[Name] expected a calm and slow weekend considering all that's happened so far during the previous week. He'd been waiting for his well-deserved rest yet it seemed like the world had other plans for him seeing as how first thing in the morning, he'd been dragged around by his mother doing random errands.
They've gone through plenty of different stores, the first half for settling a few bills before grabbing some essential items while the latter part being used for some mother-son quality bonding. They ended up discovering their fair share of underground cafes and just general hangout spots, allowing [Name] to try as many pastries as he wished.
By the end of their expenditure, he was both fairly stuffed and tired. As they walked down the street hand in hand, he expected them to finally head back since it was pretty late in the afternoon, only to realize that they were nowhere near the familiar road near their home.
"Where are we going?" He asked curiously, his eyes blinking up at his mom in confusion as he felt himself wake up slightly at the realization. "Are we not going home yet?"
Fumiko simply gave a quiet giggle as she ruffled [Name]'s hair. "It must've slipped my mind but Hana invited us over to her house. It seems like she had news she wanted to share and celebrate." She informed with a small wink.
"Some news?" [Name] mumbled in surprise as he looked away from his mom thoughtfully. Although he wanted to be in the comforts of his home, he couldn't help but feel a bit intrigued at the thought of being invited over to the Itoshi's house.
This would be his first time over to a friend's house. The thought of that couldn't help but make him feel a bit giddy inside.
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[Name] spent the rest of the walk on autopilot and before he knew it, they were already stopping in front of a house. His eyes couldn't help but widen at the massive structure as he began to feel the giddiness build up within him once more.
He watched his mom click the doorbell on the front gate, eliciting a decently loud noise. In an instant, the door to the main house slammed open and he saw Hana rushing out to greet them with an excited smile on her face.
"You're here!" She squealed as she began ushering them inside after unlocking the front gate. One of her arms immediately wrapped around his mom's as they entered the luxurious-looking house.
"Sae! Get down here!" Hana called out as they walked further into the living room. As soon as she called, a familiar redhead began to step out of the room on top of the staircase that led to the second story of the house.
As he walked down, [Name] couldn't help but notice the small tuft of black hair that peeked out from Sae's side. The moment they reached the bottom of the stairs, the small figure that held onto his friend's side suddenly rushed over to where Hana was.
He could faintly hear his mom letting out a surprised yelp as his eyes followed the figure that now clung to the Itoshi lady. Now that he had a clear view, he couldn't help but coo at the cute-looking kid who had his face buried shyly on his mother's side.
"Ah, right, meet my little Rin. He's surprisingly shy when it comes to strangers." Hana laughed fondly as she settled a gentle hand on top of the kid's hair. At hearing his mother speak, Rin looked up, giving [Name] a peek of the trademark lashes the Itoshis held along with a similar teal color that Sae also had.
"Fumiko and I might end up chatting for a while so you kids are free to roam around as you wish." Suddenly, Hana's eyes turned to give Sae a stern look. "Bring your little brother along with you. I trust that you'll keep both [Name] and Rin safe, alright?"
"Yeah, yeah," Sae grumbled as he gave [Name] a nod the moment he noticed the other looking at him. He then outstretched a hand over to his little brother causing the youngest kid in the household to immediately run over to where he was. "Let's go," Sae called as his gaze once again turned to his friend.
[Name] gave one final look towards his mother, who only gave him an approving nod, before running off to Sae's direction. "Are we going somewhere?" He asked curiously.
"Hm," Sae hummed in thought before an idea popped into his mind. "Want some popsicles?"
"Popsicles?" A quiet voice chimed in causing both Sae and [Name] to turn towards the tiny Rin staring up at them with sparkles in his eyes.
[Name] couldn't help but internally cry at the cuteness before turning to Sae and nodding profusely, agreeing to the suggestion of popsicles if only just to cater to the young kid. He thinks he gets what his seniors feel now whenever they interact with him.
"Popsicles it is then." Sae let out a huff that sort of resembled a laugh as they all set off to walk out from the house's back exit. He's seen countless adults crumble from Rin's cuteness, he didn't expect the same to happen to [Name] though.
Nevertheless, it wasn't something he dwelled too long over as he watched his now closest friend interact with his little brother animatedly. Two of the most precious people he held dear in his heart were getting along, a soft smile couldn't help but grace his lips at the sight as he made sure the duo didn't accidentally bump into anything while conversing.
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During the duration of their walk, Rin ended up growing more comfortable as he now walked alongside [Name] rather than clinging onto Sae. The redhead was a bit surprised at how easily his brother warmed up to [Name] but as he watched the person in question smile at something Rin said, he couldn't help but understand.
When he first heard about his mom talking about meeting an old friend and how she also had a son in his age group, he couldn't hold back the scoff he let out. As popular as he was when it came to his skills regarding football, he didn't hold anyone close enough to call them his friend.
Ever since his mom found out about his 'friendless' status, she's been trying to set him up on playdates so he could at least form a connection with someone and possibly end up with a long-term companion. He never bothered to humor her though as he disregarded the kid of each adult she had met up with.
He knew she meant well but he couldn't help but feel a bit frustrated at the same time. It was normal for a mother to worry but she couldn't seem to understand that it was out of his violation as to why he was alone. He wasn't being excluded, he just didn't want to bother with snotty kids with lukewarm personalities.
He liked being alone. He was fine with just his parents and Rin, he didn't need anyone else.
Everything seemed to change though when he met a peculiar kid that seemed to hold the stars in his eyes. At first, he wanted to dismiss him like he always did when it comes to others but something about the aura he radiated made him a bit interested.
The kid wasn't anything special to glance at twice yet as they sat beside each other on the swing, he couldn't help but notice how easy it was to just exist beside him. The unnerve he usually felt when with someone the same age wasn't there, instead he felt surprisingly comfortable in the presence of this stranger.
For once in his life, hanging out with someone didn't feel like a chore.
It didn't take long for [Name] to worm himself inside his heart considering how frequently they ended up meeting due to their mothers. He didn't know exactly when it happened but he just found himself being reminded of the other randomly, even if there was no prior mention about him.
His opinions about having to deal with friends remained the same, his apathetic attitude to his classmates and teammates not once changing, but he supposed it was alright to have one exception to that rule.
"This place is so pretty." [Name] couldn't help but breathe out in amazement as he marveled at the view of the ocean beside the path they were walking on. It was the perfect spot for watching the sunset.
"Yeah, it is." Sae agreed as they walked at a slow pace, enjoying the moment. The sound of waves crashing was faint yet it was still there, just barely loud enough to serve as a good white noise when walking. "Rin and I usually take this path when walking back home from school."
"I'm a bit jealous you get to see such a scene every day." [Name] sighed dramatically before feeling his hand be tugged on by Rin. He looked down at the boy who barely reached his chest before noticing that he was pointing at something.
"Popsicle!" Rin yelled as he began to pull a lot harder now. "Popsicle!"
[Name] turned to the direction he was pointing at only to realize that it was a convenience store. "I'm assuming you guys also go to this place a lot?"
"Yeah," Sae nodded as he stopped for a moment, waiting until [Name] and Rin reached his side before grabbing his brother's hand. Rin seemed to start jumping in response now that he couldn't point causing [Name] to stumble a bit at the force.
Sae was unbothered by it though, having been used to Rin's random bouts of hyperactivity. "it's a nice treat after a long day of practice."
"That's nice, my teacher says eating too many sweets and consuming too many cold things is bad for my voice." [Name] hummed as they eventually reached the store's entrance. As soon as they entered, Rin was quick to run over to the freezer that held what he assumed were the popsicles.
"Brother, blueberry!" Rin turned to look at his brother expectantly as he pointed at the freezer which made him look even smaller in comparison. "Hurry!"
"Oh my, I didn't expect to see you lot here on the weekend." The kind-looking elderly lady who stood by the register couldn't help let out a warm laugh at the nice surprise. As she looked at the brothers, her eyes suddenly turned to the unfamiliar face within the trio. "And who is this young lad?"
"This is [Name]," Sae spoke casually as he walked further into the store, approaching Rin's direction. "We're stopping by for popsicles like usual."
"Oh please, go ahead and pick what you want." This nice lacy cooed as she turned back to what she was doing behind the register. "I'll be here once you're done."
[Name] followed close behind Sae as he watched the redhead open the freezer that held the popsicles. He immediately pulled out a blue-packaged one before handing it off to Rin who bounced happily in response.
"What do you want?" Sae asked as he turned to look at him questioningly. "Come here and take your pick."
[Name] hesitantly walked closer to the freezer and peered over the selection within it. There were tons of interesting flavors and designs but there was only one thing that caught his interest.
"Woah, they have this here?" [Name]'s grabbed the last twin popsicles in the freezer before looking at Sae in amazement. "I've only seen this in movies!"
"You've never had one of those before?" Sae couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the implication. Twin popsicles weren't an uncommon thing in local convenience stores.
"I don't usually go with my mom when she's shopping. She usually just gets me a treat on the way back." [Name] explained before realizing something. "Oh, I didn't bring any money..."
He was about to put the popsicle back dejectedly only for Sae to suddenly close the freezer's door. "I invited you out so it's my treat." He mumbled before ushering him and Rin over to the counter.
"Are you sure? You don't have to pay for this, I can always just get one next time." He frowned with a worried look on his face.
"It's fine," Sae huffed before noticing the look on [Name]'s face. "If you really feel bad about it then just share the popsicle with me, that way it's fair."
[Name] thought it over before nodding eventually. "Alright, but I'll make sure to pay for the popsicles next time!" He declared with puffed out cheeks.
"Yes, yes," Sae couldn't help but roll his eyes fondly as he grabbed the popsicles and places them on the counter. "Just these, please." He said before rummaging in his pocket for the money he made sure to pack before leaving.
"Alright," The kind lady nodded as she quickly scanned the items.
"Here," Sae was about to offer the money only to get rejected as the old lady pushed his hand back gently.
"It's alright, dear. It's on the house. " She smiled as she handed back the popsicles. "Not many people drop by in this little store of mine anymore so this is a small price to pay given how happy it makes my old heart to always see you kids visiting here."
"Oh..." Sae's eyes were wide as he hesitantly took the popsicles. He didn't know how to respond to such a kind gesture so he was left gaping for a hot second.
Thankfully, [Name] was quick to react as he discreetly pushed Sae's back into a bow before doing so himself. "Thank you very much, Miss." [Name] smiled gratefully.
"Thank you." Sae gave his own word of appreciation as well after he got over the initial shock.
Rin stared at them in wonder before following their actions and bowing as well.
"It's nothing much," The old lady smiled warmly before waving them off. "Now run along, it's getting quite late. Take care on the way home."
[Name] gave a small wave back as they all exited the convenience store.
"I can't believe we got free popsicles." [Name] cheered in amazement as they all started the walk back to the Itoshi household.
"Mhm," Sae nodded as he began ripping the packaging to twin popsicle. He was walking beside [Name] this time while Rin walked a step ahead of them while sucking happily on his already opened blueberry ice cream.
Once it was off, he pocketed the plastic as he held one of the sticks before offering [Name] to grab the other half, as if insinuating that they pull it apart together.
[Name] couldn't help but smile eagerly once he got the hint, quickly grabbing the stick in response. They gave a slow countdown before pulling it apart at the same time.
The popsicle seemed to snap easily but instead of a clean cut right in the middle, Sae seemed to get the better half as his popsicle ended up taking half of [Name]'s side with it.
Instead of feeling upset, [Name] simply laughed in delight. "It seems like you got the lucky side~" He smiled.
Despite getting the better deal, Sae couldn't help but frown as he looked at the halved popsicle that was left in [Name]'s hand. Wordlessly, he grabbed that popsicle and switched it with his own.
"Eh? You didn't have to do that." [Name] mumbled with wide eyes.
"It's fine, I always get a popsicle after school anyways." Sae muttered back as he looked away in the opposite direction. "Since you need to take care of your voice, I doubt you'll get to eat much of these so consider this a cheat day."
[Name]'s eyes widened slightly at the reason before he smiled to himself, his face flushing lightly at the nice gesture. "Thank you." He spoke sincerely before enjoying the popsicle he held.
Over to Sae, the redhead could be seen with his own flush but he wanted to remain cool and nonchalant, hence why he had turned his face away to hide his expression.
All three of them walked in silence before Sae decided to start a new conversation. "I received a letter yesterday."
"Hm?" [Name] could only hum seeing as how his mouth was currently occupied by the cold treat.
"It was an invitation to join this exclusive youth camp for football."
[Name]'s eyes seemed to widen at the good news as he popped the popsicle out of his mouth. "That's great news!"
"Yeah, it is," Sae nodded but he didn't look as happy as [Name] assumed he'd be from receiving the once in a lifetime opportunity.
"What's the problem?" [Name] asked with a frown.
"It's in Spain, so that means I'll be overseas." Sae sighed as he leaned his head back to look at the sky. It was starting to turn dark as dusk seemed to bathe them all in a deep orange hue. "I don't know how long I'll be there either. It could be years for all I know."
[Name] couldn't help but frown as well at the information. He supposed he could understand Sae's hesitance because on one hand, he was going to be moving to a different country with no one he knew of. On the other hand though, going pro is Sae's dream and accepting this would just bring him one step closer to accomplishing that.
"When do you have to leave?"
"In a year, give or take."
"Then I say you go for it, if you haven't already decided on it." [Name] said as he turned his head to look at the street ahead of them. As he did so, he didn't notice the way Sae had turned his gaze on him instead. "It's a good opportunity and it'll definitely get your name out there like you want. A year should be enough for you to settle everything else like learning the basic language and such."
Sae couldn't help but agree with [Name]'s words because by accepting this offer, he'll be gaining so many things. If this were him a few months back, he'd probably accept with no second thoughts but now...
His eyes looked at Rin skipping in front of them before turning to linger back at [Name].
He has another person he'd need to leave behind and it made things a lot harder for him. He knew his parents would respect whatever decision he'd make so this choice was purely out of his own want.
As though he had read his mind, [Name] grabbed Sae's hand to pull him out of his thoughts and ground him. "Don't worry too much about us," [Name] offered him a cheeky smile. "This is a really big opportunity for you and besides, it's not like you'll be gone forever."
For some reason, [Name]'s words always did seem to calm Sae down so easily. He just sounds so casually sure to the point that it was hard not to believe in him as well.
"Yeah, you're right." Sae nodded as he gave [Name]'s hand a gentle squeeze, liking the warmth he felt on his hand.
"Tell you what, let's make a promise," [Name] suggested before turning to look at Sae with a grin on his face.
"A promise?" Sae seemed to raise an eyebrow suspiciously at the sentence but that didn't stop him from feeling a bit intrigued.
"Yeah, a promise." [Name] nodded in confirmation. "That way, we'll both have something to look forward to in the future."
"Hmm, alright then. What's the promise?"
"Let's both get our names out there in the world!" [Name] exclaimed happily in a hushed yell, his hands lifting up dramatically. "I want both of us to be really well known to the point that people will instantly recognize us from just a mention of our names."
"Is that it?" Sae couldn't help but tilt his head at the simple request. Becoming famous was simply a bi-product of being a successful pro-athlete so it wasn't challenging if all goes well.
[Name] shook his head with a smile before raising his pinky finger.
"Once you're back from Spain, let's run away momentarily and get popsicles here again, okay?"
Sae couldn't help but feel his heartbeat quicken. His lips were pressed thinly as he paused and stared at [Name] contemplatively. Without another word, he lifted his own hand and hooked his pinky around [Name]'s, sealing their deal.
[Name] grinned brightly at their silent agreement, the last bits of the sun's light making him look like he was glowing.
"Why'd you stop?" Rin's voice suddenly made both of them flinch back into reality.
"Oh, it's nothing," [Name] sweatdropped as he quickly ran up to catch up with Rin, not realizing just how long they had stood around for.
Sae watched Rin latch onto [Name] the moment he was near enough before letting a fond huff escape his lips. He shoved his hands into his pockets before slowly walking over to catch up to them.
As they all headed back to the house, Sae could still feel [Name]'s pinky intertwined with his and suddenly, the future didn't sound so bad anymore.
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And that's a wrap for the childhood arc :) Hopefully the pacing was alright and that the relationship development didn't feel too rushed.
I honestly had a pretty heavy writer's block during the making of this chapter so this definitely wasn't one of the proudest chapters I've made. I still wanted to get it out and end the first half of this story so I'm sorry if it's not that good huhu