Disclaimer: Free!, Haikyuu! & Inuyasha and their characters are properties of Kouji Ouji, Hiroko Utsumi, Haruichi Furudate & Rumiko Takahashi, Kyoto Animation, Shueisha, Production I.G., Shogakukan, Sunrise, etc. Not mine. I don't make any money out of this. This is written for pure fan entertainment and to the fans all around the world!

Characters: Kagome Higurashi, Makoto Tachibana and Haruka Nanase. (Pairing: Tetsurou x Kagome.)

Rating: K+

Category: short fic, general, drama, AU

Fiction note: A side-story for the 6th short fanfic, "Resemblances", however, you can read this separately.

Suddenly, she turned her attention to him. "Makoto-kun, have you told Haru-kun you love him more than a friend?"

Mild warning: Fic contains a male & male relationship in process.

A Free!-Haikyuu!-Inuyasha Short Fanfic

"Helping Hand"

Written by k-tiraam © 2016

"So, we meet again." Kagome stared down, with a serious expression. "Why on earth is math in every education?"

Makoto coughed to hide his chuckle. Once again, Makoto agreed to help Kagome with her assignments, as would she help him with his. A fair trade, plus she told that she would cook something for them.

Most of the subjects they study are some-what the same. Makoto was studying to become a swimming coach. Kagome planned to become a physical therapist – all thanks to her boyfriend for giving the idea. She did consider of becoming a nurse, but since she got into the world of sports, plans changed. Even the smallest change in your like could change you life.

"Let me see if I can help you with that, Kagome-san." Makoto lifted his glasses up a little and took a look at her notes.

"Thank you, Makoto-kun." She bowed her head slightly down in gratitude.

The former backstroke swimmer glanced at her notes quickly, humming thoughtfully. He was okay with the math so he had no problems with it. As he looked through Kagome's notes and equations, it was a wonder she passed the entrance exams. 'She must have had lot of luck during the exams…'

"Okay, there are few mistakes with these equations…" Makoto began to explain, showing her the mistakes.

In couple of hours, they had their assignments done; once it was over, as promised Kagome began with the dinner. No matter how often Makoto had told her she didn't need to cook, Kagome insisted. Besides, she knew – and so did Makoto himself – that he wasn't much of a cook. He could cook by reading the simple recipes; most of the time he ordered the take-away whenever Haruka wasn't around. When Kagome learned this, it became her mission to teach Makoto how to eat healthily – and eat less of the take-away food.

Makoto helped her by setting up the table for them, while she finished up with the cooking. Soon the table was filled with healthy food, with both of them sitting down by the table.

"Itadakimasu!" They said at the same time and took a hold of their chopsticks. Makoto took the first bite, savoring the taste of home-made cooking.

"As always, Kagome-san, your cooking tastes great."

Kagome giggled. "Thank you, Makoto-kun. You don't need to say that every time I cook."

"But it's true." Makoto mumbled as he ate.

There was a moment of silence between them; both of them were focusing on eating. Soon enough, the silence was broken as Kagome turned her attention to him. "Makoto-kun, have you told Haru-kun you love him more than a friend?"

The food in his mouth went to the wrong throat, causing Makoto to cough hard. Quickly, Kagome gave him a glass of water while patting him on his back. He accepted the glass and drank it empty, clearing up his throat.

"K-Kagome-san! Of all the things you ask while we are eating!" A blush appeared over his face as he was panicking about the question.

"Sorry, Makoto-kun." Kagome nervously said, scratching her face with a finger. "But seriously, you still haven't said a word to him?"

Makoto fidgeted in his seat, making no eye contact with her. "N-no… The courses have kept me busy and Haru got his swimming contests and practices…"

"Those aren't good excuses, Makoto-kun." Kagome stared at him with deadpan eyes, not believing a word he was saying. Her look only made him flinch in fear; it was as if Rin was at presence. "I know you had plenty of time to confess Haru-kun about your true feelings. Besides, if you don't say a word, it might linger in your thoughts for a long time. I understand that Haru-kun is your lifelong friend, still… I think he needs to know about your feelings and your love for him."

Makoto gulped, becoming more and more nervous.

Noticing him becoming uncomfortable about the subject, Kagome stopped bothering him for a moment and began to gather the empty dishes.

Silence was unbearable for him.

His thoughts ran wild in his mind – thankfully there were no other assignments to be done for next day. Because right now he couldn't think about other things, let alone focusing on assignments. Only thoughts of Haruka and what Kagome told him ran through his mind. It was true what she said – he had lot of the time, but not the courage. Haruka had been his friend since birth – or so their parents claimed. They had gone through a lot, been there for each other – well, Makoto had always been more open whenever he helped out his friends. Then again, Haruka was more like a quiet support, especially whenever Makoto froze in fear nearby the ocean. The mere presence of him calmed Makoto down and his fears always disappeared.

After all this time, Makoto wasn't sure when he fell in love with him. He assumed the realization came to him sometime after Rin returned from Australia. He felt as if he was left behind whenever Rin kept challenging Haru for a competition – touching and hugging him. He didn't like it; it was like his heart was falling into pieces as he noticed Haru become more interest of Rin.

It wasn't fair.

He was always there for Haru.

And then Rin…

Just from the memory of the feeling… made his heart ache again.

"Ne, Makoto-kun?"

Makoto gasped in fright. "Eh? W-what is it?"

Kagome reached for him, wiping out some wet from his face. Tears? When did this happen? How didn't he notice this sooner? "Eh? What?"

Kagome smiled gently at him. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."

"N-no… it's okay. Really, it's okay." Makoto wiped the rest of his tears on his sleeve. "I… was remembering something in the past, that's all. It wasn't your fault, really." His had subdued look over his face.

"Still," she began, "just remember that I will be there for you. Even though we've known each other less than seven months now, I feel like I've known you longer than that. You're my friend also, Makoto-kun."

"Kagome-san." Makoto eyes shone with wonder.

"Now then, let's finish up with the dishes." Kagome titled her head, smiling gently. 'Better get his mind out of this for a while.'

"Okay."

A week and a half passed by from the study session. Weekend was just a day away and Kagome didn't have any special plans for it. At first she thought having a lazy weekend since Kuroo would be away to see his old high school friends. (And no, they didn't live together. Her grandfather was really strict about the living arrangements.) Now, she wasn't certain about the lazy weekend.

Since the day she had a talk with Makoto, Kagome have been thinking the way how to help out her gentle friend. Makoto was too shy and thought it was better remind quiet about his feelings for Haruka – fearing that their friendship would be ruined because of it. Well, it could become awkward if Haruka didn't return Makoto's feelings – but still, Kagome thought it was better to let it out and know of it for sure. Otherwise, the doubt might linger within the thoughts.

Kagome hummed thoughtfully; dilemma indeed and now it was bothering her as well. Good thing she was heading to the swimming hall. Maybe the swimming could take her mind off things.

"Ah, Kagome-san." She heard someone say to her.

"Eh? Haru-kun?" Kagome blinked. What were the odds for her to stumble into him now? "Finished up with your practice?"

Haruka shook his head. "No, I'm going for a swim. Today the practice wasn't enough."

Kagome softly chuckled, in disbelief. "You really do love to swim, don't you?" Haruka gave her a serious look. "Of course you do, silly me."

Haruka turned his eyes away from her for a second and then looked back at her. "Did something happen during your study session days ago?"

"Um, I don't think so?" We only talked about the assignments and stuff…" 'Can't tell him about the conversation we had about him, though. I don't want to break Makoto-kun's trust. Looks like Makoto-kun hadn't said a word yet.' Kagome tried not to fidget from Haruka's stare. "Why? Did something happen?"

Haruka pondered for a moment, thinking about how he had noticed some changes in his friend. At first, he thought of nothing about it. As days went by, he found Makoto's behavior disturbing. The taller ex-swimmer jolted every time when Haruka made his appearance to his apartment or whenever they met each other at the campus for lunch. Not only that, Makoto kept trying to say something important to him but it only came out as a helpless stutter, ending up with Makoto's face turning red and brunette saying; 'it was nothing'.

Frankly speaking, it began to bother Haruka. A lot. He wanted to do something about it.

The freestyle swimmer noticed the young woman staring at him, realizing she was waiting for his answer. After all, she wasn't Makoto and didn't have the same ability to know what Haruka was thinking. "Ah, well… Makoto is acting weird."

"Oh? How's so?"

A shoulder shrug was the only answer he could give her for the moment. So hard to find the right words.

"I mean, how is Makoto-kun acting?"

"His face turns red whenever I'm close – more some than ever. He also flinches." Haruka's eyes narrowed from the thought of it. "It's starting to be troublesome."

'Oh Makoto-kun…' Kagome sighed deeply. "I see." She closed her eyes, pondering hard so that her eyebrows looked as if they were almost knitted together. 'This has been gone long enough. I'm sorry, Makoto-kun, but I have to step in.' "Say, Haru-kun? What do you think of Makoto-kun? I know you're childhood friends, but… what do feel whenever you're with him?"

Haruka blinked once, eyes widening a bit. The question came to him a bit in surprise. Why would she ask him that? He wanted her opinion about Makoto's behavior, not any more questions to confuse him.

Still. What did he feel about Makoto? What did she meant with that? That was kind of an odd question – Makoto was his friend, his confident and support. He had been there for him all the time, helping him, supporting him. Makoto, who was gentle and kind and would only think the best for others, after all, he did have something to do with Haruka's future planning – with the help of Rin. For once, Haruka couldn't be more thankful for Makoto's meddling.

Thankful for being his friend and be there for him whenever he felt alone. Whenever Makoto was with him, he felt closeness, warmth and…

Now he blinked twice.

Oh.

His silence made Kagome worry – well, sure he was silent most of the time, but his expression was starting to worry her. "Er, Haru-kun?"

"I gotta go home."

"Eh?! Haru-kun?! Didn't you want to go to swim?!" 'This is really unusual of him!'

Haruka shook his head. "Need to find Makoto."

Kagome blinked twice in amazement, her mouth gapping a bit. 'Oh no, I hope I didn't ruin everything!' "Ah, wait a moment, Haru-kun!" She reached her hand to him, trying to stop him from leaving.

He slipped away from her arm's reach. Haruka only took couple of steps but then he stopped, turned around and bowed down to her. "Thank you, Kagome-san."

"Eh?" But she didn't get any more answer from him because Haruka used Kagome's confusion as his opportunity to slip away. "Ooh!" She frowned, annoyed of Haruka's little trick. Annoyance changed into concern; Kagome really hoped everything will be fine to those two. To be honest, she really hoped that Makoto's tip-toeing around Haruka would end now.

Suddenly, she didn't want to go swimming anymore. Too many thoughts ran in her mind now.

Saturday came and Kagome was enjoying her alone time. The well-earned rest was what she needed from all the assignments and busy days. Perhaps next weekend, she would visit her family at the shrine. It had been a while since she saw them.

As Kagome was about to make something to eat, a doorbell rang. She went to answer it, wondering who was coming to visit her. She looked through the peek-hole, gasping. Quickly she opened the door.

"Makoto-kun? What are you doing here?"

He didn't say a word, only hugged her closely, smiling widely. "Thank you, Kagome-san!"

"Eh?" Her eyes were wide as she was trapped within Makoto's hug.

He didn't say a word, just kept hugging her for couple more seconds. The way he behaved made Kagome wonder what was going on. Finally Makoto loosened his hold on her, but let his hands rest over her shoulders.

"Haru told me you talked couple of days ago… and I don't know that you said, but Haru…"

"Haru-kun…?"

Makoto's face turned red. "He… cooked for me."

Kagome blinked. "But, doesn't he do all the time?"

"Yeah, but he cooked my favorite things," he explained, "And after that… we talked. Or more like he bluntly said out loud that he cared for me, more than a friend. It took me by the surprise, but also gave me the kick I needed to confess." He was tapping his forefingers together, looking a bit shy. "He also scolded at me for being an idiot for not saying a word about it. Not mention about the way I've been behaving around him."

Kagome giggled softly. "That's wonderful news! I'm so happy for you! To be honest, Makoto-kun, I feel as if a weight had been lifted from my shoulders."

"Oh?"

Kagome smiled gently. "I've been worrying about you – and Haru-kun. I thought I ruined your friendship by meddling into your affair…"

Makoto shook his head repeatedly. "No! You didn't! You were right, though. I should have talked about this with Haru!" Now it was Makoto's turn to smile gently at her. "If anything, I'm thankful for your help and words, Kagome-san."

"Makoto-kun…"

"Say, you got any plans today?"

"Nothing special, why?"

"Haru asked me to invite you to join us for dinner, as a thank you for the "push" you gave us."

Tiny blush appeared to her cheeks. "Give me a moment to change my clothes."

"Okay." Makoto smiled.

Saturday went nicely for her – except for the night, when Kuroo decided to crash into her apartment for the night instead going to his. Reason was that he lived a bit far from the sushi bar he went with the guys and Kagome's place was the closest. So the solution for his "dilemma" was to come to her. Kagome sighed at his reason, but she let him stay, as long as he didn't do any fun business. She had a tiring day behind her.

It was Sunday morning and Kagome was making some breakfast for them, when Kuroo made his way to her tiny kitchen.

"Ohayou." Kuroo yawned, sitting down by the table wearing only his pants.

"Ohayou, Tetsurou-kun." Kagome turned to him, frowning. "Please, put your shirt on."

"Why? Don't you like the view?" He smirked.

Kagome blushed, still kept frowning at him. "Fine, don't blame me if you spill your hot tea over yourself and get a burn over your skin."

Kuroo only chuckled. "I'll risk it."

"Oh well, here you go," said Kagome, handing out the breakfast for him.

"Thank you, Kagome~!" He clapped his hands together, saying a quick 'itadakimasu' before eating.

Kagome just mildly snorted at him, sat down across him, also said a quick praise for the breakfast and began to eat. They ate quietly together, enjoying each other's company in peace. There were times for fun and then there were times for peace – and this was one of them.

"Say, Tetsurou-kun?" Kagome finally broke the silence between them.

"Hm?" He munched a piece of his breakfast.

"What would you say about us… moving in together?" Kagome blushed, looking away from him. "For that to happen, we do need to ask my grandfather's approval…"

The bowl in his hand was almost dropped. This must be a dream, it had to be. Please, let this not be a dream for him!

"Kagome~!" He rose up and took her into his arms, rubbing his face against her.

"T-Tetsurou~! S-stop that! You will make me drop my breakfast onto floor!"

As she helped out Makoto and Haruka, it was Makoto's turn to encourage her to make a decision about whether or not to move in with her boyfriend.

It looked like he liked the idea – after all, it was Kuroo who had kept bugging her about this.

She just (finally) accepted the idea.

End of story.

First draft: March the 7th – 8th, 2016

Author's note: First of all, sorry that I haven't been updating for a week. I took a little break to gather my thoughts for next fics. While at it, I've been busy with other things. I could've updated this a day early, but I had problems with the computer. Nothing serious that I couldn't handle, still, it was still troublesome.

Next, replies for reviews:
CK: Thank you so much! At first, I did consider just writing about chibi!Bokuto and chibi!Kagome, but then chibi!Kuroo bugged me. xD Just couldn't leave him out of the fic. Heh! Ah, we will see if I get more ideas for it.

Guest: Thanks for the review! If I ever do get more ideas, I will write it. For now, this is all I got. However, I do hope you have enjoyed reading the fics I got so far. :)

humble reader: Thank you for reading this collection so far, however this only focuses on anime-based fanfics. Because I only got ideas for those… heh. I just recently saw Deadpool-movie. xD

Well then, that's that for now. I do hope you've enjoyed reading this. Catch yah later~!