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It had been a tough season for Bastard München. Germany's top team had been unable to score like they used to; their usual stellar plays and offensive yet practical play style were nowhere to be found. Instead, their recent victories had boiled down to dumb luck, pulling off goals with no real reproducibility and, by all accounts, trash in any world-class scenario.
Change had been inevitable following the end of the reign left behind by a king who had ruled with such unrivaled strength and rationality. The most accomplished striker of the era, Noel Noa, had retired, passing the crown to the younger players he had helped raise. Isagi had accepted the responsibility with tears in his eyes but his head held high. Kaiser, on the other hand, had merely sneered and waved his hand dismissively. It had been a moment straight out of a storybook, engraved in his heart with the finesse of the craftiest of artisans. He would never forget the confidence he held that day; the belief that he was capable of painting over the mural of Noa's legacy with his own colors.
Yet, the weight of the crown became too heavy to bear alone. As a result, people whispered. Whispers about the vacancy of the throne, of the weathering of a once great realm. Noel Noa's absence had left a gaping hole in the team's formation, and Isagi's attempts to fill it had proven nothing but subpar, as Bastard München's performance in the league continued to plummet to the ground. In other words, he needed to win, right here, right now, or kiss his dreams of ever winning the World Cup goodbye!
Lukewarm, Rin spat at Isagi's feet as he raised his chin in disdain. Isagi gritted his teeth as he looked at the score: 2-1, in PXG's favor. Rin's goal had been precise and ferocious, accomplished thanks to his outside spin shot, a weapon refined through countless days of dauntless practice. Is this what I want to be remembered for? Memories of Isagi's time at the Neo Egoist League flashed through his mind then; of how they had destroyed every team they fought against, and their triumphant win against Rin and PXG at the time. What was so different now, he wondered? He clenched his fists tight enough to bruise. Is that all I'm worth as a striker? The sole goal of this match had not even been his own, but Kunigami's; a result granted to them due to the unpredictability of Kunigami's selfish berserker style, and not at all based on a weapon they could consistently rely on.
It was at that moment that, with these feelings boiling inside his heart, Isagi Yoichi's eyes met Michael Kaiser's as if for the very first time.
The ace duo of Bastard München found each other across the field, guided by nothing more than a mere coincidence. Such a chance encounter possessed the impact of a bolt of lightning striking the ground.
They rose to their feet in tandem, returning to their positions. Isagi cleaned a sheen of sweat off his brow with the collar of his shirt, stretching his arms while reviewing plays inside his head. Kaiser gripped his neck with enough strength to bruise, intent on digging holes in everything the blue rose stood for. But the look in their eyes was the same, as a perfect mirror of the other, there was no doubt they had arrived at the same conclusion:
I'll win, even if I have to kill this version of myself!
Isagi and Kaiser's potential as a striker duo who aided each other's plays had already been a hotly discussed topic among fans for a long time. Keener spectators had not failed to notice their similar playstyles and countless coordinated blocks, even if done entirely by accident, much to Kaiser and Isagi's combined annoyance. They had made it abundantly clear time and time again that both of them would rather drink acid than cooperate with each other. Even so, hopes for a team-up had never quite dimmed among fans of the team.
What lay at the depths of the hearts of true strikers, however, was an ego almost all-consuming, burning away trivialities such as personal misgivings and grudges, leaving nothing in its wake. It was that simpleminded feeling of there's no way in hell these shitheads are beating me!
Clinging to that certainty, the aces of Bastard München dashed through the field, sharing one beating heart.
They blocked with precision and coordinated with their teammates with no barriers laid between them. Despite the revelation that had struck the pair, time never wound itself for those left behind, and the reality of having to score two goals in two mere minutes was a tall wall to climb.
After a precise pass coming from Ness of all people, Isagi acquired possession of the ball. He sprinted for the goal, with Rin hot on his tail. Damn prodigy! Isagi cursed, measuring his chances: should he dribble? Pass? Shoot anyway?
The sound of Kaiser dashing across the field, appearing out of nowhere, was the final blade that sliced clean through Isagi's doubts. If this had been any other match, that damn hyena would've surely marked Isagi and stolen the goal for himself. But now, he could tell, what Kaiser would do was—
"Move it, shitty baby Itoshi." Kaiser blocked Rin's path, painting a clear view of the goal box for Isagi to score.
"Piss off, scum," Rin growled.
Isagi grinned, so you're worth something, huh, emperor?
Sweat dripped down from his neck, but Isagi had never been a person to allow doubt to take root in his heart. The ball hit the net, and the stadium burst into mad cheers. The usual fervor of a goal burned inside of his veins, and he could barely register when Yukimiya and Hiori shouted his name and jumped at him, similar expressions of unbidden excitement adorning their faces. Isagi almost staggered at the overwhelming feeling of it all, but a rough clap on his back brought him back to the reality of the situation.
"Not bad for a clown." Kaiser sneered, though not quite able to hide the hint of a grin threatening to pull the corners of his lips upwards. "Even so, little Yoichi's glory will be short-lived after I win us the match in the end."
"You wish," Isagi responded, repaying Kaiser with a clap on the back.
The threat of defeat grew bigger each minute that ticked by, setting the flames of egos and ambitions ablaze, opponent and ally alike. PXG's attacks grew more relentless as Rin was switched out for Shidou, whose wild playstyle raised the unpredictability of their plays. The stalemate was unrelenting, the match stretching to the limits of additional time. Shidou rushed through the field like a madman in his dance of chaos, dribbling past Kurona with a nutmeg and shooting straight for the goal. The intensity of the game burned scorching hot on their skin, but as the only one who managed to read Shidou's crazed movements well enough to predict his next actions, Kaiser blocked the shot with a jump and a headbutt in the middle of its trajectory.
"Catch it, Yoichi!" He shouted as he fell perfectly on his feet, but with the added oddity of sweat glistening on his brows. Unthinkable for someone such as Kaiser, who wasted no movements and hardly allowed a drop of sweat to drip down his face.
Following Kaiser's instruction, Isagi trapped the ball with his foot in the nick of time, identifying the openings in the opponent's defenses and exploiting them. He carved his way through the barriers through the tiniest of cracks until the route to the goal box was clear to his eyes.
There was no time, he had to score!
30 seconds.
He ran like never before, his entire body burning with adrenaline.
20 seconds.
There! He had a clear view of the goal box, but—
10 seconds.
"Going somewhere, ace of blue lock?" Loki rushed over with his inhuman speed, blacking out the lights that illuminated Isagi's path.
Dammit! I won't make it in time!
Isagi faltered and could barely move, as his legs locked firmly onto solid ground.
9 seconds.
He ran simulations in his head, desperately looking for even a simple glimmer to light his way forward. Think, think! There has to be a way, any opening at all!
Amidst the pitch-black darkness, a bolt of lightning struck the field once more.
Kaiser!
8 seconds.
The locks that had chained him to the ground opened with a click as the key twisted, setting him free.
On Kaiser's face, he saw a mirror of his bloodlust; his feverish intent to crush his opponents.
7 seconds.
He passed to Kaiser. There was nothing in his brain but the certainty that they were the same.
6 seconds.
Shidou and Charles were unrelenting, working as makeshift yet ferocious walls between Isagi and Kaiser.
"Tch." Kaiser clicked his tongue. "You shitty small fry. Think that's enough to stop me?"
And then he jumped.
5 seconds.
With an otherworldly bicycle shot, Kaiser's Kaiser Impact cut through the air.
4 seconds.
Kaiser's shot had been like a swing of a sword, strong yet precise, slicing through heavy armor.
The goalkeeper only managed a glance at the ball before it was too late.
The ball hit the net followed by the resounding sound of the crazed roars of the audience.
Isagi's ears rang. All at once, he became acutely aware of his fatigue, sheer willpower was the only thing that kept him on his feet.
Nonetheless, the rush of adrenaline gifted to him by the exhilarating visage of the faces of the people he'd crushed guided his every step.
Perhaps drunk on the sweet taste of victory, perhaps insane due to his exhaustion, Isagi did something unthinkable; something that he never thought he'd ever do in a billion years, not even if he had a gun to his head, died, and was reborn in another body.
He jumped at Kaiser, hugging his neck like a lifeline. Frazzled, Kaiser froze from the shock, causing the duo to almost fall over before Kaiser managed to steady Isagi in his arms.
"You goddamn genius!" Isagi smiled from ear to ear, ruffling Kaiser's hair until there was no strand in place.
Kaiser grinned. "I've told you, haven't I? Nothing is impossible for me."
Kurona, Yukimiya, Hiori, Igaguri (who spent the entire duration of the game warming the bench), Raichi, and the others soon joined in wild celebration, embracing their aces hard enough to crack their spines. Ness shot Isagi dirty glances but reined it in account of how excellent Kaiser's goal had been. Hiori and Raichi shouted best couple of the league in a mocking tone, which they let miraculously slide with no threats of murder.
Until there was a small mishap.
"I'm the best, obviously, but you crazy freaks aren't so bad!" Raichi commended, making a move to ruffle Isagi's hair affectionately, who was still being held by Kaiser.
Except… Raichi put a little too much force.
Isagi's head was shoved into Kaiser's and their foreheads hit the other's as their lips met, teeth clashing.
Kaiser dropped Isagi squarely on the ground with a thud.
"Ow! What the hell!" Isagi screamed bloody murder, rubbing the recently acquired bruise on his forehead.
"What the hell is your problem, Yoichi?!" Kaiser clenched his fists in anger as he shouted at Isagi, who had fallen flat on his butt.
"What? Me?! No! Gross! It was Raichi's fault!" Isagi defended his honor, scanning the area for Raichi, who had already run off in fright after realizing what he had done.
A vein throbbed on Kaiser's neck, then he grabbed Isagi by the collar, lifting him off the ground. "How bold of you, Yoichi. If you wanted my kiss so much, all you had to do was ask." He tried to rein back his rage through his sarcasm, to no avail, as every word he spat held the weight of a thousand curses. "I'd have rejected you anyway, of course."
"I told you it's not like that!" Isagi shouted, disgusted to the point of making his stomach churn. He gave Kaiser a hard shove. "Who would ever want to kiss a piece of shit like you?!"
The teammates who surrounded the two burst into uncontrollable laughter, throwing joke after joke into the air. All except for Ness, who stood so still one would think he was turned to stone after crossing eyes with a medusa.
That had been how that legendary match in the new era of Bastard München came to a close. A resounding victory, marked by the discovery of a newfound chemical reaction between their two aces. The impromptu kiss, of course, was also captured visibly on cameras; the cameraman had even been gracious enough to zoom in for extra emphasis. Needless to say, the internet had found its new thing to feverishly talk about for the next few weeks, much to Isagi's chagrin. How many more times will I have to get asked about Kaiser in interviews? I want nothing to do with that guy!
What the cameras hadn't caught, however, was the aftermath of said match. To celebrate, Bastard München had gone out to their preferred restaurant: a hole-in-the-wall, but as warm as a blanket in winter. It was tradition for them to gather there after a particularly hard-fought battle, all team members setting their arguments aside for a moment of respite. Yes, even Kaiser.
On the topic of Kaiser, he and Isagi seemed to have forgotten the rule; as the pair avoided contact at all costs, each sitting on opposite ends of the table, grimacing if their eyes met, or generally pretending Bastard München had lost a member in a freak accident. This continued for the entire duration of the night: when they toasted, when they helped Kurona get a piece of meat out of his throat, when they hurled friendly insults or threw japes at each other's expenses, when they had to drag a drunk out of his ass Raichi to Hiori's car, until they all bid one another goodbye.
What had foiled their plan had come after the goodbyes, when all the others had left, except for two. When it was only Kaiser and Isagi.
And the silence was unbearable.
Isagi shifted his weight from one foot to the other. His hands were clammy inside his coat's pockets despite the chilly climate of Munich.
"Aren't you going home?" Kaiser asked, lifting his scarf over his nose.
Isagi was startled, hairs standing up in alarm, not expecting the other to break the silence. "Raichi was going to give me a ride and, well, that happened." He hung his head, scuffing at a rock with his shoe. "I'll try getting a cab or something."
Another beat of silence.
Isagi felt ridiculous. Why am I even telling him this? He didn't tell this kind of thing to Kaiser. They insulted and threatened each other. That was their normal. He kicked at a rock to vent his frustration at the feeling he couldn't put a name to, biting back a long-suffering sigh.
Kaiser ran a hand through his bangs, frowning in displeasure. "I'll drive you home." He declared, so resolutely it left little room for doubt. Then, Kaiser walked off, carrying himself with the air of a king whose words could not be defied.
It took a moment for Kaiser's proposal to register, the absurdity of it still hanging fresh in the air. "Wait!" He trailed after Kaiser in hurried steps, mildly resentful of being ordered around, but seizing the opportunity to save himself some trouble.
The parking lot was dark, scarcely lit by the efforts of a lone streetlight that flickered on and off, signaling the impending end of its life. In contrast, Kaiser's car was almost a light of its own; needlessly flashy as it was, anyone could tell the vehicle had probably cost a small fortune. There was nothing unusual about owning a couple of luxuries, considering their salary. But Isagi had yet to let go of the frugal lifestyle he had inherited from his parents, holding onto it as a memento of his life in Japan. Due to such contrasting philosophies regarding money, or simply out of distaste for anything Kaiser did as a human being, Isagi rolled his eyes.
Kaiser propped his head on his hand against the car window, looking bored half to death as Isagi buckled his seatbelt. Something doesn't feel right. Not once had they properly looked at each other the entire night.
"Kaiser—" Isagi began.
"Your address. Or do you want me to guess?" Kaiser interrupted, raising his walls.
But Isagi was best at carving his own route. "We should talk."
Kaiser sneered. "There's nothing to talk about now, is there?"
"It doesn't make me happy to talk to a shitty jerk like you, either. But if this—" He paused, wildly gesticulating, " situation between us affects the team…"
"Oh, has the little clown gotten too drunk off his funny dance in the match today? You're crazy if you think I'm teaming up like that with you again."
"You're the crazy one if you think that's what I was going to offer." Isagi steeled his resolve, glaring at his opponent. When Kaiser was near, so was the battlefield. "There is no point if I'm not the one to bring you to your knees and crush you."
"What a good face, Yoichi." Responding in kind, Kaiser met Isagi's eyes with his own fierceness, tilting Isagi's chin up with his index finger. "It's almost wasted on an artless clown like you."
"Bold words coming from a coward who couldn't do so much as look at me the entire night." Isagi yanked Kaiser by the collar of his shirt, drinking in the pathetic expression on Kaiser's face at having been caught off guard. He always looked best when thrown out of his element, Isagi thought. He whispered in his ear: "If you keep dawdling, I might just lose interest in you, Kaiser."
Isagi's heart stirred with fervor, like the height of a match. He couldn't get enough.
"You forget your place," Kaiser laced each word with the hint of a threat, refusing to surrender. "A shitty player like you can only exist beneath me."
"Scared you can't keep up with my script, naked emperor?" Isagi taunted, their faces so close he could feel Kaiser's breath against his skin.
Kaiser's nose scrunched up in distaste. "Shut your mouth. Can't keep up with what? Your third-rate dribbling? Or your poor stamina? There is no script of yours that I can't predict its ending."
"Then," Isagi pulled him closer, "keep up with me."
Isagi crushed their lips together roughly and without warning like the familiar feeling of a bolt of lightning. Kaiser flinched, stiff as a log and at a loss of how to play the role assigned to him in this play. But soon enough, guided by his hunger for victory, Kaiser put a hand on Isagi's nape, kissing him back, almost causing Isagi to gasp in surprise.
Isagi's confusion didn't last long, as he moved following his hunger. He slid Kaiser's jacket askew, exposing the skin of his neck and shoulder. Isagi stroked Kaiser's tattoo, moving his hand from the shoulder to the neck. His fingers tentatively touched the blue roses on Kaiser's neck, and his thumb rubbed gentle circles on Kaiser's throat. Kaiser's skin heated up from his neck to the very tips of his ears.
The shamelessness of the act angered Kaiser further, who became more forceful in his advances and slid a hand around Isagi's waist, pulling their bodies closer. Neither relented, and much less allowed a stalemate.
When they separated, it was simultaneous, neither willing to admit they ran out of breath first.
Once again, they fell into silence. The interior of Kaiser's car blocked all external noises, only the sound of their heavy breaths and Kaiser's fingers drumming against the steering wheel resounded in their closed-off world.
"We aren't telling anyone about this," Isagi murmured, looking blankly overhead, like the car ceiling held all the answers to the universe's mysteries.
"Of fucking course we aren't." Kaiser readily agreed, hunched over the steering wheel with the palm of his hand covering his face in embarrassment.
Isagi liked to think he was doing a favor to the world at large; after all, if he was the one dating Kaiser, someone else wouldn't need to suffer the same fate.
It was simple logic, he thought, disentangling himself from Kaiser's arms and rising from their bed with a yawn. He stretched out his arms while Kaiser whined incoherently, trying to drag Isagi back by the hem of his shirt.
Isagi threw a pillow at him in response. "Get up! I still can't believe how damn annoying you are in the mornings."
Kaiser buried his face deeper in the pillow in protest.
Isagi had no time for this. He was already much too used to this same scenario; after all, that had already become his reality every morning since he and Kaiser started going out.
On the day of their first kiss, it had become evident that they had freed a wretched something. A something so wretched, so forbidden that it had been contained for the past five years, imprisoned behind the closed doors of a high security locker and buried ten feet underground. Foolish as they were, they had dared open that door, only for the wretched something Isagi had nurtured since he had first come across the bastard's ugly mug to burst forth, guns blazing, wreaking havoc. No matter how much they struggled, the grim reality was that they had no hopes of locking it back in.
Their blooming romance, if one dared call it that, had been far from any sort of grand event. Isagi recalled as he brushed his teeth, looking at his own weary reflection in the mirror. In fact, if he were to describe it, he'd liken the experience to being trapped inside the devil's time loop: they'd kiss, then argue, then kiss once again. Over and over with no end in sight. Walking a tightrope, the uncertainty of where they stood with each other had begun to wear them down.
The solution: an armistice.
As a result, he spent his days at Kaiser's house more often than not, brushing it off as it's easier to commute from here. Kaiser's own home and bedroom had soon become filled with Isagi's belongings. Kaiser had scoffed at that then, dropping a barbed comment that made Isagi give up pretense: "What? Move in with me already. My two story house in a noble neighborhood, or wherever you have your circus tent installed? It's not a real choice, Yoichi."
Isagi had punched him hard in the gut then, promptly moving the rest of his stuff in.
He spat a mouthful of water in the sink, looking sidelong at Kaiser, who had just now begun his lengthy process of crawling out of bed. Kaiser's morning began with the blaring sound of his phone's alarm, one set for every five minutes, just in case. Without lifting his head from the bed, Kaiser palmed over the bedside table in hopes of turning his phone off, knocking the poor device off the table. Shit, he swore, blinking blearily at his phone on the floor. Isagi shook his head and chuckled, turning on the shower.
After going through the motions of his morning routine, Isagi grabbed a piece of candy before going out, waiting for his rival. Kaiser, now perfectly dressed like a supermodel, strode to his car soon after, surely after spending more than thirty minutes checking himself out in the mirror.
Isagi put the candy inside his mouth, rolling the little gummy bear in his tongue and chewing it with care to savor its sour taste. As Kaiser drove them to their destination, Isagi reminisced about months past, back to the beginning of his and Kaiser's cohabitation. He had been prepared for arguments over every little detail of their daily lives, or for constant jabs at his habits and nitpicking of his lifestyle. Except his fears never materialized. Their fall into routine had been seamless, two cogs in a broken machine that had been struck back into motion.
Walking in tandem with Kaiser's steps was easy. When Isagi was hungry, Kaiser would already be eating, with food on the table awaiting Isagi. If Kaiser felt like watching a movie, Isagi would already have had the same urge beforehand, a bowl of popcorn ready in his hands. He'd lie his head on Kaiser's lap, who would shift to make room, like he had predicted Isagi's movements. If Kaiser needed a hair tie, Isagi would just so happen to have one in hand. They did their laundry at the same time, folded their clothes the same way, and fell asleep at the same hour. All without an exchange of words being needed.
It was nice, even comfortable, dare he say. But even if their synchrony was well welcomed, the rest of Kaiser was not. No matter how much the world turned, Kaiser would still be Kaiser, and Isagi would still be Isagi — meaning arguments and disagreements would always follow.
Your block there was shit, Yoichi.
At least I scored, unlike you.
I'm not watching this shitty movie of yours, change it.
Kaiser! How much time does it take for you to shower! Get out!
Yoichi! Don't leave your trash around inside my car!
So on and so forth.
There was no question that Isagi Yoichi still very much hated Michael Kaiser, and there was no way he would ever let anyone know he was dating that smug piece of shit! If this was a secret he would have to take to the grave, he would gladly jump off the nearest building to keep it.
But at least Isagi had gotten free rides out of it.
"Make sure no one sees you, got it?" Kaiser warned, eyes narrowed in suspicion under the dark lenses of his sunglasses.
Isagi zapped his head left and right before closing the door of Kaiser's car, carefully scanning his surroundings with the same accuracy reserved for the soccer field. "It's fine, no one is around."
Kaiser hummed in approval, commending Isagi for a job well done. "See you in practice, little clown." He reached his hand out of the car window and ruffled Isagi's hair with abandon.
"Don't touch me," Isagi swatted his hand away with a scowl like shooing an especially pesky fly. "Piss off already." He waved Kaiser off, starting his daily walk down the street as Kaiser drove away.
Ever since the beginning of their armistice, it was routine for Kaiser to give Isagi a ride to Bastard München's usual training grounds. It was just logical, after all, and much faster and more comfortable than taking the train. Well, except for the inevitabilities that came hand in hand with their arrangement: it would be suspicious if they arrived together everyday. Isagi would always get off a few streets away from their destination to avoid the prying eyes.
That wasn't a big deal, as he was fond of daily strolls. The time alone and early morning air helped him relax and collect his thoughts in preparation for the day ahead. He hummed his favorite song from a commercial as he marched toward the training grounds with his bag slung over his shoulder, reviewing shots and plays inside his head.
As a result of Isagi and Kaiser's newly unlocked chemical reaction and respective level ups, they had safely managed to get their team out of that funk, raising morale to an all time high since Noa’s retirement. Of course, it wasn't like they cooperated every single game. Their usual dynamic of fighting for the ball and mutually devouring each other remained, but they were more conscious of one another's presence, knowing how to use it to their advantage if need be. These factors reignited Isagi's ambitions anew, feeling more fired up than ever as he got ready for practice, all but shoving his bag inside the locker as he finished changing.
Isagi sat down by the benches at his usual spot, writing down his analysis about practice the day before, occasionally tapping the pen against his mouth. He detailed all of his and his teammates' plays, as well as a rundown of how each could improve and a thorough breakdown of Noa's advice. Isagi did this almost mindlessly, a habit that was already far too ingrained in him before each day of practice. He was often one of the first to arrive, and one of the last to leave.
Today, however, something pricked at the ends of his concentration, and he scarcely could bring himself to string sentences together.
He heaved a sigh. The culprit couldn't have been more obvious.
Ness stood at the other side of the locker room: arms crossed over his chest, staring with enough hostility to make Isagi's head explode if he had psychic powers.
Isagi gladly returned the stare with the same intensity. The two players had fought through their fair share of arguments, as anyone who directly opposed Kaiser for so long was bound to. The problem was that, unlike Kaiser, who harbored unspoken respect for Isagi after he had proven himself as more than a mere rook to be crushed by the king and discarded, Ness had always viewed him as a mere speck of dust snuffing out the glimmer of the gold that paved Kaiser's road to glory.
To be honest, Isagi had no ill feelings towards Ness, but it wasn't like he could do anything about how the midfielder felt. During most days, their interactions were curt and respectful, but enveloped by an undeniable coldness. Isagi couldn't help but feel like there was something he'd done that Ness had never quite forgiven him for, even if he had no idea what it was.
Isagi opened his mouth, intent on addressing the obvious killing intent in the air, but before he had a chance to get a word out Kurona and Yukimiya were already waving at him, making themselves known. He shrugged. I'll deal with that later.
Their coach, a retired Noel Noa, soon arrived, marking the start of practice with the sharp sound of a whistle. All Isagi could do was hope that Ness would leave him be, if only for the sake of soccer.
A fool's wish, Isagi later realized, as Ness did not stop looking like he wanted to spill his blood for one second. He shivered from head to toe, the unrelenting glare piercing holes on the back of his skull as they did their warm-ups. Is no one else noticing this? Just me?!
Isagi was more than adept at handling bloodthirsty lunatics, but even he had a certain limit on how much he could bear. Dammit, I can't concentrate on anything! He tripped and fell to the ground while running laps around the field, much to Raichi's unbridled joy as his laughter echoed across the four winds.
He tried avoiding Ness at all costs, going to the other end of the field, pretending he wasn't there, to no avail. At some point, Isagi had become so desperate the thought of begging Kaiser to do something about it crossed his mind, but the lameness of it all would grind his pride to dust, so he didn't. He accepted the fog in his mind for the day and settled for trying to get a minimal amount of training done. Noa scolded him for his carelessness countless times, and never had he felt so ashamed at letting his idol see such a disastrous performance. Until the situation came to a head:
"Isagi, watch out!" Hiori shouted as loud as he managed from the other end of the field.
Isagi turned in Hiori's direction, but it was in vain.
A stray ball flew towards Isagi at an impressive speed, its shot and trajectory so beautiful it would have awed Isagi at any other occasion, almost as if the ball had been enchanted by the foul spells of a magician.
It hit Isagi squarely in the face.
He staggered back, holding his nose as he groaned in pain.
Damn you Ness, it could only have been you! Was the first thought that crossed Isagi's mind. It sure felt more like he had a bowling ball thrown at his face!
After many gasps of surprise and worry, his teammates soon crowded around him, trying to pin down the culprit like they had been sent to a murder mystery novel. Noa grumbled something about hurting their ace with a championship so close by, all stuff Isagi didn't really hear as he focused on the incessant ringing in his ears and the pain in his nose. Don't tell me it's broken.
Isagi moved his hands away from his face and was startled by the blood that covered them, staining his uniform and dripping down onto the ground. Damn, how did a ball do this much damage? Can I still play with a broken nose? Shit. If I miss out on the next games because of this, I'll —
"Move it," Kaiser's voice cut through the noise in Isagi's mind, as he roughly shoved people out of the way without so much as a look to those he deemed undeserving.
"Hey, you! Don't just shove people!" Igaguri complained, raising his fist in protest.
Kaiser glared in response, and Igaguri promptly ran off.
Amidst the commotion, Kaiser moved with practiced calmness. He stood in front of Isagi, pressing a handkerchief against Isagi's nose. Isagi pulled his head up on instinct to stop more blood from dripping down, but was reprimanded: "Don't look up, it will make it worse." Grabbing Isagi's chin, Kaiser pulled Isagi's head down.
Isagi stared, dazed. Has Kaiser ever been this reliable? Has he handled this kind of thing before?
Isagi's surprise seemed to be shared by the crowd watching them, Noa included. Rows of heads stared in bewilderment, frozen in place like their feet were stuck in mud.
Kaiser clicked his tongue. "Tch. What are you doing standing here like idiots? Shoo," He waved them off. "Make yourselves useful and bring a nurse."
Noa shook his head in disapproval, but left the field, phone in hand. The others scurried away like a little group of mice fleeing from the swish of a broom.
Isagi couldn't help the laugh that escaped his lips. "Who knew you had it in you to worry about someone who isn't yourself?"
"Shut your mouth," Kaiser argued back. "What do you think you're doing? Playing ball at a park with the other kids?"
Isagi flinched as if struck, having no rebuttal to his own incompetence. Still, not responding to Kaiser's insults left a bad taste in his mouth, and he was overcome with the need to get the last word in: "Why don't you mind your business? Running over to me isn't like you at all."
"And let one of the members of your troupe of clowns do it instead of me?" He turned his head to the side with a pout.
Isagi was taken aback, expecting any response except what he had been given. His good for nothing heart skipped a beat, before it was immediately replaced by disgust at his own reaction. What am I, some stupid maiden in love? He slapped his own cheeks. Get a grip!
The act startled Kaiser, whose mood immediately soured. "What do you think you're doing?" He applied a bit more pressure to the handkerchief against Isagi's nose, causing him to wince in pain. "Do you want to miss our next games?"
"Quit it, Kaiser!" He made a move to swat Kaiser's hand away, but was stopped by Kaiser's other hand. Isagi grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest. "The bleeding stopped. You can let go, you know."
Kaiser's nose twitched like a cat's, unsure if Isagi's words were true. Nevertheless, he carefully moved his hand away. Isagi turned to leave, but Kaiser pulled him back by the arm. "Your face looks ridiculous. Let me clean it."
Isagi raised a brow, before his confusion was replaced by a self satisfied smirk. "Oh? Has the emperor gone soft?"
Kaiser clicked his tongue. "Tch. I'll stab you."
Isagi blinked in confusion at the lack of denial. He could hardly believe it. Not even in a billion years he had ever expected to see Kaiser worried about him. Reluctantly, Isagi nodded.
Kaiser wiped the blood off Isagi's face with firm and careful hands, like he had done so a thousand times before. The contrast between this side of Kaiser, who bit his own lip and squinted his eyes in concentration as he tended to Isagi, and the side of Kaiser he was used to was so stark that he didn't know what to do. Unable to take his eyes off of him, Isagi’s heartbeat quickened.
Screw it.
Without ceremony, riding on this high of insanity, Isagi pulled Kaiser down by his shirt and kissed him.
He had no idea what came over him, but all he knew was the taste of Kaiser's mouth mixed with the metallic taste of blood on his tongue.
Kaiser stiffened, but not for long. Led away by the moment, he kissed back, seeming not to mind his own face being dirtied by Isagi's blood.
It was a short kiss, only long enough to last until Isagi regained his senses as reality crashed onto him like a boulder.
Ah. He had just done that, hadn't he.
"What the hell," Isagi blurted out.
"I should be the one saying that," Kaiser cleaned off the blood on his face with his sleeve. "What the hell, Yoichi?"
"I don't know! It was just—" He gestured wildly, not understanding himself. "Like when your body moves on your own to score a super goal or something—"
"That's how amateurs think," Kaiser scoffed, hand on his hip. " Verbalize it."
"You're such an asshole." Isagi spat, but soon shook his head. "No, that's not what's important. Are you sure nobody saw us?"
Kaiser craned his neck to the side to observe his surroundings, as if only now aware of true danger. "I doubt it." He concluded. "They all went to get someone to help you."
Isagi's shoulders relaxed.
As long as they were not spotted, they could deal with the rest later.
The others soon returned after that little incident, bringing with them a lot more fussing over Isagi. The medical staff quickly determined that he was fine and no further care was needed, but he was advised to sit practice out for the day. Isagi only half listened to their diagnosis, deciding to continue practicing as usual. Ness seemed to have given up on terrorizing him after the whole event, which Isagi was more grateful for than any medical care.
Night fell, and his teammates dispersed. Isagi was back in the locker room, towel around his shoulders as he chugged down water like his life depended on it.
Except, right after he had retrieved his bag from the locker, a chill crept up his spine, and he shivered from head to toe.
Ness again?!
He turned around in a daze. Sure enough, his eyes met with Ness's murderous glare he had become so familiar with throughout the day.
"What's with you?" He threatened, his patience wearing thin after the huge amount of bullshit he had just put up with. "Aren't you done staring at me all day like some freak?"
"That's Kaiser's bag." Ness accused, narrowing his eyes in suspicion.
"Kaiser's—" He opened his locker in a panic, and the horrifying sight of Kaiser's bag inside his locker greeted him with mockery. Shit. He blanched, throwing the locker door shut and guarding it with his back. What should he do? Deny everything? Lie? Being caught by Ness was the worst possible scenario already! Ever since his and Kaiser’s armistice, he had been wary enough of Ness to the point he started looking over his shoulder as he walked down the street. "Yeah, I—" he gulped, all anger he once felt disappearing from his body like a wisp of wind. "I grabbed it by mistake yesterday while leaving practice. I'll give it back to him right now."
"That's not possible." Ness crossed his arms. "I saw Kaiser leaving practice yesterday with his bag. There is no way I’d mistake it."
What's with this tone?! This guy was way too creepy!
Cold sweat ran down Isagi's neck. "We left late yesterday, right? It was already dark, so—"
"Yoichi." Ness cut him off, jabbing a finger at Isagi's chest as he looked Isagi right in the eye. "For a long time, you've been acting strange. Strange around Kaiser," Isagi flinched, ready to defend his honor, deny everything, but Ness wouldn't let him get a word in as he continued his accusations, "sneaking around with Kaiser, smiling at Kaiser, smelling like Kaiser's cologne! Don't think that I don't know what you've been doing, Yoichi!"
The jig was up. As if the bag wasn't enough, Isagi was now sure Ness had seen the kiss earlier today. How was he supposed to explain that? Was that why Ness wanted to murder him in cold blood so badly lately?
Regardless, he was not about to let a single soul find out about the fact he was dating Kaiser, of all people.
"Ness, it's not what you think!" He paused. "...Hold on, what's that about cologne?" He questioned, then shook his head once more. There's more important stuff to address! "In any case, whatever you're thinking is wrong! It's just a misunderstanding! There's no way me and Kaiser are—"
"You're stealing Kaiser's things, aren't you?!"
Dating!... Wait. "What?!"
Ness eyed Isagi like he was nothing but a cockroach. "It's clear you're jealous of Kaiser's superior abilities, but to think you'd stoop so low!"
You've gotta be kidding me. "Why in the world would I ever be jealous of that piece of shit?!"
"You—!"
Ness was cut off by a hand on his head.
"Ness," Kaiser said icily, in a tone of warning, as he pushed Ness’ head further down. "Shut up."
"B-But I—" Ness stammered.
"Enough. There's no need to concern yourself with a small fry like little Yoichi. It's below your station." He made sure to give Isagi a condescending smirk to punctuate his remark, that bastard. Isagi rolled his eyes. "Help me with practice, come on." He said as he walked Ness to the field, still with a hand on top of Ness’ head.
"Sir! Yes, sir." Ness promptly complied, starry-eyed like his idol had just sworn his never-ending love for him. I don't act that way around Noa, do I?
As their backs disappeared down the hallway, Isagi could still catch the wink Kaiser sent him over his shoulder.
Isagi heaved a sigh of relief as he exited the locker room. A weight lifted off his shoulders. At least, their secret remained a secret for another day.
"Isagi!"
Isagi whipped his head around so fast it was a miracle his neck didn't snap.
What was it now?!
It was Igaguri, sweating profusely. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!" He bowed all the way to the floor.
Isagi blinked. "Huh?"
"I kicked the ball that hurt you, but I really didn't mean to!" He hit his head on the floor to emphasize his point. "I wanted to apologize when it's only the two of us because the others would've killed me!" He cried and cried.
Isagi was rendered speechless, words unable to convey even a fraction of what he felt at that moment. Well, except for three: fuck. Sorry, Ness. "Don't worry about it. It's fine." He crouched, patting Igaguri's back.
Lik the flip of a switch, Igaguri jumped back to his feet, wiping a bead of sweat off his brow. "You're a saint, Isagi! A saint!" He clapped Isagi's back.
"Haha…"
"But, uh, hey man, I gotta ask…"
"What's up?"
Igaguri pulled Isagi closer, whispering conspiratorially in Isagi's ear. "Is that… Michael Kaiser's bag on your shoulder?"
He punched Igaguri upside the head, knocking him out instantly.
Isagi walked off, with the dearest wish in his heart that Igaguri would wake up with amnesia.
"Really, Yoichi? The movie theater is the best you can do for a date?" Kaiser deadpanned, pulling his face mask over his nose.
Does he do anything but complain? It’s a weekday for fuck's sake! And there’s no big premieres of mainstream movies scheduled to boot! Nowhere in sight were the usual hordes and hordes of people making a line in front of the ticket booths that stretched far longer than a monorail. It was so silent that a single popcorn falling to the floor might have been equivalent to the loud beat of a drum. On top of that, the place was an inconspicuous little theater, making it unlikely that they would be recognized by fans or friends alike. He didn't see what the problem was!
"Better than anything you'd come up with, prince ." Isagi mocked, recalling Kaiser's previous attempts at organizing dates. His flair for the dramatic meant that they had been to many fancy restaurants and hotels, the kind of place that gave opulence its name. It's not like Isagi disliked it, but he certainly wasn't used to it. "Come on, it's dark inside, nobody will even look our way."
Kaiser scoffed, placing a hand on his hip. "What movie do you have in mind? Choose wisely, Yoichi."
"Oh! It's Rin's recommendation. A horror movie that came out somewhat recently." Isagi grinned, brows wriggling like caterpillars in his excitement. He shoved his phone in Kaiser's face. "It's got really good ratings, too. Thought I'd check it out."
Kaiser squinted his eyes at the screen assailing his poor corneas, pulling Isagi's arm down so it wouldn't damage Kaiser's perfect twenty-twenty vision. "The shitty baby Itoshi likes something? How surprising."
Isagi snorted, putting his phone back inside his pocket. "He's not that bad to talk to. We text about movies all the time, and his commentary is always really insightful and interesting to read. Not a lot of people take their time to pick apart movies that way, so it's fun to get a new perspective." Isagi hummed, putting a hand to his chin in thought. "It's a bit like breaking down a match after it’s over, isn't it?"
Kaiser remained unimpressed. "What's so interesting about cheap horror? Nobody past twelve would find any of this trash scary." He waved Isagi off, oddly irritated, then checked his phone screen. "What time is it? Won't you miss your dear little movie? Now, we couldn't possibly have that."
Isagi opened his mouth to retort but closed it half a heartbeat afterward. Isagi eyed Kaiser, confusion clear in his expression. But, Kaiser would not meet his eyes, hurrying him by pressing his palms against Isagi's back, pushing him toward the ticket booth. Isagi shook his head and scrapped the thought, paying for both their tickets. No use overthinking his mood swings.
Then, they headed toward the counter to buy overpriced movie theater food. Mysteriously, one thing led to another and they had spent an embarrassing amount of time arguing over sweet or salty popcorn. The argument had only been quelled thanks to the weary-looking worker's promise of giving them one extra pack of popcorn, which snapped Isagi back to reality and covered him head to toe in embarrassment. He profusely apologized and tipped the employee four times the price of a popcorn pack, while Kaiser snickered like it had nothing to do with him.
As expected, the room remained pleasantly empty as the lights faded and the movie began. Isagi glanced at Kaiser from the corner of his eye, who propped his head on his hand, already looking bored out of his mind as the screen bombarded their senses with billions of trailers for B-grade movies and ads that dearly wished to scam the viewers out of every last penny inside of their pockets.
Isagi shifted in his seat, leg bouncing up and down in quick motions. To tell the truth, watching the movie was not top of the list of Isagi's priorities. It wasn't like he didn't care for the movie, his interest was genuine and he hoped to have a good time, but, most of all…
Isagi really just wanted an excuse to snuggle up to Kaiser and kiss him.
It was so cliche and corny that it made Isagi want to throw up in his mouth but, hell, he had no dating experience! Following his ascension to stardom as a professional soccer player after Blue Lock, he devoted his body and soul to soccer and only soccer. There was no room in his heart for anything else! At school, he had never gotten any chocolates for Valentine's, much less love confessions from anybody! Nail him to the wall as punishment, but there were events in life that even Isagi wanted to experience.
The movie had long since begun, but he had barely paid any attention. Screw analyzing the movie with Rin, he'd have to look up the protagonist's name on Google, too enraptured he was by Kaiser's hand over the armrest. Isagi glanced at it, over and over, then promptly chickened out. Over and over. That stupid, flashy crown tattoo was mocking him. It was so gaudy he could puke. There was no saving Kaiser, was there? It doesn't even look good!
One of the female characters on screen screamed madly and cried as the guy with an axe sliced another girl's head clean off and blood splattered around, but Isagi could hardly bring himself to squeeze a drop of sympathy out of his heart. Isn't my situation worse?! He despaired, I'm dating Kaiser out of all people, and I can't even hold that piece of shit's hand!
The axe murderer stood there, staring fixedly at the miserable girl left behind, then drew a line with his thumb across his neck.
The girl gulped.
How is that supposed to be scary?! Isagi cursed, sinking further in his chair. He didn't know if he was simply throwing his frustrations at this movie, or if Rin just liked bad axe murderer horror.
He looked at Kaiser once more, who had long since finished his popcorn, and now looked boredly at the screen while hiding a yawn behind his hand. It's ridiculous, he thought, Isagi had kissed Kaiser first that night, and it's not like they didn't regularly make out or have sex. Far from that. But, a success was worthless if not reproducible. What was it? He racked his brain for an answer, trying to put together the pieces of knowledge acquired throughout the length of their relationship for the sake of arriving at a conclusion that would explain the occurrences where Isagi had been able to fearlessly initiate contact. Following that logic, Isagi would then be equipped with the skills necessary to replicate—
It was then that it happened, like the vines of a rose enveloping the puzzle pieces with its thorns and forcing Isagi's reasoning to a halt. From the corner of his eye, Isagi had barely managed to catch it, a smile that crinkled Kaiser's eyes and the light sound of a chuckle. Isagi didn't have the faintest idea if the movie was good or not, but what he knew was that something in it had made Kaiser laugh. Isagi's eyes lit up, not used to seeing anything other than condescending grins and smirks on Kaiser's face.
Just like that, guided by the same principle that had triggered a trance on the night when he had kissed Kaiser, Isagi took his lips with his own once more.
Much like before, Kaiser was startled but soon reciprocated with the same fervor, and the movie was rightfully forgotten. After they separated, Isagi's hand was now intertwined with Kaiser's, thumb brushing over the obnoxious crown tattoo. He rested his head on Kaiser's shoulder, who placed a hand on Isagi's waist in an act laced with undeniable tenderness.
"I was trying to see how long it took you to do it." Kaiser mocked.
"What?"
"Hey now, little Yoichi," He poked Isagi's forehead. "We both know you aren't subtle. You've been looking at me the entire movie. All that squirming was quite pathetic to see."
"Shut up." He spat, face reddening at incredible speeds. "You're the one clinging to me all day like some obsessed girlfriend. Don't act like you're not happy."
"Oh, I am," He gestured with his free hand, then placed it over his heart. "It's beyond romantic to get a reminder of how pathetic my Yoichi is. Instead of a clown, maybe you would do well as the damsel in distress on my stage."
Isagi elbowed Kaiser in the stomach, who only laughed.
"You talk like you've kissed people countless times before."
"Of course," Kaiser said, matter of factly. "I have lots of experience."
Isagi couldn't help the snort. "You damn liar."
Kaiser's eyes narrowed. "And what would you know about it?"
"Two reasons. One," Isagi raised a finger. "There's no way you would ever be interested in something other than soccer." Kaiser had nothing to say to that. Isagi continued, raising a second finger. "Two. You had no idea what you were doing when we kissed for the first time."
Attention now fully captured, Kaiser turned to Isagi, affronted. " I didn't know what I was doing? Yoichi…" He glared. "You were much worse than me."
"No way." He protested. "A person with lots of experience would never be as bad at kissing as you."
A vein throbbed on Kaiser's forehead. "What a conceited clown." He roughly pulled Isagi's face closer. "Let's compete then. Show me all those prodigal skills of yours."
Isagi took the challenge head-on.
As the movie flashed in front of them, with the majority of the cast getting sliced to death or chopped into pieces, the screams became nothing but background noise for the pair. Isagi and Kaiser continued sharing kisses like a secret hidden away in the darkness of the theater.
They left the room in high spirits while the credits rolled, holding hands like they were any other couple. It was nice, and sort of made Isagi happy, he thought, as he hummed the jingle of his favorite commercial. As much as he'd rather die than call Kaiser his boyfriend in front of anybody because Kaiser was a piece of shit, he sometimes wished he could go out and do mundane couple things without the worry of getting caught. In that sense, today was a complete vic—
Bachira?!
"Kaiser! Quick, get behind that plant!" He hurriedly shoved Kaiser, hard, who looked at Isagi like he had gone nuts.
"What?" He glared at Isagi. "Since when do you think you can tell me what to do?"
"Just shut up!" He pointed in Bachira's direction.
Kaiser's eyes widened in horror. "Fuck," his nose scrunched up like an enraged cat's, "Your friends are worse than cockroaches having been around you for so long. Don't they ever die?"
"Why would they?!"
Kaiser shrugged, letting his silence do the speaking.
"Piss off already!" Isagi commanded, not wanting to have this conversation at such a critical moment.
Kaiser jumped behind the potted plant nearby.
Isagi strode down the hallway, slurping his soda like he didn't have a care in the world.
Naturally, it didn't take long for Bachira to catch sight of him. "Whoa! Isagi!"
"Hey, it's nice to see you, Bachira!" He feigned ignorance to the best of his acting abilities. Suffice it to say, he could not act. "What are you doing here?! I thought you were in Spain!" He held his hand up for Bachira to shake.
Shivers went up his spine as he sensed the weight of judgment in Kaiser's stare towards his back.
On the other hand, Bachira remained as chipper as he had always been.
"I guess I felt like coming!" Bachira karate chopped Isagi's head instead of a handshake, then burst into laughter.
"Ow! Will you stop doing that?!" Isagi complained, rubbing the spot Bachira hit. "I'm glad to see you're doing well, though." He playfully elbowed Bachira's sides as he chuckled.
"'Course!" He fleshed a toothy grin, giving Isagi a sly look. "Now that I'm here, how about a match? I'm all fired up to see how much you've improved since last time, egoist." He elbowed Isagi back.
Isagi smiled from ear to ear, having forgotten the predicament he was in. "I should be the one saying that. Playing without you isn't the same, Bachira. I miss you by my side the most. And you've gotta show me that crazy dribbling you pulled off against Ubers—"
Something hit the back of Isagi's head. He looked over his shoulder, finding a crumpled popcorn pack on the floor. "Wha—"
He stopped in his tracks when he caught sight of the potted plant Kaiser was crouched down behind and cringed.
"Actually… I'm sorry, I'm a bit busy today." Isagi grimaced. "I need to get going right about now."
"Aw, that's okay." Bachira slapped Isagi's back so hard he almost spilled his soda on the floor. "I'll be around a while, just let me know and I'll be right there!"
"Bachira, you're the best."
"Bye-bye, Isagi!" He smiled as he waved him off. Isagi could feel relief flooding all over him as he walked out of the theater, a renewed spring in his step. Regardless of Kaiser's impending wrath, the coast was clear.
Until Bachira turned around, putting a hand on Isagi's shoulder. "Whoa!" He blurted out, stupidly.
"Wait, lemme ask you something," Bachira murmured as if sharing classified information, looking suspiciously at Isagi. "Is that… Michael Kaiser behind that plant?"
"H-Huh?" Isagi's voice went a pitch higher. "Oh yeah, now that you mention it, that might be him." He feigned ignorance, scratching his chin. "How weird."
Bachira nodded enthusiastically. "Right?" He agreed, keeping his voice down. "Does he still act all weird about you?"
"What?" Isagi tilted his head in confusion.
"You know, back in Blue Lock. When you two were trying to kill each other." He whispered in Isagi's ear, putting his palm behind it as if to shield the noise. "Is he still like that?"
"Huh?" He blinked, a lightbulb going off in his head as an excuse for why Kaiser had been there. "O-Oh, yeah! Now that you've said it… He's all strange about it." He shoved a hand in his pocket as he slurped his soda, faking nonchalance. "Could never get over losing to me, that shithead."
Bachira whistled. "Ahahaha, wow, Isagi!" He slapped Isagi's back again, and Isagi almost spilled both the soda and his insides. "What a striker!"
Isagi laughed along, not quite getting it, as he bid Bachira goodbye. This time, he waited until his friend had fully entered one of the rooms, and was nowhere in sight.
Isagi spun around, glancing desperately in the plant's direction.
Kaiser stood there, staring fixedly at him, then drew a line with his thumb across his neck.
Isagi gulped.
The days that followed were chaotic, to say the least.
Isagi had been prepared to face all kinds of insults, ranging from offenses directed at his soccer skills to his very existence. That was nothing he wasn't used to, he dished back every insult since he was seventeen, after all.
But not even the most skilled of Metavision users could have anticipated what later transpired.
That night, without so much as a glance his way, Kaiser had promptly turned his back to Isagi and slept.
Isagi was struck dumb.
Even though he sticks to me like a damn leech every night!
It was better when he tried to strangle me to death, Isagi despaired as he stared fixedly at the ceiling. He tossed and turned on his bed all night, not catching a wink of sleep until the sun rose. The only thing worse than being pestered by Kaiser was being ignored by Kaiser; like his efforts all those years ago to make Kaiser look at him as a rival in the same wavelength had been ground to dust.
It was ridiculous.
Isagi closed his eyes. Hopefully, Kaiser would wake up in a better mood.
And yet the horrors persisted, as he woke up to a Kaiser who robotically got up from bed on time, and looked prim and proper at seven in the morning.
Isagi despaired once more. What should he do? It's not like he could ask someone for advice without being bombarded by thousands of questions and raising suspicion. That's the last thing he wanted. If Kaiser was already that mad over an interrupted date, there was no telling what he would do if he were to wake up to news of their relationship plastered across every social media platform. Or, worse, if Kaiser woke up to text messages from Isagi's friends.
In light of the imminent tragedy before him, Isagi, in an act perhaps driven by madness, perhaps driven by desperation, called the only person he could think of that could not possibly care less about whatever occurred in his life.
He called Rin.
"What do you want?"
"Rin, what's a good way to make amends with someone mad at you?"
"Kill yourself."
Rin hung up.
Isagi steepled his fingers beneath his chin, leaving his thoughts to simmer inside his brain. Should I kill myself? He walked in circles, over and over and over around their bedroom, for so long that it would not be surprising if his constant pacing around ended up carving a hole in the shape of a circumference on the floor.
It was then that a moment of clarity struck him; there was truth to Rin's advice, he realized. He should kill himself!
If Isagi wanted to make amends with someone as shitty and unreasonably selfish as Kaiser, he would need to kill the current version of himself! He would create a new Isagi Yoichi, one who wasn't afraid to do things he never would've thought of doing.
With his shoulders squared and head held high, he fearlessly booked a trip to a luxurious hotel Kaiser had blabbered about and showed the reservations to Kaiser. The moment of his rebirth had arrived.
Kaiser had blinked, confused, before sighing and running a hand through his bangs.
"I'll fucking skin you alive if you make me hide behind a damn plant again."
And to the hotel, they went.
As expected of Kaiser's tastes, the place ended up being just as gaudy as in the pictures he'd seen. It was true that Isagi was a soccer player of great renown, boasting a salary so high he could buy a hotel if he so wished, but he still hardly felt like someone famous; and he doubted he'd ever get used to being surrounded by decorations that looked more expensive than the total sum of his parents' home and all their belongings, much less while surrounded by waiters and hotel staff of all sorts, trying to serve him as if he was a king. Well, the reality was that this king of theirs could hardly step on the fancy looking carpet without feeling bad.
Kaiser, on the other hand, relished on the attention, ordering people around like he had been born inside a cradle of gold. Isagi's stomach churned as they deposited their bags inside the hotel room and headed to the pool area. Despite this particular hotel being known for their secrecy towards celebrities, allowing them privacy from the all seeing eyes of the tabloids, Isagi couldn't shake the feeling that they would be caught.
He could already visualize the horrible headlines the gossip sites would churn out:
Breaking! Soccer stars Isagi Yoichi and Michael Kaiser spotted having a secret meeting! Are the rising soccer stars having an affair?!
Ten pictures to prove Kaisagi was real all along
Heartbreaking: What Isagi Yoichi and Michael Kaiser’s relationship can tells us about abuse
Kaisagi dominates social media: “They were too odd to not be fucking,” anonymous member of Germany’s top team reports
Guh, I might come down with something. He tried to relax, lying down on one of the outdoor chairs next to the pool as he withered away like he was hospitalized. A cool glass of water might help.
"Here, Yoichi." As if summoned, Kaiser spawned out of thin air, a glass of water in hand and a bottle of wine in the other.
"Ah," He took the cup from Kaiser's hand. "Thanks."
"Yeah, yeah." He dismissed him, sitting down on the outdoor chair next to Isagi's, crossing one leg over the other as he put on his pair of sunglasses. Isagi's eyes trailed over Kaiser's exposed chest, the flashiness of his tattoo making heads turn as people walked by. This damn show off. Has he ever heard of keeping a low profile? Isagi pouted, forcing huge gulps of water down his throat with abandon.
"You would think that my boyfriend would be happier to spend time with me." Kaiser lamented, putting the back of his hand over his forehead in a mock show of misery.
"Yeah, yeah." Isagi waved him off, parroting Kaiser's words. "I'm so happy I'm about to die from how much I love my moody shitty boyfriend." He deadpanned.
"Tch," His nose twitched like a cat's. "Now it's my fault? I had to wait for you to finish singing praises to that friend of yours. The nonstop buzzing of that little fly was so irritating I regretted not bringing insecticide with me."
"Quit being rude, he's my best friend," Isagi spoke as he rummaged through his bag next to the chair, grabbing a bottle of sunscreen. "You know, we've been dating for a while now, isn't it about time you learned my friends' names?"
Kaiser scoffed, the rim of his glass pressed against his lips. "You have too many friends. And they're all fucking annoying."
"At least I have friends," Isagi countered, applying the lotion over his shoulders. "Unlike you and that dog of yours who's always at your beck and call."
"Don't be rude to Ness." His lips curled into a grin. "He's such a dutiful, loyal dog."
"Now who's being rude to who?!" Isagi squeezed the bottle of sunscreen with so much force that a chunk of it flew off.
Kaiser laughed, twirling the wine inside of the glass. "Ness would happily spin around and bark for me if I ordered him to. Is that not what a dog would do?"
"You're the worst, but I have no argument against that." Isagi heaved a sigh, sagging his shoulders, then carefully applied the lotion on his face in tiny amounts. Despite what Kaiser says, it's obvious he quite cares for Ness. He dotted his nose white with the lotion. Isagi had been confused by Kaiser and Ness's unique relationship for a long time, and he had often wondered why Ness didn't just ditch someone who treated him so badly. But, with time, he had begun to notice the little details, like lending Ness a shoulder when the other got hurt, or the fact that he didn't really seem to talk to anybody else most of the time. I'm glad he has a friend in Ness, at least, Isagi smiled at the thought.
Kaiser eyed Isagi's movements, then spoke, lowering his sunglasses to the tip of his nose: "Is drowning in sunscreen the latest strategy Mr. Ace of Blue Lock came up with to win against me?"
Isagi turned toward Kaiser, rolling the bottle around in his hands. "My mom would always apply this amount, so I grew used to it." He smiled. "Thanks to her, I never had burns or anything."
Kaiser hummed, tapping his chin with his index finger twice. "If it came from Iyo, then I won't dare doubt her knowledge."
Shivers ran down his spine. "Could you stop calling my mom by her first name?! It's weird as hell!"
Kaiser looked satisfied, serving himself more wine until the liquid filled half of the cup. "Whyt? She doesn't mind. Your parents love me."
"I know! That's why it's so terrible!" Isagi groaned, hitting his forehead with the sunscreen bottle in defeat. "Why did you have to put on that embarrassing gentleman act when you visited?! Now when I try warning them about how big of a piece of shit you are they never believe me!"
"I'm a gentleman to those worthy of it." He sipped his wine, pleased. "Iyo and I always exchange cooking recipes via text. She's a wonderful person, I wonder what went so wrong when raising you."
"I don't want to hear that from you…" Isagi pouted. "Enough about my mom. Come here." He beckoned Kaiser closer.
"What?" He raised a brow, eyeing Isagi from head to toe.
"Don't look at me like that, I'm not gonna hit your head with a bat." He turned the end of the bottle of sunscreen to Kaiser. "Let me put some on your face. I can tell you didn't, because you end up getting some in your eye every time and whining about it for hours."
"Tch," Kaiser slammed his glass against the table; a wonder the thing didn’t shatter to smithereens. Then, he sat next to Isagi on the long outdoor chair. "Don't mess it up, shitty clown."
"Yeah, whatever you say, shitty director." He rolled his eyes, smearing some of the lotion on his palm.
Kaiser sat across him with his eyes squeezed tightly shut as if in anticipation for the worst. Isagi suppressed a laugh. It still amused him how bad at taking care of himself Kaiser could be, despite the high and mighty way he carried himself. Ness must have had his work cut out for him.
Isagi started spreading the sunscreen on Kaiser's cheeks, marveling at how warm and smooth his skin felt under his fingers. Isagi couldn't help the feeling of magic that enveloped him, like he had accomplished the impossible. How was this type of closeness now normal for them after a lifetime of arguments? Kaiser creased his brows, and Isagi's heart skipped a beat.
His hand stopped, and he could do nothing but dumbly stare at Kaiser's face and blush like a schoolboy with his first crush. Isagi took in the image in front of him, of the pretty long lashes and perfect shape of his nose, of the way golden locks fell over his face. Isagi leaned closer, and closer still, until their noses touched.
"Yoichi?" Kaiser asked, lips curling into a grin at the contact. "In a trance now, are we?"
Isagi's body froze, and a lightbulb went off in Isagi's head.
A trance!
This was a repeat of the moments he kissed Kaiser in his car, that time during practice, and that other time he kissed Kaiser in the movie theater! He felt no embarrassment at the teasing and was ready to kiss Kaiser at any moment now. Whatever he was feeling at this moment to trigger this reaction in Isagi was crucial to figuring out one part of the formula that would turn kissing Kaiser into a reproducible act, instead of a spur-of-the-moment urge!
"Hold on," He let go of Kaiser at once, weaving his fingers together under his chin.
Kaiser's eyes snapped open. "What?"
What did these three scenarios have in common? He creased his brows, deep in thought. Was it the sense of privacy? A romantic atmosphere? Brief insanity? No, he shook his head. Working up the nerves to kiss Kaiser was linked to entering a trance. In other words, successfully being able to trigger a state of continued flow and awakening every last drop of courage in his body. To reliably trigger such a state, the most important component was surely…
"That's it, the missing piece!" He grabbed Kaiser by his shoulders, shaking him and smiling like a man gone mad. "It's when you look so good my head goes blank!"
He had figured out the formula: Kaiser's good looks x emptying his head = kissing Kaiser!
"What the hell are you talking about?" His voice trembled as Isagi continued to shake him by the shoulders. He grabbed Isagi's head, stopping him. "I can't take your fucking blabbering anymore."
Kaiser kissed him. Ah, I blew it. Regardless, Isagi was eager to reciprocate, wrapping his arms around Kaiser's neck, deepening the kiss.
"Ugh, awful." Isagi complained, scowling in distaste. "Tastes too much like that shitty wine of yours."
"Are you a child?" Kaiser rolled his eyes, turning around and reaching for his bag. "I bought you sweets, since I knew you'd complain."
Isagi received the sweets with a grin. "You've been nicer today than all the years I've known you, emperor."
Kaiser waved him off, returning to his own chair and bitter wine. "Don't get used to it."
They refraining from further kissing afterwards, out of fear of overdoing it and word getting out from some of the staff or guests, despite the privacy the place provided.
Isagi felt the paranoia creeping on his neck as he ate his sweets. He darted his head around, looking for anyone that could be trouble.
And he could not believe what he saw.
In a mad haze, he upended his bag, letting all his belongings fall to the floor. And stuck Kaiser's head inside the bag.
Huh?! Kaiser yelped, voice muffled by the bag devouring his head. You're fucking insane, Yoichi.
"It's Aiku and Barou! They're right there!"
Kaiser spat out a string of very colorful words.
Isagi threw a towel over Kaiser's chest. "And cover your shitty tattoo or we're dead!"
You love my tattoo, he mumbled, and Isagi could hear the pout in his voice as Kaiser crossed his arms in displeasure.
Isagi braced himself.
"Hey, Isagi. Nice seeing you around."
"Isagi, huh?"
Aiku and Barou made themselves at home as soon as they caught sight of him. Aiku waved at him in greeting, while Barou simply remained with his constant frown.
"Hey, it's been a while!" Isagi greeted them in good cheer next to Kaiser, who had his head stuck inside the bag and a towel covering his chest and arms. Isagi shivered to think of how angry he'd be tonight, but well, what were they supposed to do? "Weird seeing you guys here in Germany. Taking a break from practice?" He desperately hoped nobody would question a thing.
Aiku was eager to start conversation. "Yeah, pretty much. Snuffy let me off the rook for a while and I ended up running into Barou. Thought we'd…" his eyes slowly slid from Isagi to the peculiar figure seated on the chair next to him as his voice trailed off. "...Friend of yours?"
Hope was such a feeble, miserable thing. Isagi forced back a sigh. "Oh, him? He's… Umm… Well…" He scratched the back of his neck as he strained a smile. A realization struck him, and he pointed a finger up to ready his explanation. "He's my cousin!"
Kaiser kicked him in the shins, just because he could.
"Ouch!" He glared daggers at Kaiser. "He's uh, a bit shy, you see… But don't mind him. He'll speak if he wants to join in."
Aiku and Barou exchanged glances.
"You're always surrounded by fucking weirdos." Barou accused, unaware of the fact he was one of the weirdos.
"It's nothing we aren't used to." Aiku grinned. "We survived Blue Lock, after all." He sat down on a nearby chair, like he had already been invited. "How about we catch up over some drinks? Like an alumni reunion. Your cousin wouldn't mind, right?"
My cousin is probably running simulations in his head of me dying in many different and creative ways right now. "Of course not." He lied. "It's nice to see you too, Aiku, Barou." He smiled. And Isagi meant that, really, it's just that the timing was a little…
"Speak for yourself. You damn peasants are ruining my vacation." Despite that, Barou followed suit, but just as he was about to sit down on the chair next to the group, his nose wrinkled in distaste. "A place this expensive and they can't even clean?" He grumbled, dragging another chair to sit on.
"Maid Barou going strong as ever, I see!" Isagi chimed in.
"I ran into him in the hallway my room is at. He had a broom in one hand and a basket of cleaning products in the other. I thought he was one of the cleaning ladies at first." Aiku rolled his head back, laughing.
"I wasn't going to sleep in that fucking pigsty of a room!"
Isagi laughed along, but felt compelled to warn him: "Don't give the cleaning staff a hard time. They're probably overworked as it is."
Barou turned his chin up in mockery, turning his head to the other side in petulance. Isagi merely sighed. The king was still very much the king.
They conversed about various topics then, but still mostly about soccer. Things like how they had been doing in their teams, or their performances in the Champions some months back. Isagi gushed over his friends' growth, and even managed to get some unwilling compliments out of Barou's mouth, to which Isagi and Aiku responded by exploding into laughter.
Kaiser tossed and turned in his chair, the irritation radiating off of him unnoticed by everyone, including Isagi.
Kaiser groaned in frustration, deciding a change of plans was in order, as he needed another method of trying to fish for attention.
Isagi patted Barou's shoulder. "He has a soft heart, deep down, huh?" He snickered.
"Shut up, you peasant!" Barou shouted, but it had the effect of a small dog barking to be threatening.
Thump.
Kaiser dropped the bottle of sunscreen off the table.
No response.
Aiku slung an arm around Barou's shoulders. "He's really fond of you, Isagi." Aiku grinned. "He's always the most pumped up about facing off against you in matches."
Thump.
Kaiser dropped Isagi's wallet off the table.
No response.
"No way in hell I'm fond of that loser!" Barou slammed his cup against the table.
"You're an important rival to me too, king," Isagi smirked, challenging. "Even if you'll never win against me."
Thump.
Kaiser dropped Isagi's sunglasses off the table.
No response.
"Remember during the Neo Egoist League? When he dyed red highlights on his hair to go against you, Isagi?" Aiku added. "What was up with that? He must really have wanted your eyes on him."
Thump.
Kaiser dropped the box of sweets off the table.
No response.
Kaiser groaned.
"I already said it ain't like that!" Barou roared in fury, raising his fist in the air in protest.
"Hahaha, he looked so lame!" Isagi laughed along, fondly recalling their times in Blue Lock, despite the absurdity of the whole program.
"Right?" Aiku nodded. "But if you ask me… If he wanted your attention so badly, shouldn't he have dyed it blue instead?" Aiku narrowed his eyes, a mocking smirk on his lips. "You like that more, right, Isagi?"
Isagi had never blushed so hard and so fast. "W-What?! Don't say weird things!" He looked to the side, embarrassed.
Aiku burst into laughter, and even Barou allowed himself a few chuckles at Isagi's expense. That damn fake rage king, at least keep your character consistent!
Thump!
Kaiser dropped off the chair, the words striking his heart deep and killing him one blow. He bumped his elbow against the table — an accident, he'd claim — causing the bottle of wine to spill all over his lap.
The three almost jumped out of their chairs, turning their heads simultaneously towards Isagi's "cousin".
They stared in silence as Kaiser scrambled up the chair once more like nothing happened.
"Is he… okay?" Aiku looked at the figure covered in wine.
"A heart attack?" Barou asked.
Aiku rubbed his chin, deep in thought. “Strange things have been happening lately. Igaguri told me something weird happened to him the other day, like there was a blank spot in his memory…”
Isagi slapped a hand to his face, before turning to Kaiser. "Can't you accept not being the center of attention for one minute?!" Isagi angrily whispered, taking the soaked towel off Kaiser's chest.
Kaiser mumbled something incoherent, as his voice was still muffled by the bag.
The moment the towel left Kaiser's chest, a second round of surprise came about.
And a second round of staring in silence.
Realizing what he had done, Isagi cursed under his breath: shit, the tattoo! Then quickly threw another towel in Kaiser's direction.
"Don't mind him." Isagi tried to quell the flabbergasted stares, to no avail.
Aiku and Barou both pulled closer to Isagi. Aiku whispered in Isagi's ear, his palm behind it as if to shield others from hearing their conversation. "Is that… Michael Kaiser's tattoo on your cousin?"
Isagi hoped to take a Kaiser Impact to the back of his head and die of a concussion. "...He's a big fan." Not even he would believe himself.
Aiku and Barou exchanged glances.
"Huh. Okay." Aiku shrugged. "Must suck to have a cousin be a fan of your rival."
Isagi nodded weakly.
Barou scoffed. "I'll never understand the appeal of such a tacky tattoo."
Kaiser almost jumped out of the chair to rip the spiky red gorilla a new one, but Isagi stretched his arm in front of Kaiser's chest, holding him back.
"How about we talk about something else?"
And so they did, their attention once more shifting to soccer and their respective new weapons and old teams.
Suddenly, Isagi and Kaiser simultaneously looked up: "It seems like it will rain soon." Isagi said, he and Kaiser moved like reflections in a mirror. "We should head back to our room." He told Kaiser. "What about you guys?"
Barou raised a brow. "The sun is out. What are you even talking about?"
"Yeah, I don't see any signs of rain." Aiku looked up. "It's sunny and all. Guess I'll stay."
It looks like a storm, Kaiser mumbled, only for Isagi to hear.
Isagi nodded, and they set off.
The walk back to their rooms was dreadful in its silence. Well, silence, if not for the thunderous sound of the storm that had begun minutes after they had left the pool area. Even after they had already lost sight of Aiku and Barou, Kaiser still refused to speak a word. Isagi swallowed dry. Would the entire purpose of this trip be negated just like that?
It was with a heavy heart that he went to the bathroom to shower and change into his nightclothes. It's not like I could've known they decided to travel to Germany! He shouted in his head as he pouted, lying down on bed already expecting the rejection to come.
Kaiser exited the shower, towel around his shoulders. He hung the towel out to dry, and hopped into bed.
Isagi held his breath in anticipation.
Silence, until Kaiser finally heaved a sigh and slung his shoulders in defeat, wrapping his arms tightly around Isagi's torso.
"I still hate your shitty friends but," He hugged him tighter. "I'm not mad anymore. Just quiet down and sleep."
A weight was lifted off Isagi's shoulders. He patted the back of Kaiser's head. "I'll make it up to you." He promised.
"Yeah, yeah."
They slept soundly and happily that night despite the roars of the storm outside.
"This way, sir."
Isagi almost jumped out of his own skin by the voice of the waiter signaling the way to their table. His face reddened in embarrassment as he thanked the waiter with a nod. Kaiser snickered like the bastard he was, putting a hand over Isagi's shoulder, the other inside the pocket of his dress pants.
I'll never get used to places like this, Isagi lamented. After the hotel fiasco, Isagi had let Kaiser be the one in charge of the planning for their next date. Of course, in true Kaiser fashion, he picked a five star restaurant renowned across the country. Isagi had immediately made a face at that, but he really did want to indulge Kaiser. Besides, he wouldn't turn down good food.
The waiter led them to a table that was placed in a more secluded location in the restaurant, boasting a magnificent view from the veranda. Isagi's eyes sparkled as he took in the rose garden below, but Kaiser's gaze never left Isagi himself.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" Kaiser said with a grin that was too self satisfied for Isagi's liking.
Isagi scratched his cheek, bashful. "I guess going to this kind of place once in a while isn't so bad."
"You can thank me later, little Yoichi." He held his wine glass up. "A toast, to none of your shitty followers interrupting us today."
Isagi rolled his eyes, but clinked their cups together regardless. "I know you hate getting interrupted all the time, but your hatred for my friends still seems a bit excessive to me."
"Do I need a reason to hate someone?" Kaiser retorted.
Isagi sipped his water, chuckling. "Good point."
They looked through the menu and discussed the several options then, each new price listed horrifying Isagi more than the last. He was born and raised in an average family, after all, he couldn't help his roots. He settled for ordering the cheapest dish he could spot.
Kaiser raised a brow at that. "Why not look some more?"
"No need." Isagi dismissed him. "Everything in this place looks as if it's stuffed with diamonds. It's bound to taste good anyway, right?"
Kaiser clicked his tongue. "Tch, cheapskate Yoichi."
Isagi shrugged. To tell the truth, there was no dish he loved more than his mom's homemade Kintsuba, which he missed dearly. Eight months had passed since the last time Isagi had been allowed to travel back to Japan to see his parents, and the homesickness was starting to show. Last time he went, he had brought Kaiser along, as his parents were the only people he couldn't bear to keep such a big secret from, and they had all eaten his mom's meals together. Just remembering it brought a melancholic smile to Isagi's face.
Their dishes soon arrived, and they ate as they chatted in relative peace, as much as the two of them could manage. Hope brimmed in his heart that this might be their first date that would work out—
Nagi and Reo?!
"Kaiser!" He whispered, ducking his head just in case.
"Hm? What?" Kaiser asked nonchalantly in between chewing his food until he put the pieces together on what Isagi's expression meant. His expression soon morphed into one of horror and raw anger. He dropped the knife and fork from his hands, head zapping left and right to locate the intruders. He groaned. "You've gotta be fucking kidding me. I thought the toddling little chick didn't even get out of the house, why is he here?!"
"Hell if I know!" Isagi responded, evicting Kaiser from the table. "Go hide somewhere! Or leave! I don't know!"
Kaiser scrambled to the bathroom, making sure to stay out of sight. Isagi buried his face between his hands and groaned.
"Ah, it's Isagi," Nagi told Reo, glancing lazily towards Isagi's direction.
"Oh, you're right." Reo smiled, waving at Isagi.
"Hey…" Isagi gestured weakly, not knowing how much more of this he had in him. "What brings you guys here? Ah, but this must be the kind of place you usually go to, huh, Reo?"
As was the norm with his friends from Blue Lock, for some reason, the pair felt free to make themselves comfortable, occupying the two extra chairs in Isagi's table. "My father wanted to have dinner with me, so I brought Nagi. We left early, though."
"Huh? Why?" Isagi asked.
Reo flashed a bright smile at that, as joyous as a kid who had gotten away with eating cookies before dinner. "He hated Nagi so much that we got kicked out." He ruffled Nagi's hair affectionately.
Nagi yawned, pulling his phone out of his pocket. "I dunno what I did, but Reo's happy."
"And that's more than enough!" He slung an arm over Nagi's shoulder as Nagi played games on his phone.
"What about you, Isagi?" Nagi asked.
"Yeah!" Reo completed. "There's another plate here, you here with someone?"
Isagi tensed up. Think, think. "Umm, not really. I was just really hungry!"
Reo glanced at the glass of wine. "I thought you didn't drink?"
He absolutely didn't. "I've been trying new things out lately." Isagi declared, gulping the wine down like his faked enthusiasm could overshadow his face wrinkling like wet paper. Why does Kaiser like this crap so much! It wasn't like Isagi disliked bitter flavors, far from that, he was often a fan. But the types of wine Kaiser liked simply irked him to no end.
"I see." Reo nodded, taking a look at the bottle with experienced eyes. "That's a good wine, you have great taste."
Isagi attempted to hide the betrayal from his face.
"Reo, I'm hungry…" Nagi whined, slouched over the table.
Reo patted his head. "Is it okay if we join you? We didn't get to eat before the whole deal with my father."
"Sure." He relented, and once more Isagi marveled at how atrocious his luck was as he drank more of the wine like his will had been crushed. He stared bitterly at the rim of the cup that Kaiser had also drank from. Guess that's all the kissing me and Kaiser will do tonight. He had finally cracked the formula, too!
"Ah." Nagi blurted out. "Coming towards us, is that…"
Reo's eyes went as wide as saucers. "...Michael Kaiser?"
Isagi whipped around to look. I knew he'd be back somehow, but he better have a good excuse for this.
Kaiser placed a hand on Isagi's shoulder, tilting his head in an expression of innocent confusion. "Fancy seeing you here, Yoichi."
"I could tell you the same." Isagi groaned.
"Mind if I join this friendly gathering of yours?" He smiled sweetly. "We're teammates, after all."
Isagi gave him a thumbs up as he downed the wine all in one go. Kaiser reclaimed his previous seat and resumed eating his food like nothing happened.
Reo looked between Isagi and Kaiser several times, opening his mouth to ask, but ultimately opted against it. Nagi couldn't care less, riffling through the menu with a blank stare.
Maybe due to the alcohol in his veins, Isagi hurried to start a conversation to put an end to the awkward silence that had settled between them. The topic he chose, of course, was soccer.
Isagi and Reo chatted animatedly as Nagi waited for his food as he continued his playing session. Miraculously, Kaiser stayed silent, picking at his food with a fork. It was so odd Isagi thought about asking if he was okay, but decided against it.
"Great game against PXG the other day, Reo. You're improving at a terrifying pace."
Reo gave Isagi a lopsided smile. "That almost sounds like mockery coming from you, Mr. Ace of the Champions League."
Kaiser scoffed.
"No way! You and Nagi are incredible! I've never seen passes as strong and accurate as yours. And your versatility is out of this world, too. Like a perfect combination of Rin and Sae, you can pass, shoot, and block so flawlessly." Isagi rambled through grins, wildly gesticulating to express his point. "And Nagi! His trapping skill is as scary as always but, how do I put this, it's also like he's improving in every other area and pulling his insane goals all the more frequently."
Kaiser's expression soured, twirling his cup and watching the wine inside it move with a displeased expression. "Praise them too much and it will get to their head, Yoichi."
"Huh? But they were amazing. They're definitely opponents to look forward to next time."
Kaiser smirked. "Amazing? All I've seen from these two is mediocre, unpolished skill. What's the point if you don't win?"
"Kaiser…" Isagi rubbed his temples, rapidly ingesting even more of that terrible wine.
"Hey, you pompous jerk!" Reo raised his voice. "Nagi is a much better striker than you will ever be! Don't get so full of yourself now!"
"Whoa," Nagi said, eyes fixed on his phone screen. "Rare loot."
"A striker?" Kaiser tilted his head to the side in mock confusion, his lips curling into a taunting grin. "Call him that when the little chick has finally grown out of his diapers. Score first and talk later—"
"Okay, that's enough." Isagi slapped a hand on Kaiser's mouth. "Kaiser's a piece of shit. Pretend he's not around."
Isagi's attempt of keeping peace did little to quell Reo's displeasure, but he simply grabbed his phone and ignored Kaiser as a favor to Isagi.
Kaiser swatted Isagi's hand away, a vein throbbing in his neck. "Quick to defend your shitty little friends, are you? How typical, Yoichi."
Isagi glared daggers at Kaiser. "What the hell is up with you?" He gulped down more wine. And more. "Just shut up and ignore them if you hate them that much."
Kaiser rolled his eyes. "And sit here listening to you grate on my ears?"
"Me?!" Isagi slammed his hands on the table, making all the cups and plates jump.
Reo's brows almost jumped to his hairline in alarm, as Isagi was never that angry outside of the field. He scooted closer to Nagi, whispering in his ear, "It seems like their relationship hasn't improved at all in the last few years. Must be tiring playing together all the time."
"Huh? Don't they seem close?" Nagi questioned, not once taking his eyes off his fighting game, the player character received a hit as he attempted to dodge it.
"Close?!" Reo looked at Nagi in horror, then at Kaiser and Isagi as they hurled insults at each other.
"Isagi is usually nice, right?" Nagi explained. "Except when he isn't." He frowned, rubbing the back of his neck. "How should I put this? It's like when we're on the field and it's so intense we feel like everything is on fire. And it's always a nice feeling, right? It's cool. When the heat turns up." He pointed to Isagi with his chin, lazily, still not letting his eyes wander off the game. "When he's with the blue rose, isn't it like Isagi is always on the field?"
Reo's mouth made an "o" shape, and he craned forward to look at them with new eyes.
"Yes, Yoichi. You. " Kaiser snarled. "Showering these third-rate players with compliments—"
Isagi cut him off. "I'm trying to make conversation!"
Nagi's character landed a hit on his opponent, breaking their combo. He opted for a full assault to win the round.
"Who cares?! Even though they're nothing but rabble next to me!" Kaiser didn't relent.
But Nagi's opponent was a skilled player, defending against the decisive hit at the nick of time. He ever so slightly narrowed his eyes in concentration as the enemy's health bar rapidly depleted.
Isagi fell silent.
Nagi's character retreated, dodging a hit. It was wiser to wait for the precise moment to break the enemy's defenses.
"Kaiser…" Isagi began, tentatively.
"What?" He spat, sulking.
"This entire time, were you…" Isagi spoke, not believing any of the words coming out of his own mouth, "...jealous?"
The opponent's character fell to the floor like a sack of potatoes thanks to a lucky critical hit, allowing Nagi to end the round with a landslide victory. He lightly fist-bumped the air, still with a blank expression as he collected the honors.
Kaiser gritted his teeth, pulling Isagi up by the collar of his shirt. "I really will stab you, Yoichi."
Isagi grabbed Kaiser back in a vice grip, one second away from punching the shit out of him. "I can't believe all this time you were fucking jealous. All these mood swings I had to put up with were all because you're insecure?! You?!"
At that point, their shouting had become so fervorous and violent that they had all of the restaurant's eyes pinned on the situation.
Kaiser grabbed a handful of Isagi's hair, pulling his head up. "I should've crushed you long ago."
"You piece of shit!" Isagi pulled on Kaiser's stupid rat tail in retaliation as they glared at each other. "For a guy who only thinks about himself, how could you be so damn stupid?!"
"Reo, our food's arrived." Nagi pulled on Reo's sleeve, directing Reo's attention to the terrified waiter not knowing if he should intervene or record the entire event to sell it to the tabloids.
"Shouldn't we… step in?" Reo eyed Nagi, who was already munching on his steak with small bird bites.
"Nah," Nagi said. "Too much of a pain."
Kaiser laughed sardonically, not once breaking eye contact. "Why are you even with me? If you'd rather spend time with any other circus animal you pick up on the street—"
Isagi had forgotten how it felt like to be so angry at Kaiser. He had no idea if it was the alcohol in his veins or the fog in his mind, but he was shaking so much it took everything to not beat the bastard to death. If he didn't do something now, they would both end up having to pay jail time instead of playing for their countries in the World Cup.
"Shut the fuck up," Isagi snarled.
He pulled Kaiser by his suit's tie and kissed the crap out of him.
A new formula flashed through his mind, Isagi discovered. Alcohol x Anger = Kissing Kaiser!
Except, there was no worse time to discover it than now.
Well, that was that.
Isagi kissed Kaiser like he wanted to devour him whole in one bite as he shoved his tongue down Kaiser's mouth, barely registering the horror on Kaiser's face that he would have loved to scrutinize at any other opportunity.
Kaiser shoved him away, wiping the saliva at the corners of his mouth with the back of the sleeve of his shitty fancy suit that he looked so good on. I'll rip that crap to shreds later.
Catching his breath, Isagi began, ignoring the flashes of cameras aimed in their direction like they were taking pictures of lions at a zoo. "Your off-the-ball movements are exquisite and thoroughly calculated. Your soccer IQ and spatial awareness are almost on par with mine, except you have other assets to back you up in your plays—"
Kaiser clicked his tongue, nose scrunched like an angry cat's. "Tch. Have you lost your mind?"
"The accuracy and power of your shots are so insane it’s unreal, they are irreplicable by anyone else in this world. You're the rival I've always dreamed of, and I would've never reached the heights I have without you by my side, taunting me, challenging me, being the worst asshole on earth."
Isagi looked down to his feet. "Ever since we've met, I could think of nothing but you. I've been obsessed with you for the past five years. Why do you think I've never kissed anyone until I hit my twenties?!" He pulled down on Kaiser's tie, hoping with all his might he'd choke. "It was," He pulled again. "because," again. "of," and again. " you!"
"Yoichi—" He almost stammered, trying to reach his hand for Isagi, only for it to be swatted away.
Isagi rose from the floor, dusting off his dress pants, and walked off, not giving the hysterical crowd around them even so much as a glance.
Kaiser stood there frozen in place.
Reo debated making a strategic retreat, unwilling as he was to get involved in their lover's quarrel. Until something caught his eye. "The wine Isagi was drinking…" He held the bottle in his hand, squinting his eyes to better inspect the label.
"What is it, Reo?" Nagi asked.
"I was wrong about what wine it was." Reo stifled a laugh behind his hand. "This one is non-alcoholic."
"Oh," Nagi said, then gave Reo a thumbs up. "I told you they got along."
"Nagi…"
The walk back home was a lonely one for Isagi. He wondered over and over if he could even return to the house he shared with Kaiser, or if it wouldn't be better to simply book a room in a hotel for a day. After all, the little apartment he used to live in had long since been abandoned for almost a year. With no choice, he dragged his feet back to their house, his legs feeling like they were made out of lead with each step he took toward his destination.
Isagi shivered, cupping his hands and blowing his breath on them. I should've at least gotten a cab, he lamented. But he was better off not seeing anyone at all for a while, lest he make the situation worse. Even now, he could feel his phone vibrating with nonstop messages and calls. So much for keeping his relationship a secret.
Isagi scratched his head as he fumbled for the house keys in his pocket, making sure to steal a glance at the garage to check if Kaiser's car was parked. As if the world itself mocked him, there the car was, in all its flashiness. It all began with you, didn't it? He sighed, inserting the key in the hole and twisting, opening the door.
Despite Kaiser being present, the lights were turned off, and Isagi was taken aback by the darkness. Is he asleep?
His stomach rumbled, and he cursed under his breath. Isagi had barely been able to appreciate the food, considering everything that had happened. He trudged over the hallway, making his way to the kitchen.
He yawned, feeling a weight settle above his shoulders as he scanned the area for anything he could eat.
It was then that something caught his attention; a little bowl on the counter. Isagi raised a brow, inspecting it.
As he made his way to the bowl, his eyes landed on a little note placed right next to it.
It was in Japanese. Sorry, it said, written in hiragana . The handwriting was so clumsy and scratchy that even kids in kindergarten could do better.
Isagi couldn't help the lopsided smile framing his features as he opened the lid, and it was then that his expression fully morphed into a smile that stretched from ear to ear.
It was Kintsuba, prepared just in the way his mother made him.
He took no time, sitting down and whispering thank you for the food, imagining himself back home in Japan by his parents' side.
Fond memories of his trip to Japan with Kaiser flashed through his mouth. How worried Isagi was, and how much his parents had loved him despite it all.
"My Yocchan is all grown up now." His mother had laughed that day, amused. "We both thought you'd end up married to a soccer ball." She pinched his cheek.
"Mom." Fiddling with his fingers, Isagi had shyly approached his mom and asked: "Are you okay with all this? I mean, with him."
"Well, are you?"
"Huh?"
"Are you happy with him?"
Isagi had paused at that, recalling all their history, violent as it had been. Then, he looked to the side, seeing Kaiser trip over the words in Japanese as he talked to Isagi's father, but not once losing the confidence and poise of an emperor, making for quite the amusing scene while his father stared in confusion.
As Isagi had long since reached high levels of fluency in German, and his English had also become quite good, they customarily talked in either of the two languages. Before the trip, he had offered Kaiser to bring Mikage corporation's translator earbuds, but Kaiser had stubbornly refused, firmly stating I do the impossible and picking up a Japanese textbook.
Isagi had laughed freely at his expense then, earning a glare from Kaiser.
That had been enough of an answer for his mother. The reassuring smile she had given him had been etched inside him since that day, and he was sure he'd hold her words close to his heart forever: "As long as you're happy, that's all me and your father could have hoped for."
His heart was warm as he brought a piece of Kintsuba to his mouth, chewing carefully to take in all of its taste. He took another bite of it. And another.
He ate until he couldn't take it anymore, spitting the last bite out.
Then, he burst into a hearty laughter, laughing so hard he feared he'd keel over.
What a lousy cook Michael Kaiser was!