𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟐𝟎- 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐆𝐄𝐓 𝐌𝐄
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(Y/N) yawns into the palm of her hand as she exits the center, her hair falling below her ears and flowing down her shoulders. She fiddles with her hair tie tightly gripping her wrist, the band indenting and most likely breaking into her skin.

She looks up to see Miss Amakata and Coach Sasabe bidding her friends goodbye from the parking lot, and sighs before making her way towards them.

Looking around, she notes that they were the last team still occupying the space, and raised a brow when she sees the team all turn with wide eyes towards their manager.

Gently poking her finger into Makoto's shoulder, (Y/N) looks up with a small smile. "What's going on?" She asks, and the three boys look down at her. Haru was nowhere to be seen, so she pushed the thought to the back of her mind, most likely he had gone home earlier to clear his head.

Gōu quickly appears by her side, and gives her a small, sheepish smile. "I signed our team up for the medley relay tomorrow.." she pushes her hands together in a small prayer. "Please don't be mad!"

"..." (Y/N) was silent, her mind slowly processing the information. The boys gather around the girls, and they all lean their heads down to get their friend's opinion.

"Alright." She shrugs, and the team choke.

"Alright?!" Nagisa yells. "You're really okay with this?!" They all stare at her, wide eyed and smiling.

(Y/N) raises a brow with a scoff. "Why wouldn't I be? This gives you guys another shot at regionals." She looks at each and every one of them, and smiles. "Why? Don't you guys want to do it?" Quickly her friends jump at the question, their shouts causing her to shrink away at the noise.

"Of course we do!"

"Okay!" She laughs, and looks around, "So what's the problem?" She watches as they all nibble at their lips and fiddle with their fingers.

"Well..we haven't done any training for a relay." Makoto speaks, and Nagisa nods. "Yeah! Gōu, if you'd have told us about it we might be ready!"

"Haru would have said no right away." (Y/N) rolls her eyes, and looks to give the team's manager a small smile. "Thank you, Gōu."

"W-well you're welcome but you know my names Kōu!"

"Let's do it.." Rei speaks over them, and the attention diverts to him. "This is our last chance, we'd be fools not to capitalize on it." His gaze is turned to the ground, his eyes set with determination. "So we haven't practiced, who cares? It's still gotta be worth a try."

(Y/N) grins at his answer. She brings her hand up and slaps her palm against his back, sending him into a small fit as he tries to sooth the red mark forming under his skin.

"It's settled!" She says proudly. "Now let's go get that stubborn fish to agree."

_____

Night had taken over by the time the team made it to Haru's house, and they all scrambled to find an entrance.

"Damn, I don't think he's home yet."

Makoto runs around back, (Y/N) hot on his heels while they remember the entrance they both would use on occasion. "We'll get in through the back!"

"Wait!" Rei yells. "Are we allowed to?!"

"Of course we are, we're his friends! He doesn't get privacy!" (Y/N) retorts, and slams open the back door before running into the house.

"I don't see him upstairs!" Nagisa calls through the house, and the others spread out in search of their friend.

"He's not in the bath either!" Gōu yells, and (Y/N) groans before calling the group to the living room. She walks onto the patio overlooking the tiny backyard, Makoto at her side.

The two look up at the sky, the moon's rays shining down and encasing them in its glow. "Haru.." (Y/N) sighs into the air, and turns to look at her friend with worry. Makoto sighs in return, and gives her his supportive smile as always.

"We're already here." Rei says from behind them, and they both turn to see the rest of their team huddled together over a photo.

Nagisa looks down at the familiar photo, and frowns, his hair falling into his eyes. "Do you think he'll agree to swim in the relay?"

_____

The clock on the wall ticks by ever so slowly, about an hour had passed, and no sign of their Mackerel loving friend had yet to appear.

(Y/N) and Makoto sit side by side on the porch, their shoulders lightly pressed together as they lean against one another for support. (Y/N) was busy drawing in the sand, while her friend watched, his eyes following her finger dipping in and out of the ground.

"(Y/N).." he says softly, and she turns back to look at him. Humming, he continues. "Why..why did you ask if you were falling behind?" His question makes her hand stop moving, and she straightens up. The trio behind them were busy with their own conversation, and it drowned away before the words reached them.

Taking her silence, Makoto dips his head down, and touches his forehead with hers.

(Y/N) feels her breath become shallow at the contact, but she doesn't move. He watches her eyes, the moon casting a faint reflection in between her pupils. "You know you're not, right?" His question was more of a plea.

A plea for her to know she was further ahead than any of them, that her talent trumped not only his, but Haru's as well. She was amazing, Makoto had always thought so. A piece of a complicated puzzle he studied from every possible angle.

She was so brilliant, he felt unworthy of her. But he wasn't the only one, and as much as it pained him, he knew he wasn't the only person to view her for what she really was.

(Y/N) breathed in deep, and gives him a small smile. "Thank you, Mako.." she mumbles, but he shakes his head.

"You didn't say yes."

"..what?"

"Say you know you're not falling behind." He dips his head lower, and their noses brush. "Please, (Y/N).."

Her heart picks up, and she clears her throat before turning her head away. She ignores the way Makoto chased after her, his eyes half lidded and hands shaking from beside her legs.

"I know." She says softly, and looks up at him through her lashes. "I know I'm not falling behind." They stay like that for a few minutes, with Makoto towering over her, his hands curled into fists and his eyes trailing over every small detail of her.

Makoto waits a beat, and leans back fully, a small smile on his now relaxed face. "Okay, good." He says, and (Y/N) stares up at him in shock. One minute they were a hairs length away from causing a scandal, and now? Now his entire demeanor shifted as if their little moment never happened.

'Holy shit..' (Y/N) thinks to herself, and looks up to see the trio begin to stand up. They explain that they had left their friend a voicemail (not that she would have known) and were going to head out due to the time being so late.

Makoto smiles, and stands up to let them out. (Y/N) stares up at him, and slaps the palm of her hands against her cheeks.

'HOLY SHIT!'

_____

As Haru enters his home, he flinches back when he sees Makoto and (Y/N), both sound asleep by the indoor steps of his home.

She was lying against his back, who leaned against the archway wall of the house. Her legs were tucked under her, while her hands gripped the familiar photo she stole from inside the residence.

Haru raises a brow, and looks down at her hands. He had just pocketed his phone after listening to the rather heartwarming message his friends had left him.

Gently picking the photo up, he sees that it was the same one him and his team had competed in with Rin all those years ago. The edges were slightly creased, indicating that (Y/N) had been gripping the picture tightly.

Looking back at his friends, Haru bends down, before gently shaking the taller of the two awake. "Makoto.." he calls softly, and takes a small step back to allow his friend to adjust to the bright light over him.

"Haru..?" Makoto calls softly, and looks up to smile at his friend. He gasps softly when (Y/N) pushes her face into his back, still snoring softly. He raises a finger to his lips to shush Haru playfully, and he hums.

"We've got a relay." Haru says softly, and watches as his friend rubs his eyes. "Come on, let's prep."

It takes a moment before the sentence fully registers in Makoto's head. He looks up, his eyes wide before he leans forward with a gasp.

"What?!" He shouts, and the two look back quickly when (Y/N) falls to the floor, her head hitting the stoop with a thud. She shoots up, her eyes glaring daggers while her head throbbed.

"What the hell-Haru!" She places her hand over Makoto's face and pushes him away, and lunges towards her missing friend.

_____

The next day, (Y/N) spent the following day calling and informing her friend's about their relay, which they were now taking part in since Haru agreed to join.

She walks to the center, toast filling her mouth as she slowly munches away. Looking down at her watch, she nearly chokes when she sees the time, and shoves the whole piece of toast into her mouth before picking up speed.

_____

"Let's go!" (Y/N) yells from her place on the bleachers as she watches her friend's line up for their relay. The boys all look up at her, all shooting her excited waves while Haru firmly nods his head in her direction.

Gōu giggles from beside her. "You're in a better mood today."

"That's because I know we're gonna kick ass!"

"Language!" Miss Amakata scolds from beside them, and the girls nervously bow their heads in apology.

The whistle blowing makes (Y/N) look forward, and she whoops when she sees Makoto dive into the pool. A beat of silence follows before he shoots backwards, and the relay begins.

'Makoto's always been the more aggressive swimmer.' She takes notes as he swims, and grins when she sees him stealing the lead.

'Rough..but precise.'

Slamming into the wall, Nagisa jumps in next, and the adrenaline pumps faster. 'Nagisa always lingered when doing his strokes, giving the illusion of longer arms when he swims.' The smaller boy picks up speed, and just as quickly hits the wall, and yells as Rei jumps in.

'And Rei..' (Y/N) crosses her fingers, her heart picking up when the newest member of her team surprisingly keeps the lead, his goggles thankfully remaining perfectly on his face.

'Despite being new, his determination always surprises me.' As Rei makes the turn, (Y/N) glances down to look at Haru. She sees that his attention was caught, and looks down to see Rin just below her.

She grips the railing and scoffs, before looking up and nodding to her dark haired friend. "Let's go Haru!" Cupping her hands over her mouth, (Y/N) shouts for her friend, which causes Rin to shoot his head up with a gasp.

'I know I have a long way to go before I figure out what I want.' The two locks eyes, and Rin sucks in a deep breath. The wind slowly picks up, and (Y/N)'s eyes slowly darkened as she stared at him.

She studied his face, it didn't seem that he was satisfied, finally, after so long he beat Haru, yet here he was unhappy.

Her lips curl into a sly grin, and she looks up to see Haru bend down, his fingers gripping the board.

'But that's okay.'

Rin continues to stare at her, the look in her eyes causing him to cave. It was as if she didn't know who he was, a stranger staring and analyzing the face of another stranger. It hurt, it hurt so much he brought a hand up to grip his chest.

(Y/N) watches as Rei slams his hands against the pool, and Haru dives in. The team all watch with bated breaths, their eyes wide and mouths open in silent anticipation.

'I've got time.'

_____

𝐄𝐍𝐃 𝐎𝐅 𝐄𝐏𝐈𝐒𝐎𝐃𝐄 𝟖