Clouded Distance | Free! Fan Fiction

10. Quiet Uncertainties

Clouded Distance

Chapter Ten

Quiet Uncertainties

For a moment, tension filled the room. Well, it did for Hana, who witnessed Haru and Sousuke glared at each other - everyone else seemed to be fairly at ease. They hadn't witnessed the way Haru's eyes had narrowed upon sight of the tall, dark-haired boy.

Hana's eyes flicked between the two, unsure what was going on. She had never seen this other boy before, or seen him in past pictures. But Haru must know him, if the other boy had gained out a reaction out of him.

Gou was the one to break the ice. Her eyes lit up when she spotted the tall figure. "Oh, Sousuke-kun!" she exclaiming, running toward him.

So this is Sousuke? Hana guessed that she shouldn't have been surprised. Rin had mentioned him, and Hana didn't see any other person nearby who resembled a highly competitive swimmer.

Sousuke's face split into a warm smile - a completely different expression to the one he wore before. "Gou. How've you been?"

"Great! It's been a really long time!" Her eyes narrowed slightly. "I haven't heard from you once since we ended up in separate high schools. In that respect, you're just like oni-chan!"

Sousuke laughed. "Sorry about that."

During Sousuke and Gou's exchange, Hana leaned in a little closer to Haru. "Haru, do you know him?" she asked, in a quiet murmur.

Haru nodded. "We raced each other," he said. "He went to the same elementary school as Rin, before Rin transfered."

Ah. I see.

Rin smiled. "We'll catch up with you guys later." He faced the members of his team. "Let's go!"

Hana smiled and waved the Samezuka members off with her friends, but there was one who obviously didn't want to leave just then. The red-haired boy dashed forward toward Gou.

"I'm Mikoshiba Momotarou!" So my hunch was true. He is Seijuro's little brother. Hana couldn't help but smile at the obvious differences between the two brothers. "My hobby is hunting for stag beetles! My favourite proverb is 'even Homer sometimes nods!' My best dish is fried eggs! When I shower -"

Rin's hand came out of nowhere, and he grabbed on to Momotarou. "Get a move on!" he snapped, and dragged the younger Mikoshiba away.

"Ow, that hurts!" Momotarou complained, as he was dragged down the corridor with the other members of Samezuka. Hana couldn't help but laugh as she and the others watched the team walk off. Rin's definitely the protective older brother.

Once Samezuka's representatives had disappeared, Gou stepped forth. "Right, let's go in."

They all nodded and followed after her to the pool, where the events had just started to get underway.

Hana was rather surprised by the turnout. There was more people here than she'd imagined there'd be. Then again, this was a fun family event, so more than a few families would like to spend the day with their kids here.

The day progressed smoothly and without a hitch. Hana switched between talking with her friends and Rin, seeking the both of them out. Rin was busy watching out for his team though, and seemed especially concerned with keeping Momotarou away from Gou. Hana couldn't help but find that amusing.

It was getting down to the finals events of the day. Hana found herself with her friends from Iwatobi but exempting Haru, who had wandered off somewhere.