Chapter 834: Brother, Son and Boyfriend.
Leo grinned widely, almost too wide, his small teeth showing as Izan reached forward and ruffled his hair again.
"Don’t forget that," Izan added, straightening as the boy turned to his mother.
They started to walk away, Leo clutching the jersey tightly to his chest, before he started skipping giddily.
Izan watched them go, a faint breeze lifting the corner of his jacket as the fading light hit his eyes, a glint of silver running through the soft blue.
He exhaled quietly. "You’ll make it, kid," he murmured under his breath.
"The system never lies."
A faint chime echoed softly in his vision, the quiet, almost hidden hum of the interface only he could see.
[Subject: Leo Calderon]
Potential Rating: N/A
Traits Detected:
• Master Vision
• Determination
Izan’s eyes narrowed slightly, the corner of his mouth curling upward as the display faded back into nothingness.
"Yeah," he said, watching the small figure in the distance, "you’re built for it, because determination is all you are going to need."
With that, he turned towards the front of his car, where he swapped out his joggers for a pair of slides he’d always sent to training, from the front boot, the sound of gravel crunching underfoot breaking the quiet.
He stretched lightly, the air cooling now as the sun began to dip.
Just as he reached for the driver’s door, a voice came from behind him—soft, familiar.
"You’re good with kids."
He froze for a second before turning around, already knowing who it was.
"Olivia," he exhaled, her name half a sigh, half a smile.
She stood there, arms loosely crossed, hair falling freely over her shoulder, the faint glow of the setting sun catching the green in her eyes.
She gave a small smirk before a slight chuckle followed.
"How’d you even know I was here?" he asked, already guessing the answer the moment it left his mouth.
Her grin widened.
"Yeah. Your brain already told you, didn’t it?" she teased, holding up her phone.
"I left class early, like I said I would and was heading home, and boom, you’re all over my feed again. Some parent posted a bunch of pictures of Arsenal’s golden boy playing football with half the park."
Izan chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "That didn’t take long."
"Oh, it didn’t," Olivia said, scrolling and then turning the phone toward him.
"You’ve officially caused chaos. Look."
On the screen, dozens of comments scrolled under the post.
Some from Premier League players, youth coaches, and even verified accounts joking about scouting the kids who’d defended against him.
Izan laughed under his breath. "Guess they’ve already got talent."
"Guess so," Olivia said, stepping closer now, her smile softening. "You looked happy out there."
He glanced down briefly, then back up at her. "Yeah," he admitted quietly.
"It felt good."
Olivia nodded, her expression turning fond before she reached out, wrapping her arms around him.
"I missed you," she murmured against his chest.
He hesitated for a heartbeat before hugging her back, the familiar scent of her perfume settling into the moment.
"I’m sweaty, you know," he said, voice low as he brushed his hair back with his hand.
"I don’t care," she replied, muffled against him, her words carrying that quiet warmth only she had.
"You’ve been away too much."
He smiled, holding her a little tighter. "It’s only been a few hours."
"Still too long. You give me all the attention when you are with me, but I feel like I don’t truly have you," she said, pulling back just enough to look up at him.
"What do you even mean?" Izan said with a chuckle while Olivia raised her head to look at him.
Her eyes were bright now, that playful spark back in them.
"It’s a girl thing. You wouldn’t understand. So... are you going to stand here all evening or are you going to drive me home?"
He grinned. "That depends. Am I invited?"
She rolled her eyes, but her smile gave her away.
"Get in the car, Miura."
He chuckled, walking her around to the passenger side before sliding in behind the wheel.
As the Jesko’s engine hummed to life, Olivia reached over, resting her hand on his arm as he sped through the free roads, or roads with drivers who were trying to avoid his car like a plague.
After a while, the car pulled up into the Hernandez compound, before the duo made their way out.
The front door clicked shut behind them, the faint hum of the Jesko still fading from the drive.
The house was quiet, save for the soft tune playing from the sound system somewhere deeper inside.
Olivia slipped her shoes off, placing them in the glass shoe rack near the entrance, walking in beside Izan as they crossed into the living room.
The wide glass wall overlooking the garden had already been turned opaque with the remote, a habit everyone had gotten used to when the house felt too exposed, mostly in the evenings.
Miranda sat on one of the single couches, tablet in hand, her reading glasses low on her nose.
She looked up as they entered.
"You’re back," she said simply.
Izan gave a small nod in return, wordless, before heading straight upstairs and then quickly into the bathroom.
The sound of running water occupied him for a while before he stepped back out, drying himself with a towel before tossing it into the basket by the door.
When he came down again, his hair was still damp, a grey hoodie hanging loose over matching joggers.
He dropped into the couch with a quiet thud, exhaling softly as he slouched back into it.
From the kitchen, Komi’s voice carried through, "Izan, go up and call Hori for dinner!"
He didn’t even move.
Instead, he grabbed his phone, thumb tapping twice before a smirk appeared on his face.
A quick transfer — £100, note attached: come down.
Barely thirty seconds later, footsteps sounded on the stairs.
Komi reappeared from the kitchen doorway with a serving spoon in hand, ready to repeat her words, but then, Hori appeared, hoodie drawn over her head, scrolling something on her phone as she came down.
Then she turned a slow look on Izan.
He held up his phone, screen bright, Apple Pay transaction complete.
Komi’s lips twitched, equal parts disbelief and amusement.
"You bribed her?"
"Motivated," Izan corrected, stretching lazily.
Olivia, who had gone into the kitchen, laughed quietly.
"You know, most brothers just call."
"That doesn’t work with her," Izan said, nodding toward Hori, who had now taken the seat beside him and was pulling out a notebook.
"Izan," Hori said, flipping a page, "A car’s moving at twenty meters per second on a straight road. The driver spots an obstacle a hundred meters ahead and hits the brakes. The car slows down evenly and stops right before hitting it.
What is the car’s acceleration, and how long did it take to stop?"
"Use ChatGPT," he replied without even looking up from his phone.
From the kitchen came Komi’s voice, sharp but amused. "Help your smart sister."
He blinked, glancing toward the kitchen doorway.
"How did she even hear that?" he muttered under his breath. Then, with a sigh, he leaned toward the notebook.
Izan leaned over the notebook, pencil tapping lightly.
"Okay, look," he said.
"The car starts at twenty meters per second and stops just before the obstacle, which is a hundred meters away. So the final speed’s zero."
He scribbled as he spoke.
"Use (v^2 = u^2 + 2as.) Plug it in, zero equals twenty squared plus two times a times a hundred. Solve that and you get a equals minus two."
Hori tilted her head.
"Negative because it’s slowing down?"
"Exactly," Izan said, smiling.
"Then for time, (v = u + at.) Zero equals twenty plus minus two t. That makes t ten seconds."
He looked up at her.
"So yeah, ten seconds to stop. Simple once you see the pattern."
Hori nodded, writing it down. "Right. I knew it was five, just wanted to be sure."
"Sure you did," he said, a small grin tugging at his mouth.
By then, Komi and Olivia came out with plates and bowls, setting them on the long dining table.
The scent of garlic and something roasted filled the room, warm and homely.
"Alright, dinner’s ready," Komi announced, clapping her hands once.
Everyone took their seats, the soft clatter of cutlery filling the pause.
Miranda was halfway through clearing her throat, probably about to bring up something work-related, when Komi looked up from across the table, that single, quiet, warning look.
"No business talk over dinner," she said firmly.
Miranda pressed her lips together and nodded once, setting her tablet aside.
Olivia chuckled softly, reaching for the jug of water.
"You might be the only person on this planet who can make Miranda freeze mid-sentence."
Komi smiled faintly, passing her the salt.
"Someone has to keep things normal around here."