Aphrodi has been standing aside from the others ever since they arrived at Endou's house, and Raimon's captain isn't quite sure what to do about it. He's offered food to him, and the blond ate it with a small smile and a quiet thank-you, and he seems fine on the outside, but something about the situation leaves a bad feeling in the pit of Endou's stomach.
The trouble is, Endou doesn't know him well enough to know for sure if something's off. Obviously the Aphrodi that's here now isn't the same one from the Football Frontier finals – it only took one look at his expression to tell that. There was no malice, just an unyielding determination; he was almost awe-inspiring in his strength. He seemed happy to be there, to be part of the team, but now Aphrodi's subdued, and a little melancholy, and Endou's not certain how to approach him and make sure he's okay. It's the one thing that's keeping him from enjoying the night completely.
The rest of the team doesn't seem to notice Aphrodi's discomfort in the least, and it makes Endou a little angry for a reason he can't quite pinpoint. Touko is still helping his mom with the cooking, and Tsunami is still going on about how you have to act fast to get the meat at parties like this (then proceeding to eat even more of it). Gouenji and Kidou are talking, and when Gouenji catches his eye and smiles at him Endou's stomach does backflips – he's not quite used to Gouenji being back, but he's happier than he's been in a long time about it. They keep eye contact for only a brief moment, but he can tell that Gouenji's picked up on Endou's discomfort, and he seems distracted when he looks back towards Kidou.
The blond would probably be more than willing to accompany Endou when he goes to talk to their new forward, but no – he feels a sense of responsibility as captain to do this on his own. It's been weighing him down since Kazemaru left; in a way he's trying to repair all those times he should've been a better captain.
But when he slides up next to Aphrodi, leaning against the fence, he puts the big picture and regrets aside for the moment, because what's here and now is more important.
"Uh, hey!" Aphrodi starts a little. Probably lost in his own thoughts, Endou guesses. Although he hadn't really planned out the conversation before walking over beyond making sure he was okay, he's at more of a loss than he'd expected. Deep down he thinks it might be that he's still a little wary of Aphrodi, but he swallows that and shifts a little closer, earning an odd look from the taller boy.
"Hey," Aphrodi replies, a hint of surprise in his voice. "Is everything okay?" Endou blinks – it's his turn to be surprised, he didn't expect the forward to ask the very question he was about to ask him.
"I was actually about to ask you the same thing!" he exclaims, trying to hide his surprise with cheeriness, even if it seems a little fake. "I was wondering why you were standing all the way over here."
The blond looks away, a strange look on his face that Endou can't quite pinpoint. It's thoughtful, but also a little wary; it makes Aphrodi look much older than he really is. "No reason," Aphrodi responds, but it's not the most believable answer, especially with that expression on his face. His body language isn't terribly convincing either, he keeps avoiding looking right at Endou, and he's been twirling the same piece of hair around his finger since the goalkeeper started talking to him.
"In that case, why don't you come over and sit with us? I think there's still some meat and potatoes left over." Endou offers a grin, which Aphrodi returns weakly. He seems to think for a moment or two, as if deliberating whether to take up the offer, but eventually shakes his head no.
"I don't think they'd particularly enjoy my company."
"What do you mean?" Endou says, tone coming out a little more transparent than he would've liked – but who could blame him? The blond had said it so nonchalantly. It's an odd accusation for Aphrodi to make, especially considering how everyone seemed to open to him being on the team now that they knew he wasn't the same as before. And yet – no one had come over to talk to him yet besides Endou.
"There's a different between them trusting me enough to play soccer with them and completely forgiving me for what I did," he replies, a little sad and a little too casual. Hastily, he adds, "I don't blame them though."
"But you've changed, I could tell right away!" Endou doesn't expect his voice to come out as heated as it does, but as bizarre as it is, Aphrodi's his teammate – his comrade – now. Overreaction on his part or not, Endou's not letting what happened with Kazemaru (and again with Kurimatsu) happen ever again.
Aphrodi smiles again at Endou's response, the expression still a little wistful He leans back against the fence and slides down, resting on his heels and tilting his head skyward. "I appreciate it," he says as Endou slides down next to him. "I just feel…" Zeus' captain trails off, meeting Endou's expectant look for a second before continuing. "Almost like I'm trespassing? I'm glad you, at least, appreciate my being here but…what I did to you guys was awful."
Neither of them look at each other, nor speak, for a minute or so. Aphrodi still seems troubled, perhaps even more now, and Endou's at a complete loss – he can't deny that Aphrodi's right. His hand absent-mindedly moves to brush against a scar on his other wrist, one he got during the Football Frontier finals. There's no way he can get around the fact that Raimon has been hurt by him, but Endou knows for a fact that Aphrodi's a good person. (There's no way he could love soccer as much otherwise, right?)
"Yeah," Endou begins. "It was bad. But you saw Rika's ankle, right? Any of us could've been hurt like that if you hadn't shown up. Diamond Dust was tough." His tone drops a bit, more serious for a moment, and Aphrodi wishes he could read exactly what was on the captain's mind, but the change is gone as quick as it arrived. Endou grins. "You saved us, you know!" It's the most sincere thing he's said in awhile, and he means every word of it.
Whatever composure Aphrodi's been holding onto is gone. His mouth falls open a little, and his cheeks go a bit red – he'd been on the other side of the pitch, but had Endou heard his exchange with Gazelle before?
"You've sure fallen. Who would've thought you'd leave the seat of the gods to ally yourself with Raimon?"
"Endou-kun woke me up from my nightmare. He gave me a new power!"
It seemed improbable, but if Endou hadn't heard him, it meant that what Aphrodi was hearing was completely genuine, not just an allusion to before.
Endou notices, of course – it would've been hard to miss considering how closely he's been paying attention to Aphrodi since coming over to stand by him. For a moment he worries that it had been the wrong thing to say, since the taller boy seems so shocked, but –
"Thank you," Aphrodi says, and it's Endou's turn to try and hide his surprise. It's completely different from before – the bitterness has fallen out of his tone entirely. And the smile he's giving the brunet is like the one Endou had seen briefly before, when he'd been accepted into the team – but it's different this time, more intimate.
"You're welcome," Endou responds, getting to his feet, holding a hand out towards Aphrodi. "Come on! It's probably about time that we start going inside, anyways."
He tugs Aphrodi to his feet, grabbing the forward's other arm to steady him when he tilts a bit. Their faces are awkwardly close, but he doesn't let go immediately – for some reason Endou can't quite pinpoint, he doesn't want to. Zeus' captain isn't pulling his hand free, either, and he can feel his teammate's stares on his back, but…
"I, um, think I'm okay!" Aphrodi says suddenly, standing up straight, and pulls his hand free, though there's a sign of hesitation as he does so.
Aphrodi's clearly much more at ease now, though he seems mildly embarrassed. Endou feels a little bad – what's gotten into him? – but it's getting late, and it's not important enough to bother thinking too hard about now.
As Aphrodi walks away, presumably to join the others, he pauses, and turns around again. "Thank you, again. Really."
What Endou thinks, first and foremost, is that smiles like that suit Aphrodi very well.