The Story Of Forever (Todobaku)

Beach Day

Thank God for Rei.

If Shouto had stuck to his stubborn teenage ways, he would've melted into the sand by now. Luckily Rei was rational and checked the weather report earlier. A cloudy August morning did not mean for a cloudy August afternoon. And with the sun high above his head, nothing obstructing its rays from the rambunctious crowd at Oki Mariner Beach, Shouto was relieved that his mother forced him to back their family's navy beach umbrella.

Protected in the shade, he got comfortable on his Star Wars towel as his friends threw a frisbee around. The UA Heroes wrapped up their season on Wednesday and Eijiro, now with his weekends free, suggested they spend a day at the beach before autumn approached. Shouto had only been to the beach a handful of times this summer, so he was pleased to tag along. Even though he was the only one who hadn't gone in the water yet.

At the moment, his top priority was working on his latest manga project. This was his longest story so far, his others averaging between ten and twenty chapters. While Shouto loved expanding on his creativity, he never had an idea or character that resonated with him enough to develop into a serious project. But after breaking up with Momo, he was struck with new inspiration. The main character came first, then the setting, then the plot, then Shouto was pulling out his sketchbook and scribbling like his life depended on it.

The Lonely Prince was Shouto's way of combating his own, well, loneliness. As the only son of an arrogant and abusive king, Prince Yamato was on a quest to find love and continue his royal lineage. But even with riches and prestige, Yamato struggled to connect with any potential suitor as his upbringing left him emotionally scarred. Shouto channeled much of his own upbringing into this story, which was as gut wrenching as it was therapeutic.

Unlike Shouto, however, Yamato was destined for a happy ending. It would take mountains of obstacles to get there, including break ups, sword fights, and gruesome death scenes (Shouto loved killing his characters), but his princess was waiting for him.

It brought Shouto comfort in a strange way. If he couldn't have love for himself, the next best thing was to write about it in his stories.

He was almost finished shading in the local apothecary when the frisbee landed by his feet. Camie ran over, sporting a hot pink bikini that left little to the imagination. Katsuki's appreciation was obvious, though Camie attracted unwarranted attention from random onlookers. At least five adult men whistled and blew kisses at her since they got there, to which Katsuki shouted at them to fuck off.

Shouto hugged his sketchbook as Camie grabbed the frisbee and ran back to the rest of the group. They tossed it around a bit longer, but the heat caught up to them. Eijiro was the first to retreat to the ocean and cool off, Mina behind him of course. One by one they went in, claiming a small portion of the sea that hadn't been occupied.

As contagious as their excitement was, Shouto couldn't bring himself to join.

When the idea of a beach day was proposed to him, Shouto had no reason to decline. He loved the ocean, and he loved spending time with his friends. It was a win-win.

But that sentiment belonged to middle school Shouto. High school Shouto, as it turned out, had a few insecurities, some that didn't arise until today.

Shouto was aware he was skinny. His eighth grade growth spurt heightened that fact. He was still a healthy weight for his age (albeit on the lower end), but it was clear he never worked out. He retained baby fat in his face and tummy, though that made him appear younger than he already did. Usually, this wouldn't bother him. Shouto was an artist, not an athlete.

But surrounded by patrons, old and young, in their perfectly sculpted beach bodies, Shouto's self esteem plummeted. As someone with hardly any muscle definition, he felt singled out. If he took his shirt off, no doubt people would judge him. Boys were supposed to be strong. They were supposed to have muscles like his father and brother Natsuo. If they had six packs, that was even better.