Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Be careful.

Rin had been hearing those words since his youth, whether it was from his parents when he was younger and constantly hurting himself or the little voice in the back of his head that was continually nagging him whenever he tried to push himself out of his comfort zone.

He always had to be careful. There was no other option; he couldn’t allow himself to be anything but that. Rin didn’t care if it made him come off as an asshole or as a loner. He had to be careful not to stray away from the strict routine that had been carved into the hollow stone of his existence since the day he was born.

That voice had grown louder since he presented as an omega. Be careful! His mom would call out before he left for school, triple-checking that his scent patches had been applied correctly and that he hadn’t missed a dose of his suppressants. Nobody could know what he was, that he was doomed to be anything less than the ideal image that people had conjured up of him in their minds.

Rin couldn’t afford to be outed as an omega. He knew it’d make going into soccer professionally much more complicated than it should– something that irked him to no end. There were known omegas in the world of professional sports, but they weren’t immune to scrutiny. 

He knew what would come his way if he told the world what he was. Prying eyes, wondering if he was meant to be there. His teammates asking if he would be alright running drills or god-forbid having to deal with the consequences of a potential heat affecting him. That was the least of his worries thanks to the suppressants, his heats were far and few between. There was virtually no risk of them happening. He could taper off during the off-season and be alright.

That’s where he was at now—parading himself around as if he was an alpha. Nobody questioned it, assuming he already was, anyway. Rin fell into the routine of being a puppet, lying straight through his teeth if someone asked like he wasn’t faking much of his life.

Rin would just keep training, pushing himself further than any other person to prove himself and live up to the facade he had created and had been living. Nobody ever questioned why he was more lithe than the other alphas or why he had his scent patches in different places. It'd be fine if he kept playing the way he was.

That’s what he told himself, anyway. He’d just have to be careful.

He was sitting in his room, eyes trained on his laptop screen as he studied past games. His mind swirled with ideas on how to improve his playstyle even further. He was finally old enough to begin tryouts for professional teams, already having received an invite from Blue Lock. He had heard of them before, though he figured anybody with even the slimmest interest in soccer had. It was one of the top teams in the country, and the simple fact that they had invited him personally just meant that he had a decent shot of getting on the team.

It wasn’t going to be anything too complicated. He was sure he was already more skilled than some of the players he saw. It would be simple kicks and passes. There was no way that he wouldn’t surpass most of the other players within his first year. Maybe he’d even become the best on the team.

He shook his head, trying to clear those thoughts from his mind. Rin couldn’t get too ahead of himself, at least. New rookies were bound to show up for these tryouts, and there had to be one or two who’d pique his interest. He had been looking forward to this since he started playing soccer as a kid; he couldn’t start making up these scenarios and ruining his chances before they began, even if there was a chance that it’d be true.

He rubbed at his eyes, shutting his laptop before shoving it to the side and pulling himself out of bed so he could take a shower. His scent patches were starting to rub his skin raw, a grimace passing over his features as he peeled them off. Being slightly allergic to the adhesive should probably deter him from using them so much, but there wasn’t a choice in his mind.

Rin had to be careful. There was no other option.

He tossed the worn patches into the trash, not sparing himself a second glance in the mirror hung above the sink before stripping down and stepping underneath the running water. The heat cascaded over him, drowning out anything that could form in his mind as he scrubbed at his body, rough hands moving over the inflamed skin where the adhesive had been before.

The faint scent of ocean water and tea tree oil overwhelmed him as he continued, leaking from his wrists and cringing at the sensitivity that came with each brush of his fingers. That was something Rin wouldn’t get used to, the oversensitivity of his scent glands anytime his fingers brushed over them. He wondered if alphas had to deal with that, too. Maybe it was just his stupid allergy causing them to feel that way.

It’s what he told himself, at least. Rin’s mother had drilled into his mind that everything on his body would be sensitive since he was an omega. He did not take to that information kindly. Why should he have to deal with all that just because of what he was? He couldn’t recall hearing anything like that when his brother had presented as an alpha a few years prior, overhearing bits and pieces of his father’s conversations about it with him.

He had ultimately come to the conclusion that it was bullshit and that he had been handed the short end of the stick. Being an omega wasn’t something that was necessarily to be frowned upon. Rin knew it had its pros and cons, but god only knows the number of sleepless nights he had when he first presented, just begging to be something else when the cramps of his first-ever heat arrived.

It was just something he had to live with, and he was okay with it. Well, mostly. Rin knew things would be easier if he were an alpha; hell, if he were a beta, it’d be even better. That’s just not how things are, though. 

The water running cold pulled him out of his thoughts. He shivered, shutting off the stream before opening the curtain and grabbing his towel, drying off quickly before he wrapped it around his waist. Cold air gave way to the steam that had built up in the room as he wiped the mirror off, blankly staring at himself in the condensation-streaked mirror. 

There wasn’t much to be left of the imagination when he looked at himself, nothing but a shell of who he could be if not for the monotonous routine he had set for himself. Rin knew he was attractive despite not being by the standards for typical omegas. They were supposed to be all soft features and small statures. He had sharp features and striking eyes and was far too tall compared to the other omegas he knew.

Rin figured he’d be called hot if he was an alpha. There had to be some truth to it all. He saw how other omegas who didn’t know his status looked at him like he was something worth jumping immediately. Sometimes he thinks it's funny, picturing the disappointment that’d be painted on their features if they knew he was just like them. They can live in their ignorance, though. That’s much more preferable.

His eyes were dull, something he had noticed years ago. They had lost the sparkle that came with childhood, pools of teal filled with curiosity dulled with the process of aging. Rin knew his eyes used to pull attention, a stark contrast with his features constantly gathering awe from anyone who had met him. Now, they left nothing to the imagination. Muted tones were framed by his far too noticeable lower lashes, sunken in with the bags under his eyes. 

He sighed, busying himself with brushing his teeth before stepping back into his bedroom, pulling on some sweatpants before burying himself into the sheets of his bed, curling up, and trying to sleep. 

—

Rin’s alarm didn’t go off that morning. Well, it did, but he had slept through it, the first time since he was twelve that he had missed the obnoxious blaring of whatever default alarm sound his phone had come programmed with. The sun was already above the horizon as he stumbled out of bed, trying to condense the first two hours of his morning routine into ten minutes. He had no time for a shower, opting to just splash his face with cold water before half-ass slapping on his scent patches. 

Rin knew that it was just a precursor to the rest of the day. There was no time for his morning yoga or a decent breakfast. He hoped the crushed protein bar in the bottom of his gym bag was good enough. 

It wasn’t, but he’d deal with the consequences later.

He had a week to prepare for the tryouts. Rin was confident that he’d be able to make the team even if he spent the entire week pissing everything away and staying huddled up in his room, but he wasn’t going to give in to the temptation. He had something to prove, and dammit, he was going to blow all of those half-baked idiots out of the water.

There wasn’t any time to waste as he rushed out of the house without saying a word to his parents. He had to get to the train station twenty minutes before his train came to give himself time to prepare for the hoards he’d be stuck in. This meant he’d have to give himself at least fifteen minutes to walk there, having to be condensed into a solid ten this morning due to waking up late.

Rin wishes he had woken up with his alarm. There were far too many people out today, more than there should be on a Tuesday morning. Shouldn’t everyone be at work? Crossed his mind a few times as he weaved his way through the crowds, nose wrinkled as unfiltered scents from both alphas and omegas flooded his senses. People should start wearing scent patches more, for fucks sake.

He scratched at his wrists, his scent patches already causing his skin to itch even more than usual. Curse his sloppy application skills. Rin could go without them when it comes to training; the smell of sweat from him and everyone else would be enough to cover everything up without anyone realizing what he was.

Then again, he could never be too careful when hiding those characteristics.

Chattering and the usual scuffing of shoes against the tile flooring filled his ears as he walked down into the train station, scanning his card without a second thought as he followed the familiar yellow path to the train that’d take him to where he wanted to go. He shook his head, glaring at the bodies that bumped into him as he leaned against the wall, eyes trained on the tracks as he waited for the train to pull in.

Rin waited for everyone else to file onto the train before he got on, hanging by the door as it shut and the train began to move. It was always a bumpy ride, and his hand moved up to grip one of the handles tightly as it swayed back and forth. His eyes scanned the other passengers, taking note of everything surrounding him. 

There were mothers with their children, hushed whispers of trying to get them to calm down and stop annoying the other passengers. He wondered if he and his brother acted like that when they were younger and if his mother had to scold them. The most he could remember was Sae and him going out on their own, getting their popsicles before he’d sit down at the edge of a field and watch Sae practice his soccer plays for hours.

He could also pinpoint the rattling of the wheels on the track, lulling him into a false sense of comfort as it continued to move. Thankfully, it wasn’t a long trip, or Rin would probably feel his irritation spike from the multiple noises melding into one.

Rin was never good in public, even worse when he couldn’t hear himself think. He knew he could do nothing about the noise, maybe bring headphones, but what was the point? It’d be fine. 

Besides, wearing headphones and blocking out the noise surrounding him wasn’t very careful. Anything could happen if it were pushed into the background. Knowing him, he’d probably miss the announcement of his stop despite following this route for years.

He breathed a sigh of relief when the train finally slowed to a stop, hiking his gym bag over his shoulder before stepping out and onto the platform. Thankfully, this station was always less crowded, with not too many people to push through and fewer scents to be assaulted by as he weaved his way up the stairs and out.

The cool morning breeze ruffled his hair as he walked through the city, a welcoming reprieve from the warmth of the packed train car. The gym came into sight soon after, Rin’s pace subconsciously speeding up as he noticed.

The gym was pretty empty this morning, too, much to Rin’s delight. He hated having to wait for machines or, god forbid, the amalgamation of pheromones that would fill the space as everybody was busy focusing on their routines.

He tossed his bag in a locker, quickly tugging his workout clothes on before shutting the metal door and heading back out of the locker room. He then made his way over to some spare mats to stretch before beginning.

Rin finished his warmup quickly, feeling the beginnings of the subtle burning in his muscles, marking the start that he was at least doing something right. His eyes narrowed as he scanned the room; he had no set plan for what he wanted to work on that day.

He ultimately settled on legs, as always. Those are the most crucial parts of being a soccer player, and the lack of conditioning, should he choose to slack, could be detrimental to his career. Rin had to be careful of that, not even wanting to risk one slip-up, fearing that he could injure himself. Whether one that’s easy to heal or could be career-ending, that was something he never wanted to risk. 

Rin set himself on a treadmill, figuring simple cardio would also be a good warmup. With the incline and speed set, he began, allowing himself to lose himself in the feeling of a quickened pulse and soft huffs of breath.

—

A week later, Rin was pacing the worn-down floor in his bedroom. It was almost time to leave so he could attend the tryouts for the Blue Lock team. He knew he had nothing to be anxious about, not a doubt that he’d make the team without any issues and get signed at the end of the day.

The little nagging voice in his head was slowly beating out the more logical side, though. 

There was always a chance that he wasn’t thorough enough, that he didn’t follow his routine as strictly as he was supposed to, and there was a slack in something that’d come back to bite him in the ass when he was in the middle of running whatever drills the Blue Lock coach would decide they needed to do.

It’d be fine, he figured. Even if there was a minor slip-up in how he played, he knew he was good enough to brush past it and keep going like it didn’t happen to begin with. Rin was confident enough to know that he was in a better position than most of the people who could also be trying to get on the team. 

Rin took a deep breath, trying to shake the lingering doubts in his mind before grabbing his bag and heading out, ready to spend the day proving to everybody that he could absolutely wipe the floor with all of them.

He would have to be careful and stay in the zone. There was never any room for mistakes to be made, especially on a day like this. It was the potential start to a turning point in his life, the possibility of finally being able to go professional being dangled in his face like some sort of circus prize. 

Rin just hoped he could make somebody proud.

—

There were a lot more people in attendance than he thought there would be. Too many bodies crowded together, shivering with anticipation as they all waited for the word that everything was about to start.

His gaze traveled over the crowd, noting a few people he had heard of back when everyone was still playing in high school but a lot more unfamiliar faces. None stood out; the others just looked like run-of-the-mill people, definitely not athletes who wanted to play soccer in a professional league. Rin shook his head. How were any of them expecting to make an impact, to look like they were worthy enough to be on the world stage in any capacity?

Half of them looked like they should be going home before even setting foot on the field, nothing more than lukewarm wannabes that would just get in the way of everyone there to play the sport well. Rin’s eyes narrowed as he continued to look around, his senses on alert as he realized he was surrounded by far too many alphas.

That was to be expected. Naturally, alphas flocked to being athletes more than omegas did; throw a few betas in there to keep everything balanced appropriately. He knew he wasn’t the only omega, though, as he could pick up on subtly sweet scents that came naturally to most omegas. There was some comfort in knowing that, not having to be utterly alone in all of this.

He was ripped from his thoughts as someone bumped into him, his body lurching forward as he caught himself. He spun around, irritation spiking as he glared at the boy who did it. He was shorter than him, looking awkward as they made eye contact. 

Rin glared at him, taking in more of his appearance. He had black hair, blue eyes, and an admittedly poor attempt at covering the scent of teakwood and bergamot. The other boy looked up at him, clearly wracking his brain for something to say as he pulled away from Rin.

“Don’t bother,” Rin finally huffed, breaking the silence. “Just watch where you’re going.”

The other boy nodded, opting not to speak. As he pushed past Rin again, he stopped a little further up next to a boy with brown and yellow hair, the other elated by his appearance.

Rin shook his head, straightening his shirt back out before turning his attention to an opening door. The coach finally came out to welcome them all, go over everything that they would be doing during their time there, and introduce a few players who were already on the team. It’d be easy enough, nothing too intense to start the day.

He would just have to remember to be careful.  

Chapter Text

The field felt suffocating.

Rin had never played this hard in his life, nor had he thought that everyone else here would also be giving it more effort than necessary. The competition was intense, with each player pushing themselves to the limit. He shook his head, trying to clear the sweat pooling down towards his eyes as he ran down the field, acutely aware of the other boys running after him, trying to get the ball into their possession.

He knew he had nothing to worry about; he was in his zone to score. There was no particular reason why he kept pushing himself further toward the goal other than the voice in the back of his head was gnawing at him to get closer, to move closer because if he didn’t, he’d end up missing.

Rin waited with bated breath as he launched the ball ahead of him; everything surrounding him drowned out until he heard the familiar sound of the ball hitting the net. There was a pause as he stood there, catching his breath and wiping the sweat from his brow. A few of the other guys tried to come up to him and congratulate him, only ending in them getting brushed to the side as he made his way to the edge of the field to grab a water bottle.

This wasn’t a place where people should congratulate him on good plays. Everyone was fighting for a spot on the team; if anything, they should be irritated that he had come out ahead of all of them. He tossed the water bottle to the side once he was done, heading back onto the pitch when the coach called for everyone to gather around. 

Rin idly took note of the guy from earlier; eyebrows pinched as he listened to what was being said. Clearly, he knew the boy that had essentially launched himself at him, the two huddled together–far too close for something so mundane. He scratched at the scent patches on his wrists, eyes trailing over the other.

He looked older than Rin was. Not much, maybe just a year or two, but old enough to control his pheromones without covering his glands. It admittedly made Rin jealous. If he was an alpha, would he be able to go without scent patches, too? The blisters on his wrists would surely appreciate it if that was the case.

Rin could not keep his eyes off him. It was irritating, watching the other chat away as if they weren’t all here risking everything just for a chance to be on this damned team. He was far too animated, too carefree. Did he not realize there was far too much riding on this opportunity?

Maybe he assumed he’d make it on the team with no issues because he was an alpha. He didn’t have anything to prove like Rin did.

Rin would always be stuck proving himself in any aspect of life, even outside of sports. Omegas weren’t looked upon positively. It was something he had learned rather quickly once he presented, something that he had quickly learned to despise and deal with all at once, just another factor of life that he hadn’t thought about until that moment. He could beg and scream and pray to be an alpha, stare in a fogged-up mirror, and dissect every visual cue that could give him away for who he was, but nothing would change.

His attention was pulled back when the coach called for a break, wanting everyone to grab food and water to regain energy and strength before proceeding to the next thing. Rin pulled away, wanting to get to the provided cafeteria before everyone else so he could have a moment of respite from everything. Rin couldn’t help but glance back at the other boy one more time before leaving, something gnawing at him to do so without any idea of what exactly it was.

Surely, it was something he could ignore, or maybe it was just some primal instinct to try and prove that he was better. Rin wouldn’t dwell on it; he had better things to do. Besides, focusing on anything other than how he played at this point wouldn’t be very careful of him. There was no excuse for slip-ups, especially when he had gotten this far.

There were already a few other players there when he had gotten to the cafeteria, all huddled around each other at a large table as they talked about where they had come from or how long they had been playing. Rin didn’t spare them a second glance, scratching at his wrist as he grabbed the first thing he saw: a bowl of rice and some seaweed.

It wasn’t the most nutrient-dense meal, and it was probably not the best thing to eat before going back to practice, but he didn’t care at the moment. It wouldn’t be the first time he had pushed himself to keep going on a near-empty stomach anyway. He’d be fine. Probably.

Rin let his eyes travel across the other players as he sat at a table in the corner of the cafeteria, taking note of everyone who had come. There was a guy with long red hair sitting pressed up against a bigger guy with orange hair. Rin assumed they were a couple based on their proximity. 

One had his nose stuck in his phone while another was feeding him–which was odd to Rin until he noticed the matching bond marks on the napes of their necks. It made a lot more sense after that.

Then again, his attention was pulled to the noisiest part of the table: the same guys from earlier. Rin could pick up parts of their conversation, the one with the bob cut speaking very animatedly about something, the other just going along with it.

His eyes narrowed, trying to pick up on the dynamic between them. They were probably nothing more than close friends, given how the black-haired one would try to push the other away. It was interesting to see how close they were despite everything else.

It didn’t matter in the end, he told himself as he pulled his gaze away and returned to eating. Whatever relationships everyone else here had weren’t necessary. Rin was here to become part of the team, not knowing the ins and outs of everybody’s lives. He had to focus on himself; everyone else was something to push in the background.

Returning to practice after lunch felt like torture. Rin probably should’ve eaten more, something he realized quickly after the third mini-match of the day, hunched over as hunger and nausea tugged at his gut. He took a deep breath, swallowing down the feeling as he straightened back up and continued to push on.

He could deal with the consequences once he went home. 

The other players were undoubtedly feeling it, too, Rin noticing how they were chugging down water bottles and wiping sweat from their brows like that was all they could do. The training was more vigorous now, running drills without a break for far longer than what was probably healthy.

It’d be alright, though. Just increase the water intake and breathe; everything will be perfectly fine.

The coach called them to regroup later in the day, Rin hanging back near the edge of everyone else. Usually, he’d try to be closer, wanting to hear everything they were being told, but he thinks he’d pass out if he had to be close to the invisible cloud of pheromones pooling from everybody else.

Rin grimaced, the combination of scents causing him to feel even hotter than he already was after running around like an idiot for a few hours. He wondered if anyone else felt like they were getting slapped in the face with the mixtures of it all. If they were, then it was being hidden quite easily. 

He shook his head, subtly trying to cover his nose as he listened. The coach, who Rin finally decided to learn, apparently wasn’t an actual coach from the whispers going around the group, but instead, just the mastermind behind everything, stood tall as he addressed them all.

“We’ll be splitting into mini-teams for this next part,” the man, Ego apparently, began to speak. “You will practice in these groups just like any other time, and later, you will play against the other groups.”

It seemed easy enough. It was like a mini scrimmage to get a feel for how they all worked together and against each other, though Rin would be lying if he said it was something he was looking forward to. It seemed pretty redundant; if they got onto the Blue Lock team, they’d undoubtedly play nicely together.

He wasn’t one to question it, though. If Ego thought that would help showcase their skills more and allow them to see the different playstyles up close, then so be it.

Rin would have to be careful around whoever he got paired up with. He didn’t want to slip up around any of them, to have them think that there was even a chance that they were better than he was. 

“I’ll be the one splitting you all into groups,” Ego continued, pulling Rin’s attention back towards him. “Based on what I’ve seen from how you all play so far. I think it’ll work well.”

Well. At least Rin didn’t have to worry about finding his own teammates for this, though now we had to worry that he’d get stuck with people who suck and wouldn’t be able to keep up with him. He glanced around, taking in the anticipation that covered everybody else, wondering who they’d be paired off with.

Ego went on to split everyone up, Rin zoning out once again as he absentmindedly rubbed at his wrist, the scent patches beginning to peel off at the corners. He cussed under his breath, trying to smooth them back down over the inflamed, bumpy skin. He really should’ve brought extras.

“Isagi, Aryu, Tokimitsu, Bachira, and Rin. You guys are the last five.”

Rin blinked, attention immediately getting pulled to the same two guys he couldn’t keep his eyes off earlier. Those two must be Isagi and Bachira, he thought to himself as he walked over to them, noticing two other nameless faces doing the same. 

The one with the bob cut, easily identified as Bachira when the other, Isagi, told him to calm down was far too excited for something mundane as this. He glanced at them before looking at the other two, thoroughly unamused by what he was seeing.

It wasn’t hard to gauge that they were all alphas; the way they all held themselves could give it away before the scents poured from all of them did. It made Rin a little bit uncomfortable, but this wasn’t the first time he’d been stuck surrounded by alphas, and it definitely wouldn’t be the last, especially when it came to playing soccer.

He was listening to the four of them introducing themselves, his eyes trained on the ground as they did so. There was no need to tell them who he was; surely they’d figure it out if they had any brain function to realize that Rin was the only one not talking. 

That didn’t last very long, Bachira spinning around to look at him and immediately running his mouth. “Are you Rin? I’ve been watching how you play all day today! You’re super good.”

Rin scoffed under his breath, finally raising his gaze to look at him. “I am.”

Bachira wasn’t phased in the slightest by his tone, just nodding and bouncing off back towards Isagi without a second thought as everyone else began talking about what drills they wanted to run first. Rin didn’t understand how someone could have that much energy after a full day of practice, but he figured it’d be somewhat helpful when it came time for the mini-games later.

They went right into running their drills after that, trying to show off what they were best at and deciding on different ways they could each come in handy when it was time to regroup. It was going as well as Rin expected, staying primarily silent unless he had something he needed to say. 

Bachira and Isagi worked well together, something Rin picked up rather quickly. There were silent cues to pass or shoot without a second thought and short eye contact when they needed anything else. It was clear they had known each other for a while, definitely having played together at one point. Even Aryu and Tokimitsu had commented on it, just getting laughed off by Isagi whenever they brought it up.

They took a short break, getting some water and catching their breath. Rin was leaning against a bench, eyes trained on the facility ceiling when he felt movement next to him, glancing over at the person who decided to sit next to him. Isagi.

“You’re Itoshi Sae’s little brother, right?” Isagi spoke, garnering an immediate scowl on Rin’s face.

“Unfortunately,” he scoffed. “Why?”

“No reason,” he shrugged. “I thought you looked familiar, that’s all. No surprise you’re trying to follow in his footsteps with going pro.”

“Not trying to follow in his footsteps,” Rin gritted out, not wanting to discuss it. “I’m far better than he could even wish to be. What he’s doing has nothing to do with me wanting to play professionally, too.” 

Isagi nodded, pausing as he considered his following words. “Don’t like talking about it?”

“No.”

“Alright,” Isagi shrugged, dropping the subject quickly–something Rin was happy about. “I was just curious. My bad.”

“Whatever,” Rin muttered as he tugged at his patches again. “I don’t talk about it, so just don’t keep being a pest about it.”

They went back to practicing after that. Rin kept an eye on them, analyzing how they all played and any weaknesses he may have to tell them to snap out of. He begrudgingly accepted that they worked together far better than he had wanted them to, though he supposes that was a good thing given how he wants to beat all the other groups that had been created.

There wasn’t much to be admired about them when he thought about it. Bachira was good at dribbling the ball. He could admit that. Aryu and Tokimitsu were better at giving and receiving passes than anything else, and Isagi was just there . Even watching the other boy was causing Rin to tick, and he wasn’t sure why.

Maybe it’s because he kept trying to suck up to Rin when it came to wanting a pass from him. It was the easiest choice not to give him the ball that Rin had ever made. Watching Isagi clench his jaw and let it go was funny, knowing that he obviously had something to say but decided against it. 

 Rin was zoned in while trying to push the ball to the goal, something in him pushing to keep going and to let them all see how much better he was than he had been showing so far. Nothing was forcing him to keep going other than trying to prove something.

Proving that he was better was the way to go about things; some ugly, hidden part of himself kept buried in the recesses of his mind, saying that he had to. There was no other option, making everyone who surrounded him see how good he was, how the long, painstaking hours Rin would put into training and conditioning his body to do nothing more than play the damn sport. 

It was the careful option. The safe, easy option that’d lead to him getting everything he had ever wanted.

The force knocking into him and laying him straight on his ass wasn’t part of the plan, though, Rin cussing under his breath as his hand flew to cup his nose, the color of crimson already coating his fingers.

He had scored, unsurprisingly, but as his head whipped around to glare at whatever smashed into him, any semblance of satisfaction was gone. “What the fuck was that for?”

Isagi was on the ground as well, the asshole having the nerve to look like he was winded. Rin wiped his nose, ignoring the blood on his hand as he scowled. “Did you not look where you were going, dumbass?”

The other boy looked at him, face a mixture of expressions that Rin couldn’t pinpoint. “I was trying to stop you from scoring.”

“Why?” Rin scoffed, pulling himself to his feet. “You realize the whole point of this exercise is to score, right? That’s what we want when we go up against everyone else.”

“You can’t do it all alone,” Isagi tried to point out, standing up as well. “The rest of us need a chance to score too.”

Rin shook his head, raising his hand to his nose again, trying to stop the blood flow. “So you knock me onto my ass and destroy my nose?”

He didn’t notice Bachira running over, grabbing at Isagi to ensure he was okay. Aryu and Tokimitsu held back, watching with wide eyes.  “I didn’t mean to do that,” Isagi said as if he hadn’t entirely intended to crash into him. “I was just trying to get the ball.”

Rin shook his head, not even knowing what to say to that. Bullshit, he thought as he glared at Isagi. You meant to do that. You wanted to stop me so you did exactly what you thought would even give you a chance to take the ball from me.

“Rin?” Bachira’s voice broke through. “Maybe you should go clean up your nose. It’s kinda gross.”

He was right, but Rin didn’t want to admit that. “Whatever,” he spat. “You all better keep practicing while I go clean up.”

Rin didn’t wait for a response from anyone as he spun around and walked off the field, grumbling to himself as he grabbed a towel and held it up against his face while going to the bathroom. Everyone else just watched him go, concern laced on their faces.

A few employees were in the halls as Rin walked through, paying them no mind and ignoring the hushed whispers that followed as he went past them. He pushed the door to the bathroom open, letting it slam shut behind him as he went over to the sink and pulled the towel away, scowling as he took in what he saw.

His nose didn’t look broken, which he was thankful for; just a little swollen underneath the mess. It was gross, watching as the water diluted the blood as he leaned under the faucet, figuring that’d be a faster way to get everything all cleaned up. Rin watched it all swirl down the drain as he stood back straight, wetting the towel to wipe off anything that had already dried.

This wasn’t the first time he had been injured while practicing or even in games. It was normal for anyone to get stupid injuries while playing, but this one ticked him off more than he had wanted to admit. His pheromones flared around him, his anger causing them to seep through the patches despite his efforts to reel it back in.

Thankfully, nobody else was in the bathroom, so he just let it happen. He tossed the dirty towel into the trash, knowing it was beyond saving, before grabbing a paper towel to dry off. Once that was done, he turned back to leave, ready to get back onto the field and get all of this over with.

A damn nosebleed wasn’t going to keep him from showing anyone that he was better. Especially Isagi. He quickly decided that it was time to go hell or high water with him after that. Nothing was going to stop him from giving him a front-row view at how much better he played. 

Chapter Text

Isagi’s eyes were on him when Rin walked back onto the field, cleaned up as if nothing had happened. He brushed off the few questions of concern, snapping at everyone, saying that they all just needed to get back to practicing instead of standing around worrying about useless bullshit.

There was hesitation in the way they all played together after that. Glances shot Rin’s way, almost as if they were questioning if he should even be back out there after a hit like that. He paid them no mind. 

Practicing still flowed smoothly enough, minor improvements being made as they slowly but surely worked out a way that would lead them to beating the other groups that had been formed. Everyone was beginning to feel the drowsiness of the day setting in, movements growing sluggish with every minute that passed.

Rin eventually called for another break when he noticed Bachira whining about needing a drink. The alpha ran to the side immediately, tugging Isagi along with him. Rin pretended not to see the glances the two others sent his way; Bachira’s laced more with intrigue than the fact that Isagi looked like he was staring a hole into his skill.

A simple scowl shot their way got them both to avert their eyes quickly.

Aryu and Tokimitsu were in their own little world as they lay sprawled out on the sidelines. That seemed to be pretty typical of the two, from what Rin had seen. It was an odd dynamic that the two of them had, but it worked for them. It didn’t change the fact that their personalities combined made Rin want to tear his hair out.

After another hour of practicing, it was finally time for the mini-matches. Each group was lined up, waiting to be called forward for their chance to showcase what they had been able to come up with.

The other teams were lackluster. Nothing stood out to Rin based on what he saw as everyone played. There were some good playstyles when they combined, with a few players being able to meld together seamlessly to create plays that could benefit a larger team. Rin’s attention was mainly focused on the few duos he had seen earlier, understanding why they were all attached at the hip.

He knew that his group would be the best out of the others, and his thoughts were confirmed when his team was up by three points, not even halfway through their match. The others on the sidelines were cheering them all on, a melody of voices converging into one as he shot another goal and made it effortlessly.

They were the winners of their match, Bachira being far too loud as always as he jumped on Isagi to celebrate the small victory. The familiar sense of satisfaction swirled in his gut as he stepped off the field, brushing off anybody who tried to congratulate him. Rin grabbed a bottle of water and a towel, sitting on one of the benches as he caught his breath. There would be a few minutes of cooldown before Ego would come back out to talk to all of them, hopefully with the decisions of who was making the team.

Of course, Rin did not doubt that he’d end up being one of the players chosen. Call him too self-absorbed, but Ego would be stupid to pass on him. Biology be damned, he was better than anybody else that he had seen over the course of the day.

Everybody else was grouped up, talking amongst themselves as they waited for the results of the matches. Anticipation was rippling through the group; some worried that they wouldn’t make it due to the results of their matches, and some were like Rin, completely confident that they had shown their skills well enough that they would be chosen.

Rin set his water bottle down, standing back up as Ego’s face flashed across the screen where they were all waiting, clearly ready to announce his decisions. Silence fell as everyone glanced at the screen, Rin shifting his full attention as well.

“I’m sure you all are eager to hear the results from today,” Ego’s voice rang out from the speakers. “So I won’t make you all wait any longer. When you hear your name called, please step forward.”

Names were called out, and players shifted to walk to the head of the group as they were called. Rin wasn’t too focused on any of them; he was only concerned about hearing his own name voiced out across the field. There were some that he had recognized from the matches he had bothered to watch before his own, but nobody really noteworthy.

“Itoshi Rin,” his voice came across clearly, everybody turning to look at him as he walked forward, making sure to keep his distance from the others who were called. This was it. He was going to be on a professional team, finally able to prove himself for what he was worth.

Everything he had worked for wasn’t going to go to waste. The long days of training until he made himself sick, the pushing his body past what it was biologically made to do. Rin was sure that this was what he was supposed to be doing, proving a silent point to everyone who knew him–proving a point to the world who didn’t think omegas could make it in professional sports.

Granted, there was still nobody who knew that he was an omega, and Rin doubted that he’d ever voluntarily give up that information unless it’d serve as a career booster, but still. A sick sense of inner satisfaction was burning in his body, that someone who had been born to be lesser than his counterparts would be joining the rankings among them.

Rin had completely ignored the others who were called after him; the importance of the rest of the team dwindled in his mind as he was already planning his next move. There was a lot to be done once he could officially begin training with the team, more moves to polish, or plays to create.

He would lead the Blue Lock team to victory, carving out a spot on the world stage and international attention for Japan once again. It was his destiny to bring out something like that. If he didn’t, then all the years of hard work would have been for nothing. 

Being able to set the stage and alter everything that had been set up before he had started playing was something Rin was just aching to change. He had seen it all when he was younger, from watching his brother play and listening to anything he said, to starting on his own career. Japan’s skills when it came to soccer had been lacking, and dammit, Rin was going to change that.

The world of professional soccer in Japan wasn’t all bad; there were still some incredibly talented players, but the years of watching his brother push himself and the melding of Rin wanting to do the same wasn’t something he’d be able to easily shake off.

Sae’s words were burned into his mind, that there had to be someone out there who could bring their country back up to the top. His brother had eventually left the country to play abroad; thus Rin stepped up to make it his duty to be the person to do that.

Of course, not everything was that simple. Venomous words had been spewed at him from his brother upon his return, and Rin grew jaded after that. It’d be okay, though. Now Rin just had two things to prove instead of just one. 

He’d just have to be careful when it came to carving that path out.

Rin was pulled back from his thoughts once he noticed no movement from the crowd. Had everybody already been called up? He wondered to himself, glancing around. It looks like we’re missing a player. There has to be one more.

His thoughts were quickly answered when Ego had cleared his throat to speak again. “Isagi Yoichi, step forward.”

Really?

Rin glanced up and watched as the older boy walked forward, head held high as he stopped to stand beside his friend. He sighed; of course he’d be stuck with both Bachira and Isagi on the same team. As if he didn’t have to deal with the two of them enough for half of the damn day, he’d be stuck with them until their contracts were up now.

Ego continued to speak, dismissing those who didn’t get selected and reviewing a few things for those who did. It wasn’t anything too interesting; they could expect their contracts in the mail by the end of the week, and any negotiations they wanted to make could be dealt with via email with Anri.

There were hushed whispers throughout the group that had been chosen, quiet chattering of excitement over the fact that they were finally going to be playing professionally, and wonders about what their contracts would include. A few were already talking about how much they’d get paid and the first thing they’d be buying with a check of that caliber.

Rin couldn’t help but scoff at that last part. Of all the things to be talking about during this, money was what they were focused on? They were a bunch of lukewarm idiots for that.

He could feel someone looking at him as he hung near the back of the crowd, subconsciously pulling at the scent patches on his wrists that were finally peeling off due to the sweat that coated his body from the day. Rin narrowed his eyes, glancing around until he caught sight of who it was.

Isagi, of course. Rin just raised an eyebrow as if silently taunting him, wondering why he was seemingly always looking at him. It was odd the way Isagi was always trying to keep Rin in his sights. It’s not like he was trying to figure something out about him; Isagi knew very well now how he played and what he was after for the most part.

Rin didn’t know why it bothered him so much. He was used to people looking at him, trying to pick apart how he played and what his motives behind how hard he trained was. That came naturally with how much time he put into everything. Rin had been dealing with that since he was a kid, and it definitely wasn’t going to change now that he would be a pro player.

Maybe Isagi was just weird. That had to be it, right? There was no way there was any other reason why Isagi would be basically staring into Rin’s fucking soul like he had been the entire day. Unless he was planning on smashing into him again and making him bleed, but that was doubtful.

Hopefully.

Rin shook his head, finally tearing his gaze away once they had gotten permission to go home for the day with explicit instructions to rest after all they had done. Of course, he wasn’t going to just rest. He’d spend his night watching replays of more games and planning out his following workouts, then wake up the following day and get right back to training.

He felt a hand tug at his shirt as he turned to leave, a scoff slipping from his lips before he could try to mask it as he turned around. “What do you want?”

“I wanted to congratulate you for making the team, too,” Isagi spoke, his voice disgustingly friendly. Rin rolled his eyes, pulling the other’s arm from him.

“I don’t need a congratulations,” he muttered. “I was always going to make the team. It would’ve been more surprising if I didn’t.”

“Sure,” Isagi shrugged, not at all bothered. “But still, congratulations. You’re really talented. I’m looking forward to being on the same team as you. I think if we work together, we can really make this team do great things.”

Rin shook his head, not bothering to try and hide his scoff this time. “I don’t need to work together with anybody, especially you. I can lead the team to victory on my own.”

Isagi paused, clearly trying to decide what to say next. Rin just stood there, eyes narrowed as he tried to ignore the itching on his wrists. Fuck, he needed to get home so he could take those damn patches off before he started forming blisters under them.

“Alright,” Isagi eventually settled. “If you say so. See you when practice starts.”

Rin watched as he turned around and walked off, meeting back up with Bachria as they headed toward the locker room to get showered and changed. He shook his head, resigning himself to follow so he could do the same.

—

The train ride back home was quiet, thankfully. The late hour made it to where the only other passengers were businessmen who had presumably worked overtime and were finally heading home as well. 

Rin was able to find a seat, his head resting against the window as he scrolled through his phone, checking anything that he had missed while he was busy. Typical news articles and the occasional soccer post crossed his feed, but nothing was important. 

There was one article that had been published about the Blue Lock team already, recounting how the training camp had gone and an official list of the players that had made it onto the team. He scowled when the article called them all rookies.

It was true, of course, but he still hated it. Rin was far from a rookie at the damn sport, first professional team or not. It was satisfying finally seeing his name in a sports publication, though. He was far too used to only seeing his name in school-related ones before graduating.

That change of pace was nice.

For a moment, he wondered if his brother had seen it or if he even cared. Rin was sure that Sae probably didn’t pay attention to anything that came out of Japan anymore, but the sick sense of yearning tugged at Rin far more than he wanted to admit; he wanted to know if his brother still gave a shit about anything he did.

Given the last time they had contact, it was doubtful, but he figured something could change. Maybe Sae still wanted to see if he was playing or if Rin had given up like he had been told to. Giving up was never an option, though the thought of doing so did seem somewhat comforting for a moment after everything that had happened.

The train came to a shaky stop once it had reached the station, Rin pulling himself up from his seat and pushing past the few others who were getting off as well, not wanting to be stuck in his thoughts for any longer than he had to. 

He left the station quickly, taking two stairs at a time before pausing at the entrance and taking a deep breath. The streets were empty, typical for nighttime around where he lived. Rin hesitated before looking down at his wrists, having a single fuck it moment before tearing off the scent patches there and tossing them into the trash, the ones on his neck following suit.

The skin was already red, and a blister or two formed from the combination of his allergy and sweat being trapped underneath the adhesive. He sighed, moving to head home quickly before there was even a chance that someone could catch a whiff of his scent, knowing that it wouldn’t be too much of a big deal if anyone did, but still not wanting to run that risk.

Rin could never know if an alpha was nearby, knowing he couldn’t really stop one from messing with him despite his size. It was a risk that he’d always have to think about, one he rarely wanted to take. However, he couldn’t find it in himself to care too much tonight.

Carefulness be damned.

His house was quiet when he entered; his parents were probably gone again. It was pretty typical for that now that he was older, and it didn’t usually bother him. Rin liked the quiet, liked the fact that he could have some peace to wind down after long days.

Though today, he wished they were home so that he could tell them that he had made it. That he was going to be on a professional team despite their insistence that he would never make it onto one due to his omega status.

He pushed the door to his bedroom open when he got upstairs, tossing his bag on his bed before stripping down to shower. There was no use in dwelling on that, either. Rin could always tell his parents another time, or maybe they’d come across it elsewhere. He’d have his chance to point out that, hey, he did it. They said he wouldn’t and should opt for a different career, but he did anyway. They’d have two professional athletes for children.

The shower's hot water was a welcome reprieve from everything else, allowing himself to stay out of his head as he scrubbed at his body, the residue of training and his emotions swirling down the drain with the soap.

The skin on his wrists hurt as he scrubbed at that, too, ignoring the stinging from the raw skin as he tried his hardest to get the adhesive off. Maybe he would take a rest day tomorrow so that he could go a day without having to wear those godforsaken patches and give his skin a chance to breathe.

Or he would just work out at home and kill two birds with one stone. That was the most likely option. 

Once he dried off, Rin lathered some lotion over the marks and tugged on some sweatpants to sleep in. He’d decide what he wanted to do once he woke up the next morning, figuring that trying to plan out what he would do at almost midnight wasn’t the smartest option.

With a sigh, he climbed into bed, pulling his blankets over his head and shutting his eyes, waiting for another restless night of sleep to overtake him. 

Chapter Text

Rin didn’t even read his contract before signing it after it came in the mail. 

He didn’t see a purpose in doing so. This was his chance–it didn’t matter what was in the contract; as long as he got to play, he was fine with anything. They could parade him around like a complete fucking idiot for all he cared. The only thing he gave a shit about was proving his point.

It was the easiest thing he’d ever done. Tearing open the envelope with no other thoughts, skipping right to the last page to scribble his name down. It wasn’t a perfect signature, one born out of desperation and lacking perfect penmanship. Rin could worry about fixing it later. He was sure his signature wouldn’t be too sought out after anyway.

The contract was shoved back into the return envelope only a minute later, Rin wanting to just stare at the pieces of paper first. He always knew he’d get to this point, a contract in hand and the satisfaction of knowing he was getting what he wanted. 

He wasn’t one to show emotions on his face anymore, his usual deadpan expression or glare being fine in his day-to-day life, but he allowed a small smile to tug at his lips. Just this once, though, and only because nobody else was around. 

Rin dropped the contract off at the post office an hour later, convincing himself that the sooner he got it done, the sooner official practices would begin. It was a stupid thought, knowing that that wasn’t how things worked, but he’d let himself have a little bit of whimsy.

He deserved it, he thought. 

Official practices wouldn’t start for another two weeks, giving Rin ample time to refine his workout regimen and try to solidify a few moves he had been working on before he had even gotten the offer to try out for the Blue Lock team.

Of course, that also meant he’d be stuck in his head for the next two weeks, overthinking everything he did and wondering if all he was doing was actually worth it or if it’d all inevitably blow up in his face like everything else he tried to do.

Football was safe, though. A safe haven that he had to alter to benefit just himself, a dream that had once come crumbling down around Rin before he set off on his new path of trying to prove that, dammit, he was able to play, too. He was better than what people said he’d ever be.

This was a whole new chapter in his solitary life, even if he didn’t want to admit playing with others would be better for him in the long run. It wouldn’t be a battle of alphas and omegas like it was when he was younger; he’d be on an even playing field now. 

So why was he scared shitless? 

The panic set in once he had gotten back home. He felt stupid, pacing around his bedroom with his eyes trained on the ceiling, focused on the rickety old fan that was constantly spinning. Something that was usually a grounding force whenever this happened, yet today, it wasn’t helping.

His pheromones were seeping out again, scent patches not on today to give his sensitive skin a break, filling the air as Rin tried and failed to reel them in. He hated it, hated how the scent would sour, signaling an omega in distress. 

It was pathetic, really. 

The floorboards creaked under his feet, the sound echoing with the whirring of the fan, sending him spiraling even deeper. Rin was trying to remind himself to be careful, not to let everything bubble up to the surface and regress any semblance of progress he had made over the years. 

He had everything he wanted. Rin was at the peak of his physical health and physique, and a newly signed contract for a professional team that he had been waiting for. This was what his entire life was about, what he had discarded everything else in his life to achieve.

Rin knew he was probably overreacting. There was no reason why he should be pacing like he did when he was a child, eyes darting around his room for anything to destroy like he did when he was far too young to be acting the way he did, back when he had someone to rely on to keep him from hurting himself.

He didn’t have that now. That part of him had been ripped away when he was a teenager, and he knew it’d never come back no matter how many nights he’d spend with his eyes glued to a screen, watching the very thing that had destroyed him from the inside out.

With a shake of his head, he stopped, eyes narrowing in on the soccer ball that his brother had given him back when everything was fine. It looked rough now. Far too tattered to be appropriately used, sharpie marks from when he was too young to realize that drawing on a soccer ball wasn’t the best thing to do with it.

He didn’t even know why he still had it. Rin had thrown everything away that reminded him of Sae after his brother had completely warped his perspective on what it meant to have someone who cared about him, to have the familial bond that so many could maintain.

It felt like it was taunting him at this point, a reminder of how life used to be. Before Rin set off on a path to prove that he’d be better than his brother, that he didn’t need to play alongside him like he had always planned on.

Before he had decided that despite being an omega, he could far surpass any alpha he came across.

Rin scoffed, glowering at the stupid ball before turning and pushing out of his bedroom, the air far too suppressive at this point to want to stay in there any longer than he needed to. Maybe he’d go for a walk or head to the field to practice.

That’d always help bring him back down from whatever bullshit he was stuck in.

The sun was beginning to set when he left his house, locking the door behind him before shoving his hands into his pockets and setting off to god knows where. The cool air felt good on his skin; breathing it in and exhaling slowly, feeling himself finally calm down enough to acknowledge that he was acting like a complete idiot.

How embarrassing.

Hushed whispers filled the streets as Rin kept walking, the hustling of the city in full swing as everybody was heading home for the day. That sense of normalcy brought him comfort, seeing people go about the most mundane tasks and finding contentment in their actions.

Rin thinks he’d go insane if he had to do any of that himself, but he digresses. If it was waking up and going to work every day just to go home and do it all over again the next day that helped people find fulfillment in their lives, then so be it.

Granted, he did the same things they did. He just repeated the cyclical actions of training until his body screamed at him to stop, go home to eat and sleep, and then do it all over again as soon as he woke up.

Maybe being on a professional team would make that routine deviate a little bit. Rin would have games to focus on, press conferences that he wouldn’t actually want to do but participate in anyway, and a team that he’d have to lead to victory by any means necessary.

A change of pace would be nice. He had been stuck in his mundane routine for far too long, knowing that it wasn’t healthy, yet pushing himself anyway because that’s all he knew.

He was just being careful.

Routines were always easy, safe, a familiar rhythm that Rin could fall into and let himself forget about everything else that was substantial in his life. He wasn’t just some omega who was hiding that part of himself. His adhesive allergy that he’d ignore didn’t exist. He wasn’t the guy who took things too personally despite acting like nothing bothered him.

Rin was just Rin. Someone who was fully dedicating a part of his life to something that kept him going, that kept him looking forward to whatever this path he had decided to come down would bring. 

He’d probably be dead if he didn’t start playing. Rin was far too destructive to live a life that those passing him on the sidewalk lived.

He found himself bounding down the steps to the train station ten minutes later, more people catching his eye as he watched them all go about their daily lives, headed home for the night. Rin would be lying if he didn’t say he envied those with a destination in mind when they got onto trains.

It must be nice to know where to go and where they belonged. Maybe he’d find that once he got used to his career. A nice apartment, perhaps a car so he wouldn’t be stuck on trains anytime he wanted to go anywhere. 

A partner would be nice, too. Though he was sure that was something that would never be in the cards for him. He was too unapproachable for anybody to take an actual interest in him, knowing they’d probably run once they learned he was an omega, too.

Only a few seats were occupied when he set foot onto the first train he found, uncaring of the destination as he sat back and leaned his head against the window. He paid no mind to the announcements ringing out through the speakers, just ready to see where the train would take him.

The train came to a halt twenty minutes later, the voice sounding again as he stood up and brushed past the few passengers waiting to get on. It was darker now when he emerged from the station, the air having a colder bite to it, too.

It was nice. Relaxing, even. Rin enjoyed the cold for the most part, finding comfort in it. He could never explain why he had always found the cold more appealing than the heat, his own parents saying that he was weird for thinking so, but he never really cared about that.

He used to love the snow, too. Not so much anymore.

The streets were quiet as he walked through them, the streetlights illuminating businesses and potted flowers that lined the buildings in a way to make them seem more appealing to potential consumers. This part of the city was nice, he admitted to himself. More subdued than the usual hustle as one got deeper into Tokyo, better suited to raise a family in.

Rin recognized where he was quickly, a part of town he and his family would visit during the hottest parts of summer. He could remember running after his brother, a half-melted ice cream in hand as he tried to tell Sae that he had gotten the winning side of the one they had split.

It was bittersweet thinking about it now. Innocence wrapped up in the steady drips that fell against the sidewalks as he drank everything Sae told him. Whether it was about soccer or even a new movie they had watched with their parents, his attention would always be piqued. Their parents would then scold Rin for being messy, staining whatever shirt he wore with ice cream, and uncaring about it. 

Sae would always tell them to knock it off, that he was young enough to worry about staining his clothing, about staining anything , because it could always be fixed. Their parents would sigh before relenting, letting them both run ahead again as long as they stayed in sight.

If only Sae had thought that way about staining their relationship, Rin unconsciously rolled his eyes as he took a turn and headed down the familiar worn path to the beach they had visited more times than he could even remember.

The beach was unsurprisingly empty when his feet hit the sand, his shoes already unceremoniously tossed to the side as he walked further down the bank. The soft crashing of the waves was a welcomed sound, letting him fall back into when life was simpler.

When it was easier to be careful.

His mom had always fawned over how his pheromones smelled like the beach when he had first presented and wasn’t very good at using his scent patches yet. She said something stupid like it was meant to be , or his least favorite: the beach has always been your comfort place. It’s fitting.

Rin scoffed under his breath as his feet hit the water, letting the frigidness of the liquid quell the burning feeling that was building in his throat. His eyes scanned out across the expanse of the ocean in front of him, briefly wondering what would happen if he just kept walking.

He shook his head, wanting to get rid of that thought as quickly as it had appeared. 

It was peaceful, being back by the water. Rin hadn’t found the time to come to the beach since he was still in high school, far too occupied with training to allow himself even a moment of rest. It was always where he had felt the most at home; his mom was right in that aspect, at least.

It was definitely his safe place. There was something about the solitude that allowed him the comfort of just letting go , being able to exist as nothing but a tiny blip in the universe. No expectations were being placed on him when he was here, whether set by himself or otherwise. He could pretend he was a kid again, the salt from the ocean water dragging his hair down as he swam or ran around chasing seagulls with his brother.

The sand was a great way to ground himself, too. The ability to feel its coarse texture beneath his feet as he took in a deep breath, the feeling of it digging into his skin as he walked along the shoreline.

Most people hated the feeling, how messy it got, and how you’d find grains of it everywhere for the next few days after visiting, but that never bothered Rin.

He liked how messy it got. It reminded him that not everything had to be perfect. Things could get messy– life could get messy. It was the simple fact of knowing that there was always some physical reminder of better times.

It was comforting.

Rin sat down as he got further down the beach, watching the waves lap around him as he tilted his head back, the stars now on full display. This was the time of night when he could feel more human and most at ease with who he was.

He shut his eyes and let out a deep breath, allowing himself the grace to let go and just exist.  

Chapter Text

Practice officially started three weeks later, on a stormy Monday morning. Rin’s alarm went off at 5 am, something he silently cursed himself over as he struggled to get out of bed and start the day.

He relished in the sounds of the rain pelting the windows as he sat in his kitchen eating breakfast (if you could call a protein shake and coffee breakfast) before tugging his jacket on and stepping out of the house, gym bag in hand.

The streets were slick as he walked, hood pulled up over his head to shield himself from the rain given that he didn't own an umbrella, though he made a mental note to buy one if this weather continued. It was a relatively peaceful walk, with the mix of the weather and the early hour ensuring that there wouldn’t be any foot traffic and that the train station would also be virtually empty.

Rin stared out the window as the train made its journey to the intended station, eyes not wavering on the dripping of the rain against the glass, falling back into his childhood game of seeing which raindrop would reach the end of the window first.

It was nearing 7 in the morning when he had finally arrived, taking note of some of his new teammates dragging themselves into the building as well, exhaustion still evident on their faces.

He couldn’t blame them for that. Rin had been lacking in waking up early enough to train, having gotten stuck in the routine of losing himself in whatever shitty horror movie was on until the early hours of the morning, causing him to sleep in far later than he wanted to.

Everybody was silent as they filled the locker room; nothing but the sounds of clothing being shuffled around and the metal clanking of the lockers opening and shutting filled the room. Well, that and Bachira’s incessant yapping.

Clearly the early hour didn’t bother him much. 

Isagi was there too–of course he was, but Rin kept the other boy in his peripheral as they changed. Drowsiness laced the other’s features as he tried to keep up with whatever Bachira was rambling on about, far too excited about God knows what. 

He didn’t stay under the radar for long, Bachira’s sights being set on Rin before he could slink away from view. “Rin! Good morning!”

Rin mumbled a greeting back, hoping to whatever deity he could that the other would drop it and go back to bothering just Isagi, though he was never that lucky. The far too excitable bundle of energy almost bounded over to him. “You’re wearing scent patches on your neck today,” Bachira spoke loudly, poking a finger at Rin’s neck.

“Will you stop?” Rin huffed out, swatting his hand away. “Of course, I have them on my neck. We have scent glands there, dumbass.”

“I know that,” Bachira spoke, uncaring about Rin’s reaction. “You’re the only person our age I’ve seen wear them, though. Most people just let their pheromones flow.”

“I’d rather not have mine readily available for people to pick up on,” Rin scoffed as he tugged his shirt over his head. “Nobody needs to be able to smell it.”

Bachira nodded, his answer obviously sufficient. He was about to speak again when Isagi decided to come over and join in whatever half-assed conversation they were having.

“Not all alphas are comfortable exposing their scent glands, Bachira,” he said, tugging the other boy back. 

All alphas, Rin thought to himself. I’m passing it off well enough, then.

“I think everyone should be wearing them,” Rin shrugged, shooting a glance at Isagi. “It leads to fewer issues.”

Isagi nodded. “Yeah,” he mused. “I can see how that’d be preferable. Those patches are a pain in the ass to deal with, though. Don’t know how you can deal with them while playing.”

If only you knew.

“They’re good enough,” Rin finally spoke. “Nothing I can’t handle.”

The other two boys glanced at each other before back at him, Bachira speaking up again. “Do you wear them every day?”

“Yes,” Rin spoke. “Can we stop playing twenty questions about why I wear them now? We have the practice to start.”

Bachira nodded, not hesitating to head back to his locker to finish changing before they all went out to the pitch. Isagi hung around for a moment, clearly debating whether he wanted to say something or not.

“You never go without them, do you?”

Rin looked at him before turning back to his locker, stuffing his gym bag inside. “Why does it matter?”

“It’s not healthy, you know,” Isagi chose his words carefully. “Keeping them on for long periods of time like that. You’re supposed to let your scent glands breathe.”

“I don’t wear them to sleep,” Rin huffed out. “They can breathe then.”

Isagi stepped closer. “That’s not what I meant, and you know that. Your skin is all red around those areas, too. You’re allergic.”

“It’s none of your business,” Rin mumbled, looking at Isagi again. “I’m fine. Drop it.”

Isagi’s mouth opened as if he was going to retort, but he shut it quickly, shaking his head and turning around to head back to his own locker. He spoke again before walking away, obviously not what he had initially wanted to say, but much better than what it would’ve been. “Just be careful , yeah?”

Rin clenched his jaw, shutting his locker and turning to leave the room, not needing to hear any of that. He was fine; everything would be fine.

Though now he couldn’t help but wonder if it was really bad to keep his patches on as often as he did. Maybe he’d look it up on the way home. 

—

Practice was going about as well as one could assume for a first official one. Everyone was still trying to get used to playing in a group and how to meld their different playstyles together to make one unified structure to keep everything moving smoothly.

It could be worse, Rin supposed. There wasn’t anything that was necessarily bad about how they were all working together, but there were a few parts that could be polished up to work better for the positions they were stuck in.

It didn’t stop Rin from glaring at somebody anytime they messed up, though. They were all professional players now, and stupid mistakes shouldn’t be made. It’d get better with more practice, though.

Hopefully.

They were currently running shooting drills; everybody lined up as they waited their turns to decipher where each player’s scoring zone was. It felt juvenile in a way, lining up like a kid waiting their turn.

Rin thought it was absolutely ridiculous, but who was he to try and say that they should be doing something else?

It was admittedly a good way to see how his teammates decided to go for a goal. The guy with white hair was pretty good when he had the motivation to do so, namely his purple-headed mate cheering him on.

It was a sickeningly sweet display, enough where Rin would even admit that. Though he figures mates always act like that whether they’re on the same soccer team or not. Everyone else seemed to think it was cute. Rin just kept his eyes averted for most of it. 

He was one of the last ones to get called up to shoot. He took a deep breath, focusing all of his attention on the ball as he ran up to kick it, eyes narrowed as his foot connected with the object and sent it flying into the net, a few muttered words of surprise coming from his teammates behind him.

Rin almost wanted to gloat, to let everyone know that that’s what they should all be doing when scoring.

That probably wasn’t the best idea, though, so he shot the ball a few more times for an added effect before stepping back alongside everyone else. 

Isagi’s eyes were on him again once he made it back, almost calculating in a way that made Rin’s skin crawl. What the hell is his problem?

He didn’t know what was constantly making Isagi’s eyes drift toward him, unsure if it was because of how he played or some other reason that he couldn’t even begin to describe. It was almost a foreign feeling–having someone keeping an eye on him that much.

Rin hated it, yet he couldn’t find it in himself to back down when their eyes would inevitably meet, an almost challenging look on his face to get the other to glance away first.

That works, with Isagi turning his attention back to the others almost as quickly as he had started staring in the first place. Didn’t his parents ever teach him that it was impolite to stare? Tepid idiot.

The shooting drills ended rather quickly, and they were allowed a break after going over what Ego had seen from all of them, pointing out where someone could improve or what they were doing right.

Rin sat down on one of the benches, chugging down half of his water bottle in one go as he watched everybody else interacting, noticing the little groups of soon-to-be friends starting to emerge. He watched as his teammates got along seamlessly, small conversations rippling through them all.

He stiffened as he watched Isagi begin to make his way over to him, with Rin quickly averting his gaze. Out of all the people here? Seriously?

“What?” Rin muttered as the other boy came to a stop beside the bench. “Tired of talking to bob-cut?”

“Bob-cut?” Isagi narrowed his eyes. “You mean Bachira? He’s busy talking to Kunigami and Chigiri right now.”

Rin waved his hand, not actually caring. “Why didn’t you join in, then?”

“Didn’t want to,” Isagi shrugged, taking it upon himself to sit down beside Rin, leaving a few inches between them. Rin rolled his eyes, bringing his water bottle to his lips again.

“Not interested in getting to know who we’re playing with?”

“No,” Rin answered quickly. “I’m here to play, not make any friends. I don’t have to hold conversations with them to know if we’ll meld on the field or not.”

“That’s not really the point,” Isagi shot back. “You don’t have to be best friends with anyone, but at least talking to everybody would make you seem more palatable to them all.”

Rin scoffed under his breath, eyes trailing out across the field again. “I don’t care about that.”

“Of course not,” Isagi rolled his eyes. Rin could feel the other boy looking at him with a trained gaze like he was trying to pick apart everything Rin was. “Sorry about Bachira earlier, by the way. He’s just a little nosy about what people do.”

“It seems like it,” Rin spoke. “Why does he care about people wearing scent patches?”

“He’s really into the idea of fated mates,” Isagi mused. “He thinks using something to block your scent keeps you from finding them.”

“Fated mates?” Rin scoffed. The idea of something like that always seemed too outlandish, too controlled, with the idea that someone was out there specifically made for someone else. There was no way people were made to be fated with someone. “That’s about as ridiculous as soulmates.”

Isagi shrugged, standing up as their break was called to end. “The idea is nice,” he mused, turning back to look at Rin. “It’s a comforting idea, at least.”

Rin just watched as Isagi walked away, rolling his eyes as he stood up and set his water bottle to the side, ready to return to practice.

He was admittedly zoned out the rest of practice, cursing himself as he couldn’t get the idea of fated mates out of his head.

It was a juvenile thought, something they get told as children as a way to make them feel better about themselves for when the day comes that they present. Alphas and omegas getting paired up with somebody based on nothing more than fate?

Bullshit.

There were always people who firmly believed in the idea, claiming that whoever they were mated to was their fated pair. Rin could never understand how mates could be so sure that whoever they were with was always meant to be theirs.

He’d grown up seeing these so-called fated pairs breaking their bonds and going through the pain of severing that tie to each other because it wasn’t working out for one reason or another. Rin didn’t really think that if they were fated pairs, they’d go through the process of undoing the bond that tied them together.

From what he had seen, it wasn’t an easy process. He remembers hearing his friend from childhood’s parents undoing the bond after one had decided to end it, how his friend’s mom had looked like a piece of her had died for months after it was successfully broken.

Rin knew omegas would always take the severing of bonds harder, too. It was an unfortunate part of their nature, constantly feeling things like that deeper than alphas ever could. It was yet another part of being an omega that he hated.

Life would be so much easier if he had presented as an alpha. Even easier, maybe, if he had turned out to be a beta.

At least if he were a beta, he wouldn’t have to worry about any of this. They were as close to normal as anyone could get without worrying about pheromones, heats, or ruts. He was envious of them, even if he would never admit it out loud.

Practice ended a few hours later, and everyone headed to the locker rooms to shower and get ready to go home for the day.

Rin decided to hang back, wanting to practice a little more. He could get a lot more done now that the field was empty, not having to worry about prying eyes or anybody bothering him while he was getting into the zone of it all.

Being alone on a field as large as their practice one was comforting. He supposes that it's a perk of being on a professional team. Every other field he had ever practiced on wasn’t regulation size, always smaller than he had wanted it to be.

He flowed through everything seamlessly, going through the motions of his usual practice routine. Sweat was beginning to build on his neck, dampening the scent patches he had put on. Rin paid no mind to it, figuring it was safe enough to play it a little risky with them since he was the only one out here.

The feeling eventually became too irritating, causing Rin to peel them off and toss them to the side. He had fresh ones in his bag anyway; he could just put a new pair on once he had cleaned up. The soft scent of his pheromones soon started to pool out as he continued to practice, filling the air around him.

He huffed out a breath as he paused, ball at his feet as he worked on catching his breath, winded from the official team practice and now this.

Maybe he should’ve eaten a better breakfast.

He didn’t bother to look up when he heard footsteps approaching him, already having an idea of who it was.

“You’re still out here?” Isagi’s voice came through clearly.

“Getting extra practice in,” Rin muttered, moving to get the ball between his feet again. “Can’t expect to stay good if you only practice with the team.”

If Isagi could pick up on his subtle scent, then he wasn’t mentioning it–something Rin was thankful for. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to hold back if the other would say anything about it.

“That’s true,” Isagi finally spoke. “Though you look like you’re about to drop at any moment.”

“I’m fine,” Rin huffed, glaring at Isagi as he finally met his gaze. Their eyes locked for longer than he had wanted them to, seeing something akin to a subtle understanding as Isagi’s eyes drifted down to his neck for a moment.

Rin continued to stare, unwavering as Isagi took a few steps back. So he had noticed. “Just–take a break or finish up early, yeah?” Isagi muttered. “Can’t have one of our best players burning themselves out before the season starts.”

All Rin did was nod as he watched Isagi pause before turning away, noticing the tips of his ears being a soft red before he walked away.

Weird.

Chapter Text

“Do you want to come with us to an izakaya after practice?” Bachira’s chirpy voice filtered through Rin’s ears as they were all in the locker room getting changed before heading onto the field. “We’re doing it as a team bonding thing.”

Rin cast a glance at him, holding back an eye roll. “Do I look like someone who frequents izakayas?”

“It’ll be fun!” Bachira continues to try and convince him. “We have an off day tomorrow, so we can drink!”

“We have very different ideas of fun,” Rin deadpanned as he shut his locker. “I’ll pass.”

Bachira’s excited demeanor didn’t falter as Rin declined the invitation. Far too cheery , Rin thought to himself as the other just shrugged and wandered away to bother somebody else.

The idea of seeing any of these people outside of the time Rin absolutely had to sounded awful–team bonding was the most ridiculous thing he had heard today so far, and it was only 8 a.m.

He was sure he’d hear some other dumb shit by the time practice was wrapping up. He always did.

The team was around each other enough as it was; there was no use in going out and spending even more time together, and the thought of drinking around them sounded even worse. Drunk people already pissed Rin off to no end, and surely it’d be even worse if it were his teammates that he was dealing with.

His teammates obviously disagreed with his thoughts because they all eagerly accepted the invitation, already rambling on about what they were going to order and taking bets on who’d get the most fucked up.

Rin was already glad he had declined the invitation after hearing that last part.

The excitement carried out onto the field, everybody getting right into practicing their drills without any complaints, wanting to get everything done correctly so they could all get out of there faster to start their celebrations.

They all had to start with running laps, his chest burning with exertion as he ran around the field, sweat already beginning to bead on his forehead the longer he ran. Rin was glad he had eaten an actual breakfast today; he didn’t think that only a simple protein drink would’ve gotten him through that.

He scratched at his wrists while he was running, deciding to play it a little risky today and go without the scent patches there, given he had taken a new dose of suppressants that morning. His pheromones were light enough now to get away with only wearing the ones on his neck, always a little more potent due to the mating gland.

Rin always felt a little more energized whenever he took a new dose of suppressants, being able to relax a bit more knowing that he had that extra layer of protection on him at all times now. He’d ultimately forego the suppressants once the off-season came around, and he didn’t have any responsibilities, but for now, he’d take them religiously. 

After all, he didn’t want to risk going into heat and missing games.

Of course, there was always the nagging voice in the back of his head telling him that the suppressants would fail, that he’d go into heat at the worst possible time, but he tried to ignore that as much as he could.

Rin would just have to be careful and make sure he was taking them like he was supposed to so that he could avoid any mishaps. He learned that the hard way when he was 15, when he ended up missing a few doses due to exam and championship games stress, leading him to go into heat early.

That was a rough week, to put it lightly.

There were downsides to suppressants, he supposed. Heats after weaning off of them for a while were always awful, far too painful to deal with alone. He only ever dealt with them alone, though, finding the solitude of it all to be better than risking anyone else seeing him in that state.

Rin found it shameful. Being an omega, in general, was shameful, but the idea of someone seeing him in his most vulnerable moments just made him far too uncomfortable to even think about for longer than a fleeting second.

Having an alpha there would make it easier, make his heats less intense, and prevent them from lasting as long as they usually do when he is nursing himself through them, but having an alpha there came with risks as well.

Accidental bonding, being too deep in the heat-induced haze, and the thought that he’d be begging for somebody? That was just disgusting to think about, if he was being honest. Rin probably wouldn’t even trust anybody enough to ever see him like that—definitely didn’t trust anyone enough to be bonded to them.

So he’d carry on going through his heats with nothing more than a half-broken toy and an underlying sense of self-pity. It all ended up fine once it was all over with.

With a deep breath, he started to slow his pace, noting that all his teammates were beginning to slow down as well so they could all cool down and catch their breath before moving on to the next part of their practice. They’d be running a scrimmage today. Rin had overheard Ego talking to Anri about it in passing.

He didn’t really see the sense in running practice scrimmages, but there wasn’t much he could say against them. It’d be helpful in the end, he figured. It would help everyone get into the feeling of playing games and allow them to consider how they all work together when it comes to games.

Rin hopes that Ego is also using it to figure out which players he wants to use as starters for their actual games, so all of these scrimmages won’t be for naught. There wasn’t any doubt in his mind that he’d be chosen as a starter; he’d be stupid to think otherwise. 

Seeing who he’d be starting with, though, is what he’s most interested in. He could list a few people that he was sure would be in the starting lineup, and they all played key roles in the success of the Blue Lock team. Rin was almost confident that the annoying alpha that was always buzzing around would be a starter; as irritating as he was, he was a damn good player.

Isagi would probably be a starter, too. The duality of their playstyles works a little too well to keep one of them benched, much to Rin’s annoyance. 

He hadn’t been able to keep the other boy out of his mind since the night Isagi had seen him practicing alone. Rin noticed the red on his ears as Isagi had gotten closer–how could he not? It wasn’t hard to pick it out when Isagi backed up. It was clear the alpha had managed to pick up the slightest hint of his pheromones as he was practicing.

Rin just hoped Isagi wouldn’t say anything about it if he fully realized that Rin was an omega.

Isagi had been shooting small glances over at Rin ever since their practice had started; whether he was trying to decide on something to talk to him about or if he was just keeping an eye on Rin to make sure he wasn't overworking himself, Rin wasn’t sure what the other was doing.

Though Rin wasn’t necessarily the best at reading people anyway, especially those who looked like they had a million questions running through their minds all at once. He shook his head, eyes meeting Isagi’s as the other looked at him for probably the twentieth time that day.

Isagi looked away quickly again, his jaw clenching almost imperceptibly, a mixture of irritation and interest carved into his features. He relaxed when Bachira went bounding over to him, jumping on his back and ultimately knocking the two of them to the ground.

“Dumbasses,” Rin muttered under his breath as he headed back to the sidelines, grabbing a towel and wiping the sweat from his face as he waited for the scrimmage to start.

He would never understand those two, a glare on his face as he watched Isagi try to push Bachira off of him so they could stand back up and get ready for the scrimmage as well.

Maybe he didn’t want to understand them, though. It’d probably be easier if he never questioned their dynamic. 

They were all called to gather for their scrimmage after a short break, Rin hanging around the outside of the group as always. He wasn’t really paying attention to anything Ego was saying as he spoke, though he probably should’ve been. The next thing he knew, everyone was splitting off into the two ‘teams’ for it, and the members were already talking excitedly about what they’d do to beat the other team.

“You’re with us,” Rin glanced over to see Isagi walking over to him. “Not paying attention, huh? That’s not like you.”

“You don’t know me,” Rin scoffed as the other boy came to a stop in front of him, defenses already rising without a second thought. “I was paying attention.”

Isagi just snorted, motioning to the rest of their makeshift team for this exercise. Rin’s gaze followed to see everyone in the group. “Sure you were.”

Rin wrinkled his nose in annoyance as he followed Isagi to the rest of their teammates, already unimpressed with everyone they had gotten paired up with. “What are we planning on doing to destroy the other team?”

“Destroy?” Isagi huffed out a laugh, looking at Rin from over his shoulder. “You’re taking this scrimmage far too seriously, Rin. I think the rest of us are just treating it as something fun to do until practice ends.”

“You guys don’t even want to win?” Rin deadpanned, almost exasperated as he spoke. “What’s the point then?”

“The point is to have fun ,” Isagi shrugged, a few of their teammates murmuring in agreement. Obviously, if this were a real game, we’d be the complete opposite, but for a scrimmage just between all of us? We can let loose and go a little wild.”

Rin sighed, shaking his head. “That’s lukewarm.”

“Whatever,” Isagi hummed, moving to turn back to everybody else. “Let’s just figure out what to do and see if we can win.”

They all talked about plays they wanted to pull off and different areas for each member to focus on for a while. Rin absentmindedly nodded along any time someone spoke. They had a decent enough plan set in stone by the time the scrimmage finally started; maybe they’d actually win.

They all decided to revolve their plays around Rin, a sense of satisfaction swirling in his body as they kicked off and the ball made its way under his feet, everything in him beginning to tune everything unnecessary out as he made his way down the field.

His eyes were narrowed as he took in any obstacles, passing the ball whenever he needed to and receiving passes whenever it came back around to him. He was close enough to the goal now to shoot, a deep breath slipping from his lips as he narrowed his eyes and kicked the ball as hard as he could, not even flinching when it sunk into the net.

Rin could hear the excitement from his teammates bubbling up as he glanced back at them, everybody rushing forward to pat his back. He didn’t miss the way Isagi gave him space, waiting for everyone to head back to their positions before nodding to him.

“Good shot, Rin.”

Rin just shook his head, brushing off his words as they went right back to it. He didn’t need any praise for doing what was expected of him, and he definitely didn’t need any praise coming from Isagi.

He could feel his skin prickling as Isagi kept glancing at him the more they played, their different styles worked seamlessly together as they kept running the same drills, Isagi adapting quickly to any changes Rin was making as the scrimmage continued.

Something tugged at the back of Rin’s mind as he noted Isagi taking the match seriously whenever they were with each other. The subtle nods and passes to where he knew Rin was headed stirred something inside of him.

Nobody had matched that well with him since he’d played with his brother when he was younger; nobody was ever able to keep up with him as well as Sae had.

Rin sighed, passing the ball back over to Isagi before maneuvering himself around a few of the defenders on the other team, ready to get into position to score again.

The scrimmage only lasted another twenty minutes before it was called, Rin’s team winning by just one point. It was an exhilarating match; even Rin could admit that. True to Isagi’s words, everyone was trying to make it as fun as possible throughout its entirety, yet there were still serious moments that Rin enjoyed a lot more.

He walked off the field to grab his water bottle, draining it in one gulp as he watched everybody else do the same, the excited chattering of their izakaya trip coming back to life.

“Are you sure you don’t want to come?” Bachira ran over to him, a smile plastered on his face despite his tired expression. 

“I said I didn’t want to, didn’t I?” Rin muttered, tossing his water bottle back into the box with all the newly emptied ones.

Bachira nodded, staying silent for a moment before speaking again. “Isagi wants you to come,” he shrugged, mischief swirling in his yellow gaze. “Don’t tell him I told you that, though. He’d kill me.”

“Isagi wants me to come?” Rin echoed, raising an eyebrow.

Bachira nodded, almost bouncing as he watched Rin think everything over. “He thinks it’d be fun if everyone were together; he doesn’t want you to feel left out.”

“Why would I feel left out?” Rin scoffed, eyeing Bachira suspiciously.

“Dunno, that’s just what he said,” Bachira spoke, moving closer as his words turned into a whisper. “Though between you and me, I just think he likes you and wants an excuse to hang out outside of here.”

“Likes me?” Rin muttered, almost in disbelief. Bachira just nodded excitedly, almost as if he could tell what Rin was going to say next.

Rin spared a glance at Isagi; the other boy’s back turned as he talked to a few of their teammates. He sighed, running a hand through his sweat-soaked hair. “Fucking fine. I’ll come, but only for an hour.”

“Great!” Bachira chirped, fully satisfied with Rin’s answer. “We’re all just gonna head straight there after we shower.”

Rin nodded as he watched him walk off, joining a few of the guys as they made their way to the locker room. He hung back for a few more moments, hesitating before heading there as well.

What the hell did Bachira mean by liking him?

Chapter Text

Rin immediately regretted agreeing to go to the izakaya with everyone as soon as he stepped inside. He watched his teammates flock to the open tables and disperse into small groups, and the noise level rose as everyone began to order drinks.

He resigned himself to sitting next to Bachira and Isagi, knowing that he wouldn’t have much of a choice otherwise. That meddling little bee would’ve found any way to keep him nearby, especially after what he had ended up telling Rin to get him to come in the first place.

The conversation wasn’t one Rin was particularly interested in; Bachira animatedly talked to Kunigami and Chigiri–names Rin had finally bothered to learn solely because they were also at the table.

He should probably make more of an effort to get to know his teammates' names. Maybe he’d find a sly way to ask the two dumbasses who hung around him; that’d be the easiest way.

“You’re bonded now?” Bachira’s voice filtered through his ears. “That’s so exciting! How was it?”

“Bachira,” Isagi joined in with a sigh, poking at his best friend. “You don’t just ask mates how it felt to be bonded. That’s too personal.”

Rin rolled his eyes, grabbing his glass of beer and taking a small sip, resigning himself to just nursing that one drink for the whole night. Someone would have to look out for the rest of the team, knowing they won’t pace themselves with their drinking.

Bachira had just scoffed at Isagi’s words, brushing them off. “Everybody knows how people bond, Isagi,” he chirped. “It’s still fun to hear about it.”

The newly mated pair laughed it off, with Chigiri saying it was fine and Kunigami rolling his eyes playfully. “Let me drink a little more and I’ll tell you, yeah?” The redhead had mused before finishing off his drink and getting up to grab another.

Rin was silent as ever, more so taking in the sight of everyone conversing amongst themselves instead of joining in the conversation. It’s not like he had anything to add, especially when it came to the topic of bonding and mates. He didn’t have any experience or real need to get any experience in the matter. Rin just really didn’t give a shit about the idea.

“Do you want anything to eat?” Isagi nudged him, pulling Rin out of his daze. 

“Not really in the mood to fill my body with fried slop that’ll set me back a week's worth of training,” Rin muttered in response, arm feeling like it was burning from where Isagi had nudged him. 

“A few bites won’t do much damage,” Isagi laughed. “Especially if you watch what you eat the rest of the time. Think of this like a cheat day or something.”

“I don’t do cheat days,” Rin deadpanned. “We’re professionals now; we need to watch what we eat.”

Isagi rolled his eyes before turning back to the menu. “They have edamame. That’s healthy.”

“You won’t stop until I say yes, right?”

“Pretty much.”

Rin sighed, glancing over at the menu and scanning over the options for the appetizers that were offered. “You’re gonna give me shit if I eat the only healthy thing on the menu, too, aren’t you?”

Isagi hummed in confirmation, shutting the menu and looking back at Rin. “You’ve been working harder than anyone here during practices, even outside of that,” he pointed out. “Allow yourself to relax and eat something that actually tastes good , Rin.”

“Kaarage, then,” Rin finally huffed out. “I’ll eat that.”

Isagi nodded, fully satisfied with his answer before waving over the waitress to order what everyone wanted. Rin slumped back in his seat, mentally going over how many extra drills he’d have to make himself run in order to make up for slipping on his diet.

Plates started to get set on the table a couple of minutes later, and everyone went silent as they grabbed their chopsticks and got right to eating. Rin waited for everyone to grab what they wanted before grabbing a few pieces of the kaarage and some gyoza for himself, taking a bite.

The kaarage was good, of course it was. Rin wasn’t stupid. He knew shitty food like this would always taste infinitely better than the protein-rich meals he’d prep for himself every week. Everyone else at the table was clearly in agreement as they started chattering again, talking about how they needed to come here for the food more often.

“Taste good?” Isagi turned to look at him as Rin popped another piece into his mouth. Rin nodded as he swallowed. 

“It’s fine,” he shrugged, trying to hide the fact that he enjoyed it like an idiot. 

“You’ve already cleared your plate,” Isagi laughed, pointing at the empty dish with his chopsticks. “You think it’s more than fine.”

Isagi had a point, but his teasing was starting to irritate Rin. “Shut up,” he muttered. “I don’t eat this stuff a lot, so what?”

“No need to get defensive,” Isagi said, eyes glinting with amusement. “It’s nice to see you enjoying something for once.”

“You’re an idiot,” Rin huffed as he rose from his seat. “I’m going to the bathroom.”

Isagi nodded before turning back to everyone else, jumping back into their conversation with ease.

The izakaya was pretty empty aside from his team, so the short walk to the bathroom wasn’t awful; Rin was grateful for the fact that he wasn’t bumping into people. He could do without the low lighting of the bathroom as he stepped inside, finding it incredibly ridiculous to have a bathroom set up like that, but he figured it was part of the izakaya experience.

He didn’t even need to use the bathroom–he just wanted to get away from the noise for a moment. It was more peaceful, and he could hear his own thoughts without any background conversations tugging him out of it all. 

Rin was leaning over the counter, hands pressed against the cool marble as he took a deep breath, reeling himself in. He wasn’t even sure why he was having such an issue with being out tonight, why it was bothering him as much as it was. It wasn’t like he was doing anything that used up too much of his social battery; hell, the only person he talked to was Isagi.

It was still a lot for him, though. Rin would much rather be at home, kicking his soccer ball around or curled up in his bed watching replays of games. Yet he was here, still trying to decipher what the fuck Bachira meant when he said that he thought Isagi liked him.

He was acting far too lukewarm for his liking, hearing that word echo in his mind over and over until it’d surely drive him insane.

Something like this shouldn’t be bothering him–someone he doesn't even necessarily like having potentially romantic feelings toward him is stupid. Isagi doesn’t even know him beyond some surface-level bullshit that Rin gives him. He doesn’t know his thoughts or his feelings or how he really is at the end of the day when he’s at home alone.

Isagi doesn’t even know Rin’s past, not that it really matters in retrospect, nor would he ever actually divulge all of that to the other boy.

Rin doesn’t need to think about it more than he already does. He damn sure doesn’t need to start telling it to people. He wasn’t sure he’d ever be comfortable with that sort of vulnerability, with the idea that somebody else could possibly use all of that against him.

It’s happened before and he’d prefer that it didn’t happen again. 

Isagi probably just liked him for who he presented himself as–if Bachira’s words were even true to begin with. It was the facade that Rin put up, the alpha that didn’t give a shit about what others thought and was only focused on one thing only.

He still didn’t know of Rin’s status as an omega, if the faint whiff of his pheromones didn’t tip him off. Isagi struck him as the type of person who’d bring that up, though, maybe not out of malice but out of pure curiosity in wanting to know why Rin was so desperate to hide that fact about him.

With a sigh, he shook his head, pushing himself off the counter and back toward the bathroom door, figuring that someone might come looking for him if he spent any more time there. His teammates were still being loud when he neared them all, and the drinks were obviously beginning to set in.

He took his seat, silent as always, and made a pointed decision to ignore the look of concern that was etched over Isagi’s features when the alpha glanced at him.

Maybe he realized that his mood had shifted from before, but Rin damn sure wasn’t going to be the one to bring it up.

—

Everyone had gotten progressively more drunk as the night continued, Rin being tormented by everyone at the table acting like a complete idiot. He could’ve left long before they had reached this point, long before he’d have to hear how incessant Bachira’s yapping got the more he drank, but he stayed.

Even he didn’t know why he had chosen to stay, but the look on Isagi’s face when he had shifted, about to make his exit had made something in his chest tug a bit, made him actually want to be around the other boy even if it meant having to continue dealing with the other idiots for far longer than he wanted to. 

“Is he always like this when he’s drunk?” Rin muttered after a moment, glancing at Isagi before looking back at how Bachira was almost hanging off of Chigiri, the other clearly exasperated by his actions yet letting him be clingy anyway.

“Yeah,” Isagi sighed, leaning back against his chair. “It’s like his usual talkative self just multiplies when he’s had too many drinks. It’s endearing, really.”

“Endearing?” Rin scoffed, taking a sip of his drink. “How do you find that endearing?”

Isagi shrugged, cracking a grin as he watched Bachira cling to their friend. “There’s something sweet about seeing how openly affectionate he is with people,” he began. “He lights up when he’s around those he loves. It’s sweet.”

Rin nodded, taking everything in. His words did ring true; watching the other boy being open with how much he cared for his friends was nice to see, nor did Bachira shy away when Rin would get snippy with him, still pushing for some semblance of connection between the two of them. “I guess you have a point,” he muttered after a minute. “He’s still far too excitable when it comes to interacting with people, though.”

“I don’t think so,” Isagi spoke as he looked back at Rin. “From what he’s told me about how he was when he was younger, it’s nice to see him with so many friends. Bachira absolutely flourishes when he’s around others.”

Rin nodded, unsure if he wanted to probe Isagi for more information or not. It wasn’t really his place, but the tugging in the back of his head was almost desperate to know if Bachira was as lonely as he had been as a kid.

Obviously Bachira was making up for it now, making friends with literally anybody he could come across. Rin couldn’t even do that much–finding too much comfort in the solitude from how long he had been dealing with it.

That was admirable, at least. Being able to push that side of himself down and still put himself out there in some vulnerability in hopes that people would let him stick around.

“What about you?”

“What about me?” Isagi asked, raising an eyebrow.

“How was your childhood?”

Isagi huffed out a laugh, setting his drink down. “Are you actually interested in knowing that?”

Rin shrugged. “Gives me something to listen to while I’m stuck here.”

“So definitely not interested,” Isagi laughed again. “My childhood was normal. Two loving parents, a good school life. I was far too interested in soccer, even as a kid.”

Rin nodded. “Any siblings?”

“Nah,” Isagi shook his head. “I was an only child. You?”

“Not much to talk about,” Rin mumbled. “Older brother. I spent most of my time with him until he left to go play overseas. He’s the one who got me into soccer.”

“Do you still talk to him?”

Rin sighed, pausing for a moment before answering. “No.”

Isagi nodded, humming thoughtfully to himself. “I’m guessing it’s something you don’t want to discuss, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Rin spoke. “It doesn’t really matter.”

“Fair enough,” Isagi shrugged. Rin knew that Isagi probably wanted more information, wanted to poke and prod to find out anything more about him, but he could be thankful for the topic lapsing.

Anyone would be stupid if they couldn’t put two and two together, being able to figure out who Rin’s brother was. Anybody who followed soccer, in general, knew who Itoshi Sae was and could see the same last name and the near identical resemblance between them.

Rin hated it when people pointed it out, but there really wasn’t anything he could do about it other than shut them down as quickly as they opened their mouths or just ignore them. It had gotten easy enough to do both as he got older, wanting to distance himself from his brother entirely.

Making a name for himself was more important, would always be more important than living in the cold, lonely shadows of Itoshi Sae.

Isagi shifted to get up and grab another drink, Rin’s gaze following him as he headed up to the bar. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever be able to figure the boy out, but something in him wanted to try. Rin was sure Isagi felt the same way, still not grasping why Isagi was so keen on getting closer to him. 

He was pulled from his thoughts again as Bachira turned to look at him, eyes glassy yet so full of excitement at the prospect of having him alone, even if it was just going to be a few minutes.

“Are you having fun, Rin?” He chirped, words just a little bit slurred. “I’m so happy you came with us!”

“I wouldn’t say fun ,” Rin mumbled. “It’s alright, I guess.”

“That’s better than absolutely hating it, though, right?” Bachira continued. “Isagi was happy, too, when you finally agreed to come. Said he would’ve been bored without you.”

“Bored without me?” Rin scoffed under his breath. “I’ve barely talked to him all night; I’ve just been watching all of you.”

Bachira shrugged, uncaring. “That doesn’t matter to him. He just likes having you around.”

Rin raised an eyebrow at the other’s words, wanting to ask more questions and figure out what he meant by that. He’s probably just spouting whatever because he’s drunk, but Rin figures there may be some sort of truth behind them.

“Likes having me around?”

Bachira nodded. “He talks about you a lot,” he continued, waving his hands around for emphasis. “Isagi wants to get to know you better; said you’re the most interesting person on the team. I honestly haven’t seen him this interested in someone since his last boyfriend a few years ago.”

Rin narrowed his eyes slightly, taking in everything he was saying. “The most interesting person on the team, huh?” He murmured under his breath. If only he knew. Isagi would probably distance himself from Rin if he knew everything Rin was dealing with.

Maybe he was just being dramatic. Isagi probably wouldn’t even care. He just didn’t seem like the type of person to do that, based on what Rin knew about him from their surface-level conversations. 

“I don’t see why he’s that interested in me,” Rin continued, louder this time so Bachira could actually hear him. 

“Dunno,” was all Bachira had responded with. “Maybe he just likes broody guys.”

Rin scoffed, glancing away. Broody? Is that how other people saw him? That’s a little pathetic. “Broody? Really?”

“Is it wrong?” Bachira asked as he took another swig of his drink, downing the rest of his beer in one gulp. “You’re quiet and always hanging on the edge of the team whenever we’re all grouped up. That’s a little broody.”

“Yeah, whatever,” Rin mumbled, about to speak again when Isagi returned with another drink, sitting back in his empty seat.

“Talk about anything interesting?” He asked as he set the glass down, eyes darting between the other two boys. 

Rin just shook his head, definitely not wanting Isagi to find out that he was trying to find out literally any tiny detail from Bachira. “Not really.”

Bachira, much to his delight, if Rin could even call it a delight to begin with, didn’t give anything embarrassing away, even in his drunken stupor. “We were just talking about our upcoming games.”

Isagi nodded, seemingly satisfied with the answers he had received. “Yeah? I haven’t even put any thought into them yet. I probably should, though. Our first game is up against a pretty tough team.”

“We’ll be fine,” Rin muttered. “I doubt they’d be too difficult to beat–you idiots just have to follow my lead, and we’ll win.”

“Gonna lead us to victory?” Bachira said, grinning. “You’re awfully sure of yourself; I like that.”

“Good luck getting the rest of the team to follow along with that,” Isagi laughed as he took another drink. “We’re all a little too egotistical to follow just one person, even if you’re already being crowned as the star of the team before the season has even gotten into full swing.”

“They’ll figure it out soon enough,” Rin sighed, opting to reach out and grab another piece of gyoza for the hell of it. He’ll just add an extra hour to his training tomorrow.

“Who are we even playing against?” Bachira asked, eyes wide with nothing but excitement in his gaze. “I’m gonna rewatch their games while I recover tomorrow to see how they play.”

Rin tuned them out at that point, not caring too much. He could always look up the teams they were slated to play against this season later–they weren’t even set to have a game for another few weeks, he’d have time to go over everything.

The Blue Lock team just needed to stick to sorting their shit out for another week or two during practices before any of them got to the point of planning ways to defeat the rival teams. It’d be pretty damn embarrassing to lose the first game of their professional careers.

“...Itoshi Sae and Shidou Ryusei are on it, last I’ve heard.”

What?

Rin paused, wondering if he had heard Isagi wrong. He didn’t even realize that his brother was back in Japan and didn’t know that he had signed a new contract after leaving all those years ago to play overseas. 

“Oh! I’ve heard that they’re a lethal duo to play against,” Bachira’s voice came into the conversation again. “They like, only listen to each other from what I’ve heard. There’s rumors that they’re mated, too.”

Well, that last part was definitely news to Rin.

“You listen to rumors?” Rin scoffed, trying his best to act normal, like he didn’t hear what could quite literally be the worst news of the day.

“It's rumors 'cause they haven’t confirmed anything,” Bachira said with a shrug. “Though they’re only ever photographed with each other, and they definitely have matching bond marks on their napes.”

“I’m surprised you haven’t heard about it; the news was literally everywhere,” Isagi added. “Not only that, but people were surprised that Shidou Ryusei is an omega. That’s confirmed by him, at least.”

“I don’t keep up with that stuff,” Rin muttered as he took a mental note to do a deep dive into all of that once he was home for the night, fully prepared to absolutely wreck his mental state with what he was about to see.

“I like it. I feel like omegas need more representation in professional sports,” Isagi said, and Rin noticed the glance he had shot his way. Bachira nodded in agreement. “Enough of this chat, though. We’re here to get away from soccer for the night.”

The other two fell into another conversation after that, and Rin was thankful for the change of subject, even if it had delved into something he had no idea about by now. He had heard too much tonight, and his head was starting to hurt.

He really should’ve just gone home. 

—

Luckily, they didn’t stay at the izakaya for much longer, maybe an hour or two at most. Everyone on the team was thoroughly wasted by now, staggering off in groups with cheerful waves goodbye. Even Isagi was unsteady on his feet after Bachira challenged him to see who could drink the most glasses of beer in one go.

That was rough to watch, and Rin had to roll his eyes at how stupid they both were. Bachira had gone home soon after that, a few of their friends ushering him out so they could get him home and in bed,

Of course, that meant Isagi was left alone with Rin while he waited for his ride to come and pick him up. “You’re an idiot,” he muttered as he watched Isagi sway, eventually giving up and leaning against Rin for support. 

“I won, though,” he mused, clearly not in the mood to move soon. “I knew I would.”

“You shouldn’t have done it to begin with,” Rin sighed, feeling like a mother scolding her son. “You’re gonna feel like shit in the morning.”

Isagi waved off his words, laughing quietly. They fell into a comfortable silence for a while, Isagi’s eyes shut and head resting against Rin’s shoulder as they waited. Rin knew he should probably move away, not really wanting the contact yet unable to find it in himself to push the other boy away.

It was…a little more comfortable than Rin wanted to admit, with it being far too long since he had willingly let anybody lean against him like that. Isagi wasn’t too bothersome when he really thought about it, much better than it being any of their other teammates.

Isagi had shifted closer, head tucked up by Rin’s neck, his nose a little too close to Rin’s covered scent glands for comfort, but the patches and suppressants should be doing enough to keep his pheromones mostly undetected, even to an alpha.

Naturally, Rin isn’t always that lucky. Maybe he was delusional for even thinking Isagi wouldn’t pick up on them, but never mind the fact that Isagi had definitely picked up on his scent that night when he caught Rin practicing alone with his scent blockers off.

“Rin?” Isagi broke the silence, opening his eyes to look up at him.

“What?” Rin mumbled, glancing down at him with an unimpressed expression on his face.

“You’re an omega, aren’t you?”

Chapter Text

“You’re an omega, aren’t you?”

Rin felt his blood run cold at Isagi’s words, as dramatic as that may make him sound. He had a feeling that Isagi had figured it out, the other being too goddamned perceptive for his own good, but Rin was stuck in his ways of hoping that he’d never bring it up.

He pushed Isagi away as quickly as those words had left his mouth, Rin’s guard building back up almost as fast as it had fallen when he had first felt the weight of Isagi’s body hanging on his shoulder. Isagi wobbled on his feet for a few moments before steadying himself, looking at Rin with a blank expression, obviously waiting for Rin to speak.

“No, I’m not. Why would you think that?”

“It’s obvious when someone looks at you longer than a few minutes.”

“Obvious?” Rin scoffed, tugging his jacket around his body as a way to hide, a way to keep himself shielded from the prying eyes of Isagi Yoichi. “You’re just drunk, dumbass.”

“Not drunk enough to be called a dumbass,” Isagi muttered back, stepping right up to Rin. “You’re hiding a part of who you are. Why?”

“I’m not hiding shit,” Rin said. “You’re wrong. I’m not an omega.”

“You’re a shitty liar, Rin.”

Rin cursed under his breath, peering down at Isagi, close enough to notice the flush on his cheeks from drinking and how his eyelashes fanned out across his face. He knew he wasn’t going to get out of this as easily as he hoped he would.

“Tell me why, Rin,” Isagi insisted again.

“You don’t need to know why,” Rin gritted out, trying to keep his temper from flaring. It took him a few seconds to realize that he had essentially confirmed it to Isagi after saying that. “Don’t tell anybody, or you’re dead.”

Isagi huffed out a laugh, raising an eyebrow at Rin. “So you are,” he clicked his tongue. “I’m not going to go around telling everybody your business, Rin. I’m not that type of person.”

“That still doesn’t matter. I’d be ruined if anyone found out.”

“There are other omegas on our team, you know,” Isagi rolled his eyes. “Reo is one. Chigiri is one if you haven’t already picked up on that from the conversation earlier. More and more omegas are joining professional sports.”

“Good for them,” Rin said, shoving his hands into his pockets to warm them up. “That doesn’t mean I want people to know what I am.”

“Are you ashamed of it?” Isagi asked pointedly, more so curious than anything. Rin could probably trust him, believe his words when he said that he wouldn’t tell anybody and that they could drop the conversation after this as if it had never happened to begin with.

“Yes,” he answered with surprising ease. “You know how fucking embarrassing it is to be something perceived as weak? To be looked down on by everyone you know when you present, and suddenly you’re nothing more than your secondary gender?”

“Well, no,” Isagi murmured. “I don’t. I suppose I have it easy in that regard.”

“You do,” Rin huffed back, glancing over at Isagi before looking back out at the road. “Alphas always take that fact for granted. You guys don’t get looks of disgust whenever someone picks up on who you are. You don’t have to be on alert constantly and hope you don’t go into a rut randomly because they’re more regular compared to heats.”

Isagi nodded along, letting Rin vent all of his frustration out on the matter. “Alphas aren’t the laughing stock of their families, either,” he continued on. “People pray that their children are born an alpha so that they don’t have to struggle.”

“I guess that’s true,” Isagi sighed. “I never really thought about it that way. There’s no omegas in my family; my parents are both alphas, so I didn’t get any experience with omegas until well into high school.”

Rin huffed out a bitter laugh at his words. “That does make things easier for you then, doesn’t it?”

Isagi paused before speaking again. “It does,” he said. “Sorry for bringing it up.”

Be careful.

Rin just nodded, stepping back a few paces to give the two of them some space again, the voice in the back of his head nagging that Isagi would be able to pick up on the nerves flaring through his body at this conversation or the flaring of his pheromones through his scent patches, signaling an omega in distress.

Pathetic. What does he even have to be in distress over?

“When is your ride getting here?” He asked, wanting, no, needing to change the topic of the conversation. “I’m tired of standing around here waiting with you.”

Isagi shrugged, fishing his phone out of his pocket and turning it on to check. “It's ten minutes away,” he murmured before shutting it off again. “You don’t have to wait with me; I’ll be fine.”

Rin rolled his eyes, glancing back at Isagi before turning to face the road again, leaning back against the rough wall of the izakaya. “I’m not going to let you wait out here alone after you’ve been drinking.”

“So you do have a heart,” Isagi grinned, copying Rin’s movements. “I can take care of myself, though. Alcohol or not.”

“I’m not saying you can’t,” Rin huffed out. “I’m just saying you won’t .”

Isagi must’ve accepted that as an answer because he went silent after that, the cool night breeze rushing over the two of them as they waited for his ride to get there. It was a comfortable silence, well, as comfortable as it could be after everything.

Rin was just thankful that Isagi didn’t press any further, though he was sure that he would eventually. Most people usually did when they found out Rin was an omega, usually a mix of shock and eventual disgust when they realize what he is, immediately questioning why he isn’t pursuing a different career path or not thinking of settling down like other omegas.

Though one quick glare and those conversations usually end as soon as they began.

True to his word, Isagi’s ride showed up ten minutes later. He waved goodbye to Rin as he slid into the car and shut the door behind him. Rin gave a curt nod in return as he watched the car pull away from the curb and head down the street.

He waited till the car was out of sight before letting out a sigh, pushing himself away from the wall and making his way down to the train station, keeping his coat snug around his body as the temperatures slowly crept down even more.

Rin was going to have to start being more careful again, his mother’s words ringing through his ears as clearly as they did the day he presented as an omega. He couldn’t take any chances and forgo scent patches at any practices or games now, knowing that Isagi had figured it out, supposing his other teammates would quickly figure it out, too.

He also had too much to think about now: their upcoming game, the knowledge that he’d be face to face with his brother again after god knows how long, and the fact that Sae apparently had a mate now, too. That was weird to think about. Rin had never really thought that his brother would ever get bonded to someone, the idea being too lukewarm to him as well when they were younger.

Years passing of almost no contact changes things, Rin figures. They were more different than they were alike these days.

He shook his head, weaving through the small crowds in the train station before leaning up against a pillar as he waited for the one he needed to take. There was no use dwelling on it; Sae being bonded was the least of Rin’s concerns.

Rin just needed to focus on a way to absolutely crush him, to let Sae know that he’d still become the best despite being an omega. Itoshi Sae would learn that every venomous word he had spat at Rin back then meant nothing–that Rin would always be better than what he would’ve ever expected him to be.

The train pulled into the station a few minutes later, and Rin made his way to a seat in an empty corner once passengers had finished filing off. He pulled out his phone, rolling his eyes as he saw a message from Isagi telling him that he had safely made it back to his apartment.

He had already forgotten that he had asked him to do that as soon as he had gotten home. 

Rin just responded with a thumbs-up before closing out the messaging app, going against every little thing screaming in his mind, heading right to the Google app, and immediately looking up his brother.

He scrolled past the mindless articles of trying to break down Sae’s playstyle or what team he was on now, only pausing when he found what he wanted. Sae’s social media was linked. Rin hesitated for a moment before tapping on it and watching Instagram open up.

Sae clearly wasn’t on social media much; there were only a handful of posts as Rin looked at them all. The odd photo of a soccer field or an incredibly old photo from when he first left was the first thing Rin had even seen, though one did catch his eye.

The most recent photo was of a few weeks ago, blurry but incredibly obvious what it was when Rin looked at the other person who was tagged in the image. It was risky for even Sae’s standards, the silhouette of a larger body in the mirror with a very evident bond mark on his neck.

He actually did it.

Rin rolled his eyes, shutting his phone off and sliding it back into his pocket without a second thought. It was a weird feeling, being bitter over something like this, but he couldn’t help it.

I guess omegas aren’t useless when you’re getting something from them, he thought to himself as the train pulled into Rin’s station, the boy pulling himself up from his seat and making his way out and down the familiar walk to his house.

Rin made the walk quicker than usual, half in part due to the cold. He couldn’t stand being out in cold weather and half because he was irritated. Though his being irritated was incredibly common depending on the day, it’s not like it was surprising in any way.

It felt different tonight, though. The conversation with Isagi had already put him on edge, and it just nosedived when he had decided to stick his nose where it didn’t belong. He could hear his mom’s favorite thing to tell him when he was younger in the back of his mind– don’t stick your nose in other people’s business, Rin! It might upset you!

He should’ve listened to her more.

The door to his house slammed behind him as he stepped inside, kicking his shoes off onto the mat before he trekked upstairs without bothering to check if anyone else was home. Rin wasn’t in the mood to talk to anybody else, anyway.

Rin didn’t waste any time going straight to his bathroom and turning the shower on. The water was probably far too hot for what it was worth, but he didn’t care. Hot showers were a way to relax, a way to wash away everything that was bothering him, even if it was just for a little while.

He glanced at himself in the mirror as the water was heating up, running his fingers through his hair before tracing them down his neck to his scent patches, wincing as he tugged them off.

Rin grimaced as the tips of his fingers brushed against the raw, red skin of his scent glands. He had left the patches on too long this time, the adhesive hurting his skin far more than usual. Fuck , he muttered under his breath, pheromones slowly leaking out as he pressed down a little too hard. 

He’d have to go without them at practice tomorrow, taking a risk that he didn’t want to, especially with Isagi’s prying eyes around, but he knew he didn’t have any other choice in the matter. 

If he tried to put fresh patches on when his skin was all blistered like this, he’d probably end up with his skin peeling off. Even someone as anal as he was with making sure to keep everything hidden wasn’t going to risk something as painful as that.

Rin would just have to try to keep his distance from everybody as much as he possibly could–and hope to whatever God was listening that his suppressants were working well enough to keep his pheromones under control.

Maybe he was being a little dramatic over it all; someone already knows what he is. The fact that he isn’t the only omega on the team makes things a little easier as well if he did ever decide to share it with the rest of them.

The thought still made him sick to his stomach, though. 

Rin just didn’t want to be perceived as weak by anybody, even though he was not the only one stuck with the status of being an omega. Parading himself around as something he’s not is probably not the way to go about it, and it’s definitely causing irreparable damage to his already fragile sense of self. Still, he wasn’t ready to drop that facade just yet.

He already had one person in his life toss him to the side like he was filth when he presented, and Rin wasn’t ready for that to happen again.

With a sigh, he pushed himself away from the counter and stepped into the shower, letting the scalding of the water wash away everything from today.

Maybe he’d get lucky, and Isagi wouldn’t remember their conversation the next time they had practice. The other boy wasn’t as drunk as Rin had assumed he was but was probably at the limit of the memories from tonight to be hazy enough not to remember if it even happened.

It could stay as just an inkling that Isagi had–not the confirmation that had slipped from Rin’s lips before he had even wanted it to. 

Rin would be fine . Everything would be fine, and he could go back to the not-so-blissful ignorance that he had built up about his status as an omega.

He just had to hope to all that was holy that Isagi wouldn’t remember. That’s all.

“Are you ashamed of it?” Rang in his ears as he let the water cascade over his body, feeling his muscles relax.

Rin would always be ashamed of it, even if the day ever came that omegas and alphas were on even footing in any context. He hated how he was born this way, how his biology failed him and set him on a path that he had never even put any thought into.

He was always confident that he’d present as an alpha, the idea of that growing even more when Sae had presented as one a few years prior. If his brother was an alpha, he’d obviously be one too, right?

Typical childhood idiocy. The idea of being an omega had never crossed his mind until the day he woke up and was covered in slick, the beginning of his first heat.

He was pissed and in pain, to put it simply, calling out for his mom as his body shook with too many emotions than he could even place a name to. His mom tried everything he could to calm him down, to help him clean up and get everything ready to go through his heat; the first one is always the worst, Rin, she had told him. It’ll get easier.

That was bullshit. His heats had always been awful, painful to the point where he thought his insides were getting torn apart. Doctors never knew why his were as bad as they were, nothing helping whenever they gave him ideas on how to ease the pain.

Thus, he was put on suppressants to try to keep his heats at bay for as long as possible before he allowed himself to have one. They definitely grew less painful as time passed, yet never to the point where he wouldn’t be curled into a ball waiting for them to end.

He hated how the more primal part of himself took over during them, too. Something in his mind screaming out for an alpha to come help, to come satiate the burning in his abdomen. He’d never seek out an alpha, vehemently against the idea.

Though something in him always did wonder what it'd feel like. To have one take care of him, to curl around his body and take the pain away and give him whatever he wanted. Alphas were good for that, at least. Heats would probably be more bearable if he kept one around for that.

The idea of any alpha helping him out made Rin cringe if he was being honest. Picking one up off the street, even though he knew some who would help him in a heartbeat if he asked, just felt wrong , like there was an alpha that his subconscious was specifically looking for in order to calm that part of him down.

He didn’t really understand why he felt like he could only have one specific person, the fleeting idea of a fated mate like Bachira had talked about before flittering around his mind. Rin thought those were absolute bullshit, but another, much smaller part of him almost wanted to believe that they were real.

Even if they didn’t actually exist.

Maybe that person was out there somewhere, right under Rin’s nose, should he ever decide to be vulnerable enough to let it happen.

He’d just have to go looking for them.

Chapter Text

Their first match was coming up quickly, and Rin did not feel prepared for it in the slightest. Their last few practices were a mess, most still too hungover from their dinner to even think about playing correctly and just sat off on the sidelines looking like they were about to hurl, and their most recent practice was just full of everyone dicking around for most of it.

Saying he was pissed was an understatement, as dramatic as it sounded. He had something he needed to prove, knowing that his team would be playing against Sae and his mate. There was nothing that Rin wanted more than to shove it in his stupid, nearly identical face that he was better, that his status as an omega didn’t mean shit when it came to how he played.

If only his stupid teammates would get the memo. 

He supposes that it can’t be all bad. Today’s practice is already going better, whether it be the looming threat of their match coming up or everyone picking up on how he’s about to lose his mind. He doesn’t know, but he won’t take it for granted.

They had a practice scrimmage at the beginning where they mapped out the different plays they had learned over the last few practices and got to see how it went when it was all fleshed out, so their main playstyle for the game was already decided. Rin figures they have a decent shot at winning, though he’ll have to go home and actually force himself to finally look up Sae’s team and see what their chances really are.

Rin had to forego his scent patches altogether today, which was the only thing keeping him on edge. He had sweated enough from their drills that his pheromones were mostly covered, but the little nagging part of him still wanted to say that everyone could smell him.

His skin was still far too blistered even to try and wear them, something he noticed the night prior when he was trying to put them on to go for a run when his wrists started stinging the second the adhesive came into contact with the thin skin of his wrists.

Everyone else on his team seemed to have no qualms about letting their pheromones free while out, and that was probably the healthier option than dealing with constant allergic reactions. Rin wasn’t known to make healthy choices, though. That ship had sailed back when he was in high school.

It was so stupid , worrying about something like that. He knew it was ridiculous that nobody would even bat an eye and just carry on with their drills like nothing was even there, but he would always have the innate urge to hide every part of himself.

Blistered skin and pathetic allergies be damned, Rin was still going to wear those scent blockers.

They were all lining up for another drill, most of his teammates eagerly waiting for their next instructions. He hung near the back of the group again, off in his own little world. They weren’t going over anything new now, just the basic shooting and passing drills that almost every professional team goes over to ensure their players are in tip-top shape. Rin didn’t really care; he was just ready to get this practice over so he could go home and shower at this point.

He could also feel Isagi’s eyes on him again, pissing him off more than he wanted to. Rin shifted his gaze to meet the other boy’s, raising a challenging eyebrow. Isagi took the bait, moving from his spot next to Bachira and started walking over.

“No patches today?” Was the first thing that came out of his mouth, eyes trained on Rin’s skin, more out of curiosity than anything else.

“You’ve been staring at me all practice. Surely you’ve noticed how ruined my skin is from them,” Rin scoffed, shifting on his feet. “As much as I’d rather be wearing them, it’s probably not the best idea to do so.”

“You’re allergic to them,” Isagi said, eyes shifting down to the blisters. “Why keep wearing them if you’re allergic?”

Rin shrugged, eyes moving to see if they were missing anything important before landing back on Isagi. “A simple allergy isn’t going to keep me away from something useful. That’s stupid.”

“What’s stupid is you continuing to wear them when they’re harming you,” Isagi said.

“Why do you even care?” Rin raised an eyebrow again. “I’m fine. I have lotion I can use to soothe the skin before it gets this bad any other time.”

Isagi sighed. “Yet clearly you weren’t keeping a close enough eye on it this time, huh?”

Rin wrinkled his nose, not liking that he was getting called out for being a little bit of a dumbass. Isagi was right. He should’ve noticed and kept an eye on it to make sure that he wasn’t starting to blister. Yet he didn’t, and his scent glands fucking hurt because of it. 

“Shit happens,” he mumbled after a minute. “Lacking one time doesn’t mean anything.”

Isagi hummed, looking at Rin with an almost unreadable expression on his face. It was silent for a few moments before he spoke again. “This isn’t the first time it’s happened, is it?”

Rin paused, muttering a curse before speaking again. “Not the first time, and it probably won’t be the last.”

“You need to be more careful,” Isagi spoke, almost like he was chiding Rin. He was starting to sound like his mother. “We can’t have the star player of the team giving himself allergic reactions over something so small.”

Star player?  

Rin hadn’t heard that one yet, at least not at this level. He supposes he was always considered the star of his teams when he was younger, always a step or two ahead of the other kids he was playing with. The star player of a professional team, though? They hadn’t even made their official debut yet. There was no way of saying if he was actually the star or not.

“Shut up,” he huffed out. “I’ll be fine. Fucked up skin isn’t going to stop me from doing my job.”

“If you say so,” Isagi shrugged, turning his attention back to Ego once he started separating players into smaller teams for their last few drills. He stepped forward when he was called up, looking back at Rin one last time. “Just take care of yourself a little better, Rin.”

Rin huffed, moving to join his group when he was called up. Isagi’s words spun through his head as they got busy running through everything they had left to do.

—

By the time Rin got home from practice, it was dark. They ran drills later than usual, and he stayed behind as always to get a little more solo practice in. It was odd to say that he felt more energized than anything, especially after such a long day of going absolutely non-stop, but he never felt more alive.

Playing soccer was his lifeline. It was the only thing that could keep him grounded no matter the strain it’d put on his body. Some might call him crazy for practicing as much as he did, but Rin thinks he’d be absolutely lost without it. He didn’t know what he would be doing if he had never started playing soccer. Maybe he’d be dead. 

However, having to spend the rest of his evening winding down would probably drive him insane. He had his laptop set up on his bed, slouched in front of it with hair still damp from his shower and Neosporin on his wrists to help with the blisters. 

His eyes were trained on the screen as he looked up Sae’s team, wanting to watch past game highlights or even an entire match if he was able to find it. He might as well rip the bandaid off now and take in a sight that he hadn’t seen in years.

Rin felt like he was being dramatic again. Who the hell is so bothered by their siblings the way he is? Though he figured most people probably had a better relationship with them than he did with Sae. He may as well be an only child at this point. That’d probably be easier to explain.

He shook his head, pushing all of that out of his mind as he clicked on a recap of Sae’s last game. His attention was on it quickly, eyes trailing back and forth as the ball was dribbled down the field. Sae had the ball, of course, and was looking off to the side like he was just waiting for someone to appear.

Rin already knew what was coming. He could barely even blink before someone came rushing up quickly, taking the pass with ease and racing around the opposing team members. He watched with bated breath as the other guy shot the ball without even looking, making it into the net effortlessly. 

The camera panned to the other player as he ran over to Sae after scoring, jumping onto his back without a second thought. Rin narrowed his eyes as he watched Sae pat the other’s hip before tossing him down to the ground, the other guy still grinning as he looked up at him.

Ah , Rin thought to himself. That’s his omega .

He leaned back, watching Shidou Ryusei chatter excitedly to Sae as they got up to go back to playing. Even through the camera and the act of wanting him to stop, Rin could see the fond look painted on his brother’s features.

Disgusting. 

They were a good duo, Rin had to admit to himself reluctantly. Shidou was able to keep up with anything Sae sent his way, coming together perfectly like they had been playing together their entire lives. He did have the fleeting thought of that should be me running through his mind, but he had to shove that aside, too. 

Their dream of playing together was long dead.

There was nothing that he could do now to go back in time and keep it alive, to go back and try to make sure that he wouldn’t present as an omega so Sae wouldn’t look at him with disgust, easily pretending like he didn’t even exist anymore.

It sucked, but that was life. Rin knew presenting as an omega was going to ruin many things for him, though he didn’t quite think about it ruining his relationship with his brother. Hindsight is 20/20, apparently. 

All he could do at this point was devise the best way for himself to destroy Sae’s team during their game. A taste of petty revenge, being able to wholly consume him in a wave of destruction. It’d be simple enough. All he’d have to do is find a way to keep Shidou away from him. Sae wouldn’t be able to pull off most of his plays alone.

Rin watched a few more highlight videos before shutting his laptop down and deciding to go to bed. He had half of a plan already thought of, going over it repeatedly as he shut his eyes and let a restless slumber consume him.

—

There was a notable presence missing at practice the next day. Rin could feel it as soon as he stepped into the locker room, his teammates mumbling amongst themselves as they were getting dressed in their practice clothes and shutting their lockers as they grabbed what they needed to head out onto the field.

He tugged his practice clothes on quickly, shutting his locker when he was done and glancing around once again. Isagi wasn’t there, which was odd. He’d usually hang around and wait till Rin was done so they could head out together, something Rin had begrudgingly gotten used to. 

Rin huffed to himself, walking out of the locker room and down the hall to the field. “Where’s your friend at?” He spoke, resigning himself to talking to Bachira for the day. It was better than nothing.

“Oh, Isagi?” Bachira hummed, eyes lighting up. “I’m surprised you’re asking about him.”

“Shut up,” Rin rolled his eyes. “He’s not here. Where is he?”

“He went into rut, apparently,” Bachira shrugged. “Texted me to let me know last night before it got too bad.”

Rin nodded, clicking his tongue. “Does he not track when his ruts are supposed to start?”

“He does,” Bachira shrugged. “This one started randomly, though. Usually it’d be a few weeks from now.”

“Randomly?” Rin deadpanned. “That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard, especially if they’re usually normal.”

“Something triggered it to be early,” Bachira said, straightening up as the practice was about to start. “I wonder what it was, but he won’t tell me.”

Rin scoffed in response, walking off once they were told what their first few drills of the day would be. Going into rut randomly is unheard of in alphas that are fully grown unless they were triggered by something, but even then, getting a rut triggered was about as rare as randomly going into heat on the omega side of things.

Ruts usually aren’t triggered unless an alpha has been around too many pheromones from omegas, namely ones from an omega that was supposed to be theirs when it came to being mates, at least.

He didn’t think he had ever heard of a rut being triggered by pheromones unless a pair were already bonded or the pheromones were complimentary with their own. That was just making Rin wonder what other omegas Isagi was around, something unfamiliar tugging in his gut.

He didn’t quite like the feeling, though he was just going to ignore it and hope that it’d go away on its own. It was probably more from irritation anyway, mad that Isagi was missing out on some perfectly good practice time before they were set to start playing their games.

Missing practice was going to be detrimental, even if it was for a valid reason. Rin was just going to have to bitch at him once he got back and try and get him to make up for it somehow.

It’d be fine, most likely. Rin would catch him up, and they’d be able to slide back into their routine like nothing had ever disrupted it to begin with. He’d just have to wait Isagi’s rut out and work on things that they both could do when he got back.

Rin still didn’t like the idea that Isagi’s rut could’ve gotten triggered by another omega. It just rubbed him the wrong day, the feeling in his gut getting more annoying by the minute.

Not much he could do about it, though. Maybe it was something else he could embarrassingly google once he went home and was alone. Rin had half a mind to wonder if he was coming down with something, but he knew that was probably the dumbest thing he could be thinking of.

As he stepped out onto the field and watched everybody pair up for duo drills, the realization of what it actually was hit him in the face.

Was he jealous ?

Chapter Text

Isagi was back at practice after a few days. Rin wasn’t hanging around him, still irritated at the idea of him missing so many precious days to begin with. The other boy didn’t push him, just casting the occasional glance over at him before going back to whatever drill they were working on at the time. Their big game was coming up sooner than Rin wanted it to, but there was no avoiding it.

Next week would finally mark the day that he’d be able to show Sae that he was better. That he didn’t give up pouring every little part of himself into the sport after he had presented. There was always the slim chance that Sae wouldn’t even give a shit, that he’d be too busy focusing on his own team to ever give a shit about his little brother.

Rin was nothing if not horribly stubborn, though. He’d get Sae to notice him no matter what it took, even if he had to push himself and his playing even more so than he usually did. Rin was fully committed to throwing his whole self-preservation of being careful out the window on this one.

He just hoped his teammates would get the memo and push him along, not letting him back down on the off chance that he wanted to. He was sure they would at some point. Isagi would probably pick up on it first, as much as Rin didn’t want to admit it.

It’d be okay in the end. Rin is trying to tell himself that it doesn’t really matter if he gets Sae’s attention or not, that he’s too old to be worrying about something as stupid as that. It’s kind of pathetic to be vying for someone’s attention as long as he has.

Trying to find it in himself to stop is another thing. Rin could act like he was fine all he wanted, like being ignored by the only person who had ever cared about him didn’t hurt. Having Sae’s eyes on anyone but him was an irksome feeling, one that Rin didn’t ever think he’d have to get used to.

Such is life, he supposes. It’s typical for people to get dropped once they present as omegas. Definitely less typical for it to happen within families, but it’s still relatively common enough that people were shooting him looks of pity for months after the fact.

Rin was always bristling with irritation at those looks. Having to cope with the changes in his body that he never wanted, the knowledge that his brother didn’t want him anymore, and pathetic looks from his classmates who once used to revere him due to his soccer prowess? It was fucking awful. He wasn’t even sure how word had spread so quickly. It shouldn’t have been anyone’s business that he was an omega. The pitying looks from those who hadn’t presented yet or the looks of understanding from those who had.

Being the only omega on the soccer team at his school was a trip, too. Rin was their top player, far surpassing everyone on his team, and yet they started working him less than the others because, according to his coaches, omegas shouldn’t be working that hard.

Even now, he scowls any time he thinks about it. Rin wishes they could see him now, how he’s got the best physique of his life and a professional team to back it up. Hopefully those assholes will be watching his debut, so they could be proved wrong too. Being an omega be damned, he will show everybody who ever doubted him that he’s doing exactly what he said he would.

Practice was continuing to run smoothly, and everyone was finally beginning to realize how important their debut match was going to be for the team as a whole and getting their shit together in order to try and pull off a victory.

Rin felt alive the entire time. Running sprints and dribbling the ball around teammates acting as defense in order to score was coming to him as quickly as it always did. He wasn’t even hesitating to try out any new tricks he had seen from watching recaps of previous games from teams he enjoyed.

There was a fire in him that he hadn’t felt in a while. Not since he would play with Sae, at least. Rin wasn’t sure where this renewed vigor was coming from, though he wouldn’t question it. 

It was far too beneficial to overthink now, anyway.

He slowed down as he approached two of his teammates, blocking his path to the goal, eyes narrowing as he glanced around the field, trying to find an opening. Isagi had come up from behind on his left side, shouting to get Rin’s attention.

The ball was passed without a second thought. Rin straightened up as he watched Isagi push past those trying to block his way to the goal and shoot, sinking the ball into the net and scoring a goal for their practice team.

Rin swallowed thickly as he watched it go in, looking at the grin spreading across Isagi’s face as he turned around and shot Rin a thumbs-up. It lit up that fire in him even more, making Rin almost want to keep seeing Isagi score like that.

Oh, he thought to himself after a moment. That’s where the feeling is coming from.

He huffed and looked away, not wanting to give Isagi any satisfaction. He was still pissed at him anyway; a stupid thumbs-up after a mundane assist wasn’t going to change anything about that. Rin thought that it might be a little unfair to Isagi, blocking him out over something so stupid, but he didn’t care.

Isagi probably didn’t care too much, or at least wasn’t showing it. Rin just saw him head over to the sidelines with Bachira to get a drink of water after the drill they were running was called. They all needed a well-deserved break anyway, and almost everyone looked like they were a little too close to slumping over out of exhaustion.

Rin made his way to the sidelines as well, sitting down on the bench and slinging his towel around his neck before chugging half his water bottle in one sitting. He observed everyone else talking, making plans for what they were going to do after practice tonight or how excited they were for game day.

He wasn’t able to revel in his own little bubble for very long when Isagi came over and plopped down onto the bench beside him. “What did I miss during the last few practices?”

“Just drills,” Rin said under his breath, skin prickling at the proximity between the two of them. Isagi was getting far too comfortable with him. “Would’ve been more beneficial if you were here, though. Idiot.”

Isagi huffed out a laugh, leaning back against the bench with a sigh. “Didn’t expect to go into rut early,” he shrugged. “Can’t really fault me for that.”

“I can and I will,” Rin rolled his eyes. “Aren’t alphas supposed to have some control over that, or at least regular rut cycles?”

“Mine are usually regular,” Isagi spoke. “It just got triggered early this time.”

“Why?” 

“What do you mean why?” The other boy laughed. “Ruts can get triggered the same as heats, you know that. Usually being around pheromones that are super potent or compatible with whoever gets it triggered.”

Rin just glanced at him, eyes narrowed. Isagi didn’t smell any different than normal, with no traces of omega pheromones lingering or mixing with his typical scent, teakwood still subtly floating off of him.

He must’ve spent the rut alone. Good , Rin thought to himself. There must be no other omega, then. Not one close enough to get him through a rut, at least.

“Who triggered it?” Rin spoke before even realizing it tumbled out of his lips, the tips of his ears flaring red before looking away—l ukewarm idiot.

Isagi laughed, tilting his head as he looked at Rin, a grin tugging at his lips. “Nosey, aren’t you?”

“Piss off,” he muttered in response. “Stupid question. Don’t answer it.”

Isagi just ignored him. “I think I have an idea,” he shrugged. “I’m not completely sure, though, so I’ll just keep it to myself. It was an awful rut, though. Hurt way more than they normally do.”

“Ruts hurt?” Rin muttered. That's another stupid question. He knew they hurt, after hearing his father and Sae complain about theirs. He wasn’t even sure why he cared about the possibility of Isagi’s rut hurting too badly. 

Rin would just dismiss it as him making sure he was okay to play in their game—there was no other reason.

“This one was more uncomfortable than they usually are,” Isagi said. “Like, they’re never fun, especially without a partner, but this one was just three days of feeling like I was going absolutely feral.”

Rin shivered at the mental image that painted, silently cursing himself for being affected by something so stupid, from fucking Isagi Yoichi no less. There was just something about the idea of him being feral that was making his inner omega scream.

Stupid fucking instincts. 

“Was it because it came early?” He settled on asking. That was a safe question, at least. Maybe a little prying, but Isagi seems like he doesn’t mind talking about it. Rin had always had a slight interest in this type of stuff anyway. Google searches never give enough information as opposed to a person who actually deals with it all.

“Maybe,” Isagi said, looking like he was lost in thought for a second as he looked at Rin. “There are a few reasons why they could be more painful than usual.”

“Like what?” Rin asked.

“The same reasons that could cause an omega to have a more painful heat,” he began. “Inner instincts screaming that they have found their mate. Too many extra hormones, or even just a build-up if there was a longer time between ruts.”

Rin nodded, feeling his chest twist with annoyance at the mention of instincts and finding a mate. Isagi didn’t have a bond mark on his neck, so Rin wasn’t sure what exactly he meant by that. His mind was almost screaming at him to ask, so he did. “Did you find a mate?”

Isagi snorted. “I’m still without a mate since you wanna know so badly,” he said, Rin’s skin burning as Isagi’s gaze lingered on the nape of his neck for a moment before shifting back to his eyes. “Though my inner alpha sure thinks I did.”

“Why does it think that?” Rin muttered.

“Don’t know,” Isagi grinned before pushing himself back to his feet. “I’ll let you know when I think it all over, yeah?”

Rin rolled his eyes, waving him off. “Don’t really care if you do or not.” Bullshit. “Just make sure you don’t have any more random ruts. We can’t afford to be down a player for any games.”

”Yeah yeah,” Isagi spoke. “It’ll be fine.”

Rin scowled as Isagi turned and returned to the field, eyes trained on the other boy as he began to stretch before practice started back up. He waited a few minutes before getting up as well, stubbornly going to the complete opposite side of the group as always.

My instincts found my mate.

Rin grumbled under his breath as Isagi’s words played in an irritating repetition in his mind. Who the hell would even be good enough to be Isagi’s mate anyway? Surely he’d need an omega that was able to keep up with him. It was nothing that Rin needed to dwell on, though. There was a practice to finish and an upcoming game to win.

Isagi’s off-field affairs shouldn’t even matter at this point. It was lukewarm of Rin to even be worrying that much. So what if Isagi was out with an omega, doing those stupid courting rituals that most alphas were still hell-bent on doing when they found an omega they were interested in?

It was just another way to try and distract Rin from the team's upcoming matches and practices, which were all coming to a head. He felt stupid for even being worried about something as minuscule as this. The idea of mates and pheromones and the whole dynamic between alphas and omegas was never at the top of his list of priorities before this point.

Then he met Isagi Yoichi, and everything just had to come crumbling down, throwing every sense of his willful ignorance on the touchier topics of their secondary biology. Rin could tell it was starting to irritate him, being able to smell his own scent wash over him as he was still without his scent patches for the time being. He took a deep breath, trying to soothe his temper the best he could. Now was not the time to draw any unwanted attention to himself.

Rin was able to get back into practice mode when he heard Ego blow his whistle. He silenced his mind of every unnecessary thought that it was mustering up and resumed where they had left off before their break, which was of the utmost importance. Secondary genders and natural biology didn't matter when he was on the field. The only thing in his eyes was the ability to destroy any opponents that came in the way of their team and the victory that he would try like hell to secure.

For his own benefit, of course. Rin didn’t care how his team members felt if they won. He was sure they’d all be pouncing on each other like a bunch of lukewarm idiots–which they were, he supposed. The idea of winning was all they were thinking about the closer the day of the match came.

—

Rin stayed behind after practice, wanting to work on things without the distraction of other people. This was his time to polish everything to his standards, wanting everything to be perfect for when he made his professional debut.

The stress was beginning to get to him, though. His shooting wasn’t where he wanted it to be, missing the goal by only a foot or two. Rin cussed under his breath, walking down the field to grab the ball so he could try again.

Rin knew he shouldn’t be letting it get to him, especially since it was happening after a long day of practicing already, yet it was still bullshit. He had his technique for scoring down to a perfected point, yet he was still missing more than he was scoring.

With a clench of his jaw, he set the ball down and stepped back again, trying to calm himself down enough to take another shot. Rin sighed, taking a deep breath before going for it, his foot colliding with the ball and sending it spiraling towards the goal.

Luckily, it made it this time. Rin thinks he probably would’ve gone mad if it didn’t. He stared at the goal, looking at the ball sitting flush against the white net and shook his head, opting to just flop down onto the field instead.

Maybe taking a break would help him focus better.

Their practice field was open, which Rin enjoyed whenever he hung behind. He could sit and stare at the sky for hours, watching the clouds roll by or letting the sun bear down on his skin. The latter always resulted in a red flush on his pale complexion, but he ignored it.

It was overcast today, with dark clouds crashing into each other as they came into view. The scent of rain was already filling the air. Rin enjoyed this weather the most, gloomy and cold. He found it more relaxing than when it was sunny, and he could focus better without a glare in his eyes.

Sae used to question why Rin always preferred overcast skies, even back when they were kids and had to worry about being caught in the rain on their way home from school or playing together during the weekends. 

“It’s nice,” Rin would always quip, his chubby cheeks hidden in a scarf that his mom made him wear whenever it got cold. “The sun hurts my eyes.”

“The sun makes it easier to play,” Sae would counter back just as quickly. “Then it won’t be as cold out on the pitch. You won’t have to worry about freezing out there standing around waiting for the game to start.”

Rin would brush off his words, replying with a simple “I like the cold.”

Life was much simpler then; Rin squinted his eyes as the first drop of rain fell right between his brows. Neither of them had to worry about alphas or omegas or the fact that their bond would fracture only a few years later.

He missed those days more than he wanted to admit, though there was no going back now. Rin only cared about destroying his shitty brother in the game. Maybe then Sae would realize everything he had said completely shattered Rin’s entire being, killed his love for the sport for anything other than proving Sae wrong.

He’d make him regret ever saying what he did to Rin. 

The raindrops were falling faster now, moving from a trickle to a more steady drizzle. Rin made no effort to get up, even though he probably should’ve if he didn’t want to risk catching a cold. Once the rain started pouring more, he’d get up and trek back to the locker room to shower before heading home.

Rin allowed himself to relax further as the rain continued to fall, his pheromones filling the air and mixing with the scent of the rain. It felt nice to let them flow freely. That was maybe the one thing he truly envied about alphas: if their scent hung in the air, they wouldn’t have to worry about being tracked down.

Omegas never had it that easy. They’d always have to stay alert and make sure their pheromones weren’t too noticeable. God forbid an alpha tracks them down and harasses them for simply being outside and existing. It happened far too often for Rin to allow himself the comfort of doing it outside of his own house. 

Such is life, he supposed. It was normal for him to be stuck dealing with it; there was nothing that could change it for him or any other omega that was alive. He’d always have to be hyper-vigilant, unable to let his guard down in public unless he were around someone he could trust. Rin didn’t think that’d ever happen either, the trusting someone. That was ruined for him long ago.

His eyes fluttered shut, allowing the feeling of the cool rain to soothe his mind. It was staying as a steady drizzle instead of a downpour, so he could allow himself the chance to stay out here longer and take it all in. Rin loved the feeling of the rain washing over his skin, wishing he could experience it more often. Rainy season was coming up, though, so maybe he could have a few more days of this.

“Why are you lying in the rain?” He heard Isagi speak before even noticing the alpha’s presence. Rin peeked an eye open, a scowl growing on his face as the other approached. God forbid he ever have a moment of peace with Isagi around, apparently. 

“Taking a break,” he muttered. “Why are you still here?”

“I was talking to Ego,” Isagi shrugged, taking it upon himself to sit down next to Rin, thankfully leaving a good amount of space between them. “Why are you still here?”

“Why do you think?” Rin said, not sparing Isagi another glance. “I was getting some solo practice in. Our game is in a few days; I need to be in top shape.”

Isagi hummed, glancing up at the sky as the rain dampened his hair. “In the rain?”

“Yes.”

“Not feeling very talkative today, huh?”

Rin scoffed, turning his head to the side to look at the other boy. “I was enjoying my alone time. You couldn’t just leave me alone?”

“Nah,” Isagi said, leaning back on his hands as he looked at Rin. “Nobody should be alone that much. You may enjoy it, but it’s not healthy.”

“I get enough interaction with you and the other idiots during practice,” Rin said. “Solo training is time for me to be able to gauge how good I am, ideally without interruption.” 

“Yet you’re here lying on the field in the rain instead of training.”

“I was taking a break,” Rin rolled his eyes. “I’m off my game today. Missing more shots than making it in, so a break was needed before I got back to it.”

Isagi nodded, shifting to lay on the grass as well. Rin knew his pheromones were still swirling around the air, hoping the scent of the rain was enough to cover it up for the most part. He was already breaking his own rules, letting his scent out freely around an alpha. He’s supposed to be more careful with it, trying to put some more space between the two of them or trying to relax so his scent would start to wane.

Yet, for some reason, he wasn’t too uncomfortable with Isagi being able to smell him. Maybe Rin was just used to being around him by now. It’s not like this was the first time his scent has been hanging in the air when Isagi’s been nearby, and Isagi has never reacted negatively to it before.

It’d be fine for now, he guesses. Isagi would probably mention something if he were uncomfortable with it anyway.

“What did Ego want to talk to you about?” Rin asked, figuring a conversation would be a good enough distraction from it. 

“Just wanted to talk about the game,” Isagi said. “Nothing super important. He’s going over who he wants to start. I'm pretty sure you’re gonna be starting, of course. Don’t think anyone really expects otherwise.”

“Of course I’ll be starting,” Rin scoffs like it was blatantly obvious that that was the only choice. “He’d be stupid not to have me start. I’m the best on the team.”

Isagi nodded, huffing out a laugh. “Confident, aren’t you? I guess that’s a good thing. We need confident people on the team.”

“It’s not confidence, it's the truth.”

“Sure it is,” Isagi spoke. Rin didn’t miss the teasing lilt that was in his voice. “Not confidence, the truth. Got it.”

“You don’t think so?” Rin countered back. His tone came out a little more harsh than he had intended it to. He was never really that good at banter, if that’s what this even was. “I thought everyone knew that I was better than all of them.”

“Everyone agrees that you’re good,” Isagi said. “I think they’d kick your ass if you said that you were better than them to their faces, though.”

The rain was starting to pick up a little more at that point, the drizzle turning even steadier. They’d have to head inside soon if they didn’t want to get drenched. Rin raised a hand to rub at his eyes, water droplets getting stuck to his lashes. He ignored the feeling of his bangs being plastered to his face, though. That didn’t bother him as much. 

“Do you know who else is going to start?” He asked, turning his head to look at Isagi. The other boy’s hair was stuck to his face as well, rainwater dripping down the high points of his cheeks and nose. Rin swallowed, watching as it dripped from the tips of his bangs and right onto his shirt, sticking to his skin.

“There’s nothing concrete yet,” Isagi shrugged, looking at Rin as well. Their eyes met for a moment, something unidentifiable to Rin flashing in Isagi’s eyes for just a moment before disappearing again. “I’m sure he’ll have it all figured out by the next time we all meet.”

Rin nodded, unable to tear his gaze from Isagi. Get it together , he scolded himself. You probably look like some tepid idiot right now. “Yeah. He probably will.”

“The rain is starting to pick up more,” Isagi spoke after a minute. “We should probably head out before we get soaked.”

Rin nodded, looking back up at the sky as the rain began to pick up. “Yeah,” he mumbled. “That doesn’t sound like the most comfortable thing.”

They both moved to their feet after that, Rin grabbing the forgotten soccer ball beside them as they made their back to the locker room to grab their things and dry off before heading home for the night. “Do you have an extra towel?” Isagi asked as he opened his locker, rifling through his stuff unsuccessfully. “I think I left mine at my apartment.”

“Idiot,” Rin muttered under his breath, yet tossed one in his direction anyway. “How do you forget a towel?”

“I had to wash it last night,” Isagi shrugged as he dried his hair. “Think it completely slipped my mind this morning while I was heading out the door.”

“Makes sense,” Rin shrugged. “You don’t pack your bag the night before so it's ready to grab before coming to practice?”

Isagi laughed, tossing the now-damp towel back over to Rin. He caught it without looking, stuffing it into his gym bag before shutting his locker. “That’d be the smart thing to do,” Isagi admitted as he followed Rin out of the locker room. “I should probably start doing that instead of rushing around all morning trying to get it all packed so I don’t show up late.”

Rin rolled his eyes, holding the door open for Isagi as they left the practice field. The rain had picked up in the few minutes that they were back in the locker room, now absolutely pouring. Rin sighed, realizing he had forgotten his umbrella. 

“Wasted my time drying off when I’ll just get soaked on my way to the train station,” he scoffed, slinging his bag over his shoulder.

Isagi paused for a moment, glancing at the sight in front of them before digging through his bag, letting out a soft hum of triumph before pulling out a small plastic umbrella. “I have one we can share. Which station do you go to?”

“I’m not sharing an umbrella with you,” Rin deadpanned. “I’ll just toss my towel over my head or something. The station is only a ten-minute walk down the street.”

Isagi shook his head, opening the umbrella and situating it before raising it above both of their heads. “Ten minutes is too long to walk with just a towel on your head, Rin,” he said. “Seriously. I don’t mind.”

Rin scoffed, glancing back out at the street before back at Isagi. He knew he shouldn’t; both of them being in such close proximity with their scents mixing wouldn’t be the best thing to do, but it probably was better than trying to make a run for the station without getting too wet.

It might be nice to walk freely with an alpha, too. Nobody will stare at him like they typically do, trying to figure him out.

“Fine,” he relented. “Let's go, then.”

Isagi nodded, tilting the umbrella slightly to cover more of Rin as they began walking down the street. The clouds were growing darker, which Rin noted as they continued. It’d probably end up storming at some point tonight. He had mixed feelings about storms, enjoying the rain as he always did yet constantly feeling a little jumpy at the rumbling of thunder that’d come along with it.

It was a little pathetic in retrospect, but everyone had to be afraid of something. Even if it was stupid, like a damn thunderstorm.

Rin was far too aware of their shoulders brushing together as they walked, the mixture of sea salt and bergamot mixing together as well. He could tell Isagi had noticed it, too; the tips of his ears flushed red again.

Rin just told himself it was because the rain was making it cold.

This was the first time Rin could ever say he was affected by the scent of an alpha, even if it wasn’t that bad. His skin was prickling, his inner omega almost preening at the idea of being this close . He wasn’t sure why it bothered him so much, if he could even say it was a bother at all. 

The walk was silent, neither of them wanting to break the silence–or, in Rin’s case, not knowing what to say at all. He was just busy trying to wrap his head around the fact that all he could think of was alpha, alpha, alpha .

He was used to the inner keening, the want for one to be close, but that was only when he’d be in his heats, the stomach-churning feeling of needing one close by to help him through it, to make the pain that came along with it go away. Rin was sure that he wasn’t going into heat early, though. The suppressants made sure of it.

“You okay?” Isagi had picked up on it. “Your uh, your scent just flared.”

Rin huffed, looking away as he felt his body heat up with embarrassment. “I’m fine,” he said. “Just ignore it. We’re almost at the train station.”

Isagi just nodded, and Rin could tell he wanted to say more but decided against it. They fell into silence again, Rin breathing out a sigh of relief as the station came into sight, quickening his pace slightly just to get this walk over with. 

They headed inside before Isagi moved the umbrella, shaking it off before slipping it back into his bag. “Your train come soon?”

“Yeah,” Rin said. “Should be here any minute. I’ll be fine to wait.”

Isagi nodded, kicking at the ground. Rin doesn’t think he’d ever seen him at a loss for words until now. It was weird.

“Okay,” he spoke after a second. “I’ll leave you to it, then.”

Rin nodded, hearing the voice over the intercom come on and announce that his train had arrived. “Thanks for walking with me,” he mumbled. 

“Of course,” Isagi nodded. “Would’ve felt bad if I didn’t.”

“See you tomorrow at practice, then?”

Isagi nodded again. Rin hated how awkward they were both acting right now, like some damn school kids after a first date or something like that. “Yeah. See you tomorrow.”

Rin watched Isagi move to walk away, headed down the opposite side of the station. From what Rin could gather, he could probably find a train that headed to his own area of town. He sighed, shaking his head before turning to get onto his train, heading right to the back and taking a seat, leaning his head against the window.

He almost didn’t want to go to practice tomorrow. 

Chapter Text

There was a late start to practice the next day, Ego deciding to give everyone a chance to relax a little bit and, in his words, sleep in before they were set to arrive. The big game was in 4 days at this point, and everyone was slowly starting to feel the edge of it building up despite the rampant chatter of excitement they felt as well.

Rin didn’t really care either way if they had a late start or not. He was wide awake and doing his morning yoga at 6 in the morning despite it all. If he deviated from his routine, his entire day would be thrown out of whack. He would always be a creature of routine no matter what, late starts and off days be damned.

He was really just grateful that he hadn’t woken up with a sniffle from being out in the rain yesterday. That would’ve put a damper on things, making him slow down just a little bit. Rin bent down into another stretch, relishing the burn that yoga brought to his weary muscles.

Yoga was part of his routine that he’d never skip. It kept him flexible and relaxed, allowing him to shut his mind down and focus on the physical aspects of it all. There was a point in time when he was slacking on his daily yoga, around the time he had first presented and was in his downward spiral of hating himself and everything he had become, but he had gotten right back to it with a bit of goading from his mom. 

Rin had even gone as far as to do his yoga routine while he was in heat, the rare times he allowed himself to go through it instead of swallowing down as many suppressants as possible to keep it at bay. That was, admittedly, a mistake, as he couldn’t focus on what he was doing outside of the aches and burning in his abdomen that came along with his heat, yet he pushed through it anyway.

Another shift downward, the satisfying feeling of his thighs straining as Rin let out a sigh of relief. He was feeling a little achy this morning, but he chalked it up to how much he had been practicing with the team and alone this week. Some yoga and a hot shower were sure to soothe the pain enough for him to get through practice again today. 

Rin continued, eyes shut and deep breaths being exhaled every time he changed poses until his alarm went off, the thirty minutes of morning yoga being called to an end. He pulled himself up, grabbed his phone, and shut the alarm off before rolling up his mat and shoving it back into its designated corner of his room before opting to have some breakfast before his shower. 

The house was empty again, his parents gone more often than not these days as he headed downstairs and to the kitchen. He figured he should probably move out at this point and get a place of his own since he was used to the solitude by now. Maybe he’ll do that once the season ends. He’ll have some money for a small place by then.

It’d be nice, too, not having to worry about coming and going when he pleased or the off chance of coming across his parents, having to listen to them chastise him for pushing himself too hard. It’d be nice not to have to hear that he was making a mistake going pro, too. He assumed they’d be happy having two children who were professional athletes. Still, he guesses they’re only proud of the alpha for doing what was expected, not the omega that’s trying to break the societal norms of it all. 

Rin rifled through the refrigerator for stuff to put into his smoothie, opting for some strawberries, kale, and spinach before turning around to grab his protein powder from the cabinet. He knew that it’d probably taste god awful before he even took a sip. Strawberries could only do so much in the way of masking the flavor of kale. Such is the life of an athlete who is on a strict diet. 

Sometimes, he misses being able to wolf down the breakfasts his mom used to make, the comforting taste of tamagoyaki and rice being one of his favorites when he was younger. He tossed everything into the blender and turned it on, leaning against the counter as he waited. There was a twinge in his lower abdomen, a cramping that made him wrinkle his nose. Probably went too far with the yoga this morning. 

He shook his head, pouring the finished smoothie into a glass before chugging it down in one go. Rin grimaced at the taste, disgusting as he suspected, before rinsing the glass out and setting it into the sink to wash once he got home in the evening.

Rin walked back upstairs after that, shutting the door to his bathroom and stripping before reaching into the shower and turning on the water. The twinge in his abdomen flared again, and he huffed to himself. He ignored it as best he could, stepping into the shower and letting the warm water rush over his body and relax the tension in his shoulders. 

After a few minutes, he got out, grabbing his towel and drying off his hair before wrapping it around his waist, moving to stand in front of the bathroom mirror as he brushed his teeth. The twinge was growing a little more persistent now, more evident as he spit out the toothpaste and rinsed out his mouth. 

Rin cursed under his breath, opening up his medicine cabinet and pulling out some painkillers and his suppressants just in case, downing them without water. He was sure that it was nothing, wasn’t too bothered by it all, but he had a practice that he needed to attend, and he wasn’t going to let some stupid cramping cause him to not be in top performance. 

He finished the rest of his routine quickly, grabbing his gym bag and keys before heading out the door, locking it behind him, and heading to the train station. The typical hustle and bustle of morning was in full swing at this point. As much as Rin hated crowds, he did find some normalcy in the fact that he was out and part of it as well. He walked down the steps to the train station, scanning his card and heading down to his usual platform, ready to wait for the train to arrive.

The train ride was uneventful, with chattering and quiet laughs filling the car as it made its way to the destination, families on their daily outings, salarymen on their way to their respective offices, and students on their way to school. Rin definitely didn’t envy the last group, and he almost felt bad seeing them in those stuffy uniforms that always drove him a little more than mad.

He made his way off the train once it stopped, pushing through the crowds as he left the station and began the short trek to the stadium. It was still cloudy out today, but there was a nice breeze that brought Rin some comfort. There was no sign of rain, though, something he couldn’t help but be a little disappointed in. 

Another twinge, Rin huffing out in annoyance as he walked into the stadium and towards the locker room, following the increasing volume of voices from his teammates who were already there. He could already hear Bachira chatting away and Isagi’s indignant voice talking back, already exasperated with his friend. Rin just rolled his eyes as he pushed the door open and headed straight to his locker, trying his best to keep his gaze averted from Isagi as much as possible.

He still felt a little awkward after their conversation and Isagi walking him to the station yesterday. Rin still didn’t know why Isagi had been so insistent on walking him, probably some stupid alpha thing, but he could admit that it did make him feel a little more comfortable than walking alone like usual.

After that, they all filed out of the locker room, stepping onto the field, ready to practice. Ego was standing, waiting for them to all group up before clearing his throat. “As you all know, our first game is on Saturday.”

A ripple of excitement tore through the crowd, Rin’s teammates chatting amongst themselves at the prospect of finally getting to have their professional debuts. Rin was a little excited, too, now that he allowed himself to think about it. It had been too long since he had been on the pitch for more than practice or a scrimmage between teammates. 

“I have the starting lineup prepared and finalized,” Ego continued. “Do you guys want me to announce it now or at the end of practice?”

More hushed whispers, some of the guys trying to decide if they wanted to wait that long. Bachira finally piped up, speaking for them all. “Tell us now!”

“Very well,” Ego said, flipping through his clipboard before settling on a page. “This will be your starting lineup for the game. If it goes well, then we’ll stick with this group throughout the entirety of the season, barring any injuries.”

Rin waited with bated breath, standing a little straighter than usual. He ignored the twinges in his stomach, swallowing down the annoyance. He didn’t notice the slight flaring of his pheromones, the budding burning feeling that was growing in him thanks to the suppressants trying to drown it out. He could feel the tension in the group, everyone waiting patiently to hear if they’d be starters in the game or not.

Ego cleared his throat again before speaking. “Do not feel discouraged if you were not chosen. You’re all talented players; this is just what Anri and I believed would be beneficial, especially considering who our first opponents are.”

Rin scoffed under his breath. Talented players my ass, he thought to himself. He needs to stop stalling and get it over with. He glanced around, taking notice of how Bachira was whispering something to Isagi, the other boy whispering something in his ear.

Jealousy swirled in his gut as he noticed how close they were, knowing that there was nothing actually going on between them, but knowing it was just due to how close they were. Rin still didn’t like it, though, his inner omega almost screaming as he watched them, his scent flaring a little stronger, now a little more noticeable to the teammates who were standing beside him. 

More noticeable to Isagi, too, apparently, because the other boy stopped his conversation with Bachira for just a moment to turn and look at Rin, raising an eyebrow. You okay? Rin saw him mouth, face laced with concern. Rin just scowled and looked away, dampening down the feeling in his gut, ignoring the annoyance of the preening of his inner omega at the change of attention.

“If you hear your name called, then congratulations, you are officially a starter of our first game,” Ego’s voice filtered through Rin’s ears, bringing his attention back towards the front of the group where he stood.

Ego began listing the names, and those who were chosen immediately straightened up and made their own little cheers. Rin scoffed as he watched them all, not missing when Bachira began to jump around and shake Isagi in excitement when they were both called. Rin wasn’t surprised those two were chosen; they were strong players. Annoying as hell, but strong and brought forth a good chance of them securing victory against Sae’s team.

“Itoshi Rin,” Ego spoke his name simply. “You will be our last starter and captain of the team.”

A rush of relief went through Rin’s body. It’s not that he didn’t doubt that he’d be picked, but hearing everyone else’s name come before his was a little disheartening. Being named captain was a feat in and of itself, something Rin knew that he’d take much more seriously than he probably should.

“Now that that’s settled,” Ego continued, “Let’s get on with practice. We have a lot to work on before our game. I’ve devised a few more plays that I want you all to run through so we can settle on which one works well for all who were chosen.”

Rin’s teammates mumbled in agreement, spreading out once Ego set the clipboard down, ready to listen to what he had to say about the new plays they were supposed to be working on. Rin trailed behind them, rubbing at the collar of his shirt, which was starting to feel a little too tight, which was odd considering it had never bothered him before. He just brushed it off and accounted it to some pre-practice jitters that were sure to go away once they got into the swing of things. 

Running new plays so close to a game, especially one of this much importance, was sure to be nerve-wracking to anyone. Even to people like Rin, who were always far too confident in their capabilities. It was natural, and Rin could see that everyone was feeling it, too. They were more on edge, trying their best to make sure that every move they made was the right thing to do.

It was refreshing to see, in all honesty, everyone actually buckling down and getting shit done instead of goofing around like lukewarm morons. Rin accepted any passes sent his way with ease, his teammates melding together with him as he drove the ball down the field the way he was instructed to.

He was able to weave through his teammates that were set to play defense with ease, not sparing them a single glance as he passed the ball to Isagi and pivoted, throwing the others off guard before circling back around and getting the ball again. Rin didn’t even bother looking back as he shot the ball towards the goal, not even flinching when it sunk into the net.

Rin turned around after, sparing a few glances at his teammates as the ache in his abdomen only grew. He cursed under his breath, stretching slightly to see if that’d relieve the pain. It did for a brief moment, but then it came back. He probably just pulled something, tweaked a muscle practicing. He’d use his heating pad when he got home, and he’d be brand new.

Practice continued, with Rin steadily ignoring the cramping and the fact that he was sweating more than usual. I took my supressants, he told himself as he stood on the sidelines, chugging down half his water bottle in one go and wiping at the sweat beading on his forehead. It’s not my heat. There’s absolutely no way it's that.

He sighed, joining everyone back onto the field once their brief break was over and getting right back into the swing of things. Everything was still going smoothly, all things considered. Rin wasn’t letting it bother him; he didn’t want anyone to notice that he wasn’t feeling good. He was going to push through everything to ignore it and stay unassuming.

Rin could tell that Isagi had picked up on something , though, always the perceptive bastard. The other boy was eyeing Rin a little too much, staying closer to him during their drills or in the group whenever Ego wanted to go over something.

It was irritating Rin to no end, but he didn’t have the energy to snap at him. He was tired, and he hurt –he supposed that Isagi could hover around him and be annoying just this once. It’s not like Isagi was getting in his way or ruining any plays they were doing. He was just keeping an eye on him, ensuring Rin was okay in his own quiet way. Rin couldn’t remember how long it had been since someone had cared enough to do that, even if they weren’t outright saying it.

It was nice, in a way. Though his inner omega kept preening at the attention, which was new. Usually, it was quiet, dormant unless something triggered it. It seems that Isagi may be a trigger for its appearance, but Rin thinks he’s just a little too dense to make sense of it all. It was too tepid to dwell over, anyways. It didn’t matter.

Rin was starting to get hotter the longer practice went on, sweat pooling down the sides of his face and dripping into his eyes the more he ran. He wasn’t even exerting himself more than usual; nothing had changed in that regard. It was starting to get irritating, wiping the sweat from his face and having it impede his vision as he was running down the field while they ran another drill.

His legs were beginning to shake, too, which was also irritating him. Rin had half a mind to wonder if it was really his heat making a far too early appearance, but he was still trying to push that thought away. It was too early. He had been taking his suppressants religiously. What could’ve even triggered it to come early?

It all came to a head when Rin dropped to the field after passing the ball, and everything became too much. His clothes felt so tight , sticking to his body in an uncomfortable manner. He panted, pheromones beginning to swirl around him, through his scent patches that he could finally put back on and leaking out. Rin’s whole body was trembling at this point, and he wanted so desperately to push himself up back to his feet and get back to practice, but he couldn’t. 

He could feel everyone’s eyes shift to him immediately, the field's energy shifting within a moment’s breath. A silence swept over everyone before they all began to whisper, half concerned and half thinking he was just fucking with them all. A few of the alphas on the team stepped back, pulling their shirts over their noses to block out the scent of his pheromones, which was steadily increasing.

Rin cursed under his breath as another wave of cramps washed over him, stronger this time. He couldn’t ignore it at this point. His heat had started.  

Chigiri and Reo slowly walked over, the two other omegas on the team, crouching beside him. Rin didn’t relax much with their presence, not wanting to be seen as weak even though they both knew all too well what heats were like too. They talked to him in hushed whispers, Rin barely able to make out what they said before they stood up, heading off to the field's sidelines to grab a towel and some water for him.

Rin hated this; he felt too exposed right now. He could no longer hide his identity from everyone, and he could no longer parade around as an alpha so nobody would think of him differently. He shifted slightly, his body trembling as his body temperature rose even more. He shook his head, almost nervous as he refused to look at any of his teammates. His scent was also beginning to change, the heady smell of saltwater giving way to a more burnt tone. Omega is in distress.

He felt himself being pulled against another body before his brain could recognize who it was. Isagi’s pheromones swirled around him, mingling with his own as he calmed down slowly. Isagi’s grip on him was tight, protective if he could put a word to it. When did Isagi even get over to him?

“Stay back,” he heard Isagi’s words filter through his ears. “Don’t touch him, I’ve got him.”

Rin’s inner omega preened at his words again, without Rin really wanting it to. He felt the two of them shift, Isagi rising to his feet as he clutched Rin against his chest, grip still tight. Rin wanted to protest, trying to push him away. “I don’t need your help,” he spat out, words not as harsh as they could’ve been.

“There are too many unmated alphas on our team for me to want you to be around them,” Isagi muttered, looking down at him. “You’re in heat. I’m taking you home.”

Rin huffed, fighting against the urge to curl into Isagi’s embrace. “I can get home on my own.”

“ No ,” Isagi replied, holding onto Rin tighter as he made his way off the field, shooting glares at any of the alphas who were looking at Rin with more than a concerned glance. They went to the locker room first, Isagi setting Rin down for just a moment so he could rifle through both of their lockers and grab their belongings. Chigiri and Reo had met them there, fussing over Rin as Isagi got all they needed.

Rin muttered a soft thanks to the two other omegas once they made sure he was alright with Isagi before they went back out of the room, saying that they’d tell Ego that the both of them were leaving. Isagi was back at Rin’s side quickly, moving to pick him up again.

“I can walk,” Rin snapped, groaning as he pulled himself to his feet, hunched over slightly as the cramps continued. “I’m in heat, not fucking dying.”

“Alright,” Isagi muttered, yet stayed almost glued to his side as they–slowly–made their way out of the stadium and towards the train station. Rin’s mind was hazy as they walked, leaning against Isagi more than he wanted to admit as they reached the station. 

Isagi didn’t speak again until they were seated on the train, with Rin slumped against him. “Were you due for your heat?”

Rin huffed, rubbing at his eyes. “What do you think?”

“No, then,” Isagi mumbled. “Sorry it hit you during practice.”

“Saying sorry like it was something you did,” Rin rolled his eyes. “Shit happens. Guess I was just always doomed to expose myself as an omega in the worst way possible.”

Isagi sighed, pushing Rin’s sweaty bangs from his forehead. If he was in any way affected by having an omega in heat rubbing all over him, then he sure wasn’t showing it. “Nobody is going to care. They’re more worried about you being okay.”

Rin shook his head, curling in on himself as another rush of pain washed over him. He hoped they’d get back to his house soon; it would only get worse. He was just happy that he wasn’t in the worst of it yet and was still clear-headed enough to talk. 

“Who was trying to come over to me on the field?”

Isagi hummed, glancing down at Rin. “Bachira. Nanase and Karasu, too. I knew Bachira wouldn’t do anything terrible, but I don’t trust the other two around an omega in heat. You never know how alphas will react when those pheromones hit them.”

Rin hummed noncommitedly, feeling the train slow to a stop. Isagi shifted, helping him stand up and keeping an arm around his body as they navigated through the train station and onto the streets above. Rin could feel the eyes of everyone passing them on him, and he knew that everyone could tell that his heat had hit. It wasn’t safe for him to be out like this, even with an alpha beside him.

His skin bristled at the contact, not used to the feeling of having someone’s arm slung around him like that. It wasn’t that it was unwelcome , per se, just odd. Rin wondered if maybe the haze of his heat was making him enjoy it more than he usually would. If he were in any other headspace, he’d probably be biting Isagi’s arm off right now. 

“Where exactly do you live?” Isagi’s voice filtered through his mind, tethering him back to earth. “I get you’re not super aware at this point, but I would like to know which house to take you to.”

Rin huffed under his breath, doing his best to glare up at the other boy before taking in their surroundings. They were in his neighborhood, at least. His body was probably on autopilot, trying to get home, and Isagi followed along, hoping for the best.

Another rush of heat rolled over him as he groaned, Isagi’s grip on him tightening without another word. His inner omega preened again, alpha, alpha, alpha , and he had to fight to keep it at bay as much as possible. “Right around the corner there,” Rin muttered, remembering what he had been asked and motioning toward his house.

Isagi nodded, letting Rin slump against him even more as they rounded the corner and walked up to Rin’s house. He dug his key out of his bag–that was still resting on Isagi’s shoulder, annoyingly enough– and pushed the door open enough for the both to tumble inside. 

“You live here alone?” Isagi mumbled as he helped Rin upstairs to his room, the omega flopping onto his bed and curling up into a ball, groaning as another wave of heat crashed over his aching body.

“No,” Rin mumbled. “I still live with my parents.”

Isagi nodded, glancing around at the numerous soccer medals and trophies lining Rin’s walls. Rin noticed his gaze linger just a little longer on the shattered photoframe he still had of himself and Sae, seeing the glint of recognition in his gaze. Isagi didn’t say anything, though, looking back at where Rin was lying down. “Out for the day, then?”

Rin shook his head. “Probably some stupid business trip. They were gone when I woke up.”

Isagi hummed at his response, tentatively walking over and pulling Rin’s shoes off so the younger boy could curl up into a more comfortable position. Rin could see the hesitance in his actions, in his eyes, before Isagi reached over and gently peeled the scent patches from his wrists and neck.

“It’ll probably feel better with these off,” Isagi muttered awkwardly, not showing any signs of being affected as the scent of saltwater and tea tree crashed over him. “I’ve read that omega scent glands can swell up during their heats.”

Rin just nodded, relaxing as best he could as his mind grew fuzzier, the heat finally setting in. “Why’d you help me?”

“Just wanted to,” Isagi muttered, brushing Rin’s bangs back from his face, far more gently than Rin anticipated. “I’m sure going into heat out of nowhere is scary. It's more scary when you add that it happened at practice.”

“Yeah,” Rin mumbled, leaning into Isagi’s gentle touch, not at all caring now. Alpha’s here to take care of us, the inner omega cooed, threatening to break through. Let him.

Rin could push that down a little more, deeper into the recesses of his mind. His last remaining shred of logic was telling him that it wasn’t being careful having an alpha around him while he was in heat, even if he could begrudgingly trust Isagi. “You should probably go,” he added quietly after a moment.

Isagi nodded as if he understood, brushing his thumb against Rin’s cheek before rising to his feet. “I hope it doesn’t get too much worse,” he spoke softly. “If you need anything, just text me.” 

Rin hummed, pulling a blanket up and curling underneath it as he looked at Isagi through hazy eyes. “I’ll be fine,” he tried to bite back, but he knew he failed immensely by the grin that tugged at Isagi’s lips. “Not my first time going through heat alone.”

“Alright,” Isagi huffed out a soft laugh. “Seriously, though. Anything. Just let me know, and I’ll drop everything I’m doing to get over here.”

Rin rolled his eyes, waving Isagi off. Isagi didn’t wait any longer, waving goodbye before gently shutting the door to Rin’s room behind him. He could hear the footsteps echoing down the stairs and the quiet sound of the front door shutting behind Isagi as well. 

Isagi had been right in that having his scent patches off his swollen glands was much more comfortable, even though all he could smell now was his pheromones. Rin thinks he’d be much more embarrassed if Isagi were still there. The burnt smell of distress was long gone, fading for the heady mix of yearning and arousal, typical markers that he was now in the depths of his heat.

He tossed and turned in bed for a while, replaying the images of Isagi hovering over him back on the field, how he had smelled Isagi’s scent flare with protectiveness as the others tried to approach to check on him. Rin didn’t bother hiding the preening feeling at the idea of having an alpha snapping at others to stay away from him.

If anything, having Isagi around for as long as he was had made Rin’s heat hurt a little less. Whether it be the mix of his pheronones mixing with Rin’s or the mere idea of having an alpha there that wasn’t trying to make any uncomfortable advances, it was a nice thing. His heart thumped a little harder in his chest as he thought about it, though he just chalked it up to the heat itself. Surely any omega would like the idea of having an alpha around to help them out, even if it was just to get home, right?

The burning ache between his legs was growing, a hallmark of the least enjoyable things about Rin’s heats. He groaned, kicking his blankets off his body before trailing his hand down his abdomen and into his shorts, hissing at the small amount of relief that it gave.

Isagi, Isagi, Isagi was the only thing pumping through his mind while he took care of himself, a whine tugging from his lips as he reached his peak to the idea of the other boy being the one to touch him instead. He pulled his hand out of his shorts with the tiniest hint of shame, despite the fire burning in him even more at the idea he had conjured up.

That was the first time he had ever thought of anyone like that during his heats, usually just getting it over with as quickly as possible. But no, this time he couldn’t get it out of his mind, even after getting himself off a few more times to the same damn thought.

Fuck, he thought as he laid almost boneless against his sheets, the heat in his body hardly diminished. What the hell am I doing?

Chapter Text

Coming out of his heat was always Rin’s least favorite thing about it. Once the fog cleared his mind and he was set to shift under the sticky expanse of his sheets, the feeling of sweat still clinging to his skin always made him gag.

It was humbling, really.

It always took him a few hours to work up the nerve to get out of bed despite how nasty he’d feel. He didn’t want to face the shame he felt after it, looking in the mirror and seeing the after-effects of his heat. Eventually, the urge to clean up would take over, and he’d haul himself to his feet, tugging the damp sheets off the bed and tossing them into the washing machine before slowly making his way to the shower, still fatigued. 

Rin didn’t bother looking at himself this time. He knew his hair would be far too tousled and dirty, his eyes bloodshot from the lack of sleep and hormones still racing through his veins. He stepped under the spray of the water, not bothering to wait for it to heat up this time. The cold water always felt refreshing after his heat, a way to calm down the rising feeling of shame that was still bubbling over in the surface of his gut for even allowing himself to fall headfirst into that haze to begin with. 

Nimble fingers carded through his hair as we washed the sweat and grime from the past three days down the drain, taking away everything else that Rin was thinking. His heats would never get easier to deal with, and the idea of being an omega in general would never get easier to deal with. Rin was still pissed that his suppressants didn’t work, especially since he’d take the strongest dosage possible to delay the ill effects of being an omega for as long as possible.

He also despised the fact that his heat had to hit him while he was at practice. Maybe he should’ve realized the warning signs sooner and stayed home, but this time, his preheat had felt different than the others. He wasn’t used to his heats coming on with no warning; he’d usually know a day or two in advance with some symptoms beforehand. 

Now, everyone on his team would know what he was. It was annoying enough when Isagi had been able to clock him as an omega, but the entire team knowing would make things far more complicated than he wanted them to be. The possible scrutiny and whispers that he was sure would be racing through his teammates' minds when he came back filled him with anger.

A little nervousness, too, but Rin would be hard-pressed to admit that to anyone. 

Rin shook his head, a scowl laced on his face as he leaned down to grab a bottle of soap and his loofa, scrubbing his skin a little harder than he probably should. He still felt weak, his hands trembling ever so softly as he washed himself, thanks to not wanting to eat the last few days. That was another downside to his heats, too; his appetite would all but disappear. He knew it wasn’t entirely abnormal for omegas not to eat as much during their heats, but he didn’t know of any who wouldn’t eat at all like he did.

It was a cause for concern when he was younger, and his mother took him to the doctor after his first few heats when she realized that his appetite was nonexistent. The doctor looked him over, saw he was healthy enough, and sent them on their way. There wasn’t really anything that could be done for an omega who didn’t want to eat, saying it was better for them to do what they felt was best instead of forcing anything. 

Rin’s mother didn’t like that answer, though, and would still make Rin snacks and watch as he ate them, his stomach churning as he tried to choke down the small meals between waves of pain and fiery arousal in his gut.

He sighed, turned the water off, and stepped out of the shower, drying off before wrapping the towel around his waist before heading over to the sink to brush his teeth and dry his hair. Rin finally got a good look at himself when brushing his teeth, noting the faint flush that still dusted his cheeks and the bridge of his nose, the subtle swelling still present under his scent glands as the residual hormones left his body.

The shower helped bring some life back to his features, at least. No longer dirty and smelling like slick and sweat and whatever the hell else his body decided to secrete during the three days that he was lost in the throes of his own head. All he had to do was eat some breakfast, and he’d be back to feeling like a human being. 

His house was silent as he went down the stairs and into the kitchen–unsurprisingly, of course. Rin wasn’t even sure if his parents had been home at all over the past three days. They probably weren’t; there was no reason for them to be. He shook his head, opening the fridge, and grabbing everything he needed to make a smoothie. Rin’s appetite wasn’t fully back yet, so he wouldn’t overload himself. 

A smoothie was the more careful option.

He was tossing everything into the blender when he heard the doorbell ring, a huff leaving his lips as he set down his container of protein powder onto the counter and made his way to the front door. Who the hell is coming over at 7 in the morning?

Isagi stood awkwardly on the other side of the door when Rin pulled it open, his eyes narrowing slightly as he saw the older boy carrying a basket full of things. “I figured your heat would be ending by now,” Isagi spoke quickly. “I brought some things to help get your energy back. Chigiri and Reo gave me input on what was best.”

“You brought me stuff?” Rin deadpanned, glancing down at the basket again. “I don’t need any of it.”

“It’s good for you,” Isagi shrugged, pushing past Rin and into the house. “I don’t know what it feels like to come out of a heat, obviously, but I know I feel like shit after my ruts. I could only assume it’s the same for omegas.”

Rin scoffed, following the other boy into the kitchen and watching Isagi set the basket on the counter. “I have my own routine for getting out of that haze. I don’t need anything extra.”

Isagi raised an eyebrow, moving to sit on one of the stools by the counter. “What might that be, then?”

“Take a cold shower and wash my sheets,” Rin shrugged, resuming the process of making his smoothie. “Then make my smoothie and add in a little extra protein powder. It helps.”

“You don’t do any yoga to clear your mind after?” Isagi asked. “You’re usually so anal about that after practices. I thought you’d be like that after your heats, too.”

Rin rolled his eyes, turning the blender on and letting the whirring of the motor fill the room for a minute. He really didn’t have anything to say to Isagi, didn’t really want to see him yet before he could get his mind around the fact that Isagi had not only seen him in heat, but the fact that his only thoughts throughout the entirety of it had been about the other boy. 

Isagi waited, looking at Rin with a calculating look on his face like he wanted to ask him something but didn’t know how to put it into words without causing the other boy to lose his mind and kick him out of the house—a conniving bastard he was. 

Rin stopped the blender when his smoothie was the consistency he wanted, popping the top off and pouring it into a glass before gulping down almost half of it in one sitting. Maybe he was a little hungry after all. “I do my yoga after my smoothie,” he muttered as he wiped his mouth. “Gives the boost that I need to want to sit there and do it.”

Isagi nodded, accepting his answer. “Makes sense,” he hummed, picking at the gift basket before speaking again. “I guess a basket was stupid. Not every omega will like the same things, I guess.”

Rin rolled his eyes. “It was a nice thought,” he said, eyes flickering down to the snacks and protein bars, some being brands that he was fond of. “I’m still just trying to be fine with everyone seeing me go into heat. Completely pathetic.”

“It wasn’t pathetic, Rin,” Isagi sighed. “Nobody cares that you’re an omega. They ended practice early after we left. Everyone was more concerned about you getting home okay and getting over your heat before our game. Have you not checked your phone at all?”

“I don’t check my phone during my heats,” Rin said, shaking his head, drinking more of his smoothie. “Why?”

“Everyone’s been wanting to check on you,” Isagi said. “Make sure you’re feeling okay.” 

Rin huffed, grabbing his phone that’d been left on the counter when he had gotten home three days ago and opening up his messaging app. Sure enough, there were multiple texts from his teammates and coach checking up on him and asking if he needed anything dropped by his house.

He almost felt bad for ignoring them. 

“Nobody outside the team knows that I went into heat during practice, right?”

“No,” Isagi shrugged. “Of course not. We aren’t going to expose anything like that to the public. It’s a private moment.”

“And they don’t care that I’m an omega?” Rin’s voice was quieter this time, more hesitance laced into his tone.

“They don’t,” Isagi said, voice softening imperceptibly as he noticed Rin’s discomfort. “Nobody cares. You’re still the same person you paraded yourself around to be, the best on the team, the captain of us all. You being an omega doesn’t change that.”

Rin nodded, still a little uncomfortable with the whole idea of everyone knowing. “You being an omega isn’t going to change anything, Rin,” Isagi’s voice was firm as he spoke again. “Plus, you know you’re not the only omega on the team. You’ve got Chigiri and Reo. They’ll look out for you now.”

“I don’t need anyone looking out for me,” Rin scoffed. “I can handle myself.”

“We all know that,” Isagi laughed. “That’s not going to stop anyone from keeping an eye on you and making sure you’re okay, though. Especially since you might still not be in top form for tomorrow's game. Do you still want to play, anyway? Nobody would blame you for sitting out.”

“I’m not sitting out,” Rin snapped. “I’ll be fine.”

He’d be damned if he sat out of this game, watching on the sidelines as everyone else tried to defeat his brother and that shitty omega that’s captivated him. Rin was the only one who could beat Sae, and he wouldn’t let anyone take that from him.

He’d make sure he was in top form, spending the rest of today exercising and running drills even if his body was screaming at him to take it easy. Rin was not going to risk anything, to risk the team losing or getting looks of disdain from Sae shot his way.

“I’m playing tomorrow, and that’s it.”

“Alright,” Isagi snorted. “I didn’t expect you to want to sit out anyway. I was just saying that it was fine if you did.”

Rin scowled again, finishing his smoothie and rinsing the glass before setting it in the sink to wash later. “You’re stupid for even thinking that I’d want to sit out to begin with.”

“That’s fair,” Isagi laughed again, eyes lingering on Rin for just a beat too long. Rin huffed quietly, looking away. “I guess it was pretty stupid. Feel like you’d still try to play even if you were dying.”

“You’re goddamned right I would,” Rin muttered, grabbing the basket and rifling through it, picking out a chocolate protein bar and taking a bite, not missing the glint of satisfaction on Isagi’s face as he did so.

 “Yoga time, I’m assuming?” Isagi spoke, watching Rin eat. Rin just nodded, tossing the empty wrapper in the trash.

“It is, yes,” he mumbled. “I’m assuming you’re not going to leave yet, are you?”

“Not if you don’t want me to,” Isagi shrugged. “You don’t seem too opposed to me sticking around. Figure you would’ve bitten my head off by now if you were.”

Rin glared at him, hesitating momentarily before shaking his head and pushing away from the counter. “You’re annoying,” he deadpanned. “Come on. I’ve got a spare yoga mat you can use. Make sure you can keep up with me.”

The room was silent as they did yoga. Rin focused on stretching his body out after being cooped up in bed, groaning under his breath at the feeling of his muscles relaxing after being tense. He paid no mind to Isagi, almost forgetting the other was there.

He definitely could’ve forgotten if Isagi hadn’t fallen while copying one of Rin’s poses and sent them both crashing to the floor, with Rin grunting as Isagi landed on top of him. He scowled, glaring at the other boy staring at him with a sheepish expression on his face and pink-tipped ears.

Rin had to fight himself not to blush as well. Too many images were popping into his mind, those that had been conjured up while he was in heat and coming back to the surface as they lay there, both unmoving. His inner omega preened again, Isagi’s scent subtle but far too noticeable from their proximity. 

“Watch what you’re doing next time,” Rin huffed, finally snapping out of it and pushing Isagi off him. “It’s not even hard.”

“Sorry,” Isagi muttered as he rolled back onto his mat, remaining on his back as his chest heaved. “I’m not one to do yoga. My legs feel like jello.”

Rin rolled his eyes, sitting up and stretching a leg out before bending forward, feeling the tension in his lower back and the backs of his thighs release. “You’re a professional athlete. Yoga should be easy for you.”

Isagi just waved him off, continuing to lay on his back as he watched Rin finish what he was doing. They were silent again, but it was comfortable this time. Rin didn’t necessarily enjoy having Isagi’s gaze burning into the side of his head, but he supposed that’s what he got for letting the boy stay over instead of kicking him out.

“They already have the stadium set up for the game tomorrow,” Isagi broke the silence. “They’ve got banners and shit up with our pictures on them.”

Rin scoffed, relaxing as he glanced over at Isagi. “Banners?”

“Banners,” Isagi echoed. “It’s kind of ridiculous to see, honestly. They’re definitely just milking this match for all that it’s worth. Think it’s because of who we’re playing.”

“Of course,” Rin said. “They have nothing better to do than to parade us around. Think they’re hoping that we lose so that the other team keeps the top spot.”

“Probably.”

“We’re gonna win, though,” Rin mumbled, shaking his head. “We have to win.”

“Have to win, huh?” Isagi said. “You’re quite sure about that. We’ve all been practicing a lot, but you never know. Games can never be guaranteed; you know that.”

“We will,” Rin said quickly, so sure of himself and everyone that he was stuck on the team with. “There is no losing. We will destroy them, even if it’s the last thing I do.”

Isagi laughed, not taking him as seriously as Rin treated the situation. “If you say so,” he said. “If we win, I’ll be sure to mention this conversation in the press conference after. I bet everyone will be so keen to hear how you were deadset on winning and acting like it was the most important thing in the world.”

“Oh piss off,” Rin rolled his eyes. “Are you that eager to admit defeat before we even set foot onto the pitch?”

“Of course not,” Isagi shrugged. “I just want to be realistic. I want to win; it’d be a great start to the season. I just think it could hinder going out there and only thinking about winning. We’re going up against a strong team.”

Rin shook his head, pulling his legs against his chest as he rested his head on his knees. He was feeling better after his smoothie and the protein bar, feeling a little more of his energy starting to come back. The yoga helped, too. 

“They’re not that strong,” he rolled his eyes. 

“Have you seen them play before?”

“I’ve seen a few clips when I looked up who Shidou Ryusei was,” Rin huffed. I’ve seen how Sae’s played for years. He hasn’t changed too much was left unspoken.

“Ah yeah, Itoshi Sae’s omega,” Isagi hummed. “He’s crazy out there on the pitch.”

Itoshi Sae’s omega. Gross. “He’s nothing that we won’t be able to handle,” Rin said. “Sae is the one we’re going to need to keep an eye on, especially if that insect is anywhere in his orbit.”

Isagi nodded, keeping his eyes trained on Rin for a few moments. “Sae’s your brother, isn’t he? Have you guys talked about the game yet?”

Rin paused, feeling his body go rigid as he looked over at Isagi. He knew it wasn’t hard for people to figure out. They looked like each other. They shared the same last name, for fuck’s sake. He just didn’t like it when people acknowledged it so casually. 

“He is my brother,” he finally said. “We don’t talk.”

“No?” Isagi asked. “Why?”

“Not important,” Rin snapped, a little harsher than he meant to. “Family doesn’t have to talk if they don’t want to. We’re both busy people.”

Isagi just looked at him again, something akin to pity and curiosity in his gaze, but he let the subject drop for now. “I should probably head out,” he spoke after a minute. “Promised Bachira I’d help move stuff in his mom’s studio.”

Rin nodded, pulling himself to his feet as he led Isagi to the door. He stayed silent as Isagi slipped his shoes back on and made sure he had his phone and keys. Isagi looked at him again before stepping out. “Rest for the remainder of the day,” his voice was firm. “I’ll be expecting you to get us that win tomorrow.”

“Yeah,” Rin rolled his eyes. He wasn’t going to rest. He’d probably end up at the soccer fields down the street by the end of the day to do some last-minute practice. “I will.”

Isagi nodded again, almost looking like he wanted to say something else before deciding against it and leaving Rin’s house. He did not turn back to look as he made it down the walkway and began walking down the street.

Rin sighed, closed the front door, and returned upstairs to his yoga room to roll up the mats. He was ready for the game, ready to see what they had been practicing so hard for over the last two months come to fruition and lead them to victory. He just wasn’t ready to see Sae for the first time in three years. 

—

The locker room fell into silence as Rin walked inside on the day of the game. Everyone stared at him, almost hesitant to move as he weaved through his teammates and over to his locker, opening it up and stuffing his gym bag inside. Even Bachira was silent, staring at him owlishly. That was probably the oddest thing of it all–Bachira being quiet when his favorite thing to do is to yap everyone’s ear off given the chance.

“What?” Rin snapped, staring at all of them, feeling far more defensive than he probably needed to. “Anything to say?”

Everyone shook their heads, shifting their gazes back to their lockers or going back to changing. Bachira walked over, almost hesitant. “We’re glad you’re back, Rin,” his voice softer than Rin had ever heard. “We’re counting on you for today.”

Rin huffed, regarding him with a look that was a little less guarded than usual before tugging his shirt off to pull on his jersey. “You guys better be sure to keep up with me. We aren’t going to go easy on them.”

Bachira nodded, lighting up before bounding back to his locker and changing, a renewed vigor in his actions much more typical of how he usually was. Rin rolled his eyes, tugging on the rest of his uniform and sitting on the bench before him as he waited for the call to go out onto the pitch.

“You ready?” Isagi asked as he sat beside him, a sigh slipping from Rin’s lips. 

“Of course I’m ready,” he scoffed. “I went to one of the fields by my house and practiced after you left. I’m as good as always.”

Isagi rolled his eyes. “I told you to rest,” he chastised. “Do you really think that little bit of practice did much compared to how well you already play?”

“Yes,” Rin answered simply, his gaze being pulled to the door as Ego stepped inside, rounding all the starters up to go ahead and walk out there. “Every little bit helps. You should know that too, Isagi.”

Isagi sighed, rising to his feet and following Rin. Bachira bounded up between them, slinging an arm around each of their shoulders as they walked out. Rin stiffened at the contact but didn’t push him away. He had more to worry about than Bachira’s incessant need to cling to everyone he encountered.

“Do you think they’re going to have both Sae and Shidou start?” Bachira babbled as they walked down the wings, the sounds of the crowd growing even louder as they approached. 

Isagi glanced over at Rin; their conversation from yesterday was clearly not lost on him. Bachira was lovingly dense, Rin supposed. He didn’t pick up on how he and Sae shared a last name. Or maybe he did and just wasn’t going to say anything. 

If he didn’t know that they were related, then the uncanny resemblance between them would be a dead giveaway once Bachira laid eyes on Rin’s older brother. He was already bracing himself for the barrage of questions that would be sent his way at the end of the match, anyway.

Rin’s damned teammates were too nosy for their own good sometimes.

“I don’t see why they wouldn’t,” Isagi finally spoke. “They seem to work best in a duo. Shidou feeds on anything that Sae sends his way.”

“It’d be stupid to have them start together,” Rin finally muttered, the roar of the crowd growing louder in his ears, drowning out his words. Isagi and Bachira stared at him, mostly curious and waiting for an explanation. “It would be a strong start. But having them both on at the beginning would give us the advantage of being able to track their moves and get used to them. It changes the game's trajectory if they start Shidou in the second half.”

Bachira nodded, clearly understanding. “They don’t want us to be able to win,” he concluded. “We’d be able to expect everything if they started with such a dynamic duo.”

“Exactly,” Rin scoffed, shaking his head. Lukewarm fucking team that is. “They want us to lose. They’re betting on it.”

Isagi just nodded, shifting Bachira’s arm off his shoulder as the tunnel's light grew brighter, the three of them stepping out onto the field. Bachira paid no mind to it, pulling his other arm from Rin as he ran ahead to meet up with the others.

“This is it,” Isagi said as he looked at Rin. “Our debut game.”

“Don’t go getting all sentimental,” Rin scoffed. “Save that for when the final buzzer rings.”

Isagi just laughed, falling silent as he walked beside Rin. He squinted his eyes as they stepped out onto the sidelines, trying to see if he could spot his brother amongst the sea of players. He couldn’t. Figures , he scoffs lowly, eyes scanning across the other team doing their warmup stretches. That tepid idiot probably won’t come out until the game starts.

He raised a hand, scratching at his scent patches as he walked over to join the rest of the team. Ego was going over a few final things before the game started, nothing too encouraging that would promise them victory–but enough to get everyone hyped up even more. 

Bachira and Isagi were quietly talking to each other, probably planning a few passes that they had only practiced together in a hope that it’d distract the other team. Chigiri was talking to Kunigami, who was sitting on the bench and looking thoroughly unamused not to be playing due to an injury he had gotten during practice the week prior. 

Rin had become far too perceptive of the people on his team, silently blaming Isagi for that. He huffed, averting his gaze when he caught Reo and Nagi sharing a kiss in his peripheral, the mates far too comfortable with PDA no matter where they were. Gross.

There were ten minutes until the game started. Rin could feel his own anticipation building back up, not having played any actual games since he was in high school. This was different, though. Pathetic school matches would never hold a candle to the stakes of professional games. 

He was on the world stage now, thousands of eyes on him and everyone else. There was hardly any room for error if he didn’t want to face any ridicule, not that he would pay much mind to it as it wouldn’t matter in retrospect, but it was best to avoid it altogether.

Rin shifted on his feet, almost antsy as he waited for the game's call to start. He hated waiting around, hated the adrenaline coursing through his veins without a way to rid it from his body. Isagi noticed, walking over and resting an arm on his shoulder. Rin didn’t pull away, finally used to having some form of contact with the other boy after his heat.

“You’re quite amped up, aren’t you?” Isagi spoke, a teasing lilt laced through his voice. Rin rolled his eyes, looking down at him.

“Shut up.”

Isagi laughed, looking back at the field as the other team lined up and headed out onto the pitch. “We all are,” he said. “Let’s get out there and show them what a bunch of nobodies have hidden up their sleeves, huh?”

“Dumbass,” Rin scoffed under his breath as he followed Isagi, grouping up with his teammates before they walked out onto the field as well, their names being announced through the stadium’s speakers. “You weren’t lying about the banners.”

“As if I’d lie about something as ridiculous as that,” Isagi whispered, taking his place next to Rin. They both stared down at the players from the other team standing before them. Rin’s eyes wandered, finally landing on who he’d been looking for.

Sae was already looking at him, something unreadable in his gaze as he stared down his younger brother. Rin bristled, lips tugging up into a snarl subconsciously, a silent I’m going to destroy you passing through his gaze. 

His brother, the irritating asshole he was, just stared at him, unmoving, before looking away. That pissed Rin off even more, barely any acknowledgement after their time apart. He wasn’t expecting much of anything from Sae, but still. 

They moved out onto the pitch, breaking into their planned positions as the seconds ticked down on the scoreboard. Rin kicked his feet, the grass tearing up underneath his cleats as he braced for it to begin, eyes still deadset on his brother and nobody else. 

The day he was waiting for had finally come.

Rin could also feel everyone shifting with anticipation around him, their eyes moving from the scoreboard to the players scattered around the field. It was electric, sending a shiver up his spine as he thought about the upcoming 90 minutes he was set to dominate.

The sound of a buzzer, the kick off of the ball, and the game was officially started. He weaved through the players, the opposing team having the ball as a player he had no interest in learning drove the ball down the bitch.

Rin looked up, pushing himself to move faster as Bachira and Isagi marked two other players, trying to keep their paths blocked as the player attempted to dodge them. Rin was almost on his heels at that point, so close to being able to taste stealing the ball and taking it into his possession.

Otoya managed to sweep in and grab the ball from the opposing team. Coming up from the left flank, he was invisible to almost everybody until he started to kick it back down towards the goal. Rin scoffed, turning on his heels and sprinting after him, pushing past the player who was set to mark him and keeping himself open in case Otoya decided to pass the ball. 

He heard the sound of the ball colliding with Otoya’s foot as it went sailing through the air–a pass, yes, but not to Rin. He had passed it to Nagi, being in the lazy man’s zone to score. Rin watched with bated breath as Nagi jumped into the air, caught it with his foot, and twisted it, driving the ball into the net.

Everyone on his team erupted into cheers, congratulating Nagi on scoring. Rin didn’t even spare them a glance, moving back to his position for defense as the other team prepared to toss the ball back in. He could see the looks of displeasure on their faces–whether from being scored on so early or just the idea of a team full of nobodies scoring against them in general–Rin wasn’t sure.

From what Rin could see of him, Sae looked like he couldn't care less. His brother was standing there, waiting to get the ball so he could resume the game. Tepid , Rin scoffed. You’ve got to have more emotion than that.

Another kick, and Sae was dribbling the ball down the field, dodging Rin’s teammates easily as he made his way down the pitch. It was like looking into the past, seeing how he used to play back when Rin and he were on the same team. Robotic movements, in a way, it was like he didn’t even have to think about what his next move would be because he didn’t have to put in any additional effort for his plays to work. 

Rin huffed out as he watched him pass the ball to someone on his team, some guy with pink hair that looked like he thought he was the shit when he probably wasn’t–Sendou–he saw on the back of his jersey when he turned around to shoot. Rin had to hold back a laugh as he went to score, but his team’s goalkeeper blocked the ball. Dumbass.

The pink-haired guy looked aptly disappointed by missing but was quickly calmed down by someone with dual colored eyes. Rin scoffed, turning around and heading back down the pitch as Bachira got the ball, confusing everyone on the opposite team with his dribbling. Rin never really put much thought into the theatrics that the overly-energetic boy would do while playing, but he did have to admit that it came in handy now.

Rin watched as Bachira passed the ball to Isagi, telling him to score! However, that was quickly abandoned when the defender from Sae’s team showed back up and damn near picked the ball up with his foot, regaining possession with a smirk on his face. “Not so fast,” he had spoken to Isagi, Rin barely able to pick up on it. “We’re just getting started.”

He could see that piss Isagi off, see the other boy’s shoulders tense as he looked at him before turning away and heading back down the field without sparing anyone a second glance. Rin shook his head, running after him. “Don’t let that jackass bother you,” he huffed out as he passed Isagi. “We’re still ahead. Ignore him.”

Isagi just nodded, breaking off to the opposite side of the field like they had practiced yesterday. Rin turned around, eyes scanning the field for whoever had the ball. It was still the big defender, watching as he was almost putting on a show for everybody. Rin just scoffed; treating a game like a theatre performance was ridiculous. 

He watched as the ball was passed to his brother, Sae receiving it quickly as he zoned in on the goal, pushing past everybody like it was the easiest thing on Earth to do. Though, knowing Sae, it probably was.

Sae wasn’t really meant to shoot the ball in score. He was supposed to just be used as a midway point for passing the ball around his teammates, which is why Rin prickled when he saw that he was getting ready to shoot. He clenched his jaw, trying to push forward and get to Sae before he could, but it was too late.

The ball went into the net faster than anybody could react. Even their goalkeeper was a hair's breadth too late, the ball skimming over the top of his fingers before sinking into the net. Rin’s chest heaved as he looked at it before glaring back at his brother, the crown around them erupting into cheers now that the game was tied. 

Sae just stared back, a silent taunt of do better before turning on his heels and heading to the sidelines when Rin’s team called a time out. Rin stalked back to the sidelines, sitting down and chugging his water bottle, irritation already lacing through his features. 

“We’re doing some substitutions,” he heard Ego speak. “Barou. Reo. You’re both going in.”

The two boys nodded, rising to their feet and shrugging their jackets off before stretching. Rin couldn’t speak much on the skills of either of them any further than Reo being good at defense and Barou refusing to play for anyone other than himself. Hopefully, having the selfish bastard on the field will lead to another goal. Rin’s teammates started murmuring as they glanced at the other side of the field, a hushed excitement and concern laced in their tones.

Rin looked up, eyes narrowing as he realized what they were talking about. Sae’s team was sending Shidou Ryusei in. The omega was much different to see in person, from how he acted to his size alone. He was bigger than Sae, both in height and how packed he was with muscle. Rin could almost see Sae’s exasperated expression as the omega leaned over him, face tucked into his neck. 

Rin scoffed, looking away as he saw Sae raise a hand to card his fingers through Shidou’s hair. What is up with these assholes and PDA?

The timeout was over, and they were due back on the field, taking their places with the new formation due to the addition of Reo and Barou. The other team had also tweaked their positioning; everyone was strategically placed around Sae and Shidou. 

It was clear who the stars of the rest of the match would be.

They returned to playing with a fervor, each team racing up and down the field again with each pass and steal of the ball, everyone only getting more amped up as the minutes on the clocked ticked down towards halftime. 

Seeing Sae and Shidou playing together was leagues different than just seeing it through highlights on his phone. They played off each other a little too well, Sae being able to read Shidou’s cues perfectly, and the roach looking freak being able to match Sae’s fervor with even more excitement.

Jealously flared in Rin’s gut as he watched the two of them. That used to be him and Sae, that should still be him and Sae if it weren’t for Rin being a useless fucking omega. Though clearly, Sae’s opinion on the matter had changed since he was mated to one, but that did nothing to soothe the anger flaring in Rin’s gut. 

Why was Shidou Ryusei so much better than him? Is it because he could match Sae’s playing better? Rin had trained for years to keep up with his brother and play at the same level as him as they had gotten older, and Sae had just thrown that all away once Rin had presented. What changed?

Rin snarled, pushing himself to move faster as he tried to catch up with the two of them and steal the ball away. He was shoulder to shoulder with Sae now, a sneer on his face as he looked at him. Sae just looked at him. “You haven’t changed, have you?” His voice was flat as he spoke. “Still so caught up on the past, hm?”

Sae passed the ball to Shidou before he could even react. “You’re better than this, Rin,” he muttered before running away. Rin clenched his jaw and watched as Isagi and Bachira tried to close in on Shidou to keep him from scoring, but he kicked the ball without hesitation and scored.

Rin panted, wiping the sweat beading on his brow as he stared at them. Shidou ran up to Sae and jumped on his back, excitedly babbling about scoring a goal and begging to be praised. He could see Sae mumble something under his breath, the omega calming down and nodding as he let go, moving to just stand beside him instead.

The remainder of the first match went by quickly, both teams trying to push the other to the brink. Plays were blocked, the ball was stolen, and goals were missed or knocked out of bounds. It wasn’t much of anything to note, not to Rin. He was still busy stewing in his irritation towards his brother.

He was zoned out for most of halftime, not caring to hear anyone rambling on about how fun the first half was or how they need to plan on how to score more goals so they could win. He didn’t care, head hung low with a towel around his neck as he waited to be called back out onto the field. “You alright?” he heard Isagi ask him, raising his head to see the other boy holding out a water bottle for him. Rin just huffed, snatching the bottle and taking a sip.

“You’re doing great out there,” Isagi tried to probe again. “You’ve blocked a fair amount of plays. They’d probably have more points if it weren’t for you.”

“Shut up,” Rin huffed, wiping some stray water droplets from his mouth. “I won’t be doing great until I score.”

Isagi rolled his eyes. “Okay, you wannabe fucking villain. Lets get back out there, then.”

The beginning of the second half was as ramped up as the first. A new fire was tearing through Rin’s team, with everyone pushing themselves more than usual. Barou had scored, which was unsurprising yet useful for their comeback to win. Sae was still silently taunting Rin, causing the younger of the two Itoshi brothers to grow increasingly more frustrated as the game progressed. 

They were in the last few minutes now, a tenseness filtering through the field as Rin marked Sae, eyes darkened with determination as he followed his brother’s every move, blocking him from passing to anyone on his team. Sae raised his eyebrow in a silent challenge, a show me what you’ve been doing with yourself.

Rin almost snarled, kicking his foot out and stealing the ball as fast as possible. He didn’t miss the flash of surprise that painted Sae’s features, and he didn’t want to see if there was anything else in his gaze before he took off down the field, dribbling the ball. He could feel Sae on his heels, the looming presence of his brother causing him to push himself further than he thought he could go.

Bachira loomed over on his left; Isagi was on his right. Rin wasn’t going to pass to Bachira; he knew the other boy was only there to create the illusion that there was a chance he’d pass and bring an opening for a slip-up. 

Rin looked over at Isagi and saw the determination yet nervousness in his eyes as they raced up the pitch. This was something they had practiced before, running the drill into the ground until it was etched into their brains like another reflex that they were born with.

“Isagi,” Rin huffed out as they neared the goal, the clock buzzing down to the last minute of the match. Everyone in the crowd was on the edge of their seats, knowing that this would be the play that made or broke the game.

“Look at me.”

Rin passed the ball after speaking, watching as Isagi received it without a hitch and pushed forward towards the goal, his eyes focused as he shot it. Everyone on their team stopped to watch, time seeming to slow down until they heard the familiar sound of the ball hitting the net.

The ball went in. They had won.

Rin had managed to beat his brother.

3-2 final. Team Blue Lock ran across the scoreboard as Rin slumped to the field, panting and taking in everything. He had been the one wanting to score and secure victory for his team, but he knew that with the drills they had practiced and their set up across the field, it wouldn’t happen. Rin just had to settle for his assist. Which, he figured, wasn’t awful, but not the turn out that he had really wanted.

Rin looked up as he heard footsteps approaching, eyes widening as he saw Sae looming over him. His brother looked less than impressed. Typical. “Your teammate,” he spoke, tone flat. “Isagi Yoichi. Is that who you’re fixated on now?”

“Fixated?” Rin scoffed. “What the hell does that even mean?”

Sae bent down, almost to eye level with Rin. “Your scent patches don’t do a very good job filtering everything out when he’s close,” he muttered. “You stunk up half the field. You’re lucky nobody noticed.”

“Oh piss off,” Rin snapped. “I’m not fixated on anything other than soccer.”

“You think that, Rin?” Sae scoffed. “Or do you just not want to admit to yourself that you found someone who can outplay you? Someone who can keep up with your bullshit?”

“It’s not like that,” Rin said. “You think you know everything, Sae? You don’t even know me .”

Sae shook his head, rising to his feet. “I know you enough to see that you’re still tepid enough to only play for other people,” he spoke cooly. “You’d be nothing if you didn’t start playing because of me. You’d be nothing now if you didn’t have Isagi Yoichi to chase after.”

Rin scoffed, clenching his jaw as he watched his brother walk away, wanting so desperately to call out and tell Sae that he was wrong, that he wasn’t nothing and would be the greatest even if he didn’t think so.

No words came out, though, as he rose to his feet and stalked back to the locker room, past the prying eyes of his celebrating teammates and reporters for their post-game press conference. He was not interested in doing any of that, not seeing the point.

There was no reason for anything if Rin wouldn’t be acknowledged for what he had been working toward since Sae had left him. He could feel Isagi’s eyes on him as he pushed past him. Rin was just hoping that the other boy would take the hint for once and leave him the hell alone as he entered the locker room and slumped down onto one of the benches.

Luckily, he did, and Rin could remember everything about the game in silence, just as he was destined to do. Every play, every steal, every chance he had to take a goal for himself that he didn’t take advantage of swirled through his mind as he stared blankly at the ground. 

Rin felt empty. Maybe he didn’t do what he had set out to do to begin with.

Chapter Text

Rin tried to slink out of the locker room without anyone noticing him. He wasn’t really in the mood for any press conferences that were sure to be happening while he hid away, and he damn sure wasn’t in the mood to potentially see his brother again.

He felt sick. He felt angry . Too many emotions were bubbling up inside of him that he couldn't even begin to put into words. How long had he been waiting for this moment? To prove to his brother that he was still as good as he had always been?

Sae had clearly been less than impressed with his performance. Rin thinks that’s what bothers him the most, that he had put his entire being into practicing for this goddamned game, pushing himself more than he should and yet it was all for naught. This was his one chance to prove himself. To prove that being an omega didn’t mean anything. To prove that he had earned the team's captain spot through how well he played.

Now he just thinks it was a waste of his time.

The stadium was still loud enough to hear as he moved through the halls, taking detours and pushing himself through empty hallways to avoid seeing his teammates or, god forbid, reporters. Rin doesn’t trust himself not to snap at anybody, and he knows that wouldn’t paint him in a good picture regarding his public appearance. 

He could tell there were still far too many fans in the crowds. Maybe trying to stay behind and catch a glimpse of the players leaving the fields, or wanting to see how his team was reacting to winning their debut game–even if it was by the skin of their teeth. Everyone was probably losing their minds over how excited they were. No doubt, there was probably an izakaya trip already planned to celebrate once they were done with their interviews and showered.

Rin doesn’t want to be anywhere but home . 

He found his exit quickly, a hidden door in the back with a broken exit sign hanging above it. He doesn’t even know what side of the stadium he’ll end up coming out on, but he’ll figure out the logistics of that once he sets foot outside and makes his escape.

It might be a little stupid to be acting like this, really. Something like a spy movie where the main lead is trying to escape from one of their missions without blowing their cover. Rin most likely could’ve just gone out one of the regular doors they all use at the end of their practices, but that was too risky. He wanted solitude, so he’s getting it, even if it’s one of the most ridiculous things he’s done.

Rin pushes the door open without hesitation, leaving and letting it slam shut behind him. He waits for a minute, eyes squinted with the sudden brightness of the sun. Once he could see without looking like a dumbass he glanced around, making sense of which side of the stadium he got spit out on.

Luckily, it was right where he needed to be; a few quick turns and he’d be on the sidewalk headed toward his train station. Rin moved quickly, weaving through the few cars and work vehicles that were scattered around with bated breath. There was no way anyone could notice him slipping through there, but he could never be too careful .

It didn’t take too long for him to reach the sidewalk, letting go of the breath he was holding as he glanced behind him at the stadium before turning on his heels and going to the station. The streets were empty, a sure sign that there wouldn’t be many people on the train. Another small victory for him trying to act like he was invisible. 

Rin took the stairs two steps at a time down into the station, his legs burning from the exertion of the match and deciding to move as quickly as possible despite the rigorous exercise he had just been through. He scanned through without batting an eye, able to walk right onto his train since it had just arrived.

There were a few people on there, but none in the back where he preferred to sit, so it didn’t really matter. He took his seat, rested his head against the window, and watched as the train began to move. He was so much closer to being home, where he could retreat into himself and pretend that today had never even happened.

He knew that he should be happy. Given how important it was, he should have been ecstatic that they had won the game. Some smaller, more hidden part of him was happy, sure. Winning a game is always a rush, a thrill that zips through his body like electricity. Rin’d probably be happier if he had actually done something to contribute, though.

An assist doesn’t mean anything to him. An assist when it comes to helping Isagi score the winning goal pisses him off more than anything else. That should’ve been him scoring the goal. Sae would’ve said something nice about it if that were the case. Not just look at him like Rin was the worst thing to exist.

Rin misses when they were younger; a bitter feeling rises in the pit of his stomach. Hearing Sae say the words, you’re so good, Rin! Or, Rin’s favorite when he was younger, let’s play together forever, okay? 

Forever clearly doesn’t mean anything to his older brother. Or, well, it did , until Rin had the unfortunate luck of presenting as an omega. After that point, he wasn’t good enough for their dream–for Sae. It wasn’t like Rin wanted to be an omega, nor did he think that part of his biology would have any impact on how they played together.

Sae clearly felt that way, though, barging into his room after his first heat had ended with nothing but pure, unfiltered disgust in his eyes. The dream that Rin had clung onto for so long, the dream that made him want to play soccer in the first place, was crushed with a few vile words spewed back and forth and a final slam of his bedroom door.

Rin shook his head, rising to his feet once the train came to a stop. He moved through the few people getting on as he moved to get off, mumbled apologies for getting in their way slipped through his lips as he did so. 

He was so close to being home.

He wonders if he’d look stupid breaking into a run to get back there. It wasn’t far, maybe ten minutes. The gym bag slung over his shoulder might make it a pain in the ass, though, or the fact that his legs would probably scream at him for trying to run even more today.

Sighing, he hiked his bag up higher and quickened his steps. Running through the streets would draw more attention to himself than he wanted, which was decided against rather quickly. Rin was just glad the streets were mostly empty due to the later hour.

After a few minutes, his house came into view, so he jogged the rest of the way. His bag fell to the ground as he moved to rustle through his pockets for his keys, grabbing them and jamming them into the lock so he could get inside. It was almost crazy how he could feel the tension slipping from his body as he pushed the door open and stepped inside, kicking the gym bag with him. He could always pick it up and put everything away tomorrow.

The house was silent as he made his way upstairs to his bedroom. No surprise that his parents weren’t home again. Hell, Rin wasn’t even sure that they knew he had a game today. Would they have even cared that their youngest son was having his debut match? He knew damn well they weren’t in the crowds anywhere.

Rin thinks most parents would be over the moon with having two professional athletes as kids, especially if they were playing against each other. Though he figured that they’d never been the most hands-on parents anyways. Sae was always the one taking care of Rin when they were younger. Maybe that’s why he was still far too attached.

It was pathetic, now that he thought about it.

He sighed, flicking the light to his room and kicking his shoes off before flopping onto his bed. God, lying down felt good. Any remaining tension from the day dissipated as he shifted to get more comfortable, pulling his phone out and turning it on to see what shit he ended up missing since his unannounced departure.

His phone buzzed again as it came to life, a text coming immediately. Rin rolled his eyes, scrolling through the notifications. A few random ones from teammates or old classmates congratulated him on the win. A handful from Bachira asked where he went and if he wanted to join them for drinks after everyone finished.

The most recent ones were from Isagi: a barrage of where did you go, they want to interview you, and the most recent: Are you okay? Did you go home?

Those were going to stay unanswered for as long as possible. Isagi didn’t need to know that Rin had gone home, though knowing how he was, Rin was almost positive that the other boy would be showing up at his house at some point to pester him about it.

Maybe he should shower before that happens. The sweat from the match had dried, clinging to his skin and making him feel almost itchy, despite Rin knowing that he couldn’t actually get itchy from that. The scent patches were starting to bother him, too. He had to wash off the adhesive before his skin began to blister underneath the fabric again.

It took him another ten minutes to convince himself to get out of bed and shower, but Rin felt much better afterward. He walked back into his room when he was done, towel slung low around his hips and hair still dripping with water as he dug through his closet for some clothes. He settled on a simple tank top and some sweatpants, tugging the fabric onto his body and running the towel over his hair before tossing it to the side.

The soft scent of sea water rose from his body as he rubbed some cream over his scent glands, relaxing as the coolness of it soothed the burning from the patches. Rin should go without them more often. It’s not like he was trying to hide his status from his teammates anymore.

He’s pretty sure going into heat in front of them all will always haunt him. Not his best moment, it seems, and he did a lot of stupid shit as a kid. Rin swears he would give Sae and his parents gray hairs before they were even at the age to get them, given how destructive he was when it came to his toys and himself.

Rin’s phone buzzed again, and he rolled his eyes and glanced down at it. He wasn’t even surprised that it was Isagi again. Can he not take a hint? Rin would never get a break from the other boy, it seemed; there was no longer such a thing as being left alone once he got himself tangled up with Isagi Yoichi.

Well, if he could even call it getting tangled up with him. Rin doesn’t know where they stand, really. Friends? Maybe. It seems a little redundant to call himself Isagi’s friend, but that’s probably the closest thing they are. They passed just teammates territory once Isagi helped him home while Rin was in the throes of his heat.

He huffed out a quiet breath once he picked up his phone, scrolling through the barrage of messages left by the other boy. The last one was a simple I’m coming over , which Rin was already expecting and mentally preparing himself for.

What is he even going to say? Oh, sorry, my brother talking to me for the first time in years made me want to end my shit, or something a little ruder like you are the entire reason why Sae still thinks that I’m a failure.

Both things probably aren’t the best, but Rin doesn’t care at this point. Isagi could just deal with it. He knows that Rin has always had a temper, and he is never the easiest person to talk to, no matter how much Isagi tried to pry his way deeper.

Rin figures he should at least head downstairs so he doesn’t keep Isagi waiting when he arrives. He doesn’t know if Isagi is coming straight from the stadium or his house, so he doesn’t have any way to gauge the time he has to get ready. Should he make them something to drink? To try and act like a decent host?

He shook his head, pushing away from the bathroom counter and going downstairs. He doesn’t understand why he’s questioning whether he should do something decent when Isagi arrives. It’s not like he’d even be expecting anything from him. Rin feels a little stupid.

His inner omega is preening at the idea of Isagi coming over again too, a little something extra that’s starting to piss Rin off. Shouldn’t that little bastard part of himself stay quiet unless he’s in heat? At this point, he’s beginning to feel a lot more than a little stupid. Maybe he could pretend he isn’t home, hide behind the couch, or retreat upstairs and ignore the doorbell when it inevitably rings. 

God, he’s pathetic. Rin needs to calm the hell down before Isagi shows up. Maybe get a grip on his pheromones, too, because they’re leaking out a little too much for comfort. He doesn’t want to absolutely drown the alpha in his scent, even if a part of him thinks that Isagi wouldn’t even mind.

Rin had a good twenty minutes to calm down before the sound of his doorbell filtered through his ears. For a brief moment, he still considered hiding, but acting like an adult was the best thing to do as he got up from the kitchen table and went to the front door.

He was met with Isagi’s concerned features as he opened the door, a blank expression on his own face. “You couldn’t just leave me alone for one day?” He asked as he stepped to the side, letting Isagi enter.

“You disappeared!” Isagi said, taking his shoes off and lining them up by the door before following Rin to the kitchen. “Everyone wanted to interview you, and nobody knew where you went. It was concerning.”

“It’s nobody’s business,” Rin rolled his eyes as he slid a teacup over to Isagi. He lost his little internal battle about making anything for them or not. Having tea gave him enough of a distraction to be able to occupy himself with his hands or take a drink if he didn’t want to talk.

“You are the captain of our team,” Isagi said before taking a sip of the tea, wincing as it burned his tongue. Rin rolled his eyes as he watched him. “That’s quite a vital part. Of course everyone would want to know where you went.”

“I didn’t want to get interviewed,” Rin said simply, hoping that Isagi wouldn’t be able to read through the lines. “There’s nothing that I could’ve said that wouldn’t be said by any of our other teammates.”

Isagi sighed, holding the cup between his hands as he looked at Rin. “You got fired up during the match. You played better than I’ve ever seen you do during practices. It’s an interesting interview topic.”

Rin huffed, looking down at his tea. “It’s nothing worth interviewing over. They can get me after our next game.”

“Did something happen?” Isagi tilted his head. “I guess if you didn’t want to be interviewed or stay for the press conference, then that’s fine. But even you don’t always completely leave the field without saying anything.”

“Nothing happened,” Rin muttered, bringing his cup to his lips and taking a longer sip than necessary. “What makes you think that to begin with?”

“I saw you talking to Sae,” Isagi shrugged. Rin froze at his words, a scowl lacing his features as he looked at him. “It didn’t look like it was going well.”

“That doesn’t matter,” Rin muttered. “My conversation with him had nothing to do with me not sticking around.”

Isagi shook his head as he leaned over the counter. “You’re lying,” he said simply. “You were fine at the beginning of the match. Maybe a little on edge when you saw him, but relatively calm. Then suddenly he approached you, and you left right after.”

“You’re reading into things too much,” Rin said, shaking his head. 

“Am I?” Isagi countered.

Rin faltered for a moment as Isagi spoke, wondering if he should just break down and tell somebody the history between him and his brother and everything that came after. It’d be easier, having the weight of it off his shoulders after so long. Though there was the small part of him that was afraid Isagi would think he was being over-dramatic or too sensitive over everything. His parents thought he was too sensitive about it when he told them, anyway.

“Fucking fine,” he mumbled after a moment, drinking more of his tea to calm himself down. He could already smell his scent flaring again. It wasn’t going to be a fun conversation. At least Isagi wasn’t saying anything about the heady smell of sea water filling the air.

“Sae basically disowned me when I presented as an omega,” Rin began. “We were stuck to each other’s hip growing up. Played soccer together and had a dream that we would always play together once we went pro.”

Isagi nodded, keeping his eyes trained on Rin as he spoke. Rin shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, not bothering to make eye contact.

“Then I went into heat for the first time. I had just barely come out of the haze of it all when he had come into my room and said that he didn’t want to be around someone weak. That me being an omega was an eyesore and a hindrance to his career if we continued playing together.”

“Seriously?” Isagi scoffed. “That’s total bullshit. You know your status isn’t a hindrance, right?”

Rin waved him off with a dismissive shrug. “It was to Sae. All I had wanted as a kid was to be like my big brother and to play with him, and it all came crashing down because my biology decided to dictate me as an omega.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Isagi murmured. “You didn’t deserve that, you know that?”

“Whatever,” Rin mumbled. “I thought this game would be my chance to show him he was wrong. That I could destroy him and everything he stands for despite being an omega. But then I passed to you at the last second, and you scored the winning goal, not me.”

He paused as he took another sip of his tea, the now lukewarm liquid barely doing anything to soothe his nerves. Isagi must’ve noticed his scent souring and began pumping out his own pheromones to try calming Rin down.

Rin hated that it was working.

“When he came up to me after the match, I thought he was going to tell me that he was wrong,” Rin continued to talk. “But he didn’t. He told me that I’m still clearly fixated on another person when playing, that I’m not playing for myself, just like when we were younger.”

“Who did he say you were fixated on?” Isagi asked, brows furrowed. “Cause it seemed to me like you were lost in your own little world for part of it.”

“You, Isagi,” Rin scoffed. “He said I was too fixated on you.”

“Me?” Isagi snorted, his demeanour relaxing slightly. “He really said you’re fixated on me when playing?”

“Yeah,” Rin said. “Which is ridiculous considering how he now has a mate hanging over him every chance he gets. They’re more fixated than anything.”

Isagi nodded, keeping his gaze trained on Rin. “Don’t take this the wrong way,” he began. “I’m not calling you fixated. You play more for yourself than anyone else on the team. But you are closer to me than anyone else.”

Rin nodded, wrinkling his nose. “I wouldn’t call us close,” he tried to protest.

“You don’t push me away like you do everyone else,” Isagi pointed out. “Even when you were in heat, you let me stick around longer than I expected you to.”

“That doesn’t mean anything,” Rin mumbled.

“No?” Isagi tilted his head. “Even now, when you said you wanted to be left alone. You let me come inside, and now we’re having this conversation.”

Rin scoffed under his breath, his eyes still trained on the cup before him. “You’re easy to talk to, I guess,” he spoke after a minute. “You don’t…push me to talk if I don’t want to, I guess.”

A grin tugged at Isagi’s lips as Rin spoke, his scent turning sweet at the idea of Rin even feeling some sense of being comfortable around him. “I’m glad,” he said simply. “That’s all I want, you know?”

“Yeah,” Rin murmured, finally lifting his gaze to meet Isagi’s. He could see nothing but friendliness in his gaze, maybe a little more the longer he looked. Rin sighed, his hands softly trembling as he gripped the cup again, now understanding what it meant whenever his heart felt like it was leaping in his chest whenever he was under Isagi’s gaze like this.

“I know.”

Chapter Text

“I’m surprised you didn’t kick me out last night,” Isagi mused, hair still ruffled from falling asleep on Rin’s couch.

“It was late,” Rin said, rummaging through the refrigerator to grab the stuff he needed for his morning smoothie. “Don’t think the trains around here run past eleven.”

Isagi rolled his eyes, gripping the cup of coffee Rin had given him when he had asked for one. “They do,” he shrugged. “You sure you wanna go with that excuse? That the trains don’t run late?”

Rin glanced behind him, shooting a glare at the other boy before moving away from the fridge with everything he needed in his hands. “Oh piss off,” he muttered, spreading everything out onto the counter before grabbing the blender and tossing everything inside. “I have half a mind to kick your ass to the curb right now.”

“But you won’t,” Isagi grinned, blowing on his drink to try and cool it a bit before taking a sip. “Not after yesterday. You like having me around.”

“You’re a pain in my ass,” Rin said, tossing everything into the blender and turning it on before Isagi could respond. He figures Isagi is right, even if he didn’t want to admit it. Even with the boy banished to the couch downstairs while Rin went and slept peacefully in his room, there was a little bit of comfort knowing that for the first time in a while, he wouldn’t be waking up to an empty house.

Rin can’t even remember the last time he was able to make a cup of coffee for someone in the morning. Or hear the sound of muffled footsteps from downstairs while he was still trying to convince himself to get out of bed.

He didn’t want to risk getting used to it, though. He didn’t want to start assuming that Isagi would want to spend more time with him and would want to be in Rin’s house. He just came over because he wanted to know why I skipped out on the post-game media buzz, Rin tried to remind himself as he shut the blender off and poured the smoothie into his cup. That’s all.

They were in each other’s orbit, more so than they had been when they first came into contact with each other. There was a push and pull, a line that Rin thinks they’re treading dangerous waters on, but it won’t be crossed.

Though if he had to admit it to himself now, despite his wariness and fighting against it, some smaller part of him wants to know what it would feel like if they did end up toeing the line a little too much and decided to fall right into each other.

The thought was scary. Maybe a little nauseating, too, though not in a bad way. Just in a way that Rin was too unfamiliar with to allow himself more than a few fleeting moments before trying to reel himself back into reality. 

Rin and Isagi were total opposites. Too different in a way that would allow them to even move past the thought of them being friends at best, even if Rin’s mind was screaming at him by now with how he wanted to be more than that.

He wasn’t sure when it had shifted from the unknown territory of begrudging acceptance of Isagi pushing his way into his life, and moved to wanting more. Rin wasn’t good at romantic feelings or how to even go about trying to rid himself of the annoying thoughts. He already felt stupid enough for looking up everything he was feeling once he had said goodnight to Isagi and left him on the couch to sleep.

It reminded him too much of everyone he had known in high school, stressing over crushes and first boyfriends. Rin had too much to focus on at the time, rolling his eyes whenever he heard his classmates or teammates talking about all of it.

Now, part of him wishes he had eavesdropped on their conversations. That would have made this entire scenario so much easier.

He casts a subtle glance at Isagi, watching as he sips his coffee and scrolls through his phone, probably catching up on everything he had missed in the time he had spent with Rin. He can guess at this point that Isagi is comfortable around him, almost certain that Isagi almost enjoys how finicky Rin can get when he’s around.

It’s still not lost on him that Bachira was insistent that Isagi liked him as more than a friend. That becomes more evident the longer they hang out together without the rest of their team getting involved. But how does Rin even try to bring that up?

What if he’s completely reading the situation wrong like an idiot?

Part of him wishes that he had been able to shut Isagi out entirely. Rin doesn’t know why he allowed himself to get this entangled with the other boy to begin with, but they’ve already crossed that line, and he figures there’s no going back at this point. 

It's kind of hard to go ghost on a teammate. It's even harder when the teammate in question has seen Rin in heat and insisted on helping him home so nothing would happen to him if he had gone off by himself.

Stupid fucking Isagi.

“Do you ever eat an actual breakfast, or is it just smoothies?” Isagi’s voice pulled Rin from his mind. “I get that smoothies are healthy and taste good, but you’ve gotta have more than that to get you through your day, especially on the days we have practice.”

“I can’t remember the last time I’ve had more than a smoothie or a protein bar for breakfast,” Rin shrugged. “I’m fine without it.”

“You know a healthy breakfast is far better than just something to drink, Rin,” Isagi sighed. Rin rolled his eyes, sipping his smoothie and grimacing at the taste. He added too many blueberries.

“It’s fine,” he said. “I can get by on what I normally eat.”

Isagi raised an eyebrow, finishing off his coffee and setting the mug back onto the counter. “Let me make you breakfast,” he insisted. “Or take you out for some since we have an off day today. Seriously.”

Rin stared at him, calculating as he debated it. Breakfast did sound good. He can’t begin to remember the last time someone had made him breakfast; it’s been even longer since Rin had gone out somewhere that served breakfast. Though going out to breakfast with Isagi felt like they’d tip over the line Rin had drawn in his head. It wasn’t careful enough.

It felt almost too domestic.

“Your stomach literally just growled,” Isagi spoke again. “Seriously. It’s just breakfast.”

“You’re being far too demanding for someone who could get kicked out of my house at any moment if you piss me off,” Rin said. 

“We already established that you aren’t going to kick me out even if you keep threatening it.”

Lukewarm bastard. “Wipe that smirk off your face. It makes you look stupid,” Rin scoffed, finishing his smoothie and setting the empty glass into the sink behind him. “Let's go, then. There’s a cafe down the street.”

Isagi grinned, rising to his feet faster than Rin had anticipated. He had half a mind to hold back an eyeroll when Isagi proceeded to stumble from how fast he had stood up, but not enough to stop the words from slipping off his tongue before thinking about whether or not it’d be a good idea to say. “Dumbass.”

“Oh shut up,” Isagi huffed out, the tips of his ears tinted red with embarrassment. “Sue me for being happy that you actually agreed to do something like that with me.”

Rin shook his head, pushing away from the counter and heading to the front door to tug his shoes on, not even bothering to look back and see if Isagi was following him. “You’re paying.”

“Obviously I am,” Isagi scoffed, leaning down to grab his shoes as well. “I’m the one who invited you out. It’d be stupid if I weren’t the one paying.”

“I guess that’s fair,” Rin muttered more to himself before patting his pockets, making sure he had his keys before they left the house. He locked the door behind him, and soon enough, they silently walked toward the cafe.

“Is this the type of cafe that sells overly sweet desserts?” Isagi asked, breaking the silence as he looked up at Rin, “or does it have like, actual breakfast foods?”

Rin shrugged, sliding his hands into his pockets to avoid picking at the scent patches on his neck out of his own overly annoying nervous habit. It’s just breakfast, he tried to remind himself. Stop acting so lukewarm over it. “They have both,” he mumbled, looking down at his feet. “Can’t say I’ve tried their food though, just the coffee.”

“Why am I not surprised?” Isagi huffed out a laugh. “You don’t eat much, do you?”

“I eat enough,” Rin said quickly, more defensively than he had wanted it to come across as. “I eat dinner every night. Sometimes a snack after practice if we get out early.”

“You should be eating more,” Isagi pointed out. “Being an athlete aside, it’s not healthy to only eat one full meal daily. If you’re going to skip lunch, the least you could do is have breakfast with your smoothie.”

Rin scoffed, shooting him a glance from the corner of his eye. “Who died and made you a medical expert?”

Isagi raised his hands in surrender. “I don’t want to bring our dynamics into this for fear of you ripping my head off, but if we’re being technical, omegas should eat decently. Keeps you guys healthy and preserves some strength for your heats.”

“That is the dumbest thing I’ve heard,” Rin deadpanned. “I get through my heats just fine.”

“I’m not saying you don’t,” Isagi shrugged. “You just looked a little worn out when you came back to practice when yours was over, compared to how Chigiri or Reo look when they come back from theirs. I was worried.”

Worried. Isagi was really worried about him? If there were anything to get Rin to laugh out of absurdity, it’d definitely be that. “What, was it like some stupid alpha thing taking over your mind to cause you to worry?”

“Honestly?” Isagi said with a shrug. “I’m not sure why it bothered me so much. I just know that there was a small part of me going absolutely insane the entire time you were gone, while knowing that you were going through your heat with nobody to take care of you. It just felt even worse when you came back looking like shit.”

“Thanks for that,” Rin rolled his eyes, leading them down the side street that led to the cafe. “I love knowing that I looked like shit when I got back.”

“That’s not what I meant,” Isagi said. “You just looked more tired than usual, which didn’t make me feel great. I guess it made the little alpha part of me wish I were there to care for you through it.”

Rin sighed, turning his head to look at Isagi. “Like actually care for me? Or is that just some code for wanting to take advantage of an omega in heat?”

Isagi sputtered at his words, eyes widening as he whipped his head around to look at Rin. “No!” He said quickly. “I’d never take advantage of that. When you went into heat, the only thing on my mind was getting you home and away from everyone else. I wasn’t even thinking of anything sexual.”

“All alphas do,” Rin huffed out. “It’s true that you didn’t do anything to harm me, but would you have said no if I had begged you to do something?”

“I probably would’ve kept asking if you were sure about it,” Isagi said. “Even then, I would’ve been wary since obviously we’re nowhere near doing anything like that. I don’t think you even like me enough to consider letting me help you through your heats in that way.”

Rin scowled, tugging the door of the cafe open when they arrived, watching as Isagi walked in before trailing behind him. “I get through my heats just fine on my own. I wouldn’t have needed help anyway.”

They found a small table near the back of the cafe, tucked into a tiny corner away from the prying eyes of every other patron. Rin settled into his seat, his gaze trained on Isagi as the other boy sat in front of him. “You were trying to walk home alone,” Isagi deadpanned as he finally settled in. “That would’ve been so dangerous, Rin.”

“I can handle myself,” Rin huffed, slumping against the backrest. “No alpha was going to get their hands on me.”

“You don’t know that,” Isagi shrugged. “You know how alphas are. They won’t let an omega reeking of heat pheromones go off without being bothered.”

“Whatever,” Rin said, grabbing a menu to look it over before their waiter came over. “You weren’t affected by them, so why would any other alpha be?”

Isagi raised an eyebrow, keeping his menu on the table as he looked at Rin. “I was,” he said simply. “But me being affected by your pheromones took a back burner to trying to get you home.”

“Oh really?” Rin said, peeking out from over the top of his menu, suddenly very grateful that it was covering the flush of his cheek at the idea of Isagi being affected by his pheromones in any capacity. “You were acting like you were fine.”

“Well, yeah, I wasn’t going to let myself go crazy while carrying you home,” Isagi said, dropping the conversation as the waiter came up to take their order. He kept his eyes trained on Rin the entire time, almost like a silent threat to order more than a coffee and to get something actually substantive for breakfast.

Rin looked back at him once the waiter left the table, eyes narrowing. Isagi was affected by his pheromones. He doesn’t know what to make of that, really. He noticed Isagi’s scent spiking in response to his being elevated, but Rin had just assumed it was more so him being protective and not anything else.

“Good thing you were able to control yourself, then,” he muttered, grabbing the glass of water dropped off at the table and taking a sip. “I would’ve been able to kick your ass if you had tried anything.”

“I know you would’ve,” Isagi shrugged. “Which just made it even worse, if I’m being honest.”

Now that might be the stupidest thing Rin’s heard today.

“Seriously?” He scoffed. “You got off on the idea of me kicking your ass?”

“No!” Isagi said, nose wrinkling in irritation. “I guess it was just more of the idea of an omega being at the same physical stature as me and giving me a run for my money if needed. I’m more into omegas that can match me.”

“So you’re going against the stereotypes, then?”

“Stop twisting my words, dammit,” Isagi mutterd. “There is nothing wrong with omegas in any physical aspect. I just find it really fucking attractive when they’re stonger and could match me in almost every sense of the word.”

“You’re weird,” Rin muttered, clearing some space as the waiter returned to drop off their food. He looked at his plate, eggs piled next to a croquette and a small bowl of miso soup. That should be enough to satiate Isagi’s seemingly never-ending pestering to get him to eat more.

Isagi just shrugged, moving to begin to dig into his food. Rin watched him for a moment, trying to keep his eyes from lingering on the way his lips formed around his utensils and the bob of his throat as he swallowed.

Lukewarm, he thought to himself as he tried to tear his gaze away again. Stop looking at him like that. 

Rin picked at his food, tearing apart the croquette and dipping it into the yolk of his eggs before taking a bite. It definitely tasted good, better than he had expected it to. He doesn’t think it’ll necessarily turn him into a breakfast person, but he figured today could be a day of exceptions.

He’s already far out of his comfort zone by being in a cafe with Isagi. His mind was whirring with too many thoughts that he didn’t even want to try to begin to dissect. He wasn’t sure what Isagi was thinking of this, whether it was just a usual friendly hangout or if he had intended it to be a date.

Are they even close enough to go on dates? 

Rin wasn’t being very careful with this, getting too tangled up in the whims of his teammate. Friend? He’ll resign himself to calling him and Isagi friends. That feels more natural the more he says it. Doesn’t make him cringe away as the words flow through his brain.

He should ask. Would Isagi think he was an idiot for asking something like that? Rin was almost past the point of caring. What’s the worst that could happen, anyway? Isagi making fun of him for asking something like that?

Whatever. He should just get it over with.

“Is this a date?”

Isagi paused his eating, eyes widening as he looked at Rin. “Do you want it to be?”

“I don’t know,” Rin muttered, starting to feel just a little stupid for asking. “It feels like one.”

Isagi nodded, setting his utensils down before looking at Rin, leaning slightly over the table. “It does feel like one,” he easily agrees. “I wouldn’t mind it being a date if you’re fine with it. I’m pretty sure Bachira’s already blabbed that I like you anyway.”

Rin just nods, having to stifle a quiet, almost inaudible laugh. Isagi’s lips twitch at the sound, but he says nothing. “He may have mentioned something about it. I thought he was just being stupid, though.”

“Asshole couldn’t keep a secret even if it’d kill him,” Isagi muttered. “You didn’t blow a fuse when he told you?”

“Like I said, I thought he was being stupid,” Rin said. “I never really thought that you’d like me. I barely even talked to you at first.”

“That made it even better,” Isagi admitted. “You were so against talking to me more than you had to at practice. Though I think that night at the izakaya kind of solidified the fact that I am, in fact, horribly attracted to you.”

“You’re an idiot, too,” Rin rolled his eyes. “Me? Out of all the people you could choose?”

“You really don’t think someone could start liking you?” Isagi raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

Rin shrugged, pushing his food around his plate. “Hard to say,” he mumbled. “I’m really not the best person to be with like that.”

“You’re more than you give yourself credit for,” Isagi said, his voice softening. “You’re smart. You’re driven and talented; you don’t let anything hold you back. You have set your sights on breaking the stereotypes of omegas, and you’re doing it. That’s cool shit, Rin.”

Rin huffed under his breath, the tips of his ears turning red. Is that really what Isagi thought of him? All those nice things and nothing negative, even though Rin was certain he had more negative qualities than good ones?

“I’m an asshole,” he says bluntly. “I’m not nice, and you know that. There are so many other people out there who’d be better for you.”

“I don’t care,” Isagi said. “Nobody else would be able to keep me on my toes. Or threaten to surpass me when it comes to soccer and probably make it happen.”

“I will surpass you,” Rin huffed. “Just wait and see.”

“I’m looking forward to it,” Isagi grinned. “Don’t think it’ll come easily, though. I’ll make sure to give you something to challenge you.”

Rin narrowed his eyes, taking another bite of his food. “Of course you will. I wouldn’t expect anything less from you, lukewarm idiot.”

Isagi laughed, going back to eating the rest of his breakfast. They fell into a comfortable silence as they finished, nothing but the sounds of the cafe around them filling the air. Rin was able to find some sort of comfort in it, part of him glad that he had agreed to come with Isagi.

It definitely beat staying at home alone, at least. Rin needs to start getting out of the house more, and if it’s because Isagi had dragged him out, then so be it.

His chest still felt a little funny at Isagi’s blunt confession. He was surprised that the other boy had come right out and confirmed that he had been crushing on Rin all along. It helped solidify the fact that their hangout was definitely more of a date than anything.

Rin is also surprised that he’s even remotely comfortable enough to call it a date.

Isagi didn’t even press him to say anything back, letting Rin mull over his own feelings and try to find a way to verbalize them without it coming out sounding like an insult. What would Rin even say? He was never the best at getting his thoughts across in the nicest manner.

He could just go for it again. There wasn’t much else he could lose, anyway. He doesn’t think Isagi would grill him about a less-than-stellar confession. Rin huffed under his breath, finishing his food and pushing his plate away.

He’d tell Isagi when they got back to his house.

“You ready to go?” Isagi tilted his head as he looked at Rin. “Let me pay for everything, and we can head out.”

Rin nodded, leaning back against his seat and watching Isagi stand up, walking over to the cash register to pay for their meal. He figures that now there’s nothing wrong with blatantly allowing his eyes to rake over the other boy’s figure, taking in the way his muscles rippled against the confines of his shirt.

That still didn’t stop him from quickly tearing his gaze away when he saw Isagi turn around to return to the table. “We’re all set,” he said, waiting for Rin to stand up. Rin nodded, grabbing his phone before rising to his feet and pushing his chair back in.

“Do you have to go back home right away?” Rin asked, almost awkwardly, as they left the cafe and began the short walk back to his house.

“No,” Isagi shook his head, tilting his head to look at Rin. “I’m all yours for the entire day if you want.”

“Don’t phrase it like that,” Rin scoffed, looking away as they turned down his street. “You’re making it sound like I’m desperate to spend my entire day with you.”

Isagi laughed, shaking his head. “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want to spend the day with you, Rin. Seriously.”

“I know that,” Rin muttered, digging around in his pocket to pull his keys out so he could unlock his front door. “I’m not good at this type of stuff.”

“That’s fine,” Isagi said as they stepped inside and removed their shoes. “I don’t have a lot of experience either, honestly. Just a few shitty teenage relationships from high school.”

“Still more than me,” Rin muttered as they went upstairs to his room. “I didn’t want to waste my time with that stuff. I was too busy focusing on soccer.”

“Unsurprising,” Isagi laughed. “So what you’re saying, if this turns into something more, I’d be your first boyfriend?”

“Now you’re just being a dick,” Rin said, rolling his eyes as he sat down on his bed, Isagi moving to sit next to him. “I guess you’re not wrong, though.”

Isagi laughed again, moving closer, their shoulders brushing together. Rin was far too aware of their proximity, of the shivers it was sending up his spine. He figured that now would be a good time to confess his feelings in the safety of his room. Rin sighed, steeling himself as he looked at Isagi, the other boy’s gaze already locked on him.

“I like you too, idiot,” he mumbled. “For some goddamned reason you’ve been stuck in my mind far more than I wanted to admit at first. I thought it was just me wanting some petty rivalry when we started playing together, but I guess it morphed into something more along the way.”

“You weren’t the best at hiding it, you know,” Isagi laughed. “But it’s nice to hear you finally say it.” 

Rin scowled, his cheeks flaring a deep red at the gentle teasing. “Shut up or I’m taking everything I said back.”

“Don’t take it back!” Isagi laughed, tugging Rin closer. “Seriously, Rin. I know I said it all back at the cafe, but I’d really like to be your boyfriend if you want that.”

“Yeah,” he mumbled. “Unfortunately, I would like that.”

Isagi smiled, softer than the typical grins he’d send Rin’s way. It made his heart beat faster than he wanted to say it did, seeing the other boy looking at him with stars in his eyes. “Then it’s official,” Isagi murmured. “You are my boyfriend.”

Rin nodded, swallowing thickly. “I guess I am.”

“Can I kiss you, or is that too soon?” Isagi murmured, tilting his head to the side, and oh, oh, did the thought of kissing Isagi make Rin’s heart throb in his chest as he took in the sight of deep blue eyes that he could get lost in.

“That’s fine,” Rin said after a moment. “If you’re alright with me being bad at it.”

“We have all the time in the world for you to get better at it,” Isagi murmured, leaning forward and brushing his nose against Rin’s. “A first kiss is always clumsy anyway. Makes it more fun.”

Rin was cut off before he could respond, soft lips pressing against his own. It was almost indescribable how they molded together so easily when Rin finally willed himself to relax enough to reciprocate the kiss.

He almost melted even more when Isagi’s fingers laced through the back of his hair, tugging him closer. If Rin didn’t have any self-control, he’d probably let the kiss deepen, let them go too far too soon, and stumble over the line completely.

He pulled back after a moment, though, to catch his breath, lips still slick and cheeks blushing once again. Isagi wasn’t faring any better once Rin got a good look at him. “I guess that wasn’t awful,” Rin mumbled.

“It wasn’t,” Isagi agreed, brushing his thumb against Rin’s cheek. “You’re a natural already, dammit.”

“A natural?” Rin scoffed lowly, allowing himself to seek out Isagi’s touch even more as he leaned into it. “Gonna kiss me again to prove it?”

Isagi’s eyes glinted with satisfaction before leaning in again, the kiss a little more heated than before. It wasn’t bad this time, either. Rin was pressing against Isagi more as it deepened just a little bit.

He thinks he could get used to this, stolen moments of the two of them getting lost in each other. It’d take some getting used to, being someone’s boyfriend and not just a teammate, but it’ll be okay.

Rin was certain that Isagi wouldn’t let anything bad happen anyway.

Chapter Text

Rin didn’t want anyone on the team to know that he and Isagi were officially together now, which Isagi was fine with. Something about them having prying eyes into their relationship while it was still new and Rin was trying to get used to being in one in general just put a sour feeling in his stomach whenever he thought about it.

They were spending a lot more time together now, with Isagi showing up at Rin’s house damn near every day. They’d arrive at practice together and leave together, even going far enough to spend their off days together, too.

Maybe that’s a little too clingy. Rin doesn’t think people who are dating should be hanging out as often as they are, but he won’t tell Isagi no or turn him away whenever he shows up at his door. He’d be stupid if he did, pushing away the one person who can tolerate him in any of his moods.

That’s still a foreign concept to Rin, someone pushing past every single barrier he put up between himself and the world and not growing tired of it. Isagi tells him constantly that he’d do it every day for the rest of his life if it meant keeping Rin beside him.

He’s scared of the concept of for the rest of his life , but he’s not going to tell Isagi that either. His boyfriend always looked so goddamned happy whenever he was talking about that. He lights up completely, which Rin would like to keep seeing. Rin figures that’s what falling in love feels like–even if everything in him screams that it’s too early to say he was in love.

It could be too early. It probably is, Rin isn’t too sure. That doesn’t stop him from wanting to say it, though. Would it scare Isagi away if he told him he loved him only a few weeks in? Isagi would probably take it in stride, thank Rin for being open about how he was feeling, even if he couldn’t return the sentiment at this point in their relationship.

The idea of love, when it comes to anything remotely romantic, is still too foreign to him. Rin can feel it bubbling up in his veins, bursting at the seams, and yet he’s still trying to make perfect sense of it. He has to be careful when treading this sort of territory, something new he has to practice and achieve wholly before ever uttering the three words into the open air.

Though Isagi currently being draped over him while they’re curled up in Rin’s bed watching game reruns, is making it very hard to hold in any longer. Rin will settle for having his hand sprawled out across Isagi’s lower back, fingers mindlessly tracing up and down his spine as a way to try and pour out his feelings without the potential for embarrassment.

“You’re being extra quiet right now,” Isagi murmured, nipping at Rin’s neck to get his attention. “Are you okay?”

Rin rolled his eyes, pinching Isagi’s side before smoothing over the spot with the palm of his hand. “I’m focusing on the match that’s playing.”

“That’d be more believable if you were staring at the ceiling,” Isagi said, pressing his lips against Rin’s jaw. Rin sighed, leaning into the kiss, wanting more and scowling when Isagi pulled away to speak again. “You sure you’re okay?”

“I’m sure,” Rin said. “Now, if you would go back to what you were doing, that’d be great.”

“I’ve spoiled you too much already,” Isagi teased lightly, resuming his actions of peppering gentle kisses across Rin’s jaw and cheeks. “It’s weird seeing you like this and not pushing me away whenever I try to touch you.”

“I got used to it,” Rin mumbled, turning his head and pressing his lips to Isagi’s.

Isagi grinned into the kiss, one of his hands coming up to tangle in the hair at the nape of Rin’s neck as he deepened it, his tongue trailing teasingly against Rin’s bottom lip. A soft hum rumbled in Rin’s chest as he parted his lips, letting Isagi’s tongue slip inside.

They stayed like that for a while, nothing rushed or hurried about the kisses they shared. At some point, Rin did end up below Isagi, pliant and relaxed under the weight of his boyfriend. Kissing Isagi was starting to become second nature, something Rin needed almost as much as he needed to breathe. Call him dramatic for feeling that way, but nothing was better than letting go of any control he tried to hold and surrendering himself to Isagi’s whims.

Isagi obviously enjoyed it almost as much as Rin did, trying to get his lips on him whenever they were alone. Rin was never one to complain, letting it happen with ease. The only time he’d ever try to push his boyfriend away was when Isagi would try to pin him against the lockers after practice.

Rin didn’t want to risk anyone walking in on them. Isagi always swore that everyone was gone whenever he tried it, but Rin just wanted to be absolutely sure that they were alone. Now, he wasn’t above making out in a locker room if they were positive that they were the only two players left in the building, but the chances of that ever being the case were slim to none.

Isagi pulled away, moving to trail kisses down Rin’s neck, huffing out a laugh against his skin as Rin groaned softly. “You’re a goddamned monster,” he murmured, biting his lower lip when Isagi nipped at his scent gland. “Seriously.”

“You like it,” Isagi said, soothing over the sting of his bite with his tongue. Sea salt wafted through the air the more Isagi messed with it, Rin’s pheromones starting to turn slightly sweet as arousal began to pool in his gut. “You know you can stop me if you want to.”

“Who said I want you to stop?” Rin scoffed, a whine tugging from his lips as Isagi’s hand shifted under his shirt and began trailing teasingly low on his stomach. “Finish what you started, dammit.”

Isagi just grinned against his skin, finally slipping his hand under Rin’s waistband before biting down on his scent gland again.

This isn't the first time they’ve done stuff like this; Rin is comfortable enough with Isagi touching him any way he pleases, and Isagi takes full advantage of that. Rin tries to pretend that having an alpha above him isn’t as pleasing as it is, but his inner omega preening at the attention any time it happens gives him away.

Isagi takes that as a compliment. Rin just calls him tepid any time he boasts about it before tugging him back down for another kiss. It’s always a little messy, a little like a fight for who will take control over the situation, even if both of them know that Rin will ultimately grow pliant under Isagi’s far too skilled hands.

Rin definitely won’t be one to complain when Isagi makes him see stars with the way he touches him.

“This okay?” Isagi said, tugging Rin’s earlobe between his teeth. 

“You know I’d tell you if it wasn’t,” Rin replied, arching into Isagi’s touch with a needy whine. Isagi just nodded, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek before resuming his movements. Rin sighed, relaxing into Isagi’s touch as his eyes fluttered shut.

—

The air was heady when they finally rolled out of bed, bodies slick with sweat and everything else, as they moved to the shower to clean off before having to make the trek to an afternoon practice.

Isagi couldn't keep his hands off in the shower either, even with Rin trying to swat him away. “You’re going to make us late to practice,” Rin huffed out, smacking Isagi with the side of the shampoo bottle. 

“We’d have enough time,” Isagi countered. “Practice doesn’t start until three.”

“There is nothing more that you need from me,” Rin said. “You’re acting like you’re about to go into rut or something stupid like that.”

“My rut is coming up,” Isagi shrugged, finally relenting as he took the shampoo from Rin and squeezed some into his hand, moving to lather it through his hair. “That might be why I’m a little more annoying with this than usual.”

Rin sighed, stepping back under the stream of water and washing the shampoo out of his hair. “I assume you’ll want me to help you through it.”

“Don’t act like helping me through it would be a bad thing,” Isagi said, feigning hurt as he took his turn washing out the shampoo. “An omega should always want to help their alphas through their ruts, just like an alpha helps omegas during their heats.”

“You saying that you’re my alpha?” Rin raised an eyebrow as he shut the water off, pulling the curtain back so they could step out of the shower and dry off. “Don’t think you count as my alpha until you bond with me.”

Isagi rolled his eyes, grabbing the towel that Rin held out to him. “Just planning for the future,” he shrugged. “You’ll be wearing my bite on your nape soon enough.”

And oh, did that make a shiver run up Rin’s spine at the idea of being bonded. Claimed in the eyes of everyone they’d meet in the future. Their teammates, families, and random people on the street would see the scars from Isagi’s teeth marring his nape.

Fuck, the thought of that was a little too good to be true. Rin has half a mind just to tell Isagi to get it over with now, length of their relationship be damned. People become bonded early all the time. What’s the big deal if he let Isagi do it early, too?

Well, maybe Rin should wait until he can even utter the words I love you. He thinks it’d be a little stupid being bound to Isagi for life before even being able to tell him that he loved him.

“You’re dripping water all over the floor,” Isagi’s voice pulls Rin from his thoughts as he tosses a towel around his body. “Your scent is giving you away, too. You’re thinking about me mating you, aren’t you?”

“Shut up,” Rin snapped, pulling the towel from around his neck and drying off his body before dropping it to the floor to clean up the small mess. “I just never thought I’d have someone who’d want to bond with me. That’s all.”

“You can try to play it off like it was some innocent thought,” Isagi grinned cheekily. “But your scent turned sweet and gave it all away.”

Rin scowled, the tips of his ears turning pink as he turned on his heels and walked back into his bedroom to get changed for practice. Isagi just laughed and followed him, throwing the towels in the hamper before reaching for the bag he had brought over the night before.

They made sure they had all of their things before leaving Rin’s house, locking it up behind them before beginning the short walk to the train station. Rin stayed silent, his mind still racing around the idea of Isagi being his alpha, and the thought of being bonded to him while Isagi laced their fingers together.

“You’re still thinking about it,” Isagi said, a grin tugging at his lips as he squeezed Rin’s hand gently. “We don’t have to do that any time soon, you know. I know I said sooner or later, but we can push it off as much as possible if it makes you uncomfortable.”

“It doesn’t make me uncomfortable,” Rin muttered. “It is a lot to think about, though.”

“It is,” Isagi agreed. “There’s no way to break a bond once they’re formed, so it’s an entire life thing, even if we ever broke up. We can have a better conversation about it when you’re ready to.”

Rin shook his head, slowing his pace just a little. “As if we’d break up,” he huffed quietly. “I know getting bonded means we’d be stuck with each other until we die. That doesn’t bother me at all.”

“No?” Isagi tilted his head. “That’s surprising.”

“Piss off,” Rin groaned, almost embarrassed to bring it up. “The minute you brought up the mating bite, all I could think about was doing it right away. I don’t even care that we haven’t been dating long.”

Isagi paused, coming to a stop as his eyes widened at Rin’s words. “Wait, really?” He asked. “You’d have no issues with doing it now? Like, if we did it after practice today.”

Rin scowled, looking away as his cheeks flared red. “Maybe not today ,” he mumbled. “But if you were to do it while I was helping you through your rut, then I wouldn’t be mad about it.”

Isagi nodded, taking a deep breath as they began walking again. “Good to know,” he murmured, more to himself than anything. “I’ll keep that in mind, then.”

“Okay,” Rin nodded, letting out a breath he didn’t know he was holding as they walked into the train station, scanning their passes before heading to the platform they were supposed to be on. “You’re not against bonding with me this early?”

“Against it?” Isagi scoffed, tugging Rin closer as they waited for the train. “I’d do it right here in this train station if there were nobody around.”

Rin wrinkled his nose at the idea of something so deeply intimate and vulnerable happening in a dirty station. “Absolutely not,” he huffed. “That is not happening anywhere other than my house or yours.”

“Obviously,” Isagi said as the train arrived and they walked on, making their way to a seat in the back and settling in for the short journey to the stadium. “I wouldn’t actually do it in public. An alpha always wants to make something like that special for their omega.”

Their omega. Maybe Rin would let Isagi throw all caution to the wind and do it right here. Especially if he kept talking like that. “Making it special? Really?”

Isagi nodded, leaning back against the seat with a soft hum. “I think it’s special,” he shrugged. “Something that brings our more primal sides to life and keeps us together is worth being treated as important as it is, you know?”

“I guess,” Rin said quietly, leaning his shoulder against Isagi’s as he looked out the window. “Though I think it’d lose some of the specialness if you did it while in your rut.”

“Maybe a little,” Isagi laughed. “It’d be really hot, though.”

“Okay,” Rin sputtered out. “You have got to stop saying shit like that while we’re on our way to practice. If anyone hears you talking like that, they’ll make fun of us.”

“They won’t make fun of us,” Isagi waved his hand dismissively, pressing a kiss to Rin’s cheek to try and calm him down a little bit. “We literally have two pairs of bonded mates on our team. I’m sure they’d understand.”

Rin nodded, shifting his gaze to look back at Isagi. “Bachira would laugh at us.”

“He probably would,” Isagi agreed. “He wouldn’t laugh at us being bonded, though, but he’d laugh hearing me talking about it like a horny teenager again.”

“Alphas are just horny teenagers no matter the age,” Rin huffed out. “You guys always think with your dicks.”

“Hey!” Isagi protested, laughing as he playfully shoved Rin’s shoulder. “I just so happen to know an omega who also thinks with his dick, thank you very much.”

Rin scowled, giving Isagi a harmless glare. “You made me this way. I was normal before we started dating.”

Isagi nodded, clearly not believing a word he said. That just made Rin’s scowl deepen even more, knowing that while it may necessarily be a lie based on how awful he was while he was stuck going through his heat a few months prior.

“Sure you were,” Isagi mused softly. “I’ll take your word for it so you don’t try to ignore me for the rest of the day.”

“Good,” Rin muttered, rising to his feet as the train pulled into the station. Isagi followed suit, not letting his hand go as they weaved through the station and onto the street. 

The one bad thing about afternoon practices was always how busy the streets were. Far too many people hogged up the sidewalks and bumped into them, occasionally even recognizing who they were, thanks to the fact that their season was in full swing by this point.

Everyone knows the rookies who gave the Blue Lock team its name and defeated Sae’s team in their debut. Rin and Isagi would get stopped while going to practice or coming home, with Isagi always enjoying the attention and trying to stand around for hours, taking pictures and signing autographs if he was able to.

Rin was quite the opposite, trying to dodge the fans whenever possible or try to say that he was going to be late for something if he hung around to do all of that. Unfortunately, he could never say no to Isagi when he’d beg Rin to stick around and talk to the fans with him.

So, of course, he now spends far too much time talking to fans and being more social than he ever wants to. It’s not that he doesn’t enjoy having people excited to meet him, because he does. He loves meeting younger omegas who excitedly tell him that they think it's so cool that an omega is playing professionally and breaking down the stigma that they can’t keep up with alphas when it comes to athletic abilities. 

That’s all he wanted, really, when he made the decision to go pro to begin with. To show the world that even with being an omega, he’s more than capable of playing at the same level as the alphas on the team. Rin was initially nervous to admit who he was publicly, but with a bit of encouragement from Isagi, he did it. 

There was a lot less media backlash than he had thought there would be. The support of his team and his boyfriend made the few negative comments a little easier, too. Rin thinks that if he had known there would be that many people rallying behind him, maybe he wouldn’t have tried to hide his status as an omega to begin with.

Hindsight is 20/20, though. Rin is content with how he announced it to the world when he had finally felt like he was ready.

“What do you think we’re going to go over in practice today?” Isagi tilted his head as he looked at Rin, tugging him into his side as a group of people headed their way on the sidewalk.

“Probably the things we fucked up on during our game last week,” Rin scoffed, making sure he didn’t brush against the crowd as they passed by them. “Bachira absolutely fumbled receiving that pass from you, you can be your ass we’re going to be running too many drills on that.”

Isagi laughed, the corners of his eyes crinkling as he did so. Rin softened ever so slightly, a tiny grin tugging at his lips at the sound of Isagi’s gentle laugh. God , he was turning into too much of a lovesick idiot for the alpha.

“Working on passing and receiving them would be helpful,” Isagi said as they neared the stadium. “Even if it was just one spur-of-the-moment mistake Bachira made. Can’t have that happening in every game.”

Rin nodded, pulling away from Isagi as they walked through the stadium doors and headed down the halls to the locker room. Time to pretend like they were nothing more than friends. “Spur of the moment mistake or not,” Rin scoffed, “he needs to do better next time.”

Isagi hummed noncommittally, pushing the door to the locker room open and letting Rin enter first before walking in behind them. The rest of the team was already there, talking, laughing, and changing into their practice clothes.

“You guys are late!” Bachira called out when he noticed them. Rin rolled his eyes, going straight for his locker, opening it up, and shoving his bag inside. 

“The trains were running late,” he huffed, shooting a sidelong glance at Isagi as he mentally cursed him for being the real reason they were late. Isagi caught his eye and grinned, clearly not too upset with it.

“Sure they were,” Bachira chirped, not hesitating to walk over to Rin. “That’s why you smell like Isagi, right? Cause of the train delay.”

Rin felt the tips of his ears turn red as he turned around, staring daggers into his boyfriend. Isagi just laughed again, raising his hands in surrender. “You scented me?” Rin pointed at him, more exasperated than upset.

“I couldn’t help it,” Isagi said. “I got carried away.”

Bachira’s grin only grew at his words, looking between the two of them as if he had just found out they were secretly royalty or something. “I knew it!” He damn near yelled. “I was wondering why Rin was being so nice to you lately.”

Well. Rin guesses there’s no chance of trying to hide anything anymore. Curse Isagi and his incessant need to absolutely drown him in his pheromones whenever they’re together. Not that Rin is complaining–quite the opposite, really. It’s just a little embarrassing to be smelling so deeply of him at practice and not even noticing because he’s grown so used to it.

“Surprise?” Isagi grinned, eyeing Rin again to make sure he wasn’t actually mad at him for scenting him before they left. “Though I guess it isn’t too much of a surprise. You wouldn’t stop bothering me about it.”

“Because I knew there was something there and you wouldn’t admit it!” Bachira protested. “I told you months ago that I thought the two of you were fated mates since he was the one who triggered your rut early.”

Now that stopped Rin in his tracks for a moment. Of course, he knew by now that he had triggered Isagi’s rut, and he finally went on and told Isagi how his heat that struck before their first game was most likely because of him. Those weren’t secrets between the two of them anymore. However, knowing that it could be a sign that they were fated and that Bachira was picking up on it was still mostly new information to him.

“Fated mates aren’t even real,” Rin tried to play it off. “It’s not unusual for an omega to trigger an alpha’s rut, and you know that.”

“It’s not unusual,” Bachira agreed. “But the fact that he triggered your heat so soon after, even with you taking suppressants, is a sure sign that you’re both fated.”

“I don’t think so,” Rin said. “I think you’re just far too excited right now over being right about us dating that you’re getting ahead of yourself.”

“How do we even find out if we’re fated mates or not?” Isagi asked as he tugged his cleats on. “Surely you know more about this than either of us does.”

“Are you two overly sensitive to each other’s pheromones?” Bachira asked. “Or find it way too difficult to be away from each other for too long?”

“Isn’t that normal for people who just start dating?” Rin raised an eyebrow. “I don’t see how that would show if we’re fated mates if that’s a real thing.”

Bachira shrugged, digging his phone out from his locker and quickly typing something into it. Rin rolled his eyes, relaxing when Isagi finally stood up and came closer, wrapping his arms around his waist and tugging him back against his chest.

“You don’t want to be my fated pair?” Isagi teased lightly, burying his face into Rin’s neck and nipping at his scent gland, relaxing as the scent wafted at the touch. Rin scowled, trying to shove him away.

“Not in front of everybody,” he hissed. “Fated mates aren’t real, either. You’re really believing him?”

“I don’t see why I shouldn’t. Lots of people talk about fated pairs,” Isagi said quietly. “I think it’d be kind of cute if we were meant to be like that, you know?”

“You’re a fucking sap,” Rin said. “Being fated or not doesn’t mean that we won’t be mates after your next rut anyway.”

Isagi shrugged, keeping his face buried in Rin’s neck with a contented sigh. “If you keep talking like that, my rut will be triggered early again,” he groaned. “Or I’ll just take you here for everyone to see.”

“Here it is!” Bachira spoke again, turning his phone so they could both look at it. “A whole way to tell if you guys are fated.”

“What does it say?” Isagi asked, narrowing his eyes as he tried to read the words on the screen.

“Other than what I said, the only sure way to tell is when you two actually get mated, apparently it’ll feel different.”

“That’s dumb,” Rin deadpanned. “What the hell do they mean by feel different?”

Bachira shrugged, scrolling through the article. “Some people say it feels like electricity ran through them when it happened,” he said. “A few others are saying that they felt like they were filled with so much bliss after that, they were in a haze for a few days following the bonding.”

“Interesting,” Isagi hummed. “I guess we’ll see when it happens, then.”

Rin shook his head, frowning when Isagi pulled away so they could head out onto the field for practice to begin. He stayed as close as possible, though, as always. He wasn’t immune to wanting to be too far from Isagi, though he was just chalking it up to the relationship still being fresh. He did feel a little too pathetic for it, maybe a little dramatic in the way his inner omega would whine whenever they weren’t with each other.

He still didn’t think it had to do with being fated mates. If fated mates were real, Rin doubts that he and Isagi would be a pair. It’d have to be incredibly rare for that to be the case.

There was some sick satisfaction bubbling in his stomach at the thought that maybe it was real and maybe they were fated, despite his past qualms about the idea. 

This damn relationship was making him soft. Rin never thought he’d see the day when he became so horribly obsessed with someone that he’d throw all caution to the wind and almost hope that fate had picked out someone specially for him.

He’s probably getting ahead of himself. Curse Bachira’s overly excited self for putting this damn idea back into his head after forgetting about it from the last time the other alpha kept talking about it.

—

Practice ran later than it usually did. Rin and Isagi weren’t out of the stadium and back on the train to Rin’s house until later in the evening, the sun already down and the stars taking over the sky. It was beginning to grow colder in the evenings again, the familiar chill of fall starting to creep into the atmosphere. 

It was a welcome feeling, especially after long, grueling practices. Rin hated having to return home already hot from running around a field and only getting hotter thanks to the weather. The chill in the air helped him from overheating too much. A smaller, selfish part of him enjoyed it more, so he could cuddle into Isagi’s side and feign being too cold. 

“What do you wanna do when we return to your place?” Isagi murmured, his head resting on top of Rin’s.

“Dunno,” Rin shrugged. “We could watch a movie or something. We don’t have practice tomorrow, so we can stay up later and sleep in.”

“Sounds good to me,” Isagi yawned. “You’re gonna pick a horror movie, aren’t you?”

“Duh,” Rin huffed. “You need to learn to like them if we’re gonna be together for as long as you say we are.”

Isagi laughed, shifting as he rose to his feet when the train pulled to a stop, gently tugging Rin up as well. Their fingers laced together as always as they began the short walk back to Rin’s house. “I don’t think I’m ever going to like horror as much as you do.”

Rin shrugged, kicking a rock in front of them before looking up at the sky, humming quietly as his gaze traced the millions of stars above. “You will,” he said. “One of these days.”

Isagi shook his head, a grin tugging at his lips as they turned down Rin’s street and eventually made it back to his house. Rin dug through his pocket for his keys, pulling them out and unlocking the door before they stepped inside.

“Do you think what Bachira told us is actually true?” Rin asked. “About us being fated mates or whatever.”

“I think the idea is interesting,” Isagi said as they headed upstairs. “But I guess we can’t really test that until we go through with me biting you.”

Rin nodded, tossing his bag to the floor before tugging Isagi onto the bed with him. Isagi grunted as he fell onto Rin before shifting, letting Rin curl around him into a more comfortable position. “Let’s test it, then,” Rin said before he could even register the words slipping from his lips. “I don’t want to wait any longer.”

Isagi almost shot out of bed at his words, turning to face Rin with wide eyes. “Really?” He asked, almost in disbelief. “I thought you wanted to wait till my rut?”

“I did,” he said. “But that fucking idea is stuck in my head and I think it might drive me crazy if we don’t know for sure or not.”

“If you think you’re ready,” Isagi murmured, reaching out to cup Rin’s cheek in his palm, brushing his thumb against the soft skin. “I definitely have no complaints about it.”

Rin nodded, leaning into Isagi’s touch before moving forward and pressing their lips together. Isagi kissed him back quickly, lips moving together in a fervor that was only the precursor of what would come. Shivers were already shooting down Rin’s back as Isagi moved, pinning Rin underneath him again.

“Tell me if you want to stop,” Isagi murmured, pulling away and licking a stripe up Rin’s neck. “I know I say that every time, but I mean it. Especially now.”

“If you stop, I’ll kill you,” Rin said, his eyes shifting to meet Isagi’s. He didn’t miss how the alpha’s gaze darkened, how his grip on Rin’s waist tightened before pulling back and flipping Rin over, draping his body over him.

“You’re a goddamned menace,” Isagi mumbled, tongue darting out to wet the nape of Rin’s neck. “You know exactly what you’re doing to me, don’t you? Driving your alpha insane?”

Oh , did that ever send a thrill down Rin’s spine as his inner omega keened at the change in tone, almost like it knew what was about to happen. He craned his head back, their gazes meeting as he nodded. “I do.”

“Of course you do,” Isagi mumbled, bergamot pheromones beginning to flood the air around them as the alpha grew more worked up. “Acting all innocent yet growing so pliant for me, so ready for me to claim you wholly.”

“Just do it,” Rin said, unable to stop the whine from slipping through his lips as he felt the first, tentative brush of Isagi’s canines against his neck. “You won’t hurt me, dumbass.”

Isagi rolled his eyes, pressing a kiss to the skin. “You asked for it,” he shrugged before biting down, catching Rin’s scent gland as he bonded them together.

Rin whimpered, his body growing rigid as he felt sensations running through him that he had never felt before. He arched back into Isagi’s touch, feeling the alpha, his alpha running his hand up and down his side to help relax him after he pulled away. It’s like Rin could only see stars, could only feel adrenaline rushing through his veins as the bond settled in. His inner omega whined as Isagi’s tongue lapped at the bite, soothing the burn and licking up any blood his teeth had drawn.

“You’re mine ,” Isagi groaned softly, keeping Rin pinned underneath him. “That feel the way you were expecting it to?”

Rin turned his head to look at him, face half pressed into the pillow with a hazy look in his eyes. Isagi grinned at the sight, leaning down to nuzzle his nose against his cheek. “Think Bachira was right,” he mumbled after a moment.

“Yeah?” Isagi softened ever so slightly. “I think so, too.”

It wasn’t until an hour later, when they were curled up in bed, sheets stuck to their sweat-slicked skin, that Rin felt like it was time to tell Isagi that he loved him. He figured they had already bonded, become each other’s in the most primal way possible, after cementing the bond. Rin just didn’t want to wait any longer to tell him.

“I love you,” he mumbled, face still pressed against Isagi’s bare chest. “More than I thought was possible for someone like me.”

Isagi grinned, leaning down and pressing a long, tender kiss to his temple. “I love you, too,” he said. “Was waiting for you to say it first so I wouldn’t scare you away.”

“As if you would’ve scared me away,” Rin scoffed, nuzzling his face against Isagi’s chest even more. He felt far too comfortable, much more relaxed than he had ever felt before, despite the dull throbbing that was still coming from the bond mark on his nape.

“I loved you before we even got together,” Isagi said. “That would’ve absolutely scared you away.”

Before we even got together. “Alright, maybe that would’ve,” Rin said. “At least I know now, though.”

“Yeah,” Isagi laughed quietly. “Now you know.”

Rin always had to be careful. Something he had drilled into himself since his youth. Yet, now as he was curled up with his boyfriend, the one he was bonded to, the one he was fated to be with, even with his insistence that fated mates weren’t real at first, he knew he could let the idea go now.

Rin no longer had to tread carefully anywhere he went. There was no more hiding that he was an omega. No more hiding the parts of him that were so carefully tucked away since he had presented in high school. He had someone who loved him. An alpha of his own that broke down any stereotypes or negative feelings Rin ever had over alphas.

Isagi had broken apart every little piece of himself that had been crafted with ease, not letting him run or face things alone. There was nothing else Rin wanted at this point—no more hiding. No more having to try to prove to the world that omegas could do everything an alpha can do, because he had proven himself and quickly risen in the ranks in the world of soccer in Japan.

There was someone who loved him, and Rin loved him back. Every little thing that he had fought so hard against had fallen into his life anyway, despite any complaints he may have had the entire time, no matter how hard Rin had tried to fight against Isagi steamrolling into his life and letting him see what it felt like to have someone who would support him no matter what.

He didn’t know what the future held. What might come for the two of them as their careers continue to grow and flourish as the years pass. They’re still so fresh into it, only in their first season of professional playing, but Rin doesn’t think anything could tear them apart.

They’ll navigate everything together . As boyfriends, mates, and husbands, when the time inevitably comes. Isagi isn’t as slick as he thinks he is when he’s talking to Bachira on the phone in another room, and Rin overhears bits and pieces of their conversations. Getting married is in their future, probably sooner than Rin could even know.

It’s all Rin could ever want. Even if he didn’t think it was a life he’d ever get at first.

Rin wouldn’t change it for the world.