By the Rules [Haruka/Rin]
Title: By the Rules
Fandom: Free! Iwatobi Swim Club
Pairing: Haruka/Rin (Sharkbait)
Rating: PG
Warning(s): fluffy fluff
Words: 1042
Summary: Rin thinks he knows exactly what he's doing. Oddly enough, so does Haru.
Author's Note: Written for Iwatobi White Day for 09ofhearts. <3 Requested "flirty Haru", so... I wrote this.
Please note that I read the entire wikiHow article on "how to flirt". I did my research!
Happy White Day!
~◦☆◦~
Rin hadn’t been waiting long-he knew exactly how the game was played. One did not need experience to know the rules, only natural charisma, charm and wit. Doubt was not an aspect of the dating experience that Rin bothered himself with much. If two people liked each other, failure was in the realm of impossibility; if one or the other was worried about something going wrong, would that not only be a reflection of their own wavering feelings? As such, Rin was sure-positive-about how he felt.
So, when Haruka finally showed up, he would say that he hadn’t been waiting long, because he knew exactly what to do and could not fail.
They had arranged to meet by the park for lunch; Haru was decidedly unenthusiastic, characteristically; Rin was enthusiastic, if rather shyly, enough for the both of them. Certainly, there was no surer indicator of how comfortable and happy they were around each other.
Rin breathed a passive sigh, rolling his shoulders once and leaning-he hoped casually-against a lightpole. He glanced about in between answering the stray texts from Rei and more prodding messages from his sister: it was a sunny afternoon and small groups of cheerful passers-by cast him smiles and wishes for a good day, but Haruka was never among them. Rin was sure he would be able to pick out his date right away no matter where he was, but Haru-
Ah, Haru! Fortune nudged him in the right direction, and his gaze settled upon a conspicuously reserved figure leaning up against a tree, mirroring Rin’s posture from across the street. There could be no doubt that it was Haru. He could feel an acute azure gaze prickling upon his face, but rather than show timidity, he smiled. He knew exactly what to do.
Vaguely, then, Rin wondered how long he had been waiting there; guilt prodded at his stomach. “Haru!” he called out, masking a sudden flush of embarrassment with a nonchalant wave. “I’m over here.”
To his surprise and a flicker of annoyance, Haru did not take this as an invitation. Rather than make his way over, he leaned out slightly farther from behind the tree and-Rin would replay the memory many times in the theater of his mind- squeezed one eye firmly closed.
Rin let his hand drop. Was Haru-was he trying to wink at him?
Shaking this off as some oddly-specific trick of the light, Rin jogged across the street to where Haru waited, his left eye still closed. This strange fantasy suddenly becoming assuredly real, Rin stopped short with a start.
“Haru… did you get something in your eye?” Rin asked rather brusquely, audibly brushing aside his disbelief.
Not appearing to catch his meaning and therefore without answer, Haru opened his eye again and in a rapid, fluid motion, took a wide step to position himself directly in front of Rin. With his personal space so unexpectedly invaded, Rin stiffened a little-he had no objection to being close, but he preferred it to be on his own terms.
“H-Haru-?”
“Swimming.”
Rin could feel Haru’s azure eyes boring into his own, they were so close to one another and the latter was staring so intensely… Rin could only sputter an incoherent, monosyllabic reply.
“Swimming,” Haru repeated, his voice atonal. “How is it?”
“How is swimming?” Rin echoed, incredulous. This was certainly not what he was expecting, by any measure. “What- you mean practice yesterday?”
With a reply to the affirmative, Rin amended, “It went fi-”
“Your shirt,” Haru cut him off, ruthlessly and yet dispassionately, “it matches your eyes.”
You would know: you’re staring so hard at them, Rin thought, squirming internally. This was too strange-thoroughly unlike Haru. It was starting to freak Rin out a little. He had no idea what was going on, and that feeling of groping blindly for a foothold was both alien and terrifying to him.
“What’s going on? You’re acting weird.” A direct approach tended to be the standard method of operation with Rin.
His date’s eyes narrowed a shade. “…I complimented you too early,” he decided.
Rin grasped his shoulders, holding him still despite Haru not moving-he felt as if he needed to keep the image of him steady. Any semblance of sense the scenario had was darting rapidly out of his reach, and he could not stand the notion. “What?”
“I didn’t follow the rules.”
“The rules of what?” Rin was the one holding him in an intense gaze now-he looked, imploring, into Haru’s eyes as the past few minutes’ memories echoed in his mind. Winking, staring, the strange inquiries, unanticipated compliments coming too early? He could think of no explanation. How could this possibly be? Rin knew how the game was played, he knew exactly what to do-how?
Haru broke Rin’s stare, his azure gaze drifting away, subdued. “I was trying to flir-”
The rules. He didn’t follow the rules.
“Flirt?” It was so ludicrous: Rin fell just short of laughing by virtue of his own surprise. Then, instead, he spoke suddenly, in a flood: “You were trying to flirt? Haru, who the hell taught you how to flirt?” Somewhere, his unconscious was muttering a prayer Haru he would not say his sister.
“The internet;” Haru spoke evenly and without shame, though Rin caught the edges of his voice wavering faintly.
“Oh…!” This did manage to make Rin laugh; it was distinctly an outburst of mixed relief and amusement. “Oh, I see.” He slung an arm around Haru’s shoulders, giving him a lopsided hug. “Don’t look stuff like that up on the internet, you’ll get weird advice.”
“So you’ll teach me instead,” his date replied, reasonably.
Rin had begun to nod in answer, but stopped short, his mind perhaps choosing that moment to draw up some choice implications of such a statement. Fire danced across his cheeks, and his shoes suddenly became objects of intense interest for him. So thoroughly distracted, he never quite found a response, but his date did not seem terribly bothered by this.
The faintest shadows of a smile flitted about the corners of Haru’s mouth, yes- he knew exactly how the game was played.
~◦☆◦~
Fandom: Free! Iwatobi Swim Club
Pairing: Haruka/Rin (Sharkbait)
Rating: PG
Warning(s): fluffy fluff
Words: 1042
Summary: Rin thinks he knows exactly what he's doing. Oddly enough, so does Haru.
Author's Note: Written for Iwatobi White Day for 09ofhearts. <3 Requested "flirty Haru", so... I wrote this.
Please note that I read the entire wikiHow article on "how to flirt". I did my research!
Happy White Day!
~◦☆◦~
Rin hadn’t been waiting long-he knew exactly how the game was played. One did not need experience to know the rules, only natural charisma, charm and wit. Doubt was not an aspect of the dating experience that Rin bothered himself with much. If two people liked each other, failure was in the realm of impossibility; if one or the other was worried about something going wrong, would that not only be a reflection of their own wavering feelings? As such, Rin was sure-positive-about how he felt.
So, when Haruka finally showed up, he would say that he hadn’t been waiting long, because he knew exactly what to do and could not fail.
They had arranged to meet by the park for lunch; Haru was decidedly unenthusiastic, characteristically; Rin was enthusiastic, if rather shyly, enough for the both of them. Certainly, there was no surer indicator of how comfortable and happy they were around each other.
Rin breathed a passive sigh, rolling his shoulders once and leaning-he hoped casually-against a lightpole. He glanced about in between answering the stray texts from Rei and more prodding messages from his sister: it was a sunny afternoon and small groups of cheerful passers-by cast him smiles and wishes for a good day, but Haruka was never among them. Rin was sure he would be able to pick out his date right away no matter where he was, but Haru-
Ah, Haru! Fortune nudged him in the right direction, and his gaze settled upon a conspicuously reserved figure leaning up against a tree, mirroring Rin’s posture from across the street. There could be no doubt that it was Haru. He could feel an acute azure gaze prickling upon his face, but rather than show timidity, he smiled. He knew exactly what to do.
Vaguely, then, Rin wondered how long he had been waiting there; guilt prodded at his stomach. “Haru!” he called out, masking a sudden flush of embarrassment with a nonchalant wave. “I’m over here.”
To his surprise and a flicker of annoyance, Haru did not take this as an invitation. Rather than make his way over, he leaned out slightly farther from behind the tree and-Rin would replay the memory many times in the theater of his mind- squeezed one eye firmly closed.
Rin let his hand drop. Was Haru-was he trying to wink at him?
Shaking this off as some oddly-specific trick of the light, Rin jogged across the street to where Haru waited, his left eye still closed. This strange fantasy suddenly becoming assuredly real, Rin stopped short with a start.
“Haru… did you get something in your eye?” Rin asked rather brusquely, audibly brushing aside his disbelief.
Not appearing to catch his meaning and therefore without answer, Haru opened his eye again and in a rapid, fluid motion, took a wide step to position himself directly in front of Rin. With his personal space so unexpectedly invaded, Rin stiffened a little-he had no objection to being close, but he preferred it to be on his own terms.
“H-Haru-?”
“Swimming.”
Rin could feel Haru’s azure eyes boring into his own, they were so close to one another and the latter was staring so intensely… Rin could only sputter an incoherent, monosyllabic reply.
“Swimming,” Haru repeated, his voice atonal. “How is it?”
“How is swimming?” Rin echoed, incredulous. This was certainly not what he was expecting, by any measure. “What- you mean practice yesterday?”
With a reply to the affirmative, Rin amended, “It went fi-”
“Your shirt,” Haru cut him off, ruthlessly and yet dispassionately, “it matches your eyes.”
You would know: you’re staring so hard at them, Rin thought, squirming internally. This was too strange-thoroughly unlike Haru. It was starting to freak Rin out a little. He had no idea what was going on, and that feeling of groping blindly for a foothold was both alien and terrifying to him.
“What’s going on? You’re acting weird.” A direct approach tended to be the standard method of operation with Rin.
His date’s eyes narrowed a shade. “…I complimented you too early,” he decided.
Rin grasped his shoulders, holding him still despite Haru not moving-he felt as if he needed to keep the image of him steady. Any semblance of sense the scenario had was darting rapidly out of his reach, and he could not stand the notion. “What?”
“I didn’t follow the rules.”
“The rules of what?” Rin was the one holding him in an intense gaze now-he looked, imploring, into Haru’s eyes as the past few minutes’ memories echoed in his mind. Winking, staring, the strange inquiries, unanticipated compliments coming too early? He could think of no explanation. How could this possibly be? Rin knew how the game was played, he knew exactly what to do-how?
Haru broke Rin’s stare, his azure gaze drifting away, subdued. “I was trying to flir-”
The rules. He didn’t follow the rules.
“Flirt?” It was so ludicrous: Rin fell just short of laughing by virtue of his own surprise. Then, instead, he spoke suddenly, in a flood: “You were trying to flirt? Haru, who the hell taught you how to flirt?” Somewhere, his unconscious was muttering a prayer Haru he would not say his sister.
“The internet;” Haru spoke evenly and without shame, though Rin caught the edges of his voice wavering faintly.
“Oh…!” This did manage to make Rin laugh; it was distinctly an outburst of mixed relief and amusement. “Oh, I see.” He slung an arm around Haru’s shoulders, giving him a lopsided hug. “Don’t look stuff like that up on the internet, you’ll get weird advice.”
“So you’ll teach me instead,” his date replied, reasonably.
Rin had begun to nod in answer, but stopped short, his mind perhaps choosing that moment to draw up some choice implications of such a statement. Fire danced across his cheeks, and his shoes suddenly became objects of intense interest for him. So thoroughly distracted, he never quite found a response, but his date did not seem terribly bothered by this.
The faintest shadows of a smile flitted about the corners of Haru’s mouth, yes- he knew exactly how the game was played.
~◦☆◦~