I don't own Free!

Rei had made some excuse to leave and was walking towards his second favourite place in the world, the library. He pulled out a notebook from his bag and scribbled down

Makoto and Rin – mutual dislike?

When he was younger he had wanted to be a detective. He would persistently over-analyse anything anyone said, so much that eventually his parents told him that he'd never be able to solve mysteries if he annoyed all the suspects so that they wouldn't talk to him. That was when he decided perhaps he'd like to be a scientist instead.

But right now he wanted to find out what was going on between them.

First he called Nagisa.

"Nagisa…-kun," he added. "Could you tell me anything about Makoto and Rin?"

"About them?" Nagisa said. Rei realised his mistake in phrasing but it was too late.

"Mako-chan's lived around here since he was born, Rin-chan lived here until he was 12 when he left to Australia, and obviously he's just come back! Mako likes to swim backstroke and Rinrin does front crawl and butterfly… Rin secretly-"

Rei hung up. I'll have to ask someone else.

"Makoto and Rin?" Haru repeated. Rei heard bathwater splashing in the background. "What do you mean?"

Rei was sitting in the library by now, so he had to whisper. "Why don't they like each other?" he asked, writing in his notebook.

"I don't know. Why don't you like Rin?"

"Because he's arrogant and incredibly obstinate," Rei hissed.

"Wait. I'll ask Makoto." Haru covered the phone and Rei heard him call for Makoto.

"Wait! You don't have to call him in if you're having a bath!" Rei cried. A few people looked at him oddly, and the old librarian put a finger to her lips and shushed him. He went red.

"Rei wants to know why you and Rin don't get on," he heard Haru say. Then Rei heard the phone hang up.

He stared at it. Clearly someone didn't want him to find out what was going on. He sighed and wrote a list.

Makoto

× Says he 'can't go' near the prison or the old peoples' home…

× Suspicious white powder on swimsuit – sugar? salt? cocaine? crushed up bones?

× Knows how to break into a house?

× Seems to be hiding something

Rin

× Arrogant and easily angered

× Doesn't want Makoto in the swim club?

× Has been seen looking at Haruka like he misses him

He looked down at his list. It didn't explain much, but it might be useful later on. Rei put the notebook back into his bag and left the library.