It was the day of the city tournament, and Yukari had made it a habit to call me before my alarm went off. I knew why she was so excited about it: there would be guys her age competing. The entire swim team also had a surprise for Rin after the tournament. It made me happy that he would be able to swim in a pool of cherry blossoms—something he dreamed about when we were in elementary school. Haru would be the one to lure Rin to Iwatobi's pool. He wouldn't see it coming if it was Haru.

As I got dressed, I heard the front door open. I prayed it wasn't one of Koji's surprise visits. That was the last thing I wanted to happen today.

"I'm home!" Kaori called.

Thank god it was Kaori, at least she didn't bring me down whenever she saw me.

"Hey, what are you doing home?" I asked as I came down the stairs.

"I wanted to drop off some clothes that I don't wear anymore. Do you have a tournament today?" Kaori pointed to my uniform.

"Yeah, it's the city tournament. It'll be a good warm up for districts," I smiled.

"Good luck!" Kaori smiled before the lightbulb went off in her head, "Hey! We should do a double date sometime! It would be so much fun."

"I'll talk to Rin." I gave her a half smile.

"Good luck today." Our step-mom came out from the kitchen to give me a hug.

"Thanks mom! I'll be coming home a little late today," I reminded her.

"Okay, be safe." She nodded, leading Kaori into the kitchen.

I left the house and headed over to the train station where Makoto, Haru, Rei, and I would be meeting. Kou was probably going to get there around the same time as Rin. It was going to be an exciting day overall, but I was looking forward to Rin's surprise.

.oOo.

The location of the tournament wasn't very far from the train station. I didn't see Yukari outside, so she must have gone inside to look at the guys while Kou was looking at the muscles. As we got closer, I saw Rin talking to his teammates.

"Hey, Rin!" Nagisa called as he waved.

Rin looked at Nagisa, annoyed, before he continued talking. His teammates had all spoken in unison. He was probably done instructing them. Rin's eyes met mine and smiled at me. I knew I would have time to talk to him at the intermission.

"What do you know, the man makes a good captain afterall," Rei said as we walked inside the venue.

"Of course he would," I hummed

"Roar! Do or die, maggots! Take no prisoners." Nagisa bared his teeth in a goofy snarl. "That's my impression of what he thinks he sounds like."

"He does not!" I scoffed, looking over at Nagisa,

"Rin is the perfect captain! He could never do anything wrong." Nagisa imitated me.

"I do not sound like that." I glared at him.

"Now that's not very nice." Makoto looked back at us.

But before either of us could answer, Coach Sasabe got our attention. "You're late!"

"Wow, Coach! Why are you all suited up?" Nagisa asked.

I looked at him trying to understand why he chose that swimsuit as Yukari came over to give me a hug. "I think I found the perfect guy. He has nice… what were the muscles called, Kou?" Yukari turned back to Kou.

"Trapezius and deltoids."

"Yes, those! She said it looked like he swam butterfly. Maybe Rei can put in a good word for me." Yukari's eyes sparkled.

"Yeah! Rei would be the perfect person to do that," Nagisa agreed.

"Don't I get any say in this!?" Rei cried.

I stifled a laugh. Yukari wouldn't be one to force Rei to do something like that.

Then Makoto called us over to find a place to sit. Haru and Rin's race would be the first to come. I'd be cheering for both of them, as would Kou and Yukari.

It would be nice to see Haru and Rin race each other again. I had no idea how the race was going to go, but I wasn't expecting to see them both tie for first. I don't think that had ever happened at the city tournament before. They had set a new tournament record. I doubt anyone would be able to beat it for a while. It would be funny if Haru and Rin could beat their own record.

.oOo.

Makoto, Nagisa, and Rei all placed first in their races. There was going to be a short intermission, so Yukari and I sought out Rin. He was in the lobby with his teammates. We hung back as he talked to them. When he was done, he brightened up as soon as he saw me. I practically skipped over to him.

"That was amazing!" I beamed, pulling him in for a hug.

"Thanks, babe," he chuckled.

"I also passed my math test." I pulled away just enough to look at him.

"I knew you would." He ruffled my hair.

"Hey, Rin. Congratulations on getting team captain!"

"Thanks, Yukari. The guys did pretty good out there." Rin draped his arm around my shoulder as I turned to face Yukari.

"Yeah. Do you talk to the older swimmers when you do these? Like the ones in college?" Yukari shifted her weight. She was always so blunt.

I snickered at the look on Rin's face.

"Are you serious?" he asked, incredulous.

"Yes! I mean, you're dating my best friend, so I figured that maybe you'd like to help her best friend find a boyfriend. So we can go on double dates." She shrugged.

"Some of these guys may be nice to look at, but I don't think they'd be able to keep up with you. If we ever meet anyone who's a perfect match for you, we'll set you two up," I smiled at her.

Yukari thought for a moment before nodding. "You're right. Besides, if you two help me, it's a guarantee that he'll have amazing muscles." Yukari mused a smile, "I'm going to head back. Good luck!"

I looked up at Rin who was shaking his head at me.

"What? I think we should try to set her up if we find someone perfect for her." I shrugged.

"But we don't know anyone who'd be able to keep up with Yukari," Rin argued.

"Then we'll just have to find someone!"

Rin looked down at me before placing a kiss on my forehead. Hopefully, we would be able to find someone for Yukari. I looked around to make sure no one from Iwatobi or Samezuka was in earshot. Now would be a good opportunity to ask Rin about Yukari's school project.

"So, I have another favor to ask you." I peered up at him.

"What is it?" He looked down at me skeptically.

"Would you be alright with modeling with me for Yukari's school project? She'll just be taking pictures of us in the clothes she designed."

Rin sighed, scratching the back of his head, "I'll do it, but make sure none of the guys know about it."

"Yeah, I know. And Yukari won't tell anyone. I promise." I held out my pinky finger.

Rin wrapped his pinky around mine before kissing my forehead. Then an announcement sounded, signalling that intermission was almost over. Rin and I said our goodbyes before I went back to our section to grab my swim bag. The butterfly race was first, and I was ready for it.

.oOo.

I had won the butterfly race and beat my personal best like I wanted to. It was exciting, and it meant I was getting closer to my goal of beating Rin. During one of the races, I pulled Yukari aside to tell her that Rin had agreed to help us. She told me she needed Rin's measurements. Maybe I could get help from Ms. Matsuoka. Or Yukari could always walk me through the steps over the phone. Either way, I was excited to get dressed up and take pictures with Rin.

.oOo.

It was the end of the day, and we were all chatting about everything that had happened. Yukari had said goodbye as soon as the tournament was over; she had to get back home so she could study for an upcoming test.

I looked at Samezuka as they were left. The boys and I shared a look. It was time to lure Rin to the swim club. I did my best to look like I wasn't watching them. There was no doubt in my mind that Rin would take the bait, and I was happy that I wasn't the one asking him for once. Suddenly, my phone buzzed. It was my mom.

"Hey, mom."

"Hey, sweetheart, how did the tournament go?" she asked

"Really well! We all beat our personal bests, and Haru and Rin tied. It was amazing!"

"I'm so proud of you guys! Text me when you get back to Iwatobi."

"I will! I'll tell you all about it when I get home."

"I can't wait. Have fun."

"Thanks, mom. Love you," I smiled before I hung up the phone.

Haru nodded once he joined us. Now it was time to go to the swim club so we could go over our lines. Ms. Amakata knew that we were going to be there and didn't have a problem with it as long as we were gone before it got dark. I certainly didn't want to get lectured about trespassing again.

.oOo.

Kou had made us go over the plan once more before the boys got into their positions. They were going to ambush Rin in the dark room and put Little Iwatobi's mascot head on him. Kou and I would be waiting outside by the pool.

My heart was racing with excitement. I knew Rin was going to love it.

We both heard Nagisa yell to take Rin away. That was our signal to get ready.

Rin was struggling and spluttering angrily as they dragged him along."Somebody better explain this to me!"

"Guys, what are you doing?! Put him down." Kou said.

"Kou, is that you? I'm gonna cause some major damage if you don't take this stupid thing off!"

"Yeah, come on. Take that mask off," I agreed.

The boys took off the mask, and Rin gasped.

"Remember, in elementary school,how you told us your dream? You wanted to swim in a pool full of cherry blossoms," Haru said.

"Our original plan was to spruce up the pool as an advertisement aimed at new members, but we decided you would like it better," Makoto smiled.

"Ms. A gave us permission to open the pool early." Nagisa peeked out from behind Makoto.

"But no one came, so the work was all for naught," Rei sighed.

"It seemed like a shame for the end result to go to waste. So, we thought that you'd appreciate it." I smiled.

"This is amazing." Rin's eyes began to water, but he quickly turned away to hide his tears.

"Go on, take a dip," Rei said.

"What?" Rin turned back to face us.

"Enjoy yourself," the boys said in unison.

"I mean, since you're here and all, you might as well." Haru looked at the pool indifferently.

"Not to be ungrateful, but it's still a little chilly for a swim," Rin said with a grimace.

"Aww, come on! Don't be a wuss, just get in there." Kou got ready to take a picture.

"It'll be invigorating." Rei went over to push him.

"Don't be afraid! I'm sure Riku-chan will be able to warm you up if you get cold." Nagisa pushed on the other side.

"Nagisa!" I looked away, flustered at the comment.

The next moment, it started raining, and we all ran to shelter ourselves from the cold rain. Rin, Makoto, Haru, and I were under the awning on the pool deck, while Nagisa, Rei, and Kou were under the roof at the club building.

"I didn't even know rain was in the forecast today," Makoto sighed.

"Hey, uh… you guys. Have you ever given any thought to life after graduation?" Rin asked.

I looked up at him. It was something I had been avoiding. I still didn't know what I wanted to do.

"Not really," Haru answered.

"So you have no idea what you're gonna do?" Rin looked at Haru.

"We all can't have our sights set as high as yours," Makoto chuckled.

"You're kidding, right? I've wasted so much time that it's not even funny. Nationals are this summer—it's my last shot at being scouted. They'll be coming from all over. I need to focus on bringing my A game." Rin paused before he turned to us, "Seriously, though, what are you going to do once high school is just a memory?"

"Wish I could say. The truth is that I haven't decided." Makoto gave Rin a sad smile.

"I haven't decided either. Since this year started, my dad has been pressuring me to pick a school with a good design engineering program. I still haven't told him I don't want to follow in his footsteps, let alone know what I want to do." I looked out at the pool, frowning.

Rin placed his hand on my shoulder, but I knew he was right. I needed to figure out what I wanted to do.

The sooner I figured it out, the sooner I could break the news to my father. I was just afraid of his reaction, but at the same time, he was so supportive of Koji and Kaori choosing careers they were interested in. Maybe he would be okay with me wanting to follow my own path.

.oOo.

Once the rain let up, we went home. I told my mom what happened, and she told me to take a hot shower so I wouldn't get sick. She was disappointed Rin couldn't enjoy the cherry blossom pool but was happy he'd gotten to see it. Instead of going to bed right away, I started looking up careers that had to do with drawing. There were a lot of options, but I narrowed it down to a few I'd be happy with. I couldn't wait to tell my mom once I picked the one I wanted to study.