Chapter Text
“Hey Sousuke?”
Rin mumbled into the fabric of his scarf. Sousuke glanced at him from behind his own thick scarf, careful not to expose his neck to the nipping cold air.
“Yeah?” Sousuke replied. The word dissipated in a puff of breath before him, swirling away in wisps. Rin only stared at his feet as he walked, silent for a moment as he thought.
“What…” Rin began. “What do you think you’ll present as?”
He tightened his bare fists, shoved deep in his pockets. He’d rushed out with his gloves that morning.
There was a moment of silence before Sousuke shrugged and brought his arms up behind his head, thick-gloved fingers laced together at the base of his skull.
“Who knows?” He said noncommittally, deliberately blowing another frosty puff through his words. “The teacher said it’ll happen when it happens.”
“What do you want to present as?” Sousuke shot another side-glance at his best friend, who wasn’t looking back at him. When Rin didn’t continue, he only shrugged again. “Does it matter? It’s not like worrying about it will do anything.”
“It does matter, Sousuke!” Rin rebuked. Sousuke jumped at the sudden outburst and turned to face Rin in bewilderment. “It does matter!” Rin repeated, stamping his foot. “Our dream to go to the Olympics will be ruined if one of us is an Omega. Omegas never reach the Olympics.”
“Oi, Rin…” Sousuke started, arms up to placate him. “You don’t know that.” Rin only glared, bright eyes glistening crimson. “Plus, the teacher said Omegas really aren’t different and can do anything even an Alpha can.”
“You know that’s not true, Sousuke.” Rin stated darkly. Sousuke averted his eyes to the ground, uncertain what to say.
“I’ll definitely be an Alpha.” Rin declared, voice hard and resolute. Their eyes met and Rin’s gaze burned with determination.
“Yeah.” Sousuke replied.
Rin’s first heat hit during his second year studying abroad in Australia. He woke up with his throat dry as sand and his body burning as if it were in flames. When he didn’t respond to her call for breakfast, Lori went knocking on his door. Even as a Beta, it had taken barely a whiff before she knew exactly what was happening.
He didn’t go to school the rest of the week. He didn’t go to practice either. Not that he had been making any progress with his times anyway. Not since he lost to Haru that winter.
Rin cried every night that week, cursing his fate. Just as he was faced with a seemingly impenetrable wall, he’s dumped with the fate of being an Omega. It was a disaster; he was never going to reach his dream. He wanted to quit swimming all together.
But something inside him wouldn’t allow it. Whether it was his father’s voice or the innate defiant nature within him, he could not give it up. Even if he had to swim out of spite, he had to do it.