Let's not talk about how long this update took...

It seems like the closer I get to finishing this fic the harder it becomes to write haha.

Despite not taking long to leave the locker room they still had to run to make the relay event in time.

"Looks like things went well with Mikoshiba-san!" Regardless of their hurried flight Hana still managed to somehow find the energy and breath to yell to Gou. "Did you guys work everything out?"

"Yes!"

"So does that mean you two are…?"

"Yes!" Gou tried to ignore the heat developing in her cheeks. "I—I think so anyway!" Seijuro and her hadn't exactly defined their relationship yet, but there was time later for that. They had all the time in the world now.

Hana's "Whoop!" was much too loud for the hallway they were in. "It's about time!"

Gou's face flamed. "Stop talking and focus on running! The relay's about to start!" Down the hall the loud speaker echoed to them. The swimmers would be gathering by the pool side now, waiting to move to their starting blocks. If they didn't hurry they would miss the backstroke leg of the relay, and that was something Gou would never forgive herself for if she missed Makoto swimming.

"Finally!" Goro huffed when they finally appeared at their seats. "The race is about to start, you know! If you had taken any longer the boys would have been disqualified."

"H—huh?" Gou panted. "What are you talking about? What about the boys?"

Amakata leaned around Goro. "Weren't the boys with you?" she asked. "We thought they might have been as they haven't shown up yet."

"What?!" Gou threw herself at the railing. Down below the relay teams were gathered up in the queue. And Iwatobi was notably absent from among them.

What the hell are they doing?! They still hadn't shown up yet? Were they still trying to find her brother, or had something bad happened between them once they had found him, like a fight or something? With all the tension that existed between her brother and Haru it didn't take that far of a stretch of the imagination to envision them in a fight, rolling around on the ground together locked in each other's embrace. But in a fighting way. Or maybe both. It was so hard to tell when it came to those two. Maybe Makoto would join in as well.

Overhead the speaker announced: "Men's medley relay, heat one."

"Shit," said Goro in a very unprofessional sort of way. "It's already starting."

The teams began moving to the starting blocks. They passed by the official as they did so, performing the final check for their teams. If Iwatobi still hadn't shown up by the time the last swimmer passed by that official then it would be over for them. They would be disqualified and that would be it. Everything they had tried to do this summer, even before this summer, would all be wasted. Her brother wasn't worth being disqualified over!

Then she saw them. "There they are!"

Haru came running out first. Straight across the tile floor, right up to meet the official himself. It was an unusual thing for him to do. Typically those sorts of interactions he always left for Makoto to handle, but there he was issuing in their arrival, and right behind him came Makoto and Nagisa.

"Looks like they made it in time." Amakata pressed a hand over her heart, inhaling deeply.

"Thank goodness." Gou collapsed more than sat down in her seat. That had been close. Too close. They needed this achievement and that money too. Their club may not survive another year, much less two, without it. Not with winter around the corner. If they couldn't rent a pool for that time and lost all that practice time than it was sure to make any future winnings a rare commodity.

They had to win this. They couldn't afford to lose. They had to win.

"Oh." Amakata leaned forward. She tilted her head to the side, staring at the swim teams below. "Is that…Mikoshiba-san?"

"Huh?" Goro arched up to look. "What the hell? That is Mikoshiba. Why is he competing in the relay? He wasn't in the last round."

Neither of the adults had read the pamphlet either it seemed. "He's competing in this round," said Gou. "He made the change to their line up last night."

"Last night? Why?"

"He wants to win."

Goro's gaze was probing, but Gou pretended not to notice and after a moment he turned away. "Well, that's just how racing goes I suppose." He rubbed his chin. "Although this is going to make things a lot more difficult for us," he grumbled.

He was right. The biggest obstacle Iwatobi would be facing was none other than the swim team the man she was married to belonged to. Not that that mattered when it came to racing. There was no room for marriage or personal feelings in the lanes down there. What mattered was winning. That was what was most important. If you didn't win then what was the point?

Her gaze traveled a few rows down to the Samezuka team. Seijuro stood at the back of their line up. Which meant he would be taking the last leg of the race. The free portion. He would be going up against Haru.

Her hands tightened on her knees. Haru was an extremely gifted and a superb swimmer, of that there was no doubt, but so was Seijuro. He had more than a fair number of impressive wins under his belt and he had set that record during the first round of the competition, not to mention he was the captain of a well known and well renowned swimming team. You didn't get to be a captain of something like that by being a poor or average swimmer. If there was anyone besides her brother who could rival Haru, it was definitely Seijuro.

All we need is one-tenth of a second. Just one-tenth of a second. Just one-tenth of a second faster and they would win.

"Men's medley relay, heat one," the speaker announced again. It was time.

Down below Makoto moved towards the water. He slapped his cheeks as if bringing himself fully into focus.

"Makoto!" Goro yelled out.

"Makoto-senpai!" Gou added her own voice.

The backstroke swimmers got into their starting positions, clinging to the pool wall. It had always been a funny position to Gou, forcing her to hide her giggles on several occasions lest Makoto think she was making fun of him. She wasn't laughing right now however.

A few tense seconds ticked by. Gou could feel her heart in her throat. If the buzzer didn't ring soon she was going to have a heart attack and sue—

The buzzer rang out. It nearly gave Gou a heart attack. The backstroke swimmers launched themselves backwards off the pool wall.

"Go, go, go!" Goro lead them in their cheer, using the megaphone for its intended purpose this time. "Go, go, go, Makoto!"

"Go, go, go, go, Makoto!" Even Yuko and Yuka were chanting. Hana was shouting so loud Gou was alarmed she might bust a vocal cord.

As Makoto swam his trade mark rough stroke seemed to steadily smooth out. It became serene, tranquil almost, like he was basking in a wide calm sunlit ocean rather than competing in a huge event, and Gou's cheering tapered to an end. She had never realized but watching Makoto swim before had sometimes made it seem like he was fighting the water, as though he were frightened of it or something. But now he looked anything but scared. This time instead of fighting the water he was embracing it.

He was dead even with Samezuka and another team when he finished his run. His hand hit the wall and above him Nagisa dove in. Their exchange was good, perfect even. The boys had worked so hard on those together. And she had run so many laps for it…

If Makoto's swimming had been impressive than Nagisa's was just as so. He swam faster than Gou could ever recall him doing so, as if he were trying to catch something beneath the water that none outside him could see.

"Incredible!" Goro stared open mouthed at the scoring board. "They're in third place, ahead of top schools!"

"That's a personal best!" Gou watched the numbers flashing on the screen. Nagisa was completely outdoing himself this time. All his previous records he had blown completely out of the water.

"Rei's up next," said Goro and Gou swung her gaze around to where the butterfly swimmer would be standing at the starting block ready to take his turn next. Only…Rei wasn't the one standing there. Instead a certain red-headed shark-toothed boy stood there.

"W—what?!" said Goro

"Ehhh?" said Amakata.

"B—brother?!" Gou's mouth dropped. What was going on? What was he doing there?! She hadn't heard anything about this. Seijuro hadn't mentioned it either. Samezuka hadn't planned this. He would have told her if he had.

Then that meant…The Iwatobi boys had invited him to participate in their relay?

But why?! Rin's performance had been beyond terrible in the free race. They had all seen that, including Haru and the others. So why would they invite him along despite knowing that?

Down below Rin stood calmly on the starting block. He faced the water like it was an old comrade of his. An old comrade he had lost contact with and was only now was getting reconnected to. Some relationships take a long time to repair.

He reached up to pull his goggles over his eyes. Then he smiled.

This smile was not like before. Not that dark and sinister thing that had crossed his face when he had beaten Haru, that salt water smile. This smile was full of excitement and anticipation. Of joy.

Gou could scarcely breathe. She couldn't remember the last time she had seen him like that.

When Nagisa hit the pool wall, Rin dove in. This time there was no late start for him.

"I told them to be free." Goro sounded a bit like he was having trouble breathing. "But they took it too far."

Gou's mouth was still hanging open. She was unable to form a response. Next to her Amakata sort of resembled one of those awful dolls Hana had bought.

"His entry angle was five degrees off," came the offhand analytic observation further down the seats in a voice that was way too familiar, "but I suppose it will do."

Goro pulled away from the voice like it had burned him. "Why are you here?!"

Rei looked at him much too coolly given the circumstances, looking as though he was about to put forth a business proposal that could simply not be turned down rather than explain why he was sitting in the stands missing out on the biggest race of his swimming experience. "I'll explain everything later. Right now we need to cheer them on." His gaze flickered onto Gou. "Gou-san."

She snapped her jaw shut. He was right. Of course he was right! If anyone knew what they were doing no matter how insane it appeared, like quitting the track team to join the swim team without even knowing how to swim for instance, it would be him. Rei was the smartest person she knew. She believed that now more than ever. She leaned forward. "Go, go, go, go, Rin!"

From within Samezuka's ranks someone yelled, loud and shrill and familiar. "Matsuoka-senpai!"

Rin's speed was phenomenal. Gone was the horrible dispirited swimming from before. This was the same speed he had shown in his race against Haru. Faster even.

Across the screen the numbers flashed. Third place slid into second. Second place, second place! Gou clutched her hands. Samezuka was the only school ahead of them now. Just one more spot to go!

But now the free portion was coming up.

Gou looked down to the starting blocks. Haru stood slightly bent over, hands grasping right above his knees, waiting for Rin to finish his run. It was his turn. And also Seijuro's—

—Seijuro's turn.

He stood on the starting block, watching Matsuoka glide along through the water. He should be watching his own team mate to make sure he jumped in at the right time, but at this moment he couldn't quite take his eyes off Matsuoka. His swimming was superb. This was a speed and a skill Seijuro had not witnessed before, not even during Matsuoka's race against Haru in the first round. A speed and skill he had never hoped for from the other teen, much less expected.

Above him he could hear the chanting of Gou. Her voice was the loudest of them all. Cheering on her brother. Despite everything she still cheered for him.

What was Iwatobi thinking, he couldn't help but wonder, inviting Matsuoka to compete in the relay with them. There was no way they could have known about Matsuoka's comeback, his impressive display that had just occurred. They couldn't have invited him thinking it would increase their chances of winning. If anything the assumption would be that it was the exact opposite. So then why had they done it?

The yells and whistles brought his attention back forwards. Noro was approaching. The last leg of the race. He got into position.

Below him Noro slammed into the wall. "Captain!"

Seijuro dove in, but not before he heard a familiar voice but unfamiliar cry a few lanes over. "Haru!" Rin's voice.

Out of his peripheral vision he saw the dark haired teen dive in, a mere few seconds after Seijuro himself. It had been years since their last race. So long ago Seijuro doubted Haru remembered. He certainly hadn't acted like he did when Iwatobi had first come to Samezuka's joint practice. To Haru — back before Seijuro's marriage to Gou and his presence suddenly being thrust upon them like an inconvenient stain that would just not go away — Seijuro had been just another name of those Haru had defeated in his elementary school days. Seijuro had been merely a word in a sentence contained in Haru's book of victories, hardly worth a footnote.

Haru hadn't remembered him. But Seijuro had.

And the lesson Haru had taught him.

The fastest swimmer always wins.

What are you trying to show me now, Nanase?

Something different perhaps. Something that might change Seijuro's line of thought like last time. Maybe Haru was trying to show Seijuro a sight he had never seen before.

Like Matsuoka's smile. Seijuro had never seen him smile like that. That smile that was truthfully and wholly happy with nothing wicked in its folded corners, liberating almost in its innocence. As if Matsuoka had finally managed to shake off the chains he had been dragging behind himself for far too long. His incredible swimming was testament to that. Whatever it was he had been seeking, it looked like he had found it.

And what was it that Seijuro was seeking exactly? Victory? That was what was most important, wasn't it? Or was it? If victory was what was most important than Iwatobi would never have invited Matsuoka. They would never have brought him along. But they had. What they were seeking was something far more precious than just winning. They were aiming for something higher.

But then, when Seijuro thought about it, truly thought about it, he hadn't been pursuing victory these past few months either. The competition had always been in the back of his mind, like an afterthought almost, but there was something else that had been the primary focus of his attentions. Just like Matsuoka, Seijuro had been focused on something else other than the competition.

It was a little funny how he had never noticed it before. Strangely he didn't find himself bothered by it at all. Maybe he's always been a bit of a hypocrite.

So if winning wasn't what was most important what was?

The turn came up. Seijuro kicked powerfully off the wall and behind him was Haru. He was close, but Seijuro was still maintaining a lead. Barely. All he needed was one tenth of a second. One tenth of a second to win. For victory. It was what he had come here for.

Wasn't it?

Seijuro thought of Matsuoka's smile once more. The loud cheering of Gou. Defeating Iwatobi would take that new found smile away, he imagined. Whatever it was Iwatobi was seeking, whatever it was Haru was trying to show them, might be lost. And if Seijuro took Matsuoka's smile away it would take Gou's away as well.

The race was coming to a close. The wall was so close now. Haru was dead set with him. He could see the other boy's movements out of the corner of his eye, a presence that couldn't be shaken. Haru was an opponent truly worthy of respect. If it had been anybody else Seijuro's loss might have been imminent. But when it came to Haru, Seijuro was a good twelve centimeters taller. His arms were longer. He would reach just one tenth of a second sooner. The win was in the palm of his hand.

Seijuro grimaced. This was going to suck. It was going to suck so bad. It was such a selfish thing for him to do. But he's always been selfish, hasn't he? This time would be no different.

He apologized in his head. Then he slammed his hand home.

Everyone was screaming. Rei, Amakata, Goro, Hana, even Yuko and Yuka. Gou's own throat was scratchy from yelling so much.

Samezuka and Iwatobi were so close. Neck and neck. They were so close Gou couldn't tell who exactly was ahead. They stretched for the wall and at the last second it almost looked like Seijuro suddenly hesitated. Did he just…

She didn't get a chance to think any further on it as her gaze flew to the board. The numbers flashed. One, two and three. Next to Iwatobi's name appeared the number one. One tenth of a second. That was all they had won by.

Gou screamed. Hana screamed. On the other side of her Amakata was screaming just as loudly. Hana shook Gou like she were a ragdoll. "They won, they won, they won, look, Gou!"

Goro, someone who was normally so loud, looked so flabbergasted and shocked he could barely react. His mouth was open and from the look of him he might cry.

They had won! All that they had worked for, from the day Nagisa had joined Makoto and Haru at their current high school and suggested they start the swim club till the day they had packed up on a bus to head over here, had been worth it. All their hard work and sacrifice and hope. They had won! Despite all their bad odds and disadvantages they had really, really won!

Gou looked down to the pool area. Nagisa was busily rubbing his eyes with both fists. He must already be crying. Haru was just coming out of the pool, pulled up by Makoto's always offered hand. Their hands remained clasped once he stood on dry land. They shared a smile, but that was as far as they got, for they were very shortly interrupted by a certain red haired boy charging at Haru. Not to fling a fist at him, but to fling his arms around him.

Gou couldn't believe her eyes. This couldn't be real. Her brother was…hugging Haru? Not just some sort of one arm half-hearted hug either but a full on tight embrace. Rin clutched onto the other boy like he had saved him. And maybe Haru had.

For a moment Makoto and Nagisa looked to be just as shocked as Gou , then they too flung themselves at Haru, yelling out his name, becoming a mass of swim suits and really nice muscles. They all looked to be crying now, except for Haru who was probably getting squished between the three of them. They stood like that a moment, perhaps Rin was saying something to Haru, before pulling apart into a loosely bound circle, their arms around each other shoulders. Then they were all laughing and Rin was laughing with them. It was the first time Gou could recall him laughing since he had left for Australia. He was smiling. Broad and happy and pure. The same smile he used to wear when Gou had clutched his hand and he had clutched hers back.

The last missing piece to the puzzle. Rin had come home at last.

"Big brother…" Gou was about to start crying herself.

"Rin really was fast," Goro commented. "I think he swam even faster than he had in their first relay."

"I was shocked at first." Amakata dabbed at her eyes. "But this is touching."

"Still…" Goro rubbed his chin, brow wrinkled. His gaze was locked not on Iwatobi but on Samezuka. Seijuro to be exact. "I can't believe that idiot would do such a thing," he muttered under his breath.

Gou looked sharply up. She hadn't been imagining things. Goro had seen it too. At the very last second, Seijuro had…

Her face crumpled. "That idiot," she choked and buried her face in her hands.

Seijuro climbed his way out of the pool. He tore the swim cap off his head, blinking and shaking to try and clear his eyesight. He glanced at the score board, though he didn't have to look to know the scorings.

Iwatobi had one. By one tenth of a second. Samezuka had come in second.

A few lanes over the winning swim team were celebrating their victory. The four boys were hugging each other, piling on top of poor Haru. The three of them were all crying and laughing at the same time. Matsuoka was crying the hardest of them all, but then he also laughed the loudest. Seijuro had never heard him laugh before.

Matsuoka smiled. A real, true smile. And beyond him in the stands Gou had her face in her hands.

Seijuro pushed his hair out of his eyes, ducking his head so as not to show his own smile.

He had lost the race.

But in the end he felt like he had gained something far more precious.

"I can't believe after all that and Samezuka won anyway!"

They stood outside the stadium. Above them the sky was turning orange with sunset. The day was coming to an end and along with it the races. Around them walked various teams in their jerseys, returning to their lodging after a hard day's worth of competition.

"Well, it's to be expected I suppose." Amakata had her arms crossed over her chest. "A swimmer can't swim for another schools swim team."

"Naturally." Goro had a stupid grin on his face, like someone who had been caught and punished for pulling off a prank but not minding as the prank had just been too good regardless of the consequences. Thankfully Amakata wasn't looking his way.

"It wasn't easy to endure the officials scolding us," the teacher continued, forehead slightly pinched. "They never thought they would have something like this happen in one of their competitions. They could have accused us of cheating if they had really desired so. We're lucky they decided to only disqualify us."

The four boys stood in a row in front of her like soldiers waiting to be disciplined. Together they bowed in unison. Even Haru. "We're very sorry," they chorused.

Their remorseful tone must have done it, for Amakata let out a deep sigh. "Well, it's okay." Her forehead lost its painful pinch. "Young people get to do crazy things like that."

She glanced sidelong at Gou, giving her a little wink. Gou snorted under her breath at the insinuation. Not that she could exactly argue with it all things considered.

"Why did you pull that stunt?" asked Goro of the four boys and Gou felt the words following that sentence despite Goro not saying them. You might have won otherwise.

The four boys looked at each other. It was Rei who spoke first. "Because." He smiled. "It was the right thing to do."

"Yep!" Nagisa instantly agreed. "We may be on different teams…"

Makoto followed, "But we're still…"

"Friends," finished Haru.

"What does that mean?" asked Amakata but the boys only laughed and provided no further explanation.

In the end it was Samezuka who had been granted the title and the money. With Iwatobi having been disqualified they had taken first, and the one bumped up to second had been none other than the German school, Gou's adopted swim team. She was proud of them, in a strange motherly type way.

Iwatobi may have lost that cash and achievement, both they really could have used, but things could always be worse. The race had brought back Rin's smile after all. Gou would have picked that over any amount of money in the world.

Speaking of which…

She stepped over to the side and pulled out her phone. It was easy finding the name she was searching for. Throughout her phone the name was peppered, from calls to texts to voicemail. If she knew how to set up speed dial she would have set the number up there but alas she wasn't even aware if her phone carried such a feature. Considering how cheap it was probably not.

She pushed the call button and held the phone to her ear. She moved on her feet in a nervous dance. She had never called him before. He may not answer. He may be busy with his own swim team, but she hoped he would. She would be disappointed, maybe even a little rejected, if he didn't answer her first time calling.

The phone continued to ring. It was sure to go to voicemail any second now. She waited for that, but that isn't what she got.

"Hello?"

For a moment she couldn't get her mouth to move. She had never heard him on the phone before and for a brief second her mind lost all grasp of human language. She struggled to retain some semblance of human conversation. Without sounding like an idiot. Hopefully. "H—hey."

"Everything alright?" In his background she could vaguely hear boys chattering. He was definitely with his swim team.

"Where are you?"

"Right next to the stadium."

Good. They hadn't left yet then.

"Why? What's up?"

"I want to see you."

Silence on the other end. Gou clutched the phone tightly. Her heartbeat thundered in her ears. She was so hot she was starting to sweat.

"Okay," the response came at last. "Where are you?"

Gou glanced around herself. She spotted some stairs. There. Up there would be the perfect spot. She described it to him.

"I'll be right there."

Gou's smile felt like sunshine on her face. "Okay." She hung up the phone. Briefly she went and told Amakata she would be departing for a bit then she headed for the stairs.

Is this what a real relationship feels like, she couldn't help but wonder as she made her way to their selected meeting spot. Not an accidental one like their marriage but a real one?

She didn't know.

But she was looking forward to finding out.

Seijuro was nearly out of breath when he got to the spot. He had run the entire way. Even up all those awful, awful stairs. But when he reached the top and saw Gou waiting for him it made all those awful stairs worthwhile. "Hey."

She turned. Upon seeing him she smiled. A full grateful smile that curled all the way up into her eyes. "Thank you."

Seijuro didn't have to ask what she was thanking him for. By the look on her face he knew.

"Yeah, well, I guess winning isn't everything, right?" He felt like he had won something far more valuable anyway.

"But you still won though."

"…Oh, yeah!"

Her smile became twinged with amusement. She turned to look off the cliff they stood on and Seijuro moved to stand beside her. From their view point they could see easily down into the stadium. The whole town was spread out before them. If it had been at night it surely would have been a magnificent sight all lit up.

"I was wrong," Gou said suddenly. "I thought my brother needed Iwatobi to change, and he did, but he needed you too."

"He needed you as well." If Gou hadn't been there, hadn't joined the Iwatobi swim team, Seijuro doubted Matsuoka would have been in that relay. Iwatobi wouldn't even have been for that matter. Gou had been the one to secretly enter them after all. If not for her none of them would have gotten as far as they had.

Gou's smile widened further. "He needed everyone," she said and after a moment of consideration Seijuro realized how much that was true. Matsuoka had needed everyone. Had needed everyone to bring a piece in order to rebuild him back whole again. Sometimes it really did take a village.

"By the way, you're…you're not going to kick him off the swim team…are you?" asked Gou, hands fisted in her hair.

Seijuro almost laughed a loud at the question. "No, no, not at all."

"R—really?"

"Really, really."

"But what he did…aren't you mad about it?"

"Not a bit. And besides after all that kick him off? I'd have to be insane to do so." He leaned his forearms on the railing next to her. "He did what he wanted to do from the depth of his heart. I can't blame him for doing something like that."

Seijuro had done the exact same thing after all. Both of them had been equally as selfish during that race. Perhaps they were more alike than he had thought. Although thinking that made him strangely irritated for some reason. "Besides, he didn't damage the swim team at all," he continued, trying to ignore the ruffled feeling in his head like he had just been personally insulted. "And he's a good swimmer. Kicking good swimmers from a swim team wouldn't make any sense."

"Are you…sure?"

"Of course I'm sure!"

After seeing how Matsuoka had swam for Iwatobi…Seijuro wanted that for Samezuka. If Matsuoka swam the same way for Samezuka as he did for Iwatobi then he could really propel the swim team forward, maybe even more than Seijuro could. In order for that to happen Matsuoka had to first become as invested in Samezuka as he was with Iwatobi. And to get a person like Matsuoka invested he had to care. If there is one thing that drove Matsuoka it was his emotions. They could be his downfall when he became overwhelmed by them, but they were also his strength.

Keeping Matsuoka on the swim team rather than kicking him off, as Seijuro honestly should have done, had been the start of creating that investment. Rather than feeling like the swim team owed him something like he had seemed to act before, Matsuoka would be grateful and honored to be there. He would be proud, not just in his own abilities, as he had been before, but in everyone's. And that would make all the difference.

Great captains were great because they were feared, loved, or respected. Seijuro was starting to get a feeling which one Matsuoka would turn out to be. Eventually, anyway. Matsuoka still had a ways to go. A shot foot certainly doesn't heal in a day, but he had his foot on the right path now. All he needed to do was walk it. Without blundering into anymore detours that is.

"Thank you."

Seijuro let out a bark of laughter. "You shouldn't thank me for that. He earned that spot on his own."

"Still, I mean even if he is a good swimmer considering what he did, that was a pretty big offense, right? You would have totally been in your right to kick him out. I might have been tempted to kick him out if I were in your position." She leaned in closer as if compelling him to agree with her.

He shrugged one shoulder. Gou had moved so close his arm brushed against her's as he did so. "Well, I figured him causing you guys to get disqualified was punishment enough. He made you lose all that money too."

"Ugh! Don't even mention that!" She clutched her head, her whole arm bumping into him as she did so. "All that money…" She spread her hands in front of her as if the money would suddenly appear in them. She covered her face. "We're going to be stuck swimming in bath tubs all winter long!" she wailed.

Bath tubs? Seijuro wasn't sure what that was about. Why would anyone swim in a bath tub? Must be Nanase's idea.

A thought struck him then, one which had nothing to do with bath tubs, and he brightened. "Hey, you should come to dinner with us tomorrow night!"

She lowered her hands to reveal a furrowed brow. "Dinner?"

"Yeah! We're going to be celebrating our victories!" Samezuka had won a fair amount today. One advantage of having a big swim team: you could compete in more races. Even if Samezuka had lost in one race, they could win in others. And they had. "You should all come! Everyone from Iwatobi! You could even bring Hana and the girls along too if you want. It'll be our treat!"

"Are you…sure about that? That's an awful lot of people to treat, isn't it? It'd be expensive."

"It won't be a problem at all! You should all definitely come! It'll be fun!" Iwatobi had technically been the victors after all too. Not to mention how much Seijuro owed them. In more ways than one. Treating them to dinner would be a small way of him paying them back.

"Well, okay." Gou smiled. "It's a date then."

A date? Seijuro almost fell over hearing the words. Their first official official date. Not one that he thought kinda sorta might be. This time there would be no question. He struggled to retain his composure, not wanting to over show his excitement and end up embarrassing himself.

He didn't have long to struggle though, as another thought occurred to him, quickly putting a damper on his excitement.

"The day after that…that's the day we go home, isn't it?"

Gou tilted her head to the side. "It is." She mulled over that, eyes distant. She shrugged. "The dinner will be a good way to celebrate your victory and our time here then."

Seijuro stared at her. Then he smiled. "You're right." Of course she was. There was no reason to feel unease or worried about that deadline anymore. No longer were they tied to a ticking timer, destined to end once they left this place. Now it was more like a beginning.

"Hey," said Seijuro, getting excited again, "since it's our last event we should make it cou—" He stopped.

The last two times they had tried doing that it had gotten utterly devastated by some event or other, hadn't it? It was almost like some sort of curse. But this time it was different, wasn't it? There was nothing else that could get in their way anymore.

"We should make it count!"

Gou blinked at him a moment then her eyes lit up with understanding. "We should," she agreed. "Let's make sure this one really counts."

"Alright!" Make it count. This time for sure. There was nothing that could possibly mess it up now! Nothing whatsoever!

His phone went off in his pocket and he pulled it out to find a text from Nakagawa. "Shit. The bus." If he was late Nakagawa was going to throw a fit. "I have to get going." He straightened. "Will you be staying at the house tonight?"

They would be arriving late. Both swim teams. Late enough that it would make sense for Gou to stay at the Iwatobi lodges rather than go there and then make her way to the house.

But Gou's brows only furrowed at his suggestion, like she didn't understand why he would ask such a thing. "Where else would I stay?"

He smiled. The way she said it so casually, like of course she would stay there, it wouldn't make any sense to stay anywhere else, would it? Those simple words were enough to warm him all over. "I'll see you there then."

He placed a hand gently on her head then turned to go. If he didn't get to the bus quickly he was going to get a mouthful from Nakagawa.

He had scarcely gone a few steps towards the stairs when Gou suddenly called out. "Wa—wait!"

He turned questioningly. She hesitated, as if unsure about something, then she made an exasperated sound, and suddenly she was running towards him. He barely had enough time to fully turn her way before she threw herself at him. She collided into him and, before Seijuro had a chance to fully process what was occurring, her arms were around his neck and she pulled herself upwards. And kissed him.

For a moment Seijuro forgot how to breathe. Nothing close to this had ever happened before, especially not by Gou's initiative. There had been that kiss on the cheek but Seijuro didn't really count that, and even when he had kissed her previously, while she hadn't rejected him she hadn't exactly responded with a large amount of avidity either. Seijuro had thought, and hoped, that it had simply been shyness on her part rather than any sort of lack of interest. And now it was looking like perhaps he hadn't been wrong on that account.

Gou pulled back a hair's breadth. Her face was swathed with red. When she spoke her voice was almost like a croak. "It's for luck."

For luck? Seijuro's brain was having a hard time processing anything besides the feeling of Gou's lips and her arms around him. Finally it dawned on him and he let out a low chuckle. "I think I might need a bit more then."

He lowered his face to kiss her properly this time and he was more than rewarded when she met him halfway. It was soft and a bit hesitant at first, something that was familiar but very different at the same time, like discovering something new, teetering on the edge of unexplored territory. It was Gou who pressed forward, deepening the kiss, and Seijuro could have died right then and been happy about it.

Perhaps Gou was the type who just took a while to decide what they really wanted. It had taken her a while before she had joined the Iwatobi swim team after all, and considering how abruptly their relationship had started it wasn't exactly a big surprise that she had been unsure about it. When Gou finally did make her decision, when she finally decided what she really truly wanted, she went after it with the same hot-blooded pertinaciousness and determination her brother was renowned for.

To think that Gou wanted him, him of all people when she could have chosen anyone, anyone she wanted, was enough to send Seijuro's blood sky rocketing.

He kissed her back hard, meeting her kiss back fifty-fifty, half and half. He raised his hand to cup her cheek, tilting her head back slightly. Her breath was hot against his cheek. It sounded like her breathing had quickened, although Seijuro had a hard time hearing anything over the sound of his own thundering heartbeat in his ears. His other arm circled her waist and she leaned back against his other hand, leaning into his touch and body. Her fingers moved into his hair, tightening around the strands. Her lips parted, deepening the kiss further still, and Seijuro's mind was going into some thrilling places – like how they were in a fairly public place and anyone could walk up any minute now and get more than just the view of the stadium they had bargained for – when—

Seijuro's phone went off.

For a brief moment Seijuro considered chucking the bastard thing over the cliff's edge. But Gou had bought this phone for him. He couldn't do that when she had gone out of her way to get it for him. Maybe he could fling Nakagawa over instead.

Reluctantly he pulled back. Gou's cheeks were flushed. Her lips were redder than usual and when she opened her eyes her pupils were unusually wide. Seijuro found he really liked that look on her.

"I gotta go," he said and even he was surprised at how low and grated his voice had become.

"Oh," said Gou in a dazed way. She jerked her head, blinking forcibly as if dragging herself back to reality. "Oh, right. The bus. You're going to miss it."

"Yeah." He kissed her once, hard and quick, then released her. He headed down the stairs. "Make sure you dress up nice for the dinner tomorrow night!" he called back to her.

She moved to the edge to peer down at him. "I don't always look nice?"

"Extra nice then!"

"I don't always look extra nice?"

"Well, I haven't seen you naked yet—"

"Oh my god!"

"But I suppose." He paused on a step to flash a grin up at her.

She was the color of an overly ripe tomato. She couldn't meet his eyes, gaze darting around looking at anything but him. Yet no words of denial came from her.

Seijuro's grin widened. One day he was going to be able to see her naked. And touch her freely. When she was ready of course. He as well. They had all the time in the world to wander and discover that wondrous new path. Together.

He went down the stairs, nearly taking three at a time, the warmth flooding through his veins like liquid sunshine.

Throwing that race was the best thing I ever did.

Scratch that.

Marrying you was the best thing I ever did.

Oddly the boys relay was super hard to write? I think I spent two weeks on writing that part alone.

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, followed, or even read this drivel! Especially those who have stuck around since the start - you guys are awesome considering how long this fic has taken!

Approx. two chapters left. Yay! *throws sparkles*

Responses to some things:

Megingjoro - *fist pump back*

bubblegum12899 - There is no life after fanfic, only zuul.

joonstar - Thank you! If there was one thing I really wanted to do in this fic was to include the other Iwatobi members and not just focus on the main couple while still keeping their presence entertaining and worthwhile. Hopefully I managed to pull it off.

TLTL - Thank you very much for your comment! Any feedback received is always awesome!