Chapter five (segment three), twenty four years earlier, June, Kyoko

The pool was indeed moist as was she. To her right an equally moist Kuri-chan scrubbed the bottom with a brush. Urufu-kun was hanging precariously over the edge scrubbing one side of the pool together with Yu-kun and the two delinquents from 2:1.

5:1 and 4:1 were pouring in clean water from one end while 3:1 (that would be her and Kuri-chan) and 1:1 scrubbed frenetically. 8:1 mopped up the wet and dirty results and 7:1 carried the residue away from the pool.

Normally Kyoko wasn't one to pay too much attention to clothes. But there were two obvious exceptions. She might be uninterested in fashion but you just didn't make friends with the tall bombshell without learning something. And that covered the female part of high school fashion.

Probably covers a lot more that just high school fashion, Kyoko thought wryly.

She put some weight to her brush and watched brown pool bottom become blue and clean water become brown.

“Dive, dive, dive!”

Urufu-kun vaulted clumsily but exactly over the edge and landed on the bottom. He took up scrubbing the sides again.

“There he goes!”

And that was the other exception. He wore, well how should she put it… strange clothes. If she wanted to be kind. Outright harmful to the eyes was probably a better description.

The worst part was that he considered it fashionable casuals from back home. Which she might have believed if it hadn't been for Kuri-chan. In a fit of frustration she had opened up a computer and shown Kyoko what was considered fashionable among teenagers in Sweden. While foreign it wasn't hurtful to your eyes.

Kyoko transformed some more pool bottom with her brush and looked at her friend. She was busy following Kyoko's example and made an obvious attempt not to throw too many glances at her boyfriend. Whenever she failed she shook her head.

Did he have to mix neon orange with olive green? I mean, really!

For once she followed Kuri-chan's example and shook her head.

Both friends took a stare at each other and laughed.

And rain started pouring down.

Moist, you bet!