Florence || H.S.

Chapter Ten: I'm Not a State Swimmer for Nothing

important! i updated chapter three and changed a part of it to introduce two new people that will have cameos in this story so if you're an old reader i'd recommend going back to that!

Florence's laugh resembled the feeling you get listening to your favourite song while lying down on a picnic rug underneath an old gum tree. Everything about the girl was beautiful, even though she was far from perfect.

Harry had stopped swimming laps around her in favour of stopping to look at her features. His wet eyelashes focused at first on her usually blonde hair made brown by the water. He'd never seen her wear her hair up; it always flowed in soft waves down past her shoulders onto the skin of her back.

Florence had turned around and was talking softly to an elderly lady who floated on a pool noodle. They hadn't been joined by the rest of their group which was strange considering Harry's hands were starting to shrivel up. His actions subconsciously matched Astorias as he let himself float on his back, the noise of the world drowned out by the feeling of water in his ears. He closed his eyes and let himself drift from side to side until Florence was ready for him.

Harry hadn't done anything more than kiss Astoria and they weren't dating, so why did he feel so guilty for spending time with Florence. He was the reason Florence was here. She was his friend after all.

"Harry." The water in his ears gurgled his name. It was like the honey of Florence's voice had gone through severe auto tune. Harry broke from the position he floated in and got to his feet. The pool wasn't that deep so, while Florence had to tread water, Harry could stand comfortably with his head and shoulders above the water.

A little smile spread across Harrys face as he looked at the swirl of brown in Florence's eyes. She raised her eyebrows as if to ask what the hell he was thinking about. Harry wondered what she thought of him. Maybe if he channeled the thought enough, she'd be able to read his mind.

"You want to go find the others?" Florence followed up as soon as she realised Harry had gone temporarily mute. It was strange that they hadn't come down. Maybe having breakfast before swimming was a bad idea.

Harry nodded as her words travelled in through one of his ears and out the other. He bit his lip as he looked at hers, tinted blue with the chill of the water.

Florence laughed at him and his silly male mind. "Come on you tool." She swam past him, diving under the water to grip around his calf. Harry stumbled a bit before turning around as Florence surfaced.

"I'm coming." He laughed as he tried to get to the edge of the pool faster than her. Of course his plan failed. Florence wasn't a state swimmer for nothing.

She pulled herself up out of the pool in one smooth motion, leaning back over to lend Harry her hand. He grasped it and pulled himself up. The shrivelled nature of their skin made contact feel foreign.

The pair hugged themselves in the towels they had brought down from the room. Florence dried her feet and then slid them into her slides as Harry mirrored her actions. The only insecurity Florence really had was her toes which was especially funny because she's a swimmer, and no one really looks at your toes anyway. She thought hers were too bony and she tried to avoid looking at them at all costs.

Of corse her hips weren't perfectly rounded like she'd seen on so many girls on the little screen she held so close to her. Her eyebrows were slightly overgrown and her eyelashes weren't very long. The girl could spend all day thinking about her flaws but she chose not to. Florence had realised after year long battles with her own reflection that it simply wasn't worth it. She didn't have to look like someone else in order to be beautiful.