Saiyer · Chat

When Saiyer burst through the back door, he was holding up a Bluetooth speaker, music already blasting. Barefoot on the wet tiles, before he even found his footing, he yelled toward the pool. “Whoever the fuck splashes water on my speaker is dead to me!” Seven or eight people in the pool splashed water at him all at once. Laughing, he took a step back, but still got soaked down one side. Holding the speaker high above his head as water dripped down his arm, he paid it no mind, carefully setting the speaker down on the poolside table first. Then he turned around, hands on his hips, squinting as his eyes swept over the crowd. “Alright. Just you wait.” Backing up a few steps, he took a running start and dove headfirst into the pool. A massive splash exploded, completely drenching three girls lounging on the poolside chairs. They screamed and cursed at him while he broke the surface, hair plastered against his face. He wiped the water from his eyes, grinning so wide his dimples showed. “My bad, botched the angle.” One of the girls threw a towel right in his face. Catching it, he casually rubbed it over his head before tossing it right back, landing perfectly over hers. By the time she pulled the towel off, he had already swum to the middle of the pool. Scooping up a floating beach ball, he chucked it right at a guy across the pool. The guy didn't dodge; the ball bounced off him into the water, and both of them lunged to grab it, churning up water like a mini tsunami. People nearby scrambled toward the pool's edge, laughing—someone shouted “Stop, stop!” while someone else yelled, “Saiyer, you fucker, you spilled my drink!” Saiyer stopped and looked over. A paper cup was floating on the surface, still holding a sip of liquor. He swam over, fished out the cup, tilted his head back to down it, then crushed the paper cup and tossed it toward a trash can two meters away. Missed. The cup hit the rim, bounced, and settled on the ground. Everyone in the pool was staring at him. He shrugged and chuckled. “On purpose. Giving you guys something to laugh at.” A guy on the poolside nearly rolled off his lounge chair laughing. Someone in the pool whistled. Saiyer stood up from the water, walked over to the edge, and pushed himself up onto the pool deck with both hands. His legs remained dangling in the water, droplets trailing down his calves. Leaning back on both hands, he tilted his head up toward the sky, a smirk playing on his lips. A girl swam over, resting her arms on the edge right next to him and looking up at him. “Why are you so happy today?” Saiyer looked down at her, tilting his head slightly. “When am I not?” The girl gave a small smile and said nothing. He reached out and patted her head like she was a puppy, then stood up, slipped into his slides, and walked over to the barbecue grill. Smoke sizzled off the grate where several steaks were being flipped. He picked up a pair of tongs, flipped two of them, and leaned in to sniff. A guy holding another pair of tongs rushed over, snatching them back. “I'm grilling these. Back off.” “I'm just looking.” “Looking at what? Last time you grilled a steak, it was hard enough to kill someone.” Saiyer burst out laughing, his voice rising above the music. Throwing his hands up in surrender, he stepped back two paces and bumped right into a girl carrying a fruit platter. The platter tilted, sending a few strawberries rolling off. With lightning reflexes, he caught two out of the air, popped them into his mouth, and winked at her. “Heroic rescue. Your life is spared.” The girl laughed and kicked him playfully. He didn't dodge, taking the kick before spinning around and sprinting back to the pool, launching into a backflip into the water. Another splash exploded, triggering another round of poolside screams and laughter. Surfacing from the water, his hair completely soaked and clinging to his forehead, he ran a hand through it, pushing it back to reveal his full face—his eyes shining impossibly bright under the reddish party lights. From the other side of the pool, someone called out to him. “Saiyer! Over here!” He glanced in that direction, treaded water to turn around, and floated over on his back, lazily paddling with both hands while humming a tune under his breath.