Chapter 13    Night Pool With The Saint

After a quick supper, Yamato changed into his casual clothes, a white shirt, and shorts, and left the house with a drawstring bag containing his swimsuit in his hand.

It was so hot during the day that it already felt like midsummer, but it was cool during the night. In his light casual clothes, Yamato felt a little chilly.

If they were going to use the outdoor pool, Yamato was worried that they would freeze unless it was heated.

While he was thinking about this, Yamato arrived at the school where they arranged to meet.

In front of the school gate, he could already see Sayla. She looked cute in her casual summer clothes, wearing a striped top and denim shorts.

“Sorry, did I keep you waiting?”

When Yamato called out to her as he ran up to her, Sayla, who was looking at her phone, turned to look at him.

“Good evening. I just got here.”

“G-Good evening. I’m glad to hear that.”

Yamato doesn’t think he’ll ever get used to the idea of meeting up at night, no matter how many times they do it.

And greeting each other with a “Good evening” makes his heart tingle.

“Let’s go.”

In contrast to Yamato’s fidgeting, Sayla began to walk in an unhurried manner.

—But for some reason, Sayla walked towards the school building and put her hand on the door by the gate (The service entrance set up beside the school gate).

“H-Hey, what are you doing? What do you want with the school?”

Yamato flusteredly asked, and Sayla only nodded in response.

“I thought I’d use the school pool today.”

“Wha…”

While Yamato was fuming at the unexpected response, Sayla easily stepped through the open gate and beckoned to him.

“Come on, Yamato, hurry up.”

As he was told to hurry up and Yamato had no choice but to follow her.

“Just out of curiosity, did you get permission from the school?”

“No, I didn’t. I called the school before I came, and they gave me permission to come on campus.”

Sayla says without a trace of guilt.

Surprisingly, Yamato was relieved to find that she had been given permission to enter the school, and continued to ask questions.

“How did you explain to the school to get permission to enter?”

“I claimed I wanted to come in and get something I forgot.”

“That’s a bold lie. …Goodness, you’re supposed to be a Saint.”

When Yamato was stunned, Sayla just turned her head and smiled suggestively at him.

“Really, if you’re cute, it doesn’t matter what you do…”

Yamato was frustrated to see her cover up her actions with a smile, but he had to admit that she was cute.

Sayla, who was walking ahead of him, went around the outside of the school building instead of using the gate.

The swimming pool at Ao Saki High School was outdoors, so Yamato guessed they were really planning to head to the pool area.

The bicycle parking lot was empty and the school ground was dark. All of the noiseless scenery in the school seemed alien to Yamato, and he felt a strange stirring in his chest.

Yamato had seen school at night scenes in manga and TV dramas, but when he actually saw it, it was darker and more eerie than he had expected, and he felt more anxious than excited.

(I just said the other day, “If Shirase tries to go off astray, I’ll stop her.”)

This was when Yamato made his declaration to Sayla’s sister — Reika.

The current situation could be interpreted that Sayla was about to go astray. And yet, instead of stopping her, Yamato was trying to have fun with her. If he continued like this, he wouldn’t be able to face Reika.

Yamato, who had cooled down and resolved himself, called out to Sayla’s back, which showed no signs of stopping.

“H-Hey, can we not do this after all? We can go to the night pool another day.”

However, Sayla didn’t stop or even look back.

“Hey, Shirase.”

“It’s okay. They won’t know.”

“No, that’s not the problem…”

When they reached the stairs leading to the pool area, Sayla finally turned around.

“I’m sure it’ll be fun. Yamato doesn’t like it?”

Because of the darkness, Yamato couldn’t see the expression on Sayla’s face when she asked that.

The tone of her voice was calm, so Yamato guessed she was not annoyed. He could tell that she was sincerely trying to listen to his opinion.

“You know, I…”

As Yamato was wondering how he should respond, Sayla approached him.

She brought her face right up under Yamato’s face, and as soon as they could see each other’s expression clearly, Sayla smiled at him.

“Good, you don’t seem too angry.”

Sayla’s eyes seemed to be shining in the dark, Yamato was absorbed just by staring at it.

Pushing such a kind of nagging worry out of his mind, Yamato averted his gaze before answering.

“…I told your sister the other day that if Shirase ever tried to go off astray, I would stop her. And yet, I’m sorry that this situation has come to this… Shirase was asleep at the time, so you wouldn’t know.”

After telling her that much, Sayla took a few steps back and distanced herself from him.

Then, after a pause to catch her breath, Sayla opened her mouth.

“It’s just, thank you for everything. And I’m sorry for making you worry all the time.”

Yamato was surprised to be thanked and apologized to at the same time, as he had not expected it.

However, Yamato felt half relieved and half disappointed, thinking that the way this conversation was going, they would reconsider the night pool experience at school.

“But if that’s the case, I’m sure you’ll be fine. That person—Onee-san, will laugh and forgive you for something like this.”

“No, no, no matter what you think, she wouldn’t just laugh and forgive me…”

“Then, maybe with just a smile and a flick on the head.”

“Pfft”

Sayla had definitely received some hardship from her sister. When Yamato realized this, he couldn’t help but blurt out a laugh.

“You finally smiled. You’ve been looking at me like you were in trouble for a while now, so I’m kind of glad.”

“Because, you know… Well, if she doesn’t forgive me, the worst that can happen is that I’ll get down on my knees. Or I’ll get a big slap on the wrist.”

“That’s no good. There’s no need for Yamato to go that far.”

“No, I’ll do it.”

“So stubborn.”

“—So, to prevent that from happening, we have to make sure that she doesn’t find out about today.”

This time, Yamato closed the distance between them.

Then he saw Sayla’s face, which was unusually dumbfounded.

“What’s with the funny look on your face?”

“I don’t really know, but I feel like you’re being rude to me.”

Instead of getting upset, Sayla said thoughtfully.

Yamato smiled, amused by her reaction.

“Yamato’s smile makes me feel relieved when I see it. I wonder why.”

Yamato was embarrassed because Sayla said this with a straight face, so he turned his back towards her.

“A-Anyway, I’m just saying, let’s get in the pool.”

“Yeah, we’re talking about getting in.”

“Don’t repeat it. It’s embarrassing…”

Yamato was satisfied and the two of them went up the stairs leading to the pool area.

The entrance to the pool hall was locked, of course, and they had to climb over the fence that surrounded it to get in.

“It’s here, I’m starting to feel like I’m doing something bad…”

Yamato made a lame remark as he climbed the fence.

“This is fun.”

In contrast, Sayla was already in a good mood. She has great courage, or at any rate, she was very determined and even somewhat dependable.

(I never get tired of being with Shirase.)

Thanks to Sayla’s seemingly cheerful attitude, Yamato’s mind had become much more relaxed.

When Yamato finally got to the other side of the fence — the pool area — a mysterious sight filled his vision.

The surface of the water in the spacious pool was glistening in the moonlight that filtered through the clouds.

As the surface of the water swayed slightly in the night breeze, the glow of the lights changed shape, uplifting the viewer’s spirits.

“Amazing…”

“The pool at night is so beautiful, isn’t it? It’s much more atmospheric than I thought it would be.”

But Sayla was rummaging through her bag as she spoke. She seemed to be itching for a swim.

“I’ve come all this way to the pool, I should swim properly. I’ll go to the men’s locker room—”

As he said this, Yamato noticed that the doorknob of the men’s locker room did not turn.

…There was no way to get into the lock room because there was no key.

“H-Hey, Shirase, do you have a key to the locker room?”

“No, I don’t. I’ll go change over there.”

“No, that way is…”

Despite Yamato’s shock, Sayla moved to the side of the building that housed the locker rooms.

There was no point in standing around, so Yamato moved to the other side.

Sayla didn’t seem to have any qualms about changing under these circumstances, but this was outdoors and there were no obstacles between them.

That means, if he wanted, Yamato could peek at her… There was no way Yamato would have the guts to do that, so he quietly began to change his clothes.

But of course, he couldn’t not be concerned.

A few meters away, Sayla was also changing her clothes. It was impossible not to be aware of it.

—Sssh

That was when he heard the clothes rustling.

It was definitely coming from the direction where Sayla was. Maybe it was because it was dark, or maybe his hearing was more sensitive.

—Patunn.

Could this be the sound of a swimsuit being put on? Yamato’s mind was restless due to his imagination — or rather, his imagination got the better of him.

It didn’t take Yamato long to change his clothes. He put on a pair of slightly smaller sized swim trunks he had bought in junior high school and was ready to go.

“…I’m done changing, how about you?”

Yamato walked out to the side of the pool and asked, and heard a voice on the other side say, “Almost there.”

(Haa! What the heck is this situation! What’s almost there?)

In this situation, the word “almost there” seemed to be meaningful to Yamato, and it stirred up all sorts of fantasies, so he had to try to be absent-minded.

Yamato spent a few minutes in a daze, looking out at the pool.

A “Kept you waiting” came from behind Yamato, and he turned around to see Sayla in the dark.

As Yamato approached her, the moonlight that had been blocked by the clouds illuminated the scene.

“…”

Yamato knew that this would be a surprise to him.

Sayla, who was bathed in the moonlight while in her swimsuit, looked like a fairy from a fantasy.

Her hair was tied back in a single bun, exposing her white skin, supple limbs, and ample bosom. Her large, jewel-like eyes, combined with her hazy expression, overflowed with a indescribable unworldly charm.

So beautiful. Yamato thought without question.

“Hmm? Something wrong?”

Seeing Yamato stiffen, Sayla asked curiously.

Yamato came to his senses and hurriedly averted his gaze.

“…Umm, you’re wearing a school swimsuit.”

Yamato said while glancing sideways at her, and Sayla replied with a puzzled look.

“It’s a school pool, so of course I would be.”

Sayla said so as if it was natural, but normally there would be no opportunity to use the pool at school at night. In the first place, Yamato hadn’t even been informed that he would be using the school pool.

“The way you put it, it sounds like there’s something wrong with my swimsuit.”

“Isn’t it a bit small?”

“Leave me alone.”

And then Sayla turned her back to him and Yamato fell into thought.

“I normally use a mirror when I arrange my hair, but it’s dark and I can’t see very well. Can you see if it’s tied properly?”

“Eh, yeah…

When Sayla made an unexpected request, Yamato swept his gaze over her, but checked it regardless.

With her hair pulled up into a so-called ponytail, the beautiful nape of her neck was exposed, which was awesome to say the least.

“It is awesome…”

“Eh?”

“I think you’ve got it all tied up nicely.”

“Okay. I hope so.”

Then Sayla turned around and looked at Yamato’s whole body as if she were looking at something unusual.

“Yamato is surprisingly muscular, right? Only a little bit lumpy.”

“T-That’s because I’m a man. In my case, it’s not that I have muscles, it’s just that I’m a bit on the thin side—Whoa!?”

Suddenly, Sayla touched his stomach.

Sayla was still looking at Yamato’s stomach with interest, as he turned his head away in surprise.

“I knew it was hard. Your abdominal muscles are well-defined.”

“D-Don’t touch me out of the blue! And I’m pretty sure that’s about the size of most slim men!”

“Heh, okay. I do sit-ups sometimes too, but not all the time. Do you want to touch mine?”

There was no reason for Yamato to refuse such an offer. The only way to touch her was through the fabric of her school swimsuit, and more importantly, she was the one who offered. If he refused at this point, he would regret it for the rest of her life.

“…Let’s check it out.”

Yamato gently reached out and poked Sayla’s stomach.

—Funi.

His fingers touched something soft and slowly sank into it.

…It was a moment of happiness.

“Hey, you don’t have abs, do you? I guess you need to do some muscle training.”

“N-No, it’s fine, it’s fine, this is perfectly fine…”

Even after retracting his fingers, Yamato was still flustered and was clearly acting weird.

Her stomach was that soft. The other parts must be—Yamato’s gaze naturally traveled upward.

Sayla, who seemed to have noticed his gaze, said nonchalantly as she put her hand on her chest.

“Aren’t these a bad idea? It’s going to be the ‘impure erotic intercourse’ that Yamato was talking about.”

“Eh, it’s not… I’m not trying to touch you there!”

“Hmm. Then that’s good.”

It seemed that Yamato’s argument was easily accepted. After returning to her normal state, Sayla turned on the flashlight on her phone as a light and started to stretch. …Sayla’s personality saved the day.

Even mere stretching from Sayla looked professional. Her body seemed to be so flexible that Yamato couldn’t imitate her.

Yamato also did his best to get rid of his worries and stretched seriously, as they must be done properly or it will lead to cramps and accidents.
[TLN: My swim coach said stretching increases your chances of cramps so we don’t do it.]

After a round of stretches, they headed for the shower area.

They turned on the shower faucet and water came out, so they both took a shower first.

“So cold.”

“Y-You’re right.”

The sight of Sayla with water dripping from her hair was very seductive. Yamato was too preoccupied with that to pay attention to the coldness of the shower.

As they moved to the poolside, shivering from the cold, Yamato told her to be careful, just in case.

“First of all, don’t jump in. It’s dangerous. Also, let’s make a hand sign in case you get a cramp in your leg or drown.”

“Oh, you’re so cautious.”

“I’ll also go ahead and say this: I’m not a very good swimmer. It’s pathetic.”

“Is that so? I don’t think you’re pathetic.”

“O-Oh, thank you.”

First, they decided on a hand sign and then they dipped their feet in the water.

“Wow, the pool water is pretty cold too.”

“It doesn’t matter how much into summer you’re in, it’s not even June yet. Besides, it’s night now.”

“It looked like the swim team cleaned the pool today. Maybe we’re the first ones to go in.”

“I feel bad about that…”

“I don’t really know. All right, let’s go in.”

“Yeah.”

With a small splash of water, Yamato and Sayla entered the pool.

“Cold…”

Sayla shivered as she held her own shoulders. She looked like a small animal.

“Haha, it’s refreshing to see Shirase so cold. —That’s cold.”

As Sayla splashed water on him, Yamato did the same to her in return.

“I-I’m so cold! I forgot my goggles. They’re getting in my eyes.”

“Ahaha”

“Yamato, you laugh too much.”

Seeing Sayla so unusually peeved made Yamato feel even better.

Yamato was happy to see Sayla in a rare state, but he was also starting to get used to this particular situation and began to genuinely enjoy it.

Then Sayla said something as if it just came to her.

“I’m a pretty good swimmer, so why don’t I teach you?”

“Are you sure? I think I’m pretty terrible, if I do say so myself.”

“That means it’s worth teaching. Which one do you want to start with?”

“Okay, breaststroke first, please. I can’t seem to figure out how to move my legs.”

“The one with the frog legs. Then give me your hand first.”

“Okay.”

Yamato put out his hands as he was told, and Sayla grabbed both of them.

“All right, let’s get started.”

“O-Oh…”

And so the swimming lesson began.

“Yeah, yeah, keep it up.”

As Sayla called out to him, the water splashed, splashed, and splashed.

It had been twenty minutes since then, and Yamato had already finished practicing his breaststroke and had moved on to his butterfly legs for the crawl.

“Yeah, that should be good. —Go, get some rest.”

“Phew, I agree.”

However, it seemed that Sayla was planning on staying in the pool.

When only Yamato went up to the poolside first, he noticed that his muscles, which were not normally used, were screaming in pain. After wiping himself off with a towel, he sat down on the floor for a moment.

As he watched Sayla drifting on the surface of the water on her back, he suddenly thought.

(I wonder if the Little Mermaid was like that.)

The sight of her drifting on the surface of the water at night was just like something out of a fairy tale, and Yamato felt like he was witnessing a fantastical scene.

In addition, it was a feast for the eyes to see Sayla’s ample bosom floating out of the water.

For a while, Sayla was floating and looking at the night sky above her, but when her gaze suddenly met Yamato’s, she stopped floating and came up to the poolside.

“Are you tired?”

Sayla asked while brushing up her bangs. She then sat down next to Yamato and peered into his face.

The first thing he saw was her beautiful forehead, and then his eyes dropped to her breasts. …It was still pretty big. He could even see her cleavage.

“Well, to a point.”

Yamato replied, trying to remain calm so that she would not be aware of his evil thoughts.

Sayla apparently had no doubts about that, and she smiled gently.

“In a short time, you’ve learned to swim pretty well. I think Yamato is a fast learner.”

“No, it’s because you’re a good teacher.”

“Well, maybe that’s true.”

In these situations, Sayla does not stay humble.

She responded to him as honestly and as he thought she would.

“Serious, Shirase is really straightforward. You can be stubborn sometimes.”

“Sometimes Yamato really nags me a lot.”

“I’m aware of that.”

When Sayla suddenly stood up, she stretched widely.

“Also, it’s cold. I have to go get a towel.”

That was when Sayla started to walk away.

—Cling.

There was a noise in the distance.

It was a metallic sound, as if something was creaking.

Maybe one of the security people noticed them and came to check on them.

“Someone’s coming?”

“Maybe. We should hide for now.”

“Yeah.”

Unlike Sayla, who was still acting aloof and unconcerned, Yamato was desperate. Inwardly, he was so anxious that he thought his heart might jump out of his mouth.

They moved to the side of the locker room, where they had already packed their belongings, and hid there, cuddling together.

Sayla was so close that he could feel her breath on him. Yamato tried not to be aware of this, and focused all his attention on keeping an eye on the poolside.

Then there was a thump, thump, thump sounds up the stairs.

There was no doubt about it, someone was coming towards the pool.

Not long after that, he heard the sound of a lock opening and closing, and the entrance to the pool opened.

“Is anyone there?”

An unfamiliar middle-aged man’s voice echoed through the pool. It seemed to be a security guard who had come to take a look around. Perhaps because he heard the noise that Yamato and Sayla were making, he seemed to be very cautious.

Yamato and Sayla could see that the lights of the flashlights were illuminating the water.

There might still be some wet footprints by the pool. If they see that, they will start searching the whole area. Then, the chances of finding them are very high.

“Hey Yamato.”

At that moment, Sayla spoke to Yamato in a whisper.

Yamato looked to see a soaking wet Sayla staring up at him.

Gulp.

Without thinking, Yamato gulped.

“…W-What’s the matter?”

“I’m cold. Can I touch you?”

“!?”

Yamato almost shouted, but thanks to Sayla covering his mouth with her hand, he was able to keep his voice down.

When Yamato looked closely, he saw that Sayla was shivering slightly. She had just gotten out of the pool and hadn’t wiped her body with a towel yet, so her whole body was probably getting cold.

Nevertheless, if she tried to take the towel out of her handbag, the noise might alert the guard to their presence.

Yamato couldn’t just leave her like this, so he gave her a small nod.

“Thanks.”

—Pito.

Sayla’s slender shoulders touch Yamato’s chest.

Yamato’s heart began to beat faster as he felt the cool and smooth texture of her skin.

The mere touch of her shoulder was enough to shake him. If she had hugged him or something, Yamato would have definitely screamed out loud.

“So warm.”

Sayla’s voice echoed in his ear, which made Yamato’s whole body stiffen.

The smell of chlorine mixed with a very sweet smell filled his nostrils.

Yamato’s heart was beating so loudly that he was worried that not only Sayla but even the guards in the distance could hear his heartbeat.

(Please hurry up and leave…!)

Yamato didn’t want the guard to find them. But more than that, it was more of a problem for Yamato right now to keep his wits so that he wouldn’t hug Sayla in front of him.

“Ah, probably just my imagination.”

After a while, Yamato thought he heard the whining voice of a guard in the distance, and then he saw the presence of the guard leave the pool.

And then the door was locked again.

“Phew HA!”

Immediately, Yamato let out a big breath. This was the moment when the thread of tension was released at once.

“Looks like he’s gone.”

With that, Sayla let go of his body.

Yamato felt a sense of loneliness as the skin they had been touching separated.

“The guards might come again. We’re not swimming anymore.”

“Yeah, I guess I’d better go home for the day.”

“Okay, let’s take a shower like this.”

Unlike Sayla, who had started walking first, Yamato was still frozen in place.

Therefore, Yamato called out to her with a fake smile on his face as he turned his back on her.

“Umm, Shirase is probably feeling particularly cold, so why don’t you take a shower first? I’ll keep an eye out for the security guard.”

“Alright”

As Yamato just told Sayla, they needed to be on the lookout for security.

But there was another reason why Yamato didn’t move right away…

“Hey.”

Sayla emerged from the shadows of the building and looked back, bathed in the moonlight.

“Something wrong?”

“There is nothing wrong with Yamato. I’m the one who touched you.”

“Eh?”

Sayla suddenly averted her gaze and said apologetically.

“Ummm, Yamato seemed to have a weird feeling earlier, but don’t worry about it.”

After saying that, Sayla headed for the shower.

Yamato, who was the only one left, crouched down and sighed heavily.

Then the air between them was awkward for a while.

However, by the time they got dressed and left the school, Sayla seemed to be completely unconcerned.

Thanks to this, Yamato’s mind switched back to normal as well.

“Ah, that was fun.”

Sayla said as she stretched out in the night streets near the downtown area.

“I had a good time, too. We had a close call when the security came, though.”

“That was a surprise to me, too. It was a thrill for me because I was wondering what would happen if we got caught.”

“Shirase seems to be enjoying that part as well…”

Yamato could not help but feel that he was not the same person as before.

Still, he didn’t regret the time he spent today one bit.

“Hey. I’m hungry. Let’s go eat somewhere.”

“Haven’t you eaten dinner?”

“No, I didn’t eat. I was at the pool.”

That was what one called a girl’s situation. Yamato realized that he had lacked delicacy in this area and reflected on his actions.

“Then we’ll go to the restaurant Shirase wants to go to.”

“I want ramen.”

“Ramen again… That’s fine. But it’s past nine o’clock now, and I wonder where they’re still open for business around here.”

“I think the place in front of the station was still open.”

“Okay, let’s go there.”

“Yeah. I’m looking forward to it.”

Looking at Sayla’s happy smile, Yamato’s mood was uplifted as well.

He was getting hungry as well.

“Somehow, I’m getting hungry too. Today’s events call for a big serving.”

“Oh, as expected of a man. I’ll order a large one too.”

“That’s what I’d call Shirase.”

“Are you mocking me?”

“I’m not, I’m not. I was simply admiring how amazing Shirase is.”

“That’s good then.”

As they approached the downtown area, the number of people passing by increased.

Students in school uniforms and working people on their way home from work were conspicuous.

It was still a little too early to call it late at night, but the sun had already set.

They didn’t have to worry about being arrested, and the atmosphere of the city was different from the daytime.

Yamato vaguely thought that he might like this time of day the best.

The night breeze felt very nice as they left the ramen restaurant that Sayla had recommended.

“The breeze feels good. Though, that was a large amount of food.”

Yamato, who was really full, muttered.

“Achoo.”

Next to him, Sayla sneezed in a rather adorable way.

“You caught a cold?”

“Maybe. It’s cold.”

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

Worried, Yamato took off the jacket he was wearing and offered it to Sayla.

“This may not do much, but take it.”

“T-Thank you.”

Sayla accepted the jacket without hesitation and immediately threw it over her head.

“Yeah, I’m feeling a lot better. Can I borrow this and go home?”

“Yeah. You don’t have to wash it or anything, just return it to me whenever you get the chance.”

“Fufu, I’ll at least wash it.”

“I-I see.”

Not to be rude, but Yamato couldn’t imagine Sayla washing it. Yamato just couldn’t bring himself to.

When they arrived in front of the station, they finally had to part ways.

“Then, I’ll see you tomorrow. Bye-bye.”

“Yeah, at school.”

When their backs were turned to each other, Sayla sneezed again.

Yamato was worried that she might have really caught a cold, and he headed home with that thought in mind.