Land Of The Free And Home Of The Merm

It was after swim practice. The boys were exhausted from a long day at work.

“In order to be the best, you have to work like the best.” The coach, Apolo Ohno insisted.

Although this training was winning the team Pan-American gold, the tolls it took on the boys were become increasing visible.

“Been working so hard. I’m punching my dog.” Merm sang as he put his lavender button up over top his wet swimsuit.

“You’re NOT punching your dog, Merm!” Shark rolled his eyes at the dazed red head. 

“Ana asif.” he spoke in perfect Arabic. Translating to "I’m sorry."

Suddenly a blast of steam swept across the boys’ faces. Kao was exiting the shower alone, since he was the only one that exhibited proper hygiene. 

Maybe it was the dog incident, or maybe everything was just right. The right flip of the towel (who needs to cover up), the right twist of the hair and iconic strut Kao’s been sporting for the past few years. Either way, Merm noticed something about this boy he’s never seen before… that d.

“THAT’S where the harem comes from.” Merm acknowledges loudly, a habit he’s become a bit too well known for. In the corner one of the Valetine trifolds laughed, for he had not been so blind to Kao growth.

“Pardon?” Kao asks casually, clearly not resembling the same level of depletion as the rest of the team. 

Merm begins giggling uncontrollably. “I think you know what I mean, Big Boy.”

Kao had some idea of what Merm noticed, it’s not like he hadn’t himself. But Kao chose to give him a humble nod and receive later elaboration from his friend, the local Arabian, Hon.

That night, Kao set up a meeting with Hon. It was hard for Hon to reorganize his whole schedule on such short notice. Filling out college resumes was not an easy task and he only had four years to complete it. Kao managed to snag a maximum five minutes with the notorious Hona Freaking Lulu.

“What seems to be the problem, brother?” Hon first spoke to his translator who then repeated the sentence back in a more audible accent.

“What exactly is a harem?” 

“It’s the girls that follow you around idiot.” Hon spat back, unable to fathom how Kao dared to waste his time with such mediocre problems.

That means Merm was under the impression Kao’s hoes were directly related to his d when truthfully he was just straight up pimping.

Either way, Merm had finally seen Kao in the light he sees himself, more than just a freshman. It seemed as if joining swim was about to pay off.