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The jersey number 64 shines on the grassy field and it’s no wonder that she’s the captain of the university soccer team. Jihyo cheers her on, shouting from the bleachers. Her girlfriend looks to her momentarily, shooting a wink her way as she sneaks her way through two defenders. Hirai Momo will be the death of Jihyo someday, she knows it. Jihyo screams at the top of her lungs when Momo expertly drives the soccer ball into back of the net.
She gets pulled back down by her best friend, who’s glaring at her for being so noisy. But Jihyo doesn’t care – well, just a little bit.
“It’s just a practice, lower your volume!” Nayeon scolds her. “I can’t even pay attention to my girlfriend because you’re so loud.”
“Please, you and Tzuyu are attached to the hip every single minute of the day when she’s not playing.” Jihyo rolls her eyes. “I, on the other hand, rarely get to cheer for my baby. She’s been doubting her capabilities lately and I don’t know what to do. She looks like she’s fine on the field but when we’re back in the dorms, she’s nervous and paranoid.”
Nayeon face softens and she wraps an arm around Jihyo’s shoulders. “She’s a great captain. Is it the pressure of the finals?”
This is Momo’s last practice before the grand final soccer match she’ll be leading. The game is tomorrow afternoon, in their own home ground. Ever since they won their semi-final match a month ago, Momo has been completely restless and overworking herself, practicing in the early morning and coming home late. When Jihyo brings it up, Momo denies feeling unsettled and it frustrates her because it’s clear that it’s bothering her girlfriend. She’s putting extra pressure on herself because she’s the captain but refuses to realise that making it to the grand final is already an amazing feat on its own.
The practice finishes ten minutes later and Jihyo and Nayeon wait patiently for their girlfriends to finish up. It’s Tzuyu who arrives by their side first, greeting Nayeon with a kiss before hugging Jihyo. Nayeon congratulates her for a good win and Tzuyu blushes, slipping her hand through Nayeon’s. She talks about their finals and they stand together for five to ten minutes more, yet Momo still doesn’t exit the changing rooms.
All the players have already left and an unsettling feeling brews in Jihyo’s stomach.
“You guys head home, I’ll check in on her.” Jihyo smiles to the couple in front of her.
“We can wait.” Tzuyu shakes her head, worried about her captain as well.
“It’s fine, I promise. I’ll talk to you both tomorrow. Rest up Tzuyu.” Jihyo pats Tzuyu’s head and hugs Nayeon as she heads to the changing room.
Jihyo hears water running when she enters the hall. She walks towards the showers, spotting her girlfriend’s duffel bag by the lockers. She sighs softly but continues on, peeking her head through the row of shower stalls to check on Momo. Her girlfriend is there, in the last one, head between her hands and looking extremely sullen. Jihyo frowns, but moves towards her. She switches the tap off and Momo finally tilts her head to acknowledge Jihyo’s presence.
“Everything okay?” Jihyo asks, moving to sit next to Momo.
“Hey, your clothes are going to get wet!” Momo doesn’t let Jihyo sit on the tiles of the stall. She grabs her spare towel and places it under Jihyo. “I was on my way out in a few minutes.”
“You’ve been here for more than fifteen minutes. I know something is wrong. Talk to me Mo.” Jihyo turns Momo to face her. She uses Momo’s towel that’s hanging around her neck to dry her girlfriend’s hair as she waits for a response.
“I don’t know if I can do this – lead the team tomorrow. There’s so much riding on this game. Scouts, winning for the university, making the right choices. I feel like this is all out of range, out of my capability.” Momo rests her forehead against Jihyo’s shoulder.
Jihyo pauses her drying to consider Momo’s words. So, she had been right when she guessed Momo isn’t feeling confident in her skills as a leader and a player. “Let me tell you something. Without you leading this team, do you think your team would be in the finals? You brought them here with your leadership. You encouraged them and made the right decisions and you inspired them to work harder. They listen to you and they know you’re doing a damn good job. They trust you because they know you can do it – they know you can lead them to win tomorrow.”
Momo relaxes in her arms and Jihyo feels like she’s gotten through to her girlfriend. She hates seeing her doubt herself to such an extent where she dismisses her abilities.
“You are amazing at what you do. You can do this. Tomorrow, you’ll kick ass.” Jihyo encourages further.
“Did you just say kick ass?” Momo raises her eyebrows.
“Whatever! Don’t pick on my words.” Jihyo sulks. Momo laughs at her cuteness and wraps her arms around her waist, hugging Jihyo tightly.
“Thank you, for cheering for me and having confidence in me. I want to do well, you know? Soccer is all I have – all that I love. I want to be a good role model for the rest of the kids.” Momo speaks honestly.
“If Jeongyeon hears you calling her a kid, she’ll have your head.” Jihyo clucks her tongue.
“Well, then. It’s a good thing that she’s not here, right? She’ll never know.” Momo sticks out her tongue.
Jihyo rolls her eyes at Momo’s statement “Are you ready to go home?”
Momo nods and stands up, carrying Jihyo with her, who squeals, slapping her shoulder. This is exactly why she thinks Momo will be the death of her one day. She tries to escape her hold, but Momo holds on tighter and plants a kiss on her lips too, rendering Jihyo speechless. Momo laughs as she holds Jihyo with ease, like she weighs as much as a feather.
“Are you really not going to let me down?” Jihyo asks. “Isn’t this bad for you? You’ll be tired before your match tomorrow!”
“If I have you in the crowds cheering for me, I’m sure nothing else will matter. For sure, the opposing team will be distracted by you and we’ll win easily.” Momo smiles when Jihyo gasps.
“Using me as a distraction. How brilliant.” Jihyo giggles, kissing Momo’s cheek. “You’ll do well tomorrow. And you know, win or lose, you’ll still be an amazing captain – I just want you to keep that in mind. It takes effort to unite a team and you’ve done that. That’s an achievement in its own league.”
Momo stops in her tracks because she’s amazed by the woman in her arms. She’s grateful for her words of encouragement and she kisses her again, softly. It’s her way of expressing her gratitude and appreciation. “Thank you, Ji. I love you.”
--
The next morning, Jihyo makes sure that Momo has a decent meal before she leaves the house. She can tell the excitement is bubbling in her veins because she can’t sit still at the table. But, it’s adorable. Jihyo is proud of Momo for pushing through her anxiety and worries to be strong about the game today.
(she’s always surprised by the Momo on field and Momo off the field, but regardless, they’re both attractive and they’re both Jihyo’s)
Momo holds Jihyo’s hand throughout the ride to the field, and to the changing rooms. She only let’s go when she sees the rest of her team smiling at her teasingly and even then, Momo proudly kisses her in front of everyone. The team cheer and clap and Momo has to wave her hand to get them to shut up because she wants to kiss Jihyo in peace.
“Thank you for wearing my lucky shirt.” Momo taps Jihyo’s nose as she leaves. It catches Jihyo by surprise because she didn’t think her girlfriend noticed. She blushes and shouts an I love you before attempting to find Nayeon in the large crowd gathered to watch the final game.
She doesn’t find Nayeon in the crowd because she’s still busy kissing Tzuyu at the entrance. Jihyo pulls her friend away from her girlfriend because Tzuyu really has to go now before she gets into trouble. Nayeon whines but she manages to get a good luck out to Tzuyu. Jihyo wishes her well too and takes Nayeon to their seats for the game.
“How’s Momo?” Nayeon immediately asks when they sit down.
“Good. She had some worries about her capabilities. I hope I did well enough to quell them last night. She was fine this morning though, so I think that’s a good sign for the match? Was Tzuyu fine?” Jihyo answers.
“Oh, yeah. Just the pre-game jitters that I was kissing away when you dragged me from her.” Nayeon grumbles.
“At least she doesn’t kiss you in front of your team.” Jihyo growls.
“As if you don’t like that.” Nayeon rolls her eyes, knowing Jihyo long enough to know that she likes rubbing her girlfriend status in front of Momo’s die hard supporters.
She’s about to argue against Nayeon’s accusation when the announcer invites the soccer players to come onto the field. Jihyo’s eyes immediately find 64 and her heart flutters with pride and admiration. Momo looks around then and Jihyo knows she’s looking for her. She waves her arms above her head and it’s as if Momo knows where she is immediately because they lock eyes moments after. Jihyo blows her a kiss and Momo mouths an I love in return.
When she settles in her seat again, she tries not to laugh because Nayeon is looking at her with utter disgust.
“You’re not any better. Stop judging me.” Jihyo snickers.
The game begins and Jihyo is silently pleading for Momo’s team to win. Her girlfriend is playing as well as she always is, creating chances for her team members. But, there’s miscommunication and it feels like their chances are fading. It reaches half-time with no goals scored and Jihyo can sense Momo’s tension all the way from her seat. Her team members are also looking run down and exhausted already.
Jihyo remembers what Momo told her yesterday about her cheering and she stands up and screams at the top of her lungs. “YOU CAN DO IT!”
Momo immediately looks to her and she smiles. The rest of the team smile too and Jihyo nudges Nayeon to do something. They need a little more cheering spirit to help them win this match and they will be the ones to scream if they have to.
“Go babe! You can win this!” Nayeon awkwardly cheers – but it works. Tzuyu is grinning immediately and the happiness spreads across the team.
The second-half resumes and this time, Jihyo and Nayeon cheer endlessly. They’re screaming at the top of their lungs and the opposing side are making more mistakes. Momo’s team has more chances and it proves to be useful because they manage to score a goal.
Breaking in one goal gives the team a much-needed boost and in the momentum of their increased possession, they score another.
The crowd is rowdy as the final whistle blows.
Momo’s team wins. Jihyo is so proud to see her girlfriend lift up that golden trophy. She runs down to the field after the proceedings are completed, Nayeon following too. Momo has in her in her arms as soon as Jihyo’s in front of her, lifting her up.
“You did it! I’m so proud of you Mo. I knew you could do it.” Jihyo confesses as she leans her forehead against Momo’s.
“Thank you for having so much faith in me. And thank you for cheering me on. I guess you are my lucky one, hmm?” Momo laughs, kissing Jihyo softly.
Number 64, Hirai Momo, love of Jihyo’s life.