#harurin fanfiction

[misila]

you happen to me

— written for @thenightpool's Unleashed Blue event

Characters/Relationships: Rin/Haru, Haru&Makoto, Haru&his parents (minor) Rating: T Genre/Tags: AU - Mermaids & Mermaid hunters || Romance || Angst || Slow Burn || Strangers/lowkey enemies to Necessary Nuisances to Lovers || Life Debts || Rescue Missions || Mild Blood || Non-Explicit Sex Chapter: 5/5 (7.3k words) Summary:

“So here’s a deal.” Rin hoisted himself up, curling his tail around himself to look Haruka in the eye. “You help me to find my sister, and in exchange you have a merman indebted to you for the rest of your life—which I can assure you, will be shorter than mine. What do you say?”

For a mythical creature whose existence he hadn’t been completely sure of up until that very morning, Rin was earnest and open, and honest, and annoyingly human.

And he was wrong. Haruka was the one who had been indebted to Rin for years.

Read on AO3 | From the beginning

[missfreija]

title: lemon juice

fandom: free!

pairing: rin/haruka (+ makoto, rei, nagisa and gou)

tags: fluff, post season 1, holiday

[thenightpool]

sign-ups for unleashed blue, a rinharu marine life & aquatic AU fest, close in just 20 days!

🌊 all types of fanworks are welcome!

🌊 casual monthly check-ins to keep us on track

🌊 an optional but super friendly event discord where you can meet other participants, brainstorm, and gush about rinharu

🌊 no penalties if you need to step back!

🌊 a nice, long creation period. posting begins in late May

as an extra incentive to join us, we'd like to introduce you to our fin-footed mascots that were illustrated by @whitechoko! romantic, right? 🦭❤️💙✨

complete event info | sign-up form | our twitter

[angstintensifer]

sometimes I think I’m fine and then I want to write a one shot about how Haru didn’t immediately want to get back with after he attacked Akito and learned the truth because he completely blamed himself for Rin getting hurt.

Like what if Kureno didnt convince him and I just made everyone sad with a fic like that…

[adorafics]

Free! | RinHaru | Alternate Universe | T-rated | 193 words

Summary: Sometimes, being a cop isn't easy for Rin.

Written for "Rin & Haru's Big Warm-Up!"

[tsumex]

‘Cause the night is, baby, when all the demons come out. (Rinharu fanfiction--Free!)

It's always been hit-or-miss for them--or maybe it's just that they've been running from their issues too successfully.

Dammit.

  Dammit, dammit, dammit.

  Haruka has never been one for swearing much, but every expletive he knows is currently running a litany in his head, twisting over and under and back again through the convoluted mess in his head. He’s angry—not angry, not exasperated, not decidedly anything, and that uncertainty only adds to the resultant irritation. He’s always known his mind, he thinks—maybe even prided himself on the lack of complication in his thought process—and he curses this past year, too, for sending that stronghold teetering on its foundation. Like the quivering of shattered glass the tension in the air stands as he lies in bed, in the same bed as Rin, warmed by the body heat of the only ascertainable source of all his problems.

 The day has been—it’s been one of the strangest Haruka has ever experienced—which is not saying much, given his generally uninteresting yardstick, but he’s pretty sure being whisked off to a foreign country without notice would figure as unprecedented by anyone’s standards. It’s not only that, though. Being so up close and personal with figments of Rin’s past had made him a kind of uncomfortable his own limited vocabulary couldn’t even begin to describe. It’s never pleasant, he’s realizing, to have illusions shattered, even less so to be made to introspect, and it’s that, and more—this panorama of everything he’d missed all the years that slipped by like beads on a string, so stuck in his own perception of betrayal, of not talking to Rin, or writing to Rin, blind to anything else.

 He wants to bury his head in his hands, drown out everything else. The epiphany that somewhere inside him, he’s always believed that Rin had had it easy, easier than him left to agonize over and ponder the whys and the hows, haunts him, has haunted him ever since they’d gone to that godforsaken beach and Rin’s eyes had looked to something Haruka couldn’t see. Limpid with something Haruka couldn’t reach as he’d talked as someone would talk of an old flame. Haruka—he’s used to being on the outside looking in, but that had been—something else altogether. And since he couldn’t place it—again—he’d disguised with an annoyance not altogether feigned. Not interested, uncaring, all the labels he’s always stuck by, they’d made life easier for him. But—and he’s only just realizing this, too—they’ve left him with a void that begs the question of whether he’d really ever had the pulse of what he was feeling, or if he only thought it because he never felt anything much at all. Another illusion, another obliteration.

 He’d never thought Rin would apologize. Penitence and Rin—they’ve always been poles apart, and it was whiplash to Haruka, seeing it. The Rin he knew would never—but has it really been that long? Has that Rin Haruka knew really walked so far along the path away from him? It’d left him fumbling for words then, it’s left him grasping for something appropriate to feel now—and that’s the only thing that hasn’t changed between them. And so, more strikingly by connection, where does that flux leave himself?

  Has he really

  Not progressed at all?

  It’d never bothered him before. He’d always figured he’d get by, one way or another. It’d only been when—and he can still hear Rin’s voice, raised, lethal as a gunshot, don’t you have a dream—when the bruising hold on his shoulders had blazed a trail right into something dormant in him, that he’d gotten a glimpse of it. Where it had been not just getting by like a match into water, like oh.

  So this is emotion.

  He’s had people care for him. He’s cared for people, too, he thinks. As far as caring goes for someone like him, that is. But Rin—Rin is a conundrum, making Haruka feel by turns anxious, irritated and—hungry, even, when he sees the easy camaraderie between him and his homestay parents, for lack of something like that to call his own. Does he care for Rin? Does Rin, in turn, care for him? They’re all questions that loom like apparitions, ready to jump out at him from the shadows. He just doesn’t know, but all in all, he doesn’t like one bit the idea of a world where Rin is his only anchor. He’s passive, not helpless—but it’s been a reinforcement of the latter all day, and some part of him had been looking forward to the night, time away from Rin and in his own comfortable space to ponder over—or, alternatively, escape from—it all.

 But here they are.

 He’s never—done so many things he’s done in the span of this past month. Unbidden, the vision of Makoto’s face, the emotion dancing in the usually tranquil green eyes and how Haruka hadn’t even stopped to listen, swims into focus. It hurts like the phantom pain of a lost limb, and Haruka smothers his sudden gasp into the pillow. He doesn’t know how to fix it. He doesn’t even know what he’ll do without Makoto, and he clenches his eyes shut against the ocean of regret—so many of them—that suddenly lurches in his chest. Forcibly, he evens his breathing out, hoping sleep will claim his exhausted senses before—

 “Haru?”

 His eyes fly open before he’s had time to think about it. For a moment, he considers pretending to be asleep, but the stiffening of his posture must have given him away, because Rin keeps talking.

 “I told you I’ve always admired you, right?”

 Haruka wants to shake him, then, because of course and how could he forget those words, so uncharacteristic of, once again, the Rin he knew—but he’s quickly finding out that the Rin he knew is nothing but a mirage of fireshine and shadow now, born of memory and instinct. And in his place is this—this man,all at once so distinct and yet so painfully evocative of everything he remembers. He doesn’t know what to think of it, what to make of this heat suddenly rising in his cheeks at it, but he’s not given the opportunity to, because Rin is speaking again, voice quiet and full of a meaning Haruka can’t understand, only feel.

 “You might not remember it, but I still remember the day I first met you.” Haruka’s not sure it’s possible at this point, but his body tenses even further, a little bit at the air which is suddenly heavy around them, but mostly because that simple sentence has opened the floodgates in his mind of the folder marked Rin and in bold red lettering do not open. That elation of a worthy adversary, the sparking electric buzz in the water he’d first and only felt when he’d shared it with Rin, young as they both were, all of it comes surging up, and his throat is suddenly tight with a million unspoken sentiments. “To be honest, it had never occurred to me that I could lose to someone.”

 Haruka hides a smile into the darkness, because there it is, that flash of Rin’s past self, that childish competitiveness he could never quite grow out of—that Haruka doesn’t want him to grow out of, he’s beginning to think. That maybe it’s that bone of contention which makes them who they are—something by turns painful and exhilarating, as hard to contain as the ebb and flow of tide.

 “But any frustration I felt vanished when I thought that there was someone more amazing than me, that I wanted to be able to swim like him.”

 Amazing. Haruka’s breath catches on that word. He’s been called it before one too many times, and it’s caused him nothing but discomfort and the weight of frustrated expectation. But to hear Rin say it—openly, not a trace of hesitation or shyness—he repeats it over and over to himself. Amazing amazing amazing. His fists, he finds, are suddenly clenched, body coiled tight as a tripwire while he fights the urge to react, to just—turn over and respond to Rin in kind. Because who the hell is he kidding, he’s always thought Rin amazing, too, more than amazing. Like someone in the bland schema of his quotidian that doesn’t quite fit. He doesn’t know what to do, really, like always with Rin, so he settles for waiting for him to continue and hoping that the warm feeling in his chest and cheeks hasn’t spilled out to anything tangible.

 “That’s why it’s hard for me when you’re not always there ahead of me, showing me what path I should take.” And, really, if Haruka had thought the air was tense before, it’s practically electric now, with Rin’s voice laving it over like running water. Anyone who isn’t—well, Haruka, would think his speech to be remarkably put-together, calm even. But it’s him and it’s Rin, and somehow they always know, with each other. And if instinct tells Haruka there’s an undercurrent to Rin’s words, there probably is.

 Something in Haruka’s chest hurts with the fullness of it—his heart beats strangely and he almost thinks Rin can hear it like this. Because he’s talking, actually admitting these things out loud instead of sublimating them into tears or disproportionate anger. And if he knows to do this, then he must, must know how it’s affecting Haruka. He can’t be oblivious to the way Haruka wants to turn around and tell him to shut up, that he can’t be a guide to what he doesn’t know himself—and at the same time, he wants—

 “Without you, I have nothing to aim for, you know?”

 Haruka’s heart stops. He doesn’t know if Rin understands the propensity of what he’s just said. His mind blanks. And somehow, suddenly, the word anchor ceases to be just a tiresome burden to him. Before he can stop himself, the words are out.

 “I remember it too. The tournament.” It’s a simple admission, maybe inadequate after all Rin’s said, but it’s all he can trust himself to say in the threshold of safe. It’s in his characteristic taciturn way, too, but somehow he doesn’t want to force the words back down, and Rin catches onto it, the rift in the ice. He turns, and for one frozen moment of horrified anticipation Haruka thinks he’s going to hug him. But he just shifts so he’s facing the ceiling, laughs softly.

 “Do you remember the freestyle race we swam during the tournament this spring, when we tied and set a new tournament record together?” And again, it’s an inane question. Because it’s nigh impossible for Haruka to forget, not unless he barges into the corner of his mind reserved for precious things and obliterates the entirety of it. He doesn’t know how to begin putting this into words, but it’s simple enough to mutter out a yeah into the sheets. It’s a poor response at best, but it seems Rin reads something from his end of the silence, because he doesn’t stop talking. “I was testing you then. I wanted to see if that was really the farthest you could go.”

 And really, hasn’t their relationship been so much of that, Haruka wants to ask. To push and push and push the other to—snap, he used to think, but with this Rin, this Haruka, maybe it’s like Rin has said. Go farther, be better, swim faster. He’s thinking a lot of things he hasn’t thought before, like maybe Rin’s right and he’s wrong for once, like maybe the world doesn’t exist in one dimension that is his.

 “And when I sensed you coming up from behind me, I knew for sure.” The fervency in Rin’s voice is rising now, palpable in the still air around them. “That you were definitely going to enter the same world as me.”

 It’s absolutely silent in the little room apart from the thud of Haruka’s heart, the blood pounding in his ears. It’s all painfully obvious to him now, that he’s been blind, ungrateful, selfish—everything else he can think to add on to that. Because Rin—Rin’s believed in him when neither of them knew it, believes in him now, and it’s about time Haruka found a little belief of his own. But all he can do is lie frozen on his side, Rin’s body burning like a furnace beside him, making him feel suddenly hot in the sharp chill of the Australian winter. Very slowly, almost imperceptibly, Rin inches closer, just the barest brush of their bodies as his voice goes very tender, soft like a whisper.

 “Hey, Haru. During that race, didn’t you feel something, too?”

 Rin—he doesn’t need to say it, what he’s insinuating under cover of darkness and his ambiguous wording, because if Haruka was unsure of just what this weight in the air meant before, the way his entire body thrills at their little brush of contact leaves him in no doubt now. They’ve spent so long walking circles around each other. And here Rin is coming on to him, Rin is coming on to him. And all the almosts and near misses and second-guessings—he balls his fists. There’s so much—so much.

 So slow he could be measuring out each minutiae of the action, he turns around. The ceiling flashes into view, then, and he grits his teeth when he’s finally on his other side, facing Rin. This one answer, he knows, he can’t trust to words alone. Rin stiffens for a moment, and Haruka can hear his breath hitch before he, wordlessly, turns over, too, so that he’s occupying the entirety of Haruka’s field of vision, eyes dark and a wry little smile playing at his lips. Up so close, Haruka can count each of Rin’s lashes, the tiny beauty marks on his cheekbones, and he’s so preoccupied at the unexpected attractiveness that the remaining space between them vanishes unnoticed. Rin shifts even closer, Haruka leans in and—oh.

  So this is emotion.

  The brush of their lips is chaste, once, twice more before they come to press up against each other. It’s—Haruka’s never experienced anything like it before, but he’s pretty sure that something simple as that shouldn’t have his skin heating up where pinpricks of blood rise under the surface of it, nor make his heart feel like fight-or-flight. When they pull away, when Haruka opens his eyes—when had he shut them?—he finds Rin already looking at him with something inscrutable in his expresssion.

 “What,” he mutters, averting his gaze somewhere off to the right for a split second before Rin’s hands cups his chin and guides him back into the deadlock of their gazes.

 “That’s your answer?” he sounds suddenly as quietly fervent as he had done before, gaze burning into Haruka—and he isn’t going to back down from this now. There’s no panic, no misgiving—just this muted sort of quiet heat charging the atmosphere. And he knows this to be a sure thing simply because it’s not a sure thing. The world knew it when they were two immature, stubborn idiots—but the sweetness of it now that it’s seasoned with maturity, makes up for lost time, Haruka thinks. So he looks Rin right back in the eye, seals his fate.

 “That’s my answer.”

 For a minute, Rin just stares at him like—like he’s never seen him before. But before Haruka can look away again, he’s surging forward, grip on his chin tightening as he presses their lips together again, this time with more intention. Haruka’s head is rapidly fogging up as he wonders whether it’s something Australian, something he’s learnt to do here—but then his mouth opens in a gasp and Rin’s licking inside it and he decides it doesn’t matter. Nothing could be truer, more right in this moment and he lets himself be swept along, free hand finding its way into Rin’s hair, tugging a bit to elicit a low mmm into his mouth—there’s so much heat between them now, Rin always burns a little hot anyway but Haruka knows it’s not just him right now, his own body responding in kind to Rin’s pull.

 They’re both breathing hard when they pull away this time, and Haruka finds his gaze dropping to Rin’s lips, glistening and just a little bit redder than usual. It sends a shiver down his spine, and, like in a daze, he makes to claim them again before Rin stops him with a hand stroking along his face.

 “Haru,” he says, almost pained. “If you don’t stop now—I don’t know where this’ll go.”

 Haruka sucks in a breath. He hadn’t considered—hadn’t ever thought that they could do that.Stupid of him in retrospect, buttwo guys—or with anyone for that matter, it’s weird no matter how you look at it for him, at least. But this isn’t—it’s Rin. And somehow, the idea of it with Rin, when he thinks of it, is just—not disgusting or abhorrent or anything but natural. The decision, it comes to him in a blinding flash, isn’t one he has to make right here. It’s one he’d made a long, long time ago. Because really, there’s only ever one person in the world who’s shown him that sight he’d never seen before. And only ever one person he’s wanted to see it with.

 “Rin—,” he begins, then stops short. Words, for him, are immaterial. And there’s no way in hell he’ll ever find enough to say all of this. So he just acts. Throws caution to the winds. Ignores Rin’s warning hand on his cheek and seeks out his lips, parting them with his own. The slick slide of their tongues together makes— noises which send Haruka’s pulse thrumming under his skin, his breathing choppy and fragmented. It’s like that for a long moment, Rin slowly melting under the contact—and then Haruka’s on his back, looking up into Rin’s burning eyes, Rin’s jaw clenched tight, arms effectively caging him in.

 “Don’t fucking blame me if you can’t walk tomorrow, Haru.”

 Haruka is hard-pressed to repress the shudder than goes through him at Rin’s words, at the way Rin says his name, low and dangerous. But he raises an eyebrow at him, knows that something inside Rin will rise to the challenge—and he’s right. He’s so, so right when all he can do is get out a surprised interjection as he’s pressed into the mattress before Rin is kissing him, kissing him like he’s hungry for it while he ruts his hips down into Haruka’s once, experimentally. And Haruka’s been aware of—that in the background all this while, but with the hard ridge of Rin’s arousal pressing up into his own now, he’s aware of it, and suddenly, it’s like he can’t stop. He can’t stop himself from moaning, and he can’t stop his hips from twitching back up against the friction. Rin smirks—he can feel him doing it into the kiss, and he channels his irritation into retribution. Buries his hands into Rin’s hair and pulls hard, rocks his hips up again just to hear Rin stifle a groan.

 “Don’t play dirty,” Rin grits out, ever the hypocrite, and Haruka open his mouth to tell him just that, but then Rin’s hand finds its way under the drawstring of his sweats and all that comes out is a low hiss. It’s a bit dry, the friction, but Haruka’s hips buck up into it nonetheless—and when Rin removes his hand to lick over it, the blood rushes to his head so fast it makes him dizzy. He’s thankful he’s lying down like he’s never been thankful for anything else before, especially when Rin’s hand returns to stroking him and he joins their mouths again to keep in the embarrassing noises he’s making.

 “Feels good?” It would be a sympathetic question except for the way Rin murmurs it into his ear, voice honeyed and dripping seduction like heknows.And Haruka’s reached his breaking point.

 “Bastard…,” he grits out, blindly reaching for the waistband of Rin’s own pants and grasping the fullness of his cock from under it. And it’s worth the effort for the way the pace of Rin’s hand falters on his own cock, the way his head slumps down on the pillow next to him as he groans.

 “Haru—,” he kisses at his neck, slides his other hand up under his t-shirt to thumb at his nipples, making his back arch. “You don’t have to.”

 Haruka rolls his eyes even though he knows Rin can’t see, and speeds up the movements of his hand, moistening it with the precome that is steadily leaking from the tip, spreading it around. “You were saying?”

 “Fuck,” Rin moans out, biting down on the soft skin at the juncture of Haruka’s neck and shoulder in retaliation, sending a spark of electricity to the heat pooling in his belly. “You’re so unfair.”

 “I’m unfair?” Haruka can’t fight the heat in his voice anymore, any attempts at a mild intonation thrown out the window as he twists his wrist on the upstroke to watch Rin’s entire body shudder as he stills Haruka’s hand with a bruising grip on his wrist after he does it again.

 “Enough.”

  Can’t take more? Haruka wants to ask, wants to set the smoldering embers in Rin’s eyes ablaze, but then Rin is pulling Haruka’s shirt over his head, then his own, and looking at his body in a way that makes him feel even barer than he is. Down his eyes travel like a caress, making Haruka’s skin heat under the phantom touch—and it’s worse when he rejoins the trail of his gaze with his lips, kissing lower, lower, mouth and tongue working at his nipples as he slides his pants down over the jut of his hips, his cock, until he’s completely exposed. Rin kicks the blanket off of them, and Haruka can’t even find it in himself to care at the cold air because Rin’s on him, Rin’s going to be inside him, and Rin chooses that moment to graze his teeth over a pebbled nipple and all he can think of is the heat of his body and his mouth. He’s moaning, must have been, because there’s no resistance when Rin’s fingers nudge at the seam of his mouth. He sucks them in on instinct, tongue flicking over them in ways he didn’t even know he was capable of, and Rin makes a low noise into his skin, trailing his hand down from where it had been caressing Haruka’s side to push his legs apart.

 “I’m gonna fuck you now, Haru.” The words are deceptively gentle, belied only by Rin’s fingers digging bruises into the inside of his thigh—and yet they pour into Haruka’s insides like something molten, burning him from the inside out. All he can do is nod, then, as fervent as Rin ever was, and he’s only given till that little movement before Rin’s fingers are gone from his mouth, only to push at his entrance as Rin lifts himself back up so that their noses are brushing, scrutinizing Haruka’s face. It’s such a foreign sensation that it forces a gasp past his lips despite himself, skin prickling into goosebumps. When Rin slides one long, callused finger into him, Haruka can’t help another catch in his breath, the flutter of his lashes. It’s weird—doesn’t feel like anything he’s ever felt before, but the anticipation laden in it has him pressing down tight against the breach. Rin makes an almost frustrated sound, licking at the shell of Haruka’s ear before breathing into it. “You’re tight, so fucking—I need you to relax a bit for me.”

 Rin’s finger jostles a tiny bit as he trails sucking kisses, excruciatingly slow, across Haruka’s throat, and Haruka makes a soft noise lost somewhere between the shudder wracking his body and Rin’s lips as he silences him with the heat of his mouth and the press of his tongue. His other hand, rubbing soothing circles over his thigh, suddenly grips hard, hard enough to hurt as he moves his finger with intent, curls it a bit and—

 “Ahhh—!” Heat jolts up Haruka’s spine as he throws his head back, breaking the kiss to make a sound that seems obscenely loud in the still air of the room. Rin’s looking at him with a kind of dark focus which is almost frightening in its intensity as he does it again, and Haruka’s entire body jerks.

 “Here?” And damn him, he knows, even with Haruka’s lack of response, as he adds another finger, driving it straight into that spot which makes his vision short out. Haruka’s so—he’s slowly going insane with the assault on his senses, and he needs—he needs more. All of it. He can’t think, can’t judge what is safe to be said anymore. So when Rin scissors his fingers, he forces his eyes open, doesn’t hold back the broken keen that’s straining against the confines of his throat.

 “Please, Rin.”

 The reaction is instantaneous. The movement of Rin’s fingers inside him stills completely for a second before he drives back in with a force that sends Haruka sliding back a little. He’s another finger in, then, biting hard at Haruka’s clavicle, muttering out nonsense against the forming bruise. “Yeah, Haru, just let me—let me—”

 It’s all a dizzying blur to Haruka now, a fever dream—Rin’s mouth has found its way back to his nipples as he moves his fingers faster, faster—the slick sounds echoing through the room, a background track that’s only feeding the flames licking at the base of his spine. And then it’s all gone, the stretch of Rin’s fingers giving way to an aching emptiness and a blunt pressure at his entrance—and this is it. Haruka holds his breath as Rin raises his head to look him in the eye, something unspoken and yet more concrete than anything he could ever voice passing its silent way between them as Rin presses his hips forward, because this is it. All of Rin.

 Haruka bites his lip as he fights to keep his eyes from fluttering shut, but something soft and wrecked trembles out of him all the same at the burning stretch as Rin sheathes himself fully inside of him. He’s breathing hard and his jaw is set with the restraint of it as he waits for Haruka to adjust for a long, agonizing moment before he speaks, voice shaking. “Fuck, Haru—please, can I move?”

 Haruka’s whole body is drawn taut, and he knows it’s not going to take long for him to break like this, where he can feel the reverberations of each throb of Rin’s pulse where they’re joined—but the prospect doesn’t scare him. Not anymore. And so he lets his arms snake around Rin’s back, nails digging in as he braces himself. “Yes. Rin, yes.”

 Rin fucks like he swims—deliberate, brutal, completely single-minded. It doesn’t take them long to find a rhythm, the driving of Rin’s cock into Haruka harder and harder after the first few tentative thrusts, like he’s looking for Haruka’s limit and isn’t afraid to push it. Haruka is torn between clenching his eyes shut against the onslaught of sensation and just—watching Rin’s tether fray and snap, licking up the droplets of sweat beading on his skin, but he’s not given the space to think about it, the low groans Rin makes every time Haruka tightens around him and the constant friction of his thrusts crowding out everything else. He’s left to drag his nails down Rin’s back at the little moans punched out of him at every snap of his hips, tears forming at the corners of his eyes when it gets too much. And Rin is still looking straight at him, eyes fogged up with arousal. Even as he hitches one of Haruka’s legs up over his shoulder to bend him double, even as Haruka cries out from how good it is, his gaze never wavers. It’d make Haruka uncomfortable if he didn’t know exactly what it is—how absolutely beautiful Rin looks to him right now, too.

 “Ah, Rin, Rin, Rin—,” he chants, he knows he’s moaning nonsense syllables, but it’s all subconscious at this point—he’s saying all he’s thinking, and all he’s thinking is that the boy above him is beautiful—that he wants more of him, more of that delicious pleasure gathering in the pit of his stomach every time the pressure splitting him open brushes up against that spot. Rin groans long and low into Haruka’s ear at it, hips stuttering.

 “Haru—fuck, don’t—don’t just say my name like that, shit—,” he gets out between thrusts, swiveling his hips in a way that makes Haruka’s back arch right up off the bed—buries his face in Haruka’s neck, sucking a dark-edged bruise into the hollow of his throat, drinking in the choked-off moan that reverberates within it before he pulls back, eyes feverish and pinning the other down more effectively than if he’s used brute force. “Or I don’t know what I’ll do.”

 And really, who ever said that it was only Rin who could test Haruka?

 “What’ll you—ah—do?” Haruka matches his gaze with his own, unflinching, lets the heat thrumming in his body show on his face as he bucks his hips up to meet Rin thrust for thrust. “Show me, Rin.”

  He lets his voice linger over the last syllable, drawing it out and tasting it on his tongue like something sweet—and it’s almost tangible, clear as shattering glass as the last of Rin’s restraint—and sanity therewith—snaps, slips through his fingers like running sand. A low growl is his only warning before Rin pulls out, almost all the way, and snaps his hips back in. Deep. Haruka can barely think to comprehend how loud his answering moan is, before Rin does it again. It’s painful, almost, how deep he can get like this, and the knife-edge of it somewhere on the wrong side of pleasurable makes him dig his nails into Rin’s skin, hiss out a more into his ear. And Rin gives. Again and again, that same brutal pace at the same unforgiving angle, and Haruka thinks he’ll go insane from how rapidly he’s hurtling towards the edge. He just needs—the friction of his cock against Rin’s stomach is nothing short of frustrating, and the thought of getting a hand between them has barely crossed his mind before Rin’s beaten him to it, fingers wrapping around his cock and bringing him off in fast, sloppy jerks.

 “Ngh—touch… me—,” Haruka’s voice is leaving him before he’s had the opportunity to filter his thoughts, judgement gone and lying shattered somewhere on the outer edge of his shorted-out mind. It’s all inconsequential right now—the only thing that matters is the pulsing heat driving into him, the coil tightening in his belly—and Rin. He knows his body’s tensing up, can feel how hard he’s clenching down in the pitch and depth of Rin’s moans, like he can feel every single throb of him inside himself. Last spurt, headlong race towards the finish, Rin moves his hand once, twice more, swipes his thumb over the head and that’s it.  “—Rin!”

 He’s coming for what feels like an eternity, vision going white for a split second, intensifying when he feels scorching heat spilling into him. He’ll be forever glad it was too much—that he didn’t hear the sounds he made, the sounds that had Rin yanking him close as he could get and sinking his teeth into his shoulder. It’s harder than he’s ever come before, more than he ever thought he could feel. It’s drawn out, agonizingly almost, with each aborted jerk of Rin’s hips until the euphoria ebbs. He opens his eyes slowly, shudders at the aftershock when Rin pulls out, spent cock dragging against his abused inner walls. There’s come inside him, there’s come on his stomach, and it should make him want to run for a washcloth—but when Rin collapses next to him, face up, eyes radiating a warmth that’s so Rinand yet somehow different now, he wants nothing more than to stay. It’s not going to be a relationship of I love yousand grand romantic gestures—from Haruka’s side, at least of that he’s certain, and he can’t promise Rin—well, anything. Not stability or a dream or even a home to come back to. But this—this, as he retrieves the blanket, not bothering with their clothes, and curls up into Rin’s side—this, he can promise. Staying—being by Rin’s side no matter what he does and where he goes, he can swear to.

 He can do that.

[sushigoose]

I wish there was a school dance in the fruits basket universe I would eat that sh!t up

[fencer-x]

Recap of some of my Greatest HaruRin Hits

If you're feeling that ol' HaruRin spirit rush through you once more in the wake of those Free! The Final Stroke (part 2) spoilers (none of which you'll find in this post, fret not), then I invite you to review some of my longfic I've written for the pairing over the years! If you'd like to see all the Free! fic I've written, check here, but these are some of the meatier pieces that you can really sink your teeth into. Enjoy!

Worth the Wait (teen) - Rin has lost sight of his dream, and Haru never found his (AU where Haru and Rin meet slightly later in life, as adults rather than children)

We Were Born to Be Free (teen) - Matsuoka Rin is one of the top-ranked men’s singles figure skaters in the world, but it’s neither his passion nor his dream. It’s a stop-gap until he can find someone who can skate his choreography to his satisfaction, someone he can take to the Winter Olympics and dominate pairs skating with, like his father always dreamed. Pickings are slim, though, until a viral video catches his eye: a dark horse from eastern Japan, a no-name nobody Rin’s never heard of, skating Rin’s Grand Prix series free skate program—and doing it better than Rin did. Now he just has to convince this ‘Nanase Haruka’ character that they’re a destined pair that’s going to show the audience a sight they’ve never seen before. (Figure Skating AU with brief allusions to the Yuri!!! on ICE universe)

Charmed, I'm Sure (explicit) - [Future Fish/Harry Potter AU] - Half-Veela Matsuoka Rin works alongside his partner Yamazaki Sousuke in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures at the Japanese Ministry of Magic. It isn't exactly the most glamorous of careers: remove a kappa infestation here, ward a tengu-frequented mountain pass against Muggles there—until Rin is asked to help interrogate a Siren charged with murdering a prominent Councillor and vocal opponent of Mer rights. (HP-setting AU)

For All Appearances (explicit) - Rin and Haru have it pretty good: prime spots on the Japanese National Swim Team, a real shot at Olympic glory in two summers, and a hassle-free, no-strings-attached sleeping arrangement that keeps them fit and sated without any fuss or mess. All is well, until they get caught by the paparazzi in a compromising position that nearly brings their careers to a grinding halt—unless they can come up with one hell of a good excuse for what they were doing. (Fake Marriage AU)

You Are (Not) Free (explicit) - Nanase Haruka was dropped from consideration for the Jaeger program years ago, and Matsuoka Rin has a disturbing track record with Drift partners--but desperate times call for desperate measures, and they're tasked to team up and help put a new prototype Jaeger through its paces. (Pacific Rim AU, part of a short series)

All That Glitters (explicit) - This was not the life Rin had seen himself living, but he just couldn't resist its siren call. (Free!, but what if Haru had actually been a merfolk?)

And a Following Sea (teen) - Neither Rin nor Haru are all that thrilled to be the representatives of their respective peoples, expected to serve a year as figureheads holding a treaty together, but peace must start somewhere. (Splash Free! AU)

[freedomqueen]

You know what I need??? S01 and S02 Rinharu/Harurin fanfic recommendations. Angst/hurt/comfort/romance, please!!!

I mean... Australia... 1 bed... I NEED fanfic.

[commander-erwin-smith]

Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Free!
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Matsuoka Rin/Nanase Haruka
Characters: Matsuoka Rin, Nanase Haruka
Additional Tags: rinharu - Freeform, harurin - Freeform, Mutual Pining, Confessions, Rinharu Week 2019
Summary: The pining only seemed to intensify while they were on the trip to Australia. ~*~*~*~ Reuploaded as backdated…originally from Rinharu Week 2019.

[rinmatsuokatrash]

All I want is a fanfic where Rin goes to practice wearing jammers instead of legskins and Haru gets so distracted and flustered he forgets how to swim properly.

[misila]

you happen to me

— written for @thenightpool's Unleashed Blue event

Characters/Relationships: Rin/Haru, Haru&Makoto, Haru&his parents (minor) Rating: T Genre/Tags: AU - Mermaids & Mermaid hunters || Romance || Angst || Slow Burn || Strangers/lowkey enemies to Necessary Nuisances to Lovers || Life Debts || Rescue Missions || Mild Blood || Non-Explicit Sex Chapter: 2/5 (8.3k words) Summary:

“So here’s a deal.” Rin hoisted himself up, curling his tail around himself to look Haruka in the eye. “You help me to find my sister, and in exchange you have a merman indebted to you for the rest of your life—which I can assure you, will be shorter than mine. What do you say?”

For a mythical creature whose existence he hadn’t been completely sure of up until that very morning, Rin was earnest and open, and honest, and annoyingly human.

And he was wrong. Haruka was the one who had been indebted to Rin for years.

Read on AO3 | From the beginning

[widdendreams]

so since the furuba fandom is thriving right now because of the reboot.... does anyone know of any fics out there that are an AU in which everything is the same (or not lol) except that despite all odds and to everyone’s infinite bewilderment, yuki and kyo are ride or die best friends since the very beginning?

pls... asking for a friend.

a very desperate friend.

(its me, im the friend.)

[thenightpool]

You're invited to a weekend of Halloween-themed rinharu shenanigans. One month is a quick turnaround time, we know, but we got excited about the upcoming bluray release date and thought we'd throw a party.

what can I make?

anything with rinharu + a Halloween or fall/autumn theme! Zombies, vampires, ghouls & ghosts, mummies, haunted houses, fall/autumn motifs, pumpkins, witches/wizards/magic, werewolves, masquerade, abandoned pools, trick-or-treat, dares, costume parties, body swap . . .

any type of fanwork: fic, art, gifsets, edits, poetry, recipes, cosplay, AMVs, fanmixes, etc.

make something new, or share a previously published work that fits the theme!

no minimums and no content restrictions

posting

share your work any time from October 28th - October 31st

add it to our masterlist

use #rinandharushalloweenparty on Twitter & tag us @thenightpool here on tumblr

Sign ups will remain open through the end of the event! You can join us at any time. There are absolutely no penalties if you can't finish. Please sign up whether you are planning to create something new OR share something you've already made!

rsvp for the party!

[redxblueihateloveyou]

I wrote this just cause I noticed, I wasn’t the only one thinking about this happening. Tagging @rinmatsuokatrash, I know it’s not exactly what you wanted and I’m not a writer, but I know you were thinking about it, too <3  And yeah, I totally agree with "with how oblivious Rin is I feel like Haru could literally ask him to be his boyfriend, and somehow Rin would still misunderstand” post (he already told him to call, right to his face and he was still like “I really want to call him, but should I tho?” I was like “Nevermind, Einstein” lmao). But I honestly think that at one point a long time ago Rin thought that the possibilty of his feelings being requited was zero, and now he just idiotically thinks that Haru’s “I’m totally in love” face when he looks at him is meant for a tree behind him aparently *smh*

Here the link to AO3.

Just Be With Me.

Rin accidentally finds out what Hiyori said to Haru (cause I've been fucking dreaming about this since 3x04 lol). Which leads to an unexpected turn of events.

Set after arcades, but doesn't fit the canon timeline, since it's also set after Rinharu reunion and Haru isn't at camp.

______

They were on their way out of the arcades, when Rin overheard Kisumi and Asahi actively arguing about something.

"He has some good qualities!"

Asahi only shrugged angrily.

"He’s an asshole!"

They were clearly still deep into the argument, that Kisumi has started with Sousuke about that Hiyori guy. Rin just shook his head, smiling. Pink haired boy was almost laying on Asahi's shoulder, while he was talking.

"He’s not that bad."

"You weren’t there. And you didn’t see Haru’s face when he said that. And he still didn’t even apologize. That asshole clearly knew, what he was saying. Haru looked miserable for days, he didn't even listen much, when I said that it was total bullshit. If it wasn’t for Nao-se.."

Rin found himself beside them, without even realizing it.

"What did he say?"

Asahi immediately lost his train of thought, startled by sudden interruption, and Rin tried to pull himself back, noticing that his tone was too harsh.

"Sorry..."

"It’s okay."

"What did he say? To Haru?"

Kisumi's face lit up with a grin, his eyes stopped on Rin's face, as if trying to find out if his guess is true, which Rin didn’t quite get and decided to ignore.

Asahi shrugged again.

"He said that everyone who swims with him ends up getting hurt, I just don’t get why Haru reacted like that. It’s a complete bullshit, that doesn’t make any sense."

Rin's blood went cold. He thought he hurt you, so he quit swimming.... Rei's voice resounded inside of his head. It felt like many years ago and at the same time like yesterday. To Rin it didn’t make any sense either, at a time. But he knew that Haru felt differently... Still? But he thought they cleared this up already. Rin frantically tried to replay all the events from that day. He clearly remembered saying to Rei that he never blamed Haru for anything that happened, but he just realized that he actually never said anything about it to Haru himself. But there was no way he could still feel that way. That felt surreal. Why? Rin's brain completely short-circuted.

He suddenly felt someone touching his shoulder.

"You okay?" Asahi was looking at him worriedly.

Rin shook his head, trying to get back to reality.

"Yeah, I’m... fine. Hiyo.." He turned around to look at the doors.

"They already left." There were clear hints of disappointment in Kisumi's voice.

Rin turned to Sousuke.

"You guys go without me. I need to..."

Sousuke just shook his head smiling and lightly waving.

"Go, Romeo."

Rin didn’t even hear him, already turning another way. It wouldn’t be the first time him and Haru unexpectedly needed to talk in the middle of the night. The only thing that Rin could think of right now is that he wouldn’t be able to sleep without talking to him after hearing that.

***

Haru was staring at Rin with wide eyes in the doorway, his hand froze on the doorknob. The pure shock in his gaze was quickly replaced with a flick of something that Rin couldn't quite identify, but what made him blush for some reason as he averted his eyes and awkwardly noticed.

"You shouldn't just open doors like that. It's not Iwatobi, you know. It's Tokyo."

When he raised his head again, Haru's face was already back to its usual unreadable self.

"Did something happen?" his voice was full of worry.

Rin shook his head. It was late and he didn't even know how to explain why he was here now.

"I.. I just needed to talk to you."

Haru just stepped out of the doorway, silently inviting Rin in.

"Actually we met Kisumi and other guys, when I was visiting Sousuke and I accidentally overheard them talking."

The door closed with too much force. When Haruka turned to Rin, his eyes were almost glossy.

"What is it?" His voice was tired now, no trace of the glint in his gaze, from when he saw him at the door. He looked as if he was expecting Rin to bring him mackerel, but got celery instead.

"I've heard about Hiyori."

Haruka rubbed his eyes, sighing. Honestly, this was the last thing that was on his mind.

"Do we really have to do this right now?" He snapped.

Rin furrowed his brows.

"You’re angry. Why are you angry?"

Haru took a deep breath. Seeing Rin's genuine concern made him feel embarrassed about his outburst.

"Sorry, I just.." His voice was barely a whisper. "It's because I thought you came here for another reason."

Red eyes got filled with confusion.

"What? Why would I come here?"

Haru chuckled bitterly.

"Of course. Why would you? You can go home, Rin. I’m okay now, promise. I forgot about what he said a long time ago."

"You're lying!"

"What's it to you, Rin?"

"Because it is about us! And I just want to know, why you let him think it was true!" Rin raised his voice, as he felt the anger filling him. Because that asshole was given the much wanted satisfaction of seeing Haru hurt. Because Haru was hurt and couldn't say anything back. Because he wasn't there with him. Because that asshole used him to hurt Haru. His Haru.

Rin tried to calm himself down.

"Did you think I lied, when I said that swimming with you was the only surprise I needed from that stupid party? Or when I said that without you I don't even see the point of this?"

Haru's eyes softened. He raised his hand for a moment as if he wanted to touch Rin, but then dropped it.

"No. I didn't. It's just..."

Haruka stopped for a moment. He honestly didn't know how to say this without it leading to him telling things he shouldn't. Rin's voice brought him back from his thoughts.

"Talk to me, please."

Haru felt himself giving up, catching the warm look in red eyes.

"I can't get this out of my head, you know." He said weakly. "A thirteen year old you sitting on the pool tiles and crying, because of me."

Rin winced. God, how many times since he grew up, he wanted to relive that moment and do everything differently. He looked into Haru's eyes, desperately trying to put everything he felt in these words.

"Never because of you. I swear, never once the thought of blaming you for anyhing has crossed my mind, Ha..."

"I know. Rei told me. I know you weren't. But I thought it was me. For four years I thought, I was the reason for that, and it just.. I can't get it out of my head. Just the thought makes my stomach turn and I can't sleep and I still can't get used to this."

The last time Rin heard Haruka talk this much was when he was yelling at him on that bench. Haru took a deep breath to calm his voice and smiled sadly.

"I think, I've felt like this just three times in my entire life, and I still don't know how to deal with this."

Rin watched him carefully, before asking, "W.. What made you feel like this the second time?"

Haruka eyes drifted, like he was reliving something. I don’t have to swim with you ever again. Ever. His voice was distant when he simply answered.

"You."

Rin swallowed hard, feeling like he was about to puke and already dreading hearing the next answer.

"And.. and the third?"

Haru's face flinched, as if he was in pain, his voice was barely a whisper, when he finally said, "Can we not do this, please? It’s humiliating."

Rin lowered his gaze to the floor, unable to meet the bright blues.

"I’m sorry. I..."

But Haru interupted him as soon as he started to speak.

"I didn't mean it like that.." His voice was much clearer now and yet sounded so much softer, that it made it made Rin raise his eyes again. "What do you have to be sorry for? It’s my problem, not yours. Besides..."

He froze for a moment, as if considering, if he should finish the next phrase. The second of the vulnerability in his eyes was immediately replaced with determination, as he looked right into Rin's eyes.

"...if I got to pick the happiest moments in my life, they’re all about you, too."

Rin felt like his heart actually stopped for a moment. There's no way Haru meant it like that. He cleared his throat.

"Don't, don't just say things like that so easy."

"E..easy?" Haru looked at Rin for a long time, his gaze still unreadable. "I just said the truth."

Rin let out a quiet chuckle, that meant to be sarcastic, but turned out sad.

"Right, sorry."

For a second he thought, that he saw Haru's face turning ever more pale.

"Right, sorry?!" Behind the irritation in his voice, two words were filled with so much hurt that Rin felt his blood going cold. "Well, don't be, it’s not your fault, you don’t feel the same."

Rin froze. It can't be. But there's no way those words can be interpreted any different. No, there's no way he heard this right.

"Haru... you’re killing me, it can’t..." Rin ran his shaky fingers through his hair. "But you can't be. In love with me?"

No, with Gou sarcastically remarked Haru in his mind. He couldn’t believe that this absurd idea of him being with his sister somehow has crossed Rin's mind already three times in his lifetime, but not once he would think about him being Haru's second half.

"Go home, Rin."

"You didn’t answer my question."

"I don’t think it’s fair Rin. I think, I’ve said enough already."

"Will you please look at me?"

Hearing a shaky voice, Haru lifted his head only to meet eyes, that were staring at him so intently that he suddenly forgot how to breathe. He honestly just felt very tired. Of everything. And of this stupid constant pretending.

"I love you" Haru’s voice was very soft and quiet, but his eyes were full of challenge. "That's what you wanted to hear, right?"

"It’s not funny."

Haruka’s eyes grew a bit wide, when he suddenly swallowed and turned away, before saying, "Can you please leave, Rin?"

The barely heard shudder in his voice by the end of the phrase felt like a bucket of cold water. Suddenly Rin was shaken back to reality. Cause Haru would never joke about something like that.

Haru was in love with him? Haru... the one that made his heart an absolute unrecoverable mess throughout all these years... the one he wanted so badly, it hurt sometimes, wanted him back? Rin never even allowed himself to think about this possibility. He forced himself to take a shaky breath.

"You’re serious.. you’re actually serious."

The relief that filled his heart at this moment was so sudden, that he felt his eyes become watery. He never even realized that this feeling he tried to keep as deeply buried as possible was weighting down on him so much. It's like there was a constant hurt inside of him that he got used to living with, that has finally stopped. Rin needed to touch him. He caught Haru near the door, grabbing his wrist and forcing him to turn around, only to find himself eye to eye with a dreary blue gaze. Rin's hand traced Haruka's cheek, catching the wet trail and just like that the pain in his heart was back again. He made him cry. He never saw Haru cry. Rin buried his face in Haru's neck and felt a shaky hand on his hair.

"It's okay, Rin. Really. I'm gonna be fine..."

Only then Rin realized that he didn't even say anything. Was he.. was Haru just comforting him after thinking that he was rejected? Rin felt tears falling down on Haru's neck, when he pulled him closer, wrapping his arms tightly around the slender figure.

"I love you." Rin breathed out in a wet warm skin. He let his hand trace Haru's neck and felt the body in his arms tense. He forced himself to raise his head a stared straight into the disbelieving blue eyes. "I love you."

His mouth crushed into a slightly opened lips with such fervor, that the fingers in his hair harshly gripped the red strands. Haru's body shuddered in his arms as if was holding his breath for too long. His other hand trailed down Rin's stomach, until it found the way under his shirt and his arms got wrapped around the hot naked skin. Closer, he needed him as closer as possible. When Rin's teeth slightly grazed Haru's lower lip, he let out such a sinful moan, that Rin started to shake. Haru... Haru was so warm, no, he was buring in his arms. His legs quivered, when he felt Haru's tongue licking it's way past his lips. As if sensing that, Haru grabbed Rin's shirt and pulled him, while taking two steps back until his back hit the door. They pulled back for a second, taking a breath and catching each others eyes, still so close that their noses were touching.

Haru's hand found it's way behind Rin's ear, brushing the sensitive skin. "I've missed you. I’ve missed you so much."

Rin kissed the tip of Haruka's nose, his cheekbone, the corner of his mouth, thumb gently stroking over red swallen lips.

"Feels like I'm dreaming."

Haru let out a little laugh, but it still sounded almost painful.

"Stupid.." He breathed out into Rin's mouth, pinching his earlobe.

Rin's eyes slowly traced Haru's face and he felt himself blush. Haruka was just an absolutely beautiful mess. His eyes were still glazed with unshed tears, but were shining so brightly, that Rin found it hard to look away. He looked... he looked so breathtakenly happy, that Rin felt his chest clench.

"I'm sorry, I made you wait for so long."

Haruka's fingers under Rin's shirt thoughtlessly went up and down his ribs, making Rin shiver.

"Maybe... maybe now is better." His eyes drifted for a second. "I'm not sure, I could've let you go to another continent after that."

Rin laughed breathlessly, suddenly felling very shy.

"You want to... Will you go out with me?"

Haruka's eyes glinted.

"No."

Rin visibly flinched, his arm slightly loosened his grip around Haru.

"N..no? Sorry, I didn’t mean to assume that..."

"No, stupid" Haru's eyes softened. "Just... be with me. I.. I really need you to just be with me. So... skip the dates, okay?"

Rin's head dropped to Haru's shoulder, as he tightly wrapped himself around him, hiding his face. He can really stay with him, for as long as he wanted. He felt the lump in his throat, as tears of relief soaked Haru's shirt, when he barely whispered, "Deal."

Haru was still holding him in his arms, when he suddenly softly chuckled, making Rin raise his head.

"What?"

Haru's hand cupped Rin's cheek, brushing the soft skin.

"Just thought for a second, that maybe, we should thank Hiyori next time we see him."

Rin eyes flashed, when he angrily mumbled under his breath, "Sure, right after I punch him in the face."

Haruka chuckled again, wrapping his arms around Rin's neck and lightly brushing their lips together.

"Deal."

[fromzerotoeuphoria]

Last night, I discovered this RinHaru gem on AO3 and all I can say is: WOW.

The way I’m still in my feels over this piece. It tells the story of RinHaru over the years through the eyes of Makoto, written like an essay of sorts. It’s poignant and heart-wrenching and the angst between RinHaru is perfection. The eggshells these two walk on to try and avoid hurting each other like they did in the past, the way it leads to miscommunications and unspoken wants, the way both Haru and Rin need each other but don’t know how to express it without pressuring the other—ugh, it’s raw and pressing and wrenching. The author evocatively captures the complex and multi-faceted dynamic not only between Rin and Haru, but also that unique dynamic they have individually. It’s so lush and vivid and please you guys, do yourself a favor and read this fic!

There are some aspects that are against canon (like Makoto telling Rin to take Haru to Australia when it’s canon that Makoto had no idea Rin would go that far), so take those with a grain of salt. Aside from that, this fic imo captures every characters’ personality very accurately, it felt like I was reading a novelization of the series. And Makoto in this is EVERYTHING; honestly, I came to love Makoto and the MakoHaru friendship much more because of this fic. Everything I imagine Makoto to be that doesn’t always come through in the anime (and especially when things can get clouded by shipwars), Makoto is in this fic. Like, fic!Makoto is so wonderfuly and amazing and honest and his personality just SHINES in this fic, for me this is how Makoto is canonly haha.

There were some elements I personally didn’t care for (there’s a bit involving Natsuya that I didn’t like), but overall this fic is beautiful. Beautifully written, beautifully characterized, beautifully heart-wrenching. Rei would be proud, haha.

I’ll put the info for this fic under the cut.

in each place and forever by shaekspeares

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Free! Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Matsuoka Rin/Nanase Haruka Additional Tags: POV Tachibana Makoto, Friendship/Love, The RinHaru experience as lived by innocent bystander Tachibana Makoto, Canon Compliant, Free! sequels are loosely followed, Light Angst, This is not a tragic unrequited love story, More of a celebration, Rated T solely because Rin swears, Alternative Perspective, Near Future

Summary: “Rin and Haru are the sort of people you can’t help but fall in love with. It’s a shame they’ve only ever had eyes for each other.”

“I wouldn’t call it a shame,” Makoto says, fondly, watching Haru glance away.

Alternatively: Makoto, through the years, watching the whole beautiful mess unfold.

Words: 30k

(Sidenote: I’m actually thankful to this fic because 1) practically-canon RinHaru angst and most importantly 2) the way it made me love Makoto. I’d liked him from the very beginning, but I’ll admit the shipwar drama did start affecting the way I felt about him though I tried so hard not to let it, and I hate that because I truly do love Makoto. So, thank you to the author of this dazzling fic for re-sparking my love for him <3)