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"Only crazy dreamers who won't stop until they reach the world's top belong here."
Reo wanted to tune it out. There's only so much he can take before he breaks completely.
"If you're a sensible man, satisfied with anything below that... Go home, Nagi Seishirou." The man on the screen commanded, his voice sounding ice-cold —even more than usual—.
It was pathetic. He was full-on crying while Nagi sat on the floor, unresponsive. Why was he not defending himself!? Get up!
Did Nagi not care?
Was their dream unachievable from the start?
Was it his fault?
He didn't mean to, seriously! Even though Ba-ya warned Nagi that he shouldn't water his plant so much, that he shouldn't shower him with excessive love, he still did it but he didn't know any of that! He was at fault for Nagi losing his ego. Maybe if he refused to team up with him against the Bastard München match, Nagi would be at least within the top ten players. He would have a bid of forty-eight million yen instead of twenty-four.
He was about to protest again, maybe Ego had a heart somewhere inside his dark soul before he heard a voice next to him.
"Hey, Reo," Nagi said while looking at him, face serious. He still isn't ready for this, he can't have him leave his side, he can't look at him in the face in these circumstances, he can't —
Reo wiped his tear-stained face with the collar of his shirt, evading Nagi's eyes. He knew he was being televised, and probably the whole world already saw how he cried, but he couldn't bring himself to care. Kind of. Of course, he cared, but much less than he normally should. But he didn't want Nagi to see him like this. Even though Nagi didn't show it, he was probably—maybe, maybe — inside as much as he was or even more.
"Reo, I..." "Don't Nagi." Reo cut him off bitterly. He didn't know what he was going to say, but there was a chance he was going to give up on their dream, and he didn't want that.
Ego knew about their dream but still tried to separate them. Ego knew about the outcome but didn't try to warn them. Or he tried but they ignored him. But why did he need to be so harsh right now? The thought of that makes him mad but what makes him even more angry is himself.
Was there something that could've prevented this?
"I... had fun, Reo. You don't need to defend me. I'll go by myself." What was he saying?! Nagi got up, and walked up to him. Reo turned his face to him for the first time and gasped. He could see the raw emotion behind those dull grey eyes, now shiny with unshed tears. This was the only time he has ever seen Nagi like this; he witnessed how once he was fired up, how he was surprised, how happy even though he didn't smile— but not sadness.
After all, Nagi didn't do emotions.
And that was the final straw he needed to crash out of the place.
He ran through the door that connected the field with the corridor and even though everyone was looking at him, he ignored their eyes. He heard people shout his name from behind, probably Chigiri and Nagi, but didn't look back. He didn't want to see Nagi like that ever again.
And he ran so much that he arrived to his dorm room; the one that he shares with Nagi and the others. Quickly, he went to his bag, looking for his phone. He didn't want to use such drastic measures but he was running out of options and the white-haired boy leaving is not one of them.
Reo unlocked his phone and dialed a number that his father gave it to him in case he was in an emergency situation or in danger. And given the context of the recent events, this is and emergency situation.
As the first rings echoed through the dorm and someone answered, Reo composed himself and relaxed. The whole call was an exchange of short answers, and by the time that they had reached an agreement, someone bust through the dorm room.
He hung the call as fast as possible at the same time that the person walked up to him and grabbed Reo by his shoulders.
"What the- Chigiri!?" he exclaimed, The redhead's grip was heavy on his body. Behind him was Nagi, who was following him too.
"Reo, stop it! You're making it harder for the both of you." Chigiri shouted. His face also had an emotion he wasn't able to describe, but less intense than the one Nagi made earlier. Or so he thinks, at least. He had always been weak to Nagi so seeing him like that probably left a permanent spot somewhere in his psyché.
"I know! I know I am, but if it's hard for us it must also be for Ego, right?! He just lost a star player!" Reo argued back. He knew it wasn't the best counter-argument and it wasn't the truth at all, but he needed to buy time for the arrangements of the call.
Chigiri looked at him like he just grew a second head, and just as he was about to protest they heard screaming from outside aswell as two 'boom' sounds.
Oops.
The three of them turned their heads towards the sound, and with one shared look, went through the door to see all the commotion between the players happen in the field from before (although Reo knew what was happening— he was at fault in here).
Some of them were screaming, while some others were crying —most likely the locked-off ones, but not Nagi since Nagi isn'tgettinglockedoff—. But most of them were paralized looking at the screen where Ego was yapping before.
Was, because the man in the screen is no longer in the screen looking at them. Instead it was Anri screaming and shaking the shit out of Ego.
Ego's body.
It was clear that the director of the program was dead. The left side of his head was bleading and so was the left side of his torso, in his heart.
The sight was pretty gruesome, specially since it was being broadcasted to them and the world on a huge screen with a resolution of 4K.
Wait.
It was being broadcasted to the world right now.
He hopes that they cut off the cameras the moment Ego went limp on the floor.
Chigiri ran towards the closest person in the field, that being Bachira. "Bachira what the fuck just happened?! I just left for a minute and a half!!"
"...Well, Ego was congratulating in his special way to the people who got into the top twenty-three, but then BAM! He fell from the chair. Anri went quickly next to him the moment he fell." He responded, his carefree façade not really working. You could see he was as distressed as everyone else.
"Did someone call the ambulance or the cops?" Nagi chimed in. After seeing that bachira shook his head, Nagi turned his attention to Reo. "Can Reo call them? I saw that you had your phone in the dorm room."
And so with his best theater abilities he gained from his short time in the drama club, Reo put his best shocked face and nodded, dialing the number of the police.
"Ne Reo, was it you who killed Ego?" Nagi asked some time later when they were alone.
The police came and secluded them in a safe area along with everyone in the facility. Paramedics came from all entrances, and detectives took turns on asking everyone what happened. He had to lie to them when they asked who was he calling. There was NO way he was gonna just say 'oh, just a hired hitman so that I can take over the facility and bring my best-friend-turned-to-guy-I-like-secretly who was locked-off to the World Cup with me so that we can fulfill our dream!' Reo might be a dreamer but he knows when to be realistic.
But he should have known that Nagi would see through him.
"Ah? Nagi what are you saying? That's not funny," Reo protested. Nagi wouldn't snitch on him. He won't snitch on him because he knows him too well.
"Don't lie Reo, it's a pain to answer them." And that shut him up. It was pointless to make excuses if he already knew the truth.
Reo looked at the ceiling, evading Nagi's eyes again. He really didn't want to lie to him, but it will be worse if he continues.
"...Yeah. Not directly but it was my fault." Reo sighed. He didn't want to say that he killed him; it would only make him feel bad over something he isn't exacty sorry.
"Why did you do it?" Next question, please!
"Uhm, do I have to answer it...?" Nagi was still looking at him with those big-bugged eyes; no emotion inside them but they expected something.
So, Reo opened his mouth and started pouring every but of information out: the call, the hitman, Mikage Corp. buying a 30% of the ownership of blue lock, his anger— But specifically left out his feelings towards his white-haired part- best friend. That was the root of the whole problem, and it was going to be a secret he was willing to bring to the grave.
"So Reo did it because of me?" Meanwhile, Nagi couldn't wrap his head around the fact that someone, Reo, would ever bother to go so far for someone like him. Sure, it was because of their promise but it was theirs, not Reo's alone.
"I guess you could say that." No Reo, don't evade his eyes again- That's what he was thinking while answering, while keeping an uncomfortable eye contact with Nagi. He just killed his boss, why is he feeling shy!?
"Reo..." Now that Nagi realizes, he has been saying and thinking Reo's name a lot throughout the match.
Is this the right time to say this? When someone died because of them?
Too much of a hassle to think about it.
So, Nagi took Reo's hands in his, and looked at him directly in the eyes when he said, "Thank you, Reo. I'm glad to be here with you." He could start from here.
Someone who saw the scene from the outside would just look away awkwardly, but since it was only the two of them alone, he couldn't care less.
Reo could see the faintest of grins in the corners of Nagi's mouth. It looked like a straight line, but combined with the newfound sparkles in those grey, big eyes he knew it was a smile.
Smiling was a good look on Nagi. Not like the other one.
Reo smiled back, squeezing Nagi's hands in his. "No, Nagi, I am the thankful one. We are going to the world stage together."
At that, Nagi gave him a puzzled look. "How? I'm still out of the top twenty-three."
"Don't worry about it, I have my ways." Reo smirked. There was no need to sacrifice another player; he just had to lengthen the list a bit. After all, in football there have to be twenty-six players in the national team not twenty-three. There was something wrong from the start of the league but ignored it since he thought both of them would get top ten. He thought.
And as both of them held hands in silence, Reo closed his eyes.
The World Cup is not so far away.