route_1065 | Doggy Paddle Like You Just Don't Care.

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Doggy Paddle Like You Just Don't Care.

Who: Jade Harley and Dave Strider
Where: Ecruteak City
When: Today!
Summary: Jade wants to go swimming. Dave is a reluctant participant. Doggy paddle is the way to go.
Rating: PG-13 because teenagers are dumb.
Log:

Jade loved playing inside. She also loved hanging out with her friends. She really loves hanging out with her friends! But today is such a nice looking day! It's not raining and the sun is out. It's not a clear day, but a few clouds don't hurt anybody.

She was currently laying on her stomach and watching Dave play video games. She wasn't very good at them, but she found entertainment watching other people play. John and Dave playing is exceptionally funny. But she wanted to do something! So what about- "Daaaaaaaaaaaaaave? Do we have to play video games? Can we go outside? We can play more video games when the sun goes down, right?" Jade watches the T.V. screen as Dave's little character jumps into the water. She no longer had her dog attributes, but you could practically hear it in her voice. Little doggy ears shooting up and a wagging tail. "Can we go swimming? We haven't gone swimming together before, right? Tenten's party doesn't count!"

Oh boy. Better think fast, Dave.

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There's a long pause as Dave tries to play off nearly wrecking the car in Mario Kart as intentional. He hasn't thought the subject of swimming would ever come up. It hadn't last summer so why now? Because Jade, that's why. He directs his Eeevee racer back onto the track and shrugs. "Now? When it's still winter? Are you trying to freeze? You know what they say about dipping into the cool stuff. Never do it. Not even on a dare."

"We can totally go outside but swimming in the cold just seems like a bad idea." Nevermind what actual weather it is. It's not spring yet and he can cling to that excuse.

Jade is oblivious to it. But that's because it's Jade. Jade who isn't that much of a gamer. She's sure she would just do that herself while playing. "It's not that cold. It's barely winter!!!" Wow, that's the worst excuse, ever. "I've swam in cold water before! Surfers do it all the time along with other people. You're just being a huge pussy about the cold." Jade is never afraid of cold, Dave.

She tugs at his arm gently. "I wanna go swimmiiiiiiing."

"What if one of us doesn't know how. It kinda sinks the whole plan. Like a rock. No, seriously, Bro never taught me how to swim. He was too busy hurling me from the roof like a sail boy to see how well I float. In case the earlier stuff wasn't a hint, I don't float." He taps at the controls, getting back up into third place. He can talk and game. This is something he can do with the best of them. Provided she doesn't say something surprising again.

"Barely winter is still winter. Just an fyi."

Jade just lies there staring holes into Dave. She does not move an inch. Her face literally does not change in expression.

She then suddenly gets up. She leans over and kind of gently takes the video game controller out of Dave's hands and sets it on the ground. After she is done with that, she's just gonna...lift Dave up bridal style. Nope. Didn't give any warning. Just gonna pick him up and gonna head towards the rooms.

"We're going swimming."

He stupidly thinks that that is the end of the conversation and goes back to the game with a faint sense of satisfaction. Two minutes later when the controller is taken from him and he's off the couch, he realizes he basically signed the arrest warrant like an idiot. Why yes officer, he leaped the fence and kept going instead of stopping. Don't even need a camera to prove it.

"You keep getting this wrong. It's not swimming, it's sinking like the Evans Fitz Gerald. I'll break in half and sink beneath the waves. He was too big, too young, too dumb."

Dave. Dave, please. You should have known better. Jade totally drops Dave on a bed and is totally digging through his clothes. Dave has swim trunks, doesn't he? Jade could lend him one of her bathing suits if not. Dave...probably would rather not. For obvious reasons.

"No, Dave. You're gonna learn to swim!!! I'm going to teach you. We can't fly here. What if you fell in water?" Jade doubts Dave wants to rely on someone else fishing him out. "Don't worry. You'll be able to swim fine with practice."

Dave considers that point. His pride stings at the mental images presented and he gives her a flat look that's ruined by his shades. "Oh come on, it's not like my flyers would let me fall off." But it could happen.

Were he anyone else, he'd have growled. They can't die but that's no comfort either. He remembers seeing John get stabbed and how Rose flew into a fury, he right behind her. Sword and needles in hand they'd carved their way through looking for John.

He can just imagine her fury at him being stupid.

Ugh.

"Bottom drawer, far left side." He had swim trunks but he rarely used them because swimming hahaha what is that.

"Of course they wouldn't let you! They love you. But that doesn't mean accidents can't happen." Jade doesn't see the look because she is rummaging through his clothes.

Jade would be very upset if Dave died. She also kind of had a hand in his death before. Might have accidentally filled him with holes and bullets. Man, the things that happen when you're thirteen, right?

She pulls them out and holds it out to him. "You put these on and I'm gonna go change into mine! By the time you're done, you'll be a swimming champ and you'll love the water!" She loves swimming. Even just floating on the surface and letting her mind wander and just relaxing is nice.

"I promise that if you hate swimming, I won't make you swim with me after you learn." She would be really sad, but she wouldn't want Dave to keep doing something he hates. As long as he has the ability to swim!!!

Dave could keep protesting, but it's Jade asking. "If it's too cold I'm getting right back out of the water. I'm too skinny to tolerate fridge levels of chill waters. I mean only polar bears and ice Pokemon like it like that." Never mind that spring is around the corner. He just complains anyway.

With swim trunks in hand, he retreats to the bathroom to strip out of his regular clothes. It takes a lot less time than he likes and he'd stalled at least ten minutes. There's only so much goofing off he can do before he has to accept he's being stupid.

As if to add insult to injury Pyralspite makes inquiring noises at the door like some animal parent. He exits the bathroom before she can start acting like a nag. "Ok. Lead on." He's about as enthused for the lessons as a man put before the firing squad and denied his last cigarette.

"Daveeeee. Cold water isn't that bad! Sheesh." Jade is also skinny. Don't be such a whiny, baby. Gosh. "You'll be okay. The water shouldn't be too cold. It might take some getting used to though."

Pyralspite is such a good ~~lusus~~ animal parent. The best.

Jade is sitting on the couch, already dressed in her one piece. She gets up as soon as she sees Dave She looks so excited, despite Dave being a little put off. She is glad that Dave agreed. Even if she kind of manhandled him a bit to do so. "Come on." Before he can say anything else, she's grabbed his hand and is bounding out the door with him. "I'll teach you free style. It's pretty easy to learn and it's my favorite."

Before he can make a snappy comeback they're off. Dave manages to kick the door shut with his foot. Not like John would mind but as a rule shutting the door keeps people from watching what is likely going to be embarrassing. "Free style. As if do whatever you want so long as you don't fill your lungs with water, right? That's exactly what you're talking about."

To his horror, Pyralspite is following the along with Nicki the Leafeon and Dr. Jay the Vaporeon. What is his soon to be terrible failings a show for them??

"And cold water is still cold water."

"Nooooo. Free style is a kind of style. It doesn't actually mean just swimming all willy nilly. Breaststroke is okay, but butterfly can take a lot of work, so freestyle it is!"

They finally end up at a river. It's shallow enough that he'd literally have to sit to drown, but deep enough that he can practice swimming in it. "I'll show you how it looks to swim freestyle and I'll go over kicking and arm strokes. We'll practice both separately until you think you can handle putting them together!"

She's already running into the water, kicking her sandals off to the side in the grass.

"Breast stroke. Ok that's a really bad name for some swimming maneuver. There's no way that can be taken seriously in a meet up. Hey let's all do the breast stroke today! How are people who say things like this real." He mumbles to himself as he shuffles along after Jade. He drags his feet a bit until Pyralspite starts pushing him along like a parent would push a little kid to encourage them to play with others.

He kicks off his shoes before he splashes into the water. Dave crosses over to the shallowest spot and crouches down, frowning at the chill eating its way up his legs. The water is cold. He doesn't appreciate it.

"Oh my god! Dave, just because it has the word breast in it doesn't mean people don't take it seriously!" Dave, you're being so silly about this. And she's teaching you freestyle, anyways!

Jade practically jumps into the water, dipping her head under the water and resurfacing. She sighs contently as she floats on her back for a moment before she wades over to where Dave is crouching. "I'll show you that you won't sink. We'll start with floating. It requires no effort really, and it's calming."

"You under estimate my ability to sink. I am the pro at sinking. Ships that bust in half don't have the power to bomb at floating as badly as I do. Stand aside for the pro stone boy. ...that is a terrible name. Let's forget that one." How the hell do you float? Bro never taught him that one. He didn't see swimming as important. He has no idea the first thing to do and it's obvious from how much he's rambling on.

Float? Hahahaha, how.

"Shut up, Dave!!! All I hear is whine whine whine, I'm a big baby who is whining!!!!!" She puts her hands on his face. "Shuuuuuuuush. Dave, you will be fine. You will be a total pro at this and then you will be soooo cooooool with your cool swimmingness. I am here to help you achieve this, okay? So stop freaking out about a little water. I will make sure that you will not drown or sink or any of those bad not swimming things."

She keeps her hands on his face but she smiles. "Floating is easy, but you have to be relax and you are currently the total opposite of relaxed."

"I'm not freaking out, you're just saying gibberish I can't make heads or tails of." Yes, he is freaking out. Now he's consciously aware of that. Jade's hands on his are helping a lot like when you put blinders on a horse. Ugh, now he's going to picture himself as some horse she's trying to soothe.

"You could just treat this as if I've never floated before because let me tell you I do the opposite. People will go where is Dave? You'll have to say beneath the waves never to return. Gone. Finto. That's all she wrote and you heard the fat lady warble like a songbird. Wait. Shit you said relax." He takes a deep breath, then another, putting his focus into that.

Mostly to stop sounding and looking like an idiot. He mumbles about himself in between breaths, shutting his eyes but the mumbling tirade about his dumb continues.

"You are freaking out so much." She gives him a bright smile though. "It's okay, Dave. If you can't get it right the first time, it doesn't mean you won't get the hang of it. And I am here so you will not drown. I will make sure that you are completely safe. And our Pokemon will also make sure we are safe."

She thinks it's kind of silly that Dave is working himself up so much. What a dork. "Okay! You are going to lie on your back in the water. It is a little harder for other people to float because of their density. So if you are Mr. Muscle Man, you will have to do more work than me because I am not Mr. Muscle Man. But you should be fine. Just take very deep breaths and concentrate on your breathing. I will keep my hands under you so you do not sink." She is just gonna be sneaky and moves her arms away. Hopefully when she does, he will be too wrapped up in other things to realize that she was not supporting him the whole time.

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Doggy Paddle Like You Just Don't Care.

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