"Haruno-chan, your stats are very good. You'll be okay if your pulses all go above 110 beats per minute now with your new heart. It most likely won't though, since it's really strong, so you'll be fine even if it does. It works just like how a super healthy heart does! Congratulations!" The nurses all applauded. I beamed a bright smile, excited to get back to the pool after two weeks. They all left my room after that, leaving me alone with Aki-nii.
"Ne, ne! Did you hear that onii-san?" I exclaimed. I bounced up and down on the hospital bed, full of energy. He chuckled, ruffling my hair.
"Honestly, you really act like a little kid. A spoiled one at that too." I hopped off the bed, ready to leave.
"Can we go now, onii-san?" I tugged on his shirt, wanting to leave the hospital as soon as possible. He playfully slapped my hand away.
"Fine. We have to say bye to Hiro-kun on the way out, though." He lifted my overnight duffel bag, leading the way out. We found Hiro-kun just before we left, giving him our thanks.
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It was already October 19th. No one would be at the indoor pool tonight since it was Saturday. I felt too excited to swallow my dinner that evening. I quickly changed into my bathing suit, pulling on a jacket and shorts. Without missing a beat, I grabbed my bag and headed out, practically running to the pool.
Leaving the door locked behind me, I threw my outer layers off and dove into the pool, allowing the cool water wash over me as I stayed under for minutes. I'm back!
I swam up, feeling better than ever before. With my digital watch left on my wrist, I decided to start my routine back in full. Free, breast, back, and butterfly. All 200m. I stood up on the diving podium, mentally challenging myself. Ready, set, go! The second I dove into the water, my watch automatically began to time me. I steadied my pace, giving a boost for the finish of each stroke. In no time, I completed it in 9:23:18 - a time faster than with my previous heart. I grinned from ear to ear, not feeling tired in the slightest.
"I can do it! Haha, yes!" I laughed. I floated on my back as I replayed what Hiro had told me.
"You can compete again, but please be careful. Stay away from the weights. You know what? Just avoid the gyms. But wait, you can't. Yes, yes, you can! You can run or jog; climb stairs here at the hospital, in your house, or at school after everyone is gone; and you can ride your bike. Check your pulse every night. What else? Don't drink too much caffeine!"
I chuckled, amused and touched how caring Hiro was. I swam a couple more laps before I decided to head home.
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Monday morning I woke up pretty late. I rushed downstairs after dressing in my uniform and grabbed toast.
"Onii-san, I'm going to school!" I shouted, running for the door.
"Wait! I'll drop you off!" Aki grabbed his keys and a sports jacket before we headed out. He dropped me off twenty minutes after the bell rang. I headed to class, sliding the door open. It was like the first day of school for me all over again. Everyone became quiet, as I walked into class. Ama-sensei's face lit up.
"Wahh! Haruno-chan, you're back!" Pulling me into a hug, she whispered into my ear, "Please don't push yourself too hard." I smiled and nodded.
"Haruno-chan! Welcome back!" The class shouted happily. Surprised at their heart-warming welcome, I bowed and smiled at them. Then I took my seat in front of Haru. Mako's and Haru's eyes were wide with surprise at my sudden appearance before changing to guilt.
Class passed by again with me doodling in my sketch book. When the bell rang for lunch, Haru and Mako materialized in front of my desk.
"Mei-chan, are you okay?" Mako asked worriedly. I smiled kindly, replying, "Yeah, I'm fine."
"Ne, Mei-chan, I'm sorry for what I said a while ago. You know, about how you should quit and everything. I didn't mean it."
I waved his apology off, "No worries. You were right anyways. I should try and get used to swimming in front of others again."
"Ne, ne, is Mei-chan back yet?"
The three of us faced the door to find Nagi and Rei in the doorway, looking for me. Their eyes finally found me as Nagi ran towards me, throwing his arms around my neck.
"Mei-chan!! You're back! I'm sorry for not standing up for you when Haru-chan was being mean! I'm sorry!" Nagi cried, tears forming in his eyes. I pulled his arms away, gently ruffling his hair.
"I'm okay! That had nothing to do with this, Nagi-chan! I'm fine!" I laughed. Rei seemed like he had something to ask so I said, "What do you want to ask, Rei-chan?"
He glanced at me before looking at the ground, pushing his glasses up. "H-how was your surgery? I kind of overheard Ama-chan's conversation." The other three boys froze.
"You had another surgery?" They exclaimed.
"Better than ever. I want to swim solo against you four doing a melody right now. Is that okay?" I grinned. Haru half smiled, liking my request. Nagi grabbed my hand, "Hai! Let's go now!" He ran all the way to the pool, dragging me behind him, laughing. I opened my locker, pulling my bathing suit out.
"I'm going to go change." With that, I hurried into the bathroom, changing. I emerged to find the four boys all wearing their swimsuits too. I stood on the diving platform of lane two, while the four of them stood in a line at lane four.
"Alright, order is: back, breast, fly, and free 100m," I announced. They switched positions so that Mako was first; Nagi second; Rei third; and Haru fourth. "Haru-chan, you're the judge." Mako and I got into our starting positions, waiting for Haru.
"Ready. Get set. Go!" We both dove into the water effortlessly. This was just like practice: I swam backwards steadily until I touched the wall, halfway done with the 100m race. Then, I swam with a small burst of speed, enough that I was 2:14:03 seconds ahead of Mako. I touched the wall, beginning my backstroke. Once Mako touched the wall, Nagi dove in, trying to make up for Mako's lost seconds. I continued at the pace that I had finished with, easily ahead of Nagi. The process repeated - the moment I had 50m left to complete, I would add a little bit more power behind my kicks. Once Nagi touched the wall, Rei dove into the water, beginning his butterfly strokes. I was four entire seconds ahead, not slowing down at all.
"Faster Rei-chan, faster!" Nagi shouted, trying to encourage Rei. My last competitor was Haru. He easily made up for the two seconds, leaving me only two seconds ahead of him. With the remaining 50m, I felt the water giving me little to no resistance, as if it wanted me to win. I glided through the water effortlessly, finishing 2:06:47 seconds ahead of Haru.
"Wow! Mei-chan, no wonder you're definitely a genius!" They exclaimed.
"Good race, min-na!" Nagi jumped into the pool, followed by Mako and Rei. The five of us laughed and floated around.
Without even knowing it, we skipped the second half of class.
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Merry Christmas everyone <3
YOU ARE READING
Caught in the Act (A 'Free! Iwatboi Swim Club' Fanfic)
FanficWhen 16 year-old Megumi Haruno was involved in a near-death accident, she lost her confidence in swimming in front of others. Still never giving up, she continues to harbor her dream of making it to the Olympics by practicing. Megumi was the competi...
