It has been a crazy week (both good and HORRIBLE) and this chapter should be renamed to Uncooperative because that's what it was. It also turned out a lot longer than I expected so it took longer to get out. Plus I kept getting distracted by Tumblr and laughing and then slapping myself to stop laughing. What have I fallen into?

Here have a Haruism:

"Say hello to my little friend!" - Haru in a smut fic, Scarface (I'm so sorry *shot*)

Again. It was happening was like this was some sort of poorly planned manga or terribly written fanfiction. Or maybe a horror movie. Yes, definitely a horror movie.

Gou twisted in the uncomfortable seat, a scowl on her face. She was glad the hosts had sat her and Mikoshiba on the front most seat of the bus, leaving Rei and Nagisa behind them and the bus driver, who likely didn't speak English, in front. Across the aisle from them was Makoto and Haru. And, miracle of all miracles, Rin had been placed on the second bus. He had been protesting about it as Gou had been entering of her own bus, though whether it was because Rin didn't like the fact Gou and Mikoshiba had been paired together and wanted to watch Mikoshiba like a hawk to make sure he didn't try anything or because he wanted to glare at Haru like a hawk and send out waves of silent challenge Gou wasn't sure. Maybe it was a bit of both.

Regardless, the way they were seated provided the perfect set up for Gou and Mikoshiba to yell discreetly at each other. "Why does this keep happening?" she demanded of the boy sitting next to her. "Why do you keep getting paired with us?"

"How should I know," he muttered the words out of the corner of his mouth, keeping himself facing straight ahead rather than facing her so no one would suspect anything. "You never told me you had this today."

"You didn't tell me either!" She took a deep breath. "What do you have tomorrow?"

There was a long moment of silence. "I don't know."

"You don't know?" Gou blinked owlishly. "What do you mean you don't know?! How could you not know?!"

"I don't have the schedule with me! It's back at the house."

"You don't have it memorized?!" Gou was struggling to keep her voice down.

"Do you?" he shot back and her jaw clipped shut. Well…she had, but then the hosts had gone and changed the schedule on her, but if she told Mikoshiba that he would simply ignore that part and just point out that she too didn't have it memorized. "Besides," Mikoshiba continued. "I hardly saw you yesterday. You didn't exactly give me a chance to tell you!"

"You could have texted it to me!"

"I didn't know it was important!"

With a huff she made a big show of crossing her arms and facing towards the window. This was so annoying. It wasn't Mikoshiba's fault that their two swim teams kept getting paired together but she didn't have anywhere else to direct her irritation.

"It isn't that bad is it?" asked Mikoshiba and Gou looked up at him.

"What?"

He was still facing forward. He would not look at her. "Being paired together," he said. "The swim teams I mean."

She looked away herself. "You know why it's bad…"

"Still." He rubbed the back of his head. "We got through the museum and the aquarium without incident. Today shouldn't be any different so long as we act normally."

Gou took a deep breath. What he said was true, though that wasn't the entire point. Being paired up and around each other in front of Rin gave her brother all the more dangerous opportunity to discover what had happened. If their swim teams weren't paired up it would eliminate that threat completely. It would make things so much easier.

But…there was nothing she could do about it. She would just have to deal with things as they came to her. All we need to do is act normal. That shouldn't be too hard.

Behind her Nagisa suddenly rolled down the window and stuck his head out so he could shout enthusiastically at the seabirds. Rei scolded him, insisting sticking ones head out of a moving vehicles window was dangerous, and beside Gou Mikoshiba drew back at the sudden rush of wind, gold eyes slightly widened as he watched Rei try to drag the smaller teen back into the bus.

Gou took advantage of the distraction to look up at his face, listening to the antics of the two behind her with some amusement. They could do it. They could pull it off. With Mikoshiba she could. He was the sort who could do that sort of thing. He was the captain of the Samezuka swim team for God's sake, that swimming powerhouse. And…well, he had been trying to make it comfortable for her. He had let her come into his home without protest and had done his best to accommodate her. She hadn't exactly been making it easy for him, not that it was entirely her fault.

It's both our faults. Just like her mother had said. "When you're married you do everything by halves."

So in this case they each had half of the blame. How funny. Maybe her mother had been right.

Rei finally managed to pull Nagisa back into the bus, only to have Nagisa immediately turn and reach for his glasses, stating he needed them to see further, Rei loudly protesting his glasses were not binoculars.

Gou laughed into her hand. Normal was certainly easier for some to pull off than others.

If there was one nice thing - one - Gou could say about this country it was that they had fantastic beaches. It was a largely coastal country and their coast was lovely besides. The water was relatively clear and Gou could see the green that covered the bottom even from a distance.

The sand underneath her feet was pleasant, not too jagged or too hot. She dug her toes into it, enjoying the sensation of the warm particles against her flesh. Maybe she could forego the whole conch and clam hunting session and sun bathe all day. That'd be nice and relaxing. She could use some relaxation.

She had purposely moved away by herself so her brother wouldn't get riled up. He hadn't said anything but she had caught him looking her way, though her expression was one she was unable to tell. He hadn't tried to punch Mikoshiba in the face yet at least.

To the side the host was prattling on about sea conch and how they thrived in relatively shallow water and seagrass habitats like this one. In the past the country's ancestors had relied heavily on conch as well as other sealife for food. Today it was a fun pastime for tourists and children.

Tourists like them. Or maybe the host country categorized them as children. Then again we are of the age where it's legal for us to drink here. In that case she hoped they didn't categorize them as children.

They were divided into pairs and, of course, the way the pairs were decided was by who they had been sitting by on the bus. Gou could only roll her eyes about it. This was the sort of path her luck had been taking lately. She actually felt sorry for Mikoshiba rather than herself. He had gotten stuck with the only girl. But the girl he's stuck with is his wife. A mental smack. That was not thinking normally.

They gathered at the edge of the water, the swim teams spread all along the beach. At the head was the Iwatobi swim team and Gou was glad about that. Since Rin had been in the second bus he was further down. She couldn't even see him and if he did look over he would hopefully think she was socializing with the Iwatobi boys.

"Conch are well know as marine gastropod mollusks in the family Strombidae," Rei was saying as they began throwing off their excess layers, even though Gou had no idea how that was well known. "They're second only to escargot in terms of popularity."

"Escargot," Haru said the foreign word slowly, as if chewing it. "What sort of popularity?"

"Edible snails," said Rei and Gou's face scrunched in disgust. Even Haru looked a little put off.

"That doesn't help us catch them, Rei-chan," Nagisa protested. "Tell us something useful."

"I was getting to that." Rei adjusted his glasses. He took a deep breath as if preparing for a speech. "They are often serviced as cerviche, consisting of raw conch marinated in lime juice, chopped onions, and habanero peppers. It is particularly popular in Panama's Colon and Bocas del Toro provinces. In the Dominic Republic and Peru it is only commonly eaten in curries or spicy soups. Their shells are used as an important ritual object in Hinduism but can also be used as a musical instrument."

He finished with a bright smile, very proud or happy with himself. There were a few seconds of silence.

"That wasn't helpful at all," Mikoshiba muttered and Gou turned away lest Rei see her choking down her laugh.

"Rei-chan, that doesn't help in the slightest." Nagisa voiced the same concern.

Rei spluttered a response but Haru, seemingly tired of conversation, turned and moved off into the water without a word, leaving Makoto to follow after him and Nagisa to chase after the both of them.

Mikoshiba started forward but paused when Gou didn't follow. "Coming?"

"A-ah, yes. Just a moment." She waved a hand to indicate she was fine and after some blinking Mikoshiba turned back around to head into the water. Gou had been waiting for this, for the boys' attentions to be elsewhere. She scanned the beach to make sure the other rampant amount of teenage boys weren't paying her the least bit of mind. She thought she could see Rin with the boy Nitori further away although it was hard to tell. It appeared Rin was looking around, possibly for her or possibly for Haru, but he was looking out along the water and not at the beach where she currently stood.

Satisfied that nobody was looking her way, Gou shucked off her shirt. While she didn't consider herself an exceptionally bashful person, wearing only a swimsuit around a bunch of boys and having them watch her strip down to it was not something she was ready to experience, especially when she was the only girl there. She left on her shorts, feeling more comfortable with that bit of additional coverage. She had worn them exactly for this reason.

There was a cold tinge to the water but nothing that made Gou want to scream and run out soon as she set foot in it. The seagrass on the other hand…She didn't like the feel of that. It was slightly slimy against her feet and she found herself grimacing as she moved through it. Gross.

Mikoshiba and her were rather restricted in how far into the water they could go out due to Gou's height. Nagisa and Rei suffered from the same predicament but they had solved it…somewhat. Nagisa was clinging to Rei's shoulder like a squirrel and faintly Gou could hear the taller teen complaining about it. He's only complaining because he likes it.

Makoto and Haru suffered no such issue. They had moved far enough out that Gou could barely hear their voices at all, much less their words. She was a bit jealous of them. And poor Mikoshiba. He was the tallest out of all of them and he was stuck to the shallows due to her. Still he didn't complain at all. Gou thought about telling him he could go out further if he liked but decided against it. If he wanted to she was pretty sure he would just go ahead and do it. He didn't seem like the type who would falter in his decisions once he made them.

She peered into the water. There was no sign of the big twisted shells of the conch. The seagrass was likely too thick to spot any from above. "What color are these things anyway?"

"Tan," said Mikoshiba, who was peering into the water like her. "They blend in with the sand." He held out the net the host had given each set of teams. "Here, hold this. I'm going down."

"Going down?" Gou waded slowly over to take the net from him.

"Yeah." Once Gou had taken the net he dove under and she peered down to watch him. She might not be able to see the conch amid the seagrass but she could easily see Mikoshiba as he moved about in the clear water. He scoured along the seafloor, his hands moving across the stalks like a lawnmower across a lawn, searching for the hidden shells. Gou's eyes drifted to his muscled back, watching the play and ripples along his flesh, the way his shoulder blades worked. He couldn't see where she was looking so she could get away it. I-it was only natural when presented with such a sight. Totally normal. Anyone would have done it.

Muscles are best seen in the flesh.

Then suddenly something latched onto her foot and she was nearly dunked backwards into the water. She hopped desperately on one leg to try and stay upright, laughing. "T-that's my foot!"

Mikoshiba popped up beside her. He was so close that the water he disturbed with his ascent soaked her. He wiped the water from his eyes. "What did I just grab?"

Gou was still laughing. "My foot!" She thrust the net at him before he had a chance to respond. "Here, I want to try," and she dove under.

They didn't have much luck. Even after a half hour had gone by they had nothing to show for their efforts. "Find anything?" asked Mikoshiba when Gou surfaced for the sixth time.

She shook her head. "No. Did you?"

"No." He gestured further out in the water. "Nanase-kun found one though."

"Haru?" She turned. Out in the deeper water Haru was standing, holding a conch shell disinterestedly in his hand while Makoto squawked excitedly about it, praising Haru for finding it. "Huh." Gou almost couldn't believe it. "He must be trying real hard."

"Actually I think he just stepped on it."

"…Oh." She scowled. "Luck just seems to find some people."

Mikoshiba chuckled. "No kidding."

By the time they were finished another forty-five minutes later the only one who had managed to find any conch at all was Haru, who had found three.

"H-how is that even possible?" asked Gou, staring at the large three shells Makoto had placed on the sand.

"W-well, I guess Haru just has an eye for detail." Makoto beamed with adoration at the dark haired teen but Haru's face was turned away and he said nothing.

Makoto was probably right though. If Haru really didn't have an eye for detail and the conch were just not that easy for him to find he would have been complaining finding the conch was too much effort. That attention to detail was likely the same reason why his art was so incredible.

Nagisa had found something as well during their conch hunting and he held it proudly up for all to see. A rock. A brown rock. "But why," asked Gou haltingly. "Why a rock?"

"To remind us of our time here!" cried Nagisa. He clutched the rock like it was a precious pet. "Right, Rei-chan?! Memories are an important thing!"

Rei's face was somewhere between a scowl and a grimace. "I wouldn't have minded so much if the rock were beautiful," he mumbled.

The next part of this excursion, the clam hunting, was to be held further down the beach. The hosts lead them and as they walked Gou contemplated what the clam hunting was going to be like. A lot like the conch hunting most likely. A nice lovely swim in tepid water. She didn't even mind if there was going to be more slimy seagrass. But what she got was not what she had expected at all.

Mud. All mud. Mud everywhere. Dark, turned up mud with pieces of seagrass and sticks in it. Gou's lip twitched, eyes unnaturally large. This was what they were supposed to be hunting clams in? It had to be some sort of weird joke or prank. They weren't expected to crawl around in the mud were they?

"We brought you all some nice boots to use for the mud!" said the host cheerily, holding up a pair of rubber things that Gou would have never referred to as boots. "We also have shovels for you to use!"

So not only did they have to roam around in the mud but they had to dig in it as well? Gou's face sagged. Terrible. This was terrible. Absolutely terrible. Can we go back to hunting conch she wanted to ask, but didn't want to make a scene either.

And the boots. Boots was an understatement. The 'boots' were big rubber things that came up to past their knees. They were super clunky and uncomfortable. Everyone looked absolutely ridiculous in them, except for Makoto, who managed to pull off wearing the huge things with a certain finesse that made them look a little less ridiculous.

"The clams are buried under the mud!" said the host. She clapped her hands. "Have fun!"

"Fun," muttered Gou. How this could possibly be fun was beyond her. She hadn't enjoyed playing in the mud since she was a child. Rin and her had had some epic mud adventures. Thinking of her brother, she looked for him, spotting him further down but he didn't look any more excited to be diving into their old play pastime than she did.

Experimentally she pushed her rubber boot into the mud. It stuck like glue and with a bit of heaving she managed to extract her foot. This is more like quick sand than mud. With her small stature this was not going to be easy.

"Let me go first."

"Huh?" She blinked up to find Mikoshiba watching her.

"Let me go first and then walk behind me." He gestured at the mud. "You can walk in the impressions I make. It'll be easier that way."

It took her a moment and then she understood. "Ohhhh." Being much bigger and stronger than she, it would be easier for him to go first and for her to walk in his imprints than for her to try and make her own way through that icky mud. She'd likely only get stuck if she tried to go in by herself. "Okay."

Mikoshiba went in first and with him Nagisa. And somehow Nagisa…Nagisa was able to run through the mud with little to no difficulty. He hardly stumbled and his feet didn't seem to sink in at all. How he did it was a complete mystery. Even the others looked shocked. He's making it look way too easy.

Mikoshiba had to take it much more slowly. Carefully he lifted his feet, sometimes leaning precariously, and wobbling as he extracted one foot and then the other, but he remained upright and wasn't doing too bad considering. He even used the shovel as a make shift walking stick for leverage.

Gou watched his path carefully and once he was a few yards in she started forward. Despite using Mikoshiba's imbedded footprints the going was slow and the mud still sucked at her shoes. She lurched and wobbled, arms spread wide to try and balance herself. She was incredibly grateful she had his impressions to stand in. If she had tried walking in without them she would have gotten stuck in no time flat.

"Rei-chan!" Nagisa called out. The blond had stopped quite a few yards ahead of even Mikoshiba and was waving energetically. "Come on!"

Rei grimacing but seemed unable to deny Nagisa. With a great deal of amount of care he stepped into the mud. "T-this looks very precarious." He took another step forward and for someone whose movements were normally so suave, Rei was anything but that right now. He tottered like a newborn giraffe. His arms pinwheeled and he wavered from one side to the other in an effort to keep his balance. "This is not stable in the least!" He went sprawling a moment later and his entire front smacked into the mud with a sharp wet slapping sound.

Gou couldn't completely muffle the laugh that arose. She raised her hands to her mouth in an effort to stifle it.

"T-this is not beautiful!" Rei floundered like a beached sea cow as he struggled to lift himself up. His glasses were askew and the mud made loud sucking noises as, with an enormous amount of effort, he pulled his arm out.

"Rei-chan!" Nagisa raced over to try and help his struggling friend. Yet halfway there he got his own foot stuck and fell forward straight into the mud just like Rei, causing the other teen to get sprayed with the brown muck.

Gou burst out laughing. She laughed so hard she forgot to maintain her balance and instantly stumbled. Her left foot landed outside of Mikoshiba's impression and with she fell backwards onto her behind. She leaned back on her arms, laughing too hard to do anything about it.

Mikoshiba immediately turned and came back towards her. "Are you alright?"

She waved her hand back in response. "I-I'm fine," she choked out from around her laughter. Tears formed at the corner of her eyes. Mikoshiba moved further towards her as if he were coming to help but suddenly drew up short a few feet away. A moment later she saw why. Further down the beach Rin was watching them, a scowl on his face. If he was scowling at the antics of the two boys rolling about in the mud or about Mikoshiba who knew. Regardless, Mikoshiba was keeping his distance just in case.

Makoto and Haru were still on the beach out of the mud. The two had linked their hands together and were currently trying to stretch out and reach Rei. Rei reached back and snagged Makoto's hand. It was a poorly thought out plan however. Makoto was heavier than Haru and Haru was the one acting as anchor. As Makoto tried to pull Rei out, Rei pulled back and within an instance Makoto lost his balance and went catapulting straight into the mud, pulling the smaller and lighter Haru right in after him. The three boys landed in the mud atop each other, a tangled heap of arms, legs, and swimsuit.

Gou's laughter became too much. She fell back and then instantly straightened as if burned. "Oh god!" she cried. "It's in my hair!"

Nagisa had somehow managed to excavate himself. With the shovel in hand he circled around Rei. "I'll dig you out, Rei-chan!"

Rei leaned as far away as he could, as if the shovel were some sort of dangerous weapon. "T-that's not what that shovel is for!"

Behind Rei Makoto straggled to his hands and knees. He held there, looking back and forth as if seeking some sort of rescue. Haru had rolled off him and he sat in the mud next to him, mouth partly open and looking unsure as to what he should do next as well.

Down the entire beach everyone was pretty much experiencing the same dilemma. Teen boys were floundering helplessly in the mud or fighting to escape and crawl back to the shore. Some, like Gou, were laughing too hard to try and help their comrades or even themselves in the least.

The host was yelling earnestly to them but Gou couldn't hear from this distance. She sighed and flopped backwards into the mud, a stray chuckle escaping her mouth. So much for clam hunting.

They were able to shower off a bit before heading back. If it was for their own benefit or the hosts Gou couldn't say. It would surely be unpleasant for them to have to ride in the bus covered in mud but having to clean up after such a thing might be worse. It would probably be easier to just set the bus on fire in that case. Gou was tempted to fall to her knees and praise the heavens at seeing the showers. Praise the genius had thought to place them here. Even though the water was freezing cold after the first two or three people used them. Gou was willing to endure the chill in order to feel somewhat clean again.

After the quick rinse off, they waited by the bus for the others to finish. The host was wrapping up the day, telling them they could keep any conch they had found. She strongly encouraged them to try cooking and eating them, describing them as a delicacy.

"Aren't they edible snails?" asked Haru suspiciously and Makoto chuckled.

"I'm pretty sure edible snails are considered a delicacy, but I bet there's some mackerel that you can have instead." He ran his hand through his wet hair. "I wouldn't mind trying the conch though. It could be an interesting experience. Rei sounds like he knows some recipes we could use."

"I want to try some too!" Nagisa exclaimed. "One of the best things about coming to a foreign country is trying the local delicaces! We should definitely do it!" A strange gleam entered his eye and he looked back at Mikoshiba leaning against the bus. "Captain Mikoshiba should join us too."

Gou stumbled and nearly smacked her head into the side of the bus. W-what was Nagisa doing?! Hastily she looked about herself. Thankfully her brother wasn't nearby. He stood at the back of the line waiting to get on the second bus and was far enough away that he couldn't hear them.

"N-now, Nagisa," said Makoto. Was the moisture on his face from the shower or sweat? "We shouldn't impose on Captain Mikoshiba. I-I'm sure he has other engagements with his own swim team."

"Actually." Mikoshiba rubbed his chin, a broad smile that was a tad mischievous splitting his face. "That sounds great. I'd be happy to join you guys."

Gou's mouth fell open. She could feel the blood rushing to her face. She couldn't think of anything to say, her brain having apparently stalled out.

Makoto looked to be in the same condition as she but Nagisa was delighted. "Great! Let's make lots of conch together!" He paused and looked at Gou. "Conch is something we can have right, Gou-chan? Conch doesn't have trans fat or hydrogenated oils does it?"

Gou froze, her jaw snapping shut. Her face was still red but this time for a different reason. She had never told Mikoshiba about practically stealing his diet to bolster her own team's performance and she was painfully aware of his presence next to her, could feel his eyes on her. "A-ah, yes," she coughed. She pretended to be very interested in some nearby trees.

"Perfect!" Nagisa rubbed his hands together. "I can't wait to try it! I bet it will be delicious! Rei-chan can do most of it."

Rei straightened. "D-don't just volunteer me! Why do I have to do most of it?"

"Because you're Rei-chan."

"That isn't a real reason!"

As the two commenced their bickering, Gou peeked discreetly up through her wet bangs at Mikoshiba. His face had smoothed out and he was listening to Nagisa and Rei with mild amusement. What was he thinking accepting Nagisa's invitation? Had he felt obligated to because he thought it would be impolite for him to refuse? Or did he legitimately want to spend time with the Iwatobi boys? They had never socialized or interacted much in the past, but when they did they always got along well it seemed. Maybe Mikoshiba did want to get to know them better. That made sense.

Gou wasn't even sure of her own feelings regarding the situation. On one hand she felt almost nervous, a feeling she couldn't explain why. On the other she was okay with it. Him becoming closer to the Iwatobi boys was a good thing. They should be friends.

The host ushered them onto the bus and while the journey back was quiet, it was not uncomfortable.

Gou perched on the bar counter in the kitchen, pawing through a swimming magazine in front of her. It was one of Goro's magazines. She wasn't sure which boy had swiped it from the coach and she wasn't about to go around asking questions. The magazine wasn't as dirty as she had first thought, although there were plenty of young pretty girls posing in skimpy swimsuits throughout its pages. She sniffed and adjusted the towel wrapped around her head like a turban. The first thing she had done upon entering the Iwatobi lodges was a shower. Even if she had rinsed off earlier there had still been flecks of mud on her scalp and her poor hair a ragged mess. She felt much more comfortable and sanitary once stepping out of the shower.

In front of her Makoto and Nagisa were bustling about the kitchen, getting things ready for their meal and making tea. Haru was busy in the shower and likely would be for a long time. He took longer showers than anyone Gou had ever met. But it was Haru. She should have expected that.

Rei and Mikoshiba were absent from the lodge, having gone food shopping. Rei was the only who knew what ingredients they needed, and surprisingly Mikoshiba had been the one to volunteer to go along and help carry the groceries back, which Rei had accepted graciously. That action had made Gou curious once again about the two's relationship. The two seemed very comfortable in each other's presence and Mikoshiba did call Rei by his first name unlike the other Iwatobi boys, whose last name's he used instead. She didn't understand it at all.

"Gou-chan."

Gou looked up from the magazine page advertising protein shakes with a picture of a guy whose muscles were the size of two Pepsi liter bottles stacked a top each other to find Makoto in front of her. She blinked at his expression. "Something wrong?"

"Are you really alright having Mikoshiba here?" he asked without hesitation. "If you aren't you should say so…"

Ah, so that's what he was concerned about it. She should have known.

Nagisa leaned over into the two's conversation before she got a chance to answer. "Inviting Mikoshiba was the polite thing to do! He was helping Gou-chan all day-" She blushed. "And he's going to be around a lot anyway, right?" He looked pointedly at each of them in turn. "If that is the case we should get to know him. There's no reason to hold him at a distance! As the captain of Rin-chan's swim team we should be friends with him regardless!" He slammed his hands down on the counter.

Both Gou and Makoto were a bit taken aback by Nagisa's sudden intensity regarding the subject. That was how Nagisa was though. He wanted to be friends with everyone. He did raise some very valid points however.

"I understand that, Nagisa," said Makoto. "It's just that…" He trailed off but the look he gave Gou said it all. Becoming friends with Mikoshiba would be ideal but insuring Gou was comfortable with the situation was a higher priority. If she wasn't there was no doubt in Gou's mind that Makoto would figure out some way to call the whole thing off.

She smiled a little. So much like an older brother.

"Its fine," she said. "Really."

Makoto watched her intently a moment, reading her reaction to make sure it was legit, which made her giggle, then he smiled. "Okay."

They invited Goro and Amakata to join them, an offer that was eagerly accepted once Gou saw what they were eating. "Pizza." She stared at the round food in the square box like it was a dead rat.

"Don't scold me!" protested Goro. He picked up a slice and stuffed it into his mouth. "I'm not competing; I can eat whatever I want."

"If the teacher isn't following the rules," demanded Gou, "then why should the students?!" She whirled about. "Where's a trash can?!"

"I'm eating it over here on purpose!" said Goro between gnashing. "They won't see it over here! They won't have any idea about it at all!"

"You're setting a bad example!"

"No, I'm not, pizza is a delicious commodity!"

Gou ground her teeth together but unfortunately there was nothing she could do about it. Goro was an adult so she couldn't exactly demand he follow what she said. So long as none of the Iwatobi boys stopped over unexpectedly they wouldn't know about Goro's dark little secret and hopefully it would stay that way. Otherwise Nagisa and Goro would likely be fighting over the greasy thing like a pack of hyenas over a zebra's corpse.

She informed both adults that Mikoshiba would be joining them, news that made both adults glance at each other warily. "I-it's not like that," said Gou, shuffling her feet. "Nagisa was the one who invited him, not me!"

That didn't stop the atmosphere from becoming slightly awkward when Mikoshiba and Rei returned from their grocery shopping however. Goro had his arms crossed over his chest and an expression that looked almost affronteded. Whether that was because Mikoshiba was from a different swim team and they were fraternizing with the enemy or due to the marriage Gou wasn't certain. Probably both.

Amakata on the other hand was the exact opposite. She was extremely warm and friendly upon meeting Mikoshiba – A little too warm and friendly – and shot Gou a sly smile when Mikoshiba wasn't looking. Gou could only ponder what that smile meant but it made her blush regardless.

There were vegetables that had to be cut and the conch meat retrieved from their shells. Amakata and Gou volunteered for the vegetables, giving the task of extracting the conch from its shell to the boys. iIt was a bit ridiculous how excited they became at the problem presented to them. The six of them descended into caveman mode to extract the conch meat, smacking the shell against various objects, each of them throwing out suggestions and talking loudly, turning the conch over and around in their hands like the shells were hard math problems to solve. After a few minutes they departed to go outside, Rei declaring they needed additional tools to help them.

And that's how man invented tools, thought Gou, watching them with a bit of amusement. A man will think of anything to fill his stomach.

Once the boys had left the room, Amakata leaned over. "Is it weird having Mikoshiba here?"

Gou shook her head, her gaze remaining of the chili pepper she was slicing. "No. It's fine. Nagisa was the one who invited him. I think they want to become closer to him."

"Hmmm." Amakata raised a finger to her smiling lips. Her eyes were unusually bright and crinkled at the corners.

"W-what's that look for?"

"Nothing, nothing!" Amakata leaned back in her seat to peer at the boys through the window. They had set the conch down on a table outside and were holding various tools above it. For some insane reason Nagisa had a hammer, which he was waving rather precariously, and Goro had what looked to be a saw. Gou made a mental note to stay as far away from there as possible. Faintly she could see Mikoshiba's form on the left. He was easy to spot, she just had to look for the tallest person.

"He's very cute," commented Amakata and Gou nearly sliced a finger off.

"Am-ama-chan!" Inappropriate!

It took the boys a while to extract the conch meat and there was some dubious banging and clunking noises throughout the process, but they had managed it in the end. Once extracted, the meat needed to be trimmed. It was Haru, so used to gutting mackerel, who took over the task. Through the window Gou could see him standing there, covered in an apron and a large butcher knife in his hand. His hand descended and he set to the supposed butchering, and an instant later Makoto came racing into the lodge. He was blue in the face and shaking like he were about to be sick. He declared to the two ladies he needed to use the restroom and took off towards it with one hand over his mouth and the other running along the wall of the hallway as if needing it for balance.

Rei soaked the meat in lime juice with the vegetables Gou and Amakata had cut up. "I have decided to go with a spicy conch chowder recipe," he declared. "Frying would have been a lot easier," he mumbled, "but as I understand we are not supposed to have that."

"That's right!" Gou imposed. "Frying has trans fat and hydrogenated oils!"

Rei frowned. "Do you even know what those mean?" he asked her. "Or are for that matter?"

She didn't but she wasn't about to tell him that. She had to at least pretend she knew what she was doing.

Gou assisted him and Amakata in their cooking by handing them ingredients when they called for them, however once the two really got going Gou was excluded from their cooking frenzy. Rei was not a huge cook but he did like showing off his intelligence, and Amakata was eager to learn a new recipe. Gou became like a fifth wheel, utterly useless and in the way. After a few minutes of standing there without either of them acknowledging her existence, she decided she was no longer needed and went outside.

She was quite surprised to find Goro and Mikoshiba talking animatedly to each other. The two were standing next to each other and their body language was relaxed, completely at ease. Goro's attitude towards Mikoshiba had certainly changed drastically since Mikoshiba had first arrived. He even had a beer – Where did he get that?! – and they were conversing energetically about swimming. Well they did have quite a bit in common, both being coaches in their own way. They would hit it off talking about something like that.

"Gou-chan!" Nagisa cried and, hearing her name, Mikoshiba glanced her way but only briefly before returning to his conversation with Goro. "Is the food ready yet?"

Gou had no idea but she didn't want Nagisa to go in there and pester Amakata and Rei with questions. "It will be soon," she said instead. "So relax. It'll be out soon." The only seating out there was the picnic table where they had been smacking the conch and she moved to sit down at it only to pull up short, grimacing. Pieces of conch shell were scattered all across it. Remnants of the war the boys had fought. A lone survivor remained, one shell that was relatively unscathed.

Brushing aside the shell pieces, Gou took a seat close towards the middle of the bench. Within moments of her sitting Mikoshiba sat down on Gou's left side. He barely glanced her way nor did he break off his conversation with Goro as he took his seat, as though it were the most natural thing in the world for him to sit there next to her. Gou tilted her head inquisitively his way but he was too engrossed in his conversation to pay her much mind. He had given her enough space that she didn't feel the need to scoot away so she let the matter go. He could sit wherever he liked.

Goro and Nagisa followed his example, taking a seat on the opposite side of the table. Makoto and Haru were unexplainably absent. Had Makoto ever come out of the bathroom? She couldn't remember. Maybe Haru joined him in there and that's why he hasn't come out.

"In terms of speed six beat kicking is the way," Mikoshiba was saying to Goro. "The two beat kicking trends are related more to high tempo freestyles, and to endure the large training volume of the 70's and 80's. The current trend today is the six beat kick. That way you use your legs from start to finish."

"That's not completely true. There have been – and still are – successful distance swimmers that use a two beat or four beat kick," Goro held his beer by the top of the can and pointed a finger at Mikoshiba with the hand that held it. "After all many swimmers don't maintain a consistent kick when they breathe. You have to take into account that technique flaw." He took a swig of his beer. "The kick just needs to be steady anyway."

"Exactly, steady but you'll also want it to be fast," Mikoshiba replied. "You shouldn't be afraid of expending energy, there's no reason to conserve it. If you try and save the legs you'll land up in last place."

Gou had no idea what they were talking. Swimming, obviously, but that sort of technical stuff was way over her head. Disregarding their conversation, Gou returned her attention to the conch shell. There was a small hole at the top of it but outside of that it was undamaged. The cavemen had progressively learned how to better remove the meat from the shell it had seemed. This must have been the last one they had done. Gou turned it over in her hands. She liked the shell. It was pretty. White and tan with pink on the inside. It reminded her of the pearl ring on her finger a bit.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Mikoshiba lean back against the wall behind them, his arms loosely crossed over his stomch. His face turned towards her. "If you hold it up to your ear it'll sound like the ocean," he said.

She looked up at him. "Huh?"

Across the table from them Goro was currently engaged in some sort of debate with Nagisa, leaving Mikoshiba free of their conversation for the moment.

"The open part." Mikoshiba twisted the shell in her hand so the open area faced her. "If you put that to your ear it sounds like the ocean."

Gou's face scrunched. How could this shell sound like the ocean? It was beautiful but there was no way something this tiny could make the same sound the ocean did. The ocean was huge.

"Try it," Mikoshiba encouraged her and, hesitantly, she did so. Her eyes widened. The ocean! She could hear it! Her mouth worked to try and form words. Faint but there, like a tiny god had somehow placed a tiny ocean into the shell. "H-how is that possible?"

Mikoshiba was grinning. "I'm not sure what causes them to do that it honestly. When I was young we took a trip to the Caribbean, that's where I learned about it. I don't remember the explanation for it though."

Gou took the shell away from her ear then put it back. She could still hear the ocean sounds. She stared at the shell. I am so keeping this. Maybe she could put it by her bed and listen to it before she fell asleep. Well…Mikoshiba's bed actually.

Haru and Makoto emerged from the house. Makoto looked a little worse for wear but he was moving about at least.

"My goodness," said Mikoshiba. "You didn't get that sick from seeing the conch did you? There wasn't even hardly any blood."

Makoto made a strange choked sound. "I don't like seeing that kind of stuff."

"But you're about to eat it, Mako-chan!" Nagisa pointed out.

Makoto closed his eyes and placed his head in his hands. "Don't remind him," said Haru.

"Those poor animals," muttered Makoto.

Goro slapped a hand against his upper arm. "We'll need to toughen you up!" he declared. "When we get back to Japan I'll take you out on my squid boat and we can hunt sharks one day!"

"Please no," said Makoto, and Mikoshiba commented, "I'm pretty sure shark hunting is illegal."

"Oh, is it?" Goro shook his head like he were clearing away flies. "I didn't know that."

Gou watched him take another swig of his beer with narrowed eyes. How many beers had he had exactly? She had only seen him with the one but who knew how many he had before she came outside. She shook her head slightly. Alcohol was a dangerous thing. If he ended up getting wasted and then ran off and got married she wasn't sure whether she would laugh or bang her head into a wall.

Rei came out and proudly announced that the food was ready. Amakata even served it herself, insisting that the others stay where they were. They ate around the picnic table outside, the eight of them squished together on a table designed for six. Gou found herself between Mikoshiba and Amakata. She was so close to either of them if she extended her elbow too far she would bump into them. After a moment of panicked blushing she got her heart rate under control and made herself focus on her food. Mikoshiba had chosen to sit next to her anyway. It was his fault.

They talked pleasantly as they ate. Mikoshiba conversed with the Iwatobi team easily and seamlessly, and Gou was a bit surprised how naturally he seemed to fit in. The boys chatted with him like he was an old friend and Goro seemed to be developing a slight case of hero worship. It was nice to see but bittersweet as well. Someone else used to be a part of this group. Someone else used to sit and converse with them just like Mikoshiba was doing this very instant.

My brother should be here. To this day Gou still remembered the look of joy she had seen on her brother's face when he had won the relay with the very same people that sat at this table now. It had been the happiest she had seen her brother since their father had died. So why? Why isn't he here with them? Mikoshiba was laughing at something Nagisa had said. Gou watched the amusement light up his face. Why isn't brother here like Mikoshiba is?

But like many things that had to do with her brother, Gou didn't have the answer.

It was late by the time they began to head to his place. Eating dinner had taken a while. Nobody had seemed to want to end the conversations and it had only ended when Amakata finally decreed she was going to bed. The teens and Goro had done a quick clean up after that and then it was Gou who suggested they head back.

She took the shell with her. The boys didn't seem to have any interest in it and she enjoyed it not only for its color but the ocean sounds it made. She doubted they would even notice it was missing.

"Thanks for the meal," said Mikoshiba from the steps before departing. "It was a pleasure."

"Thanks for coming, Captain Mikoshiba!" Nagisa's arm was waving wildly in the air. "Come back anytime!"

"Yes, this was very pleasant," Rei added. "Please feel free to come whenever you like."

"Absolutely," put in Goro, swirling his beer and looking a little glassy eyed.

Gou couldn't believe it. Did they really like Mikoshiba so much already?

As she started down the sidewalk, she heard Goro talking to the Iwatobi boys from behind her. "I like him!" the coach decreed and Gou could only include that indeed they did like Mikoshiba so much already.

They walked side by side in comfortable silence for a while, listening to the quiet sounds of the night and the waves from the distant shore. It was a pleasant night and a pleasant atmosphere. So much different than what it had been this morning. Funny how much could happen and change in a day. Then again it had only taken one night of drunken stupidity to change her life completely. That was just the way life is Gou supposed. Anything could change in just one day.

"You like that shell, huh?"

Gou blinked up. Mikoshiba was studying the shell in her hands. "Oh, yes," she said. "I like the sounds it makes. And it reminds me of the ring I got for my mother." She held up her hand to show him the ring.

"That's a pearl, isn't it?"

She nodded.

"It's funny you should say that," he remarked. "Conch can actually have pearls in them."

"Oh really?" That was interesting. Maybe the pearl in her ring had come from the very conch she held in her hand. And now it was…dead and they had eaten it. Gou found she didn't really like the direction that train of thought was going in.

"Those boys," said Mikoshiba suddenly. He rubbed his chin, a bit of a smirk on his face. "They seem to be following a very familiar diet."

Gou made a sound like a cat being trodden on. He had noticed! And he hadn't said anything about it until now. "A-ah yes. Ummm." She looked away. "S-sorry about that. I…I should have asked or said something about it." For some reason she felt bad. Like she had betrayed him or done something sneaky behind his back. Which I…kind of did.

Mikoshiba chuckled and she whirled to look at him again. "It's fine," he said. "Plenty of other swimmers follow that diet anyway. It's a diet they should be following to begin with." He paused. The amusement fell off his face and into a blank mask. "If you do have any questions or need advice though," he continued. "Just ask."

Gou stared at him. He wouldn't turn her way and was keeping his gaze steadily facing forward. Still, she smiled.

"Thank you."

Two papers were laid out before her. Gou stared at them intensely, her gaze roving over the squares populating both sheets. On her right was Samezuka's schedule and on her left was the Iwatobi's new one. After a moment her eyebrows lowered. Those…

She thought up a few colorful curses for their hosts. Ever since this morning she had had a suspicion about it and now she had it confirmed.

"How's it look?" Mikoshiba approached her where she sat at the kitchen table, patting himself dry after having finally taken a shower.

"They match." She held the papers up for him to read.

"Completely?"

"Almost, but not entirely." Gou lowered the papers with a frown. "Our swimming days are still different, but all the other events are the exact same."

"So Samezuka and Iwatobi are paired up for all events the hosts are throwing for us, is that it?"

"That's right." Gou sighed. It was a pain for sure, but surprisingly it wasn't freaking her out too much. They had gotten through all those others day, today included, without incident. So long as Mikoshiba and her acted normal there wasn't any reason for her brother to suspect something else was going on below the surface. Besides, Aater what had happened today she felt substantially more comfortable about the situation than she had previously.

"I'm going to head to bed." Mikoshiba's upper face was hidden by the towel as he rubbed his hair dry. "I have to get up early."

"Early?"

"Yeah. I have a meeting."

"Oh. Here?"

He nodded.

Gou pursed her lips. "Do I need to uhhh gooooo somewhere?" She wouldn't want one of the Samezuka team members to know she was here if she could help it. The less people knew the better, especially those who were in close contact with Rin on a daily basis.

"No, it's fine, trust me. You don't need to leave." He yawned. "You should head to bed too. It's late."

He headed towards the couch and Gou turned back to replace the Samezuka's schedule to the tack board. She sat there a moment, looking at the lone paper hanging there and the other paper that still remained in her hand.

Shrugging, she tacked the Iwatobi schedule next to the Samezuka one. Not that it really mattered, they were the exact same. She would just need to look at one to know what both teams were doing. Regardless she left it there anyway.

This fic is turning out way longer than I anticipated and I'm running into a bit of a snag because three months was a horrible idea! I should have done nine weeks! Oh god. I'll figure out something...probably...maybe. Or otherwise I'll just go to Plan B: Rocks fall and everyone dies. Yeah.

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, followed, and favorited! You guys make my work day so much more bearable, seriously!