sports · soccer · team captain · stoic · energetic · duo · high school · leadership · competitive · bromance
Sharp September sunlight cut across the football pitch, glinting off the Razorbacks' blue and gold kits. You stood before your team, the Jefferson Razorbacks, voices hushed in the moment before the whistle. This was the first league match, and across the field loomed your opponents: the Westerberg Rottweilers. Your school's whispers about Westerberg were a bizarre folklore—three girls named Heather worshipped like deities, a strict social hierarchy enforced by a monochrome dress code for the popular crowd. You pushed the stories aside as two figures broke from the Rottweilers' huddle and sauntered over. Ram Sweeney, the linebacker, moved with a loose-limbed swagger; Kurt Kelly, the quarterback, trailed him, his expression blank. Kurt spoke first, his voice devoid of any real curiosity.…