AN: I've been going to the gym early and there's always people in the pool (including handsome trainers). Anyway, here's a little AU!fic fun. Tenses are all over the place - sorry about that.

Rey Jakku did not know how to swim.

It was a simple fact, and one that she had managed to hide for nearly the entirety of her twenty years on the planet. She could ride a bike. She could rebuild a car engine. She could style her hair in three buns with no mirror present. There many things she could do, but swimming was not one of them.

When Finn found out - and he was the only one she shared this embarrassing fact with - he (lovingly) made fun of her every chance he got. At one point on someone's 21st birthday, Rey drunkenly swore that she would learn to swim before she graduated.

And now it was the last semester of her senior year, and she'd had a free elective and somehow needed physical education credit as well. Basics of Swimming, which met at an ungodly hour in the morning, two days a week. With his limited income, Finn took her shopping for a sleek black Speedo, claiming she would do better in the water. He also bought her goggles and a swim cap to complete the look.

You are not afraid of the water. She (unconvincingly) told herself as she arrived at the swimming complex.

There are mostly bleary underclassmen surrounding her, and Rey is just about to walk out when the instructor walks in. He is six feet plus of lean muscle. Dressed casually in a dark grey Henley, with athletic shorts, the clothes enhance his textbook swimmer's body - broad shoulders, trim waist, and, with a second, long look, Rey decided she would stick around. Just in case there was something to learn. Although sat by herself, Rey hears whispers from the younger girls in front of her. Apparently 'Coach Ben' used to be on the university swim team, and had been training for the Olympics when some sort of scandal with a coach had ended his career.

For the first week, the class reviews fundamentals and don't get in the pool. Well, they are in the big aquatic center, enough that Rey can smell chlorine on her clothes for hours after, but not actually in the water.

When Coach Ben blows his whistle the following week, everyone eases off the edge of the pool into the shallow end. As soon as Rey makes contact with the water, she instantly reacts in a completely unexpected manner - which, she can only sort out later, is to have an instant panic attack. She scrambled for the ledge, thrashing wildly. Not caring everyone else in the class was staring at her, she hauled herself out of the pool, teeth chattering and wrapped herself in a towel, then sat on the lonely bleachers.

She waited there, dripping, until class was over.

Coach Ben, all gleaming torso and fluffy towel around his muscular shoulders, settled next to her. He remained silent, and she appreciated the space he'd left between them. "It happens, you know."

"I… I thought I was past everything."

"It's a brave thing. To face your fears."

"What? Being scared of water?" Rey doesn't want to go into the details of her phobia, of the reasons behind her aversion to swimming. She thought enough time had passed. Rey then hides her face in her hands. "Damnit."

"What?"

"I think we're past the drop and add period. I'm going to fail. I'm not going to graduate, all because Finn forced me…"

"Hold up. Slow down. Take a breath. Who is Finn?"

"Oh, he's my roommate. This all started as a joke."

Rey can tell that Coach Ben doesn't think swimming is a joke, but he remains silent for a moment, then asks, "And why would you need to worry about graduating? You've got years ahead of you."

"I'm a senior."

"You, uh… Don't look like one."

Rey is now wholly embarrassed. Her class crush thinks she's a freshman. Fantastic. "I came in with some credits."

"Look, I don't usually offer this, but why don't we work out something outside of class hours?"

"You would do that?"

"I… Whatever."

Rey didn't think he would show, but sure enough, at the agreed hour of 6 AM (she wanted to die), she and Ben were alone in the big aquatic arena. Rey didn't have time to worry about her hair or general appearance. It was just too early to be bothered with such things.

Ben's voice is gentle as he jumps in ahead of her, at ease. At the stairs into the shallow end, he stretches his arms out to her. "Ready? You can go as slow as you need to."

So she does. Step by step, until she's in water up to her waist. With his long dark hair dripping down the column of his strong neck, Ben speaks in low tones and he's never more than a step away. She feels...secure.

The following session, she arrives a few minutes late, and watches as Ben completes an effortless turn under water, then glides smoothly on the surface, his large frame pulling through the water. As she makes her way to the edge, he gives her a paddle board and asks her to kick in place. There is anxiety, but nothing she cannot overcome. In fact, her fear instantly disappears the moment she feels his hand balance on her abdomen, correcting her motion. The touch of Ben's large hand sends a pulse of heat just a few inches lower and Rey realizes it's been over six months since she fooled around with someone at a party off campus.

Ben looks down at her and leaning in, asks, "Feel the difference?"

"Yeshufh," is all she manages to say. She's never had such a strong a reaction to anything - except water.

The next week sees her almost correctly executing a version of freestyle. It's not pretty, and she certainly isn't going to break any records, but she's done it. At the end of their session, she swallows and says, "I… I think I can go back to the regular class now. I'm sure you'd rather have a bit more time to sleep in." Although it will end their time together, Rey knows it's the right thing to do. She can continue her crush from afar.

"Are you sure?"

"I think so."

"So, you'll graduate?" He asks with a smile, water glistening on his eyelashes. They've kept almost their entire conversation about swimming, and this is the first glimmer of a real dialogue. Rey had thought herself boring, or maybe it was the early hour that had stopped him from chatting.

"If coach passes me." She answers with a cheeky smile.

Her original classmates begin to filter in. Rey decides to stick around. Water, at least, in the pool, no longer triggers an immediate fear in her. Ben approaches her after class is over and says, "If you ever want to talk about it, I'm happy to listen about...why you didn't like water."

Rey honestly can't tell if he's asking her out, but she's happy to see him somewhere wearing regular clothes. "That would be nice."

"No pressure."

"How about coffee this weekend? My friend works at Blue Sky... He can get us a discount."

"I'll see you there."

AN: Unrelated, how many Reylo fanfics is too many to subscribe to? #askingforafriend