𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟏- 𝐓𝐀𝐊𝐄 𝐎𝐅𝐅!
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A child's future is usually determined by what they excel at in their youth before becoming adults.

Their passions, hopes and dreams all inevitably fall onto their own shoulders before they become part of the never ending working world that pushes them to the extreme.

Every child has a talent that allows them to grow and thrive into their own person, while most are never given the opportunity and are instead forced into a talent that they would rather trade for pulling out their teeth.

One such girl has been given the opportunity to excel in a dream that she had long forgotten. A dream that would spark a flame she never thought she would feel again.

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"Water, a living thing." A young boy dives into a swimming pool, lanes surrounding him while the soapy bubbles cascade around his tiny form. "Dive in and it bears its fangs." His feet kick him further and further, guiding him towards the other end of the pool.

Small kicks propel him forward while his fingers cut through the water. "It's hungry..territorial." The end of the pool draws closer, the blue lines engraved into the bottom acting as a guide.

"But there's nothing to fear, no need to resist." Swimming up towards the surface the boy allows his hand to gently emerge and feels the cold air nip at his skin, before moving back into the comfort of the water.

"Just go with it, carve out an opening with your fingers and slide your body through."

He moves swiftly through the water, not once faltering. His head moves from side to side, breathing in deeply before turning away and diving back in.

"Splay your arms out, kick your feet." He does exactly that. "Propel forward with everything you've got.."

Small words of encouragement echo throughout the center while three young children watch as their friend circles around to do another lap of their team's pool.

"Look at him!" Makoto speaks up, his gaze unwavering. "No one's more in their element than he is right now."

Nagisa's mouth hangs open in awe, his honey colored hair bouncing as he nods. "Like a dolphin!" His little voice cracks as he speaks, prompting the third member of the little trio to smile gently.

Makoto looks down to his left and gently nudges the smaller girl sitting at his feet with his knee. "What do you think (Y/N)?" Said girl only hums in acknowledgment, the sour grape flavored lollipop in her mouth making it hard to communicate.

She works the sweet into the hollow part of her mouth before looking up and giving her friends a toothy grin. "Haru's just like a fish." She says cheerfully, and Makoto smiles warmly down at her.

(Y/N) continues to chew at the candy and looks up as a pair of footsteps catches her attention. Another young boy steps up to the diving board a few lanes away before pulling his goggles down and pressing them tightly to his face with the palm of his hands.

"Who's that?" Nagisa asks, a bit too loudly. (Y/N) takes note of the noticeable maroon hair peaking out from underneath his cap. To her though it reminded the girl of the very same colored sweet she was currently crunching between her molars.

"That's Rin Matsuoka." Makoto answered, watching as the boy fiddles with his bright yellow cap. "He transferred to our class last week." The trio watch as Rin pulls on the band of his goggles, the elastic stretching as far as it could go.

He releases the band and allows it to snap onto the back of his head, the sound reverberating throughout the center. (Y/N) hisses as she was sure that had to of hurt.

She watches as he dives in alongside Haru, and her excitement skyrockets when she sees the new boy quickly catch up to her friend.

Makoto, Nagisa and (Y/N) quickly rush to the diving board Rin had just been on, and they watch as the small light swim Haru had been hoping for, quickly turn into a full on race.

Both boys gain speed on one another, with Rin slightly ahead. They come to the turn before pushing off at the same time and make a mad dash to where the trio were currently waiting with big eyes.

They make it halfway before Haru finally gains enough momentum and makes it a second before Rin touches the edge of the pool. He pulls his goggles and cap off with a huff, visibly annoyed with what just happened.

"Still the fastest one in the water, Haruka." Makoto's voice turns his attention upwards, and the young brunette smiles gently at his friend with his hand stretched outwards, (Y/N) at his side with a lazy grin, her lollipop long gone and forgotten about.

"Well done, Mr fish!" The little girl's praise makes Haru scrunch his nose at her before reaching out and gripping Makoto's hand before climbing out the pool. "Seriously when are you gonna stop calling me that already?" He sighs before turning to the girl.

"That nickname isn't clever. Stop it." The only response he receives is (Y/N) sticking her now purple tongue out at him. He watches as she repeats the word 'fish' over and over, which only causes his annoyance to grow and Makoto and Nagisa's laughter to bellow out.

Nagisa turns to Haru, his giggles still spilling out while he talks. "Watching you swim was so cool!" He gins. "I hope someday I'll be able to swim just like you!" The small boy shrieks as (Y/N) jabs him in the side.

"Of course you will!" She speaks enthusiastically. "We're all gonna beat Haru in a race by the time we're old and wrinkly." She ends her statement by sending a wink towards the frowning boy.

Haru only hums, his eyes never leaving the girl as he watches Nagisa try and hang onto her shoulders, with Makoto behind them making sure they don't fall.

The groups attention is pulled down when Rin pops his head out of the water with a gasp for air. "They weren't lying, you're fast!" He praised, his eyes only holding admiration. "What's your time?" Haru only frowns deeper before turning his face away.

"I don't know and I don't care."

"Haru!" (Y/N) quietly hisses at him, but Haru continues to ignore her and the attempts she makes to grab his face and make him turn towards Rin.

The red eyed boy reels back at the statement, but quickly forgets it and his smile grows even wider if possible. He laughs gently, and (Y/N) can't help but notice how sharp his teeth are. Looking closer the she wouldn't be surprised if he was mistaken for a shark. "Well at least you're living up to your reputation."

Rin pushes himself up and out of the water, shaking his hair quickly to rid himself of the water in his hair before facing Haru and his friends. "Hey let me ask you something." Haru finally turns towards the boy, (Y/N) partially hanging off of his shoulders.

"Do you want to enter a relay with me in the next tournament?" Haru raises a brow at the question, and he watches as Rin grins expectantly at him, but doesn't miss the quick glances the shark toothed boy makes towards the young girl clinging to his shoulder.

A beat of silence occurs before Haru turns and walks back towards the pool, (Y/N) now off his shoulders and frowning as her friend moves to jump back inside. "I swim free or I don't swim at all." Is his final answer before he gets back up on the diving board, pulls his goggles back on and dives in.

Rin frowns a little at the answer but shakes his head. He looks up as a wrapped lollipop appears infront of his eyesight, and he squints to see the face of the smiling girl behind the candy. "Don't mind him, he's always like that." She says with a grin, and watches as Rin takes the sweet and carefully unwraps it before popping it into his mouth.

(Y/N) chuckles at the small mumble of thanks that slips through his blushing cheeks, and shakes her head before making her way up to her own diving board and pulling her goggles down.

"Swimming has always been apart of my life." (Y/N) takes in a deep breath, the chlorine from when she was swimming still sticking to her hair and costume. "From the day I was born all I can remember is the feeling of water surrounding me day and night."

Rin watches from the side as she bends forward and tucks her knees. "The feeling of the chlorine stinging my eyes and my body feeling weightless..

is something I would never trade." She lets out a sharp exhale before looking forward, her eyes shining before she finally leaps off the diving board, and welcomes the water with a full heart.

"Swimming, being part of a team..I'll never stop loving this feeling!"

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"Wow, I really said all that?" A now seventeen year old (Y/N) stares up at the small white clouds hanging from the sky, her hand outstretched as small specks of sunlight peak through her fingers.

She is currently on her way to school, her backpack sitting comfortably across her shoulder with a small starfish keychain hanging off it.

Despite her usual route, she decided to take a detour and head to her old friend Haru's house, considering he nor Makoto had joined her outside her house before heading to school together like they normally did.

So now the young, sleep deprived, starving teenage girl marches her way up towards the Nanase residence, her hair tied into a messy bun with her uniform half done and blazer tied around her waist.

(Y/N) grumbles under her breath as she rubs her eyes and thinks back to when she was a more bubbly version of herself from all those years ago. "What a way to start a Monday.."

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