whatever happened that night? ➳ makoharu

02 ➳ Encounters

**unedited**

I slept on the way to the Sports Complex. I honestly wasn't even tired, though. The subway was pretty smooth and calm and I could feel myself swaying back and forth in my sleep. Makoto soon nudged me awake when our stop came so I grabbed my swim bag, and stepped out onto the platform. We were underground, so we made our way up through the escalator.

"Nervous?" He asked. I shook my head even though my legs were trembling. "I can tell you are."

"Not really," I said, looking in the other direction. The buildings in Tokyo were massive, as they soared up into the sky. I watched in awe as birds flew past them in small flocks. That's right, winter is coming. The holidays. . .

"Haru?"

I blinked several times. "Oh. . .sorry! I spaced out."

"Thinking about your first day?" He practically read my hand. I blushed and shook my head. "I'm anxious too. The classes will be hard and I hope I do well."

"You'll do just fine," I said. "After all, you taught those kids to swim, remember?" His eyes widened and then he smiled.

"Thanks."

We walked to the corner of two streets and Makoto glanced up at a tall building nearby. I immediately knew it was his college and damn it was huge. The soaring campus was nearly ten football fields long and a large welcome sign was down the road. Students were passing by in taxis and hopping out for their first day.

"The school is pretty close!" He exclaimed.

"Yeah." I didn't have any words. This was it. "Have a great first day," I sputtered out.

"You too!" He called, waving to me as he hurried to the campus. I waved back, my hand lifeless and my heart numb. He'd always been there for me. It was my turn to blend in with this world. I turned on my heel and started down Miyano Street. The Complex was about another block down, so I had awhile to go.

I passed by lots of small shops and more buildings, which I really admired. The sky was a clear blue and the clouds were large and puffy. It was a nice and breezy out; fall weather, actually.

Suddenly, I bumped into someone. I'm not usually the type of person who encounters people a lot, but this girl was stumbling out of nowhere and ran right into me. She was carrying a duffel bag and the contents spilled all over the sidewalk. She cupped her hands around her mouth and gave a small yelp.

"I am so sorry! I'm running late for a lesson I'm teaching and wow, okay, I'm really sorry, I truly am." She was collecting some books and clothes. I kneeled down beside her in silence, but slightly beamed. Her dark brown hair was tucked behind her ear and she looked very professional.

She reminded me of Makoto.

"I'm really sorry again!" She cried. With that, she picked up her bag and started dashing in the opposite direction.

I liked her.

***

The Sports Complex was extremely large on the outside. It was basically a big dome with solar panels on the top, sliding glass doors, and fake plants near the entrance. I made my way to the doors and when they slid open, I gaped in amazement.

Long, marble floors stretched for what seemed like miles and the ceiling was very high up. If you looked above you, you could see the sky and the sun. The walls were covered in photos of past swimmers, runners, and more athletes. I trudged over to the front desk and handed them my welcome later.

"Nanase-san, correct?" The lady asked. I nodded. "Welcome! Head down the corridor on my right, take a left, and look for the men's locker room."

"Thank you," I replied. I started down the hallway and came across a few guys. They were carrying towels back to the main pool behind me. I gulped. Swimming with my friends was different that swimming to win.

I swerved the corner, pushing the bulky door open to the mens' locker room. A fresh wave of chlorine and deodorant wallowed up my nose. I took off my shirt and stuffed it in a open locker. I would have to get my locker combo and number from my coach. I looked around the locker room for any familiar faces.

Absolutely none.

I sighed and grabbed my goggles from my bag. Starting towards the main pool, I met eyes with another swimmer. He was tall, bulky, and had an intense expression on his face. I swallowed the lump in my throat and tried to smile, but he looked like a cheetah ready to attack.

"What're you staring at?" He barked.

"Er. . .nothing!" I said, quickly. He furrowed his eyebrows and stomped past me to the pool. I watched him carefully and started to follow when he glared back, his icy blue eyes biting a cold stare.

"Quit following me," he spat. His face showed hatred and I wanted to say something, but the words wouldn't come. I stopped dead in my tracks as he hurried off. What the hell just happened? I waited for awhile before I started to the main pool again, and this time I caught no sight of him. I breathed out a sigh of relief.

"You there!"

I turned around, my eyes widening, and saw a short and skinny girl in a green jacket pointing at me. She was carrying that same duffel bag. . .

Oh my God.

"Get in the pool! We're doing 100 meter freestyle spurts!" Her eyes met mine and she was almost about to drop her clipboard. "You're. . ."

"H-hello," I stammered. Her facial expression suddenly changed and she beamed at me.

"Welcome to the Tokyo Sports Complex. I'm your new coach, Tazuro Alyssa."

How was that chapter? It's moving kind of slow, haha I'm sorry! Sooooo that mean guy, huh?

Thoughts on him?

Thoughts on Alyssa?

Thoughts on the entire chapter?

Let me know in the comments! Thanks for the reading!

Stay tuned!

-Monty