Chapter Text
"Let's see. Tachibana Soichirou, Akinori Kaneda, Hasegawa Yuudai, Lee Jong Suk. All them are solid choices ", one coach said. The ten coaches of Esperion team were sitting in the meeting room, deciding on which newbies would get in the team.
"Tsukishima, what do you think?", Fukuda asked as he looked at the blonde coach with the glasses who was sitting at the opposite side. Tsukishima smiled brightly as he slammed his hands on table, standing up .
"Otomo Eisaku! I think he was unique!', he said as he looked at the others. Another coach checked his papers , finding the boy's details.
"Otomo Eisaku? I didn't find anything special or worth mentioning about him. What made you find him interesting, Tsukishima?", he eventually said.
"Rather than the way he plays, I mean his behaviour inside and outside the pitch. Didn't you notice that guys?", Tsukishima asked as he looked at the other coaches.
"Of course, I did notice that" , Coach Nozomi said.
"Same here!", Coach Benzen nodded in agreement. Satisfied by those two responses, coach Tsukishima continued .
"It started even before the start of the match. He went and talked to many players. And not just that. If you noticed, he approached only those who also wore white jerseys and the numbers of their jerseys were close to his own! "
The other coaches were silent, trying to process the blonde coach's words.
"....see where I'm getting at?Realizing that there was a high possibility of the teams being organized and divided under a certain order,he was the only exam -taker who considered that and so he went to talk to the others in advance, while simultaneously trying to find out more about their personalities or playing style!" ,Tsukishima finished his explanation as he waited for the others' opinions
"I don't know about it. I think you just exaggerate" the coach who asked about Otomo commented.
"Non, non. Trust me, he's a shrewd one and also perceptive. Besides,when his team had a rough time,he was the only one who raised his voice to encourage everyone " , Tsukishima said while fixing his glasses on his eyes.
"Well, we're lacking in midfielders so let's keep him" , Fukuda said before moving to the next candidate on papers. "Now comes the difficult choice: Ashito Aoi" he sighed. This would be a long talk.
*time skip*
"Tell me the truth, Tsukishima. It's just the two of us", Fukuda said to the blonde coach. All the other coaches had left the meeting room since the selection section was over. The only ones left in the room where Tsukishima, who was tidying up the tables and Fukuda, who seemed like he had something important to discuss with the young man.
"Hmm? What do you mean Fukuda-San?" , Tsukishima asked curiously,not understanding what the black haired man was talking about. Fukuda sighed as he approached the glasses guy, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"I don't doubt your explanations about Otomo's traits,but I want to ask you one thing: You also mentioned him because he reminds you of your dead son, right?" , the old man said seriously, looking into the blonde's eyes, waiting for his answer. Tsukishima froze in his place, his kind smile that rarely left his face vanished in a few seconds, getting replaced by a darkened face of an adult who was trying to not cry.
"Partially yes. But I believe in Otomo-kun and his abilities. I do see my dead son whenever i see that guy,but believe me, I think Otomo will be valuable for Esperion team" , Tsukishima said honestly as he looked at the man in front of him. Fukuda smiled as he let go off Tsukishima.
"Very good. Now he's in your arms. You will be the one to put him in place if he misbehaves or performs poorly. You know that, right?", Fukuda asked as he walked over the door.
"O-Of course i know that! I'll do my best!" Tsukishima said before following the coach out of the meeting room.
"Very good. Because we can't be lenient to the players, even if they're first year newbies. Esperion is a power team and that should be shown not only in words,but in actions too. We're coaches and parents at the same time", Fukuda said before leaving for his house.
"I know , Fukuda-San", Tsukishima said before also leaving for his house,but he seemed thoughtful. He ended up adoring Otomo even if he just met him and considered him as son already, but it was known that Tsukishima was a softie. He didn't like punishing or being strict, but Fukuda was right. He had to be bad of needed,for his reputation as coach and the sake of the Esperion team....