𝓡𝓲𝓷 𝓲𝓽𝓸𝓼𝓱𝓲 𝓫𝓸𝓽𝓽𝓸𝓶 𝔁 𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓻𝔂𝓸𝓷𝓮 𝓸𝓷𝓮𝓼𝓱𝓸𝓽 𝓼𝓽𝓸𝓻𝔂

45. Isagi x Rin

The warm light of the Itoshi living room flickered as the soft murmur of conversations filled the space. Sae’s birthday party had been going great. Isagi Yoichi, Sae's best friend since childhood, was lounging on the couch, chatting with a few of Sae's cousins and some familiar faces he'd met over the years. Sae was laughing at some family story, his deep voice carrying through the room. The atmosphere was pleasant, everyone enjoying themselves as the cake was brought out.

Isagi had never been to Sae's house before. Despite their years of friendship, they always hung out elsewhere. He often wondered why, but Sae always had a reason—practice, going out to eat, or just hanging at Isagi’s place. Isagi didn't press; he trusted Sae.

However, today was different. It was Sae’s birthday, and finally, after all those years, Isagi was invited to the Itoshi home. He had been excited. He respected Sae and admired his passion for soccer—they shared the same dreams, after all. But there was also something about being at Sae’s place that made Isagi feel a bit uneasy. Maybe it was the fact that, despite knowing Sae for so long, this part of Sae's life was unfamiliar to him.

The sound of the door creaking open interrupted the lively chatter.

Isagi looked at Sae, who was standing near the kitchen with a look of mild confusion. Everyone seemed to quiet down. Sae’s parents, who had been talking with their guests, exchanged puzzled glances. No one had mentioned anyone else coming.

"Is someone else coming?" Isagi whispered to Sae, his voice barely above a murmur.

Sae shook his head, his brow furrowed. "No… no one else. Everyone's already here."

The room grew quieter as the sound of slow, deliberate footsteps echoed through the hall. The entire family turned toward the entrance of the room, where the figure finally appeared, standing in the doorway.

And there he was.

A boy stood there—no, not a boy, a young man. His body was lean, slender, almost delicate in the way his shoulders sloped slightly. His features were soft, strikingly pretty for someone who clearly carried a burden much heavier than his frame would suggest. His hair was longer than Sae’s, the ends brushing just past his shoulders, tied loosely into a small ponytail that accentuated the sharpness of his features. His hands, carrying a small wrapped gift, were gentle, almost too delicate for someone who had been gone for so long.

It was Rin.

Isagi felt a strange sensation in his stomach—something like a flutter, a tingle—but his mind barely registered it as the room erupted into gasps of shock. Everyone, except him, seemed frozen in time. The faces of Sae and his parents, along with the rest of the family, transformed into expressions of disbelief.

Sae’s mother, trembling, was the first to react. She slowly approached the boy, her eyes filling with tears. She hadn’t seen him in years. Rin’s departure had left a void that no one dared to talk about.

"Rin... is it really you?" her voice was barely audible, but the emotion in it was palpable.

Rin, silent as ever, only nodded.

Tears streamed down her face as she pulled him into a tight embrace. She hadn’t held him in over two and a half years. No one in the family had seen him since he left that fateful night.

____________

(Flashback to the Past)

The Itoshi household was filled with tension on that night, years ago. Rin had come home with a determination that his father did not approve of. He wanted to quit football. It had been too much, the pressure, the expectations—it wasn’t the life Rin wanted anymore. He felt suffocated under the weight of his father’s dreams for him, a future he wasn’t sure he wanted.

But his father wouldn’t have it.

"You’re not quitting. You have a talent, Rin. You don’t throw that away. You’re going to keep playing, end of discussion," his father had said, his voice hard and unyielding.

"I’m not you!" Rin had shouted back, his frustration boiling over. "I don’t want this anymore! Why can’t you just accept that?"

Sae stood to the side, his jaw clenched. Their mother, standing behind Sae, looked like she was about to break down at any moment. She didn’t know what to do. She didn’t know how to stop the fight, and Sae, always composed, had no words for his brother in that moment. He had always been the one who pushed Rin to be better, but even he didn’t know how to navigate this situation.

And then, the sound of the front door slamming echoed through the house.

Rin was gone.

Their mother had wanted to run after him, but their father had stopped her, his voice cold and certain. “He’ll be back. He’ll cool off. A week, maybe two. He’s not going to give up football that easily.”

But he never came back.

Not until today.

______________

(Back to the Present)

As Rin pulled away from his mother’s embrace, the room was still eerily quiet. Everyone knew about Rin’s departure. They had lived through the whispers, the strained conversations during family gatherings. Rin’s name had been like a ghost in the house—something everyone felt but never dared to speak of.

Isagi, standing to the side, felt a strange mix of emotions. He was confused, unsure of what exactly was happening, but there was something else—something about Rin that made his chest tighten. That soft look, the way his eyes avoided everyone's gaze except for his mother's, the delicate nature of his frame—Isagi felt his heart skip a beat, though he didn’t quite understand why.

Sae’s mother finally stepped aside, wiping her tears, and looked at her husband, whose face was stony, his eyes locked on Rin.

"Welcome back," Sae’s father said gruffly, though there was no warmth in his voice.

Rin nodded slightly, but his eyes stayed downcast.

Sae, who had been silent all this time, finally spoke, his voice carefully controlled. "Rin... why now?"

Rin looked up, his gaze locking with Sae’s for the first time. His eyes were tired, haunted by something unspoken. "I came back for your birthday," he said quietly. "I couldn’t miss it. Not again."

Sae blinked, momentarily taken aback. It was the first time in years that Rin had made any effort to acknowledge his brother, and the weight of that gesture wasn’t lost on him.

Isagi stood in the corner, watching the exchange. His heart pounded in his chest, that strange feeling in his stomach growing stronger the more he looked at Rin. There was something about the younger Itoshi that drew him in, something mysterious and vulnerable that made him want to know more.

But it was Sae’s birthday, and this was Sae’s moment. Isagi kept his distance, silently observing the family reunion from a few steps away. Yet, his eyes couldn’t leave Rin, even if he didn’t fully understand why. He was captivated. There was something about the contrast between Sae's confident, composed demeanor and Rin's quiet, fragile presence that made Isagi’s heart race.

As the night went on, the mood in the room slowly began to shift back to celebration, though the tension lingered in the air like an unspoken question.

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Y'all i'm so sorry for not posting anything but all the stories i prepared got deleted. I lost about 10-12 stories here and also at the other stories that i write. I could cry i just hope this story won't get deleted (⁠｡⁠ŏ⁠﹏⁠ŏ⁠)

ps. My bd is in 8 days (08 oct) i'm gonna be 15 ^⁠_⁠_⁠_⁠_⁠_⁠_⁠_⁠_⁠_⁠^
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Words:1296
I hope you liked it!
Have a nice day/evening/night!