Thiago De Blanck ¹

The music in the house was already booming, laughter, conversations, shouts of the winners — the party was in full swing.

Thiago walked across the room, restrained, with a slight smile, holding one glass in his hand — the maximum to feel a little more free. He didn't come here for the alcohol. He came to see you, to see how this evening is going.

The balcony was almost empty. You're leaning against the railing, your hair slightly disheveled. When Thiago approached, you looked up.

"Hey." - You said it softly.

"Hey." - He answered evenly, but there was something more than the usual politeness in his voice.

At first, you just stood there. A little later, a little closer. And more. And more…

The music was loud, the laughter below. And on the balcony, it seemed like there were only the two of you. He leaned over, touching your arm just a little. You flinched a little, but you didn't pull away. Then your shoulders touched. Then the foreheads almost came together.

And almost, almost — lips… But at that moment, the door swung open, and Taylor was standing right on the threshold, with a slight grin and hands in his pockets.

"Hey guys." - He said it calmly, almost as if nothing was happening. "I'll just see how the fresh air is, yeah?"

You both abruptly pulled away. Thiago took a step back, and you straightened up, but you didn't lose your head.

Taylor grinned without saying another word and walked back inside, leaving a slight tremor in his wake.

"Of course," - Thiago said softly, speaking to himself, but you heard. "My brother is the same as always."

When Thiago and his brother Taylor return to the city after seven years, everything immediately becomes tense. Camille is the past. It's sick, complicated, and unhealed.

Thiago keeps his distance from her. He is cold, reserved, professional — especially now that he is an assistant coach. He doesn't allow himself weaknesses where there are too many memories. And it is in this new control built by him that you appear. It's not really a novel. not even an attempt at it. This is a mutual pause from feelings that are too heavy.

you get closer imperceptibly: short conversations after training, random intersections in the gym, glances in which there is more understanding than words. You both understand the boundary. and never cross it.

From the very beginning, it wasn't "nothing." You wouldn't just stay next to each other. There was a quiet attraction between you— not sudden, not instantaneous. Rather, it feels like you don't have to defend yourself next to this person. But he knew that if he allowed himself to feel more, he would stop being careful. and being careful right now was the only thing keeping him from making another mistake.

So he pretended it was convenient. That it's just a way of not being alone. That he's in control of the situation. He wasn't in control.

Your closeness was not ostentatious. No public touching. No promises. You've both been following these rules for a very long time.