Chapter Text
Isagi scored the winning goal against Ubers. Him and Hiori synchronized perfectly in order to make that vision a reality. So why are all of the blue lock tv watchers obsessed with him and Kaiser? This was supposed to be a great first day of free training during their 20 day break before the match against PxG. He should be focused on strengthening himself in order to prepare for facing the only other undefeated team.
Instead, this training session has resulted in him being relentlessly teased by his teammates. It would be one thing if the comments on social media were just about wishing him and Kaiser would work together. Did it piss him off? Absolutely, but he understands how amazing of a player Kaiser is. With as much attention Isagi has brought to himself lately, it’s only natural that the audience would want to see a chemical reaction between the two of them.
Strictly from an outside watchers point of view, it would be an exciting match if they were to work together. Even though Isagi would rather fucking die than ever admit that outloud, he understands it.
What he doesn’t get is the romantic implications a large chunk of the community is insinuating.
“Best couple in the league!”
“Just get married already!”
“Do you think they’ve kissed yet?”
Isagi wanted to vomit. Why the FUCK would he be interested in Kaiser of all people? Michael Kaiser, the guy who has only ever been a complete asshole to him since they met. They hate each other. They want to destroy each other’s lives in order to become the best striker the world has ever seen. His friends were not allowing this discovery to be forgotten, either.
“Do ya want to see what else they’re saying? It gets kinda spicy!” No matter how hard Isagi tried to snatch the phone away or shake his shoulders, Hiori’s teasing smile stayed plastered on his face.
“SHUT THE FUCK UP YOU SADISTIC BASTARD!”
Yukimiya and Raichi kept their distance in fear of catching Isagi’s wrath directly. The two continued to exchange amused glances at one another as they laughed into their fists.
“Do you seriously hate it that much?”
“Nah..it’s definitely that thing where he pretends to hate it but is secretly into it.”
“FUCK OFF! NO WAY!” Isagi could only scream from the frustration of being relentlessly teased. If Hiori, Yukimiya, and Raichi know then it’s only a matter of time before the rest of the group does as well. He wouldn’t be surprised if he began to be ‘accidentally’ left alone with Kaiser after today.
He came to blue lock to grow his abilities and become one of the best players in the world. This was not a reality dating show for the audience at home. Isagi was eternally grateful that neither of his parents know how to use social media outside of the television.
This SUCKS.
With a final flip of his middle finger, Isagi left the field doing his best to ignore the rising heat on his neck. There was no reason for him to be embarrassed over this. He doesn’t even like Kaiser as a friend let alone ever consider him in a romantic sense. He could say this a million times but it will never get the picture out of his friends’ heads.
Why did people even like the idea of them together anyways? Was this all because of the stunt Kaiser pulled when they first met? It wouldn’t be that surprising if that was the case; he did almost kiss him in the middle of the soccer field in front of not just all his teammates but the entire world that was watching.
The phantom feeling of Kaiser’s hand on his chin surfaced to the front of his memory and made him cringe. He remembered the look in the other’s eyes as he was pulled forward and how he had mentally prepared himself to be kissed. The embarrassment of having his first kiss be a spectacle for all of his friends made his face flush in humiliation.
For a guy he didn’t even know the name of to not only sabotage his initial ranking but then grab him without consent pissed Isagi off to no end. Yet, along with the rage, he remembers how he considered Kaiser to be beautiful and how he partially hoped they would kiss.
Obviously, any initial attraction he may have had vanished the second the guy opened his mouth. Out of everyone he’s met in blue lock, Michael Kaiser had the worst personality by far. No amount of winks when he passes by or teasing smirks could make him forget that. Isagi hates Kaiser. He hates him hates him hates him hate-
A frustrated yell interrupted his mental affirmations. He was at the entryway of the second field in the German stratum. Despite how the two groups should always be training together and working as a team, the original members of Bastard Munchen tended to use this one while the blue lock members used the other. The majority of the Germans usually left the field early to wash up before the others.
The majority.
Isagi didn’t need to step towards the field to know who was currently practicing. He should keep walking. He was done with his practice and should be going to the baths to clean up before dinner. Isagi has a lot of things that he should be doing that he doesn’t.
Despite the amount of time they have spent training together, Isagi had never seen what Kaiser does to practice when he’s alone. Would spying on his rival from the doorway like a secret admirer definitely spread more rumors online? Most likely, but Isagi was more nosy than he was concerned about fanfiction of him on the internet.
Kaiser was breathless and panting in the middle of the field. His hair was tied out of his face as sweat dripped from his skin. His hands gripped his knees for support as he bent forward in a stretch. Isagi thought back to all of their practices and games and not once had he ever seen Kaiser so worked up. It always seemed that what they did together was a weak beginners exercise.
The practices or matches could leave Isagi on the verge of throwing up and Kaiser would just walk away as if they didn’t train at all. It only added to the immense distaste that Isagi had for him. So to see him in this state sparked a bit of joy in his chest.
This had to be because Kaiser lost to him. He had managed to reduce Michael Kaiser to this state by his plays in the Ubers game. A smirk pulled on his lips as he leaned against the wall. He knew he should turn away before he was seen. Being caught spying on him wasn’t exactly the best look, but it was too rewarding of a sight. He wished he didn’t leave his phone in the dorms.
He watched as Kaiser stood up and wiped the sweat from his eyes. Even from the current distance between them, Isagi noticed the streak of red from his smudged eyeliner. He hated the fact that even when Kaiser should be at his lowest he still managed to be fucking attractive.
Isagi hates him.
A grimace pulled on Kaiser’s cheeks as he noticed the figure standing in the doorway, “Fuck off Ness. I know my limits, don’t fucking say anything.”
Isagi should take this moment to leave. He should let Kaiser think he was just Ness checking up on him and no one would have to know. But again, there are a lot of things that Isagi should do that he doesn’t. Also, Isagi Yoichi is an asshole.
“Not Ness, but it sure seems like you’re about to pass out to me.” It was impossible to hide the amused tone in his voice. The glare he was given in return was by far the most deadly he had seen since coming to blue lock. The smirk stayed on his face.
“You have got to be fucking kidding me.”
Kaiser rolled his eyes so hard Isagi was worried they would fall out of his skull. He had managed to ruin Kaiser’s day even further. He should leave now with another win under his belt. Kaiser falling forward onto knees made him run onto the field instead.
He reached out as he would have with anyone else. Since he was reaching towards Kaiser and not anyone else, his hands were slapped away.
“Don’t touch me. I’m fine.” Whether Kaiser was intentionally avoiding his eye contact he wasn’t sure, but worry built in his chest from his labored breathing. It was normal to be exhausted after a rough practice. Isagi had been out of breath or lightheaded more times than he could count after pushing himself. He had even passed out after the game against Manshine.
There’s pushing yourself in a healthy way to train, and there's pushing yourself past your limits out of desperation. It was clear Kaiser was currently going through the latter.
“Obviously you’re not. You should go see the nurse.”
Kaiser scoffed at the suggestion and finally managed to raise his head. It was clear he was doing his best to glare at Isagi. His eyebrows were furrowed and his eyes themselves narrowed, but the hostility wasn’t there. God’s chosen emperor looked completely exhausted.
This should have sparked more of Isagi’s previous joy; but it didn’t. He wasn’t even sure why. He had forced the Michael Kaiser to ignore his bodily restraints in order to train in a way to beat him. He should feel honored or at least be proud of this accomplishment. Instead his throat felt dry and his heart sank to his stomach.
“I don’t need a fucking icepack, Yoichi. Just leave me alone.”
Kaiser’s voice did little to plead his case. Just like the rest of his body it was ragged and struggling to seem coherent. Each word took a bit too long to pronounce and Isagi highly doubted that it was a lag in the translator.
“You almost passed out, asshole. I’m not going to just leave you here.”
“I..I’ll be fine.”
“Really? Because you can barely even speak-”
“If I go to the nurse will you shut your fucking mouth?”
“Yes.”
“Fine.”
“Do you-”
“If you make me say it outloud I’ll kill myself in front of you right now.”
“Alright..come on.”
With the help of Isagi, Kaiser slung his left arm over his shoulder and was able to slowly get to his feet again. It was strange how easily they slotted into one another. It should have been awkward as they struggled to get to a comfortable position before they walked; but it wasn’t. That fact made Isagi’s crawl.
Another thing he hated about Kaiser was that he was taller than him. He hated being looked down on in every way, but having to directly look at it in person made him gag. Kaiser could never just fucking talk to him normally either. He always needed to raise his chin a bit to exaggerate the height difference and force Isagi to feel inferior.
That should have also been the case as they started their walk to the nurse together, but it wasn’t. Kaiser’s head hung forward at his shoulders. He had closed his eyes and was blindly trusting Isagi to lead him to the correct place.
Isagi should accidentally lead him into the wall or dinning hall for everyone to see him in this state and run away. It would be a great way to get back at him for all the things Kaiser had done to embarrass him in the past. Isagi kept them on route to the nurse while doing his best to ignore the feeling of Kaiser’s back muscles moving under his palm.
The walk was agonizingly slow and uncomfortably silent. Isagi tried to start a conversation a few times only to be met with an immediate ‘shut up’ or attempt at a harsh glare. He should stop trying to start a conversation with a guy that hates him.
“So uh..”
“Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary what now?”
“..Nevermind.”
“You are so fucking irritating, you know that?”
“I’ve been called worse.”
“Oh yeah? Like what?”
“Your boyfriend.”
The stop in Kaiser’s walk caused Isagi to stumble forward. Ironically, he was only able to stay upright thanks to the other’s grip on his shoulder. When he turned to ask why they stopped, he was met with an expression he had never seen on Kaiser’s face before.
The only way to describe it would be a strange combination of shock, confusion, and disgust. He was blinking at Isagi as if trying to get his brain to process what he was just told. Did he seriously have no idea? Was he that disconnected from social media?
“Excuse me?”
“You don’t know?”
Kaiser’s hand on his shoulder moved to pinch his neck, “Know what, jackass?” The sharp sting made Isagi slap his hand away and rub the developing sore. He should have pushed Kaiser off and left him on the floor. Instead, he rolled his eyes and made them start walking again.
“Our fans think we’re dating. Or want us to date. It’s all over twitter.”
“Are we almost at the nurse? I think I’m gonna throw up.”
Isagi responded with a repeat of the action done to him earlier; using his free hand he pinched the left side of Kaiser’s neck. It was returned with a harsh slap and flick to his forehead. Both rubbed their new bruises as they kept walking, “Yeah well I wasn’t that fucking happy about it either but you don’t need to be an asshole. Especially when it’s your fault in the first place.”
“How is it my fault?!”
Now it was Isagi’s turn to stop the walk, the expression that was previously on Kaiser’s face now on his. His eyebrow twitched as his glare worsened. He really should just drop him in the hallway. They kept walking.
“Are you one of those geniuses that is only good at soccer and stupid at everything else? Forget your metavision, your social awareness is fucking garbage.”
“Seriously, what are you talking about?”
“Dude. There are compilations of you flirting with me.”
“I don’t flirt with you.”
“Oh so you just casually grab everyone’s chin and almost kiss them whenever you meet for the first time?”
“I wasn’t going to kiss you. It was just dramatics for the cameras”
“You asked if I was in love with you when I said I wanted to kill you.”
“I was kidding.”
“You said I made you blush when I said I would take everything from you and leave you naked on your throne.”
“That sounds more like you flirting with me, Yoichi. Why were you fantasizing about me naked?”
At this, Isagi turned to glare at the antagonist. He expected the previous tired and slightly annoyed expression to be on Kaiser’s face. Instead, he had a soft smile on his lips that tugged at the corner of his eyes. The loose strands of hair from his bangs had begun to dry into a curl. His cheeks now showed a soft pink and no longer looked like he was on the verge of collapse.
Isagi hated how effortlessly beautiful Kaiser was. He forced his eyes away and did his best to not let the moment of admiration show on his face. If Kaiser noticed, he kept it to himself.
“I’ll drop you and leave you here.”
A soft laugh left Kaiser’s chest as he ruffled the tuft of hair next to him. Isagi didn’t hit his hand away this time, “If you actually would, you wouldn’t have offered to help me to the nurse in the first place.”
It wasn’t the first time Kaiser had done this, but something about it now felt different from the previous ones. This was always done in a condescending way. Usually after Isagi fumbled a play or tripped over himself in practice. He could always feel the condescending nature of it; that he was being treated like a child and humiliated.
But now it just felt the same as when one of his friends ruffled his hair. Why was Kaiser acting like one of his friends now? Isagi should hate it and tell him to fuck off. Instead, he let the tattooed hand stay still in his hair as the conversation continued.
“Why can’t you just talk to me like a normal person?”
“It’s more fun when you get pissed off.”
“Am I just a fun game to you?”
“More or less.”
“You are seriously such a fucking asshole.”
“Eh, I’ve been called worse.”
“Like what?”
“Your boyfriend.”
Isagi hated that he laughed at that stupid joke with him. He also hated how a small part of him was upset at the fact that they now stood in front of the nurse’s office. As they stepped inside the room, both let out a sigh of relief that it was empty. With everything that was now being spread about them, having a group witness Isagi leading Kaiser to an empty bed was not something they wanted to deal with.
With Kaiser now safely laying down in the nurse’s office, Isagi’s job was complete. He should leave and make his way to the baths like he originally planned. Instead, he pulled out a nearby chair and sat down.
“I’m not a kid, you don’t need to wait by my side for the nurse to get here.”
“I didn’t need to walk you to the nurse’s office either. But I did, so..”
Kaiser looked at him blankly before turning his eyes to the ceiling, “You make no sense to me, Yoichi.”
“What?”
“I’m an asshole to you and constantly sabotage you on the field. There’s no reason why you should be even remotely nice to me.”
Isagi put on a smug grin as he shrugged his shoulders, “Yeah, I guess I’m just an amazing guy.”
“Oh, fuck off.”
The grin slowly fell from his face as he slunked a bit in his chair. He couldn’t bring himself to look at Kaiser as he spoke the next sentence, “...A part of me was concerned, I guess.” When the silence continued to stretch, he took it as an invitation to continue.
“Did you know you never even sweat during practices or games? It’s seriously creepy. So when I saw you like..” Isagi made a vague motion with his hands to Kaiser’s current state, “ this , it kinda boosted my ego for a second. Until you, ya know, almost fainted. Then I felt kinda bad.”
“I don’t need your sympathy-”
“It isn’t sympathy.” His voice came out with far more bite than he intended, but it somehow managed to effectively cut Kaiser off, “If anything it pissed me off more than it worried me. I may have beaten you last game, but I haven’t won anything. If you were to push yourself too much past your limit and get hurt, what would I do? You need to keep being a proper obstacle in my life, asshole.”
When his spiel was over, Isagi was finally able to lift his eyes to gauge Kaiser’s reaction. He expected a look of annoyance or even anger. He certainly didn’t expect widened eyes and a softened expression that turned into a small smile once their eyes locked. Isagi should have turned his head away again.
He kept their eyes locked on each other and he didn’t know why.
“Using my own words against me is a dick move.”
“It’s true, though. Also if you tell anyone what I said I’ll deny it and everyone here likes me more than you so they’ll believe me.”
“WOW!” Kaiser fully sat up as he yelled. Despite the annoyance it was impossible to hide his smile. He crossed his legs as he straightened his posture and pointed to the boy sitting across from him, “In that case you wouldn’t mind if I told everyone that the bruise on your neck is from me, right?”
“The..NO WAY!” Terror took over Isagi’s face as he remembered the earlier pinch and ran to a nearby mirror. The darkening bruise above his collar was clear as day and insinuated to an action much different than what actually happened. “I’m going to fucking kill you. HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO HIDE THIS?”
“Why do you want to hide it? Afraid everyone will think we actually are dating?”
“You should worry about it too, asshole! Look at your own neck.”
Kaiser’s smug grin vanished as he did his best to get out of the bed without falling over. He pushed Isagi out of the way to look at himself in the small mirror. His bruise was equally as bad from Isagi’s pinch. Both horrified, they could only stare at each other as they accepted their fate. Regardless of the actions behind the marks, no one would actually believe their story.
Isagi should have been pissed beyond reason.
Instead, he was the first to laugh. Kaiser was soon to follow before they both fell back into their respective seats.
“What are we gonna do?”
Kaiser rested his hands behind his head as he laid back down. He looked completely unbothered and that fact should have irritated Isagi even more. It didn’t.
“Just tell the truth. If someone asks how you got it, just say it's from me and enjoy the chaos. You don’t need to explain how it happened.”
“Everyone’s gonna think we hooked up.”
“Let them. It’ll be funny.”
“You’re surprisingly calm about this.”
Kaiser did his best to shrug given his current positioning, “Eh, not my first hickey I have to hide on camera. I’ll survive.”
“You can hide these?”
“..Yoichi, have you never had a hickey before? Obviously you can hide them.”
Heat rose up Isagi’s neck as he realized he had just told on himself, “Fuck off.” Not only does it look like he has a hickey on his neck, Michael Kaiser now knows he has never been with someone before. This is the worst day of his life.
“Holy shit you really haven’t.” Kaiser’s voice was quiet like he was sharing a secret. The fact that he wasn’t immediately being laughed at somehow made the entire situation worse. Just make fun of him and move on so the conversation can change. It was clear Kaiser was keen on staying on this topic. Isagi hates him.
“Drop it.”
“Alright touchy subject.” Unexpectedly, there wasn’t a teasing tone in his voice, “I’m just surprised.”
“Surprised about what?”
“You haven’t kissed anyone either, have you?”
Shouldn’t that have been obvious? Does he need Isagi to say his entire dating history outloud? He’s such a fucking asshole.
“Shut up Kaiser.”
“I just think it’s strange considering how well liked you are, that’s all.”
“Never really liked anyone in that way. It’s not that big of a deal.”
“You should be honored that I’m your first then!”
“You are NOT my first kiss, don't be gross. You PINCHED me!”
“I could kiss you too, if you want.”
What.
What.
He’s joking right? Obviously he is. Why would Kaiser willingly offer to kiss him? Doesn’t he hate him? He barely even accepted his help to walk here. This is obviously a joke. A cruel, sick, annoying joke that should have made Isagi immediately leave the room. Instead, he felt his heart stop for a second.
“I’d rather die, but thanks for the offer.”
Drop it drop it drop it drop it drop it.
“Harsh, Yoichi. You’ll break my heart.”
“You’re the one who said that the idea of people thinking we’re dating made you want to throw up.”
“Maybe I was lying.”
“Kill yourself. I’m leaving.”
As he stood up to walk to the door, Kaiser’s hand gripped his wrist. He should have kept walking and pulled himself free. The amount of things Isagi should do and he doesn’t just continues to increase.
“I’m not going to tell anyone, alright? It’s not my business.”
Kaiser didn’t need to clarify what he was talking about. While his reassurance did take a small amount of weight off his chest, Isagi’s heart still raced inside him. He could only hope that his pulse couldn’t be felt by the other’s fingers, “..Thanks.”
The hand on his wrist fell away as Kaiser sat against the wall, “Feel free to tell them I gave you a hickey though. I want to see the reactions to that.” His classic grin was back on his face as he said his goodbyes.
Isagi did his best not to mirror it as he finally walked turned his back, “Fuck off. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Oh Yoichi.”
“What?”
“Thanks.”
“...Don’t mention it.”