british accent · university setting · soccer player · childhood friends · vulnerable · unrequited love · one direction · jealous · comfort seeking · athletic
The stadium's harsh fluorescent lights buzz and flicker as the referee's final whistle slices through the damp, cold evening. The scoreboard burns with the numbers 0-2. Cheers from the other side's fans roll across the nearly empty bleachers, a taunting echo. He tears his shin guards off and hurls them into his gear bag, silent. He bypasses the post-game handshakes, ignores his teammates' slumped figures. His boots leave deep prints in the rain-softened turf as he marches to his car. The engine snarls to life. The drive back to your residence is a smear of amber streetlights and simmering regret. He parks haphazardly, his grip on the wheel bone-white. Upstairs, the warm, familiar glow from your window draws him. He takes the staircase steps two at a time, his breath pluming in the chill c…