Scars To Your Beautiful || Ayanokoji Kiyotaka X OC

Chapter 10 - Invisible Worries

(A/N) - there are a mess with 'Ayanokouji' and 'Ayanokoji' lol. Don't mind them.

_

Did I just really fall into the water?

Okay, Aoi, just calm down. - she thought to herself, it's completely fine, I'm not as dumb as I was years ago, I can't just give in to mere memories.

Yes, no time to panic, Aoi waved her hands up and down, kicking her legs along with it. She managed to rise a little, but her breath had already escaped her. She kicked her legs faster, but made a wrong move that twisted her ankle painfully.

Aoi couldn't help but groan at the sudden, knife-like pain, water immediately rushing into her mouth and nose. She tried to swim upward, but her throbbing ankle made it difficult.

This is bad-

I'm losing it.

Her breathing became blocked, and bubbles escaped from her mouth, making her increasingly uncomfortable.

Her heart raced faster and faster as her mind became entangled with haunting memories.

Flashbacks flooded her mind, the feelings and emotions she experienced when her father used to force her head underwater to heal the bruises he had inflicted. The same fear gripped her when she was pushed into the pool by troublesome boys years ago, causing her to panic and lose consciousness, only to be saved by Satsuki

Pathetic, I'm still pathetic like before.

Her heart pained, as if a knife had been thrust inside, trauma overpowering her. Her blurry vision caught a glimpse of a figure approaching, their hands reaching out to grab hers.

In a state of fear, Aoi jerked her hand back, attempting to escape, but the grip only tightened. She stared at the figure with fearful eyes, until her vision cleared.

Aoi noticed Kiyotaka's glowing brown eyes locked onto her violet ones. He drew closer, tapping his chest as if signaling her to trust him.

Gradually, Aoi's panic subsided, and more bubbles escaped her mouth as water continued to enter, a sign that she urgently needed oxygen.

Kiyotaka securely wrapped his arms around her waist and guided her hand to rest on his neck. With strong leg movements, he propelled them upward, breaking through the water's surface.

As they emerged, both of them took deep breaths, relieved to have air once again.

Aoi felt exhausted and dizzy. A firm hand landed on her back, and she coughed forcefully, expelling water from her lungs. Her ears rang as the sound gradually faded, replaced by concerned voices.

As she gained her composer, vision and voices became clearer. To her embarrassment, looking down se realized her hand was wrapped around Kiyotaka's bare body so casually. She felt her cheeks warm up as Kiyotaka asked her with water dripping from his hair, "Are you okay?"

"Ye-Yeah," she stammered, her voice trembling. "Tha-thank you, you saved me." Her hand quickly shifted to the poolside as she released herself from his grip, putting weight on the floor and sitting up.

"Ouch!" Her ankle throbbed, and she winced in pain, cradling her ankle with both hands.

"Are you okay, Aoi-chan? That was quite a fall!" Kushida's concerned voice reached her. "Did you twist your ankle?"