Chapter Text
Swim wasn’t something Scar had to think about anymore, after nearly an entire lifetime in the pool, it was the one place he felt completely in control. The water was a sanctuary, somewhere the world couldn’t reach him.
Recreational swimming turned into competition swimming when he was five, and after that, Scar couldn’t remember a time when his mornings and afternoons weren’t spent in the pool. He was probably the best on his collegiate team, but he had to be. Sports scholarships didn't mean anything if you stopped performing well.
So the fact that he was currently getting pulled up out of the water by a lifeguard was really embarrassing.
He had been zoned out, lane splitting with Etho as they worked through a 2000 yard set. It wasn’t like this was the first time they’d done this, they did these endurance training sets at least twice a week. He couldn’t remember exactly what he was thinking about, but as he turned his head to breathe, he managed to catch a glimpse of dirty blonde hair, and the most striking dark eyes he’d ever seen.
Scar’s mind stuttered to a stop, fully concentrated on trying to get a better look at this person who had completely caught his attention. It was a lifeguard, he realized after a moment, a very pretty lifeguard at that.
That was the last thought he managed to have before Etho slammed into him, and he quickly remembered what he was supposed to be doing.
The collision sent him into the lane rope, the nylon digging into his shoulders as Etho tried to reorient himself. The water was getting kicked up more than the lane dividers could handle, and he ducked under to the other side to try and get out of Etho’s way.
“Scar! Man, what-” Etho managed to get out, but his focus quickly turned to trying to fix the goggles that he’d knocked loose. Scar couldn’t help but laugh, Etho’s entire cool guy persona was ruined by the sideways goggles and the rambled curses at Scar. “Quit laughing at me!” He added, splashing water at Scar.
Scar opened his mouth to apologize, but Etho just took the opportunity to shove more water his way. Chlorinated water wasn’t a foreign taste for Scar, but he definitely didn’t enjoy it. “You’re so gross,” he muttered, spitting out more of the water as he spoke.
“I’m gross? You’re the one spitting water everywhere!” Etho reached out a hand to pull Scar back into their lane, but before he could, someone else was running into Scar.
It probably hadn’t been the best idea to try to escape Etho by ducking into a different lane, seeing as the entire swim team was here and trying to lane share this rec pool that never seemed to have enough space. “What the hell?” Someone snapped, a hand landing on Scar’s shoulder and pushing down.
He could handle one person’s weight, but their pile up seemed to be collecting even more as the other person from the lane joined their impromptu party.
Scar was mostly sure it wasn’t on purpose that he got pushed under, but with Etho involved he wasn’t completely sure. He wasn’t really that worried, he had done so many diving drills that being pushed under by someone else wasn’t all that worrying. So he just let himself sink for a minute, squinting up and trying to figure out what was happening in the flurry of movement above him. In the back of his mind, he cursed the fact that he never wore goggles. He was a few seconds away from just giving up and getting kicked when he felt arms wrapping under his own and he was being forcefully pulled up.
It wasn’t until he was above water again, a red flotation device shoved under his arms, that he realized what had even happened.
That lifeguard that he’d gotten so distracted by? That lifeguard that Scar had been practically drooling over before he had caused multiple collisions? That lifeguard was now in the pool next to him, holding him under his arms like he was drowning.
“Oh god I’m so sorry, I’m not drowning,” Scar said quickly, the embarrassment already starting to burn his cheeks red as he started to tread water, pushing the flotation device back from him.
Pretty much everyone had stopped to look at them now, Etho had managed to fix his goggles, and multiple people were arguing in the lane over, his coaches looked concerned. They were never going to let him live this down.
Case and point- “Scar! What happened?” Skizz shouted, nearly bouncing on the balls of his feet, looking between the edge of the pool and the two of them, as though he was considering jumping in after him as well at this point.
“Grian he’s a competition swimmer! He’s not drowning!” Someone else yelled, to which the lifeguard behind him was quick to turn to.
“Competitive swimmers drown all the time!” The lifeguard was frowning, and seemingly not even winded from diving into the water and pulling Scar up. Then the lifeguard was turning to him once more. “Are you sure you’re ok? You got pushed under, I waited plenty to see if you’d come back up,” they seemed much less confident now that they were looking at Scar, dark eyes scrutinizing his face.
Was Scar still breathing? He really hadn’t listened to the lifeguard, too taken aback by the proximity between them. That sandy blond hair was now darker, and plastered down after diving into the water, but Scar was still awestruck.
Scar realized he was being weird, “Yes, I’m so sorry, I really didn’t mean to worry you,” he stuttered out finally, but he could tell he wasn’t very convincing. It didn’t help that he then started coughing, the chlorinated water he’d swallowed earlier coming back to haunt him.
The lifeguard just rolled their eyes and smiled. “Come on, you should get out anyway,” their mind was made up, and Scar couldn’t even argue as he was being dragged through the water.
So he let the lifeguard pull him to the edge of the pool, honestly more impressed by the way the movement seemed almost effortless to them. He watched as they pulled themselves out of the water, before turning to him and offering him a hand. “Oh… I need my cane, I’d hate to fall on you.” He hadn’t even thought about the fact that he was actually getting out of the water, more focused on the bubbly feeling in his chest.
Luckily Bdubs seemed to have been paying more attention than he was, because the man appeared by the lifeguard’s side immediately. “I’ve got it, and a towel,” he chided, but the concern was there; It wasn’t everyday that a college level swimmer got pulled out of the water by a lifeguard, let alone Scar.
Actually getting out of the water now was easy, as he dried himself off before standing up and leaning into his cane. “Lead the way lifeguard,” Scar said with a smirk, but the lifeguard just rolled their eyes again and led him over to a bench. They stayed close in step to Scar, their eyes fixed on the end of the cane as he took each step.
Scar was used to this by now, the silent judgement that came along with the cane. The last few years had been rough, as he started relying more and more on the aid to move outside of the water. He might be used to it, but he hadn’t been expecting it at all from the lifeguard.
“I have chronic pain, and a neuromuscular disease, it isn’t contagious or something,” he muttered, probably being ruder than he needed to be as they finally made it to the bench. He didn’t look up at them as he spoke, instead keeping his eyes on the white concrete floor.
They were both silent for a moment, and Scar forced himself to focus on everything other than the awkward air he’d created. The bench was warm, nearly burning after spending hours in the sun, it made Scar wish he’d set his towel down first.
Those black eyes stared at him blankly “I was worried you were going to slip,” the lifeguard supplied, so earnest that Scar immediately believed them. They squatted down, forcing Scar to actually look at them. “I’m sorry that you thought I was judging you,” they added, a soft smile on their face as they looked up at Scar.
Well now Scar felt terrible, not just for projecting his own insecurities onto this random person, but also for sending insanely mixed signals. He could hear his therapist saying something about exhaustion making him communicate poorly, but if he was being honest, he was too tired to care. “It’s ok, I’m sorry, I’ve just had a day,” Scar hated that the lifeguard seemed so worried now, their focused attention directly on Scar.
“You don’t have to apologize, I’m sure you’re used to dealing with terrible people,” the lifeguard shot back, their fingers finding Scar’s hand before pressing into the divot on the side of his wrist. The contact nearly made Scar jolt away. “Your heartrate is a bit high, does it normally take longer to even out?” They asked finally, their eyes straying back to Scar’s face once more.
“Well when pretty lifeguards take my heart rate, it tends to be a bit high,” Scar said before he could stop himself, mentally cursing his lack of mental filter. He really couldn’t leave well enough alone at this point. Maybe there actually was something wrong with him?
He wasn’t sure if the lifeguard would be upset or not, but they seemed to be unphased. “Did you hit your head? I couldn’t tell if you got kicked,” they just kept pushing through the questions as though Scar wasn’t making an absolute fool out of himself today, and he couldn’t decide if he was thankful or not for it.
“Uh no, I don’t think so, kinda just got pushed under,” he mumbled, trying to think back to the event in question. He reached a hand up, wanting to run it through his hair before it stopped short of his hairline. “Oh I’m still wearing my swimcap,” which was probably part of the reason this lifeguard thought he was insane. It took a second to take the tight plastic off, but once it was set aside he shook out his hair, or at least he tried to.
The lifeguard had stopped his movement with a gentle hand on his cheek, and Scar just froze, unsure of what was happening. Their fingers were cold, nearly icy as they held Scar in place. “I’m worried you might have a concussion, please don’t shake your head around,” they intoned gently, removing their hand once Scar softly nodded. “Follow my finger with your eyes, not your head,” they began, and Scar was quick to listen, not wanting to mess up anything else with this interaction.
The lifeguard was thorough, working through tests with a practiced confidence. “Do you always do these kinds of tests? I’ve never gotten a check up from a lifeguard before,” Scar mumbled, pressing his hands against the lifeguard’s when prompted.
“Most lifeguards don’t do concussion batteries, but I have the training, and I can save you a trip to urgent care,” They said softly, before leaning back and smiling, “Do you always flirt with random lifeguards?” Grian was still blushing, but they looked a little proud of themselves now.
Scar was quick on the defensive “I dont- uh I don’t flirt with random lifeguards! I’ve just been up since four am and I’m not thinking before I speak,” he refuted, wanting to clarify this before all the lifeguards formed a ‘Lifeguards Against Scar ©’ group, and he was inevitably left to drown. Change of topic, “You’re new right?” He asked, earning him a smile from the lifeguard, a pretty smile at that.
They nodded before looking up to Scar once more, going along with his questioning “Yeah, it’s my first day. I’m Grian,” they said, offering a hand out, and Scar only stared for a few seconds before actually taking it.
“Well it’s nice to meet you Grian, thank you for saving me,” Scar couldn’t help but hope that he could somehow save this whole encounter if he just laid it on thick, smiling at Grian with all the charm he could muster up.
He would be lying if he said he wasn’t proud of the way Grian’s cheeks tinted a deeper pink, their eyes darting to the side as they laughed under their breath. “I’m not so sure you needed saving, but sure, anytime,” Grian said, pulling themself to their feet as they did. “Actually not anytime, please don’t almost drown again,” they ran their fingers through their hair, which made Scar realize that it was nearly completely dry.
“Ruining all my plans, Grian,” he chided, leaning back into the table behind him so that he could actually look at the lifeguard fully.
Said lifeguard snickered at quip, “I know, I’m awful, I don’t want you to drown,” Grian shot back, and before Scar could try to keep the conversation going, they were speaking again. “You’re ok by the way, I don’t really think you should get back in the water however. You don’t have to listen to me, but it’s-“ They actually looked concerned now, as though Scar’s health was important to them.
Scar was not used to being treated like this. Like his wellbeing was more important than his scholarship, or his grades.
He had to push down every bit of his mind that wanted to brush off the advice. “Ok, I’ll just watch the rest of practice, you don’t have to convince me,” he said gently, cutting off Grian’s tired rant.
“Oh... Good, thank you.” Grian was obviously a bit surprised, and Scar couldn’t help but wonder how often swimmers ignored their recommendations. “I’ll go then, please be more careful next time,” they added, patting Scar on the shoulder and starting to walk away back to their tower. They got a few steps away before spinning around on their heel, looking back at Scar. “Wait, can I ask your name? It’s unfair you know mine and I don’t know yours.” They were still blushing, and Scar really hoped it was a good sign.
He considered how desperate he’d seem just asking for Grian’s number at this point, but instead just smiled. “Scar GoodTimes, captain of Hermit University’s competition swim team,” he spoke proudly, assuming what he hoped was a confident pose.
“Well then, it’s nice to meet you Scar, don’t drown.” Grian then turned away, returning to the lifeguard tower without looking back again, as much as Scar wished they would.
Logically, Scar should not be staring at Grian still, it had already gotten him into way too much trouble today, but he couldn’t help himself. He didn’t even realize that Skizz had walked over until the man reached out to pat him on the back. “Should I be worried about you drowning yourself or something? Are you done with being on the swim team now?” He asked, laughing softly as Scar flinched.
“Oh me? I’m great, I’m perfect Skizz, why do you ask?” Scar managed to choke out, tearing his eyes away from Grian and turning to Skizz. He could tell he’d been caught. “Just, yknow… distracted-“ he tried, but Skizz fixed him with a look that made him quiet immediately.
“Yeah, distracted? With blonde hair and a lifeguard uniform?” Skizz mumbled, laughing as Scar ducked his head and blushed. “Oh I am so right, Bdubs owes me money. He thought you were trying to duck your scholarship,” he added, which only made Scar turn to shove the man.
This was horrible really, not only had he made a fool of himself, it had been in front of the entire swim team. “It’s nothing, they’re very nice, but I don’t think they like me at all. I’ll be back to normal tomorrow, I promise,” Scar said finally, forcing his gaze to settle on the pool, rather than the lifeguard that he so badly wanted to look at.