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She never expected anything romantic from Torao. She’s not even sure he would understand what romantic gesture even entails. She didn’t expect flowers on her birthday. She didn’t expect anything fancy on White Day. She didn’t really want any of that.
The only thing Rei wanted was him.
And here he was, with his hand outstretched towards her, waiting for her to take it. Silent. No words. They’d already said everything that needed to be said. So she reached out and took his hand. And they walked together as the darkness of the night surrounded them like a warm blanket.
Rei was where she’d always wanted to be: right by his side.
***
Not too long ago, she walked behind him. She was worried. Things had been shaken up with that new tall blond kid from Kasu High and his new water polo team… which included Ryuji. Torao tried his best to hide it, but she could see the tiny flickers of emotion spread across his face whenever they ran into one of the boys. He couldn’t hide it from her even if he tried to make his face into a mask.
It worried her, so she walked behind him. Behind, where all she could see was the back of his head. His head that was held up so proudly. She didn’t know what to say. What to do. She no longer saw those small half-smiles he used to shoot her way when they were alone together. He was too torn up now. Too much on edge. Too focused on things that shouldn’t be important. He was not the Torao she knew.
So she just followed him. Walking behind. Watching and waiting.
***
Before all this, he stood in front of her. Cool, calm, dripping with water. The two of them had just finished up a little extra practice—Nagisa, Ryuji, Goda, and everyone else had gone home long ago. She was startled to see him standing right in front of her, eyes just as intensely focused as they were during their matches.
“Let’s date,” he said. No extra words. Straight to the point as always.
At the moment, the only things she could focus on were the pool’s overwhelming scent of chlorine and the erratic beating of her heart. She was sure the sound echoed off the walls.
“We’re always together, you know,” he continued because she didn’t speak. “And I like you. So let’s date?”
She wasn’t sure when he took the steps forward to lessen the space between them, but suddenly he was so very close. Beads of water continued to drip from his hair, collecting in little puddles by their bare feet.
“Yes,” she breathed. And he closed the gap between them.
***
There was an earlier time when she watched him from a distance. Today was the day the results from tryouts were going to be posted. Today was when they would find out whether they made the cut for the water polo team. She and Nagisa had already checked the board together. It was hard to contain the excitement they both felt when they saw their names on the list. She had wanted to check for Torao’s name too but the boys’ results hadn’t been posted yet.
When she checked back later, the list was there. But she was too nervous to read it herself. She and Torao had spent so much time together, practicing their hardest to attain their goal of making the team. There was no doubt that Torao was good enough to play, but it was just the uncertainty that was killing her.
When she heard footsteps approaching, she quickly hid out of sight. It was him. She took a deep breath as he looked over the posted results. His back was to her so she couldn’t see his facial expression.
And then suddenly, he threw his fists in the air and let out a shout of joy. It only lasted a few seconds, and then he was back to his normal composure. He lifted his chin up and she swore she glimpsed the barest hint of a smile on his face as he walked away.
She waited a few minutes and then went to find him, so he could give her the good news and they could celebrate together.
***
In the beginning, she was in front of him. But she didn’t know he was behind her until something collided with the back of her leg. She winced as she looked down and saw a multi-colored ball bouncing away.
“Sorry,” he said, as he ran up to her to retrieve the lost item.
“Kitajima-kun?” she began, trying to remember his name. She picked up the ball. “Are you practicing water polo?”
He nodded. “When I get to high school next year, I’m going to join the team. They’re the best around. It’s pretty cool.” He shrugged as if that wasn’t such a big deal even though he definitely thought it was a big deal.
“That sounds fun.” She held the ball out for him to take. “Can I play too?”
“Yeah.” He took his practice ball back. He turned around to leave but stopped to face her again. “Torao,” he said.
“Hm?”
He scratched the back of his head and wouldn’t make eye contact. “You can call me Torao.”
“Rei,” she introduced herself properly.
“Rei,” he repeated. “Come practice with me tomorrow?”
She smiled. “Sure.”
And as she watched him leave, she decided that she would keep watching him no matter where he went, until one day she would be right by his side.