ha ha ha whot?
you don't have a clue.
crack crossover. mark/eduardo, xabi alonso, arbeloa, granero, et all. in which eduardo meets xabi, and xabi helps him figure out everything.
HA HA HA.
I WROTE THIS FOR manfuckery secret santa.
ro asked for tsn/futbol crossover and late night chats with paitac has already incepted me with the idea. so here are 3,000 words of pure crack. and un-funny crack that is.
in case you need some sort of help. xabi is a gqmf who had an epic bromance with stevie g. (they were so fucken otp and even kissed once with cameras and all. esteban granero really is a dirty hipster player. and arbeloa really is obsessed with social media and tweets his location four times a day (he also loves wearing flip flops)
Eduardo meets Xabi on one of those obnoxious required lectures that no one really pays attention to. (Contemporary Art)
After three weeks of exchanging commentary about the professor's excessive use of hair gel (Eduardo is really not one to talk) and Xabi wearing cleats that are much too bright for anyone to wear (honestly, who chooses hot pink and purple?), Xabi mentions they are one person short on the futbol team.
"You know I mean soccer, right?" Xabi asks. The lecture hall is dark except for the projector showing slides of Chuck Close's amoeba-like grids.
"I assumed." Eduardo says, pointing to Xabi's cleats.
"Come by tomorrow, 4 o'clock?" Xabi asks, his accent so thick that it gives Eduardo comfort for not being the only foreign person he knows of on campus.
Mark laughs.
Of course Mark laughs.
Just because they may be friends, doesn't mean that Mark really believes Eduardo can succeed at something that requires any sort of physical activity.
"Courses should be listed alphabetically as opposed to grouped into subjects, don't you think." It's not much of a question as it is a statement. Mark is staring at his laptop screen, giant red type that reads 'COURSEMASH' glowing back at him.
"Hey, maybe I can get you to be our mascot. At least I think soccer has mascots."
"I don't think a professor search engine field is necessary, but Dustin seems to think a lot of our peers base their schedule around certain instructors. You also haven't made the team, I wouldn't go buy sportswear yet."
"Yeah, you're probably --"
Mark interrupts. "That was mean."
"No, you're right."
"Wardo, you're Brazilian. You'll get in. Stop worrying about it."
Eduardo pats Mark's shoulder before standing up to leave. "You know, you really shouldn't make generalizations about people based on their nationality."
It turns out, Eduardo is actually kind of good at playing football.
He is not as good at making passes like Xabi, but at least he runs faster than most people on the team. He runs and runs until he has made it past 3 guys, shoots and scores. And that has to count for something.
Xabi introduces him to Alvaro and Stevie and some guy they call 'Ray-Ban' (Eduardo later learns his name is Esteban). They all welcome him to the team, and Eduardo is happy to finally feel like he is part of something.
Between classes and The Harvard Investors Association and practice, Eduardo has little to no time to come up to Mark's dorm.
Mark doesn't care. If he does, Eduardo never hears anything about it.
But it's been three weeks and the only sign that Mark is alive is that stupid blog he frantically updates daily. (Not that Eduardo would ever admit to reading Mark's online journal.) So when Xabi mentions there is a party off campus some guys from the team are going to, Eduardo asks if he can bring someone along.
"Of course." Xabi says, and he is doing something that kind of looks like a wink but Eduardo can't tell.
To: Mark
Hey come with me to a party
tonight. You can meet the team.
Don't wear flip flops
"I wish Alvaro were here, he would finally believe me." Xabi tells him. Whatever he is talking about, Eduardo has no idea. "Just don't tell Esteban it's him you are with." Xabi says, pointing at Mark who is waiting in line for the bathroom. "You'll break his Ray-Ban heart."
Oh.
So Xabi thinks that Eduardo is --and then that means Esteban is also--. And no wonder he was so interested in his black Italian shoes.
"You think me and Mark? No! Not at all."
"Y entonces, porque lo habéis invitado?" Eduardo doesn't speak spanish, so he shakes his head at Xabi. "So you are not?"
Eduardo shakes his head again.
"Are you sure? Because you have been getting him refills all night and you are staring like you are in gay for him." He can't really defend himself because Xabi is already making his way to the sea of people surrounding the keg.
Oh.
So Eduardo is apparently in gay with Mark or something. And all it took for him to realize this was for his captain to tell him.
"We should go." Mark says, and Eduardo jumps a little because Mark is standing too close and dammit, Xabi!
"No, you need more beer. Besides, you haven't meet my teammates."
"Wardo--"
"Come meet them." And he doesn't think twice about grabbing Mark by the arm and dragging him closer to where Xabi is standing.
"This is Stevie, Esteban and Xabi, he's the--"
Mark cuts him off. "Captain, I know. Leaving?"
"Mark."
"Hey Eduardo! If your friend wants to leave, you can take a cab back with me. You are in Kirkland, right?" Esteban has his arm around him, and Eduardo doesn't know what to do or say. Just a couple of minutes ago Xabi implied that he may or may not have a crush on Eduardo and this should really not matter at all. Besides, he came here with Mark, it only makes sense they leave together.
"But Mark and I, we-- I should take him back."
"Mark is a big guy, Eduardo. He can leave if it pleases him." Esteban says, or rather slurs much to closely to Eduardo's ear.
Mark bites his lip before turning around and heading for the door.
Eduardo doesn't follow. Mostly because Esteban is dragging him to get more tequila shots.
Mark doesn't mention the incident, except for on his blog. (Which Eduardo will deny to pressing F5 continuously during his Macro Econ. class.)
Two weeks after that, Eduardo is playing volley-foot with the team as practice. He looks over to the bleachers and Mark is there. Mark is there wearing sunglasses that look ten times too big for him and frantically hitting buttons on his laptop.
Eduardo doesn't know why Mark is even here, the glare of the sun on the screen has to be pretty bad. It's not like Mark can get any work done in these conditions.
It doesn't matter, because Mark is here and Eduardo has apparently turned into a 16 year old girl who can't stop smiling.
He kicks the ball one more time and Alvaro misses. They win.
Next thing he knows, Esteban jumps on his back and he is chanting something that goes a little like "we win! we win! in your face captain! in your face Alvaro."
But Alvaro is ignoring them and staring at the bleachers. Eduardo lets go of Esteban and turns.
Mark is gone. Or maybe Mark was never there and Eduardo is actually going insane, which would explain a lot.
"Was that Mark? Mark Zuckerberg?" Alvaro asks.
"Yeah, he likes to follow Eduardo around." Esteban answers.
Alvaro looks shocked. "Ed, you know him?"
Eduardo nods.
"Dude, he made coursemash! That guy is a genius I read--"
Eduardo is not really paying attention to what Alvaro is saying, because Mark was here. Mark was here watching Eduardo practice and then he left without saying goodbye. Maybe he didn't say goodbye because Eduardo was too busy giving Esteban a piggy back ride.
And then it clicks.
Mark doesn't really like Esteban, because Esteban made Eduardo stay at the party the other day. And then Mark wrote something snarky about his hair on that stupid blog. And maybe that means that Mark--.
He runs out of the pitch without saying goodbye. He needs answers
It doesn't take any effort to find Mark. (He is in his dorm, staring at his screen, typing with one hand and balancing a book on his lap.)
"You came by practice?"
Mark responds by hitting his keys even harder, like he is trying to send Eduardo a message. The message meaning: leave me alone, I have more important things to do.
"Mark."
Mark stops typing and turns around. He looks like is going to say something, then he makes his way to the fridge and grabs a juice. (It reminds Eduardo he forgot his water bottle and maybe Mark can share.)
"Why did you leave so suddenly, we could have gotten food afterward."
"Isn't that something you do with your team friends?" Mark asks without looking at him.
"They're not that bad."
Mark drinks the last of the juice and presses the empty bottle to Eduardo. "That guy Esteban, he looks--"
So maybe Eduardo is not really going insane. Maybe Mark is a bit jealous. It would explain why he is not moving as Eduardo gets closer to him.
"Tell me this isn't about him." And that is as close as Eduardo will get to actually ask what he wants to ask.
"Are you like, delusional? I came back because my battery was dead." Mark tells him, backing away. "And Wardo? You stink."
Mark is not jealous, he was never jealous. It makes Eduardo feel stupid, and this is totally Xabi's fault.
"Well excuse me for pointing out the obvious." Xabi whispers during lecture hall.
"Xabi, I'm not--" Eduardo makes a gesture with his hands.
Xabi's nose crinkles, like he is trying to hold back a laughter. "You mean you have never, with a guy? Not even on a drunken stupor?"
Eduardo shakes his head and writes down something the professor is saying.
Before class is over, he notices a piece of yellow paper on top of his notebook.
Maybe I was wrong then.
But I am never wrong, that is why I am captain
IF Xabi is never wrong, then Eduardo needs to figure out if he is maybe kind of --. And shit, he wont even finish that thought.
His logic goes a little like so:
- He needs to find out if Xabi is right.
- But Mark will never agree to be used as a guinea pig.
- That leaves him with only one option.
- This won't end well.
Mark comes up to his dorm, which only happens when he really needs something from Eduardo.
And this is very bad timing.
"There's no time to get food before the conference."
Eduardo is not paying much attention because he is too busy looking for his right patent leather shoe.
"We should go right now. Dustin said he would save us seats, but you know how people get at these things. There is no guarantee."
"I can't find my shoe."
Mark kicks a pair of sneakers in his direction. "I doubt he will care about your shoes. Wardo, it's a conference not a job interview."
"Conference? What are you talking about?" Ah, of course the shoe is under his bed.
"Are you wearing cologne?"
Eduardo puts his shoe on and looks at himself one last time in the mirror. He is going to do this. Consequences be damned. "I really have to go, I told Esteban I would meet him ten minutes ago. But have fun at your thing."
It's not meant to come off as rude, but Eduardo has bigger things to worry about.
Esteban tastes like buttery wine and cheap cigarettes. And Eduardo really hates to admit that he likes the way his stubble feels on his face.
Shit.
Xabi, that fucker, was right.
The next monday at practice, Xabi gives Eduardo a look that says both i told you so and how could you.
Esteban won't stop looking at him during sprint runs and all Eduardo wants to do is die. Until he looks at the bleachers and sees Mark, typing on his computer and sitting next to what looks like yards and yards of electrical cord.
He waves at Eduardo, and Eduardo feels butterflies and --shit. SHIT
So he waves back and smiles, because fighting this is like trying to fight gravity.
And then two seconds later, BOOM! A football hits Mark's screen shut. Eduardo looks over to the left and Esteban is standing there with a smug look on his face.
"Oops." He says. "Maybe that will teach him this pitch is no place for computer geeks like him to lurk around."
Eduardo looks back at the bleachers but, Mark is gone. He stands there looking like a sad puppy, this is the second time Mark's left without saying anything.
Xabi is staring at him like he is trying to burn a hole through his head and Arbeloa walks up to him. "I have never seen someone run that fast in flip flops. And I would know."
Stevie is grinning at him, he must find this all too amusing. "For focks sake, go after him!" Because of course, Xabi tells everything to his co-captain.
Eduardo runs until he is out of breath and Mark can't possibly be this fast.
His phone buzzes.
From: Ginger
follow the cord
Maybe that message makes sense in spanish, but not in english. What the fuck is Xabi trying to say? Then Eduardo remembers, Mark was sitting next to yards and yards of cord. He runs back and see's a bright yellow cord running all the way from the bleachers to the big towering lamps that light up the pitch at night.
Mark is there.
"Mark! Whats going on, are you ok?"
"You would think the geniuses at Toshiba would have come up with a battery that lasts longer than 1 hour by now. This is the 21st Century."
"Mark"
"I brought an extension cord this time, but I wasn't expecting to use it so soon. Why are you not at practice?"
"I came to see if you were ok. I'm sorry about the football, Esteban didn't mean to."
"I somehow doubt that."
"Why did you even come?"
Mark shrugs. "We're friends."
"That's it?" Eduardo needs to be sure that is all they are. He needs to be sure so he can abort this stupid suicide mission.
"If my presence is somehow damaging your relationship with your new boyfriend then I apologize Wardo. It won't happen--"
Mark doesn't get to finish his sentence (which is probably killing him) because Eduardo is shoving his tongue down his throat. Buttery wine and cheap cigarettes was nice, but Very Cherry Punch and Fritos is something Eduardo could get used to.
"Wardo." Mark says without really letting go of Eduardo's mouth. "You stink."
Eduardo gives him a final big kiss and lets go. "Come back to practice. I'll take a shower after and then--" He doesn't think he needs to finish that sentence.
Mark gets it.
He runs sprints faster than he's ever done so and scores three out of five penalty kicks. He takes his shirt off to celebrate.
Mark is no longer typing.
Shower number 3 has the best pressure out of all the showers. Which is why people always wait around to use it. But Eduardo has no time to waste. He needs to get clean, put some clothes on and go back to Mark so they can --yeah.
Shower 7 will do just fine.
Mark is waiting by the locker changing area, and if Eduardo tilts his head just enough, he can see him typing away (as always).
"So now that you and Mark are like, whatever, can you introduce us?" Someone should put a bell on Alvaro, he has a way of sneaking up to people. "He's in my OS class but we don't really talk, man. That guy is a genius."
Eduardo smiles. He is totally going to make-out with that genius tonight.
He shampoos his hair twice to make sure the sweat stink is gone and wraps a towel around his waist. Then he hears Esteban talking to someone.
Shit, he is talking to Mark.
"I thought steam was bad for computers."
"This is my old one, it even runs on windows. Besides, steam is no worse than footballs."
By the time he walks up to Mark, Esteban is nowhere to be seen.
"Are you still making changes to coursemash? I thought that was a done deal."
"I think I know where you went wrong on that last kick. I made a few observations and every third kick, Tim will leave a gap on the left corner of the net."
So that's what Mark kept doing at practice. He wasn't writing code or blogging, he was trying to help Eduardo improve.
Eduardo wants to kiss him, and push him into the lockers and do all sorts of inappropriate things. Things that will have to wait, because people are probably still around. He settles for grabbing a blue gatorade from his locker.
"I didn't think you could get any more cliche." Mark says pointing to the gatorade.
Eduardo offers him the bottle. "Try it, it's good."
"No, I have plenty of juice in my backpack."
"Mark, try it."
Instead of taking a sip from the bottle, Mark gets up and kisses Eduardo. And Eduardo almost trips on his own foot trying to put the bottle down all without letting go of Mark.
"I guess it's not that bad."
"Mark --"
"Wardo."
"My towel, it's slipping off."
It all goes downhill from there.
Eduardo is running barefoot and leaving puddles on the floor as he drags Mark into the closest stall. It's not exactly all that private, but it'll do for now.
There's kissing and bitting and moaning and Mark is yanking off Eduardo's towel. And oh shit. shit. shit. shit. Eduardo has to prop his on top of the stall walls to keep himself from falling.
His eyes are closed and he holds onto Mark's hand.
And then he comes so hard, he thinks he is blacking out.
A couple of seconds later he regains consciousness. Wait-- Mark had both hands on him, which means that Eduardo grabbed someone else's hand.
SHIT.
He kisses Mark and mouths my dorm. before dragging him out of the stall.
Right before leaving the bathrooms, Eduardo lowers himself to take a look at the next stall.
There's a pair of bright pink cleats with shorts pooling over them, as well as someone wearing bright red ones.
Of course Xabi was right all along, what he failed to tell Eduardo was that he knew form experience.
END.
crack crossover. mark/eduardo, xabi alonso, arbeloa, granero, et all. in which eduardo meets xabi, and xabi helps him figure out everything.
HA HA HA.
I WROTE THIS FOR manfuckery secret santa.
ro asked for tsn/futbol crossover and late night chats with paitac has already incepted me with the idea. so here are 3,000 words of pure crack. and un-funny crack that is.
in case you need some sort of help. xabi is a gqmf who had an epic bromance with stevie g. (they were so fucken otp and even kissed once with cameras and all. esteban granero really is a dirty hipster player. and arbeloa really is obsessed with social media and tweets his location four times a day (he also loves wearing flip flops)
Eduardo meets Xabi on one of those obnoxious required lectures that no one really pays attention to. (Contemporary Art)
After three weeks of exchanging commentary about the professor's excessive use of hair gel (Eduardo is really not one to talk) and Xabi wearing cleats that are much too bright for anyone to wear (honestly, who chooses hot pink and purple?), Xabi mentions they are one person short on the futbol team.
"You know I mean soccer, right?" Xabi asks. The lecture hall is dark except for the projector showing slides of Chuck Close's amoeba-like grids.
"I assumed." Eduardo says, pointing to Xabi's cleats.
"Come by tomorrow, 4 o'clock?" Xabi asks, his accent so thick that it gives Eduardo comfort for not being the only foreign person he knows of on campus.
Mark laughs.
Of course Mark laughs.
Just because they may be friends, doesn't mean that Mark really believes Eduardo can succeed at something that requires any sort of physical activity.
"Courses should be listed alphabetically as opposed to grouped into subjects, don't you think." It's not much of a question as it is a statement. Mark is staring at his laptop screen, giant red type that reads 'COURSEMASH' glowing back at him.
"Hey, maybe I can get you to be our mascot. At least I think soccer has mascots."
"I don't think a professor search engine field is necessary, but Dustin seems to think a lot of our peers base their schedule around certain instructors. You also haven't made the team, I wouldn't go buy sportswear yet."
"Yeah, you're probably --"
Mark interrupts. "That was mean."
"No, you're right."
"Wardo, you're Brazilian. You'll get in. Stop worrying about it."
Eduardo pats Mark's shoulder before standing up to leave. "You know, you really shouldn't make generalizations about people based on their nationality."
It turns out, Eduardo is actually kind of good at playing football.
He is not as good at making passes like Xabi, but at least he runs faster than most people on the team. He runs and runs until he has made it past 3 guys, shoots and scores. And that has to count for something.
Xabi introduces him to Alvaro and Stevie and some guy they call 'Ray-Ban' (Eduardo later learns his name is Esteban). They all welcome him to the team, and Eduardo is happy to finally feel like he is part of something.
Between classes and The Harvard Investors Association and practice, Eduardo has little to no time to come up to Mark's dorm.
Mark doesn't care. If he does, Eduardo never hears anything about it.
But it's been three weeks and the only sign that Mark is alive is that stupid blog he frantically updates daily. (Not that Eduardo would ever admit to reading Mark's online journal.) So when Xabi mentions there is a party off campus some guys from the team are going to, Eduardo asks if he can bring someone along.
"Of course." Xabi says, and he is doing something that kind of looks like a wink but Eduardo can't tell.
To: Mark
Hey come with me to a party
tonight. You can meet the team.
Don't wear flip flops
"I wish Alvaro were here, he would finally believe me." Xabi tells him. Whatever he is talking about, Eduardo has no idea. "Just don't tell Esteban it's him you are with." Xabi says, pointing at Mark who is waiting in line for the bathroom. "You'll break his Ray-Ban heart."
Oh.
So Xabi thinks that Eduardo is --and then that means Esteban is also--. And no wonder he was so interested in his black Italian shoes.
"You think me and Mark? No! Not at all."
"Y entonces, porque lo habéis invitado?" Eduardo doesn't speak spanish, so he shakes his head at Xabi. "So you are not?"
Eduardo shakes his head again.
"Are you sure? Because you have been getting him refills all night and you are staring like you are in gay for him." He can't really defend himself because Xabi is already making his way to the sea of people surrounding the keg.
Oh.
So Eduardo is apparently in gay with Mark or something. And all it took for him to realize this was for his captain to tell him.
"We should go." Mark says, and Eduardo jumps a little because Mark is standing too close and dammit, Xabi!
"No, you need more beer. Besides, you haven't meet my teammates."
"Wardo--"
"Come meet them." And he doesn't think twice about grabbing Mark by the arm and dragging him closer to where Xabi is standing.
"This is Stevie, Esteban and Xabi, he's the--"
Mark cuts him off. "Captain, I know. Leaving?"
"Mark."
"Hey Eduardo! If your friend wants to leave, you can take a cab back with me. You are in Kirkland, right?" Esteban has his arm around him, and Eduardo doesn't know what to do or say. Just a couple of minutes ago Xabi implied that he may or may not have a crush on Eduardo and this should really not matter at all. Besides, he came here with Mark, it only makes sense they leave together.
"But Mark and I, we-- I should take him back."
"Mark is a big guy, Eduardo. He can leave if it pleases him." Esteban says, or rather slurs much to closely to Eduardo's ear.
Mark bites his lip before turning around and heading for the door.
Eduardo doesn't follow. Mostly because Esteban is dragging him to get more tequila shots.
Mark doesn't mention the incident, except for on his blog. (Which Eduardo will deny to pressing F5 continuously during his Macro Econ. class.)
Two weeks after that, Eduardo is playing volley-foot with the team as practice. He looks over to the bleachers and Mark is there. Mark is there wearing sunglasses that look ten times too big for him and frantically hitting buttons on his laptop.
Eduardo doesn't know why Mark is even here, the glare of the sun on the screen has to be pretty bad. It's not like Mark can get any work done in these conditions.
It doesn't matter, because Mark is here and Eduardo has apparently turned into a 16 year old girl who can't stop smiling.
He kicks the ball one more time and Alvaro misses. They win.
Next thing he knows, Esteban jumps on his back and he is chanting something that goes a little like "we win! we win! in your face captain! in your face Alvaro."
But Alvaro is ignoring them and staring at the bleachers. Eduardo lets go of Esteban and turns.
Mark is gone. Or maybe Mark was never there and Eduardo is actually going insane, which would explain a lot.
"Was that Mark? Mark Zuckerberg?" Alvaro asks.
"Yeah, he likes to follow Eduardo around." Esteban answers.
Alvaro looks shocked. "Ed, you know him?"
Eduardo nods.
"Dude, he made coursemash! That guy is a genius I read--"
Eduardo is not really paying attention to what Alvaro is saying, because Mark was here. Mark was here watching Eduardo practice and then he left without saying goodbye. Maybe he didn't say goodbye because Eduardo was too busy giving Esteban a piggy back ride.
And then it clicks.
Mark doesn't really like Esteban, because Esteban made Eduardo stay at the party the other day. And then Mark wrote something snarky about his hair on that stupid blog. And maybe that means that Mark--.
He runs out of the pitch without saying goodbye. He needs answers
It doesn't take any effort to find Mark. (He is in his dorm, staring at his screen, typing with one hand and balancing a book on his lap.)
"You came by practice?"
Mark responds by hitting his keys even harder, like he is trying to send Eduardo a message. The message meaning: leave me alone, I have more important things to do.
"Mark."
Mark stops typing and turns around. He looks like is going to say something, then he makes his way to the fridge and grabs a juice. (It reminds Eduardo he forgot his water bottle and maybe Mark can share.)
"Why did you leave so suddenly, we could have gotten food afterward."
"Isn't that something you do with your team friends?" Mark asks without looking at him.
"They're not that bad."
Mark drinks the last of the juice and presses the empty bottle to Eduardo. "That guy Esteban, he looks--"
So maybe Eduardo is not really going insane. Maybe Mark is a bit jealous. It would explain why he is not moving as Eduardo gets closer to him.
"Tell me this isn't about him." And that is as close as Eduardo will get to actually ask what he wants to ask.
"Are you like, delusional? I came back because my battery was dead." Mark tells him, backing away. "And Wardo? You stink."
Mark is not jealous, he was never jealous. It makes Eduardo feel stupid, and this is totally Xabi's fault.
"Well excuse me for pointing out the obvious." Xabi whispers during lecture hall.
"Xabi, I'm not--" Eduardo makes a gesture with his hands.
Xabi's nose crinkles, like he is trying to hold back a laughter. "You mean you have never, with a guy? Not even on a drunken stupor?"
Eduardo shakes his head and writes down something the professor is saying.
Before class is over, he notices a piece of yellow paper on top of his notebook.
Maybe I was wrong then.
But I am never wrong, that is why I am captain
IF Xabi is never wrong, then Eduardo needs to figure out if he is maybe kind of --. And shit, he wont even finish that thought.
His logic goes a little like so:
- He needs to find out if Xabi is right.
- But Mark will never agree to be used as a guinea pig.
- That leaves him with only one option.
- This won't end well.
Mark comes up to his dorm, which only happens when he really needs something from Eduardo.
And this is very bad timing.
"There's no time to get food before the conference."
Eduardo is not paying much attention because he is too busy looking for his right patent leather shoe.
"We should go right now. Dustin said he would save us seats, but you know how people get at these things. There is no guarantee."
"I can't find my shoe."
Mark kicks a pair of sneakers in his direction. "I doubt he will care about your shoes. Wardo, it's a conference not a job interview."
"Conference? What are you talking about?" Ah, of course the shoe is under his bed.
"Are you wearing cologne?"
Eduardo puts his shoe on and looks at himself one last time in the mirror. He is going to do this. Consequences be damned. "I really have to go, I told Esteban I would meet him ten minutes ago. But have fun at your thing."
It's not meant to come off as rude, but Eduardo has bigger things to worry about.
Esteban tastes like buttery wine and cheap cigarettes. And Eduardo really hates to admit that he likes the way his stubble feels on his face.
Shit.
Xabi, that fucker, was right.
The next monday at practice, Xabi gives Eduardo a look that says both i told you so and how could you.
Esteban won't stop looking at him during sprint runs and all Eduardo wants to do is die. Until he looks at the bleachers and sees Mark, typing on his computer and sitting next to what looks like yards and yards of electrical cord.
He waves at Eduardo, and Eduardo feels butterflies and --shit. SHIT
So he waves back and smiles, because fighting this is like trying to fight gravity.
And then two seconds later, BOOM! A football hits Mark's screen shut. Eduardo looks over to the left and Esteban is standing there with a smug look on his face.
"Oops." He says. "Maybe that will teach him this pitch is no place for computer geeks like him to lurk around."
Eduardo looks back at the bleachers but, Mark is gone. He stands there looking like a sad puppy, this is the second time Mark's left without saying anything.
Xabi is staring at him like he is trying to burn a hole through his head and Arbeloa walks up to him. "I have never seen someone run that fast in flip flops. And I would know."
Stevie is grinning at him, he must find this all too amusing. "For focks sake, go after him!" Because of course, Xabi tells everything to his co-captain.
Eduardo runs until he is out of breath and Mark can't possibly be this fast.
His phone buzzes.
From: Ginger
follow the cord
Maybe that message makes sense in spanish, but not in english. What the fuck is Xabi trying to say? Then Eduardo remembers, Mark was sitting next to yards and yards of cord. He runs back and see's a bright yellow cord running all the way from the bleachers to the big towering lamps that light up the pitch at night.
Mark is there.
"Mark! Whats going on, are you ok?"
"You would think the geniuses at Toshiba would have come up with a battery that lasts longer than 1 hour by now. This is the 21st Century."
"Mark"
"I brought an extension cord this time, but I wasn't expecting to use it so soon. Why are you not at practice?"
"I came to see if you were ok. I'm sorry about the football, Esteban didn't mean to."
"I somehow doubt that."
"Why did you even come?"
Mark shrugs. "We're friends."
"That's it?" Eduardo needs to be sure that is all they are. He needs to be sure so he can abort this stupid suicide mission.
"If my presence is somehow damaging your relationship with your new boyfriend then I apologize Wardo. It won't happen--"
Mark doesn't get to finish his sentence (which is probably killing him) because Eduardo is shoving his tongue down his throat. Buttery wine and cheap cigarettes was nice, but Very Cherry Punch and Fritos is something Eduardo could get used to.
"Wardo." Mark says without really letting go of Eduardo's mouth. "You stink."
Eduardo gives him a final big kiss and lets go. "Come back to practice. I'll take a shower after and then--" He doesn't think he needs to finish that sentence.
Mark gets it.
He runs sprints faster than he's ever done so and scores three out of five penalty kicks. He takes his shirt off to celebrate.
Mark is no longer typing.
Shower number 3 has the best pressure out of all the showers. Which is why people always wait around to use it. But Eduardo has no time to waste. He needs to get clean, put some clothes on and go back to Mark so they can --yeah.
Shower 7 will do just fine.
Mark is waiting by the locker changing area, and if Eduardo tilts his head just enough, he can see him typing away (as always).
"So now that you and Mark are like, whatever, can you introduce us?" Someone should put a bell on Alvaro, he has a way of sneaking up to people. "He's in my OS class but we don't really talk, man. That guy is a genius."
Eduardo smiles. He is totally going to make-out with that genius tonight.
He shampoos his hair twice to make sure the sweat stink is gone and wraps a towel around his waist. Then he hears Esteban talking to someone.
Shit, he is talking to Mark.
"I thought steam was bad for computers."
"This is my old one, it even runs on windows. Besides, steam is no worse than footballs."
By the time he walks up to Mark, Esteban is nowhere to be seen.
"Are you still making changes to coursemash? I thought that was a done deal."
"I think I know where you went wrong on that last kick. I made a few observations and every third kick, Tim will leave a gap on the left corner of the net."
So that's what Mark kept doing at practice. He wasn't writing code or blogging, he was trying to help Eduardo improve.
Eduardo wants to kiss him, and push him into the lockers and do all sorts of inappropriate things. Things that will have to wait, because people are probably still around. He settles for grabbing a blue gatorade from his locker.
"I didn't think you could get any more cliche." Mark says pointing to the gatorade.
Eduardo offers him the bottle. "Try it, it's good."
"No, I have plenty of juice in my backpack."
"Mark, try it."
Instead of taking a sip from the bottle, Mark gets up and kisses Eduardo. And Eduardo almost trips on his own foot trying to put the bottle down all without letting go of Mark.
"I guess it's not that bad."
"Mark --"
"Wardo."
"My towel, it's slipping off."
It all goes downhill from there.
Eduardo is running barefoot and leaving puddles on the floor as he drags Mark into the closest stall. It's not exactly all that private, but it'll do for now.
There's kissing and bitting and moaning and Mark is yanking off Eduardo's towel. And oh shit. shit. shit. shit. Eduardo has to prop his on top of the stall walls to keep himself from falling.
His eyes are closed and he holds onto Mark's hand.
And then he comes so hard, he thinks he is blacking out.
A couple of seconds later he regains consciousness. Wait-- Mark had both hands on him, which means that Eduardo grabbed someone else's hand.
SHIT.
He kisses Mark and mouths my dorm. before dragging him out of the stall.
Right before leaving the bathrooms, Eduardo lowers himself to take a look at the next stall.
There's a pair of bright pink cleats with shorts pooling over them, as well as someone wearing bright red ones.
Of course Xabi was right all along, what he failed to tell Eduardo was that he knew form experience.
END.