Chapter 46:

The Pool

I can't believe I frickin' agreed to this. Seto stood outside Ana's house, leaning against his car. When she finally came out, she was wearing shorts that showed off her legs and a thin t-shirt. He immediately felt frustrated. Ugh, why did I agree to this!

"Ready?" She smiled at him teasingly.

His eye twitched. "Yeah, whatever."

They got into his car and he drove them to a water park on the outskirts of town. The entire time he drove, he found it hard to focus. Ugh, whatever. It can't be as bad as that last date. Lunch had been fine. They'd found a nicely secluded booth at a restaurant, but the movie had bored him out of his mind. To his surprise, Ana had picked an action movie. However, after the third blown up car and the same terrible line five times within a ten-minute span, he'd nearly fallen asleep. Who directed that piece of shit? Maybe I should end his career.

After being absolutely bored to death, he'd taken Ana home and that had been that. As much as he wasn't looking forward to the pool he wanted today to be more fun. He pulled the car into the lot, grabbed his duffle bag, and got out. Ana did too and looked around, concerned.

"Are they closed?" She eyed the empty lot.

"Nope." He headed for the entrance and she followed behind him, frowning.

There was one person at the gate who let them in without asking for tickets. Ana looked from the guard to him, then scowled.

"Amin-chan, what did you do?"

"I have no idea what you mean." He continued into the park.

Other than a few staff, the water park was completely empty. Ana turned to him, annoyed.

"Ok, there's no way this is a coincidence. Don't tell me you rented out the entire park or some nonsense like that?" Ana put her hands on her hips and huffed.

"I tried to rent it, but the owner was a prick and told me no… So, I bought it and had to open it privately for me for the day." Seto shrugged, acting as if it wasn't that big a deal. "If I have to swim, I'm certainly not going to do it around a bunch of dweebs."

"You're a dweeb! Who buys and entire park just because they're embarrassed to swim around other people?"

"Hey, I pay better than that other prick and I give benefits."

She took her bag off her shoulder and swung it at him. He didn't bother dodging, and it hit him in the back.

It didn't hurt, but he still sighed at her, anyway. "Well, maybe I just wanted to spend time alone with you."

Ana's face turned red. "You're too much of an ass for me to believe that excuse."

"Yet, you're blushing anyway." Seto teased, and she took another swing at him. He decided it was time to retreat to the changing room. "Then maybe I just didn't want other guys looking at you."

She shouted after him. "I can't tell if you're kidding or not!"

"I'm not!" He shouted back before ducking into the changing room. He dropped the duffle bag on the changing bench and sighed. Alright, let's get this over with. It took him a while to get into his suit. When he came back out, Ana was already waiting for him. She was wearing the same suit and swim cover she'd worn to the beach. When she turned to him, her smile immediately turned to surprise.

"Is… That what you're swimming in?"

He'd put on a full body suit with swim trunks and a t-shirt over top. The only thing that wasn't covered was his face, hands, and feet.

"Yeah, what about it?" he asked and crossed his arms.

She looked dissatisfied. What? Why is she giving me that look? I'm going to swim with her like I promised. So why is she acting this way?

Ana turned her gaze on the ground for a moment, then forced a smile. "It's nothing. Give me a minute I need to put on some sunscreen."

She practically ran away to a table with an umbrella and took out some sunscreen to apply. Did I mess up? Well… Maybe buying the place was a bit much.

"Amin-chan," Ana called to him and held out the sunscreen bottle. "Can you get my back?"

His brain stopped functioning for a moment. If he hadn't been used to keeping a poker face, he might have given her a goofy grin.

Ana blinked. "Amin-chan?"

"Huh, uh, sure." He walked over and took the bottle. Thank goodness she's wearing an athletic suit or there would be a lot more to lather. He walked behind her and squirted some of the sunscreen onto his hand. He hesitated, then slowly rubbed it onto her back. Huh, damn, she's got muscles in her back. Seto bit his lip so that he wouldn't make a face while applying the sunscreen. She seems a lot smaller when I'm doing this. His hand could almost wrap around her neck, encase her shoulders, and her—

"Amin-chan, are you almost done?"

Seto quickly took his hands off her before he did something he regretted. His voice broke a little. "Yeah, done."

Ana looked up at him, concerned, but said nothing. Thank goodness I chose baggy trunks. He did his best to take deep breaths, to calm himself without her noticing. He tried to give her the bottle back.

"You should use some too."

He rolled his eyes. "I'm covered up. I don't need it."

"Alright then, but if your nose starts peeling after it burns, can I take pictures?" She teased him.

He grumbled and put some on his face. Once he was done, Ana stood up and headed toward a giant double water slide. Seto followed her up the stairs and to the top. When Ana got to the top, she hopped onto a slide and shouted, "Race you."

She took off before Seto could even get in. "That's not a race!"

He could hear her laughing down the slide. Sighing, he got on the slide and took off. A rush of adrenaline got his heart racing as he flew down the slide. He hit the water at the bottom so fast he went under. Fighting his way to the surface, he came up gasping and found Ana laughing at him.

"I won."

"It's not a race if you—"

She laughed harder, and he gave up when he realized there was no winning. He swam to the edge of the small pool. Ana followed him. He got out and felt uncomfortable as his t-shirt clung to him. There was a loud splash behind him. He turned around to find Ana under the water. Confused and concerned, he squatted down next to the pool edge.

"Ana-chan?"

She came back up for air, but wouldn't look him in the face.

"What was that about?" he asked, but she just shook her head and smiled.

She pulled herself out of the pool. "What's next?"

"Whatever you want. This was what you wanted to do. I'm just along for the ride."

Ana smirked at him. "Funny, you seemed to enjoy the slide."

He glared at her, but she ran off to another taller tower. This one had tubes they could ride down in. A single employee was at the top running it. He gave them their tubes, and they rode down just like the last one. It didn't stop there. Ana kept jumping from one ride to the next. Seto was feeling his stamina was being tested in a new way.

"You know, it's kind of nice not having to wait in line." Ana pranced away, heading for another slide. "Let's go on—"

Seto grabbed her arm, panting. "Break."

"Oh, um, then the lazy river." She skipped away toward a stack of tubes, tossed it in the river, and hopped in.

That's not what I meant by a break. He grabbed a tube and plopped it into the water before getting on it. The current drifted them slowly down the path. His exhaustion hit him all at once, and he dozed off. Splash! Seto jerked awake as he hit the water. When he came up, he found Ana laughing at him.

"Did you tip me?" Seto snapped.

"You're the one who let your guard down."

Seto grabbed her and dunked her before she could resist. To his surprise, she grabbed him around the waste and pulled him under with her. The force made him let go, and he opened his eyes unintentionally in the water. Hers were open as well, and she was grinning at him. He made his way back to the surface and came up for air at the same time as her. Ana laughed as she brushed her hair back from her face. The sunlight from the water reflected off the surface and onto her face, making her eyes sparkle. Damn. His eyes slid to her mouth, but when she looked at him, he turned his head away.

Frick! I want to kiss her. Can I kiss her? Would she let me? I mean, she kissed me, but that was on the forehead. Would she like it if I—

"Amin-chan."

He looked back at her, composing his face. "What?"

"Let's get some lunch."

"Ah, right."

They got out of the water and went to the only food stand that was open. They sat down and ate their hotdogs.

"You seem to be having fun," Ana commented, then took a bite of her hot dog.

"Of course, I am. I'm with you."

She choked and quickly downed her water. Coughing, she glared at him. "Why do you randomly say cheesy things so naturally?"

"I was just stating a fact—wait, are you embarrassed?"

Ana's face turned a deep shade of pink, and he laughed. She kicked him under the table.

"That's kind of cute," he said casually.

"See! See, that's what I mean. How do you just say cheesy things like that so naturally?" Ana pointed her hotdog at him threateningly.

"I'm just that talented."

She huffed. "You mean just that ridiculous."

Seto paused in eating. "Do you not like it?"

Ana looked at him, surprised. "It's embarrassing."

"Do you want me to stop?"

The look on her face made it seem like she was conflicted. Wait, does she really want me to stop or does she actually like it? Why are girls so confusing?

Ana finally answered, "I'll think on it and get back to you."

"Ok, in the meantime I'm going to keep doing it."

"Wait, are you doing it on purpose?"

Seto looked away from her.

"You're not actually doing it on purpose, are you."

I didn't even realize I was doing it until you said something.

"Whatever. You're such an Amin-chan." Ana went back to eating her hot dog.

Seto felt a slight twinge in his chest. She still hasn't called me by my name except that one time in the jet as a joke. He'd gotten used to Amin-chan, and if he wasn't in his right mind might admit that he even liked it, but he still wanted to hear her say his first name.

They went back to swimming after they finished eating and enjoyed the rest of the day. When the sun was setting, they got cleaned off and Seto took her home.

On the drive back, Ana spoke up. "That was a lot of fun. You didn't seem to hate it either. Why were you so opposed to swimming?"

Seto's hands tightened on the steering wheel. He said nothing.

"Can you not tell me, or do you just not want to?" Ana asked quietly.

"More of the latter, but some of the former," Seto replied.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see her sad look. "Is it something you never plan on telling me?"

"I… I don't know," he answered truthfully. If we keep dating and get more serious, I'll have to, but right now I don't want to. I don't want to see the look she'll make.

Smack! Seto jumped as Ana hit her own cheeks then smiled.

"Alright then, you'll tell me when you're ready."

"Yeah, that's great and all, but don't startle someone who's driving!" He snapped.

Ana pouted. "Sorry."

They were nearing her house.

"Amin-chan, pull over here." She pointed to the side of the street.

"Why?"

"Just… cause."

Confused, he pulled over and turned to her. She was fidgeting in her seat, then looked at him expectantly.

"What?" Seto asked, confused.

Ana seemed embarrassed and said, "I'm going to walk from here."

"Ok, bye."

She didn't get out of the car though, and bit her lip. "Oh, um, well…"

"What? Was there something else?" He didn't understand why she was waiting.

Ana shook her head and unbuckled slowly. The look of disappointment on her face was obvious.

Seto tapped his finger on the steering wheel. "Ana-chan, I'm not a mind reader. If you don't tell me what's wrong, I won't know."

Her face was turning red, and she slid her fingers in between her knees, then looked away from him. She whispered, "Do you not think about it?"

"Think about what? Again, I can't read minds."

She seemed to shrink. "Kissing."

"Huh?" He could feel his face getting warm and his poker face completely slipped. "Of course, I do."

She looked at him, surprised. "You do? Then why haven't you tried to give me a goodnight kiss after our dates?"

"What? Do you want me to kiss you?"

She blushed and squirmed in her seat. "Yes…"

"Oh, so that's why you had me pull—" He stopped talking when he saw her shrink even more.

"Do…" Ana glanced up at him. "Do you not want to?"

"I want to, but I won't."

She looked up at him, shocked. "Huh? You do but you won't?"

"Yup."

Her eyes narrowed. "Even if I want you to?"

"Correct."

"Why not?" Ana's mouth quivered.

Oh, shit. She looks like she's about to cry. "Because you still won't call me by my name. If you're not even comfortable calling me by my first name, are we close enough to kiss?"

Ana paused and stared at him blankly for a moment. Her tone was spiteful. "You're being petty."

"Very, but you're not even comfortable enough to call me by my first name. So, why are you comfortable enough to kiss?" Seto really wanted to kiss her, but at the same if felt distancing to only be called by a nickname.

Ana bit her lip, opened her mouth, then closed it. She looked down at her lap. Was that really asking too much? He turned and looked ahead at the dark street.

"Se… Se-Seto."

His heart stopped for a beat. He looked down at her. Even in the dim light of the street lamp, he could see her ears had turned completely pink.

"Wait, say that one more time?"

She looked like she wanted to melt into her seat. "Se-Seto."

"Once more."

She covered her hands with her face. "Se-Seto."

"Ana-chan, can you not say my name without stuttering?"

"No, I can't ok! I've been practicing, but I can't say it without getting super embarrassed." She turned away from him and curled up into the door.

That's frickin' adorable. Seto laughed loudly at how cute she sounded, trying to say his name.

She came out of her ball and pinched his arm. "You're an ass!"

"Does that mean you don't want me to kiss you anymore?" Seto teased, but froze when he saw her look at him seriously.

"I still want you to kiss me."

He turned away and scratched his cheek. His stomach felt weirdly uncomfortable. When he turned back to her, he found she'd closed her eyes and was leaning toward him. Swallowing, he leaned forward and quickly put his lips on hers, then pulled away. Ana opened her eyes and blinked a few times.

"What was that?" She asked, confused.

"A kiss."

Ana looked completely and utterly disappointed. "You sure because I didn't really feel anything."

"What did you expect? I've never done it before. Where you just expecting me to be some amazingly fantastic kisser from the get go?"

"Well…."

"Everything takes practice. If you just expected me to naturally know what the frick' to do, then you've read one too many romance novels." He ground his teeth, feeling annoyed.

"You've read romance novels." Ana smiled.

He sighed at her. She chuckled.

"Alright, point taken." She pointed to her lips and smiled. "Then kiss me again, but a little longer this time."

He hadn't expected her to be so forward about it, but he didn't dislike it. Leaning down, he put his lips on hers again. This time he didn't pull away, and to his surprise, she pushed forward. His heart was racing, and he could hear her breathing. Her lips were soft and slightly wet. It was Ana who pulled away this time. Her face was bright red.

She smirked, even though she was blushing. "That was better."

Before he could say anything, she got out of the car. She practically ran to the gate of her house before looking over her shoulder at him and waved. He watched her disappear inside. Seto opened his mouth and gasped for air. Frick'. I forgot to breathe.

Author Announcement:

Hey everyone! Thank you for reading my story and for all your wonderful comments. They make my week every time. I'm going to be taking a month hiatus from Corporate Prince. I'm going to be publishing my first book and will need the time. Thank you for understanding. I'll see you again in July!