Sae itoshi may have an ED and thats why hes shorter than rin
This is gonna be rlly stupid and probably pointing out the obvious and just me spouting bs BUUTTT
Sae was quite tall for a kid if i remember correctly while rin was tinier than usual
What if sae stopped growing bc he wasnt healthy? (when he came back rin said he looked skinnier, something that should not happen to a growing football player)
Also adding to the fact, he looks extremely tired mentally (sae has literal EYEBAGS. The man who now sleeps 7-8 hours daily canonically had EYEBAGS. Last i checked insomnia was a side effect of some ED's)
This is just a small hc but yk how after you cry your eyes get redder and a bit swollen? Imagine he cried on the way here trying to figure out a way to tell rin that his dream changed.
*Anyways, considering he also wears anti-racism bracelets, its very possible he was somewhat starved/malnourished/neglected back in spain due to his ethnicity.
If this is true it could be a reason why Rin is severely taller than sae, not to say that sae is too short but when you pair them up together alongside their family and past selves it feels off.
*also we see he has a clear dislike for fries even tho he likes their taste cus theyre unhealthy for him, now where have i heard that before hmm.
Not a very good analysis cus im not the best with words and emotions from others, im really really sorry if this comes out bad or is offensive in any way, if it is please tell me immediately to fix/delete this post!!
Bonus:
HE LOOKS LIKE HES ABT TO CRY MY POOR BABY NOJRJRJRJRJEJNDNFB SAE
okay, hear me out. two athletes, two perfectionists, two people who have exactly zero interest in pretending to be impressed when they aren’t. you said you can be too honest with feedback— darling, you were describing his entire personality. the difference is that when it’s the two of you, nobody flinches. you never have to read between the lines, and he never has to soften for you. do you know how rare that is for him? everyone else tiptoes. you just.. walk.
here’s the thing about sae: he respects exactly one thing, and it’s earned skill. he’s watched you dance, and he knows what it costs, the repetition and the discipline, because he paid the same price in a different language. he will never once be condescending about your craft, and when he says you’re good, it’s worth more than a standing ovation, because sae has never in his life said something he didn’t mean. for someone who runs on validation? he’s the only source that never rings hollow.
you asked for someone who understands personal space, someone who won’t take it personally when you take time to recharge. lilia. this man moved to another continent to focus. unanswered messages don’t register to him as rejection— they register as tuesday. when you’re overwhelmed and need to disappear for a bit, he won’t hover or guilt trip. he’ll just be there when you resurface, entirely unbothered, like no time passed at all <3
𝘚𝘕𝘈𝘗𝘚𝘏𝘖𝘛𝘚 𝘍𝘙𝘖𝘔 𝘛𝘏𝘌 𝘍𝘈𝘐𝘙𝘎𝘙𝘖𝘜𝘕𝘋𝘚 !
✧ there’s a dance master machine in the arcade tent, and you destroy him. sae stares at the scoreboard like it’s personally betrayed him, then jerks his chin toward the foosball table across the way: “again. my field.” he wins by a landslide. neither of you will ever, ever suggest a tiebreaker, because neither of you can afford to lose it.
✧ it takes you the length of the entire fairgrounds to talk him into the face paint booth, and he agrees with a sigh. you choose a little sunflower on his cheekbone, and while he glares at his reflection in the handheld mirror, he also doesn’t wash it off.
✧ you snipe at each other in three different languages at the food stalls— your italian, his spanish, meeting in the middle in english when the insults need precision. your rusty spanish makes him visibly suffer. “that conjugation was a war crime,” he mutters.
✧ gift-giving final boss meets the least giftable man alive, and wins anyway. you press one of your handmade keychains into his palm, and he looks at it for a long moment, says “hm,” and pockets it. weeks later, a match-day photo makes its rounds online: sae with his duffel bag, and hanging off the zipper, unmistakably, your keychain.
✧ there’s a live band, and the space in front of the stage becomes a dance floor. you don’t hesitate— and he doesn’t come with you, because that’s not his language. instead, he stands at the edge with his arms crossed, expression unreadable to everyone but you, and watches like there’s nothing else around worth looking at.
𝘈𝘕𝘋 𝘍𝘖𝘙 𝘠𝘖𝘜𝘙 𝘗𝘙𝘐𝘡𝘌 . . .
you come back from the dance floor breathless and glowing, and he hands you your drink without a word— he’s been holding it the whole time, condensation and all. but sometime past ten, the noise starts to sit heavy on you. sae notices before you say it, and he angles you both away from the stage, past the last of the game stalls, to the quiet edge of the fairgrounds where the ferris wheel turns slowly over the tents.
the silence is comfortable, but you break it anyway. “the foosball table was tilted, by the way. we’re settling it—”
and that’s when you notice he’s not watching the ferris wheel anymore. he’s watching you, openly.
“..sae?”
“your birthday,” he says, “is this weekend.” he sets his drink down. deliberate. everything about him is deliberate— the turn of his shoulders, the hand that comes up to your jaw, tilting your face. “i don’t do parties.”
“i know,” you manage.
“so.” his thumb traces once along your cheekbone— the exact spot where the sunflower sits on his. “consider this early.”
and then he kisses you— once, unhurried and intentional, nothing wasted and nothing held back either. when he draws back, it’s only far enough to study your face, cataloguing the result with visible satisfaction.
“happy birthday, lia,” he says, reaching for his drink like his ears aren’t red.
⋆˖ blocking sae after an argument, part 2 (ｰ̀⤙ｰ́ ) 🗯️
⨳ 𝓬𝔀/𝓽𝓪𝓰𝓼: read part 1 here, angst to fluff, relationship conflict, miscommunication & reconciliation, sae being absolutely chalant, brief smut towards the end, not proofread sorry ⸝⸝ 5.7k wc ✩ art by sae0o
it’s been five days, and the silence was starting to feel unbearable.
you kept yourself busy with work, with errands, with anything that made the hours pass faster. anything to stop yourself from thinking about him. but every notification still made your heart leap out of habit— the disappointment hits all over again when you remember you had blocked him everywhere.
which meant no updates.
no calls.
no little ‘read’ beneath your messages to tell you he’d seen them.
you told yourself it was better this way; that silence hurt less than waiting for him to disappoint you again.
but at night, when the apartment grew too quiet and your bed felt far too big, you would stare at the darkened screen of your phone and wonder if he was okay… or if he even missed you at all.
your thumb had hovered over his contact more times than you could count, guilt settling heavily inside your chest whenever you considered unblocking him. but something always held you back. pride, hurt, exhaustion— whatever it was, it kept you frozen, staring at his contact name as though it could somehow answer all the questions you were too afraid to seek.
—
on the other side of the world, sae was losing his mind.
five days of complete silence.
five days of his messages failing to deliver. five days of his calls going straight to voicemail. five days of not knowing what you were doing, or what you’d been up to since you had blocked him everywhere else too.
and yet, every morning before training, he'd find himself opening your chat anyway. he'd type out another message, watch the familiar ‘not delivered’ appear beneath it, then lock his phone with a quiet click before heading to practice. every night, he'd call out of habit despite already knowing it would go straight to voicemail. by the fifth day, he had memorized the automated voicemail greeting.
he sat on the edge of the bed in his hotel room, one hand resting against the back of his neck as he stared down at his phone, looking more worn out than usual. he was exhausted from training, irritated from the lack of sleep, while still carrying the weight of the upcoming matches. but none of it compared to the frustration & unease gnawing at him over the way things had fallen apart between you two.
“tch… this is annoying,” he muttered under his breath, brows furrowed deeply.
truthfully, he knew he had fucked up.
he knew his replies had been getting shorter, his attention split between training & the growing pressure of the upcoming matches. but the fact that you had deliberately cut him off completely—blocking him as though he were nothing more than another inconvenience—still felt like a punch to the gut. as much as it pissed him off, he knew he had no one to blame but himself.
and when you told him you were done, he had realized a second too late just how far he had pushed you up to that point.
he'd spent the first few days convincing himself that you simply needed space. if he kept forcing his way back in, you'd only resent him more; so he'd waited. he'd given you room to breathe, hoping you'd unblock him when you were ready. but by the fifth day, the silence no longer felt like space. it felt more like distance.
and for the first time in a long time, he found himself genuinely afraid that if he kept waiting, he'd lose you.
sae picked up his phone again, staring at the blank screen as though something might magically change if he looked at it long enough. then, with a sharp exhale, he stood and began pacing across the room.
“… fine,” he breathed, his frustration gradually hardening into determination. “if you’re not gonna answer, then i’ll make sure you can’t ignore me.”
the next morning, a series of knocks startled you awake.
you rubbed the sleep from your eyes as you made your way towards the front door, expecting a neighbor or perhaps a delivery meant for someone else. instead when you pulled it open, you were met with an enormous bouquet wrapped in crisp ivory paper, the pale pink tulips peeking out from between lush greenery, alongside a small ribbon-tied gift bag that was held carefully by a delivery man. you blinked in confusion as you signed for the items, a strange rush of nerves settling beneath your ribs.
tucked between the flowers was a small cream-colored card, a message printed neatly across the front.
i know you’re upset, but i’m not letting you disappear on me that easily.
open the box.
- sae
with unsteady hands, you reached into the gift bag and pulled out a small velvet box.
inside was a delicate necklace that looked far too expensive to have been chosen on impulse— a fine platinum chain with a custom pendant resting at its center. it has a miniature soccer ball encrusted with tiny pavé diamonds intertwined with a polished heart, a single larger diamond catching the light where the two charms met. when you carefully turned the pendant over, you found a few words engraved across the back in fine lettering:
‘no distance changes us.’
your vision blurred almost instantly.
you clutched the necklace against your chest, your thumb tracing over the engraving as though you needed proof that it was real. the last bit of anger you had been desperately holding onto began to crumble around the edges.
then, a few seconds later, another knock sounded through the apartment.
when you opened the door again, a second delivery man stood outside holding a paper bag from morethan bakery(which was your favorite bakery)— the familiar logo stamped across the front while the warm scent of butter & sugar somehow escaped through the neatly folded top.
“delivery for [y/n]?” he asked, glancing down at the receipt.
“y-yes, that’s me,” you answered, still struggling to blink away the tears gathering along your lashes.
after thanking him, you carried everything inside and carefully laid the enormous bouquet across the coffee table before opening the pastry box. inside were your favorite butter croissants, golden and flaky; still warm enough for their rich, buttery scent to fill your entire apartment almost immediately.
you simply stood there in stunned disbelief, letting everything sink in.
only after the initial shock began to settle did you carefully lift the necklace from its velvet box and fasten it around your neck. once the clasp clicked into place, your fingertips immediately found the pendant, pressing against it as though you could somehow feel closer to him through the tiny charm.
it felt exactly like something sae would do— express everything he couldn’t put into words through one carefully chosen gift, finding a way to reach you without demanding that you answer.
you took a small bite of the croissant, chewing slowly as your eyes drifted towards your phone lying beside the box.
for five days, you had convinced yourself that silence was easier than another half-hearted reply, easier than another reminder that loving someone across different time zones could sometimes feel lonelier than being alone.
but now, with an enormous bouquet of your favorite flowers spread across your coffee table & his necklace resting warmly against your skin, your resolve felt weaker than ever.
your thumb hovered over his contact again.
this time, you didn’t stop yourself.
*unblock*
for a few seconds, you remained on the screen, staring at his contact as though something might suddenly change.
but nothing did.
well, of course it didn’t. any messages he might have sent while he was blocked wouldn’t magically appear now that you unblocked him. still, you hated the pang of disappointment that crept inside you.
you didn’t even know what you had been hoping for. perhaps some impossible flood of missed messages, some proof that he had spent the past five days trying to reach you. some sign that the silence had indeed hurt him too.
then a bitter thought slipped into your mind.
he could’ve found some ridiculous way to reach you if he truly wanted to. spotify, shared notes, or even a new account made solely to get through to you. and yet, deep down, you knew sae well enough to know that if he had kept pushing— you probably would’ve hated that too.
a quiet exhale slipped past your lips, carrying some of the tension with it. before you could talk yourself out of it, you opened your chat with him & stared at the empty space beneath your last conversation.
your fingers moved before you could think too much.
[ 9:15 am ] you: i got them.
you stared at the message.
then deleted it.
[ 9:15 am ] you: thank you.
deleted.
[ 9:16 am ] you: sae, i—
deleted again.
you let out a shaky breath, pressing your lips together as frustration and longing tangled painfully inside your chest.
then, as though summoned by the thought of him, your phone buzzed.
your heart nearly stopped when you saw who the message was from.
[ 9:17 am ] sae ♡: did you receive it yet?
for a moment, you could only stare at the screen.
the timing was so coincidental that it almost felt as though he had been waiting on the other side the entire time, watching for the second you'd finally let him back in.
[ 9:18 am ] you: yeah…
three dots appeared almost immediately.
then disappeared.
then re-appeared again.
[ 9:18 am ] sae ♡: good.
you swallowed hard, glancing down at the necklace.
of course.
of course he would say it like that, as though he hadn’t just arranged for some of your favorite things to be delivered to your doorstep even while he was at an entirely different country.
[ 9:19 am ] you: you’re unbelievable.
his reply came only a few seconds later.
[ 9:19 am ] sae ♡: can’t believe you blocked my email too. seriously, my email?
you covered your mouth as a breathless giggle slipped out before you could suppress it. you couldn’t believe he had noticed that too.
[ 9:20 am ] you: well, i was mad. and you could’ve tried spotify.
[ 9:20 am ] sae ♡: spotify? we’re able to text people there now?
[ 9:21 am ] sae ♡: and i get it. you had every right to be mad.
your fingers hovered over the screen, but before you could respond, another message came through.
[ 9:22 am ] sae ♡: can we call for a bit?
your throat tightened.
for a second, you only stared at the message, your heartbeat suddenly loud in your ears. then your gaze flickered towards the time at the top of the screen.
9:22 am.
which meant it was a little past two in the morning for him.
your brows knitted together as the realization made something ache inside your chest.
[ 9:23 am ] you: aren’t you supposed to be asleep?
his reply came almost instantly.
[ 9:23 am ] sae ♡: yes
[ 9:23 am ] you: sae…
[ 9:24 am ] sae ♡: just answer the call.
before you could type anything else, his name lit up your screen.
incoming call from ‘sae ♡’
your thumb stalled over the green button before you finally answered.
the line connected instantly, and for a moment, neither of you said anything. all you could hear was the faint static of the call, the quiet rhythm of his breathing, and your own pulse beating far too quickly beneath your skin.
then his voice came through, low and rough with exhaustion.
“… you’re wearing it?”
your hand immediately rose to the necklace.
you hated how easily he knew.
“… how would you even know that?” you mumbled, hating how quickly your voice softened.
“because i know you,” he answered simply.
you blinked.
“w-well…” your lips pressed together as you struggled to keep your composure.
“… you’re not asleep?” you asked, changing the subject almost immediately. “it’s two in the morning there, sae.”
“couldn’t sleep.”
“because of training?”
“no…” he answered after a moment, the silence stretching around the word.
your chest tightened.
“then… because of me?”
he didn’t answer straight away.
then, quietly, he said, “because of us.”
your heart softened at the weight of his confession. you looked down at the half-eaten croissant in front of you, at the bouquet of tulips spread messily across your coffee table, at all the little reminders of him scattered throughout your apartment as though he had somehow filled the room without even being there.
“you know… you really didn’t have to send all of this,” you murmured, brushing your thumb over the pendant.
“i did.”
“sae…”
“you wouldn’t answer me.”
“because i was still hurt.”
“i know.”
his usual composure held, though something unguarded had begun to surface. “… i know,” he repeated, sounding more vulnerable the second time.
“i made you feel like you were asking for too much,” he continued, his grip tightening slightly around the phone. “and i shouldn’t have said what i said. i was tired & irritated, but that’s not an excuse.”
you swallowed hard, your eyes stinging at his words.
“you made me feel like i was bothering you,” you admitted, your voice beginning to tremble. “like wanting to hear from my own boyfriend was an inconvenience.”
sae didn’t answer immediately. for once, he allowed your words to settle instead of rushing to defend himself.
“i know you’re busy,” you continued, your fingertips catching the tears before you even realized you were crying. “i know how much your training and matches matter to you. but sometimes, it felt like i was always waiting for whatever pieces of you were left at the end of the day.”
his breathing shifted faintly through the speaker. “i didn’t realize it had gotten that bad.”
“well… it did.”
a long pause followed before he finally spoke again, the usual firmness gone from his voice.
“… i’m really sorry,” he breathed, guilt weighing heavily on every word. “for making you feel like you weren’t important to me.”
your face crumpled before you could stop it. you hated how badly you had needed to hear those exact words from him.
“and i’m sorry too…” you whispered. “for blocking you everywhere.”
“tch. you should be,” he replied dryly, the faintest trace of amusement slipping into his voice.
you laughed beneath your breath, wiping at your damp cheeks.
“you blocked my email.”
“well… i was fully committed.”
“but blocking my email was a bit excessive, no?”
“i was hurt, okay?” you huffed, though there was no real anger behind it anymore.
his voice softened again. “… i get it.”
with sae, it had always been this way. he rarely said more than necessary, but somehow; the few words he did give you always carried more weight than he realized. and when he truly meant something, you could feel it— even through the distance of a phone call.
“i-i missed you,” you blurt out, unable to keep the longing out of your voice.
sae went silent and for one terrifying second, you wondered if you had said too much.
then he exhaled softly. “i missed you too, amor.”
for a moment, neither of you said anything.
you stood beside your coffee table with one hand wrapped around your phone, listening to his breathing on the other end as though it were the closest thing you had to being held by him again. and eventually, you asked the question that had been sitting heavily inside your chest.
“so… when are you coming back?”
“next week,” he answered after a brief pause, his voice dropping slightly.
you let out a deflated sigh, disappointment settling inside you even though you had expected that answer.
“ohh…”
“i’ll be back soon enough,” he reassured, hoping it would ease some of the ache in your voice.
you looked down at the croissant in front of you and picked absently at its flaky edges. “i-i just… really really miss you a lot.”
on the other side of the world, sae’s expression softened, something tender flickering across his tired features at your honest confession.
“i know,” he murmured. “… and i miss you a lot too.”
a quiet pause followed.
“i’ll be back soon,” he promised. “and we’ll talk properly when i am.”
your fingers tightened around the phone.
“promise?”
“yeah,” he answered without hesitation. “i promise.”
you nodded even though he couldn’t see it.
“… okay.”
for the first time in five days, the silence inside your apartment didn’t feel so unbearable anymore. because even though sae was still thousands of miles away, you no longer felt like you were the only one holding on.
it’s been a few days since you’d unblocked sae, and the two of you had been texting ever since. well, that was until… he suddenly stopped replying to the last message you’d sent just the night before.
why wasn’t he answering?
you tried convincing yourself there had to be some kind of explanation. but after everything that had happened between you two, you couldn’t stop yourself from wondering whether he had suddenly changed his mind about fixing things.
beep.
you glanced down, expecting to see sae’s name, only for your sister’s contact to appear instead.
[ 2:22 pm ] sister: the new restaurant that just opened near the waterfront
[ 2:22 pm ] sister: I WANNA CHECK IT OUT 😭
it wasn’t unusual for your sister to invite you out to dinner at the very last minute.
if anything, this was very much like her. she was always the first to discover new cafés & restaurants, sending you random food videos on tiktok and insisting the two of you ‘needed to try this place out before it got too crowded.’
so you didn’t think much of it.
[ 2:23 pm ] you: sure, what time?
[ 2:23 pm ] sister: 8:00pm? i’ll meet you there
[ 2:24 pm ] sister: ohh & wear something cute
[ 2:24 pm ] you: WHY would i wear something cute just to eat dinner with you?
[ 2:25 pm ] sister: because i’ll be wearing something cute & i don’t want to outdress you??? 🥱🥱
[ 2:25 pm ] sister: AND DON’T BE LATE
you rolled your eyes at her dramatics, though a small smile still tugged at the corner of your lips.
[ 2:25 pm ] you: whatever bye 🙄
the rest of the afternoon passed with you checking your phone more times than you could count, hoping sae’s name would appear at the top of your screen.
but every time you unlocked it, there was still nothing.
no reply, or an explanation.
just the last message you had sent him, still sitting on delivered.
by the time evening came, you had finally convinced yourself to stop staring at your phone as though it owed you something. you got ready for dinner slowly, standing in front of your closet longer than you meant to as your sister’s words echoed inside your head.
‘wear something cute.’
you huffed beneath your breath, pulling out an outfit and holding it against yourself in the mirror.
“… so extra,” you muttered, shaking your head.
still, you ended up choosing something nicer than what you would typically wear for a casual dinner. you made a few final adjustments to your hair, dabbed a little tinted gloss over your lips, and adjusted the necklace resting against your collarbone.
sae’s necklace. your fingers lingered there for a moment, brushing over the tiny pendant sitting warmly against your skin. you studied your reflection before tearing your gaze away and reaching for your handbag, refusing to let your thoughts drag you back to him again.
—
you arrived at the restaurant a few minutes before eight.
the place was already busy, golden light spilling through the glass windows and stretching across the pavement outside. every time the door opened, a rush of sound escaped with it— the clinking of cutlery, bursts of laughter, and the faint call of someone’s name from somewhere inside.
it looked newer than most of the other places along the waterfront, with polished wooden tables, low-hanging lights, and cream-colored walls that made the entire restaurant feel warmer than the evening air outside. a small line had already formed near the entrance. through the glass, you could see servers weaving between tables, plates balanced carefully in their hands.
you checked your phone.
still no message from sae. and nothing from your sister either.
frowning slightly, you began to type.
[ 7:56 pm ] you: i’m here. where are you? 🙄
a few moments passed before she finally replied.
[ 7:58 pm ] sister: omg sorry 😭
[ 7:58 pm ] sister: enter first!! i’m reaching soon
you sighed, already used to this.
of course she was late after repeatedly telling you not to be.
you waited outside for another minute, shifting your weight from one foot to the other as people moved around you in pairs & small groups. when your sister still didn’t appear, you finally stepped inside before you began looking too much like someone who had been stood up.
after making your way towards the hostess stand, she smiled politely and confirmed the reservation under your sister’s name before leading you towards a table near the window.
it was tucked slightly away from the crowd— close enough to watch people passing outside, yet secluded enough for the restaurant’s bustle to soften into distant background noise.
you sat down and placed your handbag on your lap.
five minutes, you told yourself.
you would give her five minutes before you started complaining.
while you waited, you opened the menu and scanned the different entrées available. pasta, grilled chicken, rice, steak, desserts— everything began blurring together as your attention drifted back towards your phone.
still nothing from sae.
your fingers tapped lightly against the edge of the table.
maybe he was busy.
maybe he was asleep.
maybe he had finally realized that fixing things from another country was more difficult than he’d thought. the possibility made your stomach twist, and you hated yourself a little for even considering it.
your sister was late. sae wasn’t replying. and somehow, both things were making you feel far more agitated than they should have.
another minute passed.
then another.
you glanced towards the entrance again, expecting to see your sister hurrying inside with that sheepish expression she always wore after keeping you waiting.
but she still wasn’t there.
instead, the hostess was speaking to someone near the front. you couldn’t see his face clearly at first. only the dark coat draped over his lean frame and the way his presence felt strangely familiar before your mind could make sense of why.
something inside your chest tightened.
then he turned slightly— just enough for the dim restaurant light to catch a glimpse of his reddish-brown hair and the familiar side profile you would recognized anywhere.
your breath stopped.
no fucking way.
for one impossible second, you couldn’t move.
you couldn’t even convince yourself that you weren’t imagining him; that missing someone hadn’t finally made you desperate enough to start seeing him in strangers.
then he began walking towards your table.
slowly.
your pulse thundered inside your ears with every step he took.
he stopped beside the empty chair across from you, one hand resting lightly against its back. up close, he looked tired. not the kind of tired you could hear through a phone call, but the kind that settled beneath his eyes, in the few loose strands falling over his forehead, and in the quiet heaviness of someone who had spent too many hours between airports and flights yet had still come anyway.
his gaze dropped first to the necklace resting against your collarbone.
the one he had arranged to have delivered to you. then his eyes lifted towards yours.
for a moment, neither of you said anything. the entire restaurant seemed to dissolve into a distant blur around him.
sae’s lips parted slightly before his voice finally broke through the silence, low and familiar enough to make your heart ache.
“hello, amor.”
your mouth opened, but nothing came out.
sae studied you for another second, his expression unreadable, though something softer flickered beneath his teal irises.
“you look beautiful…”
you blinked, still struggling to process that he was really standing there— about to sit across from you in a restaurant where you had expected to be eating dinner with your sister. your fingers tightened around the menu as though it were the only thing keeping you grounded. “… y-you’re supposed to be in spain,” you whispered, your voice barely carrying over the clinking plates and low murmur of nearby conversations.
“you said next week.”
sae pulled out the chair and sat down slowly, as though he were giving you time to adjust to the sight of him.
“i changed my flight,” he explained. “and i asked your sister to bring you here so i could surprise you.”
you stared at him, your heart hammering against your ribs.
“w-why didn’t you just tell me?”
“because then it wouldn’t have been a surprise.” his gaze briefly lowered towards your necklace again before meeting your eyes.
“and i wasn’t sure you’d agree to see me.”
the raw honesty in his answer stole some of the air from your lungs. before you could respond, a waiter stopped beside the table with a notepad in hand.
“good evening! are the two of you ready to order?”
you & sae both lowered your eyes to the menus, scanning the options quickly as the printed pages gave you both a brief excuse to look away. “um… i’ll just have the grilled chicken, please.”
“and for you, sir?”
sae’s eyes moved briefly across the menu before looking at the waiter. “the steak.”
“how would you like that cooked?”
“medium rare.”
the waiter nodded as he scribbled everything down. “anything to drink?”
“water’s fine,” you answered quietly.
“same as her,” sae added.
“perfect. i’ll put those in for you.”
you murmured a soft thank you as the waiter collected the menus and walked away. once he was gone, the tension slipped back into place. your fingers found the strap of your handbag again, twisting it loosely around your hand while sae remained still across from you, his attention fixed solely on your face as though he were waiting for you to pick up where the interruption had left off.
you drew in a slow breath, trying to gather the courage to say what had been sitting inside your chest for days.
“i was really hurt, sae…” you breathed, finally looking at him again. “it felt like i was always the one waiting— like i was bothering you every time i texted or called, y’know?”
sae’s expression remained serious, his attention fixed entirely on you.
“i understand that training is important, and i know how much your career means to you,” you continued, your voice growing quieter. “but sometimes it feels like i’m not even a priority to you anymore.”
sae remained silent for a long moment, his forearms resting against the table as he listened attentively to everything you had to say.
when he finally spoke, his voice was low and steady, though something remorseful lingered beneath it. “i was… too focused.” he said after a pause, his gaze briefly dropping. “i thought that if i kept pushing through the season, everything else would be fine.”
his jaw tightened faintly. “i didn’t realize how much i was shutting you out until things had already gotten that bad.”
he looked at you again, teal-eyes serious in a way that made your chest ache. “… i’m really sorry,” he murmured, his expression softening. “for making you feel like you were asking for too much. for the short replies. for making you feel like an inconvenience.”
he paused, his gaze holding yours.
“you’re not, and you never have been.”
your eyes began to sting.
you looked down at your hands, trying desperately to keep your voice steady. “i missed you,” you whispered, blinking quickly when your vision began to blur again. “even when i was angry, i missed hearing from you. i missed…”
your breath caught slightly. “i missed us.”
sae reached across the table, his larger hand settling over yours. his thumb brushed slowly across your knuckles— a small, grounding gesture that somehow felt louder than anything else he could’ve said.
“… i missed you too,” he murmured, his usual composure slipping just enough for you to hear the ache underneath. “more than i knew how to tell you.”
his fingers curled around yours.
“the hotel room felt too quiet & i kept checking my phone even when i knew you still had me blocked.”
eventually the food arrived, but neither of you touched it immediately as the silence between you felt different now. still heavy, but no longer painful.
“i don’t want us to keep doing this,” sae said after a moment, his voice low. “the distance. the arguments. feeling like we’re always one bad day away from falling apart.”
his thumb continued tracing absent circles over your knuckles.
“i want to be better at this,” he admitted. “for you & for us.”
you looked up at him, your eyes glassy. “i want that too,” you whispered. “but i don’t want to feel like i’m begging for scraps of your time anymore.”
sae nodded, gently squeezing your hand. “then we’ll figure it out,” he said, his voice calm but certain. “together.”
he held your gaze as he continued.
“no more shutting each other out. no more assuming the worst without asking. even when things get difficult, we talk about it.”
you let out a shaky breath, a small, tearful smile finally breaking through.
“okay…” you breathed, squeezing his hand back.
afterwards, the rest of the evening seemed to pass by in a blur. there were still things left to mend, but for the first time in weeks, neither of you seemed afraid of trying. the resentment that had once sat heavily between you had begun to loosen its hold.
when the bill arrived, sae was already moving. he placed his credit card onto the tray before you could so much as glance at the amount.
the waiter returned a few minutes later with the receipt, and sae signed it almost absentmindedly before setting the pen back down.
then he stood, pushed his chair back, and offered you his hand.
“let’s go home.” he murmured, the softness in his expression making your chest ache.
you looked at his outstretched hand for a moment before placing yours inside it. his fingers immediately intertwined with yours as the two of you walked out of the restaurant hand-in-hand. the soft noise from inside gradually faded behind you, replaced by the faint rush of passing cars & the muted sound of waves folding against the seawall.
the night air felt cool against your skin, but sae’s hand remained warm in yours, his fingers laced securely with your own as though he had no intention of letting go again.
18+
the ride back to your apartment drifted by in silence, but it no longer carried the weight it once had. sae’s hand never left yours, his thumb brushing slow circles over your knuckles the entire way. every now and then, you’d glance at him like you still couldn’t believe that the two of you were finally reunited after weeks of distance, arguments & almost losing each other completely.
when you finally stepped inside, the door barely clicked shut before sae had you pressed against it, his lips claimed yours in a desperate, heated kiss. his hands slid down your sides, gripping your hips as he pulled you flush against him.
“… missed you,” he murmured against your lips, his breathing already ragged. “so fucking much.”
you whimpered into the kiss, fingers threading through his hair as you pulled him closer. “then show me,” you whispered, nipping at his bottom lip.
sae groaned softly, the sound vibrating against your mouth. he lifted you effortlessly, your legs wrapping around his waist as he carried you straight to the bedroom and laid you down on the bed gently. the bulge in his pants was apparent, straining against the fabric.
he stripped you out of your clothes, eyes dark as he took in every inch of your body. it had been weeks since he’d last touched you like this, weeks since he’d been close enough to feel your warmth under his hands. when he finally settled between your thighs, sae didn’t rush. he started pressing light kisses all the way down your body, tongue teasing over your skin until you were trembling beneath him.
“sae…” you breathed, hips lifting instinctively as his mouth hovered just above your entrance.
he looked up at you, teal-eyes burning with desire. “let me take care of you.”
his tongue dragged slowly over your folds, tasting you like he had been starving for weeks. you let out a salacious moan, fingers tightening in his hair as he licked and sucked on your sensitive clit with focused intent, like nothing else in the world mattered but making you fall apart on his tongue.
“haaahhh— right there,” you gasped, back arching when he when he sucked harder on your swollen clit, tongue flicking rapidly against the sensitive bundle of nerves.
he groaned against you, the vibration sending sparks up your spine. he didn’t stop, tongue pressing firmer as he slid two fingers inside your core, curling just right until you were shaking. your hips bucked wildly against his mouth, pleasure coiling tighter and tighter in your belly as the combined sensation of his tongue and fingers pushed you right to the edge.
but no, sae wasn’t done yet.
he moved up your body, kissing you deeply again so you could taste yourself on his tongue. only then did he pull back to strip himself fully, tugging his shirt over his head before shoving his pants and boxers down in one rough motion. his gaze never left yours as he climbed back over you, one hand spreading your thighs while the other guided his throbbing length between them.
when he finally pushed inside you, it was slow and deep, stretching your walls open as he bottomed out. “… fuck,” he groaned, forehead pressed to yours. “missed this pussy…”
he started moving, hips rolling in a steady, powerful rhythm that had you moaning with every merciless thrust. his hand slid between your thighs, thumb circling your clit in slow circles as his cock plowed in & out of your greedy pussy, hitting that sweet spot inside you with every deep stroke.
“mine,” he rasped against your neck, biting down gently to leave a mark. “you’re mine.”
you could only babble his name, nails digging into his back as the pleasure built again, faster this time. sae’s thrusts only grew rougher, more desperate, his breathing growing ragged against your skin.
“s-sae— ah, fuck—” you cried out, voice breaking as your legs tightened around his waist. “mmngghh— feels so good—”
your hips rolled up to meet his thrusts, chasing the deep, delicious drag of his cock inside you. every powerful stroke made your toes curl, pleasure coiling tighter and tighter in your belly until you felt like you might just shatter from how good it felt.
“cum for me, amor.” he growled, the pad of his thumb pressing firmer on your clit. “let me feel you.”
your body convulsed beneath him as you felt your release rush up all at once, clenching around him as waves of pleasure crashed over you. sae followed right after, burying himself deep with a low, broken groan as he spilled his white-hot release inside you, hips jerking through every pulse.
afterwards, he rolled onto his side and pulled you into his chest, keeping you close like he couldn’t stand even an inch of space between you yet. his arms wrapped around you tightly, one hand stroking your back as you both tried to catch your breath after the heated session.
“… i love you,” he whispered against your hair, voice hoarse but sincere. “don’t ever doubt that again.”
you pressed a soft kiss to his cheek, eyes already heavy.
“i love you too, sae.”
⨳ 𝓷𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬: someone commented— why didn’t he try texting her through spotify & i just had to incorporate that in 🙂↕️ but i genuinely don’t think he knows we can do that now…
Hello I would like to participate in the matchup event please! Also sorry if I make any mistakes, English isn’t my first language. I use female pronouns and I study medicine.
I am a pretty hardworking student and very self conscious. I get really disappointed in myself when I don’t reach my goals and expectations.
I watch movies (romcom, action,sci-fi, etc), I cook and bake (especially cookies and banana bread). I have a really sweet tooth and love to go out just to try new café and restaurants.
I used to draw a lot and still do it sometimes and I’m very good at it. I talked to some guys when I was younger but it wasn’t serious and It was rather a bad experience. I’m not against dating but personally I prefer a SLOWburn, I hate when things are fast and easy.
As much as I’d like to disagree I’m shy, and an introverted person btw. My family tell me that I have a bad resting face (I seem in a bad mood apparently) and difficult to talk to (for strangers). I admit that I am awkward when things don’t go as I prepared in a conversation. I’m rather a caring person (like helping do things, listening, trying to find solutions to problems, little attentions,etc) but I dislike and avoid saying I love you.
I’m also very sensitive to details and atmosphere. So I might get moody without explaining myself if the person don’t notice and ask what’s wrong. I would most definitely look annoyed a lot (from times to times I guess) since I don’t want to hide my feelings but also don’t want to be a burden to people close to me. If I have a partner who is offended by my reactions it won’t work honestly.
I tend not to react dramatically but I’m also a jealous person. I just don’t want my boyfriend to talk or have girl friends if I don’t have myself guy friends. I try but I’m bad at communicating because I feel awkward talking about my feelings. I also heavily avoid talking about my own problems (of family matters or whatever), I feel guilty and exposed when I overshare.
So I think that’s all 😭 I wrote a lot and tried to be as objective as possible, don’t hesitate to ignore some parts. And I also wanted to say that I like your idea very much it’s so original!! Take care bye!
your match is... sae itoshi ♡
if you want someone for a sweet, quiet slowburn romance, i will have to match you with sae — the serious high-achiever who also happens to have a rbf
this man is the literal definition of a slow burn. his personality is professional, focused and detached when needed. he is not the type who would do casual flings, or to make things move too fast. he would approach your relationship carefully, moving slow to be sure you're ready for what is coming next.
you don't have to worry about your fake-annoyed expression, because sae always looks like he’s in a bad mood (lol). since he is similar to you in this point, he will never be offended by your annoyed expressions or quiet moods and will understand that you're not actually mad at him.
since you would like the other person to notice the shifts in your mood, you need someone whose observation skills are immaculate. sae is perfect for this purpose! one of his strengths is the ability to observe, and he will instantly notice when the vibe shifts. he will sometimes wait to ask you about your mood change, just to be sure he's not being too pushy.
he will not pretend to hear "i love you" on a daily basis, since words of affirmation really isn't his love language. he would prefer to show love through his actions or through a nice day spent together
if you have any kind of issue or you just want to talk and rant about your day, he will make himself available right away, even if he's travelling around the world with 2 hours of sleep
sae is notoriously picky about his food choices (he dislikes french fries because they're too oily) but he will not complain when you bake something for him. plus, he will bring your banana bread as a snack to eat during his training sessions
the only people he doesn't want too close to you are rin (also if it's a minor thing, he just doesn't want you involved in useless family drama) and bunny iglesias. for the rest, he is completely okay with you having your own circle. he doesn't have girl friends, so you don't have to worry about jealousy
to make you feel more at ease, he will mention the fact that he has a girlfriend whenever they ask him. he will not share any private detail about you without consent, but he will be quick to shut down useless dating rumors with actresses, singers or any celebrity.
