Honestly, Kang Do-Jin couldn’t really read where Miki Yamane wanted to go. His old captain just stared blankly at him like he didn’t even exist here, so the boy just used his intuition and all the information he had on his old captain to move.
’Miki-san will never hesitate in this kind of moment, but if he wants to aim at my right side, he has to slow down a little bit to lean toward that direction. If he didn’t, he would just go to my left. Now... What would he do... No, he doesn’t slow down here! I have to move!’
Not wanting to be late with his timing, Do-Jin moved immediately the moment he was convinced about where the ball would go. Little did he know, though, that there was still one path that he didn’t consider.
It was straight down to the middle, where Miki Yamane just whacked the ball up with all of his strength.
BAM!
Kang Do-Jin widened his eyes in shock as he saw the ball going in the direction he had just left a moment ago, and he could only sigh helplessly after seeing it slam the back of the net. A long silence followed after that, with everyone still trying to process everything here. Then...
FWEEE! FWEEE! FWEEE!
The referee finally blew the whistle to end the game, and that was when everything finally sank in.
"FUCK YEAAAAH!"
All the Japan players rushed toward the penalty box immediately, intending to swarm Miki Yamane, who was the last executioner. However, the boy didn’t celebrate alone. No, he just pointed his finger at Higo, giving all the credit to the goalkeeper. The crowd also moved in that direction as well, hugging and jumping around him crazily.
"Fuck it, Ryusuke! You really are our lucky star!" Kawabe laughed until he cried, getting overwhelmed by emotion.
"Hahaha! I know you can do this!" Mamoru also jumped around in the background, laughing happily at the win. Even though he didn’t become the hero that he was promised to be since the game ended in the fourth round, the boy didn’t mind about it at all.
The players there went crazy, with some even pouring water on his head, enough to make Higo shudder in coldness. However, the boy still grinned widely, knowing that he had done the main task he was given. The boy didn’t even think about the next game and the fact that he would be back on the bench again, just wanting to enjoy this moment with the team.
That was when his eyes caught Kang Do-Jin lying on the ground with his chest moving up and down quietly. The boy covered his face with his arms, secretly crying at his spot. The same could be seen for the other South Korean players, but the goalkeeper was there alone, while the rest of the team were still behind the center line.
Seeing this, and remembering how the boy consoled him in the last winter tournament after he lost, Higo’s gaze softened a little bit, deciding to approach him here. "Hey, you have done a great job, you know?" He sat next to Kang Do-Jin while also patting his shoulder.
"Doing a good job my ass..." Kang Do-Jin laughed bitterly, not even looking at him. The Korean goalkeeper knew who came here just by hearing his voice. "If I did well, we should’ve been the ones to go to the next round, right?"
"No, no, no, sometimes, you doing a great job and the team winning are not always correlate to each other. I know that well." Higo shook his head quickly. "You have done great, saving one penalty here. You are just unlucky that your opponent is me." He had a shit-eating grin, as even though he was consoling the boy, Higo still had time to brag here.
Kang Do-Jin laughed once again before he finally got up from the ground. The boy could see some of his teammates were coming as well. "Anyway, congratulations. This should be the first time you beat me, right? Don’t worry, I will be back stronger than ever, and when we meet again, you will be the one who eats dirt."
Higo felt the corner of his lips twitching when he heard that. The boy had his eyes following Kang Do-Jin for a moment before two people came and sat around him, sandwiching him in the middle.
"So, how is it? Still thinking that being a penalty specialist suck?" Kumiko couldn’t help but ask with a teasing tone.
Higo made some rude hand gestures here, which made Kumiko and Makino laugh quietly. However, after pondering for a moment, he finally said, albeit begrudgingly, "Well... It is not a bad thing, I guess, but I would still prefer playing the whole game rather than just coming at the end like that."
He would never admit it out loud, especially with Makino here, but the boy enjoyed the feeling of becoming a hero. Not that Makino needed an explanation, of course, since he could understand that feeling as well. At the end of the day, they were just two boys entering their adulthood, and the concept of being a hero to save the day was still quite attractive in their minds.
"Still, don’t be too greedy, Chibi," Makino grumbled next to him. "You are lucky you still have a chance to play. Look at me, rotting quietly on the bench without even getting a glance from the coach. My state is disgusting." He said self-depreciatingly.
"Yeah, your situation sucks, not gonna lie, Teme." Higo chuckled secretly. What he didn’t expect, though, was that Makino suddenly gave him a headlock. "Fuck, Teme! What the hell is wrong with you?!" He struggled to get out of this situation.
"That’s what you get from mocking your friend’s misery!" Makino growled, not letting him go.
"Come on, that’s just a joke! Leave me alone!"
"Never!"
Kumiko just shook her head in amusement as she watched her two friends wrestling on the grass, ignoring the celebration that also started to subside in the pitch. The players were calmer this time, having had enough of showing their excitement on the pitch. Soon, Ito finally called them from afar.
"Oi, you three! Come quick! We have to greet the fans!"
With that, the two boys finally let go of each other, getting up from the ground immediately while shouting, "COMING!" followed by the girl, as they were finally about to leave the pitch.