Akira should be sleeping, but here he was wide awake lying in the middle of the pitch. Shirtless, surrounded by footballs and covered in a thin layer of sweat. His team's final match against Team Z was in less than 24 hours, he should be resting but with a body running on adrenaline and a mind thinking at a hundred miles per hour, sleep was hard to come by.

So he turned to firing shot after shot at the empty goal, drilling himself to the point he now found himself in. Flopped on the floor, so dazed he hadn't realised another person had walked onto the pitch.

Barou didn't sleep much, sleep was for the weak and he would much rather be training than lazing around unconscious in a bed that wasn't even comfortable. But to his surprise he didn't seem to be the only one, now the red-eyed teen wouldn't lie and say he hadn't taken to Akira.

Something about him drew him in, he was like him a cut above the rest forced to be among the unworthy and his match against him proved it. Though he couldn't understand why he defended those three idiots he called teammates so much, he would rather die than admit those feelings were jealousy in disguise.

Akira felt his spirit leave his body when he opened his eyes to see Barou standing over him like some killer in a 90s slasher film. "Oh, hello," the curly-haired boy said, sitting up to look at the Team X player "Hello" the spiky-haired teen greeted as the two stood in silence for a moment.

"Wanna train together?" Barou's question truly did take Akira by surprise, under the impression that he hated him for beating him in their previous match. But he agreed anyway, as the two spiralled into a session of gruelling yet enjoyable training, pushing each other to the limits and then some. As they struck explosive shot after explosive shot into the goal, all the tension from before melted away leaving a pleasant atmosphere.

After a while, Barou too decided to forgo his shirt, silently wanting to show off his physic to Akira. Who was built like a Greek god, with a slim waist, toned arms and back, washboard abs, and defined pecks. He looked like he belonged on the cover of a sports magazine soaking wet and dressed in swimwear. Now that was a pleasant thought.

"Good shot!" The bronzed teen said patting the other's shoulder as another shot rifled into the net, handing him a bottle of water which Barou gladly accepted. "Thanks," the red-eyed teen said trying desperately to hide the blush that coloured his cheeks.

"Your final match is tomorrow right?" Barou asked looking to the curly-haired teen who gulped down water like a man in a drought, watching intently as he was bewitched by his bobbing Adam's apple. "Yeah," the golden-eyed boy said as he lay down on the grass.

"What team?"

"Team Z"

"Ha!"

Turning to look at the spiky-haired teen who had also lay down beside him on the grass with a raised eyebrow, silently questioning what was so funny. "Their team is shit, it will be an easy win" The red-eyed boy explained, dismissing the idea that the bottom-barrel team of building five could have any chance whatsoever of winning.

"They good players meu amigo, my pai always told me nunca subestime alguém que não tem nada a perder, pois ele lutará mais do que alguém que tem tudo" Akira said, reciting the wise words his father had shared with him when he was younger. "What does that mean?" Barou asked curious as to what knowledge Miguel Ribeiro had offered his son and by extension him.

Now word of the curly-haired boy being the player's son had somehow spread like wildfire and when word reached Team X, Barou wasn't surprised. He was good, maybe even better than him so that was an easy explanation as to why.

"No underestimate people, Ba," Akira said turning to face the teen his arms acted like a pillow as he let the grass tickle his skin. "Ba? Is that my new nickname or something?" The red-eyed boy laughed to which the bronzed teen only nodded, seeming rather pleased with himself at the nickname he had created.

Now let it be known if anyone else had called Barou this, he would have sent them to meet their ancestors. But this was Akira he was talking about, someone he felt like he had known forever even though they had only met less than a week ago. "Don't call me that" the spiky-haired teen grumbled, though he silently loved the nickname. As it proved their closeness, their friendship, and the possibility they could be something more.

"Okay, Ba! Let's get back to work, or you want to call it?" the curly-haired boy asked as he jumped to his feet, hand outstretched to Barou. Who gladly took it allowing himself to be pulled into Akira's their bare chests connecting from the briefest of moments.

Though the red-eyed boy wouldn't have minded the skin-on-skin for a bit longer, alas all good things must come to an end. As they walked to begin round two of their training together, neither had noticed another enter the pitch. His eyes burned with jealousy as he watched the moment shared between the two, Isagi silently seethed as he observed Barou and Akira from afar.

"Well, well. If it isn't brainless, what are you doing here?"

The red-eyed teen was the first to notice him, prompting Akira to look to see what all the commotion was about. "Tell me something Barou Akira, what do I need to be more like the two of you?" The blue-eyed teen asked looking at the pair, with eyes burning with determination.

Neither teen responded, till Barou struck the ball directly at Isagi smacking him right in the face, the impact knocking him to his knees. "You might wanna try using your brain donkey," the spiky-haired teen said as he gently grabbed Akira's hand as he went to walk away from this unworthy idiot.

"Hey, we're not finished yet! You can score goals all by yourself, I've never met a player as strong as you. I can't let my dream end, I want to win and become a player that can carry victories by myself"

Isagi's confession was met with silence as Barou looked towards Akira silently asking for permission, the curly-haired teen nodded before sitting himself off to the side as the red-eyed teen turned to face the Team Z player.

"Guess you don't have a brain, the only thing in that head of yours is your delusional garbage ego and I'm gonna deflate it right now" And with that, the Team X player, charged at Isagi who was perturbed as clearly he wasn't a physically strong as him or as technical, creating an unfair match up, well that was the game of football for you.

On paper, the one-on-one was clearly in Barou's favour, but Akira didn't discount the blue-eyed boy just yet as he observed him. His eyes fixed on Barou's feet and the ball, but it was all for nothing. The red-eyed teen chopped and changed direction with ease, leaving Isagi no chance of getting anywhere near the ball. Taking a shot 20 meters away from the goal the three watched as it found its way into the top right with ease, to Isagi's shock and Akira's expectancy.

"See you never you donkey"

"Hey let's go again, don't tell me you're done. come on!"

The blue-eyed teen asked kicking a ball to the Team X player, hitting him in the calf which he didn't seem to like. "Just who do you think you're talking to?" Turning his head slightly Barou's eyes were filled with a deadly rage, "I'm the king and don't you forget it!" round two of the one vs one began.

This time Isagi did a better job sticking with the red-eyed teen, but just as the ball was in reach. Barou cleverly did a faint, giving him enough space to take a shot. Finding its way into the back of the net again, to no one's surprise. Part of Akira admired Isagi's unwillingness to quit, another part of him thought that he was a sucker for punishment. Barou wasn't exactly the best teacher, as he was known to take some pleasure in berating people.

"You finished donkey, give up"

"I'll stop you this time, try it again King. I know what you're capable of."

Once again Isagi poked the bear, his voice laced with mockery unwilling to let either side rest and part of the golden-eyed teen couldn't help but watch with interest. But another part also feared for the Team Z player's safety, as a pissed-off Barou had little problem with using his fists to get his message across.

"Enough barking you commoner, I'll show you your place" Charging at him once more, but this time Isagi was prepared as he had figured him out. Blocking him from his preferred shooting zone, leaving him without an opening with no other option but to try and figure a way past Isagi. Which was now easier said than done as he stuck to the spiky-haired boy like white on rice, giving him no opportunity to get into an optimum shooting range.

"You think just because we played a single game you pinpointed my range? It's 27 meters!"

With that, Barou smacked the ball towards the goal, and once again in the top right corner, it landed. As the red-eyed teen turned to walk away, this time Isagi didn't stop him. "Ha ha! thank you for teaching me, I owe you one Barou!" the blue-eyed teen said clearly happy with the progress he had made, and he was even happier that Akira was there to witness it.

"I didn't teach you anything, only made you realise that compared to me and Akira you are a failure. Even for a brain-dead donkey like yourself, that should be enough to make you quit."

His words were harsh, but not far from the truth. Isagi was far from being better than Barou, and even further from the likes of Akira who happened to be his next opponent but that did nothing to quell his motivation. He would be the greatest striker in the world, one way or another.

"So cool," he mumbled under his breath "Maybe so but still thank you" He yelled to the red-eyed teen who was halfway to the door. "Good night Akira" and with that Barou Shouei was gone, leaving only Isagi and Akira.

Rising from his seat the curly-haired teen dusted himself off, before walking towards the door. "Hey! Where are you going?" the blue-eyed boy yelled confused as to why the bronzed teen was leaving, secretly wanting to spend some time with him even though they were meant to be enemies at this moment.

"Sleep, Goodnight Isagi. Estou ansioso para jogar com você amanhã"