Work Text:
Okay...
So
It was tough. It was excruciatingly painful. Especially since they had 200 MILLION fans cheering them on, only to lose in penalties to Croatia. It was a deep pain that bore into Neymar's stomach and burned him from the inside out, causing tears to well up in his eyes.
He didn't have to look up from his seat on the floor to hear the Croatian fans ecstatic. He didn't have to look far to see the Brazilian fans in tears. And he didn't have to look to see that his teammates, his brothers, were also on the floor with him.
Neymar stared up at the night sky, his back pressed against the turf where they had been running and playing just moments ago. The same turf where they had missed the ball. The same turf on which Dominik Livaković defended his entire team
Livaković..
Neymar will admit that the goalkeeper was extraordinary. He's never seen anyone move so gracefully. And, while Neymar scored a goal because the other player was too far away, he could appreciate everything else. Particularly impressive was his defense of the goal during the penalties.
The man was an amazing goalie.
It didn't hurt that the man was also pretty cute-
Neymar blinked, his brow furrowed...
'Where did that come from?' he wondered, staring into the sky. 'What was I thinking?! The guy CRUSHED us!'
....I mean, it wasn't exactly incorrect. Livaković wasn't ugly; in fact, he was quite pretty.
The little smile of his, the furrowed brows as if he was constantly worried. And while the man was taller than him he looked smaller with the way he was always seemingly slightly hunched over.
He doesn't talk a lot either, unless he's spoken to the goalie prefers to be quiet. Though Neymar doesn't really know the guy. He could simply be quiet because he is concentrating as a goalie
But he couldn't get the thought out of his head because... Livakovi was adorable to him.
… He shouldn't be thinking like this, huh?
"Hey," Neymar heard, before looking up at the man standing above him.
Anthony
"Come on, get up... you're spending too much time in your head." Neymar nodded and took Anthony's offered hand, standing up as he was pulled up. "We LOST, Ant... how could we LOSE?" Neymar inquired. "I don't know," Anthony sighed.
Neymar did the same and shifted his gaze away from his friend, scanning the stadium.
Fans, fans, and more fans...
He gave a blink. For whatever reason, all of his rage seemed to vanish.
Livaković was just a few feet away, smiling and chatting with Modrić, who, Neymar assumes, is praising the young goalie for his performance.
Neymar fixed his gaze on the two—well.. fixed it on the goalie. Livaković was blushing slightly, owing to the praise he was receiving. Modrić was talking and smiling at him, while the other stood and watched. His eyes were positively glistening, and you could see stars in them. Neymar could see Livi as a sort of fan of Modrić.
Neymar stood there for a minute…
Neymar moved towards the pair.
Modrić noticed him first as he walked, his smile fading and being replaced by a small frown. He wasn't upset that Neymar was interrupting them, but he was perplexed by the fact that the other was only now walking over to Livaković.
And of course, the man knew Neymar was looking for Livaković because Neymar had just shook Modrić's hand a moment ago.
Speaking of the goalie, the other followed suit, curious as to what had changed his Captain's expression so abruptly.
Neymar gave a small smile, finally standing in front of Livaković..
He reached out his hand. "Good game," Neymar said in English, to which Livaković returned a small smile, his brow furrowed slightly as they always did. Cute.
When the two shook hands, everything seemed to come to a halt for Neymar.
He could see Dominik way better now, now that he was up close to him.
He could see the beautiful brown in his eyes, so gentle and soft but full of fire. His slight beard, though Neymar assumed he shaved it. The other smelled of sweat and grass, being normal for a goalkeeper, especially after a game like that. Must be hard being the best.
To feel a little more.. Neymar added to the handshake. He patted Dominik's bicep, using his other arm.
He could feel the muscle in the other's arm. They weren't tense, he was completely fine. Comfortable even. That was good.. he should relax that beautiful body-
Aaaaand Neymar let go finally, nodding his head.
Dominik smiled and nodded his head back before looking back to Modrić who…
Who was staring at Neymar with squinted eyes.
Whoops.
"Luka? Sve ok?" "Da da.. amo, idemo" the two walked off..
Neymar watched them walk off, the smile not leaving his lips yet.. his eyes stayed focused on them.
Or.. rather the round backside of the goalie.
He'll see Dominik again.
He just had to wait..