Those Football Imagines

Marco Reus- You're A Loser, But Not A Loser

Dejected. That was how Marco looked in the last few minutes of the game. He jogged lazily after his teammates when the ball changed directions and let his opponents take the ball without a challenge when in possession. By the frown engraved on his face, he could tell they wouldn't be able to come back from the 3-1 score; the loss was set in stone. Even the fans had lost hope. Most people began to get up and leave the stadium, removing scarves and hats, attempting to rub off face paint.

After what felt like an eternity, the ref blew the final whistle, ending the boys' suffering. While the opposing team ran to each other, hugging and celebrating the win, the Dortmund players hung their heads solemnly and began walking to the locker rooms, not uttering a word. Marco was the last player on the pitch. He was looking around, angrily running a hand through his hair. When his eyes landed on me I tried giving him a sympathetic smile but he shook his head and began walking towards the tunnel as well.

I sighed and walked towards the stadium exit, which was easy to navigate since most people were already gone, and headed out to the area that Marco's car was parked. I sat on the trunk and looked around waiting for Marco to come out. Usually he was one of the first ones out because he would only take a long enough shower to wash the sweat off of his body and then wait until we got home to take an actual shower.

Thirty minutes later the sun was beginning to set, the temperature had dropped, and the whole team had already come out of the locker room... except Marco. As I shivered and rubbed my arms, I contemplated whether I should go inside and look for him when i saw him burst through the doors and begin the short distance to the car. I hopped down and opened my arms up for a hug when he got closer, but he ignored me and walked straight to the drivers side, getting in and slamming the door. I rolled my eyes and walked around the side.

The tension in the car was almost tangible as Marco started the car and sped out of the parking lot.

"You know, i still think you played a wonderful game. I mean you guys scored one goal at least, right?" I spoke up, making a feeble attempt to get him to talk. He grunted his response and tightened his grip on the steering wheel.

Anger.

"Are you okay?" I asked. He gave me a curt nod. I reached for his hand on his lap, thinking that would make him relax. He moved his hand to the steering wheel. I sighed and reached to turn on the radio, not able to take the uncomfortable silence. Marco reached forward and muted it again.

"Are you serious?!" I cried incredulously, turning in my seat to look at him. Keeping his eyes on the road. he shrugged, " I'm not in the mood to listen to music." He muttered.

"So he speaks!" I gasped, feigning shock.

"Seriously, stop. I said I'm not in the mood." He forced out. I chuckled sarcastically, rolling my eyes.

"Not in the mood," I mocked, "apparently you're not in the mood to hug me, hold my hand, or even talk to me, either!"

"I said stop it!" He snapped, "you don't know what it feels like."

I opened my mouth, ready to spit a fiery retort, but stopped before the words could leave my mouth. Though there was never an excuse for being an asshole, I could understand what Marco was going though. He'd been doing very well this season and, seeing that these opponents were always a tough team to beat, he had a lot of pressure on him to do even better in this game; he felt that he had let all of the fans down. I looked over to see him running a hand through his hair frustratedly, the look on his face showing that this loss was eating him alive. I'll let it go just the once.

"Whatever." I muttered, looking out the window. It was obvious that he was gonna be this way - cranky, snappy, and asshole-ish - all night, and i needed to think of a way to make him feel better.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After arriving at our house, Marco had barely put the car in park when i opened my door and rushed into the house, running into the kitchen to find the items for his 'get better care package'.

"I'm taking a shower." Marco grumbled, slamming the door shut as he entered the house He headed up the stairs.

Distraught.

I didn't reply, more focused on opening the package of precut cookie dough. Confetti sugar cookies. Marco's favorite. I put those into the oven and then went searching for the other things i needed. His favorite drink. His favorite movies. His favorite blanket. I balanced it all on my arms with the tray of cookies teetering at the very top and made the treacherous walk up the steps, taking it one stair at a time so i didn't fall. I made it to our door and balanced everything in my left hand while twisting the knob with my right. It took a bit of a struggle but soon enough the door popped open and I walked through, becoming immediately shrouded in darkness.

Sulking.

i carefully set the arm load down on the chest of drawers at end of the bed - taking a moment to revel in the relief - and turned on the lamp that sat on the bed side table. Marco was laying diagonally across the bed, a wrinkled t-shirt and sweatpants adorning his body, with his head shoved face-first in the pillows.

"Get up grumpy pants!" I sang, shoving his shoulders in an attempt to roll him over.

"Phurn de lifghts off anf phoo awaygh." Whatever Marco said was muffled by the bed, "What?" I questioned, wrinkling my eyebrows.

Marco lifted his head up and stared at me, eyes bloodshot with dark bags under them."I said 'turn the light off and go away.'" His head lulled back into the pillows. I moved to lay right beside him and rubbed his shoulder slowly.

"You can't lay in this bed and be a grump forever." I chided softly. He turned his head to the side to look at me.

"Yes I can." He grumbled, a small pout on his lips. Although he was being completely serious, I barked out a laugh. Something about the tone of his voice and the child-like pout made the situation hilarious. He shot me a stern glare making me stifle my giggles slightly, but the shaking of my shoulders made it obvious that I hadn't stopped. He grunted in annoyance and shoved his head back into the pillow cocoon.

"You probably could stay here, but if you did you might not get any cookies that i made." I teased. He lifted his head up just enough to look at me out of the corner of his eye.

"Is it the kind I like?" He asked. I nodded my head in affirmation.

"The kind with the colorful sprinkles that taste like heaven and rainbows?" He continued to interrogate, the slightest bit of happiness seeping into his voice. I nodded again, trying to stifle another laugh. He shrugged and put his head back down, "I don't care." He declared. I rolled my eyes; now he was just being stubborn.

"I might also have a stack of your favorite movies and a certain fluffy cover that you love." I sang. He layed completely still for a few seconds, not moving a muscle, then slowly turned his full body around so he was on his back. He subtly raked his eyes over the room, in search of the goodies, his eyes lighting up as he caught sight of them. He looked back to me, a smile daring to tug on his lips, and nodded, "you've changed my mind." I squealed happily and ran to the tv. I through the fluffy cover to Marco and picked a random movie out of the stack and put it in. I grabbed the plate of cookies and went pack to the bed, handing them to Marco while I got comfortable under the blanket.

We were halfway through the second movie and had completely finished the cookies - a certain someone even went as far as licking the crumbs- when Marco wrapped his arm around me in a tight hug, pushing his face into my shoulder, "Thank you." He blurted. I turned to look at him as much as I could.

"Why?"

"For, you know, understanding me and putting up with a loser like me." He shrugged again. I shook my head and hugged around his waist.

"Marco, you're not a loser," I stopped, "well, you're a loser but you're not a loser." I joked. Marco rolled his eyes, pressed a chaste kiss to my cheek, then turned his attention back to the  movie with a small smile spreading across his lips.

Happiness.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dedicated to hemmoisgucci