— ᨳଓ Winner
sae itoshi â—ž
⊱ prespain!sae • fem!reader ◞
tgs â—ž sae itoshi before spain, childhood friends, confession, beach, fluff
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The late summer was Sae Itoshi’s favorite season.
If someone asked him why, he’d say it felt like the whole world became a little lonelier. That answer was only half true. There was another reason.
One that only he and her knew.
Late Summer, 2013.
It had been a normal school day, nothing out of the ordinary.
[Name] and Sae had known each other since the second grade. She had been born in Sendai but moved to Kamakura because of her father’s new job.
Back then, she was just a shy seven year old. On her first day of school she had been seated next to Sae.
Ironically, the reason they became friends had nothing to do with either of them.
It was [Name]’s older half brother.
Ego Jinpachi.
The two shared the same mother, a narcissistic woman who had cheated on Jinpachi’s father, gotten pregnant with [Name] and married her new husband shortly afterward.
[Name] adored her older brother. She talked about him constantly, always finding a way to work him into every conversation.
When Sae found out who her brother was, it didn’t take long for his football obsessed self to start hanging around her.
And somehow, over the years, the two became inseparable.
The bell above the convenience store door chimed as they walked inside. They each bought one of those popsicles with Winner or Loser printed on the stick before making their way down to the shore.
The late summer breeze carried a strange sense of melancholy across the beach. The sun had already begun to set, painting the sky a warm shade of orange.
“Ugh, my feet hurt. I hate P.E. class so much,” [Name] complained.
“Exercise is important, [Name],” Sae replied.
“Yeah, I know… but still,” she trailed off.
Normally, hanging out with Sae was easy. It had always been easy. But ever since puberty had hit them, things had become… weird.
She couldn’t quite identify what she was feeling. After all, she was only thirteen and had absolutely no experience with things like this. The same probably went for him.
Lately, though, being around him made her heart beat a little faster. It gave her this strange feeling in the pit of her stomach. Suddenly she was overthinking everything she did around him.
What if he thought she was weird?
What if she embarrassed herself?
What if he didn’t want to hang out with her anymore?
She was good at hiding how nervous she felt, but Sae had noticed that something had changed.
Sometimes, completely unlike himself, he caught himself wanting to impress her. He wanted her to think he was cool. Every now and then he’d find himself staring at her a little longer than he meant to, quietly admiring her before forcing himself to look away.
Puberty was a weird thing.
“Oh, look!” she suddenly called out.
She pointed toward a large rock near the shore. It wasn’t particularly high, but it wasn’t low either. During the summer, teenagers often climbed up there before jumping into the ocean.
[Name] climbed up onto the rock and Sae followed behind her.
She dropped her school bag onto the ground before walking to the edge, absentmindedly eating her popsicle while looking out at the sea.
“You know, if I don’t get Winner this time, I’m suing the popsicle company. I’ve gotten Loser the last eight times, so statistically speaking it’s impossible for me to lose again.”
A quiet chuckle escaped Sae.
“Whatever you say.”
A comfortable silence settled over them. They were standing a little too close, their shoulders brushing every now and then, yet neither of them moved away.
It really did feel like the world became a little lonelier during late summer.
[Name] finished her popsicle while Sae continued staring out at the ocean. Looking down at the wooden stick in her hand, her eyes widened in disbelief.
WINNER.
She didn’t know what it was, but somehow it felt like a sign. From God, the universe or whatever was out there. Suddenly her heart started pounding. Suddenly she became painfully aware of everything around her. The sound of the waves, the breeze brushing against her skin, the warmth of the setting sun. A surge of adrenaline rushed through her body.
Sae had just opened his mouth to speak.
“Hey, did you fin…”
“Sae, I think I like you.”
The words came out so quickly they almost blended together.
Almost immediately the adrenaline disappeared, leaving nothing but pure embarrassment.
Oh my god.
What had she just done?
Sae stood there with his mouth still slightly open, staring at her with wide eyes. The longer he stayed silent, the worse she felt.
Six years of friendship.
Down the drain.
Before he could even begin to process what she’d said, [Name] turned around and bolted.
Well… not exactly.
She jumped straight off the rock into the water below.
She regretted it the second she hit the surface.
The water was freezing.
She stayed underwater for a few moments, refusing to come back up. Maybe if she stayed down here long enough, she’d never have to hear his answer.
God.
Could she just drown already?
Just as she was about to swim back up for air, another body hit the water.
Oh my god.
It’s Sae.
She surfaced as quickly as she could and immediately started swimming away, not caring where. She barely made it a few meters before a hand wrapped around her wrist. Startled, she accidentally swallowed a mouthful of seawater and started coughing.
Could this get any more embarrassing?
“Hey, hey, wait, [Name].”
“Go away. Forget I said anything. I’m just gonna drown now, okay? I can’t handle the embarrassment.”
“You didn’t even let me respond.”
“Because I don’t want you to.”
Sae let out a quiet sigh at her stubbornness until she finally turned around to face him.
There he was, completely drenched, dark strands of hair sticking to his forehead. Somehow he still looked as handsome as ever.
Then she noticed it.
A faint blush spread across his cheeks.
“Come on,” he said quietly. “You’re going to catch a cold.”
She wanted to argue, but she couldn’t find the energy to. Instead she let him drag her back to shore. She started shivering even more once they climbed out of the water, hugging herself while Sae climbed back onto the rock to grab their bags.
Luckily, he’d taken off his uniform jacket before jumping in after her.
When he climbed back down, he held it out to her.
“Here.”
“You’re freezing too.”
“You get sick easily.”
She sighed.
“…Thanks.”
She slipped on the jacket, the sleeves hanging well past her hands.
The walk back was uncomfortable.
Very uncomfortable.
They were soaked from head to toe, their shoes squelching with every step they took. Neither of them spoke, and [Name] still had absolutely no idea whether she’d just been rejected or not.
She was so caught up in her own thoughts that Sae’s voice startled her.
“[Name].”
She reluctantly turned to face him.
“Hm?”
“A few weeks ago I got a call.”
She frowned.
“Real Madrid wants me on their youth team.”
Her eyes widened.
“Huh?”
“I’ll be playing in Spain.”
She blinked.
“What are you talking about?”
“It’s a huge opportunity for me.”
Silence settled between them again.
“So?”
“So… I may be leaving soon.”
Her heart sank.
Was he trying to tell her that her confession didn’t matter because he was leaving anyway?
Sae looked down at the pavement for a moment before speaking again.
“This is hard for me, but… since I don’t know when I’m leaving, I want to spend as much time with you as possible.”
He hesitated, almost like he wasn’t sure how to put his thoughts into words.
“I’m not really…”
He stopped himself before taking a quiet breath.
“I think I like you too, [Name].”
She stared at him, unable to say anything.
“Sae…”
A smile slowly spread across her face.
It was a smile he would remember even years later.
It had been five years since that afternoon.
He was on his way back to Japan to renew his passport. He hadn’t spoken to [Name] in almost three years. Somewhere along the way, the distance between Spain and Japan had quietly become the distance between them.
But the memory stayed.
The memory of a late summer afternoon.
The ocean.
A popsicle stick that read WINNER.
And her.
[Name].