Poolside

Midsummer, and a heat wave. There is a haze of heat over the asphalt roads of Ebimanyou Town; bottled water is flying off the shelves, and ice cream cones sold by the dozen. Jaune, used to much colder climes, finds himself retreating indoors most days, shucking off his jacket and taking long, cold showers while his body acclimatises.

“I don’t know how you can smoke when it’s this hot,” he complains.

Yuki takes a long, gloating puff of her cigarette and blows the smoke into his face. In a rare bout of diplomacy, she’s elected to share (or just show off) the pool behind the Waruda’s base for the day. QP and Aru have already taken to the water; Aru is floating serenely in a white sarong, and QP is ferrying an inflatable beach ball around in a bikini that can only be summed up as ‘dangerous’. The contrast between Aru’s pale skin and QP’s glowing tan is delicious.

While he’d love to enjoy the water himself, he doesn’t want to leave Yuki on the sidelines. He’s aware that, even with the baby steps they’ve taken recently, her relationship with QP and Aru is still highly contentious. They’re not comfortable enough to invite her in, and she’s not humble enough to join them herself. If left alone… well, she’ll be left alone.

“Quit hanging around like a lost puppy,” she snaps. “I didn’t go to the trouble of having this pool cleaned for you to not swim in it.”

She actually had it cleaned because the city declared it a health hazard. But he decides not to pursue the point. “What will you do?” he asks.

“I’ll watch.”

“Oh, right. Are you one of those cats that’s fascinated by water features?”

“As if. I’m just checking out my competition. And… my prize,” she says slyly. “Or I would be, if you’d hurry up and get in the pool. I’m in the mood to see some glistening abs, so hurry up and get yourself wet.”

The way she says it, he can’t tell whether it’s a joke, a statement of fact, or an attempt at cruelty. It’s always a gamble with Yuki. Aru and QP satisfy his desire for a pure and comfortable love; Yuki appeals to the adrenaline junkie who perks up whenever somebody starts shooting at him. Sometimes she also shoots at him.

“Well, I know one way to solve the problem,” he says. He takes her hand gently; her fingers are soft from the sun tan lotion. She thinks he’s leading into a cheesy romantic moment. She’s wrong.

Instead he swings her into his arms, and advances towards the pool. She realises too late what he’s about to do, and digs her nails into the muscle of his back.

“Too bad,” he whispers. “I’m starting to get used to that.”

The sound of her swearing is cut off when she hits the water. He’ll pay for this later, he’s sure.

But for now, the real party can begin.