Love's Good Champion (A Love By Chance FF)

Ch . 01 Craven Confession (Good)

"Ai'Good!" His voice comes from the entryway to the field and barrels down to me to bounce off the walls that feel way too narrow all of a sudden. His tone sends prickles of goosebumps to cascade down my spine, his voice, as always, managing to affect me. The full warmth of it is something that is a precious treasure, especially when the warmth was for you.

But today, in this moment, the warmth has turned into an angry flame making its way straight for me. As the flames lick at my back, my brow breaks into a sweat. I hear his footsteps begin to echo off the walls towards me and my heart kicks up in panic.

No no no! He can't do this, he can't follow me now. Not when I was finally going to let it all go.

"Good, wait, we need to talk." He doesn't have to project his voice anymore. He is already on my level having stepped off the last step at the bottom. I try to unscrew my face up so I can turn around and send him away or show him some other face that didn't care so much.

But it's a wasted effort. The tears in my eyes have already won out and the knot in my throat feels like an actual boulder I will never have the strength to move. Why did I just stop walking? Why didn't I keep running away from him when he called me? What is wrong with me?

Even as those questions come to mind I know the answer to all of them is the hope still thrumming along in the fevered beat of my heart. Violently it beats into my ribcage as his fingers wrap around my left forearm. This isn't how I pictured this turning out. His kindness has never felt as cruel as it does right now. This warm kindness of his that made me fall so hard for him in the first place.

It was only ten minutes ago that my heart had been hammering for a different reason. Because today was supposed to be the day. Today we were going to win the game and the luck of the win would rub off on me. Then I would pull Champ aside and tell him everything about how I felt about him and I would win him too.

Losing the game had been devastating and before my anger and disappointment could subside I found myself scolding my teammate and best friend, Can. Acting as if a loss could be blamed on just one member and not the whole team. Childishly acting as if I found someone else to blame for the loss then they could take the disappointment of it all that was swirling in my stomach.

Can needed me. He needed his best friend to listen to him complain and tell him that things could only get better from here. For reasons I still hadn't bothered to ask him about he had needed me before the game too. The slump of his shoulders when he walked onto the field and the faraway look in his eyes should have been my best friend queue to be there for him.

Instead all I could think of was finding Champ and then about how much I didn't want to see him at the same time. And that was all I was thinking of as I scolded Can for passing the ball countlessly to the opposing team during the game. The words that tumbled from my mouth then as I watched him kick up a fit were harsher than I ever spoke to him. And it was not how the day was supposed to go at all.

Despite the heavy atmosphere between us after that we had walked off the field together. While Can was getting changed in the locker room I excused myself though and left, heading back up the tall steps to the field. I had found the nerve to go find Him.

He was still on the field shaking his head at Techno just as Pete walked my way and passed me to stand at the top of the stairs to the locker rooms. I saw my chance and ran to take it as Champ began pulling Techno off the field.

They both had looked up at me surprised as I ran to their side. My heart began clenching and beating and flipping and I could barely look up as they asked what was wrong. "I..." What a great way to start, "want to..." What did I want to do again? "Speak with..." Come on, Good, speak faster they are shaking their heads, they won't understand, get it out, "P'Champ alone...please."