To Jiyong’s disappointment, Seunghyun had not taken his slight fib about shirts seriously, and he joined them at poolside missing only his shoes and sunglasses.

Youngbae and the other lifeguard exchanged laughing glances with each other in the water as “the Choi kid” took his seat next to Hyojin, who stared at her hands and on her bottom lip.  But all the other children stared shamelessly.  His gaze darting about as nervously as the young girl next to him, Seunghyun eventually locked eyes with one of the brothers.

“What?” he asked gruffly.

“You’re old!” Daehyun proclaimed, and set half the group to guffawing.  Without a word, Seunghyun turned to stand and leave, but Jiyong caught him round the wet ankle.

“Hey, hey!  Everybody settle,” Jiyong calmed them.  “You’re all here to learn to swim, and that’s what we’re gonna do.  Now pay attention.”

The two lifeguards demonstrated some basic techniques to get the kids started, Jiyong serving as the model while Youngbae explained.  He floated, dunked himself, and swam about with a grandiose flare that often dipped into the ridiculous, eliciting the occasional giggle.  At one point Youngbae held him around the middle like a large prized fish while he exhibited proper limb movements on the surface of the water, and the children nearly lost their breaths laughing as the tanned man struggled to hang on to his friend.

Jiyong tried to make an effort to shuffle through eye-contact with all of their faces while he taught; a simple tip Youngbae had passed along from some book he skimmed on working with kids.  But he caught himself coming back to the biggest kid more often than not.  His oddly elegant hands were gripped tight on the edge of the pool, as if he feared being swept off at any moment.  He hadn’t cracked a true smile yet that morning, only the occasional one-sided smirk after Jiyong or Youngbae did something especially embarrassing.  But he seemed to be listening intently to their instructions; at the very least, his eyes hadn’t seemed to leave Jiyong for a moment.

The younger swimmers were getting restless.  “It’s so hot!” Subin was be as Youngbae stressed the importance of ear plugs.

“When do we get in the pool?!” Jaehyun demanded.

Youngbae crossed his arms, but relented.  “Alright, let’s split up.  Jiyong will take the girls and Seunghyun over there, and you three with me.”  He lifted Wooyoung off the side of the pool and personally carried him to their corner.  The brothers hopped into the shallow water with hoots and pleased yells, splashing along behind.

Jiyong spun his finger in the air to indicate they were moving.  “Okay ladies, we’re off.” 

Subin hopped into the water, her skinny, gangly limps attempting her interpretation of a movement reminiscent of ballet.  It was less than graceful.

Seunghyun slid in as well, and the water lapped gently at the hem of his shirt, darkening the red of it.  Though Jiyong and Subin were already trudging towards their practice spot, Seunghyun stayed back. 

“Hey, quit foolin’ around,” Jiyong implored, tugging at Seunghyun’s sleeve in another sly jab at his overdressed state, but he soon saw what the other adult was waiting for.  Hyojin remained seated, hands gripped tight on the edge. 

 “It’s alright, the hardest part’s that first leap.  It’s best to just get it over quick—” He reached for her arm, but Seunghyun stopped him.  Hyojin was chewing her bottom lip again, eyes low, but slowly she mustered the courage to look up at the more patient older boy.

Once he had her attention, Seunghyun leaned down and whispered something into her ear.  She answered with a nod, and he said something more.  Jiyong unabashedly leaned in to hear, but Seunghyun wasn’t shy about waving him away either.  “Give us a minute,” he said.

Subin seized the opportunity to have the instructor to herself.  “We can practice together, Jiyong!” she said like they were old pals, taking his hand and tugging with all her strength.  “I think we would make better swim partners anyway.  We’re both clearly more advanced than the rest of the group.” 

A slight anticlimactic splash heralded Hyojin’s plunge.  Her hand was clenched tight around Seunghyun’s larger one, and he held back just as tight in silent assurance he wouldn’t be letting go.

“Very good,” Jiyong said, a smile playing at the upturned corner of his mouth.  His eyes followed the line of Seunghyun’s arm up from his masculine hands to the pale bit of bicep peaking from under his sleeve.  Why couldn’t he have taken that damn thing off?

While the enthusiasm of each of his three pupils sat at varying levels, from Subin’s rabid eagerness to Hyojin’s guarded reluctance to Seunghyun’s uncomfortable indifference, their skills in the water all seemed to hover at the same ranking: total novice.  Jiyong began with a simple exercise in controlled breathing, testing how long each of them could hold their breath.  Hyojin failed almost immediately, inhaling a strangling amount of water through her nose and coughing for the next five minutes over it.  Seunghyun was nearly as bad, and vaulted from his knees beneath the surface to gasp for air within 25 seconds.

Jiyong covered his mouth to hide an involuntary judgmental smile.  “You okay?”

“It’s the smokes, I guess,” Seunghyun hacked out between breaths while avoiding his instructor’s eyes.  His face was flushed, from lack of oxygen or humiliation, Jiyong couldn’t be sure.

Subin had to be dragged out.  It seemed impressing the lifeguard took precedence over living for the girl.

“How… long… was… that?!”

“1:45.  A great start, but no more stunts like that.”

She swept the hair back from her face and struggled to make eyes at Jiyong.  This was going to be one heck of a camp session, he could tell already.

Unfortunately, introductions and Youngbae’s presentation had taken up most of the first day’s meeting, and soon minivans began rolling into the parking lot.  The two lifeguards ushered their students up the ladders and back to their towels and belongings, waving goodbye as one by one they left with their parents.

“Do you want first watch when the pool opens?” Youngbae asked, though he already knew the answer.  Whoever wasn’t guarding from the towering white perch above the pool during any given shift was responsible for anything else that might need to be done: toilet cleaning, trashcan emptying, drain unclogging.  And if it didn’t get done first shift, well, there was always second…

“You can have the chair.  I’ll go this afternoon.” 

Youngbae rolled his eyes.  “Of course you will.  But if I come down and find somebody left used diapers in the shower stalls again--”

“Alright!” Jiyong blocked a playful jab at his right side.  “I’ll be vigilant.”

His friend was watching something over his shoulder.  “You think he’ll be back?”

Jiyong turned to catch Seunghyun at the gate, typing away on his phone.  “Yeah!  Why wouldn’t he be?”

 “This is a camp for kids, bro.”  There was a skeptical glint in Youngbae’s eyes.  “Would you come back?”

Shaggy, damp black hair fell in the boy’s eyes as he looked down at his hands.  His jaw was set in concentration, and it only amplified the strong, handsome angles of his face.  Jiyong wondered if he was a college student, or fresh out of high school like the two of them.  There was a lot Jiyong wondered about him, really.  And he’d never find out if he let him drop out now.

“Hey!” he called out, and jogged after Seunghyun. 

The older boy watched him run up, and without a hint of humor in his features, remarked, “I thought you said no running.”

“Yeah, well…” Jiyong rubbed the back of his neck.  “Look, I know this wasn’t really what you were expecting, but please come back tomorrow.  I think it’s, uh, really important that people learn—“

“Why wouldn’t I come back tomorrow?”  Seunghyun’s face betrayed no hint of sarcasm or teasing.  This was quite the turn around.

Jiyong blinked, unable to immediately respond to this unexpected outcome.  “Uh… I guess no reason.”  He crossed and uncrossed his arms, nodding at nothing in particular, at an uncharacteristic loss for words.  Seunghyun continued to stand there motionless in wait, and Jiyong wondered when he became so awkward at conversation with good looking guys.

“Okay then, great!” he finally spat out.  “I’ll see you tomorrow!”  And he waved as Seunghyun made his way back to his car.  Upon returning to poolside, the other lifeguard patted his back with more force than was necessary.  Always with more force than was necessary.

“That was smooth.”

“Shut up, Youngbae.”