Makoto wasn't one to take long walks at night without any purpose, but his mind was swimming with thoughts he couldn't handle. Complex emotions welled up within him as he finally decided walking aimlessly would bring no solace and decided on a destination: a nearby park. Him and his friends had often come here as friends, mostly due to the fact that it was the perfect distance from all of their houses. He felt a pang of loneliness and nostalgia for the old days where his only concern was whether there would be swim practice or not that day, but those were quickly replaced by surprise as he noticed a familiar face sitting on a swing.

"You come here at night too sometimes, Mako? That's surprising." Nagisa chuckled a little and motioned for Makoto to sit next to him on the adjacent swing, and Makoto obliged. "What's happening?" Nagisa asked the question so sincerely, Makoto almost wanted to pour out everything that had happened, but he restrained himself and just muttered "Nothing..."

"You don't have to tell me all the details, but I know it's about Gou." Makoto stiffened a bit at Nagisa's directness, letting the painful memories overtake him, but Nagisa put a hand on his shoulder supportively. "Now, don't make that sad face. I know after what happened at practice, there was a rift between you guys. And honestly... I knew that Gou was watching, and that's why I asked that question. Don't be mad, but... I love Gou. We all do, and care about her so strongly as a manager and friend. I know you do too, but I still can't tell if you love her in that special way she wants you to... And that's okay and all, but I don't want you to play with her emotions or lead her on. Maybe I seemed annoying when I was 'meddling', whether it was intentional or not, but I promise... I just want Gou to be happy. And I know she could be happy with you, but only if you let go of the past and all of those what ifs."

The words, though well meaning, really hit Makoto hard. And he suddenly realized most of Nagisa's behavior, though playful and childish on the surface, was the blonde boy trying to get him to be honest with himself and his feelings. He had no ulterior motives behind it, just... a mutual happiness between him and Gou, and he suddenly felt childish. If I feel this bad about hurting Gou, how bad does she feel right now...?

"You're right, Nagisa. The past is not always representative of the future, and... the things you want are not always the things you need, I guess." Makoto closed his eyes for a bit, letting himself hurt over every single time he realized he would never be loved the way he wanted to be by Haru. His inner turmoil at the intense jealousy he felt about a close friend, Rin, when him and Haru weren't even dating. The intense worthlessness he felt when he found out Nagisa had to coax Haru to watch his breaststroke race because of Haru's turmoil with Rin... All of it swirled inside his head, his vision blurring as he shut his eyes tighter...

"Cry. Let it out, Mako." Makoto hadn't even noticed he was crying, but at Nagisa's kind words, he let himself cry even more, even harder, until he turned into a blubbering mess.

"I'm... I'm so pathetic... I already told Gou I would let go of these feelings, and yet... and yet, here I am, crying my eyes out, like a little baby, over a stupid, unrequited love of the past..." Makoto sniffled, finally wiping his messy face a bit. Nagisa reached over scratched his back a tiny bit to comfort him.

"It's not stupid, Mako... It's hard letting go of someone you love, especially your first love who you've loved for so long. It's not something that happens in a day, or even a week... Maybe years from now, you'll wake up and wonder why he didn't love you back. But you need to let yourself breathe. Be open and honest with yourself. Right now, do you have any feelings for Gou besides friendship?" Nagisa asked the question very seriously, a determined light in his eyes.

"I do. I... I really like her, Nagisa... And I really screwed it up, and now we're supposed to go on a date to some water park because Rin thinks we're dating and everything is okay, and now we're going together tomorrow, but I know she's still mad..." Makoto hung his head low, but Nagisa playfully punched him on the shoulder, not allowing him to bask in depression.

"How can you look so sad when you get to see Gou in a swimsuit!? We're a swimming club and we've never even seen that! You lucky dog!" Makoto couldn't help but laugh at Nagisa's usual antics, the tension in his mind finally easing a bit. "You finally smiled... That's good. You know, a long time ago... Gou said something about your smile. It was really cute, actually, what she said." Nagisa giggled slightly as Makoto tiled his head in curiousity.

"Sorry, but you'll have to patch things up with her and ask her what she said yourself... I'm not gonna be a messenger to some dork who can't appreciate a cute girl in a swimsuit!"

"Whatever, Nagisa, you ogle at Rei in his swimsuit everyday... We can't all be total horndogs like you."

"Says the guy who got to third base the other day... Yup, I'm the horndog, Mako." Both of the boys laughed at their little banter exchange, the serious atmosphere finally disappearing.

"Now, go home and go to bed, Mako. Be ready for that date. And for the love of God, please don't wear those hideous plaid pants."

"I got those at the secondhand store! They were cheap, and the sales associate said they looked nice..." Makoto blushed a bit at Nagisa's blunt comment.

"Yeah, alright, Makomore... 99 yen won't buy you anything worth wearing to this date. You've got one last chance, Mako. Don't screw this up. Now get some rest!" Nagisa playfully slugged Makoto yet again, but the taller boy had one last order of business.

"Why... are you our here, Nagisa?" He'd been so absorbed in his own problems that he didn't ask, but nobody came to a public park at 4 AM in the morning without some kind of desperate problem on their hands.

"Just thinking, I guess." Nagisa began to avoid eye contact, looking at the stars with a slightly pained expression.

"That's so vague... Come on, what's going on?" Makoto felt an intense amount of relief after talking to the little ball of sunshine, and he wanted to repay him in some way.

"Maybe I'll tell you someday." The words were laced with a sense of finality. There was an awkward pause in the conversation, with Makoto wondering whether he should press on further or let it be, but Nagisa broke the silence. "Now run on home, son!" Makoto wondered how much of the excitement Nagisa exhibited on the surface everyday was faked. But he couldn't think about that for too long, because as he walked home he realized he would be seeing Gou in about 7 hours and he needed a game plan. And apparently, a fashion consultant.