‼️DISCONTINUED‼️ Drowning Olympian - DSMP olympic water sports AU

Chapter 7 - What Makes a Coach

Eret POV:

"Techno says to stay put, he's looking after Wilbur, and he doesn't want us to risk our places in the Olympics. Apparently our coaches are going to deal with it the official way," Eret told Tommy, who seemed close to growling like a feral animal at the words.

"I don't give a damn about my place in the Olympics, I'll take them down," Tommy snarled, voice low, fists clenched and face red from anger.

"Tommy, I need you to calm down. If you take your anger out on them it will be easier for them to plead the victim."

"I don't care! Someone has to deal with them! What if they are hurting other people!?"

"Tommy... you don't- you can't understand the amount I want to destroy them, I have been shoving down this rage for years, years since we first saw Wilbur. But we can't just fight them."

"Why the hell not!? Did you not see what they did!? He was scared Eret! Scared of me! I'm a kid!? I couldn't do anything to him if I wanted to, why the hell was he scared!?"

"Tommy? Tommy..." Eret's voice softened, seeing the tears streaming down Tommy's face. No kid should have to deal with this. No kid should have to see this happen first hand. It shouldn't happen at all.

Eret wrapped his hand softly around Tommy's clenched fists, his hands slowly working Tommy's out, decreasing the tension in the boy's hand.

"It's going to be ok, I promise you Tommy. Phil and Puffy, our coaches, they are going to report them. They won't get away with it freely."

"How can you trust them to do that? They are probably just saying that so you focus on your sport. You can't just trust them."

"What do you mean?" Eret asked, startled by Tommy's statement. What Olympian doesn't trust their coach? Ok, something was going on with Tommy. He wasn't just any Olympian, that was clear.

"They are coaches, they are here for the win, that's all."

"No... no... Tommy... that's not... are your... what... why do... no."

"Oh... do you not know that yet? I'm sorry... I just... that's the coaches job. They don't care about things. Not really."

"That's not- Tommy, does your coach not care about things?"

"He cares about me training, he cares about the win, he cares about stuff that affects my performance, of course he cares, just not... not that much."

"Tommy..." Eret sighed, realising that she really didn't know this kid. He had appeared for the first time this morning, and Eret hadn't even taken the time to check he was ok. That was... that was supposed to be her job. She looked after people. That's what she did. But Tommy... Tommy was hurting and Eret hadn't noticed.

"I'm sorry..." Eret murmured, letting go off Tommy's now slack hand, and trying to meet Tommy's confused gaze, "I'm sorry. You shouldn't have to deal with a coach like that. You're an Olympian for XD's sake! I guess I just forget that not all coaches are as good as Phil and Puffy- that not all coaches are good..."

Eret hated bad coaches. She didn't hate much, but she hated coaches who didn't care for their trainee as a person. She hated coaches who thought it was ok to just let a kid suffer because it wasn't effecting their performance. She hated coaches who turned a blind eye to abuse. Hated coaches who joined in on that abuse. She hated coaches who snapped easily. Hated coaches who weren't there to help.

Yeah, Eret hated very few things, but they despised bad coaches.

Coaches were supposed to support their team, like Puffy always does, building them up after a bad swim.

Coaches were supposed to fight for them, like Phil does whenever a competitor is rude or cruel.

Coaches were supposed to find ways to help the team bond, like the hours Puffy had organised for a movie marathon of each of their favourite movies so that they would all have something to talk about with each other.

Coaches were supposed to break up fights within the team, like Phil always did whenever Tubbo was too energetic for a jet lagged team member, or when Aimsey started to rant at Wilbur if they decided he wasn't treating Sally right, or when Fundy snapped about the furry jokes, or when something rose up because they had spent too much time stressed and without alone time.

Coaches were supposed to help unite the team under one goal, like when Puffy had gotten them all to win that medal they had thought was impossible, or when Phil had set their minds on helping getting Wilbur out of that old team, or when Puffy decided that something was up with the short brown- poorly bleached- haired boy on a team they had never talked to, and convinced them all to find out if he was ok, Tubbo hadn't been, and Eret's coaches had been there to fix that.

Coaches made or broke the team. Coaches changed everything, and looking at Tommy right now, no longer distracted and unaware, Eret could tell that the kid had been stuck with a bad coach for far too long.

"Tommy, can you tell me about your coach? What is he like?"

"He's stern, but let's me rest as needed, he's got a short temper, especially on days I don't perform well, but he usually apologises later. He's good at what he does. He was an Olympian back in the day, and he has trained my mother, and countless other Olympians over his time. He's a skilled coach. A good diver."

"Yes, but do you, Tommy Innit, the kid, not the Olympian, like him?"

"Tommy Innit the kid doesn't know him. When he's around, my job is to be Tommy Innit the Olympian. That's the rule. He is too high class of a coach to deal with me other then my training. It's quite simple really."

Words: 1000

A/N: Tommyyyyyy ur gonna make Eret cryyyy