Chapter 6 - Splash

Roughly by the third day after Golden Week ended, Haruka had committed to memory the names and faces of the uppercla.s.smen for the most part and he was gradually starting to get used to club activities, too. He couldn’t swim as s.p.a.ciously as at the Swimming Club, but he came to understand that if they think it out with each other, he can practice within limitations; and individually, they each have their clear task, so he came to understand that if they deal with it systematically, even if he only gets a short practice time, he can still obtain sufficient results. In that sense, the role that communication fulfills was big, it was necessary for the entire swim club to act as a single team. Disturbing the team’s harmony ends up leading directly to the whole club’s loss. He steadily understood that, too.

Above all, the first years’ practice time was short, they often had to give a helping hand with Nao’s main job as manager, they measured the uppercla.s.smen’s times and partnered up with them for calisthenics quite a lot.

For the sake of securing even just a little practice time, Haruka and the others came earlier than the uppercla.s.smen, quickly finishing up the ch.o.r.es was their first priority. Inevitably, it became the first years’ role to unlock the changing room.

“Oi, Ikuya. That’s my shelf.”

In the changing room, there were just s.p.a.ces part.i.tioned off with a wooden frame which can’t even be called lockers, they didn’t have doors, so of course it’s not like they had names written on them, either. That’s why each of them could use whichever one they liked, but the places they used were kind of decided by grade, every single person had their favorite spot.

Apparently, the spot Ikuya was using happened to be Asahi’s favorite.

“That’s not decided, is it?”

“I always use that one.”

“Then use another one today.”

That’s the usual. He’s become accustomed to this futile bickering before long, too.

“Quit it, you two. We don’t have the time to argue. We have to get ready quickly, or the senpais will get here.”

Makoto, who acts as the mediator, goes to a lot of trouble every time, too. In the end, it seems that Asahi gave in and used another shelf, but unable to get over it, he grumbles under his breath.

“For someone who joined late…… Nao-senpai entrusted me to be the leader.”

He would’ve been better off ignoring it, but Ikuya talks back.

“For someone who swims slowly.”

“You said it now, you b.a.s.t.a.r.d!”

“Wanna have a showdown? In free?”

Asahi’s back flinched as he began taking off his shirt and for a moment, he stopped moving. His expression can’t be seen. But he goes back to taking off his shirt right away and his spiky head appears.

“I don’t swim free.”

“How come? Why?”

Ikuya amusedly presses him for an answer. Indeed, he hasn’t ever seen Asahi swim the crawl. Of course, all they’re practicing now is stuff like starts and push offs, it was about the first five minutes when they could swim freely.

“You’re so annoying. I don’t swim it, the free.”

As Asahi answered like it was a bother, the second years suddenly called out to him.

“Oi, Shiina. What’s the meaning of that? You don’t swim free?”

It’s the second year boys’ leader–– Yazaki Shouta.

It seems that while they were dillydallying, the uppercla.s.smen had arrived. Half-naked, Asahi goes rigid.

“Uissu, um, well, Haru…… Nanase only swims free, so, by me not swimming free, it’d provide ba-balance––”

“You got the captain’s permission, I presume?”

His voice is rough. Nervous, Asahi’s face stiffens.

“N-no. But, Haru––”

“Never mind Nanase. We’re talking about you right now.”

Asahi ducks his head from the voice that has gotten much rougher.

“’M s’rry!”

He doesn’t know what he’s apologizing for, but it’s obvious that his ulterior motive is to apologize anyway and avoid trouble.

“Alright, then today, swim with us. I’ll run it by Nao-san.”

He’s telling him to partic.i.p.ate in the second years’ practice. But the first years have their own task, too. He thought that no matter how much Shouta said it, he won’t get permission, but Nao easily gave his consent to it. But only for the 400m free. Taken by the second years, Asahi’s eyes seeking help were truly pitiful.

The second year Shouta and Miyano, along with Sugawara, stood in line with Asahi in between them, they’re going to go all out at swimming free. Unless he has swimming ability, he’ll be separated from the front, and nudged from behind.

“It’s a practice method called ‘circuit’. While putting pressure on each other, its purpose is to improve your swimming ability, but likening it to how a bird pecks at its prey, it’s also called ‘pecking’.”

Nao explained it to them, smiling brightly. Considering Asahi’s nervousness, he wonders how he can say that with such a face. If he intended to refuse, he should’ve been able to do so on many occasions. Or could it be that he’s amused by it? Those cold eyes make him wonder what kind of person he is.

Nao told Haruka and the others to observe them. There’s a huge other crowd of spectators. About half of them are in the water, the rest were looking from the poolside with keen interest in their eyes.

The four of them entered the water and Shouta made the start first. Next, Asahi kicks off from the wall. Voices of excitement broke out from the pretty good start. Miyano follows after him, then Sugawara.

Shouta starts doing the stroke and quickly pulls ahead. No, he didn’t pull ahead. Asahi isn’t reaching forward. Still doing the push off, he isn’t attempting to swim. His propulsive force eventually weakens and Miyano ends up catching up to him.

“Oi, what’re you doing? Swim!”

“S’rry, s’rry!”

Scolded by Miyano, Asahi apologizes and restarts in a fl.u.s.ter. This time, he began the dolphin kick after the push off. As he’s thinking that it’s quite a long dolphin kick, he ended up swimming to the wall like that. Miyano shouts at Asahi again, who had lifted his face and was taking a deep breath.

“Oi, Shiina. It’s the free. The crawl. Do it seriously!”

“S’rry, s’rry!”

Perhaps because they found Asahi submissively apologizing to be strange, small laughter was rising from here and there on the poolside. But in the next moment, he sees an unbelievable spectacle with his own eyes and that jeering disappears.

After making the turn, when Asahi begins the crawl from the push off, huge splashes went up. He swims while raising huge splashes with his hands and his feet. So many splashes went up that Asahi’s figure could no longer be seen, and in the end he disappeared. The splashes disappeared before he has progressed much after making the turn, and Asahi stood still there. It’s an impossible spectacle. He could only think that he was s.c.r.e.w.i.n.g around. But, roughly breathing with his back, it didn’t look like Asahi was s.c.r.e.w.i.n.g around at all.

Miyano and Sugawara both stopped swimming and were looking at Asahi. Perhaps because he sensed the bizarre mood, standing in place, Shouta turned to look at Asahi.

“S’rry……”

Asahi restarts again and raises huge splashes. Then, he stops right away.

“S’rry……”

He swims again. Then, he stops right away.

“S-s’r……ry.”

Asahi’s voice chokes up. Maybe he swallowed some water. Or……

Repeating the same thing over and over again, he reaches Shouta.

“…..S’rry.”

“That’s enough. You’re getting in the way of practice. Get out.”

Shouta said it quietly, directing pitying eyes toward Asahi. Climbing out onto the poolside with no strength, Asahi walks to the changing room. Until his retreating figure disappears, no one could take their eyes off of Asahi.

Nao starts walking along the poolside that has fallen silent. Seeing that, Haruka and the others followed after him. When they entered the changing room, Asahi was sitting straight with his legs bent beneath him, facing the corner of the wall. He still has his goggles and cap on. Hanging his head, no one had the words to say to him.

Raising his up-slanting eyebrows, Makoto looks at Haruka.

“Haru, what Narukawa-kun said……”

Haruka nods.

–– How’s he doing, did he learn how to swim?

He finally understood the meaning of what Sakuyuki said now.

Nao directs a soft voice toward Asahi.

“Why didn’t you say it?”

He means the fact that he’s become unable to swim the crawl. It’s not that he can’t swim. Asahi was definitely swimming. Overtaking Haruka in the preliminaries of that tournament, Haruka overtook him in the semifinals. It’s highly unlikely that he doesn’t remember. Everything about that tournament is burned in his arms. All of it, vividly……

“Since when?”

Nao understands it, too. That it’s not that he can’t swim, but he’s become unable to swim. Not replying to that question either, Asahi kept facing the corner of the wall and sat straight with his legs bent beneath him. Then, words spill in a murmur.

“……Why did Haru come joinin’ the swim club…… Even though I told him so much that club activities are just playing.”

It was a voice that seemed like the corner of the wall was about to swallow. Getting a feeling that at this rate, Asahi would end up disappearing, too, he calls his name without thinking.

“Asahi––”

Asahi turns to Haruka.

“It’s your fault! If Haru didn’t join, I woulda practiced properly and become able to swim. It’s Haru’s fault that……”

Grimacing while still wearing his goggles, he turns back to the corner of the wall. Then, as he was, he rocked his back for a while.

“Oi, hurry it on up. I’m going ahead, Haru!”

Yesterday, he seemed to be feeling down enough that he thought he might quit club activities, and in spite of getting Nao concerned about him enough to ask ‘do you want to go home?’, Asahi completely went back to the way he was. It made him feel with deep emotion that Asahi might have various aspects, too, but it seems that he gave him too much credit. He’s sure that Asahi’s troubles must be made up of a single cell.

Carrying his bag on his shoulder, he and Asahi joined up with Makoto where they came out of the cla.s.sroom. Ikuya isn’t there.

“Ah, Haru, Asahi.”

“What about that guy?”

“He went ahead. That aside, Asahi, are you okay?”

“Stuuupid. Nuthin’ was wrong with me to begin with. I rise from the ashes like a phoenix.”

If nothing was wrong with him to begin with, there’s no need to rise from the ashes, either, is there, he thinks. Rather than a phoenix, this guy’s probably a planarian. He learned it in science cla.s.s today. It doesn’t die even if it’s cut, apparently it’s a creature that increases into two. Cutting off yesterday’s Asahi, it must’ve been left at home or something. The one here is a different Asahi.

When they reach the changing room, Ikuya and Shouta were talking about something. Asahi hides behind Haruka’s back at once. After Shouta cast a glance at Haruka and the others, he returned his gaze to Ikuya.

“Alright?”

“……Yes.”

From beneath his long eyelashes, Ikuya was glaring at Shouta’s back as he left.

“What happened?”

Makoto asks.

“It’s me today.”

“Eh, why? Doing the ‘circuit’ again?”

Asahi shrinks back upon hearing that word.

“Remember how I said ‘club activities are just halfhearted playing’ before?”

“Yeah. During the flower observation, right?”

“I said that to the second years, too.”

“Eh, eh, why?”

“Before, they said ‘you’re the captain’s little brother, so you’ll be joining the swim club, right?’ to me……”

“Uwah. That sounds bad.”

Makoto holds his head in his hands.

“So, today, they told me to take back my words from that time, and I said I’m not taking them back because I don’t know yet. Then, just now, he said he’ll teach me if it’s halfhearted or not.”

“Uwah, uwah, uwaah. ––Ah, that’s it. What if you tried asking for advice from Nao-senpai?”

“He said Nao-senpai already approved of it.”

“Eeeh, then, what’ll you do?”

It’s not even a question of what he’ll do––.

“No choice but to swim, is there? It’s just 400m anyways.”

That’s how it is.

It’s right after yesterday. The spectators of the swim club grew even larger, there were no more than five members who were practicing seriously. Under Nao’s instructions, Haruka and the others were also told to observe.

He’s seen Ikuya’s free many times. He thinks that something like with Asahi won’t happen, but it’s a matter of whether he can keep up with the second years or not. A tense atmosphere hangs over the entire pool. The captain, Ikuya, was also standing on the poolside, his arms folded.

“Let’s go.”

The same as yesterday, Shouta takes the lead. When Ikuya kicks off the wall after him, the spectators lightly stirred. Indeed, it’s a pretty good start, he thinks. Especially his streamline is beautiful.

When he begins the stroke from there, the spectators clapped in applause just from that. It’s thanks to Asahi having lowered the hurdle so much. Miyano swims after him, followed by Sugawara. After the 25m turn, he’s separated from Shouta a little, the s.p.a.ce behind him began to get clogged up. Drawing nearer to him bit by bit, at 50m he ended up getting caught up to at last and during the turn, he got tangled up in Miyano.

“This is what happens when you swim like a slowpoke––”

“d.a.m.n!”

Crying out, Ikuya slapped the water with both hands. Miyano swallowing his words, the spectators fall silent. While releasing a dark light from beneath his long eyelashes, Ikuya continues slapping the water. Two, three, four times……

Keeping his arms folded, Natsuya gave a roar of anger loud enough to make their ears hurt. Stopping his movements, Ikuya looks up at Natsuya. The dark light from Ikuya’s eyes cool down.

“Haa, haa, I get it.”

Regaining his calm, Ikuya begins swimming again. Perhaps because what they just saw was so hard to believe, the spectators were still as silent as a grave. In that atmosphere, Makoto forms a megaphone with his hands and shouts.

“Hang in there! Ikuya-kun!”

As if she sympathized with him, Aki sends cheers, too.

“Ikuya-kun! Give it your all!”

When Maki, Yuki and the others shouted out after her, one after the other, voices supporting Ikuya rose from among the spectators.

“Go! Ikuya!”

“Go for it, go for it!”

“Fight! Ikuya!”

Asahi, who was restlessly looking around each time a shout of encouragement was given, yells in a fl.u.s.ter, too.

“Ikuya! Swim!”

He’s already swimming. This planarian is just getting swept up in the mood around him, but in any case, the second years have entirely ended up being treated as the away team. Miyano isn’t saying ‘swim faster’ anymore, either. No, it’s become unnecessary for him to say it. After they pa.s.sed 100m, Ikuya was no longer being pecked at. He thought that Miyano might be holding back, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. The gap between him and Shouta ahead of him was no longer opening up, either.

When they pa.s.s 200m, it was Ikuya who was threatening to catch up to Shouta this time and ‘ooh’-ing voices of wonder escape from the spectators. When he cuts down the difference between him and Shouta at the turn, the spectators’ voltage soars even higher, the cheers of encouragement towards Ikuya were getting bigger and bigger. The members swimming in the pool were only the four of them now.

“Go, Ikuya!”

“Fight, Kirishima!”

“Ikuya-kun, give it your all!”

Satomi cheers with all her might, almost bursting into tears.

Pushed from behind by that voice, Ikuya suddenly rises. Shouta finished swimming the 400m when he was about to catch up with just a little more, and Ikuya swam up to where he lifted his face. Suddenly, applause breaks out. Unable to swallow the situation, Shouta takes off his goggles and after confirming that it’s Ikuya, he turns to Miyano. Miyano and Sugawara both gasping for breath, they were trying to finish swimming the 400m at last. Ikuya having gotten a lead on them, they must’ve been in a hurry. Because they put in useless strength halfway through, their forms had crumbled.

Makoto reaches his hand out for Ikuya, who was trying to climb out onto the poolside.

“Good work.”

“Haahaa, thanks.”

Grabbing Makoto’s hand, Shouta shouts and stops Ikuya as he’s being pulled up.

“Oi, haa, haa, what about paying your respects?”

Only half pulled up, Ikuya looked down at Shouta with a dark gaze.

“Haa, haa. …….Thank you for the race.”

Ikuya, who had climbed out onto the poolside, perhaps because he hadn’t regained enough of his strength to endure gravity yet, sank to the ground on the spot. Satomi and Aki run up to Ikuya.

“Are you okay? Ikuya-kun.”

Aki deeply lowered her head to Ikuya, who was nodding to the concerned Satomi.

“I’m sorry, Kirishima-kun.”

Still lying on the ground, Ikuya wonderingly looks up at the top of Aki’s head. Not just Ikuya. Everyone who was there turned their questioning eyes to Aki’s incomprehensible action.

“Why’s Zaki-chan apologizing?”

Asked by Makoto, Aki finally lifted her face. Then, she directs an unusually strict gaze towards Shouta, who was climbing out of the pool.

“That’s my Onii-chan.”

Oh, he gets it now. Both their last names are ‘Yazaki’.

“Eh!”

“Eh!”

“Eeeh!”

It would’ve been acceptable that Makoto and Ikuya are surprised, but what could Asahi be surprised about? He can’t have properly even had a conversation with Aki before.

“You see, Onii-chan was at Iwatobi SC from third to fourth grade of elementary school. But he quit right before Nanase-kun and Tachibana-kun joined, he played soccer until 6th grade, but––”

Cutting her words short, she looks at Shouta again. Diving in from the starting block, he was raising splashes on the water’s surface.

“Somehow, it looks like it didn’t go well for him, so he quit that, too. But it was too late to go back to the SC, so he joined the swim club…… After Onii-chan joined the swim club, he was really motivated and practiced a lot. Seeing Onii-chan like that, it seemed fun, so it made me feel like joining the swim club, too.”

He more or less understood Shouta and Aki’s case. Now that he understood it, it has nothing to do with him. Attempting to go back to practice, when Haruka slightly attempted to move his toes, Makoto’s strong grip bit into his arm.

“But, it doesn’t look like he’s having fun now, huh……”

Makoto asks, still holding Haruka’s arm.

“I think he’s being impatient. The first years are all experienced, he might be worried that his spot as varsity swimmer will be taken. Like when he was playing soccer……”

Ridiculous, he thinks. He’s not swimming because he wants to be a varsity swimmer. If he wants that, he’ll let him have it. If it weren’t for his promise with Natsuya……

The whistle blew.

“First year boys, gather round!”

In front of the equipment room, Nao gives the order. Speaking of which, he heard that a tool called heavy jump rope is coming in. Could it be more muscle training items? While praying that Makoto’s grip won’t get any stronger, Haruka headed towards the equipment room.

The water’s surface calmly stretched out on the empty pool. All the members of the swim club had climbed out onto the poolside, only Haruka and Shouta were standing before the starting blocks. They’re going to begin a ‘one-to-one fight’ now.

“Haruka, try swimming a ‘one-to-one fight’ against Shouta now.”

It was the day after Ikuya’s ‘circuit’ that Nao announced it to him, when he was stretching out the lane marks.

There’s a tradition at the Iwatobi Middle Swim Club called ‘one-to-one fight’. Instead of betting something, or the loser having to do something and the like, it seems that its purpose is to open up to each other in front of everyone by praising each other’s efforts.

But if all sorts of emotions get entangled into it, it seems that there have been several cases where the loser does end up quitting the swim club, and in the past few years, they had only permitted it as a graduation commemoration event for the third years. Not to mention, there was no such precedent in the past of a ‘one-to-one fight’ between a first year and a second year. That was a given, for the second year it was obvious that they’d win, and if they were to lose, that’s exactly why nothing but disgrace would be left. What’s more, if the second year suggested it, he can’t avoid the criticism if he acts childish about winning. Taking it that far, if they want to save face for the uppercla.s.smen––.

After Haruka heard the gist of it, while thinking that he’s gotten caught up in something trivial, he asked just one question.

“Can I swim not biaxial?”

“It’s fine, whichever way is easier to swim.”

He was smiling brightly, but Nao’s eyes weren’t laughing.

“However, swim for real. That’s manners.”

Thirty minutes later––, Haruka and Shouta were standing in front of the starting blocks.

Prompted by the signal, he steps onto the starting block and concentrates his mind on his body’s center of gravity. Firmly pushing it down, he takes up the track start posture while feeling his weight on the entirety of the sole of his foot. Putting his fingertips on the edge of the starting block, creating a posture from which he can move at any time, he turns his whole body into his ears and waits.

Whistle––.

Kicking off his foot that’s in the back, he leaps in low. He lands on the water from his fingertips. He slips his body into the water while making a streamline. He really has gotten faster, he thinks. The way he felt the water was completely different from how he had until now. It’s trying to accept Haruka to the point of being impetuous about it. When he starts the stroke, he felt energy naturally emanating from him. It’s a sensation he hasn’t felt in a while. No, he had the realization that he was swimming far more naturally than ever before.

Could the biaxial crawl practice be having some sort of effect? That might be it, too. But instead of something technical like that, Haruka was feeling that his involvement with water is changing within him. It was probably part of the process that it didn’t heal him or release him from his ties anymore. From now on, it’s possible that he’ll awaken to some sort of new sensation. While feeling something close to a premonition, Haruka kept swimming.

Making the turn, he pa.s.ses by Shouta. That made him remember, he was swimming with Shouta. It’s not that he forgot. It’s just that he didn’t feel him. It was only the two of them in the pool, but he couldn’t feel Shouta. What could Shouta be feeling, thinking in the water? Or could it be that he isn’t feeling anything? If Shouta were to harbor some kind of emotions towards the water, even if they were feeble, they should be conveyed to Haruka. But he didn’t feel anything. Nothing is being conveyed to him. It was a sensation as if he were swimming with a mechanical doll.

Still not feeling Shouta, Haruka touched the goal with his hands and lifted his face. Having reached the goal later, Shouta lifts his face and holds out his right hand to Haruka over the lane marks. Haruka grabs his hand and they wordlessly exchanged the mechanical handshake.

The swim club members, who were holding their breath on the poolside, perhaps because they had lost their voice from such a cruel spectacle, they even forgot to clap and just stared at the two of them.