Chapter 9: A Cheater's Love (Part 2)

Word Count: 1193

Disclaimer: I do not own Free!.

As soon as the waterfall entered his vision again, Haru's muscle contracted, he felt emotions long repressed resurfacing, and he was hopeless against it. He was going to lose the battle. Again. The cheating waterfall was going to beat him and break his determination again. Or not*! Haru gritted his teeth and took one forced step after the other, the rigidity of his body could not have been more obvious. He kept his head down, eyes downcast, partially hidden by his hair. Not that he was being weak or something. Nope, there was just some really bad glare going on. He was just shading his eyes so he could see. Yep.

The roaring sound only got louder as he approached the edge. The waterfall was exactly the same as it had been the other day. And almost exactly same as the day when it broke his heart. The pounding of it seemed a little softer now then it had then. Maybe because when the waterfall broke his heart he could only here the sound of his pounding heart being shattered.

Water droplets were cascading down rapidly, they were endless and there was no clear pattern, the only thing that guided them was gravity pulling them down. The way the water fell made it so the back of the waterfall was only partially visible, and even where he could make out of the back of it, it was only for a few moments before it once again became uncertain and vague. It was the temptation of the shimmering water that made him fall in love.

He did not see what it was hiding behind it, he did not even want to. The water made him blind with love, so it made what was actually there almost nonexistent, it did not seem important in his mind. Everything was peaceful and ideal, luring him in with whispers of sweet nothings. and made him feel that all was okay and that he had found his soul mate.

He really should have realized that it was cheating on him long before he did, even love-blind. Some of the rocks did peek out at parts of the water fall, but people have a tendency to not look up. At least that is what he used as an excuse. Though the fact that the rocks were also seen jutting out from the sides of the waterfall, it should have been more than a little obvious. But since when does love allow space for logic?

Haru could not help but give the rocks a look that could peel paint. While he felt like he was crumbling into pieces, the rocks remained stable and essentially the same. Still gray with the occasional streak of white, some foliage growing in the crevices. It annoyed him that the waterfall was still in a relationship with rocks, still filling every crevice it could get its water on and in. He still remembered when he finally noticed them.

Usually when Haru went to see the waterfall, it was all he was focused on. So he never bothered to look around so much. He was quite skilled at ignoring reality and assuming what he wanted to be true. This time however, he was lost in thought. He had just finished pleasing the tub, which, of course, was not cheating as mentioned many times before. He should get community service hours for all the time he spent pleasing water. It was because of that distraction that he managed to walk right into the rocks. Groaning as he rubbed his forehead, it was sure to leave a mark, though thankfully it was not bleeding, he had walked into one of the duller parts.

That was, surprisingly, the first time he noticed them. To all he knew the rocks had magically appeared as if by magic some time after his last visit to the waterfall. Following the wall with his eyes, he noticed it actually went behind the waterfall. Choosing to finally look up, Haru noticed that the rocks were actually jutting out of it at certain points. The waterfall pounding forcefully into them like it had done to him many times before.

There had to be something he was missing. The waterfall was his one true love. How dare the rocks try to insert themselves into the relationship! It was a closed relationship! Jeez. They had no respect for the commitment it took to even keep up one like that! The waterfall had better have an adequate reason!

"Hey. Um, what is going on here?" he asked, hesitant.

The waterfall did not answer, just kept pounding into the rocks shamelessly.

"I did not catch that..." Haru's water interpreting skills were not very good at this point, even though it was not that long ago.

The waterfall did not answer, minding its own business.

"Waterfall?"

No answer. It was as if someone right in front of your face said "Hi! You have reached someone who does not care about you. Please do not leave a message, and go away." when you asked them the time of day. Though surely the waterfall did not mean that. Haru did not pick up any real hatred from it towards him.

"Why are you ignoring me?"

The waterfall did not answer.

"I thought we were mea-

Haru shook his head, raven hair rearranging itself to be over just one eye instead of the other. It made it hard for Haru to keep moving on because of what he could see. Which was nothing. Because there was glare. Just because no one else would have thought there was glare did not mean there was none! Logic always prevails!

Finally managing to get his emotions in order, he forced his head back up and stared at the rocks, trying to use the force of his will alone to make them turn to dust. Nothing appeared to be working.

"How does it feel being a home wrecker?" he asked, to him, though the term was not actually the right one to use, it was more insulting than saying "you significant other stealer!"

The rocks kept doing whatever it is rocks do, brushing the insult aside.

"You have the nerve to deny what you did?"

The rocks continued to act like rocks.

"You were there first? I do not think so!" the teen answered, his lack of observation made it so that he did not actually think the rocks where there before him.

The rocks were doing their own rocky thing.

"You accuse me of causing the waterfall to cheat? The waterfall loved me first!" he answered, anger tingeing his eyes, darkening the color from that of a calm ocean to the color the waves take on during a shipwrecking storm. He does not notice that he has gained enough skill to actually figure out what the rocks were trying to say, not just the emotions they conveyed.

The rocks refused to budge on their position, mostly because they did not move from where they were.

"You make me want to laugh. What do you have to say to that waterfall? Who is right?"

* - I totally got you guys there... probably not actually. I think you guys know that if I chose to keep him going back and forth that the story would get boring to write and read rather fast! Stay with me please, I will wrap this up the next chapter I hope~

So, yep. Sorry there is no Haru x water sexy times~ There will be some in the next chapter. This entire confrontation was meant to be one chapter, and only around 1,000 words. Apparently I am more descriptive than I thought :| Sorry D:

MysteryConan – Thank-you for reviewing all three of the stories, I would PM you in thanks, but since they were all left as a guest I cannot, since I do not know if your account name is the same :|

C.A.M.E.O.1 and Only – Thank-you for reviewing again, four out of the ten reviews on this story have been from you ^_^ It makes me happy to know at least one person is consistently enjoying the story ^_^ I will get to the point of having Haru talk to at least one of his friends, I am still figuring out who though. I was thinking Mako, but I debate with myself. Mako will be OOC, but then, Haru is OOC anyway, and what harm could a little more OOCness do?

Thank-you to everyone who has given me feedback of any sort~ It means a lot to me! More than feedback probably should.
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