~~~~

Axel's POV~

"Don't you dare hurt any of them you fucking prissy!" Archer said as he made his way towards the biker guy.

Seeing him obviously irked the pink-haired dude as he pushed Alexi aside like she was nothing. Luckily I caught her before she landed on the ground.

She was clutching her hand tightly and a few tears formed in her eyes. Instinctively, I pulled her closer to me as she rested her head on my chest.

"Gods, it h-hurts!" she sobbed.

"Alexi..." I whispered as I tried to calm her down. Her left hand was shaking and I knew it must've hurt really bad. I was so angry, I wanted to yell at that jerk, but when I turned to them, the biker guy looked like he just saw a ghost.

"Archer..." he said under his breath. The three other guys were shaking for some reason when they saw Archer. Seeing this, the pink-haired biker took a deep breath and recomposed himself. "What're you doing 'ere? We all thought you dead or something."

"Shut the fuck up Randy." Archer growled. He saw Alexi clutching her arm and immediately glared back at that Randy guy. "What did you do to our manager?"

"Manager? Oh you mean that pretty little dame? She's your manager?" Randy laughed teasingly, "I just played with her that's all..."

Archer turned his attention to the other three guys who were apparently spooked out because of the confrontation, "What are you guys doing here? Don't you remember our gang's number one rule?"

"Stop right there Archer..." Randy said with a smirk, "You're not our leader anymore, you ditched us remember?"

"So I supposed you barged in and took the position didn't you, you good for nothing punk?" Archer said, evidently pissed off. "What have you done with Suz?"

"That piece of garbage? I put him back where he belongs, in a dumpster... after tearing him apart that is." Randy then snapped his fingers, "Get HIM!"

The other three reluctantly charged at Archer; their fists balled and their eyes closed.

"Archer! Watch out!" Marc yelled.

Archer paid him no mind as he got into a position like he was about ready to kick a ball, hard.

"Don't fuck with me you damn bastards!" Archer said as he flexed his foot so hard that it felt like a tempest was running us over. I quickly pulled in Alexi closer to me and covered her head with my arms.

When I opened my eyes, I saw the three guys toppled on the ground, motionless.

"Your turn, twerp." Archer said, looking at Randy.

Randy didn't even hesitate as he got ready to charge at Archer. Luckily, Marc was able to get in between them and talked some sense into them. Randy clicked his tongue and vowed to pay him back one day then left the scene with his bike.

Archer made his way to the three fallen boys who were trying really hard to stand up again. "I'm sorry if got a little carried away."

We were all surprised and intrigued about how these punks were associated with Archer, and yet all we can do was to listen to what they were saying. Besides, we're not in any position to judge Archer and his past because in a way, he did save our lives.

"W-we're sorry Archer." One of the guys said, "We had no other choice. Randy, he... he'll murder our asses if we didn't do what he says. The boys and I know that what he's doin is wrong, but we can't stand up to him, boss. Please, please, boss... you gotta come back to the gang! We can't live like this no more!"

Archer stood up and sighed, "This is your problem now. I won't have anything to do with it."

The three guys had a look of utter defeat as they walked away, Archer on the other hand looked like he just made a huge mistake. Marc questioned him about what was the whole thing about but his only reply was; "Please excuse what my old friends have done to you, but I'd rather not talk about the past... excuse me Captain."

He then turned around and walked away.

When he was gone, Marc and the others went to check on Alexi who was still tearing up because of the pain. I took off the bandage from her wrist and was shocked to know that it was bruised and swelling up again. After taking a cab back to the training camp, I personally treated Alexi's hand and gave her some pain killers just in case. I may not be a doctor, but I do know enough to help remedy Alexi's wrist.

Once it was all done, she sighed and gave me a smile.

"Thank you. You did a pretty great job. Though, I am sorry for always causing you trouble." She said earning a sigh of relief from Marc and the others.

I smiled at her and wiped the remaining tears from her face with a clean handkerchief, "Don't be. I'll always be there to help you out, remember?"

A light blush crept to her cheeks as she nodded, "Yeah, I remember."

~~~~

That evening, Austin came home just in time to see Alexi going on and about the kitchen preparing tonight's meal. It looks like the pain killers had already taken effect and Austin hadn't noticed the new bandage covering most of Alexi's wrist area because of the swollen part.

Dinner went by as usual with Jack eating at least 9 helpings of Alexi's delicious cooking. The others talked, laughed and snickered all over the dining hall as the managers served each and every one of us.

"Camellia, has Coach arrived yet?" Alexi asked as she served Caleb a glass of water.

"Wait, I'll go and check." She answered. Before she could leave though, the door opened and behind it Coach Travis stood. "Dad?"

"I'm afraid I have some alarming news for you tonight." He said as he slipped his hands in his coat pocket, "Your match with Qatar has been moved. It'll be held tomorrow afternoon, a day earlier than what was agreed upon."

Everyone was surprised with the sudden announcement. Alexi took off her white apron and approached Coach hurriedly. They spoke in a hushed tone, leaving us all out of the conversation. Once they were done, Alexi nodded at coach and went back to work in the kitchen.

"There's not much we can do about this sudden decision." Coach told us, "All we can do now is to do our best tomorrow and set our goals on winning."

With that, he left the room leaving all of us anxious for the match tomorrow.

The next morning, we had an early breakfast and training session which composed of the training regime we made yesterday. During the whole thing, Austin looked a bit more energetic than yesterday, probably because his sister was watching. At around 9 am, we all cooled off and rested.

The managers made us a special early lunch, which we thankfully ate before going to the stadium.

"How's your wrist?" I asked Alexi who was sitting in front of me at the bus, clutching a white notebook. Next to her, Austin stared blankly outside the window.

"It's feeling much better, the pain killer was really effective." She answered with a smile, "You ok? You're not nervous about the game are you?"

"Don't worry, I'm not." I said with a small smile, "But I am worried about Austin's plays today. You think he'll be alright?"

A sad look painted Alexi's face as she stole a glance at her brother, "I'm not sure, but..."

"But what?"

A smile graced her lips as she leaned in closer to me, "...but I'm sure you and the rest of the team will be there to help him out."

"Yeah. Of course we will."

****

The stadium was jam-packed with fans from both Inazuma Japan and Qatar's Desert Lion, waiting for the game to begin. When the representatives from both team came out to the pitch, a roaring sound of applause and cheers filled the place giving the players a surge of anxiety they needed for today's game.

"Good afternoon Ladies and Gentlemen!" The commentator, Chester Horse Sr jeered from the stands. "The second match in the FFI's Asia Preliminaries –the fated game between Japan's Team, Inazuma Japan, versus, Qatar's team, Desert Lion, is about to begin! We're fortunate to have good weather today and it seems both the temperature and the game will be getting hot, hot, HOT!"

The crown cheered once more as they feel the excitement of the game.

"The starting members for Inazuma Japan, the team who brought down Australia in their first match, are lined up on the field!" he added, "Facing them will be Qatar's team led by Coach Eliza Manon, with their captain, Bjorn Kaile first on the list. This team is made up of players who pride themselves in extraordinary physical abilities and individual techniques. What will happen in this scorching hot match?"

On the benches, Alexi stood beside Coach Travis with her notebook and pen in hand. After giving Austin another worried look, she sighed and focused on the game just as the whistle blew, signalling the beginning of the match.

"And there's the kick-off!" the commentator yelled, "With the ball in his possession, Foster dribbles up the field! Ah but here's Qatar's number 10, Zach Abdullah, charging fiercely towards Foster!"

Just then, Zach slides in for the steal. Luckily, Xavier was too fast, he managed to get pass Qatar's advances and passes the ball to Jude. Another player then charges towards Jude attempting to block him, but he managed to get pass Qatar's player and kicks the ball to Axel.

"Inazuma Japan makes quick passes, putting Qatar's Desert Lion at their mercy. Looks like they can't keep up with Japan's pace!"

"Whoa!" Willy exclaimed as he pushed up his glasses, "They're actually taking advantage!"

"Yeah, and the team aren't losing to body blows even with Desert Lion's rough plays, right Alexi?" Sylvia turned to the dark-haired manager's direction only to see her write down on her notebook and observe the game at full speed. The other managers stared at her, their mouths agape. No matter how many times they see her do that fast-speed predicting, they still find it amazing.

As Axel went further into the enemy's territory, Kaile ordered his team mates to stop him before he gets any further. Two players tried to pincer him, but Axel was too fast, he passed the ball to Shawn who continued to run towards the other team's goal. When he was close enough, Shawn busted out his shot: Wolf Legend. Unfortunately, Kaile managed to block his shoot just enough for Qatar's goalie, Nasser, to punch the ball out of bounds.

The whistle blew just in time for Alexi to finish writing in her notebook. She gave it a quick read-through and then gave it to Coach Travis. He then read the notebook and nodded to Alexi.

The match then resumes with Nathan's corner kick. With a smirk plastered on his lips he seemingly kicked the ball to high as a miskick. When it was high enough though, the ball made an arc and landed straight into the goal, earning them their first point.

"With a point behind, Desert Lion charges to Japan's goal fiercely with Zach handling the ball. Yet out of nowhere Jordan jumps in and steals the ball from him!"

Then, two players from Qatar rushed towards Jordan to pincer him. He quickly saw through their attempt and passed the ball to Shawn, who was conveniently behind him.

"What's this? Shawn makes an abrupt change and lets the ball pass him heading straight for Xavier who's completely free! Well played Inazuma Japan! Now, Xavier's attempting to make score another goal with his Meteor Blade... and it goes in! That's Inazuma Japan's second goal!" screamed the commentator, making the crowd stir up a frenzy of cheers. "There's not much time in the first half, but Japan continues to attack relentlessly!"

Alexi sat down on the benches next to the other managers and sighed.

"What's wrong Alexi?" Willy asked, "What're you sighing for? The teams totally kicking Desert Lion's asses out there!"

Alexi stared out on the field and shook her head, "The first half is almost over and yet... our opponent still manages to run around so much. On the other hand, the Shawn and the others are looking tired already."

As if to prove her point, the midfielders are already catching their breath from all the running they've done and the forwards were looking tired from their bombardments of attack to Qatar's goal. Only Marc and the defenders looked like they could still keep up with the game's fast pace.

The whistle then blew, signalling the end of the first half. Alexi and the rest of the managers were busy taking care of the team; handing out water bottles, distributing towels and checking for injuries.

At the Desert Lion's benches, Coach Eliza Manon smirked as she observed the opponent's team weak condition.

"Now the second half of the battle is about to begin!" the speakers blared all over the arena. "Will Japan be able to keep their leading score? Ah, but what's this? Qatar changed to an aggressive line-up for the second half by bringing up three forwards. Folks, it seems like we can't afford to keep our eyes off the match! The kick-off starts now!"

Zach runs towards Inazuma Japan's territory with the ball in his possession and gets pincered by Jude and Jordan, unfortunately, he passes through them easily and runs pass Thor and Scotty who attempted to box him in.

"Zack's bulldozes his way through and charges towards the goal in a flash!"

As Zach got closer to the goal, Jack tried to stop him but he was too late. Zach shot the ball towards the net with such strength and speed that it was almost impossible to catch. Good thing March manages to use Fist of Justice G3, sending it to Nathan winds up clearing the ball.

"They've avoided the danger, but Inazuma Japan is being heavily bombarded with attacks early in the second half!" the commentator yelled.

"How did he easily get pass the midfielders and defenders and into the penalty are?" Marc pondered. He instinctively looked at Alexi and was surprised when her blue eyes turned to red then back to blue. Her eyes then scanned the field as if she was looking for someone, and stopped at Jordan just as he collapsed face first on the ground.

The team rushed to his side and the referee called for a time-out. Alexi came in running with a water bottle and a damp cloth. They made some room for her to work on and observed her carefully while she checked his pulse and vitals.

"Rapid pulse, flushed complexion, heavy sweating with cold and clammy skin and heavy breathing..." she muttered. She then looked at Jordan and brushed his hair from his eyes, "Jordan, can you hear me? How do you feel?"

"I'm dizzy... I wanna puke. And my legs..." Jordan then struggled to get on all fours. "...my legs' hurts!"

"Heat exhaustion. And your legs are probably tired from all that non-stop training." Alexi announced. She then called for Darren to help Jordan get out of the sun as she gave him a bottle of water and wiped his face, neck and shoulders with the damp towel.

"I'm sorry for dragging everyone down." Jordan said apologetically before he was carried off the pitch and gets replaced by Todd. Alexi then ordered Jordan to lie down on her lap as she continued to wipe him off with the damp towel, while his legs were slightly elevated and Willy cooling him off with a fan.

Seeing Alexi's quick response made March think about how her eye-colour changed; he wanted to think more about it and its connections Alexi's extraordinary gift, but the match was starting yet again with Zach's throw in. He needed to focus on the game.

Zach planned to pass the ball to one of the near-by players, but Todd was quick to react as he hastily intercepted the ball and ran towards the other team's goal. Unfortunately, the forwards can't keep up and were starting to get tired and it made Todd wonder what he was supposed to do.

"The need someone flexible enough to act as a midfielder and a power-forward on their own." Alexi said to no one in particular. She then met her brother Austin's gaze but he quickly looked away as if he knew what she was trying to imply...which, of course, he did.

Seeing their opponents struggle with the intense heat, the Desert Lion's players smiled to themselves.

"They've fallen into our trap!"Kaile said to his team mates, "Gentlemen, let's get ready to hunt!"

"Kaile stole the ball from Todd Ironside and came charging up the battle front with his team!" the commentator said.

"Tighten the defences!" Marc shouted to his team mates.

"Damn! They're too fast!" Jude said under his breath.

Kaile has shaken off Jude's mark. Despite those rough collision plays he performed in the first half, his stamina hasn't changed at all. He then passes the ball to Zach who blows through Xavier as Qatar plunges deeper into enemy lines. Zach then passes the ball to another member, but Hurley managed to keep up and both players are head to head, trying to steal the ball. Unfortunately their effort where all in vain as the player shot the ball in the goal, earning Qatar their first point.

Seeing this, Alexi sighed and looked away. Jordan asked her what was wrong, she looked at Coach Travis who was reading the notebook and answered, "Their motive was to reduce our team's stamina, that's why they played so roughly in the first half. There's also the hot weather...Qatar's team was tampered to these kind of extremes; they have highly trained muscles and infinite endurance and that's their strongest weapons."

"Foster and Kane have reached their limits. Regrettably, they have to switch themselves off the pitch. In their places, Darren will be taking up Xavier's place as midfielder and Archer will fill up for Hurley as a defender."

Hurley and Xavier were given the same treatment as Jordan while the game continued on with Axel having possession of the ball. He then passes it to Shawn who takes it up front.

Unfortunately, he wasn't able to keep hold of the ball as Zach slides in for the steal. The ball landed at Jude's feet and was then given back to Shawn as he got ready to sue Wolf Legend. Unfortunately, Qatar's goal keeper was able to catch it with his Storm Rider.

The shot took out a lot from Shawn as he collapsed to the ground just as the others before him. He was carried off to the side and was treated.

"Switch players!" Coach Travis shouted as he motioned to Austin, "Knight, get ready. You're up."

Caleb and Alexi exchanged glances, the look of worry eminent from their faces. They didn't talk, but they knew full well what was going to happen; now, they can only pray for the best. Before Austin got up the benches, Alexi called him over and kissed him on the forehead and gave him a smile. "Good luck out there Tiger. Give it your best shot, alright?"

A look of guilt and anxiety washed over Austin's face, yet he still managed to smile and nod, "I'll do my best, promise..."

"Coach Percival Travis is switching out Foster with Austin Knight but there's not much time left...Will Austin be the one to bring Inazuma Japan out of this deadlock as he takes on Shawn's position?" the reporter said from the side-lines.

Axel noted how worried Alexi looked from the benches, he knew it was about Austin. Whatever happens, he will help them both get through this.

The game resumes with a goal-kick from Nasser who passes it to Zach and then to Kaile. But Austin swiftly intercepts the pass and runs straight for the goal. Two players planned to pincer Austin, but he quickly got pass them without breaking a sweat.

Alexi and Caleb were so happy seeing him shine like that, it made the other players stunned at how versatile and fluid his plays were. But as Austin gets closer to the goal, he redirected his path and made a hasty back pass to Axel. Unfortunately, one of Qatar's players managed to intercept the ball and made a huge pass to one of his team mates up-front.

None of Japan's players were able to keep up except for Darren who continued to surge on and slides in to stop Desert Lion's invasion. Nathan then gets the loose ball and makes a pass to Jude who was heavily guarded. Good thing Austin once again intercepts it and break apart Desert Lion's defence for the second time.

Axel saw that Austin had a clear shot for the goal and yelled at him to kick the ball in. But instead of listening to Axel, Austin hesitates yet again and passes the ball to Axel. Surprised by the gesture, Axel had not choice than to use Explosive Storm which was ultimately stopped by Nasser's Storm Rider.

"That was close!" Marc yelled from the other end of the field, "But nice assist Austin!"

Axel saw Austin smile to himself contently. When he turned his gaze to the benches, he saw Alexi with a sad look on her face as she stared at Austin. He then took this as an opportunity to talk to him.

"Austin, why didn't you shoot?" he asked. "You had a clear chance, so why didn't you shoot it yourself?'

Austin didn't answer right away, he looked at Alexi who was staring at worriedly at him.

"I can't. I can't be the one who kicks it in."

****

Hello! that's the end of chapter 21!

I know, I know... my action plays are getting crappier...I'm so sorry about that, I was kinda having a hard time rushing this and working on my other stories. School's starting you see, so I have to focus on it. But I'm glad I managed to update this somehow! I'm really glad for your comments and votes, they help inspire me to continue this :3

Anyway, thanks so much for being patient and supportive guys! I really appreciate it!

Please check out my other books like "So Many Possibilities" and "Wildest Dreams" and my newest book, "Love Letters: A fangirl's Tragic Tale"

Stay awesome :3

Watch out for the next chapter!

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