(no subject)

[soccerwhisperer]

WHO: Tenma and all other soccer enthusiasts/filthy casuals
WHAT: Marathoning the past two World Cups. In Spanish.
WHERE: Student lounge, or any space with a TV if they get kicked out
WHEN: Evening of September 27th, leaks to other days/nights
WARNING(S): Soccer. Maybe language

Snacks? Check.

Drinks? Check.

Setting early claims on the couch and TV in the student lounge? Check-a-roony.

Getting a laptop somehow connected to the TV? Check...?

Tenma gave a great sigh of relief. It wasn't an easy battle, but he managed to get everything set up for a World Cup marathon or two. Missing five years of his life meant he would miss a World Cup for sure. Unfortunately, the timing was bad enough to make him miss two tournaments. Two whole tournaments! But this time around, the stars aligned in his favor. He knew everyone needed a distraction, himself included, from the recent events that happened. Tonight, he wasn't going to worry about Jon Sublime, President Kelly, or the U-Men. He was going to have a great time with his friends and if someone tried to rain on his parade, he had plans. If someone wanted him to move, he knew of alternate rooms he could host this marathon. If someone tried to get him to go to bed, he would argue finishing up whatever match they were watching before continuing in the morning. If the power went out... Well he didn't have a plan for that, but he would just wing it if it came to that.

Nothing was going to stop him.

Comments

[niepokonany]

Feliks has a threefold agenda, when he turns up for this with his white and red jersey and enough snacks to feed a small army.

First: Watch the few matches that Poland's even in. They didn't make it in in 2014, and didn't do great in 2018 -- they're really not one of the stronger soccer teams out there, and he knows it, but they're his team and he'll support them. Even when supporting them means pouting and bitching at the TV, a fair amount of the time. He does get really energetic and excited when they're doing well, though, even if it's just for a short stretch when it looks like they'll score.

Second: Watch some of the games Germany is in. They usually make it far enough that he doesn't have time for the whole thing, but he likes the ones where they lose. Call it, well... schadenfreude. As much as he hates to admit it, though, they're quite a good team, and are really fun to watch in the moments when he forgets to be grumpy at them for being so much better than his team.

Third: Watch the matches where Russia loses. He has no interest in any games where they win, but -- as he's quick to point out viciously -- there aren't too many of those, anyway. Anyone in the room during those will receive an accidental education on the topic of cursing the gods and very creatively insulting people's mothers in Polish.

third one what else

[the_prodigal_son]

Jack was originally just here to listen to the matches from the early days, but as it turns out soccer is way better than football and he is enthralled. And it just so happens that, since he has now made the commitment to watch all of the matches, Jack gets to spend a few listening to Feliks boo Russia down.

It's the fourth or fifth match when Jack finally turns to Feliks and watches him for a bit before quietly mumbling, "What's wrong with Russia?"

It sounds like a very genuine concern.

[niepokonany]

Feliks, halfway through a suggestion about the Russian striker and a simply astronomical number of dicks, pauses and tilts his head at Jack.

"Like, what's not wrong with them?"

[the_prodigal_son]

Jack shrinks a bit, and stares at the TV for a moment before frowning and turning back to Feliks.

"What did they ever do to you?" Again, it doesn't sound like a rhetorical question.

[niepokonany]

"To me personally, or like, to my country?"

Okay, no, but that wasn't the point. The point was...

"Their foreign policy is aggro as Hell, and like, their vodka is crap."

[the_prodigal_son]

"Aggro?" He tips his head, and scratches his head as tries to define the word in his head and fails.

And then his voice drops to a somewhat hurt mumble. "I like their vodka."

[niepokonany]

This conversation is in no way helped by Feliks feeling defensive around him since the last time they tried to talk about something.

"'Aggro', like 'aggressive'? Like, mad pushy and can't take 'oh my god dude how is it YOUR business' as an answer?

"And Polish wódka is totally better. We like, invented it, you know!"

[the_prodigal_son]

This reminds him of his dad. Andrew Ryan was definitely 'aggro'... he would call hypnotizing a city of insane mutants to kill Jack for accidentally trespassing aggressive and pushy.

"I guess they are... aggro." he concludes. "And I've never... had Polish vodka. There was only Russian vodka in Rapture."

Personally he thinks this conversation is going very well in comparison to their last one. At least they're agreeing on something.

[niepokonany]

And at least there's something for Feliks to joke about. Plus, alcohol!

"So all the gays were psychotic, and all the alcohol was Russian? God, that's just the worst! I'll let you try some better stuff, sometime, when there aren't little kids around."

[the_prodigal_son]

Jack considers telling Feliks that he is a little kid, but it's bound to discredit him and maybe even take away his chances to get better vodka.

"The... man who built the city was Russian. I guess Russian vodka was what he wanted." Jack sighs, "Everyone was psychotic, though, not just... gays." He ends up staring at his left hand while he speaks. So many powers he used to have... "We had a drug that mutated people... gave them whatever powers they wanted, but it drove them insane after a while. Cohen took a lot, I guess."

It feels more and more awkward every time he talks about Rapture. Like it's a weird nightmare he just happens to remember clearly, and his real life is up on the surface 60 years later.