Slightly stunned, I looked out at the pool for a moment. It was a shallow pool filled with kids, and the adults were sitting around the sides to watch out for their children.
“It’s all kids here. It doesn’t seem appropriate for us to be here.”
He chuckled and explained, “That’s precisely the reason you should practice here. So, you wouldn’t be pressured and stressed about it.”
He had a valid point. I could imagine feeling embarrassed learning in a pool full of others who could swim well.
Most of the kids in the pool did not know how to swim and had floats with them.
I thought for a moment and said, “I’ll enter the pool myself.”
Since I was there, I decided to have fun.
He laughed.
I grabbed a donut float and entered the pool. It was a relatively shallow pool, only four feet deep. But it was deep enough to swim in.
However, being the rookie swimmer that I was, I did not even know how to start in the shallow pool.
One of the kids raised his head above the water and mocked me. “Hey, you don’t know how to swim?”
I shook my head with a slight smile. “I’m still learning!”
The kid looked at me and started advising me, “You won’t be learning much if you do it that way.”
He sighed and exclaimed, “Here, let me teach you!”
I noticed that the kid seemed to be around the age of ten.
It was easier said than done. No matter how much the kid asked me to be brave, I just couldn’t let go of the sides of the pool.
After some time, the kid got impatient and exclaimed, “You can’t be like this. It’ll only make it harder for you to learn how to swim. I used to feel the same until my mother threw me into the pool. After a few experiences, I got it. You can’t keep worrying about drowning.”
I felt embarrassed that a kid was nagging at me to be brave, so I nodded and slowly let go of the edges.
However, floating in the pool made me feel insecure and anxious.
“Don’t worry. Slowly use your arms and push the water toward the back and kick your feet.” The kid was skilled in coaching.
With my progress, I felt less embarrassed. However, I still had some difficulty maintaining the motion.
Just then, I felt someone’s arm holding my waist. It was an adult’s arms. I was taken aback, so I turned before losing control and choked on the water.
I started coughing.
Luckily, someone supported me.
“How did you choke?” A deep and cold male voice spoke. “I saw you were getting pretty good at it.”
I turned and saw that it was Armond. Dressed in his swimming trunks, his toned arms and abs were exposed for all to see.
He was obviously attracting the attention of many. I realized that he was still holding on to my waist, so I twisted away.
I looked at him before chuckling awkwardly and explained, “I lost my footing.”
I felt even more awkward the moment the words left my mouth. I wasn’t even standing in the first place. Why did I say that?
Luckily for me, he did not seem to notice, or perhaps he just doesn’t care.
“I’ll learn with you later on!” He chuckled.
“It’s okay. I-I…”
“Don’t be so quick to reject me now. Try it. You might be able to learn faster that way,” he interrupted.
I spaced out while staring at him and nodded slightly. “Okay. Thank you in advance.”
He raised his brows and smiled. “You can thank me later when you know how to swim.”
Learning how to swim was not an easy task. Even if I could touch the ground with my feet in a pool that was five feet deep, I would not be able to swim while feeling insecure.
Luckily, I had Armond, who was a thoughtful guy, around. After a few more practices, I found that I could swim independently for some time.
“There’s an indoor hot spring. We could head there to take a rest and soak in it,” Armond suggested while he held me to the edge of the pool.
I nodded. “Thank you for today.”
His lips curled into a smile. “I get thanked a lot every day.”
Stepping into the hot spring, I looked at him and asked, “How long do you plan to stay in A City?
“Not sure. Why?”
“I want to treat you to a meal, of course!” I exclaimed. I shifted and sat on a black stone. The warmth of the hot spring got my whole body to relax.
He found a spot to sit at, nodded, and smiled. “Sure, what about tomorrow?”
“For dinner?”
“Anytime!”
“For dinner then!” I had to work during the day and did not have much time at night either.
Just then, someone came to whisper into Armond’s ear. Armond looked at me. “It’s a date then! I’ll take my leave first. I have something to attend to.”
