43. YUKKI, THE PRETTY BOY!

note: okay guys i think i lied. call me basic or whatevr but i think isagi and [name] mightbe my fav now... like isagi isnt my fav character ofc but ugh the development u two got was so cute and ahshjsjd

anyways take this chapter (primarily yukki ofc) and setting up for the next chapter (you all better be excited because i swallowed my pride HARD writing the next chap.)

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RIN

takes the shot, and scores the winning goal, an easy 5 points compared to Team C's measly 3. You let out a heavy puff of air in relief. Winning two games in a row... that's expected out of the top two players. It's nothing special. But...

You watch Rin and Shidou get into another ensuing argument about Rin's last goal. It's not easy for them to get along. That's why... I'm here.

You furrow your brows and start to reach into your cooler bag—when a hand on yours stops you. You squint, observing the fair-skinned hand—and looking at its owner, your jaw almost drops to the floor. Yukimiya Kenyu—standing there beside you with a radiant glow seeming to emit from his smile. Sweat drips down his cheeks but it doesn't do anything to deter his beauty.

He laughs lightly, and you almost hear angels singing when he does, "I don't think that's necessary. Looks like they got it under control." He jots his free hand's thumb towards the broken brawl—where Shidou is being held by his collar, dangling in the air by the tallest high school player, and Rin is being tugged away by Aryu, who is whispering glam into his ears repeatedly.

You let out a heavy sigh once more, and you can practically feel the grey hairs forming. You slump down, and you place your face in your hands. Yukimiya places his hand on your shoulder in a friendly gesture, making you look back up at him when he says, "And, I heard the shock effect wears off if it's used too much... so maybe you should save it for when you really need it."

The teasing wink he sends you makes your heart skip a beat in your chest—but when his words sink in—he's telling you a joke?—you laugh, a hearty sound rumbling from your chest. Your shoulders shake, and he chuckles along with you until you catch your breath and smile up at him. "Thanks. Guess I'll have to start using it sparingly. Maybe, instead of twice per day, it can go down to just once."

Yukimiya laughs a little of his own at your words, and you don't notice how hot your ears feel until now. Sliding his visors down to his eyes—covering the pretty amber is a sight that made you feel a little disappointed—he grins, showing off perfect pearly whites, "I'm Yukimiya. I don't mind if you call me Yukki. You're [name], hm? Nice to meet you. I believe you've met Otoya? I hope he's not giving you too much trouble. Sometimes he can be persistent with that sort of thing."

You grasp your hands together behind your back, and you suddenly feel shy when he asks you, "Oh, it's fine. It's not anything too bad, anyway." 

He places a hand on his hip and leans back on his heel, "That's good. I mean, you're probably used to that sort of thing, anyway," he gives a boyish chuckle.

Your eyes don't leave your shuffling feet, squeezed tight shut. Yukimiya pushes his hair back with his hand and looks backwards for a second, then back to you—expression immediately brightening, "I should be going now. It's your team's turn to rest—so you should get some. I hope I'll see you again soon, [name]."

You raise your head to see the small, cute wave he sends you as he walks away, something you feel obligated to return. Your face and heartbeat calmed down and you let out a big loud sigh of relief. You wave until he's out of sight, chocolate locks completely out of your presence. You stand there, still, for a second, until you think back on his words.

Was he... indirectly calling me... attractive?

Your face suddenly feels burning hot once more.

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You stretch your arms up and look around. What time is it?

You almost don't remember falling asleep, but it doesn't bother you. You slip out of your covers and your feet make contact with the cool ground. You shiver and slip your slippers on as fast as you can, walking out of your room and looking around.

After the second match with Team B (and the fourth match of the stratum), you dozed off and took a nap. You were exhausted after that whole battle—and Bachira's energy didn't make it any better, but it was in the past now.

You walk into the monitor room, and there you see a few people already sitting there. Gagamaru. Barou. Hiori. A few guys you don't recognise. And there, cross-legged and quiet, is... Reo. He's watching the instant replays of the third match like he is in a trance, and it would be almost creepy if you forgot who he was.

Reo. The Mikage Reo, who believes he is so below Nagi. 

You don't say a word, stepping cautiously into the room and pulling out a pillow, sitting down on it with crossed legs. Hiori glances over his shoulder and notices you sitting behind him, so he quickly shuffles over to create more room. You silently thank him and move up. You're between Hiori and Barou now.

You didn't get to watch the third match-up, so seeing it now with Reo is a new experience for you. The room is completely silent (probably due to everybody in here being practical strangers), but you carelessly snap that silence with a shocked gasp, "Barou! You scored?!"

He turns to you, brows furrowed angrily and you only notice now how his hair is down, lowered to his shoulders, "Did you not expect me to?!"

The heated glare he sends you catches attention, but you don't pay it any mind, "I mean... yeah."

"Excuse me—!!!"

His angry tone is quickly cut off by you speaking over him, "I didn't mean it like that—I was surprised because Otoya and Karasu have a really solid thing going on, and you scoring is like... really surprising."

Hiori nods from beside you, and you lean back so you're not blocking his view, "Otoya and Karasu have been perfecting their combo since the first selection, so it's a pretty big shock that they let somebody else in on their thing."

Gagamaru pops up from behind Barou, bug eyes watching the screen and it reflects almost laughably perfectly, "They didn't let him in on anything. He just kinda took the ball away from them."

Barou snarls at Gagamaru's head on his shoulder and whips his face around to look down at him, "You wanna fucking go, jungle boy?"

Gagamaru shakes his head. "Not really."

"It's still pretty amazing regardless," You say, and Hiori nods to your words. "Nothing unexpected from somebody like you, King."

Barou shifts his gaze from the jungle boy to you, sharp red eyes cutting into you like knives—a scrutinizing gaze that felt less condescending and more...

You couldn't find the word. He lifts a brow, as if questioning you, but quickly scoffs and turns his head away before you grow even further confused. You squint your eyes at the back of his head.

Barou... is a particular guy... but I don't think that's a bad thing.

No, not at all.

Hiori catches your attention when he raises his finger and points at a move, "Shidou's scoring is so independent. He doesn't rely on anybody whatsoever. Ego told us that becoming strong is all about the chemical reactions you create, but I would go so far as to say he hasn't done that one time since I've seen him play."

"You're right," Reo suddenly speaks up, and all attention is now on him. You peer over at him from behind Hiori—Barou and Gagamaru's head peaking atop of yours—"Even in the second selection... Shidou's always played his own way. He doesn't listen to anyone. He doesn't even try and connect with anyone. He just... plays how he wants to."

"Huh. So like, a more extreme Barou." Gagamaru places a long finger on his chin.

"YOU—"

You nod, ignoring the brawl between the two boys happening behind you. You bring your legs up to your chest and hold them close together, "Shidou doesn't really care how others see him, and he just does what he wants... If it wasn't him, I'd probably respect him for it."

Hiori nods, a solemn expression on his face. You wonder what he's thinking about. "Yeah."

"There's only ten minutes until the last match," Gagamaru speaks up, big beady eyes trained on you. "Isn't your team playing, [name]?"

Your eyes widen and you scramble up, pillow flying towards the side, but you barely notice through your panic, "Sorry—I have to go! Bye!"

You rush through the door, slippers barely hanging on your feet and smacking against the hard tiles of the halls as you run.

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The game ends with a loud blow of a whistle, and Jenny sighs loudly with her face in her hands. The last game for your team (and by extension, the whole stratum) has finished with a teeth-chattering goal that was practically shared between Shidou and Rin. The last few seconds were them both running next to each other and trying to push the other back physically for their goal—which ended up in Rin's favour.

Shidou snarls, a tic mark pulsing on his forehead and eyes red with rage, "You little shit...!"

They both tumble to the ground from the sheer force of Rin's kick, and your stomach starts twisting at the thought of what might come next.

"GAME OVER! With a score of 5 — 4, Team A wins!"

You should be happy your team won. Deep down, you are. You should feel good and proud at this very moment—but how can you, when your players are currently engaging in their fifth brawl today?

Bachira wipes the sweat off his top lip and voices your thoughts—you waste no time in discarding your bag and rushing into the field, as fast as your fucked-up legs could possibly take you. But you're far too slow and far too late—Shidou's cackling maniacally and probably knocked a tooth or two out of Rin's mouth.

Blood seeps out of Rin's nose and every alert in your brain is going off. You're barely thinking as you reach into your pocket and grab ahold of the button, and wasting not a single second, you slam it down hard. Shidou is frozen mid-air for a second with his position of about to be kicking Rin's brains into his throat—he falls to the ground with a loud thump.

Unmoving, and motionless—Ryusei Shidou twitches idly on the ground for a few seconds before he's fast asleep. You look down, standing over him with a blank look. You ignore Tokimitsu's terrified whimpers, the laugh Bachira lets out, and the gasps from the other players.

Crouching down to your knees, they dig into the plastic grass beneath your skin and it stings—but not nearly as bad as your head pounding with fury, "You... really like making my life harder, don't you?" You lean down, lips fluttering over the shell of his ear—you don't care he can't hear you, you need this etched into his brain. "If I'm fired, I'll haunt you and your next seven generations."

Your eyes meet Rin's when you say that—and he only looks away, clutching his bleeding nose with a clearly pissed-off face.

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