Freedom is Relative
By – Hime no Ichigo

Genre: General/Fluff
Rating: G
Characters/Pairing: HAZUKI Nagisa + RYUUGAZAKI Rei
Story Type: Drabble
Summary: When you're a high school student, there are things you have to work around.

Disclaimer: Free! is the intellectual property of Kyoto Animation.

Notes: This is from this week's theme: "amusement park".

The Friday after Rei picks up the butterfly stroke, Nagisa asks him to stay behind after school, claiming he has something important to ask him. Against his better judgment, he waits with his backpack and light novel against the row of lockers starting with ha.

"Sorry to keep you waiting Rei-chan!"

At the sound of his embarrassing nickname, he looks up to see Nagisa skid towards him, stopping in front of his locker and changing into his outdoor shoes. "It's nothing," he replies stiffly, pushing up his glasses. "What is it you wanted to ask me?"

"It would be easier if you give me your mail," Nagisa mumbles to himself, shutting the locker door. Turning around, he smiles brightly, an obviously mischievous look in his eyes, "Come with me to the amusement park tomorrow!"

"Why?!" Out of reflex, Rei's face is a scandalized look: any activity aside from (beautiful) sports and (beautiful) things is a waste of his time. And amusement parks are – well – other than being structurally beautiful, there's hardly any other reason worth his efforts.

"But Rei-chan, don't you want to get more familiar with the water? You just managed to find a style that you won't sink," Nagisa laughs as his teammate cringes at the crude reminder. "We can't use the school pool, the community pool's being taken down, and there's no way we can get into those expensive gyms. And I'm pretty sure you can't swim at home in your bathtub—"

"All right, I get it, I get it," Rei sighs, defeated, the perfectionist in him persuaded over.

"Great! I'll see you tomorrow at ten at the entrance! Don't be late!" Nagisa keeps the skip in his step to a minimum, barely holding in his glee.

(Funnily enough, even after all the clues he drops him, Rei still manages to forget his swimming trunks—"I was running late," his excuse. Nagisa thanks the natural airhead inside him, when he's not trying to be logical and picking arguments.)

Later, Nagisa learns to regret lending Rei his speedos (because he also conveniently brings around spare trunks, yes). He should be a little more careful in the future about letting Rei show off his...rather perfect assets in public.

- Owari -

Authoress' Notes: It's hard writing for a new fandom.