Soccer practice.

Minghao pulled up his socks and tightened his laces. This was it. It began at this moment.

It felt like the day had flown by. One second Minghao was sitting at recess, admiring Hansol’s muscles, the next second he was standing in the middle of the soccer pitch preparing to practice for the big game.

Minghao was, surprisingly, the striker for the team. He surprised them all by showing his incredible skill and incredible footwork, as well as his inhuman accuracy for shooting goals. For the first time in nearly 20 years, his school’s team had made it to semifinals.

Mingyu was the team captain, which surprised everyone. It was thought that Wonwoo, the oldest in the team, would have been the captain, but instead Mingyu was chosen. He had been playing the longest, since joining in his first year, while Wonwoo had only joined this year.

Their coach, Junhui, was brutal when it came to deciding who was benched and who was playing. He didn’t trust Wonwoo and Hansol under the heat of such a large game. He benched them nearly every game, despite knowing they had talent. He needed people he could trust. He needed Minghao.

They started with a few drills before launching into a mini game with the team and extras split. Minghao played aggressively, as the coach instructed, but as he went in to score a goal, Seungkwan stepped on his shoelace and he flew forward, landing on his arm and twisting his ankle painfully.

“No, no, no!” Junhui screamed, rushing forward to Minghao. Minghao looked up calmly, but his wrist was bent weirdly and was already beginning to swell. “.” Junhui swore.

He carefully lifted Minghao into his arms, carrying him bridal style as he looked around. “Everyone practice your dribbling and passes. I’m taking him to the nurse and calling his father.” Junhui stressed as he ran to the nurse’s office.

“This is bad.”  Jeonghan spoke over the phone. “How could you let my boy get tripped?! How could you allow that?!”

“Look, I’m so sorry. Accidents happen.” Junhui tried to stay calm, sitting on the bed in the nurse’s office with a hand on Minghao’s knee while he slept. “I really didn’t mean for him to get hurt. But it’s just a small sprain. His ankle will be better by morning but his wrist won’t be for a week at least. He’ll heal soon.”

“, you think I give a how soon he’ll heal? Well… I do…. But I mean, who the hell is going to play striker now?!” Jeonghan almost shouted.

“U-uh… I was thinking probably Hansol. Wonwoo plays defence, not offence.” Junhui explained, gulping.

“What?! No! You can’t have Hansol play!” Jeonghan shouted, the sound crackling as his voice raised significantly.

“I have to! Or we forfeit. You want me to make my team forfeit when we’re so close to reaching finals?” Junhui asked seriously.

“I don’t want one of Jisoo’s boys to play. He’ll just… rub it in my face for the rest of my life.”

“I’ve tried to bench them as much as possible, but now I don’t have a choice. Look, just calm down. I don’t think Hansol will do that great anyway. Jisoo can’t boast if his kid does . Look, I gotta go. I’ll see you at the game.”

Minghao, who had his eye slightly open during Junhui’s conversation, quickly closed his eye and pretended to be asleep again. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Junhui continued texting on his phone, but just his presence pissed Minghao off. His eyes snapped open and he sat up quickly.

“What the , Coach?” Minghao spoke loudly.

Junhui sat back, shocked, dropping his phone into his lap. “Wh-what..?” He replied, looking shocked. “Did you hear what I said..? Were you awake that whole time?”

“I can’t believe you. Wh-... This whole time, you were benching Wonwoo and Hansol just because of my dad?!”

“Minghao, calm down.” Junhui tried to soothe. “I had no choice.”

“What do you mean no choice?! You’ve been wasting their time… If you didn’t want them on the team, you shouldn’t have recruited them!” Minghao’s face was going red with frustration. He couldn’t believe what Junhui had done - it felt like a dream. When he fell did he accidentally knock himself out? He thought he was dreaming, but the pain in his wrist said otherwise that he was definitely awake.

“Minghao, seriously. Your dad is one of our team’s only sponsors. Without him we wouldn’t even have a soccer team. I had no choice.”

“So what you’re saying is you were bribed?” Minghao asked, raising an eyebrow.

“It’s not like that… It’s not… Please, Minghao. I just need you not to tell anyone. Please. I could lose my job.” Junhui pleaded.

“Good. We deserve better. Wonwoo and Hansol deserve better.” He spat.

“Then who will coach you?” Junhui replied, his expression still. “Seeing as you’re well enough to yell at me, you should be fine on your own until the nurse can take you to the hospital. I’m going back to the team now. Please, don’t say anything.” He pleaded with Minghao.

He turned his head away, refusing to acknowledge Junhui. Junhui left silently, feeling a ball of nerves developing in his stomach.

 

--

Hansol didn’t know what he had done. He didn’t want to be here, sitting in the coach’s office, his hands shaking while he wondered what he had done to get in trouble as well as whether Minghao would be okay.

“Hansol…” Junhui started, holding his hands calmly in his lap. He wasn’t sure how he was going to deal with this situation.

“Y-yes, Coach.” He addressed, looking down to avoid looking Junhui in the face.

“Minghao won’t be able to play tonight. He is injured badly.”

Hansol gulped. “Can I visit him?” He asked timidly.

“He’s at the hospital getting his casts on, but I think he’s going home to rest after. I don’t think he’ll make it to the game tonight. But you can visit him at home if his father approves.” Junhui explained. “That’s not why I called you in here.”

“I haven’t done anything, okay Coach? I don’t want to get in trouble.” Hansol pleaded. “My dad will kill me if I get in trouble.”

“You’re not in trouble.” Junhui sighed. “I’m putting you on to play tonight.”

“What?! Me?!” Hansol couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“You’re the only other striker we have to fill his position. I’m putting you on. Can you handle under this pressure?” Junhui lowered his voice, leaning forward to look Hansol in the eyes.

Hansol continued to avoid his gaze. “I can do it. I’ll be fine. I wish you’d let Wonwoo play.”

Junhui shook his head. “Chan is too good of a goalkeeper. I’d rather have him in.”

“But Chan can play forward too. I’m pretty sure he can play any position if he had a bit of practice. Put Wonwoo on, switch Chan to forward and have Seungkwan play striker. Easy.”

“It’s too much for the big game. If we win this, we get through to finals, okay? Do you understand what weight this game has?”

Hansol nodded. “Okay. I understand. Thank you for putting me on, Coach.”

--

Hansol pulled up his socks and tightened his laces. This was it.

The team stood in a circle, their arms over their shoulders and chanting their pregame cheer. Wonwoo smiled widely at Hansol and hugged him, kissing the side of his head before patting his back. Wonwoo couldn’t have been more proud to see his little brother getting off the bench.

The team ran onto the field. Hansol’s eyes scanned the crowd for his father and sister. Instead they landed on someone else - Minghao.

The older boy was sitting next to his upset looking father, a cast on his arm and his leg wrapped. He was beaming at Hansol, the biggest, proudest smile he could ever give. Hansol felt his nerves melt away, and instead he was filled with warmth. He couldn’t believe that just looking at Minghao made him feel so confident, so happy, so relieved.

He looked to the left where he saw Seulgi, holding up a sign saying “Wonwoo and Hansol!” in a heart. He smiled and waved, and slapped Wonwoo on the shoulder to grab his attention. Wonwoo smiled and blew kisses to his sister, then waved excitedly to Jisoo.

Jisoo smiled, his eyes turning into crescents as he gave them the biggest, most encouraging smile he could manage. He gave them a double thumbs up and cheered along with the boisterous crowd.

Junhui looked over to where Jeonghan was, only to meet eyes with Minghao instead. He felt his stomach devour itself and he gulped, unsure of what Minghao’s presence meant for his job security.

Hansol felt his heart swell with pride watching as Mingyu walked over for the coin toss. Wonwoo took his place on the bench while Hansol ran into position with the others.

This was it.

--

The game was theirs. From the sound of the whistle right until the last goal scored by Hansol, they annihilated the opposition. Hansol proved to be a great striker - despite his nerves at the start he played well, even matching Minghao’s record for most goals scored. The team ran together, jumping and screaming as they celebrated their win. They almost ran past in excitement with the final hand shake before running back to their change room.

“We did it! We did it! We’re in the finals!” Mingyu cried, tears streaming down his face. He ran to Seungkwan, hugging him tight, as Seungkwan joined him sobbing.

“I can’t believe it. Hansol, you were incredible out there!” Chan cried out, hugging him tight. “I honestly can’t believe it! I’ve never seen you play that well before!”

“Because you’ve never seen him play. Good job, little bro.” Wonwoo grinned, punching him on the arm roughly.

Junhui beamed a proud smile at all of them. “Pizza’s on me after this.” Junhui offered.

“No can-do, coach. They’re coming to my place after.” Mingyu replied. “But if you want to order pizza and send it to my house, feel free.”

“Haha, no thanks buddy. I wanted some of that pizza too.” Junhui gently bumped his arm, laughing hard.

The families rushed in after, Minghao trailing after Jeonghan. Minghao made eye contact with Junhui and glared before shuffling over to where Jeonghan was kissing Chan repeatedly on the top of his head. Seulgi held Hansol in a tight hug and while Hansol wanted to pretend he hated it, he missed his sister so much that instead he hugged her back, letting the older girl smother him with love. Wendy was punching Seungkwan repeatedly in the arm and laughing so hard, her eyes disappearing into crescent moons.

The school principal walked in and soon the change room was crowded with people congratulating and celebrating their win. Minghao stepped away from Jeonghan, standing on top of the chair shakily.

“Everyone… I have an important announcement to make.” Minghao declared, looking around as everyone turned to look at him. His teammates cheered, unaware of what he was about to do. Jeonghan looked at him, quickly running over to stop him but Chan grabbed his arm and stopped him. He shared a panicked look with Junhui, who only returned his panicked look, unsure of what to do.

“Go on, Minghao.” The school principal permitted.

“This is regarding my father and our coach.” He began. “I found out while I was in the nurse’s office that my father has been bribing Coach Junhui.”

Many looked on with shock before Jeonghan ran forward, pulling Minghao down. “This is a lie, I haven’t been bribing Junhui!” He cried out. “I am the sole sponsor of the soccer team. That doesn’t mean I’m bribing. I have not bribed anyone!” The room booed at Jeonghan in response.

The Principal stepped forward from where he was standing, a grim expression on his face. “Thank you for this, Minghao. Jeonghan, Junhui, Minghao, come with me.”

“Me? What did I do?!” Minghao stepped back, hiding behind the very tall Mingyu for defence. Mingyu wrapped an arm around him protectively, his instincts kicking in. He was in too much disbelief to act thoughtfully.

“You’re not in trouble. Just come with me.” The Principal ordered.

The three walked in silence to the Principal’s office. Minghao had a burning feeling in his stomach, threatening to crawl up his throat and erupt in painful vomit that burnt his throat. Junhui’s nerves were similar, but instead of feeling like vomiting he felt as it would leak out as molten hot tears to burn track of shame down his face. Jeonghan was surprisingly calm. As far as he was concerned, he hadn’t done anything wrong.

“Sit.” The Principal directed, gesturing to the couch in front of his desk. He sat down at his own large, leather spinny chair and looked at the three seriously through eyes wrinkled around the edges into fine creases.

The three sat on the couch, with Minghao in the middle. Jeonghan gently took his hand, squeezing softly to calm Minghao’s nerves. Minghao could feel his heart pounding rapidly in his chest.

“I’m disappointed in you two.” He began, looking from Junhui to Jeonghan. “I entrusted you to secrecy and instead you were careless and let this child find out.”

Junhui gulped. “It was an accident… I thought he was asleep....”

“You were in the nurse’s office with Minghao and you talked openly on the phone about it… You were careless and you must suffer the consequences for it.”

Minghao’s expression switched from nervous to shocked as if by light switch. Everything clicked in his head, it all started to make sense. “Wait… you knew?”

“Minghao, please do not shout. But yes, I knew. I have been apart of this deal since the beginning. But you do not need to know more. The discussion is settled.” He looked to Jeonghan. “I will no longer need your funding. Now that the entire soccer team and their family and friends know, including Jisoo, I don’t think it would be appropriate to have you fund the soccer team.”

“And me…?” Junhui spoke up.

“I’m sorry to say, but you are no longer the soccer coach. I will find a replacement as soon as possible. You may remain a teacher at this school, but no longer can you coach the soccer team.”

Junhui’s expression fell, and he nodded sadly. “I understand. I accept your decision.”

“Please vacate the coach’s office as soon as possible.”

“So, what? We just go on, pretending nothing happened? Wonwoo and Hansol had their time wasted - completely wasted! Hansol sat on the bench for two years!” Minghao cried out. He stood from his seat, but Jeonghan roughly pulled him back down, rubbing his back to soothe him. He clenched his fists. “Do you know how well we could have done if we put Hansol on earlier? Do you not think this is serious? This isn’t just a bunch of kids playing a game! It’s so much more than that!”

“Minghao, I need you to keep quiet about this situation.” Jeonghan whispered. He couldn’t keep his sigh in. “We never wanted you to find out about any of this.”

“You really want me to just not say anything?!” He whistled in disbelief. “I can’t believe you. All three of you.”

“This is business beyond your control. This is the way of life. Unless you want off the team, then I’d suggest you keep quiet about this discussion. Any questions or can we move on?” The Principal stood, towering over them. “Go back to your families and carry on. I have business to attend to.”

The three stood and exited, Minghao roughly ripping his hand from Jeonghan’s grasp as he attempted to hold his hand. He wanted to forgive his father, but to think of what happened, he couldn’t let it go so easily. He looked down, refusing to acknowledge both men.

--

Seungcheol and Wendy hadn’t let go of Seungkwan since they were allowed into the changerooms. His grandmother stood, watching with a proud smile but not initiating contact with the boy. Seungkwan cried and as he cried, Seungcheol had a handkerchief ready to catch the tears that spilled. When he had calmed down, both his father and sister planted kisses all over his face.

“I’m so proud of you.” Wendy giggled, ruffling his hair. “Who thought my dorky little brother would kill it on the soccer pitch?”

He gently elbowed her in the stomach. “Thanks, Wendy.”

“You did so well out there. I can’t believe how much you’ve improved.” Seungcheol beamed a proud smile at his son.

Seungkwan’s grandmother stepped forward, taking his hand gently. “You play just as well as your mother did. She would be proud.”

He smiled at her politely, but he was tense and could feel the tight and rigid grip of his grandmother’s wrinkled hand. He quickly let go and smiled wider. “Thank you.”

The Principal, Jeonghan and Minghao all returned to the changerooms, with the principal addressing the group. “We have three weeks until the finals. Until then, I hope to see you all practicing and training hard. Bring us our first win in 20 years, and I will give you all a reward you could never imagine.” Cheers erupted from all corners of the changerooms, belting out their school’s chant. “But I have more serious news to announce.”

Jeonghan stepped to the side, shielding himself with a nearby jacket hanging on the wall as the principal cleared his throat. “After Minghao’s announcement earlier, I have taken the situation into my own hands and have come to a conclusion. Coach Junhui has been fired as the team’s coach. I will be searching for a new coach, but until then, your team captain will stand in place of the coach. Jeonghan’s funding has been cut. Is that understood?”

The team let out a collective sound of understanding before returning to their conversations with their families.

Seungkwan broke free of the hold of his father and sister to walk over to Mingyu. “Where is your dad and uncle?”

Mingyu shrugged. “I think they left right after the game finished.”

“Doesn’t this ever… you know. Upset you?” Minghao had walked up while the two boys were talking and into their conversation.

Mingyu frowned. “Why would it upset me?”

Seungkwan frowned, feeling almost guilty. “Everyone has their families here congratulating them and celebrating but you’re alone.”

Mingyu smirked. “It doesn’t bother me that much… After all, you’re all my family.”

Minghao punched his shoulder while cringing. “That was so grossly cheesy.”

He laughed, rubbing his shoulder. “But… I guess it does upset me that they’re never around… I’m really lonely all the time.” He pouted and put on an almost-believable act. “But it’s something you have to just… get used to. You know? When you’re alone for so long… you have to do what you can to- hey! Where are you guys going?”

Minghao and Seungkwan had already started walking off. “Oh, okay. See you guys at my house!” he added on.

--

“So you were… fired…” Jihoon spoke, watching as Junhui paced back and forth next to their bed. He sat on their shared bed, sitting up and leaning against the headboard.

“Fired… no… Not exactly?” He replied, running his hands through his hair.

“Come lie down. Calm down. Let’s talk this out.” He reached out, grabbing Junhui’s hand and pulling him over. Junhui kicked off his slippers before crawling on top of Jihoon, resting his head on his lap and lying on top of his legs. “Comfortable?”

“Just a bit.” He mumbled. He shuffled before he groaned and rolled  over. He lay next to Jihoon and stared up at the ceiling with a blank expression. “I still have my job. I still work at the school. But I’m not coach anymore.”

“So what does this mean?” Jihoon asked, shuffling down so he could easily lie down next to Junhui. He rolled over to face him, brushing Junhui’s fringe from his face and exposing his forehead.

“It means…” He gulped. “Less money. I won’t get paid for coaching anymore.”

Jihoon frowned. “We… should still be fine…”

“We’re barely managing to pay our bills as it is. With our… plans… how are we going to manage? I know you’ve been taking money out of our savings to pay for bills. What’s going to happen now? Is our entire savings going to be drained just to live?” He let out a long sigh. He rolled over and Jihoon noticed a tear escaping. He frowned and wiped it away.

“I-I… I don’t know right now. But I think we can deal with this. We dealt with everything else, didn’t we? Just trust me. Trust us. I know we’ll figure this out.” Jihoon whispered, moving closer until they were cuddling close. He brought a hand to Junhui’s cheek and gently kissed his lips.

---

Wendy and Seulgi make an appearance! I had to add in my female bias group if I'm writing my male bias group. I hope you like this little Red Velvet appearance.