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"You know, Coach Lasso, I think the red is quite becoming on you." Trent teased, planting fervent kisses on the nape of Ted's neck, in the evident aftermath of their compilation from the night before.
It was an act of indulgence. A few days prior, Ted had observed that Trent kept a few cosmetic items in his tote bag, and out of a sense of curiosity, he inquired if Trent had ever donned them. Shortly after, Trent then proceeded to apply the tube of red substance with remarkable ease, no mirror needed, and one thing led to another, resulting in the occasional use of it in the bedroom. It was simply an attempt to add some spice to it all, for he knew Ted had an inclination for the way the red hue complemented his lips.
And it worked like a charm, without fail.
"Come on, sweetheart. I need to get to the pitch a little earlier today," Ted articulated with a groan as he sat up in the covers. Trent emitted a faint sound of dismay from the back of his throat yet gazed covetously at the crimson lip imprints on Ted.
He flushed furiously at the thought of the way Ted had scrutinized him last night, recollecting the sensation of his thumb tracing around the contour of his lips and kissing him with fervor, the way it made Trent absolutely demolish underneath his touch.
As Ted perched with his knees over the edge of the bed, he glanced over his shoulder at Trent. Trent lay on his side, cradling his head in one hand, and staring up at Ted with desire through his spectacles; Ted couldn't help but notice that Trent was also in his Wichita State jumper that was a size too big on him and had to refrain from dwelling on the fact any longer, or they would both be in hot water at work today. Ted shifted and leaned down to plant a few kisses on Trent's forehead before capturing him in a prolonged and feverish kiss on the lips. Trent attempted to detain him for a moment longer and whimpered in sorrow when Ted’s fingers grasped his chin and separated their lips.
"Go back to sleep for a minute, don’t want my baby’s day being ruined because he couldn’t spare his beauty sleep," Ted whispered, and Trent could only exhale as he slumped back into the plush pillows.
Trent scoffs in dismay. “You gaffer, I've had the most tranquil sleep since I've been with you. It's a rarely do you ever see me up at 4 in the morning now," Trent retorted as Ted sat up to put on a t-shirt.
Ted grinned with a playful sparkle in his eyes, "Surely because nothing else is keeping you up at night. Endlessly playing rounds and rounds of... games, surely has nothing to do with it, right?"
“Oh,” Trent gasps, eyes narrowing at Ted with obscenity, “you little…”
Before Trent could even finish enunciating the last of his sentence, Ted was already beaming at him over his shoulder and an imprudent grin as he ambled out the door and down the hallway, leaving a perturbed and unsatisfied Trent to bury himself back under the covers. He was simply too exhausted to carry on his grumbling any longer and would have to recommence his plan at a later time.
"Wanker.” Trent muttered out to himself, feeling himself drift back into his slumber with the faint sound of the door closing in the adjacent room.
Ted sauntered into the office later that morning with a buoyancy in his step. Trent had already taken his customary spot at his desk when he observed his paramour stroll past him. Soon enough, the locker room was filled with the prattle of fatigued players trailing behind. Trent playfully scrutinized Ted, his eyes taking in the sight of Ted's delightful coaching attire, a white polo shirt and very tight khaki shorts. Trent had to repeatedly remind himself that they were at work.
Ted approached Trent to give him a cordial peck on the lips, to which Trent graciously accepted with a pleased hum.
“Hey, honey. You sleep well?” Ted murmured as he drew back, his arms bracing the side of the chair's armrest. Trent nodded, gazing at Ted through his eyelashes in a way that appeared too lewd for the public eye.
“Mm, couldn’t sleep much after you left me with only a hand to work with,” Trent sighed, a playful gleam in his eyes as he tilted his head up at Ted.
Ted shook his head and chortled at the evident signals his partner was attempting to convey to him, because they were indeed effective, “Sorry, sweetheart. I cut practice a little short just for you,"
"Is that so?" Trent replies, intrigued.
"Mhm, so I could have a little extra time to finish what you started this mor-"
"Coach?"
Ted halts abruptly, just inches from Trent's lips, and gradually rotates his head to glimpse Colin, who stands at the entrance of the office wearing a disquieted expression. Trent reddens and emits a faint groan of humiliation, cognizant that Colin will undoubtedly give him shit about this incident later.
“Yeah, Colin?” Ted clears his throat, his voice quavering slightly, eliciting a subdued chuckle from Trent.
“Uh, the fellows were wonderin’ if you were calling it a day, yeah?” Colin inquires, with a pensive gaze still fixed on the situation.
Ted rises from Trent's chair and claps his hands together, fumblingly distancing himself from the situation., “Yeah! Yeah, uh, lemme just get a few words with you guys for a sec and y’all can hit the showers.”
Colin gives the doorway a pat as he strides back into the locker room. Ted lingers a few moments longer before glancing back at Trent when the coast is clear. Trent stifles a laugh behind his hand. Even now, after months of dating, Ted remains slightly mortified when they are caught in the midst of their intimacy. Trent, on the other hand, seems unfazed, which is rather unexpected. Nevertheless, Trent finds Ted's embarrassment utterly adorable.
Trent breathlessly chuckled, “Go on now, I’ll still be here when you get back.”
Ted can only shake his head, and impulsively leans in to plant a hasty peck on Trent's lips once again, as if he were apprehensive of being caught again, “You better be.”
With that, Trent plants a peck on his cheek, and Ted heads toward the locker room. As Trent glances back at him, a sudden spiral of panic courses through him, and his worst fears seem to be crumbling down at him at that moment; Trent spots a solitary, yet unmistakable, red lip mark on the nape of Ted's neck. Trent fumbles in his seat, speechless and incapable of alerting Ted before he disappears into the locker room, announcing his arrival with a booming voice. Trent considers getting up but persuades himself in the back of his mind that Ted won't move around too much for anyone to notice.
Before he can dwell on the thought any longer, Trent rushes away frantically to hide in Rebecca's office for now.
"What have I done?" Trent mutters fearfully as he dreadfully walks down the hallway.
“Rupert always had the nerve to tell me they were the same shade of pink.”
Trent found himself seated on Rebecca's couch, joining a small "girl-talk" with her and Keeley to keep his mind occupied from the dreadful thought of Ted being caught red-handed, (literally.) They didn't exactly interrogate him when he jolted in, attempting to ease himself to make his dilemma less conspicuous to them. For now, Rebecca was contemplating what shade to choose for her next manicure and had gone on a tirade about how Rupert cared little to indulge in her selection of colors and how much more significant it was beyond the shades. There were moods to consider, whether the shade matched the person, or if they were suitable for the season.
But Trent couldn't seem to concentrate, and Keeley quickly observed when Trent stared vacantly across the room.
"Trent, are you alright, babes?" Keeley inquires with a frown.
Trent snaps up quickly, recognizing that his attempt to make his problem seem non-existent has failed miserably. Rebecca seems intrigued now, too. He knew that if she was involved, there would be no point in concealing it any longer. So, he tried to feign out this act for as long as he could try.
"Hm, yes! I'm fine, I just, I didn't sleep much." He attempts, wanting to keep his voice as steady as possible.
Rebecca's brows furrowed, and Trent immediately feels his facade crumble. "Trent, you always slept so soundly since Ted..."
Shit, Trent forgot he told them about that too.
“Has something happened?”
Oh, no, this can’t be good.
“I-“
“Oi! Crimm!”
They all startle as the door slams open, accompanied by the booming voice of a very irate Roy Kent. Trent's mind goes blank, scrambling to figure out what has provoked Roy to such fury. Keeley and Rebecca are also taken aback, and soon enough both are alerted by the sound of audible quarreling from down the hallway.
“Is that…?”
Roy approaches Trent, and the older man feels himself sinking deeper into the sofa beside Rebecca, faltering under Roy's gaze, “Is Ted fuckin’ cheating on you?”
And it all blows up in a matter of seconds.
Rebecca gasps, appalled, and Keeley's countenance undergoes an immediate transformation that is frightening to Trent. Trent has not yet connected the dots and is still rather perplexed, attempting to discern what is happening and how they came to the conclusion that Ted was unfaithful...oh.
“-fuck!” Trent gasps, rising abruptly from his seat and surging past Roy towards the locker room, his adrenaline coursing through his veins in an instant.
The lipstick. They found the lipstick mark.
Keeley follows him closely, with Roy and Rebecca trailing behind them with rapid strides.
"Is this what happened, love? Is that why you came in so upset?" he hears her try, but the blood rushing in his ears and his myriad thoughts hammering through his head prevent him from concentrating.
"Who is she?"
Trent can verify that this is indeed the situation, as he strides into the locker room and sees Isaac seizing Ted by the collar while all the boys encircle the blemish on Ted's appearance as if it were some unknown ailment. They are all shouting, interrogating Ted, but Colin appears to be the most incensed of them all, as anticipated. And God, poor Ted, he looks so wretched, and this is all Trent's fault. To some extent, maybe Ted should have been more attentive before departing this morning. But yes, Trent should have spoken up...
They all appear more confused than enraged, pondering why on earth Ted would be the one to deceive and for what reason? Every single one of the boys made it clear that Trent was a splendid catch, and Ted would be foolish to let him slip away. Trent feels the panic taking hold of him as Dani screams at him in his native tongue, Jamie and Jan tugging at his collar in an attempt to get a closer look, and Coach Beard appears utterly bewildered by what has transpired in a matter of seconds. Trent hears Higgins rush in behind him, all clustered in the doorway and gazing at the spectacle in front of them.
"What in good heavens has occurred here?" Higgins practically bellows.
"Or rather, what in the hell has happened here?" Rebecca murmurs with horror.
Colin swivels his neck at the sight of Trent and strides toward him until he is practically in his face, "Trent! Look! Look at it!" he exclaims, sounding utterly distressed.
Jamie forcefully rotates Ted in Trent's direction, pulling the collar away to reveal the red lipstick blemish situated in the center of the back of his neck.
“Okay, okay, fellas lemme just e-explain now!” Ted stammers out, terrified in his current state.
"You hush, bruv!” Isaac grumbles out, and Trent approaches the scene, at a clear loss for words.
The group falls into a momentary silence, Trent gazing wondrously at the stain and extending his fingers to trace over it. He feels Ted still underneath his touch, and Trent feels compelled to say something, anything, or else they will have Ted's head on a pike in a matter of seconds if he doesn't confirm Ted would never cheat. But Trent couldn't; he is uncertain and utterly humiliated because if he reveals the case, could it possibly be worse than this? No, he tries to convince himself, but what if?
When Trent falls silent for too long, Colin snaps.
“He cheated!” He shouts the locker room is bursting again, and their grip of Ted seems more aggressive. Roy’s voice is heard again and it shatters Trent, and soon enough he knows this could get very, very bad.
“Oh for fucks sake!” Trent snaps, and it is silent once more, seemingly having frightened everyone with a voice they never guessed Trent could possess. He struggles to articulate the next words but finally manages to do so, “it was me! That lip stick stain is mine!”
"Oh." they all utter in unison as Trent heaves in frustration and out of the haste of his sentence.
Ted carefully backs away from the circle, freeing himself from the harsh grip. Colin stands there, stunned, as does everyone else, except for Keeley and Rebecca, who both wear sly smirks on their lips. This was a topic worth their "girl-talks." Trent is not even aware of the fact that the guys are not all petrified by the fact that it is Trent's lipstick mark, but rather embarrassed by the freak incident they nearly caused over a misunderstanding. A misunderstanding that could have been easily avoided had Trent quickly swiped a thumb to erase the evidence of their time last night.
“Sorry, Coach.” Jamie breaks the silence, and the other players follow suit, murmuring their own shameful apologies.
Ted gives a weak smile, still traumatized by the fact that his own players were out for his blood. “I think you all owe, Trent an apology too…”
Trent’s eyebrows raise, and in an instant his face is red, “Oh no, please none of you apologize. It was all my fault, I saw it but it was too late when I noticed…I know it’s a bit weird-“
“Crimm,” Roy utters out beside him, “there’s nothing wrong with it, it’s the same situation as if we were seein’ a hickey…”
Roy continues, eyeing the whole locker room, “And if any of you give him shit for this, my fist and your face are gonna become real, fuckin’ familiar, you hear me right?”
A small smile tugs at Trent's lips, and he is left breathless by the small chatter of agreement that follows. Trent gives Roy an acknowledgement of thanks, to which he only grunts in reply. Beside him, Ted, still disheveled and wide-eyed, places a protective hand on the back of Trent's shoulders and squeezes it in encouragement.
Colin turns back to Trent with an apologetic smile, “Sorry, Trent. We aren’t bothered by it, promise. We were more concerned if Coach was about to break your heart.”
“Yeah, yeah, that’s it.” Sam adds.
Trent shakes his head and laughs, “I promise you boys, he’d never do anything shitty like that. Besides, it’s not like anyone wouldn’t know he’s off the market.” He says with a wink.
Ted guffaws, and the players all derive amusement from the situation now, much to Ted's pleasure, as opposed to the feral yelling and such. He gives Trent a meaningful look, to which Trent responds with a roll of his eyes. Coach Beard makes a comment to Jamie about joining a boxing club in his free time, and Higgins departs the room with a satisfied laugh. Trent turns back and sees Rebecca and Keeley smiling slyly at him, and he feels his face flush again, but this time he is smiling in delight rather than crumbling in embarrassment.
“Alright, gentlemen,” Trent calls out, eyes still settled on Ted, “you’re all dismissed.”
“Ooohh-“
“Alright now! You heard him! Out!” Roy vociferates, and they all vacate the Richmond locker room in a fit of giggles and chatter. Roy pursues Beard into the office, and Keeley and Rebecca have already absconded down the hallway, leaving Trent and Ted standing alone. Trent glances over at Ted and finally eradicates the lipstick stain, as he should have done ages ago. Ted furrows his brow.
“Hey, why’d you do that? I kept it there for a reason, y'know."
Trent’s stare broadens and his mouth gapes in astonishment, “You- what…Theodore Lasso.”
They engage in a heated verbal altercation of Ted’s stupid act for a few moments more, which culminates with Trent seizing Ted by the collar and kissing him stupidly all the way into his car. Beard and Roy observed them the entire time through the blinds, and Roy lets out a small chortle, causing Beard to lock eyes with him.
“Crimm’s about to give it to him,” Roy declares, walking back to his office to conclude his afternoon.
"Crimm-son" was indeed a flattering hue on Coach Lasso, especially when everyone was on the same level of understanding.