Swimming in the Dark

"Like a dolphin"

At 6pm the following day Gundham waited for Asahina outside the pool at Hope's Peak Academy. He was nervous, not only for the swimming lessons but for the fact that he had never seen Aoi in a swimsuit despite knowing her for all his life. 

When Asahina showed up, she was in a maroon swimsuit, almost the same color as his scarf and she was beautiful, but he could never tell her that, at least not yet.

"You ready to begin learning a life saving skill?" she asked, her  brown hair in a low braid instead of it's usual high ponytail. 

"I suppose so. But the Devas are more excited than I am." Gundham said smiling.

"Well, let's get started!" Aoi said, opening the pool doors and stepping inside, Gundham following closely, still nervous about getting in the pool.

As Asahina jumped into the pool, Gundham took off his outer garments and revealed his swimwear, hesitating before taking his scarf off to reveal the tiny scars on his neck from the countless scratches received by animals over the years. He then stepped carefully into the pool, the Devas watching from the edge, staying far enough back as to not fall in. 

Aoi was swimming under the water, warming up her body to the feeling of the water. Gundham watched in awe of his best friend and when she popped up for air all he could say was, "You swim like a dolphin, a majestic creature full of elegance and strength. Just as a true Water Princess should."

Asahina smiled, "I'm flattered, but I can't possibly be that graceful, can I?" she asked, splashing Gundham with a small amount of water.

Her splash was returned with a bigger splash from Gundham, who was slowly getting used to the feeling of the water. 

"So, how does one begin to learn the art of swimming Hina-chan?" He asked, finally over his fear of drowning and putting his trust in his childhood bestie.

"Well, you start by getting your kicks down, I suggest holding onto the edge of the pool and kicking your legs as fast as you can behind you. That's how I learned, and how I taught Yuta to swim." She said demonstrating the action, water flying everywhere. 

Gundham nodded and laughed a little, "This shall be no problem for me, the great Gundham Tanaka." 

He began kicking behind him and he was doing great. Even the Devas seemed to be cheering him on in their own way. Asahina smiled brightly as he got the hang of kicking. 

"Great job! I'm so proud of you. Well, I think that concludes tonight's lesson, you're free to go unless you wanna watch me do a few laps around the pool? I've got a lot of energy built up from not swimming the past few days. 

"I'd be delighted to watch the Almighty Water Princess at work, maybe I can learn to swim by watching as well as practicing." Gundham said, getting out of the pool to dry off and check on the Devas. 

"Well then, watch and learn Gun-kun. You're watching the Ultimate Swimming Pro do what she does best." Asahina said, taking off from the shallow end of the pool and swimming several laps as Gundham sat in awe, studying her every move, noting every detail of how she flew through the water.

After a while, Asahina emerged from the pool, exhausted, her hair completely soaked with water, causing her to take it down completely and shake it out, her hair resembling strands of yarn as they slowly dripped dry. "So, did you learn anything by watching me swim?" she asked, combing out her hair with her fingers before reaching for the ponytail holder on her wrist, which had slipped off while she was swimming. 

"Indeed I did, but I don't think I'll remember any of it come time for our next lesson, but I can try." Gundham said, admiring the change in appearance from Asahina's usual ponytail.

"Great! I'll see you here same time tomorrow then? Or is The Supreme Overlord of Darkness too busy to swim tomorrow?" 

"I'll be here, as will the Devas. See you tomorrow, oh great Water Princess." 

The two finished drying off and exited the pool, smelling of chlorine and quite happy with the lesson.