Ocean Mist (Azul Ashengrotto/Yuu)

1 ~ Lesson One

Yuu shifted nervously. She knew that the swimming lessons would be beneficial and it was even better that she'd get to see her crush so much more now, but now that she was at the pool?

She felt nervous like never before.

Azul was a sea creature; swimming was to him what walking was to land-dwellers like Yuu. What if she did something dumb? What if she was such a horrible student and he ended up hating her? And her slight fear of swimming-what if he deemed that she was hopeless?

Little did she know, Azul was just as nervous as she was, if not more. Learning how to swim in his human form, naturally, was the thing that came easiest to him, yet the prospect of teaching it to someone made him doubt his capabilities. Especially when that someone happened to be his crush.

He made sure to choose his swimsuit carefully, compiled a list of practice methods, and reviewed everything by himself, but he was worried that she would cause him to slip up. With how awkward he felt around her, it was only a matter of time.

So, with two awkward idiots in love with each other trying their best not to make fools of themselves, shenanigans ensued.

"A-Azul!" She squeaked as he entered. She cursed herself for how strangled her voice had come out and began walking over to him before tripping over her feet.

He managed to catch her and she let out a small laugh. "Sorry about that, I promise I'm not usually this klutzy..."

'Oh my goodness,' was the only thought in Azul's mind as he stared at her in his arms, feeling his face flush. She looked absolutely gorgeous (though that was nothing new in Azul's mind). He forced himself to look away-he didn't want to seem like a creep.

"Y-You're fine," he responded, straightening his posture as he tried to recall the notes he'd compiled to help aid them in this ordeal. But he was still taken aback by their close proximity and his mind was going blank.

Yuu held her hands behind her back, pointing to the pool with her foot. "So... where do we start?"

"Ah, why don't you show me what you already know?" He prompted, sitting on the ledge and dangling his feet into the water. "Unless you're entirely unfamiliar with the concept of swimming."

"...I guess I could try to remember how to float..." She took a few steps into the pool before quickly retracting, the icy temperature and her fear causing her to jolt back to the pool's border. "The water-the water's super cold... Sorry, this might take a while."

She slowly descended another step into the pool, willing herself to stay there despite the frigid sensation rushing through her body. It wasn't that deep, yet; she could handle it. 'Just one step at a time.'

Azul raised an eyebrow and hopped into the pool, paddling over to where Yuu was. "Is it really that cold?"

"I'm not accustomed to cool temperatures like you," Yuu whined. "Just give me a bit of time..."

Azul let out a soft sigh, bordering on a chuckle. "I see why Vil required this of you." He stretched out his hands towards her. "Here, I'll help you in."

She eyed his hands suspiciously. "Your hands aren't gonna make the water warmer."

"Who's the instructor here? It's not you, is it?"

"You're so mean~" Yet she took his hands and he tugged her gently into the water, not allowing her to backtrack. Soon enough, she was comfortably wading in the water, mostly adjusted to the temperature.

Azul brushed a strand of hair out of his face. "See? That wasn't so hard, was it?" She stuck out her tongue, though still holding onto his hands. He took note of this and raised an eyebrow.

"W-Well, the water's kind of deep, isn't it..?"

"...Yuu, it's barely up to your chest."

"I'm gonna die if I let go."

Azul paused. "Are you scared of swimming?"

She glanced to the side nervously, confirming his suspicions. He felt his heart beat harder in his chest. 'How adorable.'

"Don't worry, I'll walk you through everything. I won't let go unless you're comfortable, okay?" His tone was suddenly caring and smooth, and Yuu found herself trusting him, despite being aware of how deceptive he could be with that silver tongue of his. The very silver tongue he was using to coax her fear away.

They spent their first pool session simply getting Yuu acclimated to the water. She enjoyed it much more than she thought she would, and she somehow managed to not make any more dumb mistakes after slipping and falling into Azul at the beginning.

Azul was already absolutely smitten with her, but being able to get to know her today made him only fall harder. And little did he know, though her feelings didn't yet match the intensity of his, she would grow to care for him just as much as he did her.

'Maybe learning how to swim won't be so bad, after all...'