5.6
Inside the White Room, there were rooms dedicated to various curricula.
One of them was a heated swimming pool where one could swim all year round.
Swimming was considered to play a very important role in developing physical skills.
Swimming was also ideal for children's immature bodies because of its low impact on the body itself. The time spent in contact with the water was valuable for the children to relieve stress.
Swimming was taught for two hours at a time, with a 30-minute lesson at the beginning, a 10-minute break afterward, and 30 minutes of competitive swimming with races and target times.
After that, the children were given 30 minutes of free time.
They could swim in the water or take a break.
I always made it a habit to spend the remaining 30 minutes by the pool, observing the children.
“I knew I’d find you here. You set a new record again today.”
“I haven't reached the time that the instructor set yet.”
“We’re children. They're adults. It's not strange that we can't reach it. It's just a little frustrating that I can't beat Kiyotaka anymore.”
Until a few weeks ago, Yuki was the fastest swimmer, regardless of how she swam.
“Once you passed me, the gap between our records has been widening. How can you swim so well? I've been practicing just as hard…”
“Breath-hold.”
“What?”
“Your form is perfect when you're swimming, but it's when you take a breath that your form is off. If you improve your form, you can improve your time a little more.”
“Yes, I see... My instructor didn't point that out to me.”
“Swimming instructors don't tell you everything. I think they make you aware that you have to find out for yourself.”
It's not that I haven't noticed.
“You not only see yourself, but you’re also even able to see your surroundings. I don’t have that kind of luxury.”
“I'm the same way, I'm just biting the bullet.”
Many of them, especially those new to the curriculum, were falling behind.
Without the fundamentals, one would be too focused on memorizing to get results.
On the other hand, people like Yuki and Shiro often got good results the first time.
They were able to quickly grasp the basics even though they didn't know them.
I guess you could call it a sense. That was the difference.
But I didn't envy them.
It has been proven in many curricula that you can make up the difference by learning and consolidating the basics, regardless of the initial gap.
It was okay if you weren’t good at first. The first step was to build the basics and learn to apply them to yourself.
Yuki stood still and didn’t walk away. She kept looking at me.
“...Do you still need something?”
“Is it strange for me to speak with you without purpose?”
“Yeah, it’s weird. Normally, you’d talk to me if you needed something.”
“You’re the same as always.”
I didn't look at her and started to think about Yuki.
Recently, she had been talking more and more.
And she was speaking in a different way from herself originally.
She was talking to me more and more often even when she had nothing to say.
Why did she do such inefficient things?
She wasn’t a bad subject for observation.
Besides, now I won’t be reprimanded since there weren’t any instructors watching and listening nearby.
Of course, we couldn’t deny that we were being watched, but we weren’t to be blamed for it.
“Can I ask you a question?”
“Yes...”
Yuki, puzzled, didn’t expect such a response back.
“How come you’re so good at conversing?”
“What? How come I’m so good at talking? I don't know.”
“You’re at least better than me. I'm just not willing to speak.”
“I'm not really motivated either, but... I'm just... I don't know...”
She didn’t know what she was talking about, but she was willing to talk about it? That's what I didn't understand.
“Then how can you laugh? You laughed before.”
“Why? ...I don't know that either.”
“Don't you get it? Even though you’re changing it, you don’t know?”
“Because I can't laugh now.”
Sure, Yuki laughed before, but I don't remember seeing her laugh since then.
Did she laugh only once by chance?
Are emotions formed by such coincidences?
“I don't know, but I think I can laugh again when I'm around you, Kiyotaka.”
“I don't understand.”
Was it possible that we can't feel the emotion that creates laughter unless we were around a certain person?
No, maybe she had a point.
When the instructors showed their anger, most of it was directed at someone else.
Smiles are also directed to someone else.
It wasn’t hard to understand.
I looked at Yuki.
“...What?”
I tried to smile.
As I thought, I didn't know how to smile.
I hadn't even learned the basics of anger, sorrow, and joy.
Without the basics, you can't do anything.
“Nothing.”
If we haven't learned it, then we don't need to feel it.
I had already stopped thinking about this.
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