I cannot believe it's been around three years and a half since I last updated Into the Water. I can't apologize enough for the delay. I won't even bother with the title or whatever. That'll come later. Main concern is putting the final results of chapter nineteen up. Feedback is very much welcome. Did I do good/bad concerning Sousuke? Did I do good/bad on any scene? Just hit me up lovelies. Thank you for your patience, dear readers.

Sousuke's eyes are closed, half-conscious and shivering. To be honest, he doesn't want to open them. Opening his eyes means facing the truth.

It means realizing that he slipped into a ravine in the woods. That the throbbing pain in his shoulder is not his imagination. It's reality, facing the fact his swimming days are over and done with.

It means knowing he's stuck here with Mizuki, in the middle of a storm. That the closest person he has for a brother, Rin, is still angry with him.

He clenches his eyes shut, desperately trying to hide from the truth. With his eyes still closed, he can drift off to a nice memory; a shrine, relaxing on the stone steps. Little Rin sits beside him, taking a bite of his popsicle, then looks at him with a smile.

"I could stay here all day," Sousuke says, the summer sun warm on his skin. Rin flashes a cheeky grin, like he can't agree more. But when he opens his mouth to speak, his words don't match his expression; they're harsh, stern, commanding.

"You can't stay," Rin says. "You have to get up. Now."

Sousuke's eyes open, slowly focusing them, his headache pounding. Rain is coming down in fitful little starts, averaging out to a moderate drizzle.

He tries to rise up but can't. Just can't. Something is holding him back.

"Don't move," Mizuki warns him. "Take it easy."

She's huddled beside his big frame, cuddling closer, with her arms around his waist. The feeling of her hand trailing gently up and down his back is unsettling, to say the least.

"I'm really glad you regained consciousness." It's even more unsettling how genuinely caring and relieved she sounds. "I thought of climbing up for help, but the rain made everywhere so slippery, I'd rather not risk it. We can't do anything but wait."

There's an awkward silence.

"How are you feeling?"

Well, let's see. He slammed his shoulder into a tree trunk first, on the way down this hell-hole. Then protecting Mizuki from the fall, his head made contact with a jagged rock and he's sure he's bleeding.

"I'm fine. Thank you very fucking much for your concern, Watanabe," he croaks, a little too harshly. "Really. Appreciate it."

Sousuke has a habit of pushing himself to the breaking point, but he tried hard to lessen the burden on his shoulder, thus only swam during important events. Something his physiotherapist was glad for. But all of it was for nothing. He's allowed to be pissed at her.

From the gash on the side of his head, blood continues to drip down his face and onto his blue jacket.

Mizuki applied pressure on the gash in his unconscious state, used tissues to try and stop the bleeding. They say head wounds bleed a lot and often seem worse than they really are. No need to worry too much about it. But she gives in to the need overtaking her and applies another tissue on the wound―

"Get off me," Sousuke snaps at her. "Jesus Christ."

"I was only trying to stop the bleeding."

"I don't care about your intentions, Watanabe, damn. You're practically sitting in my lap."

"Your body temperature dropped. That's all this is," she explains, grasping at her fraying patience. He needs her care. But it's clear Sousuke has a strong will and an equally strong need to remain in control of his circumstances.

Mizuki can respect that at a more convenient time. Right now, he has to stop distrusting her and start obeying.

"Hypothermia was kicking in and nothing else was available, so I thought using my body heat to keep you warm would be the next best thing."

"I'm fine. I don't need help," he says with irritation and removes himself from her embrace. The movement triggers a sharp, familiar sensation in his shoulder. He grinds his teeth together to fight back the wave of pain that threatens to overwhelm him.

"You're not fine," Mizuki counters, equally irritated. "You need to stay put and let me keep you warm before it gets worse."

Sousuke stubbornly refuses. The warmth surrounding him a moment ago reminded him of better times—a cocoon of peace and contentment he hasn't known for a while.

Not since the day Rin said he wanted to swim at Iwatobi SC, when Sousuke didn't try to hold him back despite his shock, only showing he understood.

He had no business stopping him.

Sousuke didn't have to be telepathic to know Rin wanted this badly. He wanted to make a team and win the relay like his father did before him, then start down the path of becoming an Olympic swimmer.

"So we're stuck here." He tries not to freak out when Mizuki mumbles a quick affirmative.

"It's okay. Someone will come looking for us. We'll get out of here soon."

But they don't. And it's not okay.

The storm is still ongoing.

It's cold. The sound of leaves rustling surrounds them. A flash of lightning cuts across the dark sky. Seconds later, thunder crashes down.

They're soaking in the rain.

And they're trapped.

Surrounded by massive walls down a deep ravine. Grey rocks jut out of dark soil that compose the sides and base of the ravine, thin saplings and weeds haphazardly popping up here and there. Wet streams can be seen meandering down the center of the ravine floor.

Squinting up at the sky, the dark clouds give off the feeling of night, even though it's not that late. It makes Sousuke feel tired, his eyelids heavy.

Rin would know something is up by now. He would be concerned about Sousuke's absence, despite chalking it up to his bad sense of direction. Doesn't matter if things haven't improved between them since the argument.

When Sousuke sees him again—if he'll ever get out of this mess—he'll have to clear that up.

He gives himself a little shake. He can think about all that later. Getting out of this ravine is a more pressing matter.

He stumbles time and time again as he explores the area for a way out—tripping over loose stones, inconveniently placed tree roots, and, most often, his own two feet, each time leading Mizuki in a new prayer that he won't find himself falling on his face.

He tries climbing up the rocks and dirt, mindful of his injury, but it's no good. Mizuki tries to help. He pushes her away over and over again.

"You really think that less of me?"

It takes every ounce of self-control to keep a rein on her tongue; Sousuke kept her safe from harm during the headlong plunge into danger, despite disliking her. But his stupid behavior sets her teeth on edge. He's so steely, so stiff—like he has a stick up his…

"Butt-munch! Stop ignoring me."

He descends from his foolish climb upwards and turns to face her. "I haven't been ignoring you."

"Oh, yes you have."

"No. Ignoring you would be to disregard your presence. I've noticed you. I just chose not to speak to you."

"Is that better or worse than ignoring me completely?"

"Slightly better."

Mizuki throws up her hands. "Well, thanks. I won't take offense then."

"Good for you."

"I was being sarcastic, dummy."

"Watanabe," Sousuke looks up, calculating another climb up. "You're in major PMS mode, aren't you?"

Mizuki utters a hoarse, shocked, "What?! Like, honestly...what is wrong with you?!"

She can only pray to God, Buddha, or whatever the hell else people pray to, that she'll survive through this.

The corner of Sousuke's mouth turns up at Mizuki's outburst. Between her harried look and the way she's yelling at him, he can tell little miss perfect is starting to crack.

She might be sweet and biddable when others are around but this girl has another side to her, has to be. Her sweet attitude is masking something, he already realized that much—and he'll figure out what that something is. He'll use any and every chance he can get to push her over the edge.

"This isn't funny."

Sousuke's smile widens and gets even more sarcastic as he gives a little laugh, parks himself on the remains of a fallen tree, now sporting fungi and beards of dark green moss.

"We need to work together," Mizuki says imploringly. "We need to stop the bleeding and regulate your body temperature. Please, let me take care of you. I promise it's nothing more than being logical given the situation. Trust me, I know I'm the last person on earth you want to be stuck with right now."

After a long pause, Sousuke speaks, "Don't take it the wrong way. I don't hate you."

Mizuki's jaw drops. She makes some strangled sounds before sputtering out, "You hate my very existence. That's obvious."

She wants to laugh because it seems unlikely, but she doesn't. Sousuke is serious.

"I hate how you constantly hang around Rin. That's the problem, Watanabe. You're messing with his head. Sending him the wrong signals."

Mizuki starts to say something, but he interrupts before she can so much as get a word out. "Before you get all screechy about having Nanase for a boyfriend, Rin thinks he has a chance. He's attracted to you and it would make his life a lot easier if you weren't around. He'd rather not cross that line, but it's not so easy when you constantly lead him on. That's all I'm saying."

Sousuke watches Mizuki, gauging her reaction to this gigantic fucking bomb he just dropped. He sees her expression change from shock to mild surprise to outright guilt.

Realization hits him hard at the sight of her sad hazel eyes, damp and full of memories. "You had no idea how Rin felt, did you?"

A weird feeling passes through Mizuki, because she's been ignoring that look in Rin's eyes. She kept hoping she'll never see it again. That it was just her imagination playing tricks on her.

"You don't know for sure. You could be wrong."

Oh, she's in denial.

They're both thinking it, eyes narrowing on one another, neither one willing to say it out loud. The only sounds are the pummeling of raindrops on the ground and the occasional soft rumble of thunder in the distance.

"When do you think someone will find us?" Mizuki asks conversationally, changing the subject.

She has to talk about something or she'll go out of her mind. She swears the ravine has gotten smaller since Sousuke dropped that info bomb on her.

"It's hard to say. We'll have to wait till the storm dies down first."

"I suppose so."

Finally, she sits beside him on the withering tree. His frown deepens at her nearness. Does she really have to sit this close so her body heat invades his space?

That old, soft-pink coat of hers might look like a used rag, but it sure keeps her warm and cozy. She's wearing boots, too. She was prepared for the storm, whereas he was caught unaware with only his flimsy blue jacket to protect him.

The chill has seeped into his bones by now, and he shudders as bile crawls up his throat and nausea rolls in his stomach.

"Are you okay?" Mizuki asks, watching him pull a deep breath.

"Fine," he whispers, closing his eyes and fighting the conflicting urge to huddle closer for the warmth he knows she can provide. Instead, he continues to sit there pretending nothing is amiss.

After sitting there for several minutes, the silence is gnawing at Mizuki. "You might not want to talk but I'm going to distract myself. Can we play twenty questions?"

Sousuke rolls his eyes, then closes them. "Whatever."

"What's your favorite movie?"

He doesn't open his eyes for lack of interest. "No comment."

"Okay, that's fine. What would you most want to save if your house caught fire? Assuming that people, and um, pets made it out safely." She glances at him, but he still has his eyes shut to the world.

"No comment," he replies again.

Mizuki hesitates, dying to ask him a particular question, but terrified at the same time. Here goes nothing.

"Are you currently on bad terms… with Rin?"

Sousuke completely tenses up, his muscles freeze as he opens his eyes and stares her down. The look on his face is almost frightening in its intensity.

"How do you know about that?"

"Kou-chan mentioned it at club practice," Mizuki answers slowly, watching a myriad of things cross Sousuke's face—confusion, sadness, anger—before he finally shakes his head.

"It's none of your business. And I have no other fucking comment."

The mood turns even darker than before. Mizuki won't press him for more. Not when she's stuck here with him, so she changes the subject to something he might enjoy.

"What was it like to race Haru in the relay?"

He stares at her drolly now; the ugliness gone from his eyes. "You should ask him what it's like to race me."

She shakes her head, slightly amused by his arrogance. "I would. But I'm stuck here with you, not Haru. Not like it matters. You clearly don't want to play the game," she mumbles the last line.

Sousuke allows a small smile. "Very perceptive of you, Watanabe. I don't want to play, because I honestly don't care."

Jeez. Can he be any ruder? "You might want to work on your people skills. I'm just saying."

"You're not any better," he scoffs. "You're a nervous wreck in the face of strangers."

Mizuki frowns at this. "Am I really that easy to read?"

"Rin told me."

"Oh..."

Sousuke yawns. Now that some of the initial hostility has worn off, he's busy being annoyed at her and not angry. He's actually getting sleepy.

"Yamazaki-san?" she asks quietly. "You have to stay awake, okay? Sleep will worsen your condition."

Another jaw-cracking yawn tells Mizuki how difficult that will be. His face is puffy and pink. His eyes are dull, glassy, and he's not shivering anymore. Those are all bad signs.

Peering down at his hands, Sousuke clenches his fingers against his palms, then lets go. Clench, release. Clench, release. He frowns.

"My hands are numb."

Mizuki's soft hand settles on his cheek. Her chest closes up tight. Sousuke is as freezing cold as the rocks. She feels a pang of guilt for giving in so quickly.

She knows she has to get help—or at least get Sousuke out of the rain and bring his temperature up.

It takes several minutes of more exploring, but luck, this time, is on her side. Spurred on by the urgent situation, she spies a narrow opening between two moss covered boulders. It's not perfect but it'll keep them sheltered from the rain.

She calls for Sousuke, and he would have responded, but he's too tired, too cold to react. He's as still as a statue sitting there on the tree trunk.

He blinks, almost nodding off, and then he senses Mizuki's presence before him. Hands try to pull him up.

Pain explodes in his shoulder at the sudden movement. His heart punches his ribs as a sliver of panic weaves through him, the throbbing pain so intense he can't help but scream.

A look of shock crosses Mizuki's features as she suffers through the assault on her ears.

He falls on his knees, shouts some more, but Mizuki can't make out the words through the screeching agony. The pain became an entity that owns him. He's clutching his arm, practically snarling like a cornered animal in full-on protective mode.

This is definitely not right, yet she can't help but ask, "Are you alright?"

Sousuke suddenly throws his head back and laughs so bitterly it sends shivers down Mizuki's spine. The rain falls in sheets and he's soaked to the bone. This might be one of the worst days of his life.

"I'm fucking peachy," he spits.

"Come on. I'll help you up," she says quickly, taking control of the situation.

"Go away."

"I found a crevice. It's kind of on the small side but it's something. We can warm up in there."

The rain beats down, streaking down his face, dripping from his nose. "I'm fine."

"You're not fine, Yamazaki-san. You're risking your health and whatever you think of me right now, I'm not worth hurting yourself over."

She's waiting.

He struggles to get back on his feet.

She offers her help.

"Don't touch me!" His demand is harsher than intended and Mizuki's hand drops away.

Feeling a smidgen better now that she stopped breathing down his neck, Sousuke contemplates moving ahead of her when the decision is taken out of his hands. He stumbles forward, nearly falling face-first into the dirt, landing on his good arm.

He whimpers slightly, trying to get up.

Mizuki seizes the moment to support him, help him up, and forces him to lean against her. Though she's not that much smaller than him, she's still fragile, and yet so strong.

Goddamn it. This is ridiculous.

Sousuke's lungs ache with every breath he takes. His legs feel like frozen, knotted rubber and every step sends a new wave of jagged pain through them.

Even so, the pain in his legs pale in comparison to his aching shoulder. He's grateful Mizuki is purposely avoiding the injury, but his pride prevents him from thanking her.

They reach the crevice and enter carefully. Once Sousuke's carefully leaning against the wall, sitting on dirt and moss, Mizuki assesses his condition.

He's still not shivering, so he's not getting any better.

She has to remove his clothes. Mizuki approaches and unzips his blue jacket carefully, taking it off him and putting it aside to dry.

He's mumbling but it doesn't make any sense. Mizuki's guts churn with concern. He's close to slipping into unconsciousness.

Then she focuses on his white shirt. Reaches for the fabric—

Mizuki swallows. She knows this is the right thing to do. She knows it's essential getting the wet cloth off him to stop it soaking up his body heat.

His torso should be clear, at least. But... this is still a breach of personal space.

She pushes it out of her mind and strips back the wet fabric off his broad shoulders. Her breath catches in her throat. Sousuke's shoulder appears to be considerably inflamed, and it's more like the injury is weeks, maybe months old instead of hours.

She grimaces, squatting beside him. That's... not normal.

Calm down, she orders herself. There's no reason to panic.

Mizuki starts to unzip his trousers. She manages to push the fabric down his legs, exposing his black boxer briefs despite the embarrassment rushing through her.

Soon she pulls off her long-sleeved shirt and top, standing there in her bra. He took the brunt of the fall down, protected her, and now it's her turn to help him. She's determined to help him get through this.

Using the same shirt she starts drying him off. He's mumbling again, telling her to let him go to sleep.

"No," Mizuki says sharply. "You have to stay awake. We have no means of staying warm, we're both exhausted, and the temperature is dropping. The chill will only get worse. Sharing body heat is the way to go."

His eyes are closed. His lashes dark against his snow-pale skin. His chest rises slowly. Falls. Rises. Falls. Rises again.

"If you'll allow it, I'll lie against your chest to provide warmth. Then I'll cover us both with my coat."

Sousuke opens his eyes slowly, blinking several times to clear his blurred vision and feeling like his head is in a vise.

Not really much of a reply, but Mizuki will have to take it. She crawls onto his lap, careful not to put pressure on his shoulder, then drapes her coat over the both of them.

She hugs his chest, wraps her arms around him and tries to let her warmth flow into him. "You'll get better, Yamazaki-san," she whispers, over and over. "You'll see."

And, slowly, he does.

His head keeps lolling but Mizuki won't let him fall asleep. When it looks like he's going to drop off, she gently shakes him and talks to him.

She rubs his arms to try to get the blood going.

She hugs him tight, enfolding him in her arms as much as possible.

Sousuke thinks about balmy sunshine. Hot summer days. The rush of endorphins and good feelings that come after winning a competition he worked so hard for.

As a quick memory surfaces in the back of his mind, all he can do is get swept away by his emotions. Viewers in the bleachers explode with cheers as Haru was lifted out of the water. Rin, Makoto and Nagisa couldn't stop a smile from sneaking onto their faces and it grew and grew until they were radiating.

Haru was swept into a group hug. They were a team. A clique. Connected more than ever through their triumph.

All Sousuke could do was stare. Watching them brought hope into his life again, hope that he would be okay after all, hope that he could swim once more with Rin, grow closer again, and hope that he could finally get a chance for closure.

He feels warm all over. Burning. He inhales slowly, deeply, willing the memory to disappear.

Cruel reality has a way of always catching up to you, no matter how fast or how far you run; reality has a way to destroy one's hopes and dreams.

Reality doesn't caress your cheek, letting you know what's to come. No, reality slaps you across the face harshly, reminding you that a dream is just that... a dream.

The naive part of him wants to believe those depressing feelings are gone, gone since he witnessed the relay that day. But the logical voice inside his head, the cynical one, tells him to stop fooling himself. Tells him that just because he has a new dream, his problems aren't going anywhere.

Like the constant discomfort in his shoulder, it's still there, will always be there until he faces the problem head on.

The problems just happen to be concealed by a blanket of warmth and tenderness at the moment. A blanket that allows him to ignore the nagging sentiment that this is gonna blow up in his face.

Sousuke forces his eyes open, but has to blink several times in order to clear his blurry vision. The first thing that comes into focus is the rock ceiling above him.

After that he becomes aware of a weight on him, not uncomfortable, but strange nonetheless. Pulling his left arm out from under the coverings, he smooths his hand over what he now recognizes as Mizuki's pink coat.

The next moment she moves and hovers over him, the rope of her braided hair swinging with her movements. Fatigue radiates off of her, though her concern for Sousuke overpowers it.

"You alright?"

Mizuki looks deep into his eyes in a sort of understanding way while he refuses to blink. Sousuke would have given her the brush-off. But this moment calls for honesty.

Her hazel eyes are wide and continue watching his.

Sousuke swallows. "I feel better," he admits.

Mizuki lets out a long sigh, lowers her forehead against his chest and closes her eyes. "You scared me. I thought you were too far gone for this to work."

Sousuke raises his hand to pat her head awkwardly. "Did you undress me?" he proceeds to ask, making the situation more awkward.

Mizuki looks up. "I was trying to keep you warm."

"By undressing me?"

"Body heat is supposed to be the best way to combat hypothermia."

"You wearing anything?"

"My jeans and undergarments, yes."

A low rumble starts in Sousuke's chest, and she realizes he's laughing. His sudden bark of laughter goads her into saying: "I don't see what's so funny," she protests.

This circumstance is just so strange, the situation so dire, and his brain so exhausted, Sousuke simply has to laugh. Here he is, practically naked with Mizuki laying on his torso to preserve body heat. It's like a bizarre dream.

Only he recalls the fight with Rin, recalls the fall down the ravine, and still his shoulder throbs relentlessly. He feels a deep pang for what he lost and quickly throws it into a mental black box.

Careful not to bump her head, Mizuki gets dressed and pulls a shirt over her blush-pink bra. Sousuke carefully sits up and keeps his gaze away from her form. Even when she's fully dressed he finds it difficult to look at her. This entire situation sucks.

"Your clothes are still a bit damp, but it'll have to do. Get dressed. Dawn will break soon."

His pants slip on easily enough. His blood-stained T-shirt is in his grasp as he just sits there. His eyes are sad and tired, his face perpetually tight. She knows it now: Sousuke's look of pain. It's gonna hurt like hell to put the shirt on, thanks to his injury.

"Yamazaki-san?" Mizuki says softly, crouching down. "What happened to your shoulder?"

"Injured it on the way down," Sousuke says in a matter she thinks is just a little too offhand. "When I collided into that big log. The bruises will fade―"

"I'm not talking about the bruises," she interrupts. "Those are fresh. The inflammation and swelling, however, is a sign of muscle pain. It didn't happen overnight."

For a moment, Sousuke's entire body tenses and Mizuki thinks he's gonna shout at her or maybe just withdraw and refuse to speak at all.

Her hand comes over his knee, and he can feel her eyes on him. "What happened?"

"It's an old injury," he says. "I'd rather not talk about it."

He sounds far away, buried in a tragic memory Mizuki can't wrap her brain around.

"I understand your concern for me but, please don't say anything to anyone." Sousuke's body hasn't moved but his voice, his eyes, begged. In his eyes, he's kneeling, crying for this favor before her.

Mizuki's eyes grow wide. "I... You want me to keep this a secret? You don't even want Rin to know?"

He doesn't look at her. His shoulders are slumped, his head bowed, his entire body giving up on holding itself with any shred of pride. It hurts to see him like this but she doesn't allow herself to take pity on him.

He just asked her to keep her mouth shut, allowing him to go on swimming in his condition. That's something she can't accept.

"Or what?" Mizuki asks, aloud. "You'll hate me all over again?"

Sousuke raises his gaze and meets hers, the expression on his face unreadable. "I deserve that," he whispers, his head down again. "I honestly thought you were milking Rin for all he's worth, yet judging by your earlier reaction it didn't seem like you knew how Rin felt. It made me realize I seriously misjudged you. I can see now why he's so fond of you."

"Don't make this about Rin and me," Mizuki frowns, thrown by the change of subject. "This is about you. You need to take better care of yourself. Rin's your best friend. He needs to know about your shoulder. What if you make it worse? What if you'll never be able to swim again? What if Rin finds out from someone else? You don't think he'll be upset?"

"That's why I'm doing this!" he explodes, his voice like thunder that makes Mizuki cower, falling backwards. "That's why I'm doing this! That's why I'm determined to keep this under wraps, so he'll never know. Not him or anyone else. If you open your mouth about this I swear, I'll make you regret it. If Rin, Nanase or either one of your friends suspect something is up, I'll blame it on you."

He breathes once, exhaling loudly.

"You don't think I know Rin will be upset? I feel guilty as hell just thinking about it! This is my decision, my life, it's on my head and I take full responsibility. So to hell with your opinion!"

His pain and frustration scare Mizuki but his words show her she's in the wrong. It's not her place to announce his problems to the world.

This is something she can't understand.

Something that had stabbed right into the heart of him, through all his muscle and courage, and left something black and poisonous there.

Something that left him in a cold sweat every night.

Something he has no choice but to live with.

When Sousuke raced Haru, it wasn't regret she saw in him―but passion. He's committed to swimming and will stick to it even if it breaks him.

Her mind goes further back and recalls how her grandfather used to tell her that humans were born of the sea. That we were cast upon the land when we started to grow legs instead of fins and tails. Our ancestors are the merfolk, who still call for us, imploring us to come home. But this is our home now―and we can never go back.

That story rings true for Haru, Rin, and now she sees the same passionate spirit in Sousuke. Swimming will always play a big part in their lives.

And Mizuki suddenly wishes more than anything that she could know what it's like to have that same passion for swimming.

She approaches Sousuke and swallows her fears. She needs to show him she's sorry. His face is flushed with anger. His mind struggles with the guilt, the shame and the way he yelled at her.

Mizuki's hazel eyes seem to search his face. "I'm sorry," she says. "I promise I'll help you in any way I can, even if only by forgetting everything that happened here."

"Thank you."

Sousuke's two simple words sound exceedingly heartfelt, and she can feel the ache behind them.

――――――――

No longer is the wind an evil whine that seeps into clothes and freezes you. The rain stopped two hours ago. A deep quiet fills the land around them.

Sousuke sits on the tree trunk listening to the silence. When he looks up, he sees patches of clear sky where stars peer down at them. It looks like the worst of the storm has passed.

Iwatobi would soon be awake, and when dawn breaks, they will be rescued.

"You're frowning," Mizuki says quietly. "Everything okay?"

"Just thinking."

When he offers no more than that, she looks up at the star flecked sky. "Still thinking you'd rather be stuck here with someone else?"

Sousuke shakes his head, surprisingly. "Thinking about rescue," he says. "It might be a while more before anyone finds us."

She nods, surprisingly not distressed by the news. "We could get to know each other better by the end of this."

"Fantastic," Sousuke says with sarcastic enthusiasm. "More compromising positions with a girl I barely know. Can I keep my clothes on this time?

Mizuki sighs. "It was for a good cause. Don't make it sound like I'm some weird pervert."

"Case in point of why I wouldn't know for sure if you're into that stuff or not, Watanabe. To me, you're a stranger. Essentially."

"I feel like I know you better than that. Don't you agree?"

At the quiet threat behind Mizuki's voice, Sousuke turns to stare at her. It's hard to believe she's actually capable of breaking a promise, being such a good girl and all. He can't risk it.

"If you so much as speak about it, I swear..."

"I won't. I'm just pointing out how ridiculous it is to think of me as a stranger."

He rolls his eyes. "Okay, you know a thing or two about me. It's hardly enough to consider us friends."

"A grey area between friends and strangers, I suppose. Is there a word for it?"

"Watanabe," he growls.

She laughs. "Sorry."

A silence falls between them, and it's not awkward, which is weird. It feels companionable. Comfortable. So strange, because things between them were never comfortable. They were always tense and combustible.

"We could pick up where we left off, then, right?" she asks, letting her words hang in the air to see if he's in a good mood.

"Look, I'm not into you―"

"Twenty questions, you weirdo."

"Fine."

Her eyes widen in surprise, regarding him carefully. "Really?"

He shrugs. "Not much else we can do."

She smiles, positively glowing at the prospect of them getting to know each other better.

――――――――

"Favorite color?"

"Black."

"Is black even a color?"

"Hell yeah it is. Don't argue with me on this."

"Okay, sheesh. Favorite food?"

"Tonkatsu."

"Favorite-"

"That was your twenty," Sousuke says, holding his hand up to halt her words. "My turn."

Mizuki purses her lips in a playful pout.

"Don't give me that look, either," he scolds. "It won't work."

Mizuki feels her eyes grow wide. Batting her eyelashes, she says, "What look?"

His eyes narrow and one black brow arches. "The one you think will have me eating out of the palm of your hand."

She rolls her eyes in a show of exasperation. "Fine, it's your turn."

Sousuke doesn't waste any time. "So you're half Mexican?"

"Quarter Italian," she answers without hesitation.

"Your parents are Japanese?"

"Dad is. Mom is half Italian, half Japanese," she answers, again without hesitation.

They sit quietly for several moments. The silence is still comfortable but she's nervous, her hands fidgeting with the fabric of her coat.

"You've been bullied often, haven't you?"

Mizuki glances at him, feeling exposed. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You look like some pathetic, pushover foreign girl. Makes for an easy target."

Growing up proved very difficult. It's like that for most kids, and Mizuki was no exception. She turned to music and books as an escape from the isolation she felt.

"I'm not the pushover I once was, certainly." She's faintly amazed to hear her voice emerge steady and even, doing her best to pretend nothing is wrong as she smiles at him.

Sousuke doesn't know if she's putting on this fake display of happiness for the sake of her friends or for herself. Maybe for the sake of all of them.

"Have you ever wished something bad on someone?"

Mizuki tries to remain calm, but he got her. It's like he can see her vulnerabilities and knows he needs to concentrate his efforts if he wants to get under her skin.

Which he seems pretty hell-bent on doing.

"Yes, I have," Mizuki admits. "I plan to apologize when I see my best friend."

Sousuke nods in understanding. Finally, some common ground they can share.

"You were the cause of the argument between me and Rin," he admits. "I know I had no right badmouthing you in front of him."

This should be the part where Sousuke apologizes for the way he behaved. But he won't, not to her. He's barely making any sense, but at least he realizes his mistake.

"Oh... I see."

Mizuki still feels responsible for Haru and Rin's falling out in the past. Shouldn't, but she does. Sousuke's situation with Rin wasn't her fault, yet she can't help but feel responsible for that as well.

"It's fine. You were looking out for him, after all."

Sousuke's confidence dials down a notch. When he comes up with another question to ask, his shoulders stand taller.

"Why do you feel the need to try and please everyone?" She has no time to formulate a response as he goes on, "You're in denial about Rin liking you. I'm assuming you wanna spare him the pain and embarrassment. You wanna please both Rin and Nanase, which brings us back to the question at hand."

Mizuki is doing a good job trying to hide the emotional tumult in her head, but Sousuke is the king of hiding his emotions and he recognizes a bullshit smile when he sees one.

"You're angry. I can tell," he eggs her on.

Who can blame her for getting angry? It feels like Sousuke is judging her. Like he can read her mind and she's desperately hiding that side of her.

It's likely Rin's infatuation with her will ruin his second chance at friendship with Haru. It's a terrible thought, yet some selfish part of her thrills at the idea of two guys fighting over her.

Shaking her head, she tries to suppress the dark feelings inside her and clear her thinking. She's not some petty, mean girl! This is shameful and she'll refuse to acknowledge Rin's feelings for her.

Maybe she shouldn't say it, but she does. "Listen, if you want to throw stones, you probably shouldn't have picked a fight with Rin in the first place."

Sousuke's eyes bore into hers. She doesn't look away. "You think I'm judging you?"

"Yes."

"I wasn't," he says, still staring at her.

"Then why bring it up?" Mizuki blurts out. "I don't want to talk about it. Why are you acting like a jerk only to me?"

"I want to know what you really think. You give the appearance of someone who constantly thinks of others. I get that, I do." Sousuke's voice is strong, assertive, as he continues, "But for this once, you can drop the good-girl mask and speak freely."

"Stop! Just stop."

Mizuki gets up to create distance between them, or at least she tries to. His hold on her arm stops her, making her swing in a clumsy half circle.

Sousuke turns her to stand before him properly.

Seeming oblivious of Mizuki's pained expression, he contemplates something as his teal eyes peruse her face. The depth of that stare strips her bare and pierces straight into her.

Unexpectedly, the feeling of his eyes on her throws Mizuki's mind into a flashback.

Swimming in an ocean of cool, turquoise waters.

Feeling the chill of dread inch down her spine, being watched, drowning in so much fear.

Complete and total fear.

The feeling of being observed so intensely is a familiar one and it scares the hell out of her.

Mizuki's muscles tense and she works to control the tremors that start in her hands. Panic starts at the pit of her stomach, and when Sousuke lets go, she can't stop her reaction. She jumps away from him and backs up until she hits the ravine wall.

Eyes wide, she stares at him and fights to gain control.

Sousuke approaches her, tries to make sense of what's going on.

Mizuki's breathing speeds up and she sinks down to the ground as the panic attack takes hold. She tucks her head between her legs and tries to breathe, tries to remember nothing can hurt her.

Then, as if to prove her wrong, the ravine floods with seawater.

Mizuki is fully submerged in the nightmare. A world with no escape. She's back in the darkness, her pursuer always watching, and the whole terrible story plays out again.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Sousuke half shouts without really meaning to.

Her shivering cranks up, grows more violent. It's never been this bad before. Her stomach lurches, so she leans forward.

Not only are the horrifying images repeating in her head, but now, she's either going to pass out or vomit in front of Sousuke.

Considering her luck, she'll likely end up doing both. And yes, in exactly the order you're thinking of.

Cold sweat runs down Sousuke's back. He doesn't know what to do and starts screaming, his heart pounding, and his expression determined.

"SOMEBODY HELP!"