Open Waters

Chapter Thirty

For the Team

Hana felt like the walking dead when Mae gently shook her awake the next morning. She'd fallen asleep on the floor by her project, having been too tired to crawl up to her bed. Because of this, she now ached from the uncomfortable, hard floor.

It was still dark outside as Hana stumbled to her feet. The hot shower she had helped her wake up a little. She was glad she'd had the insight to get things organised before she started her project the night before, since she was moving so sluggishly now.

The plan had been to listen to her iPod while being driven to the regionals venue. But that plan soon turned to dust, Hana going out like a light once the engine got going.

At least it cut down the journey time, for it felt like only the next minute she they arrived, Mae having to wake her daughter again. They'd made good time, though parking was surprisingly full already, people miling about despite the early hour. Hana wondered how early they'd woken to get here, or if they'd decided to sleep in this city overnight. She couldn't see much of it, but she could tell what Haru meant when he said this place was big and different. It definitely differed to the fairly small town of Iwatobi.

Mae and Hana said their goodbyes there, since Hana would be dropped off back home. "Pass my wishes for good luck on to the boys!" Mae called as she drove out, leaving her parking spot avaliable to someone else.

"I will!" Hana turned and headed for the venue for the regional tournament. She paused for a minute, just taking in the outside. It was definitely grand and exceptionally different to anything they might find in Iwatobi: it was large, the sun reflecting off the numerous windows and silver finish.

I can definitely see why they chose to host the regional tournament here.

The inside was just as nice as the outside. After walking through

"Hana! There you are!" Hana glanced up and saw Gou running over.

"Kou!" Hana greeted, her friend coming to a standstill before her. "It's great to see you." She peered deeper into the crowds, realising a few people were missing. "Where's Sasabe and Miss Amakata? They were coming today, right?"

"Sasabe and Miss Amakata are finding seats, as is Hanamura," Gou explained.

Hana nodded, but there was one part of that explanation that had her confused. "Hanamura?" She'd never heard of the name before.

"Oh, I don't think I've introduced you two. She's my friend. You've met a few times."

A lightbulb went off in Hana's head. Gou's light-brown haired friend... that's Hanamura. "Oh. That's her."  Hana glanced down at the banner in her hands. "Hey, Kou, can I... ask a favour?"

"Sure."

Hana explained the banner to her head-haired friend, and how she planned to reveal it to the boys, and how Gou's help would be appreciated. Once she'd finished, Gou was grinning.

"Hana, you genius!" Gou laughed. "That's... that's brilliant."

"I wanted it to be a surprise for the guys..." A flash of light blue and white caught Hana's eye, and she shifted her head position slightly to see the boys walking in. "Oh look, here they are now."

Quickly, they ran up to their friends. "Oh, there you are," Makoto said, the first to notice them. Hana bit her lip and shifted the banner in her hands behind her back, tightening her grip on it. 

"Good morning," Gou chirped. Hana would have said the same thing, but could only manage a smile. The square piece of fabric behind her back suddenly felt very heavy.

"Good morning!" they all said back. Hana caught Haru's eyes for a moment and a small smile passed between them, before Haru turned and looked down at the numerous swimmers below. Hana felt as though she knew what he was searching for: the Samezuka uniform, and namely a red-haired figure among them.

Makoto appeared to pick up on the same thing she did. "Seems Rin isn't here yet. I'm sure he'll turn up soon."

Haru nodded. "Yeah."

"We got seats for everyone," Hanamura said suddenly, coming up from behind with Sasabe and Miss Amakata.

The news was met positively. It was good they'd be able to get a row of seats together, and not have to sit apart.

But good seats weren't the main thing on the swim team's mind, as they gazed nervously and apprehensively down at the pool. "If we win today, we make it to nationals," Makoto muttered.

Nagisa looked equally nervous, an expression Hana hadn't seen on his face before. "Can we win?"

"Hey! Don't wuss out now!" Hana covered her ears as Sasabe used his loudspeaker to grab the attention of the boys, and several people around them as well. "Stop worrying about to outcome! Be free! Swim to your heart's content! Swim so you have no regrets!"

His speech appeared to motivate the boys, as their nerves faded and were replaced with determination. "Yes!"

Hana smiled at their determination. As Sasabe, Miss Amakata and Hanamura walked away, single beat of nervous sweat travelled down her forehead, which she quickly wiped away. Oh gosh, can't put this any longer. I hope they like it, gosh, I hope they do. After glancing across at Gou, who smiled encouragingly, Hana cleared her throat loudly and pointedly, attracting the attention of the boys. As all four stared at her, her heart sped up a little more.

"So, uh, before you sit down... I had something I wanted to show you." She glanced over at Gou, who nodded. They each took an opposite end of the banner she'd made and, with the boys watching, slowly unravelled it.

The boys gasped as it was fully unravelled, revealing the banner Hana had so painstakingly created the previous night. Hana flushed deeply and stared adamantly down at her feet. "I know Iwatobi doesn't have a banner like Samezuka and other schools do, so I thought that maybe, you'd like one... if you don't like it, then that's fine, but -"

"Hana." Makoto cut over her rambling. Shyly, she peeked up at the swim team through her lashes, and found them all smiling genuinely at her... even Haru. "You... we... that's... just, thank you, Hana."

"Hana-senpai... it's beautiful," Rei choked out.

"Hana-chan!" Nagisa had the brightest grin on his face, and he leapt forward and, to her surprised, hugged her. "It's amazing!"

Hana laughed, overcome with relief. "Thanks, Nagisa. I'm just... so glad you all like it..."

"Of course we do." Hana glanced up at Haru spoke. "Thank you, Hana."

Something inside her heart warmed up and glowed. "You're all so welcome," she said, a smile expanding on her face. The boys all laughed with her as she folded up once again, talking about how it might look as they hung it over where they would be sitting.

Hana just couldn't explain why Haru's comment meant more to her than that made by anyone else.

*          *          *

The banner hung over the stands, proudly displaying the Iwatobi name, just as many other schools had done. As soon as they'd finished that, the boys went down to the pool to stand for the opening ceremony. With only four members, Iwatobi stood out by far as the smallest school amongst these other top-ranking schools. But that didn't faze Hana. Their club didn't need to have large numbers to have skilled swimmers.

When the ceremony was over, the boys returned and together with Hana and Gou, consulted the program for that day's events. Hana was surprised by the order. It looked as though the men's freestyle was going to be swum first, followed by the female's freestyle, and then the men's relay.

Don't they normally save relays for the end of the day? Hana just shrugged the thought off, and insterad scanned the list of freestyle swimmers, her eyes looking out for just one name. And she found it soon enough: Rin would be swimming in the third heat, which wouldn't be too long from now: the first heat was about to begin.

The first two freestyle races passed by quickly. Hana was astounded by watching some of these swimmers swim. She thought she had seen some skill at the prefectural tournament, but she hadn't seen all regional talent. Races were incredibly close, and times exceptionally good.

Before long, the call of, "Men's 100m freestyle, heat 3," sounded through the venue.

"Rin-chan's up next!" Nagisa exclaimed, watching as Rin climbed on to the starting block and got ready to dive in. Hana bit her lip as she watched him. Now she knew a little of his past, she wondered what exactly was going through his head right now.

She also couldn't help but notice that there was a different edge to his starting position than there had been at the prefectural tournament.

"Big brother! You can do it!" Gou yelled, her voice echoing through the otherwise silent stands.

"On your marks." Not long after, the starting gun sounded through the venue. Everyone leapt into the water to begin the race, only Rin dived in a little later than the others.

"He had a late start?" Makoto exclaimed, incredulous. Hana too was shocked. Rin was a good swimmer, and she knew how determined he was after his race with Haru... so how come he'd had that late start?

As he swam, Hana knew at once there was something wrong. He was trailing behind the other swimmers by miles already, and yet Hana knew he had the skill and ability to be able to go faster. He had proved that with his race against Haru. And it wasn't as though he was holding back, either, Hana could tell he was giving his all and forcing himself to go faster. But he wasn't making any progress.

"Rin-chan can make it up on the turn!" Nagisa said, certain and Rin made the turn. Hana agreed; she had seen how powerful Rin's kick off the turn was. So she was shocked when Rin's turn obviously didn't have it's usual power, and he fell only further behind.

Rin finished his race, coming in at dead last. Hana sat back, frozen with shock. How did that happen? Rin was a good swimmer, as he'd proven in the past... so why had he just had a performance like that?

Her shock only intensified as she saw Rin absolutely gasping for breath, his shoulders heaving to an enormous degree. And then, when he tried to get out of the pool, Hana bit her lip as Rin collapsed back in the water, unable to even haul himself from the pool.

"Haru!" Hana whipped around and saw Haru had leapt from his seat and was sprinting out of the stands, the other three close on his tail. Hana herself was about to get up, but constrained herself and sat back down. They were no doubt going to find Rin. And with her rocky relationship with him, she figured her presence wouldn't be beneficial.

"Where are they going?" Miss Amakata exclaimed. "The relay starts in only twenty minutes!"

It won't take twenty minutes to find Rin, surely... they'll be back within five minutes.

But Hana was to be proven wrong. Five minutes ticked on by, and still there was no sign of the boys. And the woman's freestyle race had just started. The relay was up next. The boys needed to hurry and get back.

"The women's races are starting... they too will be finished soon," Gou muttered nervously, consulting the clock on the wall. "They've got fifteen minutes..."

Sasabe stood up. "I'll look for them."

"Me as well." Hana scrambled out of her seat without thought. She had seen all the time and effort the boys had put into preparing for these finals. She wasn't just about to let that so easily go to waste. Without waiting for Sasabe, Hana tore up the stairs and dashed into the corridors beyond.

While Hana had marveled at the large size of the venue beforehand, now she was only cursing it. The bigger the size, the harder it would be to find the others. The best way would be to just keep looking, and look quickly.

Hana kept at her running pace, eyes and ears peeled for any sign of the boys. There were some odd people miling around that sent Hana bewildered stares as she dashed past, but Hana didn't care. None of them were wearing Iwatobi colours.

Before long, Hana heard the sound of a raised voice. She gasped and pushed herself harder. She recognised that voice. Rin...He was close. Did that means the others were close as well?

When she turned the next bend, Hana inhaled sharply. She was four figures dressed in Iwatobi colours standing around, as though lost. What are they doing?

"What's going on?" Hana gasped, rounding the corner. It didn't take her long to assess the situation going on before her: it didn't take her long to see Haru down on the floor, his head between this knees. "Haru!" she gasped, and sprinted over to him. She crouched down by his side at once, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder, and glanced over at the others. "What's going on? What happened?"

"Rin was taken off the relay," Makoto explained heavily. "And... he just said he was going to quit swimming."

"What?" Rin said... he was going to quit swimming? Like with what happened in middle school? But... oh my goodness, the thoughts that must be going through his head right now, and Haru's! What happened?

Hana glanced over at Haru. "Haru..."

"I won't get to swim with Rin again?" Haru sounded utterly defeated.

Hana bit her lip, massaging his shoulder gently, while glancing frantically up at the others. This was bad. She'd just arrived at the scene but knew that, while in this condition, Haru would be in not fit state to swim.

"What now? The relay prelims are about to start," Nagisa cried.

"Let's focus on our own race right now." Makoto looked distraught saying that, but as the team's captain, he had to put the concerns of the overall team first.

"But look at Haru-chan!"

"Haru..." Hana whispered, squeezing his shoulder. There was so much she wanted to tell him, that he team needed him, that he needed to stand up, that the relay was soon, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. She didn't know if saying that would be beneficial or not.

There was the sound of someone clearing their throat, and Hana glsnced up to see Rei speaking. "I have something to tell everyone."

"Rei-chan?" Nagisa murmured, curious and confused.

"Last night, Rin-san called me outside to talk," Rei started. "He told me that when he said it wanted to quit swimming in middle school, it wasn't because he lost to Haruka-senpai. He hit a wall while training abroad and his confidence was shaken. That's why he wanted to quit swimming." Hana gasped lightly at this. I never would have guessed...

"But after returning to Japan, running into Haruka-senpai and racing him again, he could put it behind him. After watching us swim at prefecturals, he remembered what it was like, and wanted to swim in a relay again. That's why he said he'd swim with Samezuka to give us the best relay ever."

The more Rei spoke, the more sympathy Hana felt for Rin. There was so much to his character that she hadn't known or bothered to know, and now she knew, it made her feel guilty for the way she had treated him before.

"I didn't realise Rin-chan felt that way," Nagisa murmured, seemingly at a loss for all other words.

"But that's not what he really wants," Rei continued. He didn't care about the race. He just wanted to swim with all of you again. To swim with the best teammates he could have."

Oh God, now I really feel bad for everything I've said to him. Hana glanced over at Haru, and noticed that he'd lifted his head hopefully, and now was standing up. Hana stepped back and stood up with him, standing just slightly shorter than him.

"How do you know that?" Haru questioned.

Rei smiled. "Because... I feel the same way he does. I want to swim with all of you, with the best teammates I could ask for." The smile disappeared, replaced with an earnest expression. "I'm sure you feel the same way, Haruka-senpai! The race isn't important! There's someone you want to swim with, right?"

Haru's eyes widened. "I want to swim with Rin!"

Hana couldn't help but smile sadly. They must have been good childhood friends.

Rei nodded, suddenly serious. "If you don't do something, Rin-san will stop swimming. You're the only ones who can help him!"

"But what are we supposed to do?" Nagisa cried.

Rei was incredulous. "You still don't understand? Logically speaking, there's only one possible solution!

Something in Hana's brain clicked. Surely he's not suggesting - that Rin swim in the relay, while he sits out? Even after he's trained so hard?

"Are you okay with this, Rei?" Haru asked, obviously coming to the same realisation as Hana.

Rei smiled. "Of course!"

"Rei..." Hana trailed off, at a loss for words. She couldn't believe what he was doing for the boys, just so Rin wouldn't give up swimming. She smiled sadly and glanced out at her watch, gasping. "You'd better hurry, it's almost time for the relay swimmers to report in for marshalling!" Hana jogged back. "You go look for him. I'll get back and try and make everyone not panic! But please, don't be too long!"

"Got it, Hana!"

Hana grinned, turned and dashed backs the way she came, aware of the others turning to begin their search for Rin. The smell of chlorine hit her hard as she re-entered the pool hands, but she didn't let it hold her back. She was a little disorientated finding her seats again, but was able to locate the others soon enough.

"Did you find them?" Gou gasped, leaning over at Hana.

She nodded, and smiled. "They'll be coming. There's just something they need to clear up first." Even though she was confident, Hana checked her watch and big her lip. They only have eight minutes... can they do it?

Despite her earlier confidence, with every passing minute that slipped, the more discouraged she became. Hana fidgeted, the nerves starting to kick in. I know they're doing the right thing... but is is all going to be in vain?

Soon, there was only five minutes until the relay. That agonisingly ticked down to four, to three... and still there was no sight of Haru, Makoto, Nagisa or Rin reporting for the relay. Hana drummed her fingers against her leg, biting her lip so heavily she felt the irony taste of blood fill her mouth. Two minutes. One.

"Men's medley relay, heat one."

The dreaded announcement caused Hana to bow her head. Damn it.

"Damn, it's already starting," Sasabe groaned. Panic was rising at a steady rate within Hana. Didn't they manage to find him after all?

Hana stood up and leaned over the edge, keeping a keen eye out for the others. A gasp passed her lips as she spotted four figures run up to the man doing the marshalling. "They're here!" she exclaimed, her body sagging in relief. Hana looked at the boys closer, and smiled as she saw Rin among them.

They found them.

Sasabe let out a large breath. "Looks like they made it in time."

"What a relief!"

The first race finished, and there was a call of, "Men's medley relay, heat two." The heat that the boys would be swimming in. Hana smiled as she watched them line up, Makoto getting ready for his swim as he fixed his goggles, and then jumped into the water, preparing for his backstroke dive.

"You can do it, Makoto," Hana muttered under breath, as encouraging calls came from the others. Her heat beat erratically in her chest as a deathly since fell over the stadium. She was sure she was just as nervous as the others were right now.

"Set." The starting gun went, and the swimmers dived into the water.

"Go, Makoto!" Hana yelled, cupping her hands around her mouth to amplify the sound. Makoto had a good start, pulling ahead early to secure third place, a great achievement considering many of the top schools he was swimming against. The same cheer that sounded in the prefecturals started and this time, Hana grinned and joined in.

"Swim, swim, swim, swim Makoto!"

"Swim, swim, swim, swim Makoto!"

Makoto finished his leg, placing at a solid third. As soon as he touched the wall behind him, Nagisa was quick to dive in afterwards. "Go Nagisa!" Hana screamed, as Nagisa started to swim, maintaining their third position.

"How are they going?"

Hana glanced over her shoulder and smiled to see Rei sitting down in the seat she'd vacated. "Nagisa's swimming at the moment, ah, he's just turned. They're currently sitting in third!" she reported with a smile.

Rei nodded. Hana returned to the relay, watching Nagisa cross the halfway mark for the pool. Iwatobi was still sitting comfortably in third.

"They're in third, ahead of top schools!" Miss Amakata said, astonished. 

"This is a personal best!" Gou exclaimed.

"Next is Rei." Hana bit her lip as Sasabe said this. He was in for a shock, they all were. She glanced over to the starting block and saw Rin stand there, composing himself before the race started.

"What?" Hana almost burst out laughing at the other's reactions. She didn't expect any other reaction.

As Nagisa neared, Hana swore that she saw a smile cross Rin's face. That one smile changed the face Hana was so used to seeing since she'd first met him. It was like a spark had been ignited within him.

When Nagisa hit the wall, Rin dived in, with a good, powerful dive. Hana watched him begin his leg of the relay, quickly gaining speed and powering through the water. Now this is the swimming I'm used to seeing from Rin.

"I told them to be free, but they went too far," Sasabe muttered, still in shock.

Rei hummed. "His entry angle was five degrees off, but I suppose it will do."

This got the attention of the others.

"What are you doing here?" Sasabe demanded, as everyone rounded on him.

"I'll explain later -"

"We'll explain everything later," Hana corrected. She chuckled and glanced back at the others. "I was in on this as well."

The others shook their heads, looking a little exasperated. But Rei was about to clear that up right away. "We need to cheer them on now," he said, and nodded over at Gou. "Gou-san."

"Yeah!" Gou smiled, looking excited. This was her brother, and it looked like he might be returning to his usual self, which was what she'd been aiming for from the begining. She proceeded to cheer loudly for her brother, and it wasn't long until Hana smiled and joined in.

Hana was almost surprised as she watched Rin. He really was fast. Something just have just been bothering him earlier, for he was now going through the water at an incredibly fast pace. When he finished his leg, Rin's swim had managed to slip Iwatobi into second.

Now, it was up to Haru to bring the team home.

At once, Haru took off in the water, moving incredibly fast. He was in hot pursuit of the swimmer in front of him, gaining ground quickly.

Hana's heart thudded loudly and painfully in her chest. "Haru!" she screamed, hoping that somehow, he might be able to hear her above all the other noise, that he'd be able to hear her as he was swimming, like she'd told him he would.

When Haru made the turn, he was neck-and-neck with the other swimmer. And, after the turn, with his kickoff...

... He had pushed their lead into first.

"Haru!" Hana screamed, from the bottom of her lungs. Her fingers clenched around the banner displaying Haru's favourite saying, leaning over as far as she scared, screaming his name as loud as she could. He's almost made it back, we've nearly done it. "Come on, Haru!"

Nearly there, nearly there... Hana's eyes widened, hands slapping over her mouth and Haru made the finally run, his hand hitting the end of the pool.

He'd come in first place.

"Oh my goodness!" Hana didn't know how to react, a fllod of emotions had hit her at once: shock. Triumph. Disbelief. Pride. Happiness. Euphoria.  

She was rendered speechless and proud, proud of the way the boys had most likely sacrificed going to nationals to hep Rin out, for swimming together so well they had managed to push themselves into first out of all other top-school teams there. Tears welled in her eyes, the brightest smile on her face as she watched Makoto assist Haru out of the pool, and soon after Rin approach Haru and hugged him.

Hana felt a warm little something touch her heart as she watched the four properly reunite since Rin had returned to Japan. She saw them smiling, and laughing, looking as there had never been any conflict between them whatsoever. Their friendship was, indeed, incredibly strong.

"You guys are truly beautiful," she heard Rei mutter, and Hana smiled, nodding her agreement.

Watching her friends reunite... it truly was one of the most beautiful things she had ever seen.

*          *          *

When the race finished, photos were taken, Rei even going downstairs to have a photo with his team. It was incredibly touching to watch the boys get along and bring Rei into the photo. The way they were positioned reminded Hana of the photo after they'd swum as kids.

When they disappeared to get changed, and a good five minutes had passed to allow that to have happened, Hana stood up abruptly and ran. She ran to find them, to join in, to celebrate with them. They most definitely deserved it.

They were headed for the same corridors where they'd disappeared twenty or so minutes ago, when they'd overheard Rin say he was going to quit swimming and the others stopped that from happening. She'd overcome her shocked delight, and was now filled with a buzz of euphoria. She ran to meet them; she had to share her excitement with her closest of friends. She soon heard voices, all of them loud, but not raised in anger, and filled with laughter. Hana knew without a doubt that it was them. She guessed they had a lot of catching up to do.

She skidded around the corner, and saw all give of them standing there, four of them with their Iwatobi jackets, the other with a greatly contrasting Samezuka one. But other than the uniforms, there was no divide between them. Hana grinned and half-skipped, half-ran forward.

"Guys, congratulations!" Hana squealed, running up to them. "You did it! You won!" Her eyes then caught Haru, and her grin grew wider. "And Haru! You brought the team home! Oh my gosh, Haru!"

Hana launched herself at Haru, wrapping her arms around his neck. She didn't care that he was still a little wet from the pool or the shower; they had just come out victorious in the regional tournament, and it looked as though the relationship between the boys and Rin had been mended. She was on an electrified buzz, hanging on cloud nine, and wanted to share her excitement with someone, someone who she was incredibly close with and considered immensely important in her life.

Haru laughed and pulled back, grinning like a fool. For a moment, they just stared at each other, Haru with a strange combination of shock and fondness on his face, while Hana just ran on pure excitable energy.

And then, on a moment of impulse, with the other four there to witness it, Hana pressed her lips to his.

-----------------------------------------------------------

aaaand.... it's finally happened XD

goodnight to you all