With Ryouko-san's announcement, those who would join the tournament were instructed to remain standing while those who opted out were told to head to the indoor pool with Orimura-sensei.
Not all of my girls stayed. After all, they heard that they'd be paired up with someone from another class. That's why only those who were confident enough to compete regardless of their partner remained. That included Maaya, Nami, Satsuki, and Kushii.
Yep, Chii, the clumsy fake gyaru also opted out, saying, "We'll cheer you all from the sidelines, Kii!"
As for the classmates who remained, we ended up with a total of ten participants. Five boys and five girls. Funnily enough, the boys who stepped up to the challenge, other than me, were Ogawa, Sakuma, Tadano and Fukuda. The three cucks. Or four if I include how Mei-chan was still trying to meet me even after her brother's opposition. For the girls, since Maaya was from Class 3, the two who completed their group were Wakaba and Misumi. They're both pretty athletic, after all.
On the side of Class 3, the distribution conveniently favored what Orimura-sensei planned. Only four boys stepped up to the challenge, one of whom was that guy I somehow befriended at the camping trip, Shirai. Because of that, there were six girls for them. Which means nine pairs could be the same gender, but the last one would have to be mixed.
Ryouko-san looked at me and winked as she pretended to draw lots, pairing boys and girls until Umeda and I remained.
"Lastly, since it's inevitable, Umeda Nanaka and Onoda Ruki will be paired together," Ryouko-san announced.
Umeda stiffened as she glanced at me with a wry smile. Maaya was pouting though, she was hoping to be paired with me, after all. Alas, it was already decided beforehand not to pair with someone connected to me.
In any case, the pairing still drew murmurs from the boys, especially from those who hated my guts like Fukuda, "What the hell? Why is it him again?"
Sakuma, Tadano and Ogawa didn't say anything but I could tell they're echoing the same sentiment.
Unfortunately for them, I just shrugged and pretended that it was just my luck working in my favor.
As for my girls, they all looked at me with the same pout as Maaya. They passed by me on their way to their drawn partner.
"Ruu, are you sure you didn't plan this?" Nami smirked as she stared at me with narrowed eyes.
Satsuki clicked her tongue and scowled, "This shameless idiot is paired with another girl? Predictable."
Kushii just shook her head as she whispered, "Onoda-shi, your luck is ridiculous."
She glanced at Umeda, who had already recomposed herself, waiting for me to approach her.
"Come on, girls, it's not me who drew the lots," I said, spreading my hands innocently. That earned me an eyeroll from Satsuki and a playful shove from Nami. Kushii just shook her head again, a small smile playing on her lips as she headed toward her partner from Class 3.
With Ryouko-san blowing on her whistle, those participating paired up. Nine pairs of same-gender students and 1 mixed pair lined up in front of her as she gave a signal for us to get to sync up with our partners first.
I approached Umeda, not missing the slight tension in her shoulders as she offered a polite smile.
"Onoda-kun. Looks like we're partners."
"Yeah. They say it's lucky to be the only mixed pair but I'm not sure about that," I replied with a light smile.
Umeda's gaze flickered to the other girls watching us before settling back on me. "I'll do my best not to hold you back. I'm not as fast as the others."
"Oh. I didn't mean it like that. I mean, I'm just hoping I won't make you uncomfortable. I know how some people might react to us being paired together."
"Indeed. Would it not be better for you to be paired with Itou? She's one of your..." Umeda's voice trailed there as though she was recalling the moment in that shower room wherein she, and the other girls at the different stalls, heard us. "Should I ask Eguchi-sensei to switch?"
"Well, I doubt she'll allow it," I replied, glancing toward Ryouko-san, who was busy explaining the course to the other pairs. This was the plan, after all. "Besides, I don't mind partnering with you. You know I still owe you a favor, right?"
Umeda's eyes widened slightly, recalling the shower room incident where she'd kept quiet about overhearing my intimate moment with another girl. "That... was unnecessary. Besides... I wouldn't waste that favor here!"
"Pfft. I didn't say I would count this as granting you that favor," I chuckled, leaning closer to whisper as the other pairs began strategizing. "I'm just saying, I won't let you down. Let's win this, alright?" Google seaʀᴄh novel-fire.net
Umeda blinked, her professional mask slipping for a moment to reveal genuine surprise. "Win? Against Shirai-kun and Wakaba-san? They're both swimming club members."
They're part of that club? Honestly, I didn't know about that. I mean, I wasn't paying particular attention to it even when someone from that club invited me just this week after my performance last week.
Wait, I recall Wakaba trying to approach me earlier this week. Was she ordered to invite me to their club? But she was quite hesitant, possibly because of the last time she approached me, I teased her until she became flustered.
"They're not partnered up like us. Who knows if their partners can keep up with them?" I grinned, nodding toward Shirai, who was paired with Ogawa, and Wakaba, who was paired with another girl from Class 3.
Umeda followed my gaze, her expression thoughtful. "Perhaps. But we still need to strategize. I'm strongest in freestyle, but my turns are weak."
"Leave it to me then. I'm also not that good at everything but I know how to complement my partner," I said, glancing at the course layout. "We'll take turns navigating the obstacles. I'll handle the sharper turns since I'm more agile, and you focus on straight sprints where your freestyle shines. Sound good?"
"Un... But we still don't know the exact course," Umeda murmured, her eyes scanning the floating platforms and inflatable buoys. Her fingers unconsciously twisted the hem of her swimsuit. "Eguchi-sensei mentioned relay points but didn't specify--"
A sharp whistle cut through the air. Ryouko-san stood at the pool's edge, clipboard in hand. "Listen up! Each pair will start together at the deep end. First lap: swim under the net barrier, then climb onto Platform Alpha. The partner dives next. They will weave through the buoy corridor, then surface at Platform Bravo. You have to switch roles and repeat the pattern back to start. The pair with the quicker time wins. Any questions?"
Yeah, right. That's how it would be. I read about it earlier, but now that she modified it for pairs, it sounded more manageable. The course was designed so that the first partner, while holding a flag, would dive and swim under the net barrier, a mesh stretched just below the water's surface, then climb onto the first floating platform. The partner waiting at that platform would grab the flag, then dive from there, weave through a corridor of closely spaced inflatable buoys, surface at the second platform and wait for their partner to join them. Then they'd switch roles and repeat the pattern back to the starting point. The key was coordination during the transitions.
Naturally, swimming together was not included but contact during transitions was unavoidable. We could help each other up the platforms, after all.
"If you have any questions you need clearing up, best to ask now," Ryouko-san repeated as her gaze swept across the pairs. "Once we begin, no stopping unless it's an emergency."
Umeda raised her hand. "Sensei, when switching roles at Platform Bravo, do we both need to be fully on the platform before the next dive?"
Ryouko-san nodded. "Correct. Tag your partner's hand before they dive and grab the flag from them. No early starts."
The flag was meant to show our progress and ensure no cheating. Ryouko-san confirmed it was clipped to the starting partner's wristband. "Lose it, and you'll be disqualified," She added sternly.
With that, everyone started discussing strategy with their partners again. Five minutes later, Ryouko-san called for the first two pairs to compete.
Luckily, it wasn't our turn yet. It was Wakaba versus Shirai first. Both members of the swimming club were paired with less experienced partners. Well, should I call Ogawa less experienced? He's the main character type. He should be pretty athletic, too, no matter how pathetic he appeared to me. As for Wakaba's partner, she's just one of the normal girls from Class 3.
Anyway, I led Umeda to sit in the corner, joining up with the other participants who were waiting for their turn. And as expected, one of my girls immediately took the opportunity.
"Umeda-san, take care of this idiot." Satsuki playfully nudged my shoulder as she sat on my other side, her partner, a girl who's surprisingly only half a head shorter than her, already stretching nearby. "He gets distracted easily."