"Onii-san! I'm off to school now!" I ran down the stairs once I heard a knock on the door.

"Hmm. Be careful, Mei!" He shouted back from the kitchen. Hurrying, I stuffed my feet into my shoes and opened the door to find Makoto on the other side. It has already been a week since I transferred to school, and I was beginning to enjoy it.

"Ohayōgozaimasu!" Mako greeted me. I smiled, handing him a container.

"Hmm?" He took it and opened the container to find two slices of toast with ham and egg inside. His face lit up like fireworks had gone off. "Thanks!" I opened my wrapped sandwich and ate it alongside Mako until we reached Haru's house. Already used to Haru's weirdness, I followed Mako into Haru's house, stopping in the living room while Mako continued on to the bathroom.

"Haru-chan, time to go. Mei-chan brought breakfast again today. It's really good!" I heard Mako telling Haru. In a second, they both appeared. With Haru just wearing his bathing suit, I couldn't help but notice how nicely toned his muscles were. My eyes wouldn't obey me – they travelled a little further south. I should be used to this! I see hot, half-naked, high-school guys almost every day. So why was my heart going 'doki' 'doki'?

A warm heat flared into my cheeks as I quickly looked away before either one of them thought of me as a pervert, or something worse. I gruffly thrusted a similar container out towards Haru.

"Here." He accepted it, popping the lid open.

"No mackerel? Che." My jaw dropped, anime-style. Did I just hear him correctly? Did he just say what I think he said? The whole, 'che' part? Right when I was about to swipe it back, Haru decided to take a bite.

"Ba-ka," I muttered.


" –cient time… gladiators were… mythology…" I zoned out of Ama-sensei's literature lecture. I had already read all those books that the seconds-years were just starting. I turned my head so that I was facing the outdoors that was just out of my grasp. Just as my eyes passed by a tree, I noticed a black figure on a branch that jutted out of the tree. I squinted my eyes, just making out a shape: a common black-hawk. Excited, I dug out my sketch book from my bag and began sketching the hawk. I was finished by the time the bell rang for lunch. I grabbed my bento, my sketchbook and a pencil, waiting for Mako and Haru. By the time we headed up to the roof, Nagi and Rei were already waiting for us.

I pried the lid to my bento open, taking a bite before I started on a new sketch. This time, I wanted to capture the beauty of a person. Who could it be? Who could it –? Ah, Makoto sure is handsome. But then, so is Haruka. But, but, Nagisa looks so cute! Then there's Rei! I puffed my cheeks out, unconscious of my action. The four of them looked at me quizzically. It was then that I noticed their stare that I realized how stupid I probably looked.

"Baka," Haru commented. I rolled my eyes and picked Mako as my target. I lifted my sketchbook onto my lap and began to draw Mako, starting with his kind face. Glancing up and then focusing my attention of my strokes, the process repeated for quite a while. Mako noticed me staring at him before burying my face back into the sketchbook. A mischievous smiled played on my lips as I watched his slight discomfort. Just when the lunch bell rang, he started to get up to leave.

"Mako-chan! Wait! Sit down again really quick, please." Obeying me, he sat down, finally figuring out what I was doing. I snapped my book shut and grinned.

"Okay, let's go!"


When the school day ended, I followed the gang to the pool outside. It was a medium sized pool, smaller than the indoor pool. Almost immediately, Haru began to strip.

"Ah! Haru-chan! Not in front of a gir-irl..." Haru threw his shirt off, landing on Mako's head as he dove into the water. I stifled my laughter. Mako sighed, going off to the bathroom to change with Rei and Nagi following him. I kicked my shoes and knee-high socks off. Dipping my feet into the cold water, I shivered.

Suddenly, Haru's face popped up near me, still half hidden in the water. A bit startled, I smiled nervously at him, wondering what he was up to. I stayed still as his hand moved towards my leg - thank god I shaved last night. He grabbed my ankle, as if he wanted to pull me in.

"Haru-chan! Haru- oh," Nagi stopped mid-sentence, his eyes following Haru's arm to my ankle. "Ah! I'm sorry!" He giggled, covering his eyes. Mako and Rei emerged from behind gaping at me and Haru. Forgetting about his grasp on my ankle, I tried to stand up. In a swift movement, Haru pulled me into the pool. We both sank to the bottom with him half-smiling.

My mouth formed soundless words, "You're such a terrible person." I saw a twinkle in his eyes right before I swam up to the surface.

"Mei-chan, are you okay?" Mako leaned down to help pull me up. "Haru-chan, you can't do that! Mei-chan isn't even wearing her bathing suit…" Mako blushed, just realizing that I wasn't wearing my swimsuit underneath. I pulled my soaked blazer tighter around my see-through blouse and stomped away to the bathroom, grabbing my duffel. I stripped off my wet clothes and squeezed the water out before putting on my suit. I walked out, placing my wet clothes on a nearby chair, letting the hot sun dry them.

I sat down on the ground again, dangling my feet in the water.

"Swim! Let's have another race!" The four of them tried to persuade me, but I smiled sadly, shaking my head.

"Not in the sun where everyone can see." I looked up, spotting the school.

"Then quit the swim team."

I snapped my attention to Haru, surprised.

"Don't join the swim team if you keep saying that you can't take the pressure. We're here because we like the water. Even though I only swim free, I do compete. I help my team. What about you?" With that, he went back under the water. It was awkwardly silent. Rei, Nagi, and Mako looked at me, uncertain how to react. I stood up, slipped on my extra pair of shorts and a shirt. I grabbed my duffel bag and left.


"Mei! Dinner's ready!" Aki's voice drifted up the stairs. Haru's words tumbled around my head since this afternoon. I headed downstairs and ate my dinner in silence while Aki rambled on about his work today. Putting my plate in the sink, I headed back to my room, pausing at the kitchen door, "Onii-san, I'm not going to school tomorrow. I don't feel too well."


Mako came the next morning to pick me up. Luckily, Aki-nii was there to answer the door. I heard him telling Mako that I wasn't feeling well. The same thing happened to following day. And the day after that. And the day after that one. Aki tried to skip work to stay home with me, but I urged him to go, that I would feel better soon. I even told Daichi-sensei that I couldn't train the students for the week. I skipped school for an entire week too. The only time I went out during that week was to go to my hospital in Sendai, hours away from where we currently lived, for my check-up.

"Mei-chan, how are you feeling today? No heart pains? No side effects with the medicine?" Hiroshi-sensei asked. He was onii-san's friend, who happened to also be an athletic trainer-turned-doctor.

"Hiro-kun, I want to be stronger," I stated. He looked at me. "I want to compete again. It's already been a year and a half, almost two. I want to be able to compete again."

"It means getting a stronger heart though. You'll have to go through surgery, and then at least a month of therapy. It might not even work, Mei-chan." He sighed. I couldn't give up.

"I know. I'll do whatever it takes to go to the Olympics. You already know that, Hiro-kun." If I remember correctly, I could be ready by November 31st the latest. It's already October 10th. Believe it or not, I've only attended school for a week, and skipped the second week.

Hiro-kun stood up. "I'm going to call Aki, ne? If he approves, we can do the surgery immediately."

I smiled, finally realizing that I was one step closer to achieving my dream. Aki and Hiro whispered behind the closed door. Twenty minutes later, Hiro stepped back in and handed me a hospital gown.

"Go change."


"Beep. Beep. Beep."

"Sensei! Her heart rate is dropping!"

"What?! It was just stable a second ago! Grab the defibrillation!"

"Clear!"


"Mei-chan, why do you like to swim so much? Doesn't it get tiring to compete all the time, knowing that you'll always win?"

I smiled at the girl sitting next to me at the pool. We were both probably ten years old.

"Mhmm hmm. I love the water. I love to swim because it's always fun. The feel of the water rushing towards you; the way how I glide with the water. It's fun!" I giggled. She sighed, unhappy with my answer. "Besides, Nai-chan, there's going to be someone who will be better and faster than me one day. I can't wait for that day to come!"

Nai-chan grinned. "If there is such a person, I'll beat them up for Mei-chan! You'll always be my number one, Mei-chan!" We both laughed, splashing our feet in the pool. We watched as a little boy about eight years old, with green hair swimming around with an inner tube, learning how to kick.

"Okaa-san! Look! I can swim without the tube!" He slipped out of the inner tube and resurfaced, happy. He managed to float for a minute before his legs got tired keeping him up.

"Help!" He cried out.

"Yuki-chan! Someone help my baby!" His mother shouted, desperate. There weren't any lifeguards around, so without a second thought, I stood up.

I backed up for a running start before diving into the cool water. My powerful legs propelled me forward within seconds, reaching the little boy. I wrapped an arm around his chest and kicked for the surface. We both gasped for air as I made my way back to the shallow end of the pool.

"Thank you! Thank you!" She cried. I smiled at her, handing her son over.

"Ne, Mei-chan, why do you like the water?" Nai-chan asked as we walked home from the community pool.

"Because, you have to understand how the water acts, how it flows, and how it feels in order to love it." That's right; I love swimming. I love the water. Nothing was going to stop me now.