『𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐜 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐝』𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘢𝘨𝘪 𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘵𝘴

「𝐈𝐌𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐒𝐈𝐁𝐋𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐈𝐆𝐍𝐎𝐑𝐄₁

Rin opens his mouth to retort, when Isagi dramatically sighs, pulling his jersey up to wipe his face, exposing everyone in the vicinity to an eyeful of Isagi Yoichi. Rin swallowed.

"Your boyfriend lets you talk like that?" he eventually asks.

"Not my boyfriend," Nagi shrugged. "So not an issue. Yet, at least. Dinner?"

What the fuck were they even talking about?

Rin doesn't give him a response, but stands up anyway.

———

He doesn't return to any of the fields after dinner. There are only three days until the U-20 match. His endurance is excellent, his shots are looking as flawless as ever. Rin isn't expecting much change to come out of the next three days of practice. He's been at Blue Lock long enough to know that practice isn't where players evolve. The games are.

When Itoshi Rin evolves, though, he wants to be ready.

He lays down on one of the weightlifting benches, positioning himself under the bar and picking it up.

The door opens intermittently, sensors going off with each player that passes by on their way to their dorms, but Rin doesn't pay them much mind. It's that fact that startles him when he notices Isagi Yoichi leaning against the doorframe, keeping it open. Rin shoots him a glare, not bothering to interrupt his reps, and Isagi pushes off the door and steps into the room.

"You shouldn't be pushing yourself without a spotter."

Rin snorts as Isagi positions himself by Rin's head, looking at him upside down. He sets the weight back on the bar before speaking. "I bench more than you. You'd be useless."

Isagi shrugs. "Water."

Once again, Isagi holds his own water bottle, holding the other out for Rin to take. He does. He sits up, regarding Isagi, but he takes it nonetheless. Again.

He doesn't want to think about why Isagi brought two water bottles in the first place.

Rin takes a few sips before setting it down and sliding underneath the weight once again. He doesn't pick it up, resting for a minute. Isagi rests his forearms on the bar, looking down at him and practically begging him to pick a fight about how he's draping himself all over Rin's gym equipment, but he doesn't. The room feels hotter, for whatever reason, and he runs a hand through his hair, grimacing at the sweat.

Isagi's eyes trace the motion. "Your hair's getting long."

"Yeah." Rin's noticed it as well. "Need to cut it soon," he adds curtly.

Isagi shrugs, drumming his fingers against the bar. "You don't need to. It looks good. Just gel it back or something for games."

Rin scoffs. "I'd look like fucking Sae."

"You two don't look all that similar. It's really just the eyes."

"Thank god for that."

Isagi huffs out a laugh, and Rin looks away, biting the inside of his cheek. "You could always just wait until it's long enough to tie back. That's what Bachira's doing."

The mention of the dribbler makes Rin frown. "Bachira's been teaching you to dribble for the past four days and you still can't pick it up. Fucking embarassing."

Isagi's mouth quirks into a grin. "You've been watching what I've been doing for the past--" he cuts himself off, frowning. "Wait. It's not that bad."

Familiar territory. Unconsciously, Rin lets out an exhale. "It's fucking atrocious is what it is. One-on-one training with the best dribbler in Blue Lock and you can't pick up shit from him. You'd expect at least something to rub off."