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So Colin is gay now.
Or, well, was always gay, and had somehow hid it from Isaac the entire time. Colin had let Isaac assume his game was abysmal for years, but no, judging by the stack of dick picks he'd caught a glimpse of on Colin's phone, he was doing fine. More than fine, actually. Isaac had a feeling he was only scratching the surface of the inappropriate pictures on Colin's phone.
Isaac hadn't known what to do with that, at the time. Still doesn't, really. Walking away had just seemed the best answer. He needed a moment to clear his head (and scrub it clean of dicks and arse and—fuck, he's going to have to start all over again now), needed a second to think.
He's home now, though. Drinking. Feeling guilty and angry in turns, but mostly just feeling like he wants to play FIFA with Colin like they always do.
He fiddles with his phone in his hand, considering. It's nine, which means Colin will have already been done with dinner, and is probably sitting around in one of those fancy robes he likes buying because he thinks they make him look cultured while watching telly.
Or maybe not. Maybe he's on Grindr chatting up guys and sending dick picks back and forth because he's gay. Colin is gay and he'd never told Isaac. Seemed like he hadn't ever planned on telling him either.
Fuck.
Isaac cracks open another beer, chugs most of it until the burn in his throat becomes unbearable, then coughs until he feels properly shite. He can't really tell who he's angry at anymore, if it's himself, or if it's Colin, or if it's someone else entirely. Maybe the entire world.
His phone lights up. Colin's calling.
He considers letting it ring, letting it go to voicemail, just to hear what Colin will say, or what he won't. But he's a little tipsy now, a little angrier and a little less angry at the same time, so he sets his beer down, and he picks up.
"Isaac?"
Shit.
Colin sounds dreadful. Absolutely terrible. Like that time they'd made the mistake of watching Bridge To Terabithia because Bumbercatch had revealed he'd bawled his eyes out when he'd seen it and they'd all made fun of him for it, so he dared the rest of them to watch it too. Colin's voice gets all quiet and wobbly just like it did then, and suddenly Isaac doesn't know how to be angry anymore.
"Fuck, bruv. I'm sorry." And now Isaac sounds like he did then too—voice clipped, pitch high.
"Don't be. It was—I should've told you—"
"No. I mean yeah. But no."
Colin laughs. It sounds so small and sad it makes Isaac's chest ache. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"You could've told me. I wouldn't have said nothing about it. I would've—we would've been just fine, yeah?" Isaac wipes at his eyes, rough enough that it stings. "But if you weren't ready then you weren't ready."
There's a long pause on the other end of the line. Isaac guesses Colin's got the phone set down now and he's sobbing somewhere across the room so Isaac won't hear it. It's fine though, since Isaac is doing the same thing.
After a while, Colin's voice comes through again. Still a little shaky, but more like himself.
"I was scared. I figured you would've been good about it, that nothing would change between us if I told you, but I couldn't be sure. Not one hundred percent. And I just... I couldn't risk it. So I didn't say anything. I didn't know if I'd ever stop being scared."
Shit fuck.
Now Isaac feels well and truly awful. He'd blown this whole thing up so much in his head, made it all about him when he was never really part of it in the first place. Fuck. His mother had raised him better than this. Ted had raised him better than this.
"I'm sorry," Isaac says, before he breaks down into tears again. "For walking away. I should've stayed. Should've said something. Shouldn't've made you worry. It doesn't matter to me that you like blokes. You're still my mate. I still—" love you.
"I know."
-
Isaac finally asks after round three and he's down 2-1.
"Who is it?"
Colin's got a controller in one hand and a spoonful of fried rice in the other. "Who's what?"
"The guy."
He doesn't take the hint. "The guy?"
"The bloke you like, bruv."
Colin chokes on his fried rice. Isaac sits back and watches him attempt to swallow it down, then get water all over his couch when he goes to wet his throat, before he finally turns to face Isaac again.
"There's no bloke. I never said there was a bloke."
Curious. Very curious. Isaac's had his suspicions for a while now, since back when he still thought Colin was into women. Colin had started showing up to work earlier, beating even Dani some mornings, who notoriously liked to be the first of the players to arrive (he's a morning person, a fact that absolutely no one was surprised by). He'd started dressing a little differently too. One day he wore denim, top and bottom. Another day he'd had on one of those sweaters you'd only see on older men or teachers. Or older men teachers. Then, the most damning piece of evidence, the cologne. No more lynx, just actual, proper cologne, in those small glass bottles and everything.
He was trying to impress someone.
Now Isaac just needs to find out who.
"Bruv."
Colin keeps mum. Which is odd, since he's been sharing intimate details about his love life pretty much as soon as Isaac came over, which might mean that—
Isaac gasps. Loudly and dramatically. Then gets to his feet and stands up in front of the TV.
"It's someone on the team, isn't it?" He points an accusing finger at Colin.
Colin folds.
-
On Monday Isaac arrives early.
Astronomically early. Uncharacteristically early.
He wants nothing more than to crawl back into bed, but this is much more important than sleep, this is Colin, so Isaac sticks it out. Manages not to fall asleep while getting changed, doesn't even drift off while he waits for Dani to show up. The minute he pops in, Isaac's back is straightening, eyes focussed.
"Capitán! You are early today!" Dani is chipper as always, smile at full brightness.
Isaac supposes he can understand why Colin would have the hots for Dani out of everyone on the team. He's attractive, he's nice, and he has this way of making you feel really good about yourself just by being in his company. Yeah. Makes a lot of sense, actually. If Isaac swung that way he'd probably also go for Dani.
"Yeah. Just trying something new."
He watches for a moment as Dani goes about his routine. Changing into his sportswear (and he does look fit with his shirt off, Isaac will admit), then combing his hair back and slipping his headband on.
"Dani. Got any plans tonight?"
Isaac busies himself with getting dressed, hoping that this entire interaction is coming off casual enough that Dani doesn't suspect anything.
"No, Capitán, I am free!"
Isaac throws his shirt on over his head. "No hot date for the night then? What happened to those girls you were seeing a while back?"
"Oh, we were only friends with benefits!" Dani cheerily announces. Isaac almost drops his pants. "It was nothing serious, and now they are both in a relationship with another lovely woman, so we have stopped the benefits. Now we are just friends!"
"Right." Somehow, Isaac manages to put both his legs into his shorts without tripping or making a fool of himself. "You... been in a lot of arrangements like that? With more than one person, like."
"Not many, but a few."
"Right. And have, uh, have you ever been in any with other... blokes?"
Isaac and Dani are looking at each other now, and though Dani doesn't look particularly bothered by the question, his smile's a fraction dimmer than it was a moment ago. "Only one."
"So you... you like them too, then? Men?" Isaac is sweating now, worrying that Dani will see through this whole thing and Colin will be so angry he never talks to him ever again.
There's a brief pause. Dani looks to be sizing Isaac up for a moment, but then he breaks out into one of his usual mega watt grins and Isaac feels himself relax just slightly.
"I like men too, yes! And you, amigo?"
Fuck.
Dani's eyes are glittering. He's definitely misunderstood something here. But, shit, well, it's either Isaac goes with this or risk Dani finding out about Colin, so... "I don't know? I was just... thinking about it, yeah? I'm like... figuring it out."
"Do not worry, my beautiful friend." Dani claps a hand on Isaac's shoulder, eyes so earnest and supportive Isaac starts feeling kind of guilty. "You take as much time as you need to figure it out. When you do, we will all accept you with open arms! You will always be the Capitán that we love and respect!"
Well fuck, now Isaac feels like crying.
Dani draws him into a hug. Isaac returns it a little stiffly, wondering if hugs have always felt this warm and comfortable, or if that's just Dani's arms.
Fucking shit.
Maybe he really does have some stuff to figure out after all.
-
It's not even nine yet and Colin is already piss drunk.
Isaac can't really blame him. Dani's been walking around the entire night with little flowers in his hair and the top of his shirt unbuttoned, looking like Adonis in the flesh.
Apparently Keeley's responsible for the flowers in his hair. She's got matching ones braided into hers, and every now and then her and Dani will exchange glances and giggle at each other like they're laughing at some private joke. Jamie and Roy have their eyes glued on her kind of like how Colin hasn't been able to look away from Dani the entire night.
"Look at him!" Colin groans from where he's leaning against Isaac's left side, head on his shoulder.
"I have been, bruv. Now you gonna go over there and talk to him or what?" Not that Isaac would actually recommend it now. Colin's not nearly sober enough to bring any sort of game to the table.
Dani's laughter echoes across the room. Colin moans and presses his face into Isaac's neck. Isaac shivers at the sudden contact of Colin's nose against his skin.
"My legs aren't working. I can't do it," Colin grumbles.
"That's fine. He's walking this way."
Colin jerks upright so fast he spills half his beer out the bottle. Isaac laughs, even as Colin shoves at him and proceeds to spill the rest of his beer down the front of Isaac's shirt.
He wasn't lying though, about Dani approaching. He stops in front of the two of them, glowing, and looking vaguely amused.
"Your shirt is wet, Capitán."
"Yeah, it is, isn't it? I'll just go to the bathroom to—"
"We can go together!"
Colin and Isaac blink in confusion, but Dani doesn't retract the offer.
Somehow, the three of them end up alone, standing in the bathroom by the sinks. Isaac has his shirt off and is drying it under the hand dryer, while Colin is attempting to flirt with Dani beside him.
What the fuck?
"Those flowers look good on you, Dani," Colin says.
Dani beams, catching Isaac's gaze in the mirror. Isaac swallows around the lump in his throat.
"Thank you, Colin. You look nice, as well!"
"Ah, you'll have to thank Isaac for that. He picked this shirt out for me. Didn't you, boyo?"
Why does he keep getting roped into this? He could be outside right now, enjoying cocktails with Bumbercatch or chatting up one of Richard's many model friends, instead of being forced to witness this game of gay chicken.
"I told you, I know fashion."
Colin had been whining for hours about not knowing what to wear to impress Dani. If Isaac hadn't forced him into that nice fitting turtleneck, Colin would've shown up in that travesty of a shirt he'd been bullied into buying by one of the Prada shop attendants.
Dani's eyes trail up and down Colin's body, openly admiring. Colin's starting to look flushed, and a little more sober than he was before. Isaac should be somewhere else. Anywhere else. But whenever he thinks about leaving, Dani will pin him to his spot with his gaze, and then Isaac will be left standing there wondering how exactly he's managed to get himself in this situation.
"Why did you decide to dress up tonight, Colin?" Dani asks.
An uncomfortable silence passes.
"He had someone to impress, didn't he," Isaac says.
Colin glares, motioning for him to keep his mouth shut, but Isaac's going to do his job as wingman properly, damn it. Plus, he really wants out of this bathroom, so the quicker he can get this over with, the better.
"Oh, what a coincidence!" Dani winks. "Me too!"
"Yeah?" Apparently Isaac has to be in charge of this part of the conversation, since Colin's too busy blushing to open his mouth. "Who were you looking to impress, then?"
"I think we all know, yes?" He looks to Colin, then to Isaac, eyes twinkling. "You are not as sneaky as you think you are."
Oh. Oh fuck.
Dani's definitely made the mother of all misunderstandings.
Isaac opens his mouth to correct him, but before he can get a word out, Dani kisses him. And Isaac, well, he doesn't push him away. Even kisses back, just a little. Just for a second. Dani's lips are soft and he smells really nice so Isaac can't really be blamed for it.
But then when Dani's done with Isaac, he plants one on Colin, too. Colin whines a little into it, in surprise or because he's been waiting months for this Isaac can't tell.
"We will talk about this some more later, yes?" That's all Dani leaves them with before he exits the bathroom.
Colin and Isaac turn to each other, stunned.
What the fuck.