Free Underwater

Chapter 3 Ask Me About My Secret

   Hi reader! So like this is my first fanfiction I ever let anyone see, let me know if there is anything I can do better or anything you would like to see! I am fine with constructive criticism but please be nice about it.  Thank you:)

Amaya's phone buzzed for the fourth time that night, everyone was letting her know that Haru was going to be alright and his leg would take a month to fully heal. Amaya's phone buzzed yet again aluminating her dark room a bright blue light. This time the texts asking where she was. Amaya rolled over on her bed facing the blue wall. Her stomach was still in knots and her hands gripped her pillow tightly to keep her hands from shaking. What was I thinking? That I could become some kick ass assistant manager/ coach, save Haru from hurting himself ? Swim? I'm such an idiot!
    A hesitant knock shook Amaya from her thoughts. Kylee walked in and sat on her daughters bed. She knew Amaya only got like this when something reminded her of the traumatic event from her past.
   "Mom please leave." Amaya begged, she didn't want to talk to her mom or anyone about her anxiety, she would just lock it up inside and suffer alone.
~~~
Amaya's alarm went off way to soon and she groaned as she smacked her alarm so hard it fell from the cedar nightstand. She wanted nothing more than to hide under her soft purple covers but she couldn't, she had swim practice. She quickly got changed into the black jacket and red plaid skirt of her uniform and walked down the stairs. Her mom waited for her in the kitchen. Pancakes cooked on the stove and freshly made orange joined died a water pitcher orange.
"You don't have to go to school today." Her mom said quietly as she looked at Amaya with sad eyes. She played with a green dish towel in her hands.
"Mom it won't get any better if I shut myself in my room." Amaya explained, and although she knew what she said was true, it didn't stop her from wanting to avoid the team.
Amaya hugged her mother goodbye and left the safe walls of her home. The air was warm with a sweet smell, and birds sang in a high pitched voice. Amaya walked down the street dragging her feet more and more as she came closer to Haru's house.
Outside the small house with the garden, Haru stood with Makoto. Well stood on one foot. His other leg was in a cast and Haru leaned on a pair of white crutches. It wasn't long until both the boys noticed Amaya walking down the street, head down. Amaya gulped hard and tried not to meet their eyes. She felt awful for leaving the hospital, but else could she had done?
As she tried to shuffle past the boys she was quickly stopped by a voice. "I'm sorry."
Amaya turned to see Haru hopping over to her on his crutches. "What?" Questioned Amaya, certain she had heard Haru wrong. Haru never apologized, except when he did something really really wrong.
"I should had listened to you, if I had maybe we wouldn't be in this situation." Haru adjusted awkwardly on his crutches as he nervously awaited her answer. "That's the reason you left the hospital right?"
"No I'm sorry, I should had been more stubborn, I just... Sometimes I feel like it's not my place to be correcting everybody." Amaya admitted as she looked at the ground. "And that's not the reason I left. I started to have a panic attack so I had to leave."
Haru's eyes widened as he saw Amaya's purple eyes glass over with tears. Amaya sniffed and turned away. "Come on we're late." Amaya walked briskly down the path, Haru and Makoto close behind.
                                                              ~~~
        Gou paced nervously in front of the boys who sat on the ground near the pool. Finally she stopped and let out a large sigh. "Guys, I don't know how to tell you this but without at least four swimming members, we can't go to regionals next week. I'm sorry but, it's the rules."
    Instantly the air was filled with shouts of protests from the boys. Saying they had worked to hard to give up, that this was their chance to get new member, and it was Haru's and Mokotos's last year. Gou pleaded with them to calm down, tried telling them that their was nothing left she could do.
    "Everyone shut it!" Shouted Amaya turning away from washing the green kick boards. "Look according to the doctor, Haru will be out of that cast in two days, and will be able to swim in three weeks. That means he should be fine by nationals." Amaya looked at each boy. "All you need is a temporary swimmer. Find one and you're set for regionals."
"We've tried recruiting more members, but it's never worked out." Sighed Nagisa. "You heard the story about what happened last time."
Amaya's mouth dropped open as she saw each of the Iwatobi swim members lower their heads in defeat. "Oh come on." Amaya begged. "You can't just give up." Amaya looked at Haru looking for some kind of motivational speech.
"It's impossible." Haru spoke quietly as if saying it to loud would make it real.
Amaya looked from one member to the next, each wore a grief stricken mask that was alien to the Iwatobi Swim Club. Hope seemed like an unreachable dream.
~~~
    "Ms. A..." Amaya called as she walked into the single teacher's office. The office was a light pink with a cluttered desk full of paper work. An old antique lamp sat on the papers, slightly tilted from an un even base.
    "Yes I know Amaya." Ms. A smiled sadly. She gestured Amaya to sit and Amaya did. Ms. A lowered her glasses and looked Amaya straight in the eye. "Because the swim team's season is now ended you are no longer obligated to be assistant manager."
    If Amaya had heard those words a week ago she would had skipped for joy but now those words only made her angry. "So? We have to figure out a way to do something they've worked too hard for it all to end here." Amaya begged.
     "Amaya, you hated this job from the day it was assigned to you. However, I do not believe it is because you dislike swimming. Am I correct?" Ms. A calmly changed the subject as she stood from her grey swivel chair and opened a large metal filing cabinet and pulled out a small folder.
Amaya nodded slowly. "But enough about me what are we going to do about regionals?" Amaya asked trying to bring the topic back up.
"I don't know Amaya. What are you going to go about it?" Asked Ms. A folding up her glasses and folding her hands on her desk.
Amaya became pail at the thought of what Ms. A was implying. "No. I... I can't, I mean physically maybe, but...but I can't just dive into water..." Amaya rambled on in a nervous fit.
"Amaya there are three types of secrets in this world." Ms. A interrupted. "A secret you stuff down into your heart so that it is never spoken of again, a secret you couldn't tell even if you wanted to because it's not yours to tell, or a secret you hope someone asks about because it's to painful to bring up and it's to painful to keep to yourself." Ms. A paused and looked at Amaya. Amaya gripped the sides of the chair to keep herself from running out the door. "Amaya, sweetie, I know you nearly drowned during the Junior Olympics but is there another reason you are so scarred of the water?"
    "Umm..."
                                                                  ~~~
    "My name is Rene, my name may be girly but you can clearly see that I am a boy." Stated 14 year old Rene. He stood in front of his new classmates at the international School of swimming in Australia.
    "What a weirdo." Whispered Nick, a blonde haired devil. "What is that accent anyway?"
     "Japanese." Glared fourteen year old Amaya. "Anata ni aete kon'nichiwa sutekina Rene! Watashi no namae wa Amaya" (Hello nice to meet you Rene. My name is Amaya.) Amaya said in fluent Japanese as Rene took the seat next to her. He smiled, "Mata oaidekiteureshīdesu. Imu yorokonde Imu Nihon kara koko dake de wa naku." (Nice to meet you too! I'm glad I'm not the only one here who is from Japan.)
   Nick just stared not understanding anything. "Whatever major losers." He scoffed.
    From that day on Rene and Amaya were inseparable. Whenever it was just the two of them they only spoke in Japanese, it made them feel close to home.
    "So why are you here?" Asked Amaya in Japanese as she and Rene walked back to their sponsors' house. Amaya walked on a garden wall and Rene followed to her left, past the road was the ocean, the sun sank low in the sky and a lone bird called into the distance.
    "Because I want to be in the olympics." Rene smiled as he answered in Japanese. "What about you?"
    "My mom got transferred here." Amaya shrugged. "I don't care where I go as long as I can swim."
   "If you say because I swim free I'm going to strangle you." Rene laughed.
    "What?" Asked Amaya, generally confused.
    "You remind me so much of my friend Haru it's insane." Rene folded his arms behind his head and sighed.
    "You talk about Haru a lot is she your girlfriend?" Asked Amaya as they turned down another street with tall buildings and little shops in the bottome of office buildings.
    "What! No!" laughed Rene. "Haru is a guy!" Rene continued to laugh as they entered their favorite bakery. It was a cute little shop with tables lining the right and back wall, to the right was a glass display case with dozens of cakes and muffins.
    The lady behind the counter smiled and waved at them. "Rene and Amaya I got your usual right here."  She held up two brown paper bags that held one whole grain blueberry muffin each. On the counter in front of her was two coffee mugs that held Hot Green Tea.
    "Thanks." Said Rene and Amaya in unison as the gratefully took the brown  muffins out of the bags.
    "Did you hear about the Junior olympic tryouts." Amaya asked through a mouth full of food.
      "Yep I'm totally trying out." Rene grinned cockily. "I'm going to crush it!"
      "But Rene you haven't been doing so hot at swim practice." Amaya pointed out. It was true, Rene had been falling behind the other swimmers miserably, but he seemed unshaken by his failing swim grade.
    "I'll be fine."  Rene groned. "Stop acting like my mom."
    "Whatever you say." Amaya frowned.
    "Hey guys sorry I'm late!" Huffed Sosuke as he slid into the booth next to Rene.
    "Jeez man what took you so long." Rene smiled as he punched Sosuke on the arm.
     "Dude knock it off." Replied Sosuke as he put Rene in a choke hold.
     "Boys stop." Complained Amaya as she shoved a muffin into Sosuke mouth.
    "Oh come on!" Gagged Sosuke as he spit out the muffin.
                                                                  ~~~
    "I don't get it, these seem like really happy memories." Ms. A looked at Amaya, Amaya was smiling to herself with a hint of uneasiness in her eyes.
    "They were. The three of us always had a great time together. But that was the beginning of the end." Amaya sniffed and a single tear rolled down her cheek. "We all tried out for the junior Olympics. I was the only one who made the team though." Amaya chuckled lightly. "Rene took it really hard so I promised him I'd win for all of us. That's when things started to go south."
                                                                    ~~~
    14 year old Amaya rushed out of her last class shoving an apple into her mouth. She braided her long blonde hair as she dodged people walking on the side walk.
"Hey Amaya where's the fire?" Rene asked running to keep up with Amaya's fast pace.
"Swim practice starts in five minutes!" Amaya replied as she pulled open a large glass door to the swim building.
"Wait I thought you had today off?" Questioned Rene as he followed her inside. This had become a constant pattern for Amaya. She'd run out of school, go to practice, come home do homework and go to bed. Rene couldn't even remember the last time he saw her rest.
"It's a private practice." Replied Amaya. She now stood in front of the girls locker room.
"Why all the extra practice? Why don't you just swim free?" Asked Rene.
"Because we won't win that way." Amaya smiled and disappeared into the locker room.
                                                                    ~~~
"I was burning the candle at both ends." Sighed Amaya. "It led to a lot of leg problems, until the meet, where my leg just gave out." Amaya was crying pretty hard now.
"But what was it that made you so scarred of water?" Ms. A leaned closer.
"I woke in the hospital six months later." Amaya choked as she began to shake, Ms. A covered her mouth in shock, that hadn't been in her records. "My dad was gone. He and my mom had gotten a divorce. I haven't seen him sense before the accident. My mom had sold the house in Australia, and moved to where we are now. I never saw Rene or Sosuke again, until last week. It was all my fault, all because I made a stupid decision about swimming. It was terrifying."
Ms. A stood up and wrapped her arms around a sobbing Amaya. "Did you tell anyone about this?" She asked. She was baffled Amaya had kept all this pain inside, but she knew once she got everything out, Amaya would be better off.
Amaya shook her head. "Not even Rene knows, he thought I moved after the accident and never bothered to write a letter." Amaya began to take deep breaths and calm down once she was completely calm Ms. A smiled.
"Better?" Ms. a asked.
Amaya nodded.
"Now what are you going to do about this situation our team is in?"
Amaya thought for a moment. "I'm going to do something really stupid." With that she stood and ran out the door.