to a stop in front of them "It's not even 10 yet"

"That's true, but I, for one, hate being late" Rei said sternly, fixing his glasses.

"Then let's get into the bus, already!" Nagisa exclaimed, still eating...whatever he was eating.

"What is that?" Makoto asked, and he, too, looked kinda disgusted.

"Some things are better left untold" Rosa said. She was actually kind of afraid of the type of ingredients that it might contain. She had a feeling they were probably detrimental to anyone's health, but, thankfully, Nagisa actually had a way of keeping his immune system intact, unlike some other people. Perks of being an athlete.

"Guys, over here!" the five of them heard a voice calling as soon as they got into Samezuka's indoor pool, and looked up to find Gou standing on the sidelines.

"Is this the big farewell meet?" Makoto wondered as Rosalya looked around. Captain Mikoshiba was down at the start of the pool, apparently having won a race since he looked so pleased with himself, and a guy beside him (his opponent, she assumed) was breathing heavily. There were several people up in the bleachers, students of Samezuka clapping and cheering as they looked down. Laughter and lively voices could be heard all around.

Rosa turned to look at the swimmers, hoping to see them laughing as well, only to find that most of them looked absolutely exhausted. They were lying on the ground, on the benches, and there was even one poor guy that seemed to be struggling to breathe, as one of his teammates handed him a bottle of water. There were several more lying all around, most of them completely emptied of their content.

"What happened to them?" she questioned, wondering whether she should be concerned or not. Nobody else seemed to be.

In fact, they looked almost used to it.

"Samezuka tradition" Rosa froze, and her heart crawled up her throat, heavying her breath. She didn't dare turn around to look at who had spoken, and she didn't really need to, because she knew. She'd recognize his voice anywhere "A 100 m race, 100 times. It continues until someone beats the captain"

She knew he'd be there, of course she did, but she had been doing her best to ignore those thoughts for an entire month, as if they didn't exist. As if he didn't exist. And she succeeded for a while, her time in Brighton helped her a lot; she didn't have to worry about facing him while she was there, not until she came back. And she had been avoiding all thoughts of him until the very last moment, even when she landed and got on that taxi, but she knew that there was no way she could escape now. Her blissful evasion was over, it was time to come back to reality.

She took a deep breath, and looked at him. He had his swim gear and Samezuka hoodie on, and he was looking more alive than half the people there. But she hadn't even been staring for five seconds when memories of their time together came flashing back. Laughs. Kisses. Dates.

She immediately averted her gaze, moving it to focus on the pool, hoping it'd calm her nerves. She caught him staring at her out of the corner of her eye, but even then she didn't meet his glance.

"Rin" Haru greeted, and even his name was painful to hear.

"Hey, thanks for coming" he replied, and Rosa saw him turning to look at the other guys, which relaxed her limbs.

"Have you raced him yet, Rin?" Nagisa questioned, seemingly not noticing the awkwardness.

"No, not yet" Rosa desperately wanted to tease him, mock him. At least ten responses went through her mind, but she couldn't put any of them into words "Lance is about to, though"

And just on cue, Nathan's unmistakable voice was heard.

"Hey, guys! Good to see you!" he greeted, and Rosa did look at him; thankfully the two of them were standing rather apart. His goggles were hanging from his swimsuit. No hoodie on "Is Matsuoka trashing me again?" he added, folding his arms and looking at the boy with a smirk. Rin just cast his gaze to the side in annoyance.

"Kinda" Nagisa replied with a nervous smile, and the maroon-haired didn't deny it.

Nathan and she had texted fairly often during the break, and Rosa remembered the boy telling him that he was actually getting closer to Rin. Whatever grudge or anger he had towards him was dissolving slowly. Rosa knew where that grudge came from, she vividly remembered it.

But, of course, she didn't say anything. She just sat there and texted him a bunch of emojis and hahas and 'i'm glad' to pretend that everything was okay, so he wouldn't worry.

She assumed that they had to be closer, considering how unbothered Rin seemed to be towards Nate's teasing; he wouldn't let just anyone treat him like that.

"Aw, I'm touched" he stated, placing his arm around his shoulder "We're like the best of friends, this guy and I" the red haired kept going "He just doesn't know it yet"

"Get off me" Rin grumbled, moving his arm aside and then folding his own, which made the rest of the people surrounding them chuckle.

Well, everyone but her.

"Yo, Rosa, you moving in or something?" this time, Nathan talked to her, and she hoped that he hadn't noticed how quiet she was; he'd definitely think that something was wrong, since she wasn't usually like that.

He was gesturing to her suitcase, which was standing against the furthest wall in the pool so it wouldn't get wet.

"As fun as the prospect of sharing a room with you might sound, I'm not" she replied. She couldn't come up with any jokes or clever remarks to his teasing, she had a lot in her head "I lost my flight"

"Are you saying you'd like to move in with me?" Nathan questioned, sounding genuinely surprised "Rosa, I love you, but I don't think we're at that stage in our relationship yet" she raised an eyebrow at him.

"On second thought, I wouldn't stand spending an entire day with you, much less see your face every day.

Heh, maybe her joking mechanism wasn't as broken as she thought.

"I know you love me," he said in a somewhat singy voice

"Nah, I only love my dog" she replied "I don't need anybody else"

Before Nathan could come up with something to continue their banter, a voice emerged from behind them

"Lance!" they heard the captain, and they turned around to see him standing by the pool "You and me, 100 meters, what do you say? I bet you are better than all these bastards" he didn't seem to notice that Iwatobi was there as well, probably too busy thinking about who he'd crush next.

"Well, that's my cue" the redhead announced, reaching for the goggles and placing them on his head "It was nice knowing you, guys. Remember me when I'm dead" he added, giving them a small wave before approaching him.

"That's the attitude!" Mikoshiba celebrated, wrapping an arm around the boy as they walked towards the starting line.

"Will he be okay?" Gou questioned, actually kinda worried, seeing how everyone else seemed to be dead or on the brink of.

"Probably not" Rin replied, and Rosa could detect a hint of amusement in his voice. And she hated that she could.

"You think we should have something like this?" Nagisa wondered as Nate and Mikoshiba got on the platform, and one of the Samezuka guys approached them, probably to act as the referee.

"You mean, an end-of-the-year race where we all exhaust ourselves to death?" Rosalya questioned, folding her arms. Splashes. The two guys began their race.

"Yeah!" Nagisa replied, and he sounded almost too excited about passing out after swimming 100 meters "We could race against Rosa!" he added, looking at the rest of his team "She's the fastest swimmer amongst all five of us!"

"Which is the reason why she'd pulverize each and every one of us" Rei replied, and everyone knew that he was right "I'd rather spare myself from the embarrassment, thank you very much"

"I'd go easy on you" she suggested, kind of amused at the idea of beating them. She wondered if that made her a terrible person. Probably. But she couldn't help it.

"No, you wouldn't," Haru replied logically.

"No, I wouldn't" she affirmed with a nod, which earned her a couple chuckles.

"Yeah!" they heard Mikoshiba celebrating as he reached the end line, Nathan short on his back. He stood up, breathing heavily.

"You actually got fairly close" the guy who had been the referee commented, kneeling in front of the redhead.

"Yeah" he replied, propelling himself up, with a lot of effort. And as soon as he touched the floor, he plopped down "But at what cost?" he added, trying his best to regulate his breathing.

"You okay, Nate?" Mako questioned as they approached the guy.

"I think I lost one of my lungs" he commented nonchalantly, looking up at him "But other than that, I'm fine"

"Really no one can seem to beat the guy" Rei observed, as Mikoshiba grabbed a towel from the pile on one of the chairs.

"That's why he was named captain" Rin commented logically, as the man of the hour approached them.

"Hey! You guys came to watch too?" he greeted enthusiastically, like he always did, and Rosalya wondered if he had even noticed that they were there when he challenged Nathan. Probably not "How about a race to mark the occasion?" Rosa immediately opened her eyes wide upon hearing those words, and noticed that everyone else did too,

"Who, us?" Makoto asked, sweating profusely, probably very traumatized at the idea of racing Mikoshiba, like everyone else in that place.

"But we're not even on your team…" Rei commented hastily.

"Hey, don't be shy! Let's go, Samezuka versus Iwatobi, 400 freestyle medley relay!" and without even giving them a chance to keep on arguing, he began calling up swimmers "Matsuoka, you're swimming in this one!"

"Sure"

"Anyone else not dead?!"

"Me!" Nitori screamed, raising his hand as he appeared from in between the bodies.

"Nitori, excellent! Lance, got your lung back?!" he added, looking at said guy, who just now seemed to be able to sit down.

"Does he ever give the guy a break?!" Makoto questioned exasperatedly.

"He has a fast recovery rate," Rin replied to his question.

"I think I have half of it if it's any help"

"That's more than enough!"

"We're not really prepared!" the guys kept insisting, but Rosa knew that it was of no use. Mikoshiba seemed really determined, she was sure that nothing could make him change his mind. And Haru seemed to think that as well, since he immediately began taking off his pants, to reveal his signature swimsuit underneath, and then proceeded to toss his shirt to the side.

"Oh, no"

"Look at those muscles!"

"Does the man ever wear boxers?"

"Well, if you can't beat him…"

"...keep swimming"

"What?!" Rei questioned, and when he looked to the side, he saw that the guys were opening their bags. Their swimsuits were inside "Why the hell would you have your swimsuits packed?!"

"Because they're friends with Haru" Rosalya commented meekly, walking over to her suitcase "And I arrived eight hours late so I didn't even have time to unpack mine"

"Is anyone going to back me up here?!"

"No worries, my friend!" Mikoshiba placed his hand, more like slapped it, on Rei's shoulder "We can accommodate you" Rosa was sure that Rei did not like how that sounded, but nobody was listening to his complaints.

And so, everyone got ready for the first race of the many that were to come that year.

This break-up hurts me more than it hurts you, trust me :'). But it was necessary, and you'll see why eventually.