Work Text:
The day was way too hot even for a summer’s one. Tanjiro dragged Giyuu outside with him, claiming he needed to socialize more. Giyuu didn’t really feel any need to, but there was no resisting Tanjiro when he set his mind to something.
Now, Giyuu was floating on the sea, or at least attempting to. It was harder than it seemed but he was intent on getting it right by the time he left the beach. Without noticing, Giyuu had swam a bit further into the water.
At first, he just wanted to avoid the crowd of tourists and locals alike. Tanjiro’s intention may have been to force Giyuu to meet new people, but he would rather not. At least he could swim and be left alone for a while. Giyuu had always liked the water.
He realized it soon. Right after his float attempt failed again and he sank a bit. There was no solid ground under him. Giyuu didn’t panic. He emerged from the water, looking back at the shore. It was hard to see, the light shining bright and reflecting on the water, but it was visible enough. Giyuu started to swim in that direction.
Giyuu could feel it. The waves. It was noting odd at first, well, it never was odd. Waves and the sea came hand in hand. At first, the waves were barely noticeable, making him float up a bit, but not limiting his movements in any way. He would even say it gave him a much needed boost. His stamina wasn’t too bad, but a whole day spent outside in the water and under the harsh rays of sun could tire out even him.
A frown appeared on his face as the waves intensified. Had he been swimming back for so long? The shore was getting closer but the waves were also getting bigger. A sense of unease washed over him. The sea wasn’t something to take lightly, but he couldn’t exactly hurry it up.
Something touched his leg for a second. Giyuu found the touch kind of disgusting but fish and other forms of life were in the sea, it wasn’t something he could avoid every time, even if it didn’t feel exactly pleasant.
Giyuu briefly considered swimming around, thinking a shoal might be there somewhere. However, nothing seemed to be in the way so he let go off the idea and continued swimming.
He could already hear the jovial yells and shouts that were part of the beach experience, people around having fun and fooling around. It was still sounding far away, but at least he could hear it now, unlike before.
Another touch. It was there again, this time on his calf. Split second and it disappeared again. Giyuu wasn’t an expert on sea life, but weren’t fish supposed to disperse when a person swam near them, or something like that?
Soon enough, Giyuu spotted Tanjiro on the shore. He was holding a hand up above his eyes, shielding his sight from the sun and seemingly looking for something. Or rather someone, Giyuu figured out after Tanjiro spotted him in the sea and started waving happily. Giyuu couldn’t see him clearly enough, but he was certain the younger man had the brightest smile plastered on his face. As always.
Giyuu made the mistake of lifting a hand over his head and waving back at him, just to show him that he saw him.
A wave, bigger than any of those before it, hit him from the back. His entire body was thrown forward and for a split second, Giyuu lost control of what he was doing, shocked by the sudden slam.
He managed to recover however, spitting out some water that had gotten into his mouth through his nose. He felt like sneezing. Now he would really have to hurry up somehow and keep his attention on the movements of the sea. The waves were getting bigger. One moment of hesitation could lose him a lot.
He set off again, about to kick his leg back, but his leg didn’t move. Giyuu tried again, but there was something holding him back. He tried looking down but the water was too dark for him to see. It felt like some kind of a plant, though. Quite resilient at that. Try all he could, Giyuu couldn’t pull his leg free.
There was nothing he could do, but he still told himself not to panic. If he panicked, it would be all over for him. He had to focus now. Giyuu took a deep breath. He kept his body steady as he raised one of his hands and started waving it around wildly, he even called out Tanjiro’s name several times, but it was obvious the man didn’t hear him. He thought Giyuu was just waving at him, no real intention behind it, just a sign of friendship.
His attempt at alarming his friend didn’t work out and was quickly made impossible as another one of those increasingly bigger waves hit him. This time round, though, Giyuu had expected it and so he caught his breath just in time.
The water encompassed him and there was nothing Giyuu could do. He couldn't swim above the surface, the thing still firmly tied around his leg. He had to wait for the waves to calm in order to resurface.
By the time that happened, and thankfully it did, Giyuu was desperate for a breath. But he wasn't up for even a second before another wave was upon him and then another. He spun around, facing this side and that but the water kept coming from all directions. He couldn't find a single moment when water didn't slam into his face, filling his nose and mouth.
He was getting overwhelmed. Everything was happening so fast. Wave after wave, not a single second to catch his breath. He didn't even know which way the shore was. All turned to a mass of dark. He couldn't breathe now.
On the shore, Tanjiro saw Giyuu wave, he found the gesture a bit uncharacteristic of his friend, but he brushed it off, thinking Giyuu was finally having some good time and enjoying himself.
But then, in a blink of an eye, Giyuu disappeared. He was back but then he was gone again and Tanjiro got worried.
He started yelling his name when that dreadful realization hit him. Tanjiro took off into a run but somebody grabbed his shoulder quite forcefully and yanked him back, making Tanjiro fall into the sand and onto his butt.
"Stay put, I got this," the man that pulled him back shouted at him, not really looking at Tanjiro as he sprinted toward the water.
Tanjiro let out a relieved sigh. The man was wearing red trunks, his white hair blowing in the air a bit as he hurried to save Giyuu. He was the lifeguard on the duty. It wasn’t his red swimsuit that gave him away, but rather the long bright red rescue tube in his hand, strapped around his torso.
He tried to follow the lifeguard with his eyes but it was almost impossible because of the waves. Even the glint of red of the rescue tube soon disappeared. All he could do was wait and hope that the lifeguard got to Giyuu in time.
His eyes went wide and Tanjiro hurried to the edge of the water when he saw two figures emerge. He had no idea how long it had been, but the dread was still there inside of him, even stronger than before. The lifeguard was there with Giyuu, but Giyuu wasn’t walking next to him, instead, the lifeguard had to drag his unmoving body.
A cold chill ran down Tanjiro’s spine as he saw his friend. Giyuu’s lips were pale blue and he looked so lifeless. “Giyuu, oh God, what happened?” He landed on his knees by them. The lifeguard had just placed Giyuu on the sand.
“Stay back, idiot,” he barked, making Tanjiro freeze.
Tanjiro backed away, silent tears rolling down his cheeks. He was crying, not even aware of it. This was all his fault. He shouldn’t have insisted on Giyuu coming along. He should have figured out Giyuu hadn’t been just waving, he had been asking for help, and Tanjiro hadn’t realized it… now, if he were to die, Tanjiro didn’t know what he would do with himself.
And so he was back to watching, feeling utterly helpless.
The lifeguard leaned into Giyuu’s face, his ear coming to Giyuu’s mouth. When he was sure that Giyuu wasn’t breathing, he started resuscitating him. Tanjiro soon lost count of how many times the lifeguard pressed Giyuu’s chest down. Then, he was checking his breathing again.
He frowned and Tanjiro’s mind blanked. This couldn’t be the end.
But the man seemed determined to do more. He might have been pretty rough when he had pushed Tanjiro back, back then, but now, his fingers gently tipped Giyuu’s head back. He pinched Giyuu’s nose with his hand and leaned in, covering Giyuu’s mouth with his and transferring the air in two short breaths. Tanjiro watched amazed as Giyuu’s chest rose.
But Giyuu wasn’t reacting and so the lifeguard continued with the compressions. “What are you standing around for? Call the 911,” he said as he pushed down on Giyuu’s chest, his voice coming out rather raspy from all the physical effort. Resuscitation wasn’t as easy as it looked.
This seemed to wake up Tanjiro. He scrambled around to find his phone.
The lifeguard finished the round of compressions and pinched Giyuu’s nose again, his face coming closer again, but then a hand shot up, slamming into his and he immediately let go and backed away. Giyuu’s eyes shot open and he started coughing out water rather violently. The lifeguard took his shoulder and turned him around to make it easier for him to get all that water out, he patted his back as Giyuu continued coughing.
“Call that fucking ambulance,” he yelled at Tanjiro when he saw him staring at Giyuu and not doing anything. Tanjiro was a bit shocked… the contrast between the guy shouting at him and softly rubbing Giyuu’s back…
His eyes then went back to the man that had finally regained consciousness. “Giyuu, right?” He recalled the guy calling him that earlier. His superiors always told him he had to be nice to the people he was saving, claiming they were already traumatized enough so his abrasiveness wasn’t exactly helping the matters. He really tried. “It’s okay, Giyuu, take it easy.”
“Who-” Giyuu coughed again. “Who are you?” His throat hurt like hell from the salty water and all that coughing.
“Sanemi.”
“Nemi?” Giyuu said, squinting his eyes and trying to look up at the man that had just saved his life. He realized now that the man was a lifeguard on the beach, but the question had gotten out of his mouth before he could really think. Now, he wasn’t sure if he had heard right. He was still a bit out of it.
Sanemi’s cheeks flushed. “No, dumbass, it’s Sanemi.”
“Oh, okay.”
“Shut up now. You can barely talk,” Sanemi berated him, and rightfully so. Giyuu indeed felt like his throat was on fire. He would kill for a gulp of water right about now.
It was then that Tanjiro got back. When he had been unable to find his phone, he dashed to the place where he and Giyuu had left their things when they got there in the morning. He plopped down next to Sanemi.
“I called, they’re on their way. Uhh-” he rummaged through his bag. “Water, he should get some water, right? Right, water, I have some.”
Sanemi rolled his eyes but nodded. “Yea, but none of that sweet bubbly bullshit.”
“Of course, here.” Tanjiro pulled out a clear bottle, pushing it into Sanemi’s hands.
“Why the fuck are you giving it to me? I’m not gonna feed him,” Sanemi said, his tone annoyed but he took the bottle and unscrewed the cap as he talked. He placed it into Giyuu’s hands and supported his back while he let him drink.
Giyuu held it firmly in his grasp, as if that bottle was his salvation. He immediately started gulping it down. Sanemi’s hand shot up, his expression panicked. “Dude, slow down.” He pulled the bottle down. “You’re going to freaking drown yourself again.”
He placed his hand around Giyuu’s one that was holding the bottle to his mouth and helped him drink, not letting him chug it all down. “That’s enough.” He pulled the bottle away, handing it back to Tanjiro to deal with.
The sound of the sirens could be heard now. The ambulance would be there any minute now. Sanemi pulled a towel around his shoulders, Giyuu didn’t even realize he was shivering.
The medics got there and Sanemi was telling them something, probably about Giyuu’s condition and what had happened, but Giyuu wasn’t really paying much attention. He was soon put inside, Tanjiro right there next to him. His throat hurt and so did his head, but he didn’t feel too bad. They still insisted on taking him in, even going as far as keeping him in a hospital for a night.
It took him nearly a week to fully recover from his near death experience. Even the doctors said he was really lucky that such a talented lifeguard was on a duty that day. And Giyuu felt the same. He wanted to go and thank Sanemi personally.
So, a week later, hoping that Sanemi would be working, Giyuu found himself on the beach again. This time he had no intention of going into the water again. It might be a while before he did.
He spotted him right away and made his way toward the unsuspecting lifeguard.
“Sanemi,” Giyuu said, patting the man on his bare shoulder.
The man in question jumped, his hands shooting up to his chest as he held one over his heart. “Goddamn shit motherfuck! Don’t do that.”
“I’m sorry,” Giyuu said genuinely. It wasn’t his intention to scare him.
“What the fuck are you doing here anyway, Giyuu? You should be resting or something like that.”
Giyuu was rather pleased to hear that Sanemi had remembered his name. “I’m alright now, you don’t have to worry.”
“I didn’t say anything-” Sanemi started to protest but Giyuu didn’t let him talk, he still had to finish saying what he came here to say.
“Have a dinner with me.”
“What?” Sanemi nearly joked on air. “That’s- that’s,” he was at a loss for words. “Did you hit your head under that water somewhere? You probably stayed too long without that oxygen, didn’t you?”
“No, I’m fine. I want to-”
“Oi, see that, those kids are running, I gotta take care of that, you know, since I’m doing my job here,” Sanemi said as he started to back away from the frowning Giyuu. He didn’t even let him say anything as he sprinted away.
Giyuu supposed there was nothing he could do, Sanemi was indeed at work. He didn’t want to be in the way so he decided to return home. He tried to see if Sanemi was around somewhere, but he couldn’t find him. He would just try another day. Giyuu was still intent on buying him a dinner as a thank you. And maybe, just maybe, there was more to it. He wouldn’t mind getting to know Sanemi further. He was… determined.
Another day at the beach, but no Sanemi. Giyuu happened to stumble upon another lifeguard, a short woman with a colorful hair. He had asked her about Sanemi, hoping she might know where he was since they were coworkers. She wasn’t keen on giving him any information but as soon as Giyuu said he wanted to repay him with a dinner, her eyes sparkled and she told him all about Sanemi’s schedule. Even giving him some tips on where Sanemi usually spent his lunch breaks or what his favorite food was.
So now, after three more days had passed, Giyuu was again there by the beach. Today, Sanemi was supposed to be working again and it was around the time he usually took his breaks, from what the other lifeguard had told him. Giyuu made his way straight to the small bench hidden by some wild shrubbery. It really was a perfect place to hide in. It was barely visible from the walkway and no one who didn’t know about it would get there.
“Hi,” Giyuu said as soon as he got there, not wanting Sanemi to get startled again. He was met with two wide-opened eyes.
“How did you even find me here?”
“Your colleague told me.”
“Damn you, Mitsuri,” Sanemi muttered under his nose. He knew he shouldn’t have told her about the quite attractive guy he had dragged out of the water a while back. She must have figured it was Giyuu.
“It’s hard to find you,” Giyuu admitted, coming closer.
“Nah, I’m just a very busy man. I’m working all the time, I need to stay vigilant all the time. I should go, people could need my help, you know.”
“You’re on your break, though. You haven’t even touched your lunch yet.” Giyuu pointed in the direction of his very obvious lunchbox.
Sanemi was about to stand up and make his escape but he froze. “What didn’t she tell you? I swear to God, I’m gonna kill that girl and her big damn mouth.”
Giyuu only shrugged. “Let me buy you a dinner,” he got straight to the point, “I want to thank you properly for saving my life.”
“I just did my job.”
“Still.”
“But-”
“I know a place where they make great ohagi,” Giyuu said, that determination clear in his eyes.
Sanemi was shocked for a brief second before he laughed. He put his lunchbox on the bench and stood up, his feet taking him to Giyuu who didn’t even flinch as Sanemi stopped right in front of him. “Fine, I’ll go on your damn date with you, but don’t blame me if it ends with a real kiss this time.” Sanemi smirked, thinking he won this one.
Giyuu rose up to the challenge, however. “Why wait for the date, Nemi?”
“You-” Sanemi’s cheeks burned, but he leaned down and stole a kiss from him. He made a mental note to thank Mitsuri later.