"Alright boys, gather around."
The players put a stop to everything they were doing and gathered around where the coach was in less than a minute.
"I hope you all had a great weekend. I trust you ate well, rested well, and are ready to give your best today."
"We're going to have two training sessions today. The first one right now and the other one later by 4 PM."
He glanced around the group.
"Most of you already know that, but I'm saying it because we've got some new faces with us today."
He paused for a moment, then spoke again.
"Can the new boys come out?"
Sebastian, Martin, Diego, and Felix stepped forward from the group.
"Go ahead and introduce yourselves."
Martin stepped up. "Hi everyone. I'm Martin Berglund."
Then Diego. "I'm Diego Alvarez."
Felix followed. "I'm Felix Karlsson."
Finally, Sebastian. He looked straight ahead. "Hello everyone. My name is Sebastian Falk."
The coach nodded.
"Now, these are the boys who were selected in the trials we held about two weeks ago. Make sure they feel welcome and train with the same intensity you give each other."
He clapped his hands once.
"That's all for now. Let's get started for the day."
**********
The session kicked off with a series of physically demanding fitness drills. The players were pushed through nonstop movement, short sprints between cones, lateral shuffles, explosive jumps, core work, resistance bands, balance drills, and repeated changes of direction with minimal rest. After that came partner-based exercises that involved upper body strength, explosive leg power, and agility circuits.
From there, they moved into shuttle runs and interval sprint tests across set distances. Coaches barked instructions while keeping time and tracking effort levels. Sweat soaked into training kits. Water bottles were quickly drained between sets, and even the most conditioned boys felt the intensity.
The final segment of the morning training ended with team relay races under timed conditions, encouraging speed and coordination but also piling on the fatigue. The session stretched close to two hours, and by the end, many players were running on fumes.
On the grass near the sideline, Martin, Diego, and Felix collapsed in a heap, panting hard, their chests rising and falling as they tried to recover.
Sebastian sat beside them, legs stretched out, breathing lightly, his body glistening with sweat but calm and steady.
Diego, lying flat on his back, let out a groan. "I can't feel my legs."
"Me too," Martin muttered.
"Or my lungs. Or my brain," Diego added, spreading his arms out across the grass. "God, I'm so tired."
Sebastian let out a slow exhale and pushed himself up onto his feet. He turned toward Diego and extended a hand.
"I'm exhausted. Do you need help?"
Diego took the offered hand and smiled faintly as Sebastian began pulling him up.
"So even the almighty Sebastian gets tired."
Sebastian raised an eyebrow. "I guess you don't need my help then."
He let go, and Diego dropped back to the grass with a thud.
"No no no," Diego groaned. "Ouch, my back."
Martin burst into laughter.
Sebastian turned to them. "Come on guys, let's go. I need to take a shower, like, right now."
Martin waved him off. "Just go on without us. We're still recovering."
"Yeah," Diego added. "I'm not getting up anytime soon."
Sebastian gave a small shake of his head, turned, and walked off toward the dorms.
Martin rolled onto his side and looked to his left. Felix was still sitting in silence, staring after Sebastian's back as he walked away.
Martin narrowed his eyes. "What's wrong? You've been quiet for a while."
Felix looked at him, his voice low. "Does it not bother you?"
Martin frowned. "What?"
Felix turned his gaze back toward the path Sebastian had taken.
"The gap between Sebastian and us."
Martin tilted his head, unsure what to say.
"Sebastian left the room this morning for over an hour of personal training and was still able to outperform almost every single person here today and walk it off while we're here still trying to catch our breaths, and that really pisses me off."
Martin fell silent. Even Diego, now sitting upright, looked over with a thoughtful expression.
Felix slowly stood, eyes still on the distance.
"While that's the case for now, I'm not going to let that continue. I'm going to do my possible best and make sure I close down that gap and even beat him. And you should try your best too... that's if the both of you are even serious about going pro."
With that, he turned and walked off.
Martin and Diego looked at each other in silence.
**********
Martin and Diego eventually made their way back to the dorms. Their legs were still heavy, but the cold showers that followed did a lot to bring them back to life. The building buzzed quietly with players going about their routines. By lunchtime, the four of them, Sebastian, Martin, Diego, and Felix, met up in the cafeteria and took seats together at one of the long tables.
They each had the same meal on their trays. Chicken breast, brown rice, some grilled vegetables, and a small serving of fruit.
The sound of cutlery and quiet conversation filled the room as they ate.
A few minutes in, Diego nudged Martin and looked across the table at Sebastian.
"So... Sebastian. Felix told us you went out this morning for personal training." Martin started.
Sebastian swallowed the bite of food in his mouth and nodded.
"Yeah."
Martin glanced at Diego and Felix, then leaned in a bit. "Well, we talked about it and… we'd like to join you next time. All three of us"
Sebastian looked up briefly. "Oh, okay."
Then he returned to his food without another word.
Martin blinked. "Is that it?"
Sebastian looked up again. "What do you mean?"
Diego raised an eyebrow. "We sort of expected a longer answer or something."
Sebastian wiped the corner of his mouth with a napkin. "Why would I do that? You guys obviously aren't satisfied with the fact that I'm way better than all of you, and you all want to try and keep up, and that's good."
He took another bite and kept chewing.
Diego stared at him, then shook his head. "This guy."
Felix snorted. "I hope you choke on your food, you arrogant prick."
Sebastian laughed, and the others joined in. The tension melted just a bit as their laughter echoed softly over the table.
As they continued eating, Sebastian smiled to himself. He had half expected them to grow distant or bitter. He thought they might start being petty, maybe even act like they were too proud to admit the gap between them. But here they were, facing it head-on, asking to join him, choosing to improve rather than sulk.
Maybe they really did want this as badly as he did.
And maybe, just maybe, this would push them all forward.