Chapter Text
The next few weeks passed in a blur of swim practices, races, and endless laughter. Nagisa’s resolve to embrace his true self grew stronger each day. He still had moments when he felt like an outsider, especially when his penguin traits made him feel self-conscious, but being with his friends—Haruka, Makoto, Rei—helped him push those thoughts aside. In the water, he was just one of them, a part of the team, and that was more than enough.
But life outside the pool wasn’t always so simple.
It was one Friday afternoon when Nagisa found himself sitting on the steps outside of school, his backpack resting at his feet, watching the clouds drift by. The sun was setting, casting a warm glow over the campus, but his mind was elsewhere.
A few students walked past him, laughing and chatting, but they didn’t seem to notice him. It was almost as if he blended into the background, as if he were invisible.
His fingers toyed with the hem of his shirt, where his penguin feathers had started to grow a little thicker. Lately, he had been struggling to keep them under control—especially since the heat of summer was approaching, making them itch more than usual. No matter how hard he tried to hide them, they were always there, lurking just beneath the surface, ready to show themselves.
“Nagisa!”
The voice pulled him out of his thoughts, and he looked up to see Rei walking toward him. His clubmate’s face was flushed from practice, but his usual intensity had softened into something more familiar—concern, maybe.
“Everything okay?” Rei asked, sitting down beside him.
Nagisa forced a smile, though it felt more strained than usual. "Yeah, I’m fine. Just... thinking."
Rei didn’t seem convinced. He glanced at Nagisa’s hands, which were still fiddling with his shirt. “You’re thinking about your hybrid traits, aren’t you?”
Nagisa froze, startled. "How did you—?"
“It's obvious,” Rei replied, his tone gentle yet firm. “You’ve been distracted lately. And you keep pulling at your shirt like you’re trying to hide something. It’s not hard to see."
Nagisa sighed and leaned back against the steps, looking up at the sky. “It’s just... sometimes I feel like I’ll never really fit in. Like, no matter how much I swim or how hard I try, I’m always going to be different. And sometimes, it feels like people are just waiting for me to mess up because of it."
Rei nodded thoughtfully, but instead of offering the usual reassuring words, he said something different this time. “You’re not wrong. You are different. But that’s what makes you who you are. You’ll never truly fit into the mould everyone else wants you to, Nagisa. And maybe that’s a good thing.”
Nagisa frowned, not sure where Rei was going with this.
“You’ve always tried to make your traits something you can hide. You’ve tried to change who you are so that no one notices. But what if you didn’t have to do that?” Rei continued, his voice steady and calm. “What if you could embrace your penguin traits and be proud of them? People aren’t just going to accept you because you fit in.
They’ll accept you because you are you.”
Nagisa let the words sink in. He had never really thought about it like that before. He’d always tried to hide what made him different, assuming that if he kept it hidden, people would stop seeing him as “just a hybrid” and more as a “normal guy.” But maybe Rei was right. Maybe he didn’t need to hide it. Maybe it was time to stop trying to conform to the idea of what everyone else expected.
“I guess I never thought of it that way,” Nagisa admitted, his voice softer than before. “It’s just hard, you know? It’s easier to blend in and pretend everything’s fine than to stand out and risk being seen as... different.”
Rei gave a small smile, though there was a hint of something else in his eyes—something almost like understanding. “You’re not alone in that. But if you spend your whole life trying to hide who you are, you’ll never get the chance to live the life you’re meant to. And you’re more than just your traits, Nagisa. You’re smart, and funny, and a great swimmer. And those things matter far more than the shape of your arms or the colour of your feathers.”
Nagisa couldn’t help but smile. Rei had always been the most analytical of the group, but when he spoke like this, he made it sound so simple, so clear.
“Thanks, Rei,” Nagisa said, feeling a weight lift from his chest. “I guess I needed to hear that.”
Rei’s smile widened, a little teasing now. “Don’t mention it. I just hope you’re ready for the next race. Haruka’s been practicing his underwater sprints, and I’m starting to think you might have a bit of competition.”
Nagisa chuckled, the tension in his shoulders easing. “I’ve got this. I may be part penguin, but I’m still one of the fastest swimmers in the club, right?”
Rei laughed along with him, and for the first time in a while, Nagisa didn’t feel quite so burdened.
As they stood up to head back to the pool, Nagisa felt a renewed sense of purpose. The world would always have expectations. There would always be people who wanted him to fit into a neat little box. But he didn’t have to let that define him. He didn’t have to hide his penguin traits or any part of who he was. It was time to start swimming not just for the team, but for himself.
The water had always been his safe place. Now, it was time to let it be his place of self-discovery too.
That evening, as the sun sank lower in the sky, Nagisa stood at the edge of the pool, watching his reflection in the shimmering water. His flippers twitched lightly as he dipped his hand into the cool surface. He didn’t try to hide them anymore. For the first time, he let them show without worry.
When he jumped into the water, the familiar freedom washed over him. The pressure, the doubts, and the fear—they were all gone, replaced with a renewed sense of belonging.
He was ready to embrace who he was. Penguin traits and all.