The Ocean Is Blue

CHAPTER 2

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SHU
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The ball came whistling through the air. Catch it this time! Shu waded through the water sloshing in the pool on the deck of the ship, and made a swift grab for the ball, swiping his arms through the air in an attempt to trap it against his chest. Shit! Again, he was a second too early, and the stupid thing slipped from his fingers and crashed into his face, knocking him off his feet.

"You okay dude!?" he heard his friends call as he watched the ball bounce into the crowd outside, disappearing into a maze of legs. Shu tried to hurriedly haul himself out of the pool but his hand slipped, and he went tumbling into the water again. He gasped for breath as strong hands closed around his hips, hauling him out.

He doubled over to the side and burst into a fit of coughs. "Dude, did you actually just drown in a four feet pool?"

Shu frowned up at his best friend, Yusaku. "I..." did not. Except he had. He had just drowned in a children's pool and he might have been in serious trouble if not for his friend. His friend, who unlike him, was tall, and strong, and dependable, and did not mess up five catches in a row. Shu instantly chucked that last thought and stepped all over it. Thinking like that wasn't allowed. He could be like Yusaku too, some day, if he worked harder.

"I could have gotten out on my own!" he insisted stubbornly.

Yusaku smiled, in that affectionate way. I'm not a child. And then his lips puckered. "Your cheek, it's red. Does it hurt?"

"Nah," Shu mumbled, rejecting Yusaku's hand and jumping to his feet, ignoring the persistent throbbing in his left cheek. "This is nothing man. I'll go bring the ball back!"

"Again? You don't have to-"

"I want to!" Nobody liked fetching the ball. Shu was happy to do it for them. To be of some use, so that everyone would want to keep playing. With him.

I don't mind. And then he was running into the crowd for the seventh time that day. In a flash, the ball was back in his hand, and he was sprinting back to the pool, a wide grin breaking across his face. Fun. He was having so much fun.

The next time the ball accidentally rolled away, he went after it again. Even if he wasn't good at the game, just being with his friends, laughing with them, was enough. It was fun. And Shu wanted to make lots of memories of their school trip together.

He returned to find them climbing out of the pool, and his smile faltered. "Are we done playing?"

Yusaku flexed his arms before ruffling Shu's brown curls. I'm not a child. "Not everyone has as much energy as you, you know that right?"

Shu sighed, letting the ball fall back into the water. He could've kept going for another hour at least. But the other guys didn't want to play anymore, and that was okay. He immediately started going over the other activities they could do together on board.

"Besides," Yusaku started with a little laugh, "aren't you hungry yet? You're usually at your limit by now."

As if on cue, a low growl escaped his stomach and Shu's eyes flew open. "You're right! I'm starving." He grinned, swallowing his excitement. "What do you think they'll serve for lunch!? Sea food right? Will they have oyst-"

"All the good stuff," Yusaku mumbled, and without warning, threw an arm around Shu's shoulders, almost knocking him off balance. Shu yelped and playfully shoved his friend away, quickly shutting down the realization of how much taller Yusaku had gotten over the summer. Because it was just a matter of time. I'll catch up.