Chapter 7: Race

It was a very sunny day since morning. While Haruka looked up at the blue sky, he wondered how many times it’s been that he’s come here. The Hiyori Swimming Stadium was an especially big venue even in the prefecture, the sports meets were usually held here. When you come to this venue, it feels like it’s always sunny. He thought that it was better that it was sunny, even though it didn’t really matter if it was sunny or not because of the indoor pool.

“The weather’s nice again today, huh?”

As usual, Makoto’s voice is cheerful. On a sunny day, he especially thinks so.

“Wow, it’s huge.”

Having come here for the first time, Nagisa looks up at it, round-eyed with amazement.

And then, Rin is extremely taciturn. Could he be nervous? Though it’s not in his character.

When Rin writes down the four names at the reception desk, the person in charge took out the girls’ list and started comparing it. He wondered if Rin will say something, but he just silently watched them do the work. Since the person in charge searched until the end of the list but the names weren’t there, doubtfully raising their head, they start to say something. But seeing Rin and the other’s faces and showing an att.i.tude of understanding, they began to look for the boys’ list.

While walking in the corridor leading to the locker room, Nagisa burst into laughter that he was suppressing at once.

“Hey, did you see? The person just now, he ended up taking out the girls’ list. I wonder which name he thought was a girl’s? It has to be Rin-chan.”

“Wrong. It’s everyone’s.”

“By everyone, you mean me too?”

“Yes. You too.”

“Eeh. But I don’t know any girl named ‘Nagisa’. I saw a Rinrin at the zoo before, though. It was female.”

Haruka somehow managed to hold back, but Makoto doubled over in laughter. While looking at Makoto in a sidelong glance, Rin speaks, seeming displeased.

“If you let your mind wander, you’ll end up losing. Pull yourselves together a little.”

“Yeees.”

Do they understand or not? For now, it felt like in Nagisa’s response that at least Rin’s nervousness was conveyed. 

As they enter the changing rooms, they heard the sound of lockers opening and shutting coming from here and there. A considerable amount of people are already gathered. As Rin opens a locker within reach, the other three also opened doors, searching for an empty locker nearby.

“Rin.”

When he turns around after his name is called, some people heading on their way to the pool were looking at Rin. Rin’s cheeks unintentionally soften. They’re members of Sano SC, that he belonged to before.

“Hey, it’s been a while.”

When he responds lightly waving his hand, one of them approached with a friendly smile. It’s Yamazaki Sousuke. He’s tall and thin as ever.

“You look like you’re doing well.”

“Well yeah. What about you?”

“Same as usual, I guess. That aside, did you get to meet your father?”

Being asked that question, Rin is bewildered.

“Aah, well.”

While being aware of Haruka and the others, he gave a vague answer.

“I see. See you later, then.”

Seeming to have guessed the circ.u.mstances based on Rin’s state, Sousuke left the locker room, quickly cutting short the conversation. Then, only a strange silence remained.

Without anyone chatting about anything, they changed their clothes in silence. Having finished changing first, Nagisa makes a snapping sound with the goggles’ rubber, imitating Rin.

“I’m first.”

Like always, as he says it in a carefree voice, the stagnant air ended up disappearing, like fog clearing up.

“Then, I’m second.”

Makoto says while closing the locker, looking at each other with Nagisa, they laughed.

Nagisa asked Rin.

“Hey, how many rounds are we swimming today?”

“One round.”

“Then, tomorrow?’

“It’s only the case if we place within the top 16 overall of today’s race, but then we swim in the semifinal, and if we place in the top 8 overall, then we’re in the finals.”

“Then, we have to win three times, right?”

“That’s right. Well, for now, it’ll be fine if we aim for no less than 4th within the group today.”

After saying it, he thinks that it was a weak-spirited remark. It’s possible that somewhere in his heart, it’s bothering him after all that the team’s condition hasn’t improved. He looks at Haruka. With his back turned towards Rin, he was attempting to close the locker’s door. Haruka had to have heard it, too. Did Haruka also think that Rin is weak-spirited? And did he think that he was the cause of making Rin weak-spirited?

He wanted to tell him to not mind it, but without knowing how he should say it, Rin just intently stared at Haruka’s back.

At the pool, they held each contest by order of age. In every contest, the girls’ race is before the boys’. And now, the girls’ medley relay was being held among great cheers.

As the anchor, Aki stands on top of the starting block. In the preliminaries, each race becoming a close contest succeeding a close contest, Aki and the others’ race also unfolded a fierce development that takes your breath away.

Simultaneously as Aki’s feet kicks off from the starting block, the swimmer beside her also made the start. Landing on the water. And then, their heads simultaneously rise. Just like if they were doing synchronized swimming, the arms and legs of the forward crawl are matched. Then, just from right behind them, there was another swimmer gaining on them with tremendous force. It seemed like they were about to catch up just before the goal, but somehow getting away, she was able to pa.s.s through the preliminaries by arriving at almost the same time in second place. If there were 5m more, she would have certainly been overtaken. When she thinks that, chills ran down Aki’s spine.

Aki and the other three started heading towards the locker room, without any of them chattering. In the pa.s.sageway, they pa.s.s by the line of boys heading towards the starting positions.

“Congratulations, Zaki-chan.”

Makoto held up the palm of his hand.

“Thanks. Good luck to you too, Tachibana-kun.”

Aki pa.s.ses by while hitting Makoto’s hand and making a small snappy sound.

They came in second, but they couldn’t slack off at all. The other three aren’t smiling, either. Even though they practiced so much and raised their time, they weren’t able to demonstrate its results enough. Those feelings weighed heavily on the four of them. Perhaps they were nervous? Perhaps they ended up straining themselves? Perhaps their form collapsed? Without knowing the cause, they grow anxious. If things go the same way they did today, they’ll definitely end up being eliminated from the compet.i.tion.  When they think of that, they became hopelessly anxious.

However, no matter how anxious they become, even if they don’t know the cause, there was only one thing to do tomorrow. It’s a matter of swimming as they had practiced. And, if they can do that, it’s a matter of believing that they’ll certainly win. Taking a deep breath, Aki spoke in a voice as cheerful as possible.

“Good job, everyone. Let’s try our best tomorrow, too.”

The team got their smiles back from Aki’s words.

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“Yeah yeah, it’s tomorrow, right?”

“All right, we’ll win the championship tomorrow!”

“We can absolutely do it. We’ve practiced so much. Let’s try our best.”

With everyone’s smiles, a true smile returned to Aki’s heart. Either bravado or pretending to be tough, anything is fine. If someone on the team has a cheerful mood, everyone cheers up. And then, everyone’s cheer gives them their true smile. That’s what a team is. That’s the strength of a team. If they have that strength, even if they don’t win tomorrow, even if they end up crying, perhaps they can think that they’re glad to have been on this team. As unwavering confidence, that much was in Aki and the others’ hearts.

While feeling a new energy rising, Aki began to walk, heading towards tomorrow.

While lightly loosening his body in front of the starting block, confirming that Makoto and Nagisa are in front of him, Rin felt it on his back that Haruka was behind him. He didn’t especially have a reason to call out, but he wanted to be strongly conscious of the fact that he’ll be swimming with these members from now.

Held on the short lane, they swim a total of 400m, one person 100m at a time. The first swimmer is Makoto, the second is Nagisa, the third is Rin, and then the anchor is Haruka. Called by the club name starting from the first lane, the first swimmer of the called team raises their hand and stands beside the starting block. Since the first swimmer is doing the backstroke, it becomes an underwater start.

After four short whistles were blown, Makoto enters the water on the long whistle. Holding his grip on the next long whistle, he pushes the sole of his feet against the wall.

“Take your marks!”

He pulls his body forward with a forceful push. A moment of silence. And then, a short buzzer sound——.

He leapt backward all at once. After landing on the water, he starts up his feet from a posture extending to kick. While breaking into the strokes, he rises to the water’s surface. Makoto’s head came up as first ahead. His figure that raises big splashes with powerful strokes, gives the impression of a marine creature.

Rin felt something that was different from before in Makoto’s swimming. Not just in the crawl or the backstroke, he thinks that a fundamental part of his swimming is changing. Brushing aside the water, the forcefully advancing style hasn’t changed, but the reckless way of going with all his strength was missing. In some way, perhaps it can even be called a powerful dreadfulness, while carrying a ma.s.sive feeling like an orca or a whale because of it, he looked like he was swimming at ease. And, he has unmistakably gotten faster. Makoto might be attempting to evolve into a creature of the sea.  While thinking about that, Rin stared at Makoto’s swimming.

In top position, when Makoto touches the wall, Nagisa’s both feet leapt off from the starting block. His leap is too high. Sinking as deep as much as he had leapt high, it ends up taking time to rise to the surface. In b.r.e.a.s.t.stroke, when your posture ends up breaking at the start, it becomes difficult to make a fine adjustment. The permitted movements underwater after the dive are just the one pull and one kick. After finally rising to the surface, Nagisa dropped their rank to second place. There’s half a body difference with Sano SC.

―― Don’t mind it, Nagisa. It’s always like that. Your special ability is catching up in the second half.

While muttering in his mind, Rin stood at the starting block.

Sousuke stands beside Rin. During the time he was at Sano SC, their relation was having competed for being the representative, formerly they certainly had a relationship that could be called friends. When he said that he wanted to go Australia and when he said that he wanted to swim at Iwatobi SC, just saying ‘I understand’ while he was half shocked, he didn’t try anything like half-heartedly keeping him back or pressing questions. Sousuke kept being someone who understood Rin well until the end. ‘See you later.’ ‘Yeah.’ That was their last conversation.

And now, Sousuke is standing in the line beside him as an arch-enemy.

“Sorry about earlier.”

Sousuke says to Rin, his gaze facing ahead. He’s directly apologizing for having made imprudent conversation.

“It doesn’t matter.”

Rin gives a short reply. He’s saying that it’s not a big deal. By merely exchanging only that much of a conversation, the two of them could return to the way they were several months before. And, they were able to mutually recognize that they’re opponents who absolutely won’t lose.

Rin takes up a crouching start posture. He’s been testing this style since a month ago. It doesn’t particularly raise his time, he couldn’t prove that it’s theoretically advantageous, either. In the process of searching for his own form, it’s nothing more than one experiment that he ran into during his exploring for a solution. But, he felt the possibility. That is his entire reason.

In the end, without being able to shorten the difference, Nagisa touched the surface of the wall in 2nd place.

Sousuke making the start, Rin’s foot leaps. The start isn’t a contest of just kicking power. The real contest is how much they utilize that power as propulsion power. While being aware of the angle of landing on the water and the underwater posture, Rin raised splashes on the water’s surface.

Sousuke goes a little in front of Rin. While doing dolphin kicks, he lines up to Sousuke. He has perfectly left behind the other swimmers. From here, it becomes a contest just between two of them, against Sousuke. While rising to the surface, he starts the b.u.t.terfly’s stroke. At this point in time, Rin is in the lead by a little.

However, Sousuke demonstrates his specialty from here. If their difference were to widen like this, Rin wouldn’t approve of him as an arch-enemy. Though his physique is lanky, making use of his long reach and bigger than average palm to the maximum, he forcefully chases after Rin.

The turn is almost simultaneous. Rin comes up ahead again. And then, Sousuke gains on him.

―― Being hasty is no good. I mustn’t put strength into my shoulders. I have to transmit my entire body’s flexibility to my feet.

While being conscious of the image of swimming with his thighs, he flexibly cleaves through the water.

On the verge of being lined up to with just a little remaining, barely getting away, Rin was able to connect to Haruka.

Haruka dives in over Rin’s head. Both the angle and the water landing point are not bad. But…….

Right after landing on the water, the difference began to widen.

Rin wondered if time had stopped only for Haruka. His body isn’t advancing forward. On the other hand of the difference widening between the top, he ended up being lined up to by the third place swimmer. Right after Haruka’s legs and feet still aren’t moving, he wondered if he’ll end up drowning. Just like on that day, when he attempted to pick up Aki’s scarf……

After the turn, retreating until third place, in the end the fourth place swimmer also began to line up to him, but even so, Haruka just repeated the fundamental movements.

It was after he retreated to fourth place that Haruka’s hand reached the goal at last. His breathing is so rough, while his shoulders largely heave up and down, that you wouldn’t even think that he only swam just 100m.

Without grabbing onto Makoto’s held out hand, when he climbs up onto the poolside, tearing off his goggles and cap, he started walking towards the locker room. He pa.s.sed by Aki on the way, but he wouldn’t even look at her. Everyone silently sees Haruka off. n.o.body knew what words to say to the current Haruka. There was nothing better than silently seeing him off. 

Soon, Haruka’s figure disappeared into the locker room.

When the morning sun finally began to rise from the edge of Myoujinyama, Rin was in front of a grave. The cold air that contained the tide flows so it grazes his cheek. The waves breaking onto the steep cliff, the peaceful sound rose and broke. On the sky that began to turn white, wispy purple clouds trailing, it created many patterns that looked like stripes drawn in pastel crayons.

The grave was firmly sitting faced towards the sea. To Rin, its dignified shape, without a single time to regret, seemed like it was sticking its chest out. While making him feel something that had the appearance of a profound dignity, it calmly overlooks the sea.

Rin was standing in front of that grave. He was facing the grave the whole time from when it was still dark out. The sky that is regaining its brightness makes the lines of Myoujinyama’s ridge rise to the surface.

“It ends with today. I came to say goodbye. I, decided to try and pursue the dream. I don’t know how far I can go, but I’m thinking of going as far as I can. So, I can’t come here for a while. Please forgive me, okay? But, I’m glad that I came here after all. I’m glad I met those guys. Because it gave me the motivation to seriously pursue the dream…… No matter where I go, I absolutely won’t forget. Just them, I absolutely won’t. I…. I want to win just today. Just today, I want to do the best swimming. I want to become a real team with those guys. So, today, I’ll tell them properly. Everything, all of it as it is……. So, please look out for me, okay?”

Making a fist, he lightly b.u.mps the gravestone. A cool sensation pa.s.sed to him.

“Pops.”

The wind blowing from the sea coils around Rin, then disappears.

“……Pops.”

He murmurs again.

Could the tide be rising? The sound of the waves. .h.i.tting the rock broke, while drowning out the cries of the sea gulls. Looking up as he feels a strong light, the sun that had shown its face from Myoujinyama began to shine on the earth and sea without distinguishing between them.

Taking a deep breath from the air that contained tide, Rin filled up his chest with it. Then, he turns back to the grave.

“Well then, I’ll be on my way.”

Showing a gentle smile, Rin began to run towards the place of the deciding battle.

“Hey hey, what place should we get in the semifinal?”

While changing their clothes in the locker room, Nagisa asked Makoto in his usual manner.

“We can go to the finals if we’re within the top 8 overall.”

Makoto replied while adjusting the length of his goggles.

“First place. If you say something easy-going as eighth, we’ll end up losing!”

While putting emphasis on the end of the word, when Rin claps Nagisa on the back, a nice dry sound resounded across the locker room.

“That hurt! What’re you doing, Rin-chan?”

From the other side of the locker, suddenly laughter breaking out, Sousuke peeks at them.

“What, Rin. You’re called Rin-chan over there, too?”

Saying that, he laughed again. Being laughed at, Rin hastily denies it.

“N-no, that’s wrong. It’s just this guy. Everyone calls me leader here.”

This time, Makoto speaks while doubling over in laughter.

“Is that so? Rinrin.”

Laughter rose from the other side of the locker again. Rin turns around to face Makoto.

“Makoto. You, be a little more tactful.”

When Rin says that, laughter broke out again. Makoto and Nagisa were both laughing. Even Rin, who was supposed to be angry, his cheeks soften as he’s infected by it. However, looking at Haruka sitting on the bench, such a merry mood ended up being blown off to somewhere.  

Haruka was staring at some distant point, alone and quietly. They haven’t heard Haruka say a single word since morning. n.o.body could talk to Haruka. Without displaying a single thing resembling emotion, he was just expressionlessly staring into the distance. If it weren’t for what happened yesterday, perhaps they could’ve thought of it as the usual Haruka. The Haruka who always lives up to the expectations if you rely on him. But…….

Inside Rin, something begins to burn.  

――We’re a team, Haru. Believe, in us!

He’s not swimming alone. Those feelings are running about all throughout his body.

Closing the door of the locker, Rin snapped the rubber of his goggles.  

“All right, let’s go!”

Aki touched the goal in first place. She worries more about the time than the placing. When she turns around to look at the clock, it was indicating a good time, the kind that they didn’t easily get even in practice.

“All right!”

In the water, Aki tightly grasped her fist a little. It was completely different from yesterday. Her body moved just like she had practiced. She was able to swim with her feelings packed into it more than during practice.

――It’s going well. At this rate, we can absolutely compete for the top even in the finals!

She was able to firmly believe in that.

When she’s pulled up by Yuuki’s hand, everyone welcomed her with a smile.

“You did it, Zaki.”

“Yeah, the finals are next.”

“We got a good time, huh?”

“Really, it’ll absolutely go well with that.”

The four of their expressions were completely different from yesterday, too. Everyone realized that the team’s mood had risen.

Remaining like that near the poolside’s entranceway, Aki and the others decided to root for the boys. The girls’ second race finishing, Sano SC reached the goal in top in the boys’ first race. It’s the swimming club that Rin was in.

The boys’ second group heading towards the starting position pa.s.s by in front of Aki. Makoto’s smile was among them.

“Congrats, Zaki-chan. Good luck in the next one, too.”

“Yeah, thanks. Good luck to you, too, Tachibana-kun.”

Makoto’s raised hand overlapping with Aki’s hand, he pa.s.ses by, making a snapping sound.

While heading towards the starting position, Makoto moved his gaze to the pool with small waves rising on it.

His fear of the water hasn’t disappeared yet. The feeling that there’s a monster lurking in there is still inside his mind. The feeling that he might end up being sucked into, entangled and dragged in was still clinging to him.

Supposing that if this was an individual contest, perhaps his foot would’ve been cramping up even now and in this place. Without advancing a single step forward, perhaps he would’ve been standing still. However, he has friends now. He has a team that he swam together with. If he were to say that they help each other or support each other, perhaps Haruka would get angry at him. But Makoto certainly felt supported right now. Perhaps he’s not helping anyone, perhaps he doesn’t even have the strength for it. However, it was a fact with no falseness to it that he was being supported. Makoto was standing here, being supported by his friends.

The feeling of wanting to win comes welling up, strongly and intensely, unlike before. His chest, his back, his arms, his feet, then the depths of his body are heating up. It’s not for the sake of someone, for the sake of something, much less for the sake of himself. Making an effort and worrying with everyone, they struggled for the sake of winning. So that’s why he feels that he wants to win. In just this feeling, he won’t lose to anyone. He won’t surrender to anyone.

“……Haru.”

Murmuring it so quietly that no one else can hear, he looks at Haru. Then, tightly squeezing his right fist, Makoto stepped his foot into the water’s edge.

“Hey, Haru-chan.”

Nagisa talked to him at the time that the race was about to start. He hasn’t spoken to anyone yet today. No one could come in contact with Haruka. However, Nagisa nonchalantly jumped over his defenses. To the point that it suddenly made him think that what he was obsessing over is a trivial matter, all too soon and easily.

“What should I do? I’m starting to feel nervous.”

Nagisa says without even showing such behavior. Haruka raised the corner of his mouth a little.

“You are? What a joke.”

“It’s true. C’mon look, my palms are drenched with sweat. Even my feet are shaking.”

Saying that, he shows his knees shaking. Unable to estimate how much of it he’s doing sincerely, when he lightly pokes his head, Nagisa stopping the movements of his knees, he embarra.s.sedly cast his eyes down.

“Sorry, I lied about my feet. But I really am nervous. I ended up failing the start yesterday, so I keep thinking about what’ll I do if I end up failing again today. And so, if we don’t win, it’ll end up being my fault after all, won’t it?”

What Nagisa was saying, was something extremely simple. Finding the honest feelings inside himself that aren’t embellished with anything, he puts it into words. If it’s childish or pure, in any case, it was something that Haruka couldn’t imitate.

“Don’t think about boring things.”

“It’s not boring. It’s something very important.”

That may be so for Nagisa, but thinking it to be a boring thing after all, Haruka took a little breath.

“Then, if someone overtakes you, do you think it’s their fault that you lost?”

“Eeh, I don’t think so. Such a thing.” [this sounds extra awkward but I wanted to keep Nagisa’s fragmented way of saying it]

Instead of saying something, Haruka stared into Nagisa’s eyes. Haruka and Nagisa mutually peek into the depths of each other’s eyes. Because of that, Nagisa finally realized that there’s a contradiction in what he’s saying.

“Ah, I see. But I’ll still end up feeling responsible for it.”

“As much as feeling responsible, say that sort of thing after you’ve gotten faster.”

“Ah, I see. Huh? Somehow, I’m suddenly at ease. My nervousness ended up disappearing after talking to Haru-chan.”

Haruka raised the corner of his mouth again, while thinking that he’s a weird guy, whether it is from simplicity or something else.