Azure Beats (Sousuke x Reader)

21 - Haru Certainly Does NOT Swim Like That

The elevator dinged open and (Name) got inside. She pressed the lobby button and the doors slid close, she was the only one inside it. While waiting for the doors to open again at the lobby, her conversation with Gou replayed over and over in her head. Maybe you just don't want to, you seem ready to me, Gou had said.

(Name) knew Gou was right. That girl can read her like an open book, she is very observant its scary. But there is a nagging feeling at the back of her mind. She did not want the incident with her ex to repeat, she really don't. Sousuke also seems really nice, but so was he. The same debate again and again.

The elevator doors slid open and she stepped out, immediately heading to the door which leads to the gardens.

She pushed open the heavy glass doors and she was out. Immediately after that, she shivered, the night was colder than she thought, her jacket couldn't really fend off the temperature.

She wrapped it tighter around herself and stubbornly continued to walk, refusing to go back to her room despite the cold. (Name) looked around. The garden was lit by decirated lamps here and there, not too sparse that it was dark, but also not too close by that it was really bright. In other words, just right. Romantic, even.

From where she stood, the wide brick path lead to the left and right, with tall, wide-leafed plants on the sides of it. She knew the path goes in a wide circle, framing the big swimming pool in the middle. She saw it all from her hotel room earlier today.

With no apparent destination in her head, (Name) simply went to her right and walked on, following the path.

The night was beautiful and cloudless. Stars dotted the sky high above her head, each one seeming to wink at her one at a time. She could hear frogs croaking and cicadas chirping. It made her feel at peace, despite her earlier turmoil.

The path she was in right now looked different from the initial one. Instead of the tall plants behind her, flowers decorated the flowerbed, surrounding the trees planted along it. Her fingers reached out and touched one, wanting to pick it but knowing she dooms it to a certain death if she does.

She jammed her hands back into the pocket of her jacket, shivering slightly. The walk had warmed her slightly, but she was still cold since her shorts and shirt provided little to no protection against the wind that blew her way.

The wind, she noticed, smelled slightly of chlorine, just like a swimming pool, so she must be close to it. She urged herself to walk faster and kept going. Soon enough the oath branched off, one leading ahead, probably going back towards the hotel, and another towards the pool.

Someone was splashing in there, enjoying the solitude of the pool. (Name) went closer to the pool and sat down on one of the pool reclining chairs. A stack of towels were placed on the chair beside her, along with an mp3 and a blue-green jacket, carelessly crumpled up and tossed to the chair.

She smiled to herself. Haru really can't wait to jump in everytime he sees a pool. Her attention was then drawn again to the figure in the pool. Haru was swimming, but something was odd about it.

Instead of his usual freestyle, Haru was.. Swimming the butterfly stroke?

(Name) stood and went closer to the edge of the pool, squatting down and squinting her eyes. It was when she noticed the figure was too tall and muscular to be Haru, and his strokes are more powerful, and not as graceful as Haru.

The figure, that now (Name) definitely was sure not Haru, reached the end of the pool after swimming a long stretch from the other end. He stood in the pool and removed his swimming goggles, looking down at the water and breathing heavily.