Love and Red Coloured Ties

Chapter song: cross my heart - Artemas 

Agares cleared his throat, getting everybody's attention. The boys looked at the tall teenager with curious eyes, wondering what the news might be about. 

He started to explain how the Headmaster has agreed to their friendly match and that Saint-Ambracia has decided on having a friendly bout instead of a game. 

"So wait, we're actually playing against them? This is like, a real thing?!" Reese exclaimed. 

"Yes we are." Agares replied. 

"What sport?" Kiyo asked. 

"They've decided on taekwondo." Agares said. 

The boy's looked at each other before In-su cleared his throat. "Obviously we might not be on their level in terms of martial arts, but that doesn't mean we have no chance of winning. The only problem is that we are missing a player in our taekwondo team." 

Agares raised an eyebrow. "Why haven't I been made aware of this?" He asked. 

"It happened last week. Rowan broke his leg so he won't be able to play, and we don't have a substitute for him." 

"It's kind of convenient that this occurred right when Saint Ambracia decided to choose their sport." Julius spoke up. 

All twenty pairs of eyes were now on him. 

"Now that he's mentioned it, it is kinda weird that Rowan injured his legs just as Saint-Ambracia decides on a martial tournament and it just so happens to be the sport where we are missing a player." Silas said. 

"That's a bit of a reach don't you think?" Artemus laughed. 

"Maybe it is, maybe it isn't, but it's still weird." Silas observed.

"Well, whatever the reason may be, we intend to win. We won't let Saint Ambracia Academy besmirch East Laurence's name." He said, in a stern voice. 

"What we need to focus on right now is finding a replacement." Epaphras added. 

The boys nodded their heads. In-su had a pensive look on his face as he racked his brain to find anyone who could possibly replace Rowan. 

Rowan was a skilled taekwondo player and was highly ranked in their team. East Laurence had a habit of ranking their players in order to celebrate their achievements and get a competitive spirit going. In a club comprised of fifteen players, Rowan was ranked number sixth in the team. Having such a valuable player gone wasn't a complete lost for them, but it definitely does put somewhat of a damper in their plans of winning. 

As the boys silently wondered who they could pick, a sudden thought came to Silas' mind. 

"Wait! Didn't Julius practice taekwondo at some point? When he was younger, right?" Silas exclaimed. 

All eyes turned to Julius as the boy in question paled. "N—No—" 

"Right! He does! He also used to play judo, right?!" Kiyo exclaimed. 

"N—No, I—" 

"No. He did kickboxing and Brazilian jiu jitsu." Silas said. 

Julius glared daggers at Silas, wishing the smiling boy could drop dead right then and there. He had told Silas about his sport-like days in confidence and he couldn't believe he was revealing it now. What purpose would it even serve to tell them this? It was not like Julius would actually play. 

Agares turned to look at the boy in surprise. He had never expected Julius to be the sports type at all. But now that he looked at him, despite his slimmer frame, Julius did have the body of someone who practiced at least some form of sport. 

The blonde could feel his face warm up as he felt Agares' gaze on him. In-su gazed at the boy curiously, sizing him up. 

"When was the last time you played?" He asked him. 

"Uh…I haven't competed professionally since middle school but I used to join a dojo back in Westwood so…pretty recently." He admitted. 

The boys looked at him in surprise, especially In-su who wasn't expecting that answer at all. He had thought that maybe Julius used to do taekwondo as a kid like and quit afterwards like most people, but to think he still practiced. 

"Then maybe Julius could replace Rowan?" He tentatively said, though he himself wasn't sure if it was a good idea. 

"Hold on. He just said that he doesn't practice taekwondo professionally anymore. Also we can't make hasty decisions like this either. We don't even know if he's as skilled as he claims to be." Agares said. 

Hearing those words from Agares offended Julius who wasn't one who got offended by these kinds of things at all. He felt strangely competitive all of a sudden, feeling like he needed to prove himself to Agares. 

"How about testing him then? We could have him do a trial match and see how he fares against the team members?" Epaphras suggested. 

"Wait I don't think that's—" 

"Yeah why not? It wouldn't hurt to try. Plus it's not like we have anyone else in mind anyway." In-su said. 

"Wait, seriously guys, I don't think I'm any good at all." Julius interjected. 

"Dude, even if you're not, it's cool. What matters is having enough players anyway." Silas assured him. 

"Yes, but we want players who can still contribute even if they are just filling in space." Agares said coolly. 

"It's fine, Agares, like In-su said, it doesn't hurt to try." Epaphras said. 

"Alright then." He said, not sounding at all convinced. 

Julius sat there at a loss for words. He couldn't believe the guys were making this decision for him, without even considering his feelings. They all spoke as if he had been in agreement. The thought of having to compete was enough to put the boy into an early coma. Julius wasn't the kind of person who performed well under pressure. It was the reason why he stopped competing. He preferred doing things at his own pace and leisure but a part of him wanted to prove himself to the boys as well. He had a slight hope that if on the off chance he did compete, then he could justify being in this house, and he would finally feel like he belonged. He also wanted to prove to Agares, who seemed doubtful of his skills that he wasn't a lost cause either. 

This was a matter of pride, and he didn't want to lose in front of him.