It was your first day attending Iwatobi High School as a late transfer student. The school year was already nearly over so you didn’t see the point of going out of your way for a last-ditch effort to make a friend. You just went through your first day not saying much, just trying to blend in with the crowd.
After school ended, you walked around the courtyard to get a better view of the school that you’d be spending your remaining high school time at. You would’ve hoped that it would somehow be special, but soon realized it was just like every other high school in the area. So much for that thought.
Finally when you planned on going back home, you stumbled across something that was definitely to your liking. A pool. You had no idea that Iwatobi even had a pool, it wasn’t advertised unlike the other activities the school had. You slowly walked up to the pool, looking around for any sign of another person. There was no one around, no one else enjoying the water like you always loved to. You would’ve thought that the pool was abandoned if it wasn’t for how great of shape it was in.
It had been so long since you stepped foot into a pool and your body was aching to jump in. No one was around- everyone had probably gone home by then. You could probably manage to relax in the water for just a few minutes before leaving.
Giving in to your craving, you stripped down to your underwear and hopped in the pool, letting yourself sink to the bottom. You always loved to sit at the bottom of the pool and just think there, not having to worry about other people. The water was always your escape.
You were only submerged for a few seconds when you saw a dark haired boy standing on one of the diving boards just before he dived in and started swimming. He seemed so transfixed on his swimming that he failed to notice you just a few feet next to him, staring at him with a mix of curiosity and fear. He may not notice you now but it wouldn’t be long until you would have to come back up for air. You prayed that once he finished his lap that he would leave, but once he finished he laid on his back and started to float. No longer able to hold your breath, you broke through the surface and gasped for air, too out of breath to be embarrassed by the shocked stare he was giving you.
“What are you doing here?” he asked incredulously, obviously not expecting someone else to be in the pool.
“I thought no one used it so I hopped in,” you muttered, extremely embarrassed by the situation you were now in. “I’ll just go now.”
“Wait,” he said as you turned your back to him. “You can stay if you want to.”
“If you haven’t noticed already, I’m not exactly wearing a bathing suit,” you replied, a bright red blush broken across your face.
He turned away as a slight blush of his own spread across his cheeks. Swimming towards the edge of the pool, he pulled himself out a grabbed a towel. You couldn’t help but stare at his body. It was just so…. Perfect. He was nearly as breathtaking as the water itself. His eyes locked with yours and if it was even possible, your blush grew even brighter. He placed the towel down at the edge of the pool closest to you for you to use when you got out.
“Are you going to turn around or what?” you asked, not wanting to get out with him staring so intensely at you.
“Oh. Right,” he replied as he turned his back to you, allowing you to pull yourself out of the pool and cover yourself with the towel he left for you.
“You can turn around now.”
As he did so, your blush soon returned. Even with the towel covering you, you still felt exposed. You wanted nothing more than to put on your own clothes again, but you couldn’t until you dried off.
“So…. What’s your name?” you asked, trying to break the tension that was thick in the air.
“Haru,” he replied softly, not venturing to ask your name.
“Haru…. That’s cool. I’m (Y/N).” He nodded in response. The silence was killing you so you continued speaking. “Why were you here in the first place?”
“I like swimming, it’s where I can be free,” he replied and you could tell he had a strong passion for it like no other.
“I don’t like swimming as much as the water itself. I just love being able to sink to the bottom of the pool and just think. All the stress from the world is gone; it’s just me and the water.”
His intense gaze that was almost unsettling suddenly softened as if he approved- no, as if he actually liked your reasoning. He enjoyed swimming while you enjoyed sitting in the water. Two different things that were both brought together by one thing you both loved; water.
“If you want, we could just float in the water tomorrow after school. If you decide to bring a bathing suit, that is,” he offered. From what you could already tell from him, he was very anti-social so this was probably an offer that wasn’t given to many people, especially not total strangers like yourself.
“I’ll see about it,” you replied with a smile, knowing full well that you would take him up on his offer. Turning away from him, you walked over to where you left you clothes and picked them up, ready to get changed and go home. “You mind turning around again?”
It wasn’t long before you were dressed and back home. Even then, Haru never left your mind. You finally met someone who felt just like you did about water even though he was a swimmer. Every other swimmer you knew only did it for competition, their only goal was winning. You didn’t think Haru was like that, he seemed to do it purely just because he loves it.
The next day, school seemed even longer than the previous day, each class feeling like hours had gone by. Finally, when school ended, you rushed out of the building to get to the pool where Haru was already floating across the crystal blue surface of the water. The corners of his lips tilted into a small smile when he saw you appear, almost immediately fading once he closed his eyes. He was absorbed in the water like you always loved to do so much.
You stripped out of your clothes, this time having the comfort of a bathing suit on underneath them instead of underwear. You jumped into the pool and smiled slightly when you managed to spray Haru with water even though it didn’t affect him much at all. You laid back and floated next to him, closing your eyes like he did and just letting the water take you wherever it wanted.
Even though words were not exchanged, you could tell he enjoyed your company as much as you enjoyed his. He wouldn’t have invited you here with him if he didn’t. You couldn’t help but find yourself attracted to the boy floating next to you. Everything about him was stunning, not to mention how he shared the same love for water that you had. Your only fear was that he didn’t reciprocate those feelings you had for him, that he only enjoyed your company and nothing more. There was only one way to see.
You turned over from your position in the water and started treading it a few seconds before going under, not completely sinking the bottom like you usually do. It took Haru a few seconds but he soon realized you were no longer on the surface with him and dived down after you, curious as to what happened.
You stared into his beautiful, aqua blue eyes as he stared into your (E/C) ones. He twirled a strand of your (H/C) hair with his finger, looking as transfixed with it as he does when swimming. Before he could do anything else, you wrapped your arms around his neck and kissed him while still underwater. He froze, obviously not expecting that action from you. You stopped, afraid that you messed up, that he really didn’t see you like that. Before you could pull away, he suddenly pulled you closer to him and kissed you passionately, taking away the last of air either of you had left. It was truly a breathtaking kiss. You both swam back to the surface, gasping for the air the two of you so desperately needed.
You stared up at Haru again, transfixed with his gorgeous eyes. The events that just occurred replayed in your mind over and over again causing the biggest smile to spread across your face. Before long, Haru smiled too. It wasn’t one of the small smiles he usually makes either. For the first time, it was a genuinely happy smile.
