A Splash That Sets You {Free!}

[Day Star]

[This RP is for @WhimsicalWriter and I, please don't post unless you're invited. ^.^ Oh, and Whim (may I call you that, btw?), I set this at the end of the first season; if you want a different time, just let me know.]


The bus jolted as it hit a pot hole, and Makoto clutched at his seat, wincing. The school hadn't exactly been happy with all of them - what with the whole getting disqualified at the meet thing - and they'd only grudgingly given them enough money to rent a really, really crappy bus. Could be worse, the tall teen told himself, pushing back his sweaty brown hair and staring out the window. They'd only just started their trip, but it was pretty obvious that the bus, in addition to being run down, was not gifted with air conditioning. God it's hot.


He was actually surprised they'd managed to persuade the administration to let them go, but why look a gift horse in the mouth? At least they were gonna get to go to a different pool; he'd heard it was pretty nice. And, while slightly doubtful that water polo would actually help their swimming, it'd still be pretty fun to do. At the thought, Makoto turned to his seat partner, a smile tugging at his lips.


"Hey Haru!" he said, eyebrow raised. "I'm surprised we actually got you to come. You do know that you have to swim head-up free with water polo, right?"

 

[WhimsicalWriter]

[sure, you can call me Whim. And I think that's a great time for this to take place.]


Haruka shifted his bored gaze from the bus window to look at Makoto. Unfortunately, there were currently no bodies of water nearby, leaving the landscape incredibly lackluster.


"...it's still free." He responded after a pause. He certainly did not like the idea of having to alter his swimming style--at all--but, considering the circumstances, it could be a lot worse. Besides, whenever they weren't playing water polo, he figured he could do whatever he wanted in the pool. The thought of the cool water sliding across his skin served to remind him how uncomfortably hot the bus was.


Initially, Haruka had been extremely reluctant to go on the trip. After all, how could water polo improve their swimming more than actual swimming? He couldn't follow that logic at all. However, the others seemed eager to try it, so he slowly found himself accepting it. There was still water involved, after all.

 

[Day Star]

Makoto laughed, not exactly shocked at Haruka's mumbled answer. He'd known for awhile now that the other boy would do anything if it involved free, water, or both, regardless of the circumstances. Getting him to agree with going on this trip had only been a matter of nudging, talking loudly about how great the other swimming pool was and waiting for him to cave. Still smiling, the backstroker turned his green eyes to the window again, watching the building pass. Apparently water polo wasn't really popular - they had to go to the next town over to even find anyone who could train them and play with them. For his part, Makoto had mainly just wanted to do something to distract the team from their loss at the meet; even if it had been for the right reasons, he knew not everyone was feeling great about it.


About to try engaging Haru in conversation again - with no water in sight, it might actually be possible - he paused when someone kicked his seat. Smiling slightly, the team captain turned to look at Nagisa. He was bouncing eagerly in his seat, his legs occasionally twitching out and hitting Makoto's seat. "Haru should be goalie!" the small boy giggled, his eyes wide and enthusiastic. "That way, when he gets distracted by the water, we won't be down a player on offense!"


Shaking his head, he tried to frown but couldn't manage it. "Except that means we'd get scored on while Haru floated around," he pointed out, grinning and aiming to give his seat mate a light nudge.

 

[WhimsicalWriter]

Rei pushed up his glasses to create a smart glare before speaking. "Logically speaking, the one with the least stamina should be the goalie. Considering Haruka's ability in that area, I believe it is safe to say that he would be best suited elsewhere." Rei chimed in. "Besides, to see his agile form confined to one area would restrict his beauty!" He swept one of his arms out in a dramatic gesture from where he sat next to Nagisa.


Haruka let out a light huff. He didn't see why it mattered where he was. Either way he was going to have to focus on a silly ball, which was much less interesting than the mesmerizing view of the water. Now that he thought about it, this water polo thing might be more difficult than expected. Whatever. It was too late to back off now anyway.


Having heard quite a bit about the sport from the rest of his team, he had an idea of what to expect. It would definitely be different from swimming. However, there was one aspect he couldn't deny that he liked about it. It was much more of a team centered sport, relying on each member to do their part during the game. After what had happened at the swim meet, he knew exactly how important his team was to him, even if he didn't outright say it. Not that he needed to--Makoto had probably figured that out already.

 

[Day Star]

Rei's words weren't exactly a surprise. In fact, Makoto let out a slightly exasperated sigh, more teasing than serious, his green eyes bright and clear in the presence of his friends. A little secret was stirring in the back of his head - a certain person they'd be adding to their water polo roster once they got to the pool - but he wanted it to be just that - a secret. So, getting up, balancing precariously in the shaking bus, his hands tight around the backs of the seats as he moved forward, the tall boy made his way to the front of the bus and stopped by the bus driver (who happened to be Goro, for the sake of saving some money).


"Goro-san," Makoto began, pitching his voice loud enough for the other swimmers to hear, "how much longer will the bus trip be?"


The older man half turned, keeping one eye on the road, and replied, "Half an hour or so." They hit another pot hole - Goro almost seemed to be doing it deliberately - and, jolted off balance, Makoto straight up fell into the nearest seat. He gave up, collapsed across it with his legs hanging out in the aisle, and called, "Good thing we decided to do swimming and not a land sport, hey?"

 

[WhimsicalWriter]

Upon hearing Makoto's question, Haruka glanced toward the front of the bus to listen. Goro's answer was both relieving and concerning. On one hand, they wouldn't have to deal with the annoying heat much longer. However, that also meant there was still a little ways to go. Being jostled around in a humid bus was far from his idea of a fun time.


Hmph. He didn't find the rhetorical question quite so funny. He definitely would not have gone through all this traveling for a land sport. Despite that, he let it slide, and settled on focusing his attention on staying in his seat as they hit more bumps. After hitting yet another particularly large bump, his hand automatically went out to his left, searching for the usual presence of a strong arm or shoulder to stabilize him.


His hand grasped empty air beside him. Oh, right. Makoto was at the front of the bus now. Haruka ended up placing the hand on the back of the seat in front of him instead to ensure his balance.

 

[Day Star]

For awhile Makoto just lie there, his eyes closed, feeling the rattle and shake of the bus in his very bones. He was tired, to be honest. Persuading the school to let them do this hadn't exactly been easy, and, more than that, he'd been pulling long nights trying to think of ways to fund the trip. He may not have really said anything to his teammates, but this wasn't for free. The school had agreed to pay for half, but that still meant a decent bit of money to be scrounged up before the end of the school year, and there wasn't all that much time left. Rubbing his hand across his face, he sighed and pulled himself up, not wanting to think about it at the moment.


He rejoined Haruka at the back of the bus. "Do you think we should be focusing on individual events or the relay?" he asked the water inclined boy as he slumped back into the seat. Makoto may have been the team captain, but he sure as hell didn't call the shots without checking in, specially with Haru.


Of course, Nagisa had an opinion too. "Relay! It was a lot of fun last time, I wanna do better!"

 

[WhimsicalWriter]

Haruka gave a small nod in agreement. "Relay." He vaguely remembered Goro mentioning that they needed to work on decreasing their response time. Those precious seconds it took between one person touching the side and the other leaping in were monumental in a race. Also, he couldn't deny that he had become fond of the feeling of them all working together like that.


Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed something seemed off with Makoto. The other's movements weren't as focused as they could be, like he was down on his energy. Concern temporarily shifted his thoughts away from water--quite a feat, considering who he was--and he turned his head to fully look at Makoto.


"...are you alright?" He questioned after a moment, a barely noticeable note of disquiet in his tone.