Chapter Text
Ivan liked playing football.
He loved the adrenaline, the focus you needed to score, the feeling of running across the field with the ball in your hands. He loved making his team win and having his teammates congratulate him with hugs and cheers of happiness, even though he didn’t like physical contact.
Ivan started playing because of his father, Unsha, a rich and successful businessman. He always demanded the best from Ivan: the bare minimum was perfection. With his sister, Sua, he was more lenient because she “didn’t have all the responsibilities of an heir” (his father’s words).
Ivan started playing out of obligation, but later he began to truly enjoy his time on the field. It was one of the only moments when he felt truly alive, a moment when he didn’t have to pretend to be perfect all the time, even though his father demanded perfection on sports as well.
Ivan felt free on that field. Free from responsibilities, obligations, and duties. He didn’t have to worry about his appearance, his grades or his family. His only concern was whether he would manage to score a touchdown, and that was freeing.
Ivan was leaving the field after an intense practice. His skin was red and covered in sweat, dripping down his forehead in drops. His hair was messy and damp. He could feel his muscles tightening with every step he took. He could feel his heart pounding, almost bursting out of his chest. Ivan felt amazing — if not for the fact that his muscles burned incessantly.
Ivan passed by a group of girls, and they paused their conversation. The black-haired boy gave them a quick hey before continuing on his way. He could hear the girls whispering and giggling among themselves. For some reason, it seemed like the girls at his school found someone in Ivan’s current state attractive. The black-haired boy didn’t understand why. It was disgusting: someone all sweaty and smelly after running a few laps. Gross, Ivan thought.
He decided to sit on a bench to rest a little before heading straight to the communal showers. Ivan felt uneasy seeing so many sweaty bodies in such a small space. It was claustrophobic.
A breeze passed by, and Ivan visibly shivered. Yeah, fuck the rest. He needed to take a shower urgently. Ivan enjoyed many things about playing football, but he definitely didn’t like his post-game state.
Just as he was about to stand up, Ivan was interrupted by a girl from that same group as before, with flushed cheeks and one finger twirling a strand of her long blonde hair. Ivan vaguely remembered seeing her talking to the cheerleading team a few days ago, but he didn’t remember her name.
“Hi Ivan, can I talk to you?” the girl asked, with a sweet and soft voice. Too sweet. Ivan didn’t want to assume anything, but he already had an idea of what this conversation was about.
“Oh, sure. You can sit next to me,” the black-haired boy said politely. If this was what he thought it was, he would have to be more careful with his words.
The blonde sat beside him and began smoothing a strand of her hair between two fingers. Ivan waited patiently for the girl to decide what to say. She cleared her throat before starting, adjusting herself on the bench so that they were facing each other.
“Well… I was wondering if, someday, you’d like to get a coffee with me? I really like you, Ivan. And I’d like to have a chance with someone as handsome as you.”
He was right. It was exactly what he was thinking: just another superficial girl falling in love only with Ivan’s appearance, and not his personality. Well, Ivan wouldn’t be able to accept the confession anyway. He didn’t like girls that way.
“Ah, I see. The thing is, I’m not interested in a relationship right now, you know? I want to focus more on my studies. Graduation is coming up, you know how it is. But you’re a really nice girl, I’m sure you’ll find someone who likes you back,” the black-haired boy said in a friendly tone.
A lie. He was focusing on his studies, of course, but that wasn’t why he didn’t want a relationship. Ivan could easily balance his personal life with his studies. If only the person he actually liked would confess…
The girl seemed a bit hurt, but she nodded and lowered her gaze.
“I understand. Thank you for your time, Ivan,” she said quietly, almost whispering. The blonde stood up from the bench and slowly walked back to her group of friends.
Ivan noticed the looks they gave him. Some were angry, others confused, but he didn’t want to think about it right now. Ivan needed a shower.
He stood up and walked with quick, long strides to the communal showers. When Ivan arrived, there weren’t many boys left except for Marty and Acorn. Both were on his football team and they were changing. It seemed they had just finished showering. The black-haired boy exchanged quick greetings with his teammates and went straight into the nearest shower.
At least Ivan wouldn’t have to deal with the strong smell of his teammates’ sweat and could take a quick shower in peace.
— ☆ —
After his shower, Ivan got dressed, grabbed his backpack, left the communal showers, and walked to the place where he had arranged to meet his best friend, Mizi.
The walk was calm. The wind played with Ivan’s damp hair, revealing its natural waves. The black-haired boy’s footsteps made sounds as they hit the stones on the ground.
Ivan liked being alone. It was as if he could rest and recharge his battery for the next social interaction. So he made sure not to rush to meet Mizi. Besides football, this was one of the things that made him forget his obligations, at least for a minute.
After a few brief minutes of silence and calm walking, he saw Mizi’s long pink hair.
From afar, Ivan couldn’t describe her outfit very well, but she seemed to be wearing a pink dress with white floral patterns, white heels, some bracelets, a necklace, and her hoop earrings. Her hair was down. It was rare to see Mizi with her hair down — she usually complained about the itchiness it caused on her neck. She looks pretty with her hair down, Ivan thought.
The black-haired boy waved at Mizi, who was using her phone with one hand and holding her bag with the other. She seemed very distracted by her phone, but her face showed obvious discomfort.
Ivan could read the girl like a book after so many years of friendship, and the way her brow was furrowed and her shoulders were tense indicated that she wasn’t very happy.
The black-haired boy chose to call her name. Now that he was closer, she would certainly hear him. And indeed, she quickly looked up and gave a small smile to Ivan.
The athlete ran up to Mizi and stopped in front of her. Up close, the signs of frustration were more obvious: she tapped her heel on the ground repeatedly, making clicking sounds against the concrete. He also noticed that the hand holding her bag was clenched tightly into a fist, to the point her knukcles whitened. Something was definitely wrong.
“Hey Mizi, are you okay? You seem a bit odd today,” Ivan said, concern evident in his voice.
Mizi looked up again, making eye contact with Ivan. “It’s fine, it’s nothing,” she said with a forced smile.
If she didn’t want to say what was happening, Ivan wouldn’t force her. “That’s good. Shall we go, then?” he said as gently as possible. Mizi simply nodded, and they headed toward Ivan’s house.
She stayed there a few days a week, and Unsha loved Mizi, saying she would make a great wife and other disgusting things like that. Ivan took advantage of the fact that his father liked the pink-haired girl to bring her over more often. She was a very pleasant company. He just couldn’t put his finger on why Sua usually came out of her room more when Mizi was at his house—
“Okay, fine, I’ll say it! I’m not going to keep this stuck in my throat!” Mizi exclaimed, exasperated after a few minutes of silent walking. Ivan looked at her abruptly, surprised by the sudden outburst, but let her continue.
“It’s just… well, you know that guy I told you about who tried to flirt with me at that karaoke place?”
Ivan sighed. He remembered that dude.
He had made Mizi extremely uncomfortable with his comments, and the black-haired boy reported him to a security guard at the entrance. The harasser received a warning to stop or he would be kicked out. He stopped, but kept staring at Mizi like a creep the whole night, to the point that she asked to leave. Ivan kicked a loose stone on the sidewalk at the memory.
“Yes, I remember him. What happened?” Ivan asked quietly, almost as if he were afraid of the answer.
Mizi bit her lip nervously. “Somehow, he found my social media profile and now he won’t stop telling me to be with him, that I’m gorgeous, and it’s making me feel kinda awful,” she said, the last part almost a whisper, her voice already trembling.
Ivan sighed. Of course that idiot had to find a way to be an asshole again.
“Block him. I don’t know if that’ll stop him,” probably not, Ivan thought, “but it’s better than nothing. Try reporting his account too.”
Mizi exhaled through her mouth to calm down. “I’ll do that. Thanks, Ivan.” She turned her head toward him and gave him a shaky smile — this time genuine. Ivan smiled back.
Just as their conversation ended, they arrived in front of Ivan’s house — if it could even be called that. It looked more like a mansion. Mizi sighed, relieved to have finally arrived. Despite Ivan’s awful father’s comments, the pink-haired girl felt safe here.
Ivan took his keys from his backpack and unlocked the gate. Mizi went in, first taking off her shoes and placing them at the corner of the entrance. Ivan did the same, placing his shoes next to Mizi’s high heels.
They went upstairs straight to the bedroom in silence, without even stopping by the kitchen. They needed some peace.
Ivan opened his bedroom door for Mizi. Always a gentleman, she thought with amusement. Ivan’s room was cool and smelled nice. He closed the door behind them while Mizi made herself comfortable on his soft bed.
The black-haired boy grabbed his desk chair and positioned it in front of where Mizi was sitting. Ivan groaned in frustration, rubbing his hands over his face. “You know, almost the same thing happened to me earlier today.” he said, slightly muffled by his hands but still understandable.
She nodded, then remembered Ivan wasn’t looking. “Really?” she murmured, looking down at her lap.
“Yes, a girl confessed her feelings to me before I got to the showers,” he grumbled, crossing his arms.
Mizi sighed. “Man, I can’t take these people chasing us anymore. I’ve rejected so many confessions and guys still don’t stop! If only they were girls, like in your case…”
Ivan uncrossed his arms, placing them on the armrests, looking directly at Mizi. “And it must be worse for you with guys, right? With girls, I just say something friendly and refuse, but guys are way more persistent with you.”
“Yes! And I say things like ‘no thanks, I’m not interested,’ and they keep going! Do they think I’m playing hard to get? I desperately want to avoid these situations, but I don’t want to come out yet!” the pink-haired girl said, wide-eyed.
Mizi was a lesbian, but only Ivan knew that—just as Ivan was gay and only Mizi knew. They trusted each other with that kind of secret.
Ivan widened his eyes too. “And girls are so much better at accepting it quietly that I feel bad, but I can’t just accept one of them and lie to myself!”
Mizi nodded, showing she understood. The two sighed before saying at the same time, “Wanna switch?”
They stared at each other for a few long seconds before falling back into their seats. Mizi lay gracefully on the bed with her hands over her face, her pink hair spread out.
Ivan tried to lean back too but hit his head on his desk behind him and sat up, rubbing his hands over his head in pain.
Mizi didn’t seem to notice, but murmured softly, “If that were possible, definitely.”
She removed her hands and whispered, “Honestly, I’d rather date even you than one of those unbearable guys.”
Ivan nodded in agreement.
They stayed in silence for a few more minutes. Ivan was thinking about Till and how beautiful he looked today. The thought made him smile slightly. The black-haired boy had always been in love with Till since they were children. But unfortunately, Ivan’s feelings were not returned: Till liked Mizi.
He always denied it when asked, but it was obvious he was lying just by the way his eyes widened and his cheeks and ears turned a lovely shade of pink. But Ivan knew Till had no chance with the pink-haired girl.
Mizi, besides being a lesbian, had confessed that she had a crush on Ivan’s sister, Sua. And her feelings were probably reciprocated, judging by the way Sua always looked at Mizi with that lovestruck expression. If only Till looked at Ivan like that—
“I have an idea!” Mizi shouted, sitting up abruptly and snapping Ivan out of his thoughts. Her eyes gleamed mischievously, her lips forming a wide smile.
Ivan sighed. Mizi, despite being very smart, didn’t usually have very good ideas.
“What?” he asked in a tired tone.
“Look, before I say anything, just hear me out, okay?” Ivan nodded.
“Well, I was thinking… we both suffer from this, right? People we’re not interested in constantly trying to get with us.”
Ivan didn’t even want to imagine where this was going, but he didn’t interrupt.
“And we’re also not ready to come out yet, right?” Ivan nodded again. “So what would you think... if we pretended to be a couple?!”
Mizi looked so happy that Ivan almost considered it. Almost. This was the most insane idea he had heard in months.
“Mizi, I love you, but what the fuck?” Ivan said, exasperated. “That would never work! Have you lost your mind?!”
The pink-haired girl wasn’t discouraged at all. “Relax, Ivan! Like I said, we’d just be pretending. Half the school already thinks we’re dating anyway, we wouldn’t even have to change our behavior that much.”
Ivan stared at her, eyes wide and mouth forming a perfect “o,” while Mizi kept her mischievous smile and continued explaining.
“Look, this would probably get a lot of people off our backs. A lot of people want to be your friend, but some are a bit afraid of you, you know?”
That was true. Ivan knew his athletic build and striking features could be intimidating to some people, especially guys smaller than him. He closed his mouth with a click but kept his intense gaze on Mizi.
“And even though a lot of girls like you, if we were dating they’d respect you more. I have a really good reputation, and a lot of the girls who like you are my friends, so they wouldn’t flirt with a friend’s boyfriend, right?”
Ivan was probably going crazy. Why was Mizi’s idea starting to make sense?
“And besides the peace of not having girls drooling over you everywhere you go, it would also make your father stop bothering you,” she added, with a fucking smirk on her face.
That was the final push to convince Ivan. Okay, call him crazy, but it would actually really benefit both of them. And the idea of no longer hearing his father say at every dinner that he needed a wife to take over the family business was far too tempting.
“So, Ivan, what do you say?” Mizi asked playfully, extending her hand for him to shake. She knew she had convinced him.
The black-haired boy sighed before extending his hand and clasping hers. “If this causes me problems, it’s entirely your fault.”
She squeezed his hand excitedly. “I promise you won’t regret it, Ivan!”
— ☆ —
Ivan regretted it. A lot.
He was currently in his room with Mizi, discussing things about their fake relationship. Both of them were sitting cross-legged on the black-haired boy’s bed. The pink-haired girl was browsing on her laptop while Ivan prepared little speeches for the two of them to post on social media.
They had decided to officially announce that they were a couple on the internet. Mizi was showing him options for how they could reveal their relationship on social media. Ivan wanted to choke and die.
“Look at this inspiration photo, Ivan! I think it's cute, and it’s not vulgar at all,” Mizi said, turning the laptop toward the boy in front of her.
He grimaced and shook his head before returning his focus to the papers on his lap.
The pink-haired girl sighed. Ivan was making this harder than it needed to be. Obviously, it wasn’t what Mizi wanted either, but she preferred a fake relationship with her best friend over persistent guys blatantly flirting with her. Mizi would never say that to Ivan because it would inflate his already inflated ego, but he was one of the most respectful guys she had ever met.
“Ivan, I know you don’t want this. And I don’t either! But think of it as being for the greater good, okay? A little enthusiasm would help,” she said, gently nudging her knee against his.
Ivan glanced up, taking his focus away from the papers. He placed the tips of his fingers against his forehead, his elbow resting on top of his knee and he sighed.
“Sorry, Mizi. I know I’m being a jerk, but it’s hard for me, you know?”
The pink-haired girl nodded, maintaining eye contact with Ivan and giving him a gentle smile. She understood; he didn’t need to explain.
“Look, think about all the girls you’ve rejected and the depressed looks they gave you. Do you want that to happen again?”
Ivan muttered a quiet “no,” staring at a point somewhere above Mizi’s shoulder.
“Exactly! I know it’s not the most ideal solution, but it’s the one most likely to work. So let’s at least try to make our relationship look believable, okay?” Mizi said as understandingly as possible.
Ivan gave her a small but genuine smile before saying, “Well then, show me that couple photo we could copy.”
Mizi let out a little squeal and returned to an inspiration photo she really liked. It was a photo of a couple’s interwined hands: the man’s hand beneath the woman’s, with his thumb lightly resting on top of her index finger. Mizi noticed rings on both of the couple’s ring fingers. It was a cute photo that wouldn’t require much effort.
“Hm… I like this photo. Would we have to wear rings too?” Ivan asked.
Mizi thought for a moment before answering.
“Only if you want to. It might make our relationship look more real, but rings like that are expensive.”
“I don’t have a problem with money. Do you want to wear rings?”
The pink-haired girl gave a small smile and said slowly, “Well, I love rings! Even if this one has a different meaning, it’s still a ring, and I’d be happy to wear one.”
Ivan nodded.
“Alright… I wouldn’t mind rings as well. Would they be silver or gold?”
“I like silver more, but it also depends on the ring,” Mizi replied, placing a finger on her chin thoughtfully.
The black-haired boy hummed softly and searched jewelry websites. Mizi shifted to sit beside him so they could choose their rings together.
The first site they opened only had a few basic bands and Mizi didn’t want anything basic.
The second site belonged to a well-known jewelry store near their town. After scrolling for a while, they found the perfect pair of rings for them.
Ivan immediately fell in love with a simple yet elegant band. It was a perfect ring. The central part had a matte finish on the side edges, while the middle had a polished, shiny finish. Right in the center of the band was a small gemstone in the color of your choice.
Ivan clicked on the turquoise option and made up his mind.
“I like this ring, Mizi. What do you think?”
“I think you have good taste! It’s a beautiful ring,” Mizi said, holding back a laugh.
Maybe Ivan himself hadn’t realized that the color he chose for the central gem was exactly the same color as Till’s eyes. He really was in love.
But Mizi’s laughter died instantly when she saw her perfect ring. It looked like it had been made for her finger.
It was delicate and elegant, with a thin, smooth band and a polished silver finish. In the center was a round gemstone in the color of your choice, held by small metal prongs. On each side of the central stone, the band narrowed slightly and featured an elongated detail shaped like a small flower petal, where tiny sparkling stones were embedded, enhancing the main gem even more.
Mizi clicked on the violet option for the central gem, and her heart nearly jumped out of her chest. It was beautiful, exactly what she hadn’t even known she had imagined.
“Ivan, I like this one. Is it okay if the crystals in our rings are different?” she asked, uncertainty evident in her eyes.
Ivan shook his head.
“Of course not. That ring is really beautiful,” the black-haired boy said with a gentle smile on his face.
“Good! I think you should buy them then. But don’t worry, I’ll pay for my ring, okay?” Mizi said calmly.
“Of course not, Mizi. I’ll pay. After all, I have to be a real man with my girlfriend, right?” he said, winking repeatedly at her.
The pink-haired girl burst out laughing.
“Alright then, gentleman. Pay for our promise rings as the perfect boyfriend you are,” Mizi said, bowing exaggeratedly and gesturing toward the computer screen.
Ivan laughed and shook his head, moving the cursor to the button with the shopping cart icon.
Tomorrow, he would go out to buy the rings at the physical store. Now all that was left was to wait for the next day so they could officially announce their relationship and finally have some peace.