When I arrived in the big city, it seemed insurmountably massive to me. A web of endless streets leading into infinite side alleys, full of unknown people that could mean me harm. I've lived in a small village all my life before, but when I started studying at university, it just wasn't feasible anymore for me to commute in and out all the time, so I started renting a small apartment on the outskirts of the city. Things weren't easy in the beginning—the first few weeks were absolutely paranoia-filled, as I saw muggers behind every dark corner and was cagey towards every stranger, which in this city was everybody. Every bus ride to and from the university was nerve-wracking, and so was every trip to get groceries at the supermarket across the street. Now, it seems a bit ridiculous how nervous I was, but all things considered, it made sense to me—everything was new and scary, and I really just needed some time to get used to things.
But as I slowly got more and more used to life in the city over the next month or two, my priorities shifted. Back then, my priority was just to get back home in one piece and bunker up in my apartment for the rest of the day until I had to brave the outside again. Now, I've come to realize that this city has a massive amount of options for me to spend my free time, but I haven't explored any of them. For that matter, I don't have any friends here either, since I've largely kept to myself at university and basically never spoke to anyone outside of that. And now, I figure it's time to change that. Now, I'm not exactly the most athletic guy, but it could be a lot worse, and I need some sort of physical exertion in my life as well, so I decide that I am going to try and get into some sort of sports club. And thankfully for me, it seems like there's no lack of options available.
One afternoon, I head down to the local rec center and find a large cork board where all sorts of teams have flyers hanging up that advertise their training hours, team mottos and whatnot. Looking over all the different options, one particularly stands out to me. It's a flyer advertising one of the many local amateur soccer teams, but it stands out from the rest just by the way it's written: All the other flyers seem to have some sort of focus on competition, events the teams want to win, specific positions they're looking for, that sort of thing. But this one specifically calls for people new in town and looking for friends, not even mentioning the competition aspect of soccer at all. It's almost like it was made precisely for people like me! Reading further, it seems that their next training is tomorrow, and all you have to do to be ready to sign up is show up in any sort of weather-appropriate clothes you'd wear for sports.
And so, the next day, I return home from university, change into the most athletics-appropriate attire I had, and head down to the soccer field where that team is training. It's actually quite close to the apartment complex I live in as well, which is quite welcome. As I arrive there and enter the gate, I figure I would be in for some awkward moments as I stand at the side while everybody else trains, waiting for somebody to notice me or something, but to my surprise, I haven't been standing there for a whole minute before somebody notices me and immediately comes up to greet me. The guy asks if I was there to join the team, I said yes, and then he already takes me by the hand and leads me to what seems to be the captain. Looking around at the field, a lot of the team doesn't seem to be all that athletic, but it seems like that's just this team's thing—they're some sort of rag-tag group of cast-offs or something, I guess?
However, when I meet the captain for the first time, he stands out as the complete opposite of what I had seen before. He really looks like a perfect specimen—athletic, muscular but not overly so, slightly tanned... he's... beautiful? Is that really the word that just entered my mind there? I quickly shake the thought from my mind.
"Hey there, I'm Aaron, and I'm the team captain. What's your name?" he asks, holding his hand out for me to shake.
I take his hand, and his grip is very firm, yet somehow gentle at the same time, if that makes sense? It's an odd feeling. "Um... I'm Philip, and I want to join your team... if that's alright?" I reply, finding myself stammering a bit. Am I getting nervous or something? Why would I be getting nervous unless... wait, no, I can't think that right now. I'm sure it's just a few synapses firing a bit weird right now.
"Great to meet you, Philip! I'm sure you'll fit right in. C'mon, let me show you around!" he then says, walking off and motioning for me to follow him.
As I walk along with him, being introduced to the other players and shown the facilities (which really are just a common shower and bathroom and the locker room, but hey, isn't that all you really need?), it strikes me that he's basically just treating me like the new player on the team already. He never asked me if I had any background in soccer, never tried to find out how athletic I am, nothing like that. I told him I wanted to join, and that's all that was needed? I suppose that was what was advertised on the flyer—this team isn't about the competition. And after the tour, I get to start with some simple exercises, take some penalty kicks, practice some dribbling... but I also get the feeling that it's really not about the exercises themselves. Instead, I notice that every exercise gives me some dedicated time with one or two particular players of the team to get to know them a bit more. It really seems like Aaron has this all figured out.
After a few hours of this, as all the others pack their stuff together and get ready to leave, Aaron pulls me aside. "Hey, Philip. I really liked what I saw from you today, and I think you'd make a great addition to the team. But before you're officially part of the team, there's one more thing. It's a sort of 'team spirit' thing, if that makes sense? It's one more exercise I'd really like you to go through. Nothing special, really. I'd just like you to come back here at 11 PM tonight. Could you do that?"
My nerves flutter as my paranoia suddenly comes screaming back. It's such an odd request, worded so vaguely that it could be anything, really. And yet, there's something in his expression that assuages all those worries for some reason. So I give him a nod. "Yeah, sure. I'll be there. Anything else I need to know?"
Aaron just shakes his head. "Nah, nothing. Just come, and we'll take care of the rest." he says with a wink that would be incredibly suspicious if I hadn't already decided that I trust him, and with another friendly handshake, the two of us part ways.
Back at home, the hours until 11 PM seem to go by slower and slower. Now that I'm alone, I have all the time in the world to let all my worries fester again, and somehow, I manage to conjure up all sorts of outrageous scenarios, the most ridiculous of them being that the club is actually some sort of cult. And yet, when the time comes, I leave my apartment and head back to the field. The sun has set, and out of all weather conditions, a layer of fog has seemingly materialized out of nowhere just to make the atmosphere more spooky. When I arrive at the field, I can make out two vague shapes standing there in the fog, starting to move in my direction. I manage to convince myself it's nothing to worry about and move towards the shapes, and as they get closer, I recognize them as Aaron and another person I remember seeing at the practice earlier, but I don't believe I've ever spoken to them before.
"Hey, Philip, glad you could make it. Gotta be honest, I didn't exactly expect our meeting to take place in this fog, the weather forecast didn't say anything about this. I was going to have this outside, but I think we'd be better off inside, don't you agree?" Alex says before pointing me towards the locker room.
I simply give him a short nod and follow, the other guy wordlessly walking along with us. Entering the locker room, I'm struck by how warm it is—a quick look over to the side of the room shows that the heater must have been running ever since the practice earlier today, giving it plenty of time to heat the locked room up. The three of us sit down on the benches and look at each other in a moment of silence before Aaron speaks again.
"Alright, so we already know each other, Philip, but I don't think you've really met Sam yet. He's my vice captain." he begins, pointing towards the third guy. "He's a bit shy, so he doesn't really do the big introductions, but let me tell you, I couldn't wish for a better second-in-command. He's just a bit quiet, y'know?"
Sam reaches out his hand, and we share a handshake as he simply gives me a short "Hi, Philip.". I guess he really doesn't talk much.
After the introductions are over, Aaron continues. "So, if you're wondering why we asked you to come here, well, there's something we would like to do with you. Something to really welcome you to the team. It's something we've done with everybody else that joined the team, so it's not like it's something special or anything, almost a formality, really. ...have you ever heard of the Sacred Band?"
...wait, what did he just say? Did he really just... no, I must've misheard. I just say "No, I haven't." and figure the explanation will clear this up.
But no, I didn't mishear. "The Sacred Band was an elite group of warriors in ancient Greece. They were all guys, and they say that the thing that made them particularly great fighters was that they were made up of pairs that were in love. I... I want to bring some of that spirit to the team. I want the team to be connected in a way that goes beyond just friendship. That's why it's just the three of us here alone right now, deep at night."
I'm stunned, downright shocked into silence. But it's as if Aaron already expected that, as he just smiles softly. "C'mon, Philip. I know you were checking me out earlier. Maybe just a bit... but I know you were looking, right?"
And I can't say no. I was indeed looking at him in that kind of way earlier today. I'm still silent, but my expression seems to tell an entire story, as his smile just gets wider. "Alright, I'll just cut to the chase. Sam and I want to give you a proper welcome to the team. That will involve the two of us going above and beyond friendship with you. We want to show you what companionship truly means in this team. A bond that goes beyond the sport itself. If you're not OK with that, you can just leave. But if you stay... we'll show you something special."
His words were so innuendo-laden that I expected Aaron's face to have a lecherous grin on it, but I couldn't have been further from the truth. He still holds that same gentle, warm smile that he had when we first met. It seems so genuine. And so, I make my decision.
"I... I'm in." I can't believe the words are coming out of my mouth, but it's happened now.
Aaron sighs a sigh of relief. "Great. You won't regret this, I promise." With a wave of his hand, he motions for Sam to move, and he does so, positioning himself behind me and grabbing my shoulders. I flinch a bit, but Sam then slowly and carefully begins to massage my shoulders as Aaron kneels down in front of me, lifting up one of my feet and slipping my shoe off.
"Just relax. We'll take care of everything." Aaron then says as he begins to massage my feet, and together with Sam massaging my shoulders, the feeling is incredible. I just sit there, letting myself be treated like royalty, but after a minute or two, I feel like the combination of the warmth of the room and the massage is heating me up just a bit. And then, Sam's hands begin to wander under my shirt, and I realize things are going to turn... intimate.