Sav woke up the next morning after the most dreadful sleep he had ever had. It was filled with horrible dreams and sleepless phases that drained him of all his energy, leaving him to wake up in a cold sweat way too early in the morning. And as soon as he woke up he remembered the occurrences of the day before, the horrible things his dad had said to him, the fact that he had slapped him, and of course the threats he had spoken out loud. The threat of making Sav go to a hairdresser to cut all of his luscious chocolate curls off.

With a dreadful feeling, Sav decided to get up, sleepily making his way over to the bathroom since he needed to wash off that cold sweat on his body. It was making him shiver and freeze and therefore did nothing to lift his already bad mood. Arriving at the small room and switching the lights on he took a look at himself in the mirror.

'Tomorrow there'll be no more curls', was all he could think as he gazed at his reflection, carefully running his fingers through his soft long hair and twirling a curl around his finger. He did love them very much even though they always gave him trouble whenever he tried to tame them. Just the thought of getting a short haircut like his brother John made a lump rise in his throat. Yes, he seemed a bit girly with his long hair, but he loved it that way. So what? He loved girly things like purple tank tops and cut-off shorts, sparkly necklaces and earrings, as well as rimming his eyes with eyeliner. Why should he change his whole personality just because people didn't like it? It's not like he lived for them.

Wanting to stop himself but not being able to Sav started to cry again, watching the curls in his hands that would soon be on the floor of some stupid hairdresser's studio. His heart grew heavy and just when he almost decided to have a full-on breakdown about his situation, there were steps outside of the bathroom and a movement of the door handle.

Sav started to panic right away since he was not ready for another beating. Would never be ready for that, for that matter. He wanted to hide behind the shower curtain but he couldn't seem to move, remaining on his spot in front of the mirror somewhat paralyzed. He watched the door opening with round, fearful eyes that were once again filled with tears but when it was finally completely opened, he encountered his sleepy-looking mum in the doorway.

"Mum..."

Sally looked at her once again crying son and without hesitating was embracing him in another comforting hug, pulling him close to shush him somewhat.

"God, Richard... I'm so sorry for all you have to go through. It's so unfair", she whispered into his hair with a pained voice, letting him pull back out of the embrace when he tried to free himself again. Gazing at him softly she gently touched his long curls, fluffing them up again on the parts where they had gone flat from Sav laying on them. Just the gentle touch made Sav's eyes well up in tears of hopelessness and terror again, the picture of the soft strands cut off on a tiled floor invading his mind again.

"Shh darling, don't you cry. You look so handsome with your curls like that. And I managed to have a word with your father yesterday evening after you were in bed already. I told him that cutting off your hair would not make anything better at all, and I somehow talked him out of making an appointment at the hairdresser. I know how much you love your hair so I thought that would at least make you feel a little bit better", Sally finally revealed to her son with a soft smile, Sav's eyes widening in disbelief before they started to sparkle in happiness.

"Mum... I-I don't know how I could ever thank you properly for that..."

"Shush it, darling, you don't need to pay me back for anything. You did absolutely nothing wrong. And just so you know, just because your dad doesn't approve of your lifestyle his words aren't true. You're a wonderful young man and I'm so proud to have you as my son. So so proud. I would never have it any other way, no matter how many difficulties you may have to face throughout your life. Know that I will always love you for the way you are."

Sav sniffled after he heard his mum's caring words, moving back into her embrace for another moment as a silent thank you for her support. God, where would he be without her?

~~~~

The rest of the day passed without any further incidents, Sav mostly stayed in his room and listened to music while trying to teach himself some Queen songs on his acoustic guitar. He didn't feel comfortable in his family's presence anymore and therefore tried his best to avoid them all day. But at some point his mum came into his room with an excited expression, asking him to come upstairs for a little while.

"It's the phone, there's someone on the line for you", was her only explanation.

Overwhelmed by the possibility to hear his lover's voice again Sav stormed past her to the phone that his father was currently holding in his hands. He froze immediately, panic showing on his features. What if it really was Joe? God, he was so sure he'd get a beating like never before if his dad found out about their relationship. But to his actual surprise, his dad smiled proudly and waved him over to the phone.

Still hesitant and completely unsure he made his way over to his father, taking the phone he held out to him.

"Hello? Who's on the line?", he asked shyly, first hearing some rustling carrying through the speaker before a man's voice answered.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Savage, it's Mr. Smith on the line. I just quickly wanted to inform you that our school's soccer team is first in the British scholar soccer league. Therefore, we need to play the final against a school team from Yorkshire tomorrow as a home match at our soccer field. Since you're our best striker and made us gain the lead in the league due to your brilliant performances I of course need to ask you to play tomorrow. Will you be in the starting eleven for the match?"

Sav inhaled sharply at that request, a flattered blush rushing to his cheeks. He had never guessed they would come so far in the league and that he would ever be able to play a nationwide final in school soccer. He could maybe get a soccer scholarship out of that match if he performed well since businessmen searching for new recruits for the big British teams were always present at these events. In all of his excitement, he seemed to forget to answer properly to the request of his coach.

"Well, Mr. Savage?"

"Oh, I'm so sorry, I was just overwhelmed for a moment. Of course, I will play tomorrow! Thank you so much for having so much faith in my abilities!", he finally replied, hearing his coach letting out a relieved sigh on the other end of the line.

"Alright, Mr. Savage, I'll expect you on the field tomorrow then. Eleven a.m.! Don't forget and don't be late!"

"Of course, Mr. Smith. I'm gonna be there, the team can count on me!"

His coach wished him a good day after he had responded and afterward disconnected the call, leaving Sav trying to grasp what had just happened. Finally putting down the receiver he looked at his father who had watched him all along with a proud smile on his face. It seemed so obscene to the young man that the elder man actually seemed to approve of what he did for once. Especially since he had treated him like he was a piece of shit just the day before. But he tried to make use of that good mood since in some primal part of him there was still the desire to make his father proud.

"Will you and mum come to the match?", he asked shyly with a slightly hopeful undertone in his voice, and to his absolute surprise his father nodded. Sav gave a shy nod of approval at that answer and turned back to the phone after his father had left the room. He needed to call Joe immediately. After a few rings the line finally connected, a confused female voice filtering through the receiver.

"Cynthia Elliott on the line, who's calling?"

"Hello Mrs. Elliott, it's me, Sav. I need to talk to Joe immediately if that's possible, it's really important", he replied excitedly, hearing Joe's mum chuckle softly at his overwhelming happiness.

"Alright, I'll get him for you."

He heard her shouting Joe's name and that there was a phone call for him, finally also hearing his lover replying with a shout in return. Then muffled steps filtered through the receiver before a Joe who was slightly out of breath answered the phone.

"Yeah? Who's on the line?"

"It's me, babe. God, I got something really important to tell you."

Sav then continued explaining what Mr. Smith had told him, finally asking if Joe was going to come and see the match. His lover of course asented, offering to call Steve, too, to let him know about what was happening.

"God, babe, I'm so damn proud of you. Now I can even boast about the fact that I got a rising soccer star as my boyfriend", Joe then said with a soft chuckle, Sav's blush increasing even further.

"Aw, just shut up, love. You know that's not true, I'm not that good in comparison to the other players in the league. I just had a lot of luck."

"Luck, my ass. You're just damn talented. Appreciate that since it's a fact."

"It's not."

"Shut up. I won't continue this discussion since you're not gonna change my mind on that matter."

Sav just chuckled at that and let the topic go. Joe was stubborn and very focused on complimenting Sav at every opportunity he had so there was absolutely no chance to win that argument. They continued to talk for a while since they were filled with the longing to see each other again, even though they had just seen each other the day before. Love really made them crazy.

When they finally hung up on each other, Sav couldn't be more excited for the next day to come. It was gonna be amazing, he was sure of that. He went to bed that night with a belly full of butterflies and a heart full of dreams, the horrors of the day before slipping into the back of his mind for a little while.

~~~~

"And now here they come, our league's leaders to gain the title for the first time in three years!"

Sav was shaking in excitement as their team was announced to come onto the soccer field, Jerry soothingly placing a hand on his shoulder.

"You're gonna do this, I know you can. Just believe in yourself and play the way you always did. Pretend that this is just another game."

Sav nodded thankfully at their keeper's kind words, finally turning back to face the field in front of them, following his teammates out onto the green meadow. On the rows of seats on the field's side, he could make out Joe, Steve, Olivia, Pete, his parents, his brothers, and even Joe's parents. His friends held up Steve's banner from his first play again, the one that said "GO, SAV, GO!!!", and were one of the people that cheered the hardest when the team arrived on the field. God, he really wanted to make them all proud. As soon as he took his position front and center, opposite their enemy's striker, he heard Joe's voice carrying over the whole field to him.

"Go and knock 'em dead, Sav!"

Smiling to himself and blushing lightly he looked up to the seats again, giving Joe a thumbs-up and trying not to notice how many people were there to watch them play. There was almost the whole school, meaning all of the students and all of the teachers, and also the whole school of their enemy's team. Furthermore, there were some businesspeople in suits, hinting at the fact that they were scouts for new talents. The seriousness of the whole situation got to the curly-haired one again at that particular sight and he fully concentrated on the game, looking at the referee that was just about to start the match. When the familiar whistle finally came, Sav was deadly focused on the actions on the field, throwing himself into the match with all he had.

"And there comes Savage over the right side, god that guy is fast- But Avery is on his tail, he's getting closer, the goal is close by now, Savage shoots- And goal!! Goal for the hosting team!!"

The commentator's amplified voice carried over the soccer field, all of Sav's friends and fellow students jumping up from their seats and cheering so loudly that Sav couldn't hear anything else anymore. He looked up at the seat rows as he made his victory round over there, seeing his dad smiling in appreciation while his mum had proud tears glistening in her eyes. His brothers were cheering almost as much as Joe did but his lover was still the loudest of them all, watching him with the proudest smile he could manage. Sav's heart almost burst with pride at their expression of support.

Turning back to his team he received a few half-hugs from his mates and an especially proud one from Jerry, their coach giving him a proud fistbump before they all took their places once more.

It turned out to be a quite difficult game since their opponents had strong, talented players, too. Jerry had a lot to do to save footballs before they were able to enter their goal and he did an amazing job. But still, about five minutes before the end of the game the score said 5:5, so the last goal would be the deciding one. Mr. Smith pushed his team once again, talking them into giving it their all for one last time, even though every single player on the field was almost dying of exhaustion by that time. Sav tried his best though and started one last attack on their opponents. The air was burning in his lungs with every breath he took and his sweaty curls whipped around his face while he ran for his life towards the other goal.

"Savage starts another try, where does this boy take his energy from? But Avery is once again at his heel, he tries to get the ball- Foul play! Avery brings Savage to fall without touching the ball!"

Joe and his friends winced at the sight of Sav brutally slamming into the ground face-first after Avery had kicked out his legs in an attempt to reach the ball in front of his feet. The curly-haired teen laid on the field for a few moments, the referee stopping the game. Mr. Smith and some of Sav's teammates went over to the injured young player, checking him over and finally helping him up again. His shirt and shorts were streaked with greenish grass stains and one of his knees was bleeding while his face was carrying earthy stains on both his cheeks and his forehead. But nevertheless, he walked over to the referee on his own with a slight limp in his step, talking to him quickly but the referee already nodded halfway through, whistling again and pointing over to the opponent's goal. Sav and his team would get a penalty shot.

Mr. Smith gathered his team together, knowing that this was going to be the last chance to score a goal.

"First of all, I'm really proud of you, guys. You did an amazing job so far and you deserve to win this. Now, we have to decide who shoots the penalty. Any preferences?"

Jerry raised his hand and spoke up.

"Mr. Smith, I would say Sav should make the shot. He deserves to do it and apart from that, no offense guys, but he is the best player we have."

Sav went bright red at those praising words and only continued to get redder when his other teammates gave voice to their approval. Mr. Smith just watched him with a silent question in his eyes.

"I'll do it if you guys want me to", he finally replied with a shy voice, receiving various pats on the back before they went over to the penalty area. Sav then stepped forward to the penalty spot in front of the goal, taking the football the referee handed to him and placing it on the white patch surrounded by lush green grass. The other team's keeper jumped up and down on the goalline, warming himself up for what was to come while Sav shortly looked over to the seats again, seeing Joe giving him a supporting smile and a thumbs-up. Smiling to himself and directly feeling a lot calmer he started measuring out the distance he needed for his running start, looking back at the referee and then at the goal as soon as he was done. The referee nodded at him and then at the opponent's keeper before blowing the whistle one more time.

Sav's focus centered on the goal in front of him and he closed his eyes, then opened them again and ran forward, shooting with all the strength that he had left. The ball brushed the keeper's fingers but went into the top right corner either way. Sav couldn't hear anything after that because the cheers got unbelievably loud. The whistle echoed once again to indicate that the match was over but Sav didn't care, he just sunk into Jerry's proud embrace in total exhaustion but pure happiness. They had won.

"Sav! Sav!", he finally heard behind him a few moments later, noticing that the fans were getting onto the soccer field that was all too soon flooded with people. Just a second later he felt a warm palm on his shoulder and let go of Jerry in order to look into Joe's proud face that featured two glinting green eyes filled with happy tears. It didn't take more than a second for him to throw himself into Joe's warm arms.

"God, you were so amazing, my love. I'm so so proud of you!", he whispered into Sav's sweaty hair, pulling back a bit to tuck some wild chocolate curls behind his ear and gently rub the dirt off his cheeks with his thumb. Before he could move in for a kiss there was a hand on Sav's shoulder again, this time belonging to his mum who shot him a warning glance, reminding him of the fact that his dad was still close by. Turning back to Joe he pulled him close so that he could reach the confused man's ear.

"Hey, I'm sorry but my dad's here. Maybe later when we're alone, babe."

Joe just nodded with a slight disappointment painted onto his gorgeous features. It was obvious how much he wanted to kiss and cuddle his boyfriend in happiness and how much he hated being refused like that. Where was this relationship going to go if they had to play a stupid hide-and-seek game most of the time?

But even though his thoughts were negative and fearful for the most part Joe managed to send Sav a little smile, reaching out to take his hand and squeeze it comfortingly. They were going to get through it all somehow, Joe said to himself. Maybe if he told it to himself enough times, he'd finally start believing that that dark cloud above their heads would somehow evaporate and let the sunshine through.