Loud.
The first thing Ian noticed when he was made aware of what was around him was that it was extremely loud. Students from all across town came with their own homemade banners, and with that came the chaotic merge of different rehearsed cheers, loud enough to be considered skull-splitting.
Asher's voice briefly distracted the brunet out of his misery. "That feeling never goes away huh?"
"I guess," Emery nodded, putting his cap on. "I can't believe it's been almost a year since our last meet."
Second, came the anxiety he'd previously claimed he wasn't feeling earlier, which now had conveniently made itself present. He didn't like that very much, no one ever does, especially this close to an event.
Cameron stood quietly behind all of them as Em and Asher conversed. "It's liberating," Asher said, sighing. The crowd's roar began to grow louder by the second as the size of the lump in Ian's throat. "Kind of makes me wonder when I'll get to see another stadium with this many people."
"I'm gonna miss this."
Asher sighed contentedly. "Me, too."
None of them spoke for a while until Blake joined in.
"I could feel my spine crawling out of my ass," he murmured, and for once, Ian agreed with him.
Third and last and probably the most concerning one of all, was that his boyfriend was nowhere to be found.
A sudden microphone feedback blared, startling Ian and everyone else within earshot. It was followed by the commentator's voice, its volume piercing through everybody's ears, though no one seemed to mind.
"Good morning, everyone!" it clamored. "What an absolutely stunning day, wouldn't you agree?"
A chorus of 'yeah's and 'whoo's filled the air, spiking Ian's heartbeat even higher, which wouldn't have stopped rising had Bryce not shown himself at that exact moment.
Ian stood up quickly, which miraculously went over his teammates' attention as he ran towards their captain. "There you are!" he called as the commentator began giving everyone an overview of the events to come. Bryce was holding an opened bottle of water, looking calm as ever as they both ignored the theatrics. "Where were you?"
"I got thirsty," he said, worried. "Why what's the matter?"
Ian parted his mouth to say something. "Nothing... just wondering where you've been."
"You're getting nervous aren't you?"
"Like a bitch," Ian admitted defeatedly. "I feel like I'm gonna drop dead when I get my turn."
"No one's dropping dead, babe," the blond offered. "Water?"
"How do you know that?" Ian grumbled. "Thanks..."
"Because you've been doing this for years?" Bryce told him as if he couldn't believe he even had to answer the question. "Or that you're one of the best swimmers this team has ever seen?"
"Huh," The brunet smirked, wiping the water off his mouth as he grinned. "Really? You mean that?"
"Among many others," Bryce rolled his eyes, flicking the boy's nose as he scrunched his. "Get over it."
Ian chuckled as they both made it to where their friends were seated, listening to the announcer walk the audience through the first four pairs of events this morning: 200-yard medley relay, solo freestyle, individual medley, and of course, 50-yard freestyle. After a ten-minute break, a.k.a. the diving portion which they're all required to watch, the team is expected to follow through the remaining events, ending with the 400-yard freestyle relay.
Coach Garr stood by with the little chart he always had with him wherever he goes as he reviewed the carefully devised assignments he gave the team the day before while the boys patiently waited to be called.
"Wow, you look like you're probably the least nervous among all of us," Ian murmured to his best friend while Bryce found his seat next to Blake. Emery scoffed deliriously. "You know we're not allowed to drink before the competition right? That's for after." Ian joked, "If we win."
"Shut up, I'm not drunk," the redhead retorted, tucking his hair in his lucky navy blue cap. "I guess the nerves don't come that often anymore when you already know where Coach is gonna assign you."
Coach Garr's voice suddenly interjected before Ian could speak. "Yeun, Taylor, Robinson, and Norris you boys are gonna kick-start this meet as planned. Blake, save your breath, 'cause you're doing a freestyle solo right afterward," Ian and Blake nodded as they were instructed before Coach Garr proceeded to the others, flipping the pages of his coaching plan.
"Suarez, you're on the individual medley, you know what to do," he said as he scanned the room, checking to see if everyone was around. "And..."
"Sanders," he called while Asher stood, attentive. "You'll be doing the 50-yard freestyle and the hundred-yard backstroke this afternoon."
Although a bit confused about the sudden change, Asher nodded obediently anyway. "Yes, sir."
For Emery, who was previously assigned for that event, not so much. "Uh, coach...?" he stood slowly, careful of his tone while Ian watched. "What about me? I thought I was gonna do Asher's."
Without sparing him a glance, Coach Garr muttered, "No, that's not happening anymore."
"What?" puzzled Emery as he followed Coach at the end of the pool, raising his voice so he could be heard over all the noise. "What do you mean it's not happening?"
"I mean you're not doing the 50-yard," Coach Garr answered candidly, pointing his pen tat the direction of Bryce. "You'll be joining Occonor and the others in the 400 freestyle relay after you do the first solo butterfly this afternoon."
"WHAT?" the redhead exclaimed, feeling his heart literally skip a beat at his coach's sudden declaration. "Y-you want me to do a hundred yard...? And a relay?" he stammered. "But... but I'm..."
It's been a while since he last did a relay let alone one where he has to swim alongside his captain. Roughly 3 years ago, the number of swimmers that tried out and made the team increased rapidly, and since then, he never got the chance to be assigned to a relay, and he was okay with that, so being told that he has to do one today, in his last high school competition on the last minute is quite a big deal for Emery.
"How about Lewis?" he queried hopefully.
"Broke his leg surfing yesterday," Coach Garr informed, face blank.
"Greg?" he added, optimistic. "I'm sure Greg would love to replace him."
"Dropped out last year," Coach raised a brow in his student's direction. "Come on."
"Okay..." Emery nodded slowly. "How about-"
"Chernychevsky."
The redhead gulped. "Yes, sir."
"Can you not swim?"
"I- no- I mean, of course I can, Coach," he swallowed. "I can."
"Okay. Does your head hurt? Are you constipated?"
"No..."
"Does your family have a medical history of freaking out for no reason?"
"I-" Emery drew in a breath, already knowing where this conversation is headed. "No."
"Okay," Coach turned about, crossing his arms. "Then are you telling me I don't know what I'm doing?"
"No, sir. Of course not," Emery said finally, letting out a defeated sigh.
"Look, you may not know it," Coach began, resting a palm on the redhead's shoulder. "As your coach, I watch everyone who shows up for practice, so I know which ones flunked this season and which ones didn't. And you may not have noticed this yourself, but you've improved quite a lot this past few months, son."
"Okay," Emery smiled as he took a deep breath. "Okay..."
Coach Garr chuckled, shaking his head as he pulled back before turning around towards where Cameron stood. "Brooks, you're following Chernychevsky immediately on the 100-yard freestyle. Bryce, you're on the 500-yard freestyle and get as much rest as you need after that. I can't have my last leg passing out on me in the middle of the last relay..."
As Coach Garr worked his way down the bottom of his list, Emery sat beside his best friend, still appalled, which eventually turned into an overwhelming rush of excitement.
"Holy shit," he blustered, mouth stretching wide. "I'm doing a relay, Ian."
"I'm so happy for you," Ian grinned, brows pulling together. "But haven't you already done one before?"
"Yeah-huh, like in tenth grade! Do you remember how badly we lost after that?" Emery insisted. "Was Coach right though? Did I really improve?"
"Of cours-"
"Oh how would you know, you spend half your time making out with the captain," Emery laughed, face falling when he saw his best friend was nowhere near amused. He raised his palms up in surrender. "I'm joking."
Ian laughed, sarcastic. "God, you're so funny. Really. Tell me, what does it feel like to break an ankle?"
"I've never broken mine before."
"Huh," Ian shrugged menacingly. "We'll see."
Emery rolled his eyes. "I'm nervous."
"Me, too. But I say to hell with that, you go out there and kick some ass," the brunet told him, smirking before pulling down his goggles as the announcer called the participants for the first event, he included. "I mean after you watch me do it first."
The brunet stood up, Blake, Asher, and the rest following behind him as they made their way to their positions.
"Good luck!" Emery waved at his best friend, who gave him a wink and a thumb's up.
The first event was the 200-yard medley relay made up of four swimmers, each doing a different stroke. The first to go as the buzzer went was Blake, who did an effortless backstroke. The next swimmer has to do breaststroke, followed by butterfly, and finally finishing the medley would be the freestyle swimmer, which fell on Ian's hands.
The minute flew past, and soon Ian was the last person remaining on the line. As he settled himself on the platform, he first spots his mom in the crowd, wearing a proud grin on her face, and Evie wearing one of her gap-toothed ones, her little hair tied up in high pigtails. He looked around him, from the depth of the water to the bleachers as the fact that all of it was filled to the brim with people occurred to him. He was on the verge of another nervous breakdown when he shifted his gaze to the left where his captain was standing, arms crossed sternly, yet he can read exactly what he was saying just by looking, however cliché that must sound.
"Good luck, baby."
With that, his turn came and Ian didn't waste a second to plunge into the waters, drowning out the screams that followed him as he did. Swimming was his best friend next to Emery, swimming he loved. In swimming, he felt a sense of peace, tranquility. But racing? Racing is a whole different story. His limbs worked together like the mechanics of a running clock, ticking and ticking, not mindful of anything else but one purpose: to win.
The cheers came thundering even more clearly as Ian finished the entire distance. The first thing he did was resurface and remove his goggles as he looked up at the scoreboard suspended above, the bright lights flickering before it stopped to show how he did as the first to complete an event. It wouldn't matter if he nailed it or not, but first impressions are important, especially when it comes to weighing his school's reputation on his shoulders.
1 Norton HS
2 Claret Point AC
3 Ivy Heights
4 IM-CSHS
. . .
8 Upper Slope SHS
"Oh, thank God," Ian heard himself murmur just as the audience screeched, making him smile to himself. When he looked up, Blake was already offering his hands to help the brunet up, which the latter gladly took.
"You did amazing!" the dark-haired boy exclaimed as soon as Ian. "You should've seen yourself."
"Thanks!" Ian beamed, panting. "Break a leg, Blake."
Blake and Asher did great in their individual events that followed immediately after Ian's, and it wasn't that long until the first half of the meet ended, making way for the diving event. After congratulating his boyfriend, Bryce dragged Ian for a bite across the campus yard despite Coach Garr's advice on not eating anything and insistence on them staying for the divers' portion for sportsmanship. It was a reasonably good twenty-minute break despite the earful the couple received the moment they got back.
Once everything simmered down, Emery's turn eventually came up while his best friend stood proudly on the sidelines to film everything for later. Ian was told earlier that Em's parents won't make it because of work, so he took it upon himself to document everything for them.
"Make sure I look good," Emery reminded him before getting into position
"In the water as you flail around like a speedboat?" Ian yelled in question. "Okay."
Emery flipped him off, jumped in the water as the buzzer sounded, and ended up nailing his event, much to Ian's confident expectation.
After taking his hat off to his best friend, Ian wished Cameron good luck who ended up bagging second place in the 100-yard freestyle that followed right after Emery's event. The team tried not to get too discouraged given that they won everything prior to that. That was until the 500-yard freestyle came, and their captain failed to win by a millisecond despite hard efforts.
"That was amazing!" Ian exclaimed, optimistic as he helped Bryce up, both their bodies reeking of chlorine.
"Yeah, for a sucker," Bryce murmured disappointedly. Ian frowned, reaching out for his arm before stopping himself to pat his boyfriend on the back instead.
"Hey, don't beat yourself up," he said, knocking his fist like a typical hetero against Bryce's muscled arm, failing to notice the snort that escaped the blond's lips. "I was bored so I wrote down our scores, we're leading."
Bryce hung his arm around Ian's shoulder, leaning as he spoke jokingly, "You don't say, dude."
Ian rolled his eyes while the blond laughed as they watched the remaining events that followed before Bryce had to swim again for the 400-yard relay. Blake did a hundred-yard backstroke while Ian followed with the breaststroke event at the same distance. They both won their events and got to celebrate long enough before the start of the final event was announced: the 400-yard freestyle relay, comprised of Cameron, Emery, Asher, and the last leg, Bryce respectively.
"Good luck," Ian whispered for what feels like the millionth time today as Bryce got himself geared up.
"How many times are we required to say that exactly?"
"It's customary," Ian retorted, handing the blond his spare goggles.
Bryce chuckled, biting the inside of his cheek when Ian looked up with his wet hair draped down messily above his head. "I wanna kiss you," he murmured.
"Don't spoil it," Ian waved him off playfully as he tried to feign the blush spreading across his cheeks. "Now go get us that trophy, captain."
"How are you both not caught yet?" Emery complained, anxiety lacing his tone as he walked past the two, making them laugh.
The entire team trailed behind the four like puppies following their mama, chanting merrily as they all wished Bryce and the others the best of luck. Cameron prepared his stance and waited for the signal while Emery stood behind him, obviously nervous, at least to the eyes of those who could see beyond his straight-faced facade: a.k.a. Ian.
"Good luck, Em!" the brunet waved, grinning from ear to ear.
Emery faced his best friend warily. "I think I'm gonna throw up!" he yelled just as the sound of the buzzer filled the air.
Cameron's feet immediately left the platform, and as he did, everyone, including the audience from opposing schools started squealing in unison.
"Why does no one ever cheer for me like that," Blake muttered with a huff as he pinched his fingers a few spaces apart. "I'm this close to taking this personally."
"Come on. I'm sure someone's screaming your name out there," Ian assured, patting his knee.
"Yeah. My mom."
After Cameron, who finished his lap in under 50 seconds came Emery, his body flying gracefully in the air before he fell in the water with a loud splash. He was relatively faster than the blond, which shocked the redhead himself more than most. By the time Asher's turn came up, Norton High was still leading, which means he was doing well, a concept lost to some people, his sister in particular.
"Asher Sanders you better swim your ass off, I have money riding on you!" Allison, Asher's sister, screamed beside while Ian flinched with her every shriek. "Swim, you musty-ass looking jerk!" Noticing that she's been getting weird looks, Allison grumbled and made a face at them. "He's my brother."
Bryce was impatient where he stood, his hands clenched tight in the air as he silently demanded his teammate to reach his end faster. When Asher finally did, Bryce dove faster than the speed of light, his body reaching halfway before the clock added a second. The screams started to intensify as the blond outrun everyone. He's always been fast and determined, headstrong and quick-witted, which was undoubtedly why he was made captain.
All of it made Ian all but giddy in his seat. That's his motherfucking boyfriend. And his motherfucking boyfriend is gonna win this mother fucking contest.
As Ian prepared to cheer for him, a pair of voices behind him made the brunet pause.
"The last one's hot," it said.
"Uh, you don't have to tell me," the other agreed, her voice a pitch higher than the first. "He's the captain. I heard he's single."
With that, Ian snorted, biting back a "yeah right."
"Do you think I should ask for his number?"
The brunet raised his brow, leaning back so he can hear them better.
There was a scoff, followed by a confident, "Girl, you've been single for too long, go for it!"
"What did I miss?" Blake interjected before anything else could happen as he sat beside the now agitated Ian. "Bryce is tickled."
"Yeah, and apparently so are people's fancies," the brunet grumbled, crossing his arms.
"He's really fast." Blake added jokingly, "You're getting that much stamina in bed 24/7?"
"Excuse me, can people stop ogling at my boyfriend?" Ian chided before a subtle smug took over his face. "But yeah... pretty much."
Blake deadpanned. "I was joking, I didn't need the mental image."
Ian ignored him, and by the time he paid his attention back to the pool, Bryce was already halfway through his third lap, and all who had their team's backs were now on the edge of their seats, cheering, yelling every time a rival comes close to outrunning their last leg.
"Come on," Ian muttered, biting his nails, which he never usually does. "Come on, come on, come on..."
"Are we leading? I can't see! He's leading right?" Blake jabbered, nudging Ian repeatedly.
"Barely, I don't know... God, he's hot, I mean OMG I hope he makes it," the brunet blubbered, his brain grinding his thoughts into shreds. "Oh my God..."
"Get it, Bryce!" Emery yelled from the pool's edge, standing up just as Ian did.
"COME ON, BRYCE BUST THAT ASS!" Blake cheered in front of them, moving his hips from side to side as he made a poor impression of the cheerleading team while chanting in Dory's voice. "JUST KEEP SWIMMING! JUST KEEP SWIMMING!"
He's gonna make it, Ian told himself. He's gonna make it.
As soon as Bryce's fingers made contact with the pool's edge, everything went silent, all eyes turning to the screen as a nail-biting thrill filled the air. When the numbers finally stopped, so did the hearts of many, for a moment, until thunderous screams took their place back in the stadium.
Norton High - 1 | 03:21.08
"YEAH! THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!"
"YESSSSSSSS!"
"WE WON! WE WON! WE WON! We won, didn't we?"
Ian hopped from his seat, he, Blake, and the rest of the crowd roaring 'YES's and 'WHOO's in chorus as Cameron, Emery, and Asher helped their captain up before the four hugged in a circle, jumping up and down as they celebrated their victory.
When they broke away, Ian immediately sprinted towards his boyfriend, intending to give their captain an appropriate congratulations. As he reached in front of Bryce, the blond's face was red, his already bright smile spreading wider at the sight of Ian. He'd already removed his cap, which makes it even harder for the brunet not to swoon, but he kept his control.
"Now that was amazing!" he exclaimed, not noticing the way Bryce strode towards him as Ian was too distracted by the colors on the screen above. "Geez, did you see yourself? I'm so so so so proud of y-"
Ian had pictured himself getting swept by his feet and kissed in front of many people since he could remember. He'd imagined it enough times and rehearsed the faces he's gonna make in case the love of his life does so, how he'd react, or if he'd kiss back. Maybe he could slip in a witty joke after, something along the lines of "woah, didn't see you there" or "is this a prank?"
Yet when Bryce's hands circled around his waist milliseconds before the blond took his mouth in his, Ian didn't know what to do. He couldn't move a muscle, and just stood there awkwardly as he tried to understand what was happening, he tried and tried, but then it had already ended before he could.
Everyone simultaneously stopped what they were doing and let out an uproarious gasp at the sight of the homosexuals.
Okay, no they didn't, but some of them were pretty shocked.
Ian's heart was racing, his head hammering, and Ian managed to let out all but four words from the tip of his tongue.
"You just kissed me," Ian muttered more to himself than to anyone who was looking, his fingertips brushing lightly on his mouth where the ghost of Bryce's lips lingered. His eyes widened, as the realization hit him the second time. "You..." he let out a breath of air, not daring to see the blond's reaction.
What if he didn't mean to do that? What if it was just a spur-of-the-moment thing? the brunet thought in terror as the crowd's voices seem to begin morphing into inaudible murmurs in his head.
His eyes wandered around the stadium, expecting everybody's eyes to be on them, and a number of them were, of course not excluding his teammates who looked way beyond shocked as everyone else. The first one his gaze caught was Asher, looking absolutely dumbfounded and lost in an ocean of thoughts. He looked behind him and saw Coach Garr smirking with his eyes, standing beside Cameron who wore an expression Ian couldn't quite decipher.
Not long after, his eyes found his mom carrying his sleeping sister in her arms, and despite the distance, Ian saw her lips stretched in a wide grin, her face glowing the brightest it's ever been. Ian chuckled nervously long until it started fading as he was reminded that Bryce was still standing beside him, waiting for his attention.
So he looked up, and when he did, Ian could feel his heart swell. Contrary to what he had in prospect, his boyfriend was looking down at him with this giant smile on his face as if silently asking, 'Why the hell are you freaking out?'
Ian snorted, laughing his nerves off as he muttered, "You just kissed me..."
"My bad," Bryce whispered, his hands marking its territory on either side of Ian's waist. Ian couldn't exactly hear him, but he's spent more than enough time with this guy to know exactly what he was saying. That, plus he's a good lip reader. "I was going for a hug."
Ian smiled, hooking his arms around Bryce's neck while the latter hugged him back before pressing their lips again, just for a brief moment.
"Yeah! That's right! They're a couple, whatcha gonna do about it?" Blake's voice resonated over the loud screams that Ian realized just now were actually supportive in tone.
The brunet looked around him and saw that even their competitors seemed happy for them, overlooking the fact that they most probably lost (the scores were obvious, anyone who hasn't figured out who won by now would be stupid). He could see his teammates' jaws simultaneously falling to the floor, mostly Asher's, while Blake skipped around him, celebrating. Emery gave his best friend a couraging thumbs-up, pulling Blake aside before Asher gets annoyed and smacks the life out of his head.
"Oh..." Asher murmured, eyes widening. "Oh my god, everything makes so much sense now!"
Bryce and Ian shared a laugh with the brunet's head leaning against the other's shoulder while Asher gushed loudly about all the times he'd ignore it when the couple would go missing in action at the same time without an explanation.
"Let me guess, you thought they were smoking pot?" Blake asked, pertaining to Asher.
"What? No," the latter answered, shaking his head. "I thought it was just really good timing."
"You know my plan was to tell our friends over donuts," Ian whispered, making his boyfriend grin. "But this is way better."
"Hey," they both turned around at the voice, and saw Cameron standing before them as he removed the pair of goggles wrapped around his forehead. "I didn't know you guys were..." He exhaled, letting out an amused chuckle. "None of us would've guessed."
"Yeah well," Bryce said. "We didn't either."
Finally, the other blond smiled, tapping his captain on the shoulder. "Congratulations."
Ian smiled, pulling away from his boyfriend to properly thank him for the both of them. "Thank you, Cam."
Cameron smiled back, his eyes lingering on the brunet, only breaking contact when the speakers boomed, followed by the commentator's overly jolly voice and theatric music background.
"I am pleased to announce this year's overall Mercy Hills District Championship Meet victor..." he cheered, pausing thrill. Bryce and his team gathered by the side of the stage with huge smiles on their faces. Coach Garr was there as well, holding his camera ready.
"Get your hands together for M. Wood Norton High School!"
"YEAH!" seemed to be the word of the day as the team captain brought everyone in a massive group hug with everyone too happy to give a crap about being squeezed to death. The huddle eventually came apart as the team was called on stage while Coach Garr stood proudly below them, ready to take a picture.
"Woah, that's a big-ass camera, Coach."
"Shut your hole and get in the frame, Yeun," Coach said, pointing at Bryce. "Occonor, you and Norris stand in the middle."
Everyone found their positions as Blake grumbled, "Why do they get to be in the middle?!"
"Is it because we're gay?" Bryce gasped, feigning insult, pulling Ian close to his side as the latter threw his head back, laughing when Blake's eyes widened. "That's not-!" the dark-haired boy protested, panic surging in his voice as the entire team went with their captain's joke.
As Bryce was being handed the trophy, he spoke on behalf of his team. "Ready when you are, Coach." Coach Garr began counting down from 3 before sealing the photos with four bright flashes. Everybody but Bryce and Ian jumped down to look at the pictures, simultaneously howling at how good each other looked.
A couple of moments later, the couple decided to descend the stage and saw one of the last people either of them would've expected to show up. Isabelle stood before them, her ebony black hair that previously reached her upper back now hovered over her shoulders, which admittedly wasn't a bad look on her.
"I decided to stop by before I head to the airport and thankfully saw everything," she said. "I'm so happy for you, Bryce. You too, Adrian."
Ian smiled. "Thanks," Bryce muttered, realizing that his long dread of talking to Isabelle that was once there wasn't anymore. He was happy and content enough to forget about who he was, or rather who he pretended to be when he was with her, and he was grateful. "Thanks, Iz."
"Hey," Bryce called before she can walk away. "Can't you stay a little longer? We're having a celebration after graduation, it'd be nice to have you back in parties."
Isabelle smiled. "I'll see what I can do."
Ian watched as the two embraced, feeling no pang of jealousy as he saw his boyfriend and Izzie get the closure she deserved. Bryce looked at him when they pulled away, and before Ian could hug him himself, slender fingers pulled him aside, making the brunet groan before he could see who it was.
"Mom!" Ian complained, the same embarrassment he felt in his middle school graduation surging back in one big awful wave.
"Oh shush you!" Olivia waved her hand in a reprimanding manner while Evie giggled. "Bryce, honey come here let's get you two in a picture!"
Bryce chuckled as Isabelle ushered both of them to go because she has somewhere to be anyway. Bidding her goodbye, the blond made his way soon after towards them, pausing when Olivia gave him a look as she started setting up her phone camera. "That was quite a show you did back there."
Cowering behind his boyfriend, Bryce's pale face flushed at the woman's words. "Sorry."
"Don't be," Olivia told him. "Save those apologies for when you really need 'em." She continued, her gaze piercing through the blond boy's soul. "You know what I mean."
Bryce's mouth parted to speak but decided to nod understandably instead as Olivia offered him a smile back. He knew she was warning him not to hurt her son ever again, but didn't want to say it in fear of being a parental cliché. Probably.
"How are you feeling?" grabbing Bryce's attention, Ian asked, ignoring his mom's incessant begging to look at her.
Bryce looked at him, his mouth curling upward as he grabbed Ian by the waist, smiling at the camera before speaking.
"Like I'm holding the best trophy ever."
Just as the sound of the camera's shutter went off, Bryce leaned to kiss him again, and again. And again, until Emery had to stand guard between them so they can "cut it out of respect for us single ones out here."
Bryce laughed, and when Ian saw the genuine joy in his boyfriend's eyes, he couldn't help but as well. He's happy. Not for himself, but for the old Bryce who never in his lifetime would've even considered kissing someone in front of this big an audience, let alone kiss the boy everyone believed he hated with all his guts. Ian's happy because finally, Bryce doesn't have to be afraid of who he is anymore, and he's proud that he's somewhat responsible for that.
Ian's happy because Bryce is happy, as he's sure the boy feels like holding him for everybody to see.
And damn it if that isn't the biggest win ever won.
Well... how the fuck did I do? ˙˚ଘ(∗ ❛ั ᵕ ❛ั )੭່˙
I don't wanna start getting emotional yet but aside from the final extra and the epilogue, this is basically the last chapter of the book and AHHHHHHHHH (┳Д┳) I've never thought I'd be able to complete a story, let alone one this successful *ugly cries*
Secondly, I would like to thank the following people (who knew more than enough about swimming than me and/or have joined teams competitively )for helping me write this chapter. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't have given the competition scene an ounce of justice, even though I know I may have still gotten a few details wrong. I really appreciate you guys for taking the time out of your schedule to entertain my questions, I would've never done this without you!
@Sxtxixa_23
@dannieb4
@lstylinson-xoxo
Also, the district name and the whole competition title itself are made up if anyone hasn't caught up with that. If by any chance either of those already exists, no they don't╰( ◕u◕)╮
Lastly, there's one extra chapter left before the epilogue, and if you haven't read my note at the end of Chapter 39, this book is officially ending in the first week of June. Just a little bit more waiting.
Love you all so so much!