The Last Wish - BoyxBoy

14. You just can't give up, can you?

Claudio and Tiziano were the first to enter the locker room.

They hadn't planned to go together. They just had spent about the same time eating breakfast, brushing their teeth and shaving, and finished before anyone else, so they ended up walking together towards the sporting facility.

In complete silence.

Claudio had seemed absorbed in some worrying thoughts and hadn't said a single word. And Tiziano had been worried as well, by the mess he had caused with his damned wish.

Except for the few minutes of distraction during the phone call with Claudio's mum, Tiziano had been constantly dwelling on that problem, how he could express his second wish in the clearest words possible, if it was conceivable to include himself in it, or if it was better not to risk wasting everything just for his selfishness. He had thought of a million different formulations, analyzing every single word and syllable to get it right. He had constantly kept the magic cellphone in his pocket and every once in a while he had held it in his hand, in a sort of a superstitious, nonsensical tic.

Tiziano let his bag fall on the ground, next to a bench. He was tired and nervous.

The room was small and bare, there were no single lockers for the players, just two big metal closets, one beside the other, in a corner of the room. One of them was open. Empty.

"Why are you looking at that closet?" Claudio asked.

Tiziano, who was still thinking about the wish, was not ready. He didn't realize that question was a taunt. He saw a smile flash on Claudio's face and in a blink his hands were on Tiziano's shoulders, pushing him towards the closet.

He tried to resist. "It's pointless. You know how this is gonna end" Claudio said. But Tiziano dug his heels in the ground and pushed back.

For once, Tiziano was happy Claudio had decided to attack him. He needed to blow off some steam: he would have taken out his frustration on his bully.

They stayed there, both pairs of hands pressed on the other's shoulders. Claudio was laughing, like the psyched idiot he was. Then, almost unnoticeably, his thrust weakened. Tiziano couldn't believe it, he pushed harder and managed to make him sway backwards.

He realized his mistake too late. Claudio used the principle of the pendulum and swayed back, with renewed force, and collapsed on Tiziano with all his height and weight.

A few steps, and Tiziano's back banged on one of the closets. It was the locked one.

He tried to use the closet door as a foundation. He pushed like he was lifting weights on a bench and, God only knows how, he managed to switch positions and be on top.

"This is what I call an interesting development!" Claudio exclaimed. He looked wound up by the sudden struggle.

Tiziano's heartbeat quickened. A primitive feeling of competitiveness possessed him. All the stress he had endured during the last twenty-four hours was being released in that unexpected challenge.

He leaned against Claudio's chest with his elbow and forearm, and pushed his knee on the other's hip. Claudio tried to move his arms and free himself, but Tiziano had the upper hand and easily stopped him.

"You just can't give up, can you?" Claudio asked. He seemed surprised, more than worried. "What ya wanna do?"

"I want you to understand what it means to be on the receiving end, for once" Tiziano said.

"Uhm... is this an indecent proposal?" Claudio replied, lifting an eyebrow. Then he laughed.

I must not get distracted by his jokes, Tiziano thought. He lowered his head because he didn't want to look at his face, at his stupid mocking expressions, and started pushing him on his right, towards the other closet, which door was already open.