Chapter Text
Isagi had been actively avoiding Kaiser after the Neo Egoist League.
Of course, he was incredibly proud of himself. He relished in the satisfaction he felt when he stretched out his hand to Kaiser, who was kneeling so pathetically on the ground. He bathed in Kaiser’s enraged glare, and he was barely able to remember what he said to him.
“Thanks for your hard fucking work, my finest clown.”
Isagi’s never felt more fulfilled when he was walking back to the dorms, but when he laid in bed that night, he was overwhelmed with an emotion that felt disgustingly close to shame.
Because in reality, he hasn’t really surpassed Kaiser. He surpassed Kaiser in the way that he believed in Ness’s evolution, he had evolved beyond him in the aspect of trust, but football ability wise, he seemed to have yet to catch up.
He curled up into a ball underneath the sheets and bit onto his knuckles in shame. Why would he say that? God, that would haunt him for the rest of his life.
There were still several days before he was allowed to go back home for two weeks, so this meant that it was inevitable that he would see Kaiser around again, and how was he supposed to face him again when both of them know full well that Kaiser was still better than Isagi?
Of course, that’s what Isagi thought, not Kaiser. In the other room, Kaiser was spiralling. He wasn’t sure how to face Ness anymore, and to be honest, he was slightly ashamed to even look him in the face. He didn’t understand why Ness would continue to stay with him when he had already evolved beyond Kaiser could believe.
But what bothered him even more was that Isagi Yoichi had undoubtedly won this cat and dog game between the two, and it was making Kaiser go mad.
Yoichi and his adaptability, Yoichi and his kindness, Yoichi and his trust in others and goddamn it, he wanted to play football with him again, so badly it made his head feel slightly faint.
He took in a shuddering breath, removing his hands from his throat— maybe that was why he was feeling faint, actually, as he looked into the mirror, fingers caressing the faint red marks dug into his neck.
Kaiser groaned in frustration, the game today playing over and over in his head. It couldn’t be argued at all, when he tried to imagine different scenarios that the game may have played out, it always points to the same ending: its always Isagi who scores the goal.
He gripped the sink so hard that his knuckles turned white, and it took several deep breaths before he decided simply to just sleep.
Dwelling on the past was not a habit that he was about to form.
The morning after the loss, Ness still tailed behind Kaiser. They didn’t have games anymore, only practice matches with each other and continuous training, but Kaiser still wanted to do it with Isagi no matter what.
He wasn’t sure where he could get that feeling of pure freedom again, unless it was next to Isagi.
In the cafeteria, he glanced at Isagi, who was eating happily with his friends. Talking animatedly about something— goddamn it, the shame from losing was still so strong. Was he talking about winning Kaiser? Was he talking about the match?
Kaiser angrily stabbed a fork into his sausage as Ness watched in silence, not saying anything. He wasn’t sure if he knew what Kaiser was feeling right now, especially not after that game.
Kaiser took one bite before completely losing his appetite. “I’m going to go train,” he told Ness, who also hurried to get up, “no, I want to be alone.”
Ness and even some of the others in Bastard watched in concern as Kaiser damn near threw the plate into the return slot, and walked out like a thunderstorm. Worry was building in Ness’s mind; he’s never really seen Kaiser act this way. Benedict’s eyes barely left him until he went out of sight, and he turned to Ness.
“He’s not okay, is he?” He asked, chewing on his fork nervously. Ness didn’t say anything, only glancing at Isagi, who was also looking at the exit.
That sly, cunning fox who thinks that he’s beaten Kaiser only after one win— Ness could feel a rush of adrenaline through his veins, and he glared at Isagi, who didn’t seem to notice.
On the other side of the hall, Isagi was quickly finishing up his meal. He had to apologize to Kaiser, some way or the other, otherwise he’ll never be able to have a good sleep.
“You’re going to find Kaiser, aren’t you?” Kurona asked, as Isagi stood up to put his plate away. Bashfully, he nodded, as Kurona gave him a thumbs up. “Good luck with that.”
“You should’ve seen his face after you were gone!” Hioro exclaimed, making Isagi want to dive under the table, “It really was quite the sight!”
Thanks, Hiori, really comforting, thank you.
“Stop,” Isagi groaned, dragging a hand down his face. “I’ll see you guys later.”
He quickly ran to return his plates and walked swiftly to follow Kaiser. He pretended not to feel Ness’s piercing glare that was burning a hole in his back, as he hurried into the dark corridor.
He could feel his heart beating like a drum as he passed one training room after the other; Kaiser wasn’t in the gym, or not the first two pitches. Where could he have gone? Isagi was certain that he went into one of the training rooms.
To be honest, that was pure speculation on Isagi’s part. He tried to imagine how he would feel if the roles were switched, where Kaiser towered over him, hand stretching out tauntingly—Isagi would’ve gone insane and went to train immediately. He felt a pang of guilt hit him in the gut again, as his fingers went slightly numb.
Distantly, he could hear the sounds of a ball slamming into a net, over and over again. Whoever was training must’ve been in a terrible mood, and Isagi immediately clocked that it was Kaiser.
As much as Isagi hated Kaiser, he wasn’t heartless. He knew that if Kaiser had won, he wouldn’t hesitate to leave him in the dust, to step on him and crush him without a second of thought. But that’s what Isagi shamefully relished in, because he was better than Kaiser.
He finally reached the training room and peeked into it slightly. He could instantly recognise the dyed blue streaks and the vines that wrapped elegantly around his arm. Despite the hatred he usually felt for Kaiser, it was undeniable that he was a prodigy. He watched in barely concealed admiration as Kaiser swung his right food in lightning speed, sending the football smashing into the net, seemingly almost smoking from the pure power put into the shot.
His eyes trailed from the hair that was sticking to Kaiser’s forehead to the hands that were gripping his thighs as he bent over, panting from exhaustion. He picked at the door frame, unsure how to approach as he swallowed nervously.
“Are you going to keep watching or are you going to come in?” Kaiser asked, shooting a deathly glare at Isagi, who was poorly concealed by the wall. “Well?”
Isagi let out a nervous cough, as he walked onto the pitch. The scratch of the grass against his shoes felt nostalgic, making his feet tingle slightly. “Uh, how are you?”
There was a moment where none of them said anything, as Kaiser stared at Isagi, eyes wide in confusion.
“Is that all you have to say?” Kaiser asked incredulously, as he stood up straight. “Don’t waste my time, Yoichi, spit it out.”
Isagi backed away slightly as Kaiser approached him, but his feet felt ever so heavy, making it difficult to do so. He stuttered anxiously, as Kaiser towered over him, glaring at his apprehensive face.
“No, uh, I wanted to say sorry for what I said yesterday,” Isagi muttered, refusing to look Kaiser in the eye. He could feel Kaiser’s stare running across his face, as he felt his cheeks go slightly warm. Goddamn it, has this guy ever heard about personal space?
“What, after the match?” Kaiser sneered, “Thanks for being my clown?”
Isagi closed his eyes from embarrassment, taking another small step back. “Um, yeah. That felt a little unnecessary.”
There was a short moment of silence, and Isagi opened his eyes to finally look at Kaiser. Rather than becoming more relaxed, his tired face had contorted into one of unbridled rage, a vein popping on the side of his temple. Isagi felt a chill run down his spine as Kaiser grabbed the collar of his shirt.
He yanked him so violently, that there was an audible tear from the fabric. Isagi watched, eyes wide, mouth slightly agape, as Kaiser grit his teeth angrily, hissing slightly from frustration.
“I don’t fucking need your pity, Yoichi,” Kaiser breathed, looking down at the panicked man, “Who do you think you are? Don’t be so full of yourself.”
Isagi felt something jump in his temple too. “Hah? I’m not pitying you, I’m being nice to you, jackass!” He grabbed the wrist that was holding him up, trying to remove his grip, but it was too strong.
“I lost to you yesterday, that’s a fact,” Kaiser scowled, a wrinkle forming between his eyebrows, “Stop acting all high and mighty, Isagi.”
Isagi's breath quickened as he grabbed Kaiser's wrists with both of his hands, trying to get rid of his grip to no avail.
“I’m not being high and mighty, emperor,” Isagi growled, pressing slightly closer. He tried to ignore Kaiser’s breath on his skin. “I’m here because I was kind enough to check on you after that loss!”
Kaiser wanted to fling him into the floor and strangle Isagi. How dare he rub it in even more and disguise it as kindness? Kaiser’s breath quickened from fury as he gripped his shirt even tighter. Isagi looked up at him with animosity in his eyes, irises blown wide. Kaiser preferred him this way more: ferocious, but beneath him.
Isagi let out a yelp as Kaiser suddenly dove into the crook of his neck, biting down harshly. Isagi let out a pained shout as his teeth dug into his flesh, almost as if to stake a claim. Isagi tried to push him away, but Kaiser had an unfair physical advantage, as they fell to the floor with the grunt, Isagi groaned from the throbbing pain.
“Kaiser, you piece of shit!” Isagi tried to kick Kaiser off, trying to ignore the burning heat in his face, “Get off me!”
Kaiser was unwavering, continuing his assault down Isagi’s neck, pulling his jersey down to reveal his collar bones, where he bit down again, earning him another yelp from Isagi.
“What the fuck?” Isagi choked, as Kaiser finally let go. “What the hell’s wrong with you?”
Kaiser looked down at Isagi, who was panting slightly, teeth clenched together, a gorgeous flush painted across his face, a hand held in the air in resistance. There were many methods to devour someone that Isagi has yet to discover. Kaiser stared at a flustered Isagi, who seemed to have been stunned into silence.
“I’ll crush you next time, Yoichi,” Kaiser swiped a thumb across the bite mark on Isagi’s collarbone, as he moved away from Isagi’s torso, “We’re even for now.”
Isagi clutched his neck, eyes still wide from the initial shock as Kaiser walked away, not sparing a single glance backwards. He was so weird, what was wrong with him? After the adrenaline eased out of his veins, he ran to the bathroom to observe the marks, and fuck, they were so visible, from the side of his neck and down to his collarbones, red marks that stood starkly against his skin.
Isagi felt rage run through his veins as he hurried back to his dorm, trying to cover the marks with his right hand but that just wasn’t possible. He felt an outraged heat rise into his face and neck, as he opened the dorm room ferociously, scaring Hiori who flinched at the noise.
“Isagi—” Hiori started, but he stopped when he saw Isagi’s furious face. It was an expression that he would usually only see on the field.
Isagi didn’t say anything for the rest of the day, choosing to resign himself into peaceful sleep.