Disclaimer: I do not own Gothic Sports nor any of the characters.

The chill of that winter night was not merciful to those on the football field. It raised bumps on Olga's arms, forcing her to stay aware of her surroundings. Not that she really had to be; the ball was far gone from her position, being dribbled under Alexia's foot towards the end of the field. Behind her, Filiz was guarding their side's goal, rather diligently, though the ball was, again, nowhere near them. To her left, Leon was bent over forward, practically coughing up blood. His lungs never really forgave him for all that smoking, and though he quit for Anya's team, it was obvious the tobacco had already taken its toll. Ignoring the hacking sounds coming from her left, Olga perked up as the ball changed direction and was heading her way. Kevin was dribbling the ball furiously towards Olga's end of the field, but she wasn't going to let him past her. She crouched into running position, and sprinted towards him. Alexia was trying to catch up with him, but he was too far ahead. Their only hope now was Olga.

"Watch out Kev, I'm comin' for ya!" She shouted at her friend as soon as she was within his earshot. He chuckled and found himself at a stall when she blocked him from the goal, trying to kick the ball out from under his feet. They both wore smiles, despite the cold and dread. Left and right they stepped, attempting to force the other to release the ball and fall back. Like any other practice, they were casual about how they played, and even playfully aggressive, but it was much to Anya's dismay.

"Come on, you two," came Anya's shrill screams from the side of the field, "Pick it up! You're not here to mess around!"

Delia gave the huffed out team captain a hand on her shoulder to ease her into a state of calmness.

Olga's foolish mistake was to turn towards Anya as she was being lectured. Her opponent took the opportunity and kicked the ball to his teammate, Hannes, forcing the scrimmage to continue in realistic motion.

"Hey!" Olga lunged for the ball, but Kevin grabbed her from behind and she laughed as she struggled out of his grasp. "Foul! Foul, coach!" She turned to Delia, still giggling, and the coach just shrugged and observed the ball.

Kevin soon found it hard to restrain her and let go, "Hey now, I couldn't let you go after that ball!" he laughed along with his friend, their playful behavior never ceasing to amaze the others.

"You're so full of it!" she pushed him by the shoulders, but it only carried little weight, seeing how big he was compared to her. They restrained themselves as Anya scolded them for not concentrating, but did not cease their giddy nature, even long after she rejoined Delia on the sidelines.

The scrimmage continued for some time, past the setting of the sun, and kicking the ball in the field lights grew tiring. Soon the team was given permission to pack up their things and leave for their homes. Kevin stood by his best friend's side and waited for her to finish packing her things, watching her slender fingers confirm that her belongings were all stored in her messenger bag. His eyes traced her shapely legs rise from their crouched position, her long, black hair falling back over her shoulder to reveal her flawless face. Thinking of her as more than a friend, however, was something he knew he couldn't do. There was no way she saw him as anything romantic, not in but his fantasies. He pushed those thoughts out of his mind as she turned to him, smiling.
"Ready to go?" She asked him, eager to get out of the cold and into the warmth of the car. He nodded in response and grabbed his bag before leading her off the field to the parking lot. There, they twisted through the maze of automobiles until they approached her SUV. Throwing their bags in the back was difficult; it was already full of the gear for their band, as well as supplies to set up a tent at the Renaissance fair. Kevin kept his bag with him in the passenger seat, and Olga finished rearranging the trunk before hopping in the driver's seat and turning on the ignition.

The car ride to Kevin's house was never different from the usual. Bass-heavy gothic music was close to blowing out the car's speakers, as they laughed together about the day's pleasures and excitements. Whether or not they were romantic, he simply enjoyed being with her. Their inseparable friendship that began farther than their memories cared to know made them practically soul mates. But if he could enjoy himself in her company like this, why did he find himself urging for more?

She glanced over at him after her bout of giddiness ceased, sensing something was on his mind. His eyes averted hers, for fear that she might somehow be able to catch what he was thinking, and he just stared at the traffic lines he could see passing under the car through the windshield. She focused on the road, but kept a wary watch on him out of the corner of her eye.

She saw their friends standing by their cars out on the street before she even glimpsed Kevin's driveway. Partially glad that they were not alone anymore, Kevin eagerly hopped out before Olga even finished braking and ran over to unlock the door to his garage. Friends eagerly helping, Olga unloaded the band's gear out of the car and hauled it all into the garage, which was already set up to host this number of people and instruments. He was so excited to be reunited with his drum set that he almost dropped the snare as he carried it to its new resting place. In the past, they had gathered to play music at Olga's house; however, since her family moved into an apartment with little room, the posse was forced to relocate. It was not a big change, as her old house was close enough to this one that the others did not have to plan new routes. This made things a little easier in their all-too-hectic lives. Olga couldn't help but let out a chuckle as Kevin struggled with the bass. Its weight overpowered him, and without assistance from the singer he would've most likely united his face with the wall.

When he finally pieced together his set and sat down, the others had almost finished unpacking, and his eye caught the girl testing her guitar, weight shifted to one side and hip thrust out the other, in that position, he could never understand, that girls seemed to find quite comfortable. Her tongue poked out slightly to the side as she struggled to adjust the chords, little frustrated grunts softy vibrating through her skull as she attempted to find the sound she was looking for. Once found, the sound rippled through the garage, and the others stopped to look in her direction, cheering as it was confirmed her instrument survived the move. She turned around with her face lit up in delight, and he shot her an equally broad smile to show his support for her success.

After everyone was settled in, the group commenced the purpose of their gathering: to play music. With an hour passing, running through all their regular songs, a suggestion was made by the bassist to hear Olga finally sing on the cover they had been working on. Uncertain and nervous, she glanced at her friend for support in a decision, and his expression spoke for her to go for it. Believing him was the force that grabbed the microphone and readied the guitar, taking in a deep breath before the synth started.

Her eyes became focused on a speck of dirt on the garage door, prepared to start at the synth's end and the drumming's start. Kevin watched, sticks firmly grasped, listening for his cue, but not taking his eyes off her back. Her weight shifted back and forth between left side, right side, left side again as he could practically see her nerve-wracked thoughts. He tried to send her some positive vibes, hoping she would somehow feel more confident upon receiving them.

It seemed to work; as he began drumming, she took her cue and brought the lyrics out of her mind into the microphone.

We don't know what time we'll be there

But we won't show up till later

This was the first time in a long time he had truly been able to experience her voice. Under normal circumstances, with the radio playing in the car and such, she jammed along, but not with the heart she was expressing now. There was not much else he could do but focus on keeping the beat, as it was the most intense sound of the song.

It will all look so much nicer

After all of us arrive

Her small vibrato at the last word ran over his head like silk, bringing his thoughts to the eastern countries, where voices played with lifts and suppressions such as that to tell tales of the old.

Promise me to pass the time

Dance with me on plastic tears

His thoughts stopped.

Kiss me We won't feel alone

His heart skipped.

Till morning when we disappear

Her lips uttering these verses did not ease his want to be with her.

Though we all want to be noticed

There's no need for competition

Her words kept striking him, like blows from a sword. He always knew the words to these songs, why were they only really affecting him now? He pondered this as he watched her hips sway, indicating she was immersed in the role after all.

Cause there's just no way of knowing

Where the camera points tonight

The amplification of the strings, the synths, the voice, rattled his ribcage until he could no longer differentiate his heart beat from the beat of the ballad. Her hair swayed with her hips, and she became a hypnotic dance, pleasing to the eye and easing for the soul. Every line she sang popped a single thought into his head.

Promise me to pass the time

Always.

Dance with me on plastic tears

Forever.

Kiss me We won't feel alone

We won't.

Till morning when we disappear

Never.

Her voice became a whisper now, and he was able to take a break from his position and simply bask in her presence.

We don't listen to each other

Cause we're all too busy talking

We'll tell lies about each other

Cause the truth is such a bore

With the threat of dawn approaching

And our interest quickly fading

We will stumble home together

As we did the night before

He was back in full swing, making sure the time he kept helped keep her flowing as gorgeously as possible. At her pause she turned around to smile at him, pleased with herself that she was actually enjoying this. He couldn't help but beam at her, and how beautiful she was when she would radiate with self-confidence. He wanted to make sure that she knew she was special. She saw his reaction and beamed even more brightly, feeling like she could conquer the world with that gaze as her guide. She turned back around and continued with the guitar, but her expression was ingrained in his mind, and it drove him to perform at his best. The others could sense the chemistry shared between singer and drummer, and the general aura of the room lifted, so that they flowed together with the energy of a cackling fire, contributing to the center of it all and causing it to rise and fall with a calm pace. Her hesitation long cast aside, she felt freed by this new position, soaking up the confidence her best friend kept giving her. He saw this in her; watched her toned legs move and step with the movement of the chords, watched her delicate fingers twirl up and down the guitar's neck with grace and prestige, watched her determined face almost sucked back into her regular position as the guitarist. He hoped she wouldn't act on it. The heart in her voice was all he wanted, but it was to be over and unused too soon. How he could tell her that, he never bothered to think about, only wishing for her to be able to somehow know that that is what he wanted. He wanted her to be loved, and he wanted to be the one who loved her. She was too precious for this world. Her tough, independent demeanor aside, she was really a fragile crystal who was a foreigner to such compassion and love, as the world so desperately kept it away from her, never allowing her to blossom. This infuriated him, as he wanted so badly for her to grow in the love she so deserved.

One last riff to screech through the room, and the song was done. Sheepishly, she scurried to put her things away, afraid to face the fact that she had just taken lead on their most sought after cover. But the others congratulated her with raving jeers as they, too, began to pack up. This only caused her to curl up farther in her shell, but she opened right back up when her best friend approached her with one of his famous bear hugs. She accepted it with a laugh, and when he let go, she waved goodbye to their friends as they drove away into the night, but still kept an arm on his shoulder. To close the garage door, Kevin had to leave her touch, something he did not particularly want to do. She wondered why the door was still open and realized her hand was preventing him. She pulled her arm back quickly and laced her fingers together behind her, embarrassed. He just smiled at her and went to go pull the garage door down. She watched as his muscular build reached up to grab the string dangling from the bottom of the steel plating, currently resting in a hold on the ceiling. With his height, the pull was no problem, and the door glided down to rest on the concrete. She watched him with eager eyes, wondering if maybe, just maybe, they could share a moment together that was more than a little friendly. They were already practically a kiss away from forming a true relationship. The way they acted, others always seemed to think that the two of them were committed together, but while they were inseparable, their activities were nowhere in the romantic nature.

Both silently wondered to themselves if that would ever change.