While being alone with only one other person in the locker room scared Fernando, being completely alone gave him a feeling of security. Loneliness gave him a feeling as if he could do whatever he wanted. He arrived early to practice, so he happened to be the only one in the locker room when he walked in. He decided to dance in the mirror. He loved to dance, and did so whenever he could: when he was home alone, when he was going to take a shower, and when he was alone in the locker room. If he heard someone coming, he would just stop and pretend to be fixing his hair in the mirror. However, he was not aware of the other man who had walked into the locker room and had witnessed his performance.

"Fernando…?" the voice asked. He immediately recognized the deep voice as Khan's, and his face turned hot. Just act natural, he thought to himself.

"Yes, amigo?" he responded.

"What are you doing?"

"What does it look like?"

"Dancing?"

"Sí."

"But why?"

"Because I can, that's why," Fernando responded with a wink and a cheeky grin, hiding his embarrassment. He turned back to the mirror and ran his fingers through his dark hair. He could see Khan look at him, which he ignored. There was an awkward silence as the two started to change into their practice wear. Then Buck walked in.

"Ay, Buck, welcome to the early birds club," Fernando playfully greeted. Buck gave a smile, which quickly faded. He gasped.

"Shit!" he cursed.

"Que pasa, Buck?"

"I forgot that I was supposed to meet Jenos today," Buck said, in a worried tone.

"Just tell him you'll come tomorrow," Fernando responded. "I'm going to call him really quick, I'll be back." He walked out of the door. Khan then gave Fernando a strange look. "What's with him and that Jenos kid lately anyways?" Khan said, in an annoyed tone. Fernando chuckled, and then shrugged. "They're probably gay or something, it seems like they always hang out" Khan spat. Fernando suddenly felt a wave of anxiety. He decided to do something he never would dream of doing.

"We should hang out more, you know, outside of school," Fernando suggested. Khan smiled.

"Yeah, that would be nice."

"Besides, I need help on the math. I'm not as gifted as you."

This warranted a giggle from Khan, who quickly turned back to his locker to get a water bottle. Ay, ay, ay, he's such a cutie, Fernando thought to himself. He got what he needed for practice, and then joined Khan in waiting for Buck to return. He decided he wanted to chat with him some more. He was about to ask how his afternoon was, but was surprised when Khan beat him to it.

"How was your date with Cassie?" he asked. Fernando started to panic on the inside. Do I tell him that we aren't a thing anymore? Do I lie? I don't want him to make fun of me…

"Uh, it was okay I guess," he responded, very slowly. Khan gave him a quizzical look.

"Is everything alright between you two?" Khan asked

"Sí, totally, we're doing great," Fernando wanted to facepalm. That was the most suspicious answer he could have given.

"Fernando, you don't have to lie to me, you know." God dammit, he's always so thoughtful.

"Khan, amigo, don't worry about it."

"Whatever you say, man." Buck walked back in.

"Sorry about that, guys," he apologized, as he started to change into his practice wear.

"Está bien, Buck," Fernando said. More team members started to trickle in at that point. "We'll be on the field," Khan shouted as he got up from the bench and left the locker room. Fernando followed. He tried to clear his head as he walked behind Khan. I can't let my nerves get to me like that again, or else he might catch on, he thought to himself. He watched the man ahead of him. His light brown hair was slightly messy, and the golden light of the afternoon sun shone off of his tanned skin perfectly. Fernando moved closer to him and decided it was his turn to speak.

"How was your afternoon, Khan?" he asked. Khan paused and looked away.

"It was alright. I just spent some time with Lian, that's all," Khan responded, failing to hide his darkening face. Fernando felt his heart drop, but decided to press on.

"What did you guys do?"

"We… we went on a date."

Fernando gasped. Khan? Dating Lian? This couldn't be happening.

"That sounds nice," Fernando said, hiding his grief. Dios mio, what am I going to do?

"Yeah, it w-"

"Hey! Geez, you guys walk slow as hell!" Buck was running behind them and had joined the conversation. Fernando and Khan both fell silent as Buck rambled about how he and Viktor were having an arm wrestle in the locker room. Viktor lost. The three then arrived at the field, ready to practice. Except Fernando. He was a mess on the inside.

/

It was during a scrimmage when it happened. Fernando couldn't focus at all that night, so it was inevitable. Usually, he was one of the best players on the field. But that night, he was lost in his mind. Coach Terminus' yelling couldn't even snap him out of it. His world was falling apart on the inside. Suddenly, he was on the ground. A hulking figure had hit him right in the upper part of his stomach. The wind was knocked out of him; he couldn't breathe. Terminus blew his whistle. Everything was a blur as Khan took him off of the field and gave him his bottle of water. He kept Fernando's arm around his shoulder, supporting him as he recovered from the blow. The scrimmage kept going. After a couple of minutes, Khan looked at him and spoke.

"Are you feeling better, Fernando?"

He nodded. "Sí, gracias."

"Do you know what happened?"

"I-I couldn't focus," Fernando stuttered. He was still recovering.

"Distracted?"

"Yeah…"

The two fell into silence once again. After a couple more minutes, Khan went back to scrimmage.

"Let me know if you need anything!" he shouted, as he ran back to the field. Fernando nodded and leaned back on the bench. He watched Khan play, admiring his skill as an athlete. As well as being an exceptional student, Khan was the captain of the football team. Not just because he was a great player, but because of his outstanding leadership. He was supportive and helpful, yet also intimidating and ruthless. If any student knew how to lead the football team to victory, it was Khan. He always made being a part of the team special. One such way was to get them all in a circle to chant before every game and practice. The whoops echoed throughout the stadium, boosting confidence in their team.. It was well accepted that the Realm High School football team would not be the same without Khan. This was apparent as Fernando watched him play. Beads of sweat built on his forehead and added a faint shimmer. His almost golden eyes shone with vigor as he played. To Fernando, there was no other guy like him.

Although Khan's scrimmage team lost, he still congratulated the winning team. He was just that type of guy. He returned to his team, who were joking around with each other. When Viktor started poking fun at him, Khan smirked and took the smaller boy under his arm and ruffled his hair. Khan was strong, stronger than Fernando even. He could take on anyone, making him one of the most intimidating players on the field. Khan let go of Viktor and started to approach Fernando, snapping him out of his thoughts. The sweaty man plopped down next to him on the bench as everyone else started to get ready to leave the field.

"How are you feeling?" Khan started.

"Bien."

"That's good."

"I'm sorry, Khan…"

"Fernando, you don't need to apologize, it wasn't your fault. Besides, it happens to everyone once in a while," Khan responded. He looked into his eyes and gave him a half smile. Fernando gave a weak grin in response. Khan then put his hand on his shoulder. It was very warm.

"Is something wrong?" he asked. His hazel irises had softened.

"No."

"Fernando…"

"Khan, todo está bien, okay?"

Khan nodded and gave up. The two got up and headed to the locker room. By then, everyone had left the field. Fernando stared into the distance, observing the faint lingerings of sunlight that had rolled over into dusk. He sighed as he recalled what Khan had told him. They went on a date. Khan's dating her now. That puta. She doesn't deserve him.

He tried to control himself as he changed into his clothes in the locker room. He didn't look at Khan. He didn't look at anyone. He didn't talk to anyone. Buck and Khan both said goodbye, but he ignored them. As soon as he changed, he headed out and went home. His mind was full of thoughts of what Khan and Lian might have done. Fernando wanted to know more, yet didn't want to know at all. As soon as he got back to his family's apartment, he went up to his room and collapsed on the bed. He checked his phone to see that he had a message from Buck asking if he was okay, but he just ignored it and chucked his phone onto a side table. Then, he broke down. "Ay, dios mio!" he cried out. Tears formed and soaked into his pillow, which he used to muffle his agony.

/

Khan was really close to Lian, both figuratively and literally. They were neighbors, and had been best friends since they were children. She was like his little sister. Which is why he was surprised when she asked him to date her. In all of the years they knew each other, she never hinted at having romantic feelings for him. He didn't particularly mind; he always wondered what it would be like to have a partner. Especially someone he holds dear like Lian. Sure, she's beautiful, and popular, and a great friend, but she's Lian. His Lian.

As soon as he arrived at home from practice, he checked his phone. He had a barrage of texts. A couple from his parents, one from Buck, and several from Lian. First, he checked his parents. His mom and his dad each texted him to say they were going to be late and on a business trip respectively. Then, he checked Buck's message. He was asking if Fernando was alright. Khan sighed, for he did not know, which is what he typed back. Within a couple of moments, Buck responded that he was concerned, since he left quickly and didn't stay to chat. Khan had noticed as well, and it had put a bad taste in his mouth. Fernando was almost always the last one to leave, since he stayed to socialize with everyone. Khan had noticed that he always loved to chat. He would ramble in broken Spanglish while everyone else nodded in complete misunderstanding, but it was fun to listen to him. There was always something new with Fernando, but today, that was not the case. Khan responded, "I noticed, I think something's up with him." There was a pause, and then another text: "Yeah, he didn't respond to my message." This was another red flag for Khan. Fernando wasn't the type to ignore people. Something must be seriously wrong… did I have anything to do with it?

Khan sighed and started typing. "He seemed fine at lunch today."

"After that?"

"He was kind of off during math and right after school. He seemed to have blanked out."

"Weird."

"Yeah, I know. I chatted with him a bit before practice, about Cassie. He was acting really weird."

"Maybe they broke up?"

"Possibly."

"I hope he's okay."

After that, the conversation quickly ended. How did Khan not think of that possibility? Maybe he and Cassie broke up, and he was embarrassed about it. Maybe he was so sad, he couldn't focus. Poor Fernando…

Khan then checked his last texts, the ones from Lian. They read as follows:
"Hey."
"Khan?"

"Answer me."

"I'm sad."

"Text me back, dick!"

Khan sighed. She can be so clingy sometimes. He typed a response.
"Sorry, I was at practice. What's wrong?"

She responded with a phone call. Khan picked up.

"Come over," she said.

"I have homework and I'm sweaty from practice," Khan responded. He really didn't want to deal with her right now.

"You're coming over after you take a shower."

Khan sighed, then said, "Alright, whatever you say." She hung up, and Khan went to get clothes to change into after his shower. He headed into the small bathroom and took off his clothes. He looked in the mirror and ran his fingers through his hair, just like Fernando did all of the time.

Khan always hoped Fernando didn't notice when he watched him look at himself in the mirror. He was so confident in himself, all of the time. Always wearing a cheesy grin and speaking his mind. Khan wished he could be like that, not submissive to people around him. He wished he did what he wanted more, just like Fernando. Sure, he was a little weird, but he was unique. Khan remembered earlier, when he caught Fernando dancing in the mirror. He was actually a really good dancer. He must practice, Khan thought to himself. Then, Khan decided to try it. He danced around as he waited for the water in the shower to warm up. He hopped in and whistled as he washed off the layer of sweat and dirt that had built up during practice. He cleaned his hair with flair, and after he finished, he dried himself off. He put on a pair of sweatpants and a plain t-shirt with a new air of confidence around him. Khan walked to Lian's house with a spring in his step. He could now understand why Fernando was always so confident. He just did whatever he wanted. He didn't care who watched. That was why Khan admired him, and was so concerned when he didn't seem like himself. He smiled as he knocked on Lian's door.

She opened the door. Khan's newfound energy was quickly stomped out when he saw his best friend's face. Her eyes were cold, and she glared daggers into him as she crossed her arms.

"What took you so long?" she questioned, in a bitter tone.

"I'm sorry Lian, I was just busy, alright? I'm here now," he responded. Lian sighed and let him into her house. The door closed behind them. She then led him up the stairs to her room, past the ornate paintings and chandelier hanging from the ceiling of the entrance. Her family was pretty wealthy, so they had a nice house. Khan remembered staring in wonder at the paintings and detailed decorations when he was a child. Lian opened the door to her room, and Khan followed her in. The room was dim, only lit by a small lamp in the corner. Her bed was large, with magenta covers and lots of pillows. She had a canopy over the bed. Lian lived like a princess. Her robe was made of soft pink fabric, with a small phoenix embroidered on it. She sat down on her bed, which many crumpled up tissues sprinkled all over. Khan had just realized that her face was red and her eyes were puffy. He sat down next to her then looked into her icy blue eyes.

"Lian, dear, what's wrong?" he started.

"I feel so sad," she said, sniffling.

"Why?"

"I don't know…"

Khan paused. God, girls are so complicated.

"Fetch me some chocolate from downstairs, will you?" Khan nodded and slipped out of the room. He felt like a butler. As he searched for the chocolate in the pantry, his phone vibrated. He had received a text, and upon checking it, he saw it was from Buck.

"Dude, I was right," he wrote.
"About Fernando?" Khan responded.

"Yeah, he just texted me back and told me that him and Cassie split."

Khan winced at that. No wonder he was so off, he probably knew what was coming, he thought to himself. He typed a response.

"That's not good. You think he'll be alright?"

"Fernando's a strong guy, he'll get over it quickly."

"Hopefully."

Khan found the chocolate and headed back upstairs, putting the phone in his pocket. He opened the door, and was met with Lian's annoyed expression once again.

"Here's your chocolate."

"That took way too long."

"Sorry."

He sat on the bed as she nibbled at the treat. She calmed down after eating it. Then, she laid down under the covers and looked at Khan expectantly.

"Cuddle me," she demanded.

"E-excuse me?"
"You heard me."

"My m-"

"She won't care, just stay here with me."

Khan reluctantly complied. He took off his shirt and shoes and joined her in the bed. He put one hand around her waist and let the other stroke her pale silver hair. Khan noticed her fresh scent of violet and her soft breaths as she drifted off to sleep. This didn't feel right at all. The girl he had known all his life, now in his arms in her bed. He knew deep down he didn't belong with her. He didn't love her, at least not this way. Fernando wouldn't let this happen...