Chapter Text
It started (as most disasters in Kasane Teto’s life did) because she had a big mouth - She and Rei were sitting across from each other in the gymnasium during a free period which they had mutually decided to spend watching a rerun of last week’s basketball game on Rei’s phone propped up between them. The game had been going on for about twenty minutes and neither of them were really watching it anymore, mostly because Teto kept talking without pause.
“Okay but my team is obviously going to pull through in the second half” Teto stated boldly, gesturing at the screen with a half-eaten piece of toast. “They always do this, y’know. They do the whole ‘fall behind early’ thing on purpose to manipulate their opponents”
Rei gave her an unimpressed look. “They’re down by literally eighteen points, Teto”
“They’ll come back, trust me. It’s some psychological warfare stuff”
“That’s sounds a lot like you’re coping with the fact that your team sucks”
“Okay then explain to me why I’m not worried”
“It’s because you don’t like thinking because it hurts your head too much” Rei said as she took a chip from the bag sitting between them.
Teto pointed the toast at her like a weapon. “Hey now! Wanna put your money where your mouth is, huh? Or is that too much for you, old lady”
“You’re older than me”
“Tsch. Whatever. Anyway I’ll bet you… mmm… the rest of my snacks if my team wins. And-and, you owe me those honey chips you keep hoarding if I win!”
Rei looked at Teto and started contemplating on the bet she put forward. She reached her hand out shook Teto’s with no further grand ceremony or taunting. It was just a small bet after all, what could go wrong?
Nothing, it would seem… at least for Teto (foreshadowing) as her team did end up winning with a buzzer beater. This caused Rei to eat her pride, but only because she couldn’t eat the chips she bet with anymore. Teto ungraciously accepted them with a big grin on her face
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Unfortunately, like most things that got Teto and Rei in a competitive spirit, as soon as it started, there was little to be done to stop it.
That small basketball bet turned into a slightly larger hockey bet two weeks later - and this time, the bet was lunch. Teto lost that one, and Rei ate a full meal on Teto’s money and even ordered a dessert while maintaining eye contact the entire time. Then there was baseball, which Rei also won, and the consequence had escalated to homework answers since neither of them felt like paying for lunch again.
“I swear you are cheating somehow” Teto said with no further explanation.
“You can’t cheat at watching baseball” Rei replied while copying down the answers from Teto’s sheet.
“Well then I guess you just got lucky…”
“I’ve won three times”
“…Lucky three times”
Rei put down her pencil and looked up. “Then let’s test if I can get ‘lucky’ four times in a row. Next weekend there’s a fight. We should bet on the main event”
“Fine” Teto said, crossing her arms. “And this time the stakes are money”
“Okayyy… how much?”
They agreed on an amount that wasn’t too much - thirty dollars. It was enough to be annoying to lose but not enough to actually matter. Teto was confident because she knew MMA (she watched it with her brother Ted all the time) and she had a good feeling about her fighter. It was some Russian guy against an American, and she always thought Russians were as tough as nails.
…She lost again. In fact, her fighter got knocked out in the first round.
Rei collected her money with no expression on her face, which made it worse. Teto slumped in her seat and stared at the ceiling. Miku, who had watched the whole exchange from the next row over, leaned toward Gumi and whispered something, causing Gumi to laugh.
“Don’t even say it” Teto warned without looking away from the ceiling.
“We didn’t say anything!” Miku and Gumi said.
“You were about to”
“I was just going to say that it’s kinda impressive how you keep losing and keep agreeing to new bets” Miku said.
“I just have confidence” Teto said. “I just need to pick the right sport”
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The right sport came to her on a Thursday, and it came in the form of Ms. Meiko writing about the upcoming El Clásico on the whiteboard during their European history elective - she had been using it as an example of a culturally significant modern rivalry to illustrate a point about historical rivalries between nations and cities. Teto sat up so fast she knocked her pencil off the desk.
“No” Rei said quietly, clearly reading Teto's mind.
“Yes” Teto said, equally quiet.
“Miss Kasane, Miss Adachi - do you have something to add?” Meiko asked from the front of the room.
“We're betting on El Clásico” Teto announced.
Meiko sighed and set down her marker. “Of course you are. What are the stakes?”
“We haven’t decided” Rei said.
“Make it interesting. You two have been escalating this all semester. Snacks, then lunch, then homework, then money... the natural progression would be something you can’t really quantify” Meiko said.
“Yea, you girls should kiss” Rin shouted from somewhere in the back row next to Nero.
“OOOOOHHHH” said the entire class, including Meiko.
Teto’s face went from pink to red, which made her it blend into her hair. Rei herself had gone still as well.
“That’s a childish suggestion” Rei said flatly.
“It is kind of a natural escalation though” Miku said.
“Nobody asked you, Miku!” Teto snapped.
Neru had fully set her phone down now and was watching with a wicked look on her face that spelled trouble. “I mean statistically, the bet progression does point that way”
“You don’t even care about sports!” Teto yelled at her.
“HUH?!?!? Have you never seen my red tracksuit?!? Anyway, whatever. Even if I don’t care about sports as much as you do, it doesn’t mean I don’t care about this”
Meiko picked her marker back up and went back to writing on the board. “Whatever you two decide is your business. Just know that the whole class is invested now, so there’s no taking it back”
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Rei caught up with Teto at her locker after sixth period. She didn’t say anything at first and instead just leaned against the locker next to hers and waited for Teto to stop failing at her combination lock.
“Barcelona is going to win” Teto said without looking up.
“You’re picking Barcelona?”
“They’re playing at home and if they win it then they’ll be the champions. Real Madrid has nothing to play for - they’re just trying to spoil it. Barcelona is going to want it more”
Rei was quiet for a second. “Fine. I’ll take Madrid”
“And… the bet?”
There was a long pause. Teto finally got her locker open and stared into it without really looking at anything inside. They said nothing to each other, yet they knew what they wanted.
“We can’t tell anyone” Rei said
“Well duh. Obviously”
“And we have watch it together”
“…”
“Then it’s settled” Rei said as she pushed off the locker. She walked away with her hands in her pockets and Teto watched her go. She turned back to stare into her locker again for a little longer.
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The two-person watch party was at Rei’s apartment (because “she had a bigger TV”… definitely not because they wanted some privacy). Teto showed up with chips and a Barcelona scarf she dug out from the back of her closet. Rei didn’t have the same level of merchandise as Teto and only wore a fan-jersey.
They sat on opposite ends of the couch. As they settled in, the distance between them shrank before the game started. They would get up, do something such as going to the bathroom or getting more snacks, come back, and sit down slightly closer to the middle until they were both rubbing shoulders.
The first half of the game was a standstill, with both teams having good offense met with even better defense. Teto started to worry slightly just at the lack of any scoring, but after looking at Rei’s calm and collected demeanor, she was reassured that whatever outcome happened, she would get what she refused to admit she wanted.
The second half was where the fun actually occurred. A fight between players on the Real Madrid team caused the team’s tactics to fracture and fail, allowing for Barcelona to score not one, but two goals within the span of 5 minutes. Real Madrid eventually recovered, but it was far too late for them to make up the difference.
The game ended 2-0.
“Did you SEE that” Teto practically yelled when second goal was scored.
“You don’t need to yell. I’m right here” Rei said (though she was watching the replay too). She had a look on her face of being impressed that betrayed her disappointed sigh.
When the game ended, Teto shot up and shouted in victory. She looked towards Rei and gave her a few choice hand gestures before she did a victory lap around the couch. When she sat back down and turned to look at Rei, Rei was already looking at her.
The triumphant thing Teto had prepared to say became considerably less important when she remembered the bet they made. Her face soon heated up as she noticed the gap (or lack there of) between them.
“I won” she said quietly.
“Uh-huh. You won alright”
“So…”
Teto reached her hand up to Rei’s jaw, resting it on her softly. She was caught off guard by how stiff Rei had become - she wasn’t usually the type to portray nervousness in any sense.
Teto brushed her thumb against Rei's cheek, feeling a slight, uncharacteristic tremor in the other girl's posture. Slowly, Teto leaned in, evaporating the distance between them. When their lips finally met, it was goofy, hesitant, and incredibly awkward. It felt as though they were crossing some forbidden line that felt scandalous despite the fact that they were completely alone and had spent weeks building up to this very moment.
But as the quiet seconds ticked by, Rei let out a soft breath, causing the tension to leave her shoulders. She leaned into the touch, and the kiss slowly melted into something softer and far more intimate. Teto shifted her weight, moving until she was entirely on top of Rei like a blanket. The initial awkwardness washed away and was replaced by a warm lingering closeness as they kissed for a little while, entirely lost in the quiet of the apartment.
Eventually, the need for air won out. Teto pulled away slowly. She looked down at Rei, whose usually unreadable face was now thoroughly flushed, her eyes wide and a bit glassy.
Feeling a sudden spike of shyness at the sheer reality of what they just did, Teto moved to slide off her lap. But before she could get far, Rei’s hands shot up, grabbing firmly onto Teto’s sides. Teto paused, looking down in surprise. Rei didn't say a single word, but her tight grip and the soft vulnerable look in her eyes silently pleaded for Teto to stay exactly where she was.
A massive and burning blush spread across Teto’s face, yet she couldn't help but let a teasing smirk slip through her embarrassment.
“What’s this? You don’t want me to go? Don’t tell me you want to kiss again already” Teto teased.
Rei stared up at her. Her expression was completely deadpan, which was how it usually was, yet this time it had the deep red dusting on her cheeks.
“Yes” Rei stated simply, which shocked Teto severely. “And it was obvious that you wanted to too”
Teto’s smirk vanished instantly when met with blunt honesty. Letting out a flustered sound, she obliged and collapsed forward to wrap her arms around Rei. Rei caught her easily and shifted her grip to pull Teto into a tight, warm cuddle against the cushions. As Teto hid her burning face in the crook of Rei’s neck, Rei gently poked her in the side.
“You know” Rei murmured, her voice carrying a rare, smug undertone. “Even though I lost the bet... I still won”
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Bonus Scene (Intensity/Intimancy increased. Suitable for people above 15+ I believe)
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The air in the living room felt heavy and warm as Teto and Rei tangled together on the cushions. Their lips met again in a deeply intimate kiss that left Teto’s head spinning. She felt herself melting against Rei, leaving her entirely overwhelmed.
When they finally parted to catch their breath for a second time, they pulled away with agonizing slowness. As their lips separated, a thin, glistening bridge of saliva connected them for a brief, highly intimate few seconds before snapping.
Teto stared at what was just done between their lips and felt her heart hammering wildly against her ribs. The erotic sight completely stirred her up, leaving her flushed, breathless, and totally speechless as her mind went into overdrive.
Rei, on the other hand, maintained her perfectly cool demeanor. She simply tilted her head and watched Teto completely short-circuit on top of her. However, the dark blush spreading across Rei’s cheeks and the tips of her ears proved that she wasn’t nearly as unaffected as she tried to appear.