Quick note: this chapter is told in the dual perspective of Haru and Hana. Apologies if this chapter seems to jump around a little!

Open Waters

Chapter Eighteen

Back to the Surface

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"Rei!"

Haru opened his eyes slowly, the voice echoing in his head. Somehow, he had heard the voice, even though the sound of pounding rain and the fierce flapping of the tent assaulted his ears from the moment he was dragged from his sleep. The voice had been so distant, but still, so recognisable: Makoto's voice, risen in panic. Maybe that was what had awakened him.

Despite the cold, Haru sat himself fully upright, the sleeping bag sliding off his chest. He paused for a moment, reaching out with his ears to see if he could hear anything else. Had Makoto actually said that, or had that been a trick to his ears?

Haru was aware of movement beside him, and Nagisa lazily pushed himself up so he rested on his elbow, the other arm rubbing his eyes. "Haru-chan?" the blonde boy murmured sleepily.

"Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

Haru glanced back at the entrance to their tent. "That voice."

"Huh?" Nagisa mumbled, but Haru was already getting out of his sleeping bag. The zip of the entrance could barely be heard over the wind and the rain.

The minute he stepped outside, Haru found himself to be nearly blinded by the onslaught of heavy rain. Soaked to the bone the minute he stepped outside the protection of his waterproof tent, Haru got to his feet and placed a hand over his eyes in an attempt to try and shield them from the rain.

Had Makoto been out in this? Haru felt concerned for his friend. These conditions, while milder, were similar to what had happened that day, when the fisherman's boat sank. Were the memories bothering Makoto? And what about Hana?

Haru glanced temporarily over at Hana's tent as he thought her name. He found himself wondering if she was awake right now and, if she was, how she was coping with these conditions. She had endured an even more traumatising experience than Makoto that day. And though she was trying to overcome her fear, Haru had noticed that she still sometimes looked fearful when she was around the water, especially on their journey here. She had been cheerful and tried to cover up her fear, but Haru had read past her mask in an instant.

A flutter of movement caught his eye, and Haru quickly looked over to find the entrance to Makoto and Rei's tent fluttering slightly in the fierce wind. He staggered over there now, the once soft sand reduced to a sludge.

"Makoto?" Haru called. He knelt down by the tent's entrance, pushing the door back to give him a clear view of the inside,

"What's wrong?" Nagisa asked, his words slightly slurred out of tiredness. That tiredness soon started to dissipate as he caught sight of the empty tent. "Huh? They're gone..."

Haru reached out into the tent, past the damp area where the rain had entered and soaked the inside. He placed his hand on Makoto's bed roll and frowned. "It's still warm," he realised.

"Did they go to the restroom?"

Haru shook his head slightly and stood back up. No. He didn't think that they had done just that. If they had, why had he heard his friend's voice risen up in a panic?

The only thing that could have caused that here...

Haru cast his eyes once more out to the ocean, and searching through the darkness and incoming rain to the best of his ability. It was definitely a struggle, and his desperation was making him impatient. He had to know if both his friends were alright. If anything happened... he didn't even want to think about it.

"What is it?" Nagisa asked.

Haru didn't respond. He wished that it wasn't so dark so that he could see. If only there was some light...

The answer to his prayers came, in the form of a strike of lighting. It lit up their surroundings for a period of time long enough for him to see clearly.

And also a long enough time to see the distant figures of Rei and Makoto, struggling in the surging ocean.

"Is that -" Nagisa started, but halted his speech as Haru bolted forward without second thought. "Haru-chan!"

"Contact Miss Amakata!" Haru yelled, throwing his shirt off as he ran into the water. "And whatever you do, don't wake Hana!" He couldn't even begin to think how she'd react if she found out her friends were once more in such a terrifying situation. He wasn't about to put her through more trauma and unnecessary worry.

"Huh? What do you mean, don't wake Hana?" Nagisa called after him, but Haru didn't answer: he had already dived into the water, intent on reaching and saving his friends.

*         *        *

The first thing Hana noticed as she woke up was the way the rain was lashing down upon the tent.

The relentless sound dragged Hana unwillingly from her peaceful sleep. She groaned and turned over on to her side, exhaling. She hated being pulled from her sleep; it was always so tiring, to her, at least.

The rain continued to pelt down, bonding off the outside of the tent. The fabric flapped hard in the wind, though it stayed securely pegged into the sand.

Outside, Hana could hear the roar of the ocean, like a feral animal that had been antagonised. Hana gasped and pulled the sleeping bag closer to her neck, suddenly feeling paralysed.

These conditions... they're so similar to what had happened that day.

Hana still remembered that day clearly. She remembered how the typhoon had hit, and how terrified she had been. She had stayed up all night, huddled in fear into her mother, hearing the relentless rain and howling wind thst never seemed to give up. Fortunately, their town and house had survived, and Hana thought the worse was over.

She had only found out later the next day that the fisherman, the second father to both her and Makoto, had perished out at sea. His boat and so many others had sunk, and all the passengers had drowned.

Losing the fisherman had been a huge blow for Hana. She had only been young, and hadn't yet exposed to such pain in her short life. Nothing could have prepared her for the pain she'd felt, and the fear.

There had always been the fear since that moment.

Hana sighed and brought her knees to her chest, curling herself into a tight ball. She closed her eyes, and fruitlessly attempted to fall back to sleep.

This is going to be a very long night.

*          *          *

"That doesn't count as a love story, Haru-chan!" Nagisa complained.

Haru hid his exasperation, only exhaling quietly and shooting a pointed look in Nagisa's direction. He and Nagisa had managed to pull Makoto and Rei from the ocean an hour or so ago, and now they were all inside the rest house they'd found on the island. They had managed to scourge some food and now, to pass away time until the storm passed, Nagisa had organised a game. He had put their names on an object that resembled a die and wrote their names on its faces. Rei had already been, and then his name had appeared.

His task had been to tell them a love story, and he had. Haru didn't see how you couldn't fall in love with a waterfall. People fell in love with nature all the time, so what made a waterfall any different?

"You can't fall in love with a waterfall," Rei said, and Haru sat down on the cold floor to distract himself from sending a glare his way.

"I thought he was going to say something about Hana-chan," Nagisa said presently, with a thoughtful hum.

Whatever Nagisa was going to say next, Haru hadn't expected that. "Why would you think that?" he questioned.

Nagisa shrugged. "You've become close to her in a short time," he pointed out. "You two spend a lot of together as well."

"We live close by."

"He also shows a lot of concern for her," Rei said next.

Haru didn't respond, but only looked away. He was aware of a few muffled laughs from Rei and Nagisa, Nagisa especially, but ignored it as they once again prepared to roll their die.

Why had they brought Hana up? Yes, they did spend a lot of time together, but like he said, they lived close by. He was close to her, but they'd known each other as kids. He did show concern for her, because he knew of her past.

That didn't change that he was concerned for Hana, and looked out for her often.

His thoughts unconsciously drifted to Hana. Had the storm woken her? Had she found out he and the others were missing? If she had, how was she coping and reacting? Surely Gou would be there if she did worry, the two were good friends.

"Nagisa!" Rei said, loudly and suddenly, enough to drag Haru from his thoughts and refocus his attention on the game at hand.

Nagisa didn't even looked fazed as he jumped to his feet. "Okay! I'm up next! I've got a performance for you!"

Nagisa proceeded to perform the funniest-looking action Haru had seen in a long time. His arms stiff by his sides and exchanging his weight from side to side, Nagisa made an action Haru couldn't interpret.

"What are you doing?" Haru asked.

Nagisa paused, and sent an incredulous look Haru's way. "You can't tell? That was a rockhopper penguin imitation."

"It was? I couldn't tell," Rei muttered.

"What? Why couldn't you tell?" Nagisa looked honestly shocked. "Just look at this!"

He did the same ridiculous action again, and this time it had been enough to earn a short burst of laughter from Makoto.

"Mako-chan!" Nagisa snapped. His expression lasted for about a second, and then soften. "You finally smiled. That's good. You seemed a little down."

Makoto appeared sheepish. "Sorry for making you worry."

A short silence fell. Haru glanced over at Makoto, concern deepening. Was Makoto even more affected by his recent near-drowning experience in the ocean that he realised?

"Uh... I've been wondering..." Rei cleared his throat, looking a little unsure. He looked at Makoto, though he didn't exactly meet his green eyes. "When you came to save me, you were acting strangely."

"We're not going to discuss it," Haru snapped instantly.

"But -"

"Just drop it!"

Shocked silence fell. Hardly anyone there had ever heard Haru raise his voice, he was generally calm and in control, unless he was around water. But this was a past event Makoto had hardly told anyone about; sometimes it seemed it was only his family, Haru and Hana who knew what exactly had happened that day.

Haru didn't want his friend's story nor Hana's being put out there so readily,

Makoto smiled. "Thanks, Haru. It's okay. This is something I want to tell them."

Haru stared at his friend for a moment, a silent conversation passing between them. He inclined his head in acknowledgement, but shuffled closer to Makoto and said lowly so the others didn't hear, "Just leave Hana out of it. It's her choice to let everyone know."

Makoto looked right back at him. "Alright. I wasn't going to tell them, anyway."

All the time as he told the story, Haru and Makoto pictured another person with them: a young girl with light brown hair, and the reckless away she'd dove into the water which had ended with her almost drowning.

*          *          *

Hana had suspected that, after waking up to this storm, that falling asleep would be next to impossible.

She'd been right.

For as she'd tried to drop off to sleep, but found her memories dancing on her closed eyelids like a miniature movie.

It started with the way she and Makoto had spent time with the fisherman at the docks. He had always been so gentle and caring, so willing to laugh with them and play with them and look out for them. The fisherman had been like a second father to Hana. His face had always brightened up into a fond smile as the two gangly youths raced up to him, playful and always bright.

Then came the festival. Hana remembered sticking close to Makoto, both of them spending their allowance mostly on sweets. But when Makoto found goldfish he wanted to scoop, and Hana her fluffy pink teddybear, they both realised they didn't have the money. Their spirits dampened so much thst not even chocolate could lighten their moods, they'd walked through the festival, only to run into the fisherman, who had managed to get Makoto two goldfish and Hana her teddybear. Hana had been overjoyed to receive the little bear, and had treasured it ever since. Even now, in her late teens, she couldn't bring herself to give the pink bear away.

And then, the typhoon it, and the fisherman had drowned.

Hana didn't remember too much about how she'd grieved, but she vividly remembered the memorial. The mass of mourners had shuffled across the bridge, in one long procession. Hana remembered clutching to Makoto, terror searing through her veins, along with utmost desperation. She could feel the sadness rolling off mourners, had seen the way their eyes appeared sunken in, the way their heads remained bowed.

Hana hadn't felt sad at that moment, she'd only felt shock and terror. She'd watched the last of the mourners disappear, still holding on to Makoto in a way she was beginning to cut off his blood circulation. The shock overwhelmed her. She couldn't believe that the fisherman was dead. He had been a good person, so gentle and caring and full of love, always working hard.

The good guys never died in stories, and he had definitely been a good person!

Her young brain hadn't been able to process the fact that real life was cruel. Fairytales and children's stories were kind and forgiving, the hero always managing to win both the battle and the princess. But real life wasn't like that. The hero would fail, and he'd lose more than just the princess.

He'd lose everything.

He has to be alive, waiting for someone to rescue him, the young girl had thought. He's not dead, he's a good person!

She'd detatched herself from Makoto and sprinted to the end of the jetty, the yells of her friends following her as she jumped into the ocean, her only thought to swim through the endless blue until she'd found and saved her friend.

However, her plan had soon gone downhill. Basically from the moment she'd jumped into the ocean and couldn't feel or see solid ground beneath her feet, she had started to panic and thrash about, slowly but surely beginning to drown. Her arms and legs had thrashed about, but it had done her no good.

The water had been everywhere, in her eyes, her mouth.

There had been the cold, only cold, stabbing at her like shards of ice.

She'd been panicked, head bobbing above and below water.

She hadn't been able to see the bottom.

There was just blue.

Endless blue.

The ground was somewhere down below, but didn't promise stability, only a watery grave.

She had been gasping for breath.

She had been tiring out.

She had wanted to stop fighting.

To give up.

To join the fisherman.

She'd slipped below the surface, fruitlessly attempting to grip onto something, anything, but felt herself continue to fall.

Her heart had best furiously against her chest, as though wanting to make a lifetime's worth of beats before it stopped.

Before the blackness of eternal sleep rushed over her.

Before she drowned.

Her lungs had begun to burn with a furious need for oxygen.

And then, when she was sure it was over, she felt something grab hold of her. She'd been dragged through the water, black spots blocking her vision, and when she had been sure she'd be unable to hold on for a moment longer, she'd broken the surface.

Hana remembered the confusion of both gasping for breath and coughing out water as she'd been dragged securely to dry land. It had been awful; she'd been dizzy and weak, and her young, frail body only able to collapse on the ground as she coughed and spluttered, her heart racing at a million miles an hour.

Someone had been patting her gently on the back, encouraging the water out of her lungs. When young Hana had recovered, a deep yet gentle voice had asked, "You alright?"

Hana had turned, still frightened and overwhelmed, to find herself staring at an unfamiliar man dressed in runner's attire, his dark brown hair dripping wet. Somewhere on the beach, his runners and socks had been discarded.

Hana had on,y been able to nod faintly, and the man had squeezed the panicked girl's shoulder. "There. You're on dry land now, you're safe. Though you're fortunate this young man came and got me, otherwise things would have turned out worse for you."

And Hana had glanced behind her shoulder, and saw the man was indicating to a familar boy with black hair and vibrant blue eyes.

The person standing behind her had been Nanase Haruka.

*          *         *

Ever since that day, Hana had considered Nanase Haruka to be her saviour. For though he hadn't dragged her from the water, if he hadn't raced to grab that man, she wouldn't be here right now. She owed her life to his quick thinking.

And ever since that day, Hana had been afraid of the water.

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Aaaaaand this chapter is the reason I've been updating this story so frequently as of late for several reasons: 1)Hana's past is revealed, 2) We get to see inside Haru's head, and 3) Lots of Haru/Hana!! 

I hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it! Dedicated to Kathleen, because I had talked to her about the events of this chapter, the only thing that really kept me sane as I made my was through all the other chapters to this point :)

Hope you all enjoyed! Please leave a vote or comment, I really love hearing your thoughts!! :)