Author's Note: I wrote this after wanting to do a Free! fanfiction for a very long time! However, problem is, I do adore Makoto, Rei, and Haru. So, I'm pretty indecisive on how will this turn out. So I made this a pretty open pairing. c:

Disclaimer: I, KawaiiTenshiCeres, does not own, Free! Iwatobi Swim Club / Eternal Summer, or Nettaigyo no Namida by Flower. I only own my OCs such as Okimoto Asahi.

熱帯魚の涙 / Nettaigyo no Namida / Tears of the Tropical Fish
Chapter One – Rewritten

夏が来るわ、夏が…
Summer is...coming...Summer is...

With her eyes closed, sandaled feet were planted on the cement ground near the pier. Long, bleached, blond hair blew in the wind as music blasted into the teenage girl's ears. Before long, amber-colored eyes cracked open, staring at the ocean with a sad, reminiscent look. To her, the weather in this place was a lot different from her hometown of Hiroshima. It felt colder, yet it was a lot more quiet and peaceful here. It was...relaxing.

"Oneechan~!" a young boy shouted from afar. "Come on, Obaachan is waitin' for us!" he said, waving his arm up in the air.

Pulling the white earbud from her ear, the blond turned to her younger brother as a bright smile formed on her face. "Coming, Taiyou!" she replied, pulling out a pair of glasses from her shorts pocket and putting it on her face.

"Eh... You're not wearing contacts again?"
"Ha. I got lazy to put them on!"
"Oneechan, you're always lazy!"

Although the two of them came here a few weeks after school started, it was difficult to adjust to the quiet town compared to bustling city streets that they lived in. They were used to the bright city lights at night, constant sound of vehicles passing by them, and the humid weather of Hiroshima. Although they took the train to the city, it didn't have as many people, and have the same feeling compared to their hometown. However, for this sixteen year old, going here felt like she was starting fresh and new. To her…Everything from Hiroshima...stayed in Hiroshima.

"Oi, Oneechan...Oneechaaaaaan," the dark-haired boy said, waving a hand in front of his sister's face. "You're daydreamin' again," he huffed.

"E-Eh? N-No, I'm not!" she stuttered.

Looking down with a thoughtful look on her face, the teenager let out a long sigh, while listening to her younger brother talking about his day.

夏が来るわ、夏が…
Summer is...coming... Summer is...

"That's from the Art Club?!" "It's a lot different from last year that's for sure!"

It was lunchtime. People hovered around the posters hung up advertising for the Art Club. It was a watercolor of various sea creatures, with the sign 'JOIN THE ART CLUB!' over it. Nearby, the blond teen stood there in front of the windows with a few of the second year girls, while they were casually munching on their snacks and loafing around there.

"Ooh, people like what you did, Asahi-chan!" a girl with long black hair grinned, playfully nudging her.

Peering out from behind her glasses, Okimoto Asahi gave a nonchalant look towards her friend, and poked out her tongue. Regardless of how many compliments it got...To her, it was simply a last minute thing she did after watching a popular idol group video. It didn't feel original, just something she copied and got approved by the President by a heartbeat.

"Mii-chan~," Asahi whined, leaning on her friend. "I don't want to go to Art Club~. Save meeeeee~."

"Ha?! I'm not going to save you from that creepy president again," her friend, Satomi, cringed, recalling his attempts to flirt with her.

"Sheesh, you're going to make her cry if you keep rejecting her like that, Satomi," one of their classmates joked.

Pouting, Satomi eyed her friend. "Alright, you can hang out at the track but-"

She soon noticed a suspicious smirk forming on Asahi's face, forming backing away from her and trying run off, avoiding her 'loving' attempts to convince her ditch, causing the blond to run off after her.

The second years let out a sigh after seeing those two running down the hallways. After Asahi had transferred here, she was sitting next to ever-so blunt Satomi, but they were attached to each other since then. The little chase had gotten them to the rooftop, where the dark-haired second year rushed through the door, with no signs of her blond friend behind her.

Looking around, the teen spotted four boys sitting there, casually talking with each other, and eating their lunches. One of them she recognized on the spot, as a huge Cheshire smile formed on her face. It was her former track teammate and current classmate, Ryugazaki Rei, who had quitted during their first year to join the Swim Club.

"Ah! Rei-kun! Lemme hide here!" Satomi demanded.

"H-Huh? Ni-Nishikido-san!" the blue-haired male stuttered, watching the raven-haired girl, quickly curling up between him and his dark-haired upperclassman.

Her brown eyes kept looking at the door intently, causing the other members of the Swim Club to look at her questionably. She was nervous, looking like just any sort of thing can scare her at any second.

"Sheesh. Is Okimoto-san chasing after you again?" Rei questioned, quirking an eyebrow to his former track club teammate.

"She wants me to ditch practice just so she can skip Art Club," Satomi retorted, pressing her back against the wall. "Sera-senpai is being strict with attendance this time around, you know?"

"You two looked like you get along really well, since she transferred here!" their blond-haired classmate remarked with a smile.

"Oh, please, Nagisa-kun. My own boyfriend thinks we're like kid sisters. He thinks it's cute, since we call each other 'Mii-chan' and 'Hii-chan'," the girl noted sarcastically, poking out her tongue.

An exhausted Asahi wandered in, scanning the area while trying to catch her breath. She pulled off her glasses and let out a sigh, pushing back her side swept bangs. Satomi looked at them, wanting them to distract her friend so she could make an escape. An imaginary light bulb quickly formed over Nagisa's head. He quickly pulled the taller brunette with him towards the girl, giving a sign to Satomi for her to leave, as slowly inched towards the stairwell doorway, trying to avoid her friend.

"Asahi-chan!" Nagisa hollered.

"Eh?" the girl blinked, looking at the two.

"Mako-chan here said he thinks you're cute, and wants to ask you out on a date!" Nagisa said brightly.

"Na-Nagisa?!" "Eh? 'Mako-chan'...?"

Asahi looked at the towering male before her, inspecting him thoughtfully from head-to-toe. Tachibana Makoto, the Iwatobi Swim Team's captain. Brown hair, green eyes...Yet, compared to his height, she felt extremely awkward being around him, than impressed. With him being a towering 183 cm and her being a mere 157 cm, the difference was a bit much. He was smiling at her nervously, making her quirk her head at her fellow second year, thoughtfully.

"You're being weird, Hazuki-san. He looks like the type who can attract a lot of girls!" Asahi laughed. "Besides! I'm not interested in dating anyone until after high school~," she said proudly, with a cocky grin on her face.

"Eh~ You don't think he's cute, Asahi-chan?" Nagisa questioned, nudging her, before pointing her body towards his other two friends. "What about Haru-chan?"

"Haru-chan...?" she questioned, glancing at the poker-faced male, who looked away from her with a pouty look on his handsome face.

From the corner of her eye, she noticed Satomi barely reaching the stairwell door, making the girl shout out her name. Asahi quickly made a dash after her, making her friend rush down the stairs. The four of them stared at the opened door long after the two of them had gone away.

"Well...they were interesting," Makoto said with a confused smile, as he slowly walked back to his place in their little circle. "Right, Haru?"

Gazing at his friend, the brunette noticed his childhood friend muttered a 'Yeah', underneath his breath, before eating his mackerel and rice lunch once more.

どうしてでしょうか？
Why is this happening?

思い出すわ
I remember…

夏になるとあなたを
When it is summer, it's about you...

"...Good job today!"

The four members of the Swim Team had just finished their practice in the Iwatobi Swimming Club. They had just finished changing, and waved 'Bye' to the owner, Sasebe Goro, who had let them practice in the indoor pool. The sun was slowly setting, and they were about to part ways from each other to go home.

"I'll see you tomorrow~!" Nagisa chirped, waving his hand up in the air, while walking in the same direction with Rei to the train station.

While Makoto had waved to his underclassmen, Haruka was looking at something in particular while they were walking home. His eyebrows furrowed at the sight of a crying Satomi, while Asahi was comforting her and a young man was standing away from them, holding his red cheek. From what Satomi had said earlier...they were going to assume that this young man was Satomi's boyfriend.

"YOU IDIOT!" Asahi barked, glaring at the other teen. "Why'd you do have to that to her?!" she shouted.

They had to walk into this situation.

"Hii-chan..." the dark-haired girl muttered.

"...Wait for me."

A familiar voice had echoed in her head. It made her heart ache. Tears formed in Asahi's eyes, with her hand slowly formed into a fist. She wanted to hurt this guy so much for hurting Satomi.

Slowly walking towards him, the blond was about to hit him, only to feel a strong hand gripping her wrist. Her amber eyes were filled with tears, and Asahi forced herself to look up at the swimmer who stopped her. She stared at Haruka's eyes, his face didn't bother changing in front of her. Why...did he stop her? He could've...just let her... Haruka quickly dropped her hand, glancing over to see Makoto approaching the three of them.

"...You shouldn't have done that, Senpai," the blond muttered. "That guy...had the nerve to hurt Mii-chan,"

Waving his hands in front of his face, Satomi's boyfriend quickly shook his head. "...She was going to hang out with you so I thought-"

"Then what is she to you then?" Asahi barked. "Why were you so close to this 'Nao-chan' then?! Why did she call you, 'Kazu-kun~' in such a way?"

Satomi looked like she was about to step in to stop her. This was hurting her only friend more than she thought. Pushing back her hair, the blond couldn't help, but to frown. She needed to calm down. The young man wasn't him. He wasn't close to being him.

"Never mind," she muttered childishly. "...I'm going home,"

"Asa-" Satomi called out, watching her friend walk away from her.

"A-Ah! We'll walk her home instead!" Makoto spoke up with a smile looking at the concerned girl. "R-Right, Haru?"

Haruka stared at the lonesome Asahi thoughtfully. She had pulled off her glasses, had her music playing in her ears, and was already far away from them.

"She'll be fine," the swimmer said, while his best friend continued to watch her.

It was going to be a long walk home.