What burns beneath the surface isn't ambition. It's loyalty tested by flame.
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The winter haze had settled over Kochi, but inside the Kerala Blasters training complex, heat hung heavy — not from weather, but from something unseen.
Arjun sat by his window, phone in hand, breakfast untouched.
He didn't need to scroll far. It was everywhere.
> "Hannover 96 Scouts Indian Midfield Prodigy Arjun Dev — Internal Report Surfaces"
Right below that headline:
> Rainer Graf, veteran scout for Hannover 96, has filed a glowing preliminary report on 18-year-old Arjun Dev. Sources close to the club suggest the German side is monitoring the player for a potential 2020 summer transfer.
2020.
Not now. Not mid-season.
But the damage was done.
The fire was lit — not just in the media, but inside his own locker room.
---
✦ The Locker Room – The Shift
Coach Sameer stormed in with a paper rolled tight in his fist. He slammed it onto the bench.
"Who's feeding this circus?" he growled.
No one spoke.
His voice dropped, colder. "We just made history by reaching the AFC quarterfinals. And this is what they talk about?"
He turned to Arjun — not accusing, but heavy with disappointment.
"I know this didn't come from you, Arjun. But you're carrying the storm now. So you better learn to walk steady through it."
"I didn't speak to anyone," Arjun said quietly. "I'm staying. Till the end."
Across the room, Faizan looked up from his cleats. "Staying in body, maybe. Not sure about your head."
Arjun looked up, surprised. "What does that mean?"
"You think we don't see? You're halfway to Europe in your mind. Every pass, every run — it's like you're auditioning."
Sahal stood between them. "Enough. This isn't helping anyone."
Coach Sameer didn't yell. He just said one thing before walking out:
"Play for yourselves, and you'll fall alone. Play for the elephant… and we rise."
---
✦ Kalyani's Apartment – Silent Conversations
Kalyani had seen the article too. A friend had texted her with a laughing emoji and, "Europe, huh?"
She stared at Arjun's photo — mid-stride, jaw clenched, soaked in match sweat. It wasn't vanity. It was clarity. Purpose.
She typed:
> "So… Germany's looking?"
After hours of silence, his message came.
> "They're watching. I'm not leaving. Not this season."
She held the phone close, heart tight.
> "Just remember… your story started here. Don't forget the chapters that shaped it."
---
✦ Match Day – ISL Resumes
Kerala Blasters vs Bengaluru FC.
The Kanteerava Stadium was packed and noisy. A different kind of pressure now.
No AFC adrenaline. No knockout stakes.
Just league matches — the grind, the daily climb toward a championship.
The commentators circled their bait.
> "Reports suggest Arjun Dev is attracting Bundesliga attention. But the question remains — can he stay focused as the ISL enters its crucial stretch?"
---
✦ First Half – Cracks Beneath the Surface
Tension had legs. It ran with them.
Faizan didn't pass to Arjun once.
Arjun, hesitant, held the ball a beat too long twice.
The rhythm was fractured.
Nil-nil at halftime. Not a bad performance — just not good enough.
---
✦ The Tunnel
Coach Sameer waited as the players filed in. Then he pulled Arjun and Faizan aside.
"You two are better than this."
"He's the one–" Faizan started.
"No," Sameer said firmly. "He's the one they're watching. You're the one I need to match him."
He paused. "You think Europe's easy? You think locker rooms there won't test every inch of your soul? Start here. Learn here. Win together."
Neither spoke. But something shifted.
---
✦ Second Half – Redemption in Silence
Minute 67. Turnover. Quick reset.
Arjun looked up. Faizan had made the diagonal run.
Without thinking, Arjun slipped the ball behind two defenders.
Perfect weight.
Perfect angle.
Faizan caught it clean, struck it first-time.
1–0.
He didn't celebrate. He jogged back past Arjun, tapped his shoulder. That was all.
The silence said more than any scream.
---
✦ Post-Match – Honesty in the Dark
Arjun sat alone by the dugout long after the others had gone inside. Shoes off. Grass-stained socks.
Coach Sameer approached, sat beside him.
"You still set on staying?"
Arjun nodded. "I meant it."
"There's pressure now," Sameer said. "You'll get calls. Maybe money. Maybe promises."
"I know."
"You can leave when the time is right. But don't run toward noise. Walk toward purpose."
"I won't leave mid-season," Arjun said, quiet but firm. "Not after what we've built."
Sameer smiled faintly.
"That's what captains say."
---
✦ Hannover 96 – Scouting HQ
Rainer Graf tapped his pencil against the edge of his desk as he replayed the ISL match footage.
Arjun's pass. His movement. His recovery tackles. His body language under pressure.
He didn't look like someone chasing Europe. He looked like someone guarding home.
> "Dev is not available for winter. Player is committed to his current campaign."
> "Target: Summer 2020."
> "Psychological report: Loyal, emotionally tethered, internally driven. Not a showboat."
At the bottom of his report, Graf wrote:
> "Let him finish his story in India. Then he'll be ready for ours."
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