thecurrator - Tumblr blog

thecurrator · 9 days ago

Text

The time they find out they have a crush on you

Rin, Sae and Shidou | masterlist

Word count: 3.1k in total, 1k each

g!n reader, fluff ... and that's it, I guess

۶ৎ Rin Itoshi

Rin Itoshi wasn’t the type to get distracted. His focus was razor-sharp, honed by years of relentless training and a desire to surpass his brother. He kept his circle small, rarely spoke unless necessary, and always had his eyes on the next goal. But lately, something, or rather, someone, was throwing him off balance.

That someone was you.

It started subtly, almost imperceptibly, with Rin catching himself glancing your way during training breaks. You were always talking to the others, your laugh easy and light in contrast to the tension that usually hung over Blue Lock. Rin had convinced himself it was simply because your energy was loud, too loud to ignore. But the more time he spent near you, the more he realized it wasn’t about the volume. It was about you.

He hated it.

Or at least, that’s what he told himself.

The turning point came during a routine strategy meeting. You sat beside him, close enough that your shoulder brushed against his when you shifted in your seat. Normally, Rin would have ignored it without a second thought. But this time, he was hyperaware of every small movement, the warmth of your proximity unsettling in a way he couldn’t explain.

“You’re quiet today” you said, tilting your head toward him.

“I’m always quiet” he replied curtly, eyes fixed firmly on the field diagram.

You chuckled softly. “Fair point. But you seem extra broody.”

“I’m not brooding.”

“If you say so.” Your voice carried amusement, but you let it drop, sensing his mood. Still, that lingering warmth from your brief attention stayed with Rin long after the meeting ended.

Later that evening, Rin found himself alone in the locker room, replaying the conversation in his mind. It wasn’t significant by any means, just small talk, a blip in the day. Yet it clung to his thoughts like static, and he couldn’t shake the way his chest had tightened when you laughed.

He gritted his teeth. This is stupid.

But the more he tried to push the thoughts away, the more they crept back. Images of you smiling, laughing, standing close enough that your presence filled his senses, none of it left him alone. The realization struck him like a jarring collision on the field: I like them.

The very idea made Rin scowl. He didn’t have time for this, didn’t want to have time for this. But denying it was pointless. His heart raced whenever you were near, and for the first time in a long while, Rin felt unsure of himself.

When he stepped outside, hoping the cool air would clear his head, there you were, sitting on the steps by the entrance. You looked up and smiled when you saw him, your expression soft and inviting.

“Couldn’t sleep either?” you asked.

“Something like that” Rin muttered, shoving his hands into his pockets. He hesitated for a moment, then sat beside you.

The silence stretched between you, comfortable and easy. For once, Rin didn’t feel the need to fill it, or push you away.

“You’re not as scary as everyone thinks, you know” you said, breaking the quiet.

He raised an eyebrow. “Who thinks I’m scary?”

“Pretty much everyone.” Your grin widened. “But I don’t.”

Rin’s heart did that annoying skip again, and he looked away, hoping the night would hide the faint heat creeping up his neck.

“You’re different from what people see on the surface,” you continued. “I like that.”

Your words hung in the air, and Rin knew he should respond, but the weight of his newfound feelings made it impossible to speak. Instead, he glanced at you, taking in the sincerity in your expression.

“Thanks” he finally managed, his voice quieter than usual.

You nudged him lightly with your shoulder. “See? Not scary at all.”

Rin let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. Maybe this wasn’t something he could control, but for the first time, he didn’t entirely mind. And as you both sat in the quiet night, Rin found himself thinking that maybe, just maybe, liking you wasn’t so bad after all.

⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘

۶ৎ Sae Itoshi

Sae Itoshi was not a man accustomed to losing control. Whether on or off the field, he prided himself on maintaining an air of effortless composure. His charisma, the cool indifference that wrapped around him like a second skin, it was all calculated. He didn’t need anyone’s approval. He didn’t want anyone too close.

But lately, there was one person who seemed to shatter that carefully crafted barrier, without even trying. You.

It started innocently enough, with casual conversations after practice. Sae would spot you laughing with the others, always so effortless and bright, your smile something that seemed to stay with him long after the day ended. He didn’t understand why it bothered him. It was just you, after all, someone who didn’t seem to need anything from him.

But then, the subtle shifts began. The way your gaze lingered a little longer when you caught his eye, the way your presence didn’t feel like just another part of the background anymore. Sae caught himself looking for you in the crowds, listening for the sound of your voice in the mornings.

That’s when he realized, he was waiting for you.

It was infuriating.

One night, after a particularly grueling training session, Sae found himself walking back to his room, his mind preoccupied with the usual thoughts of what he could do to continue surpassing everyone. But then, there you were, sitting on the bench by the field, reading something on your phone. The faint glow illuminated your face, and for a moment, Sae simply watched you.

Without thinking, he approached.

“Still here?” he asked, his voice a little colder than intended.

You looked up, a smile forming on your lips when you saw him. “Can’t sleep, I guess.” You shrugged nonchalantly, then tilted your head curiously. “What about you? Done with practice already?”

Sae didn’t answer right away. He simply leaned against the bench, looking down at you. He couldn’t explain the knot that had suddenly formed in his stomach, the way his usual self-assurance seemed to falter under your gaze.

“You should go inside and rest. You’ve been working hard” you said, voice soft but firm. There was no agenda, no hidden meaning in your words, just a simple suggestion.

Sae hesitated. There it was again, that feeling. The one that made him feel like he was actually being seen for once, beyond the famous Itoshi name, beyond the expectations and pressure. It was... strange. Unfamiliar.

He sat down beside you without saying anything, staring ahead at the empty field. The night air was cool, but it didn’t matter. The silence between you wasn’t awkward, though, it felt... comfortable.

“Can I ask you something?” Sae broke the quiet, his voice more vulnerable than usual.

“Sure” you replied, glancing at him curiously.

“Why are you always so... you?” He couldn’t find a better way to phrase it, but he didn’t need to.

You tilted your head, a little smile playing at the corner of your lips. “What do you mean?”

“You don’t care about all the crap everyone else thinks about. You don’t... try so hard to be someone you’re not.” His words were sharper than intended, but they weren’t meant to hurt. He was just... confused.

For a moment, you were silent, looking out at the field as if thinking about what to say. “I don’t see the point in pretending,” you said simply, your voice calm. “People are going to judge you no matter what you do, so I’d rather just be me.”

Sae’s chest tightened at your words, something in them resonating with him more than he cared to admit. He leaned back slightly, exhaling a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.

“You’re different,” he said quietly, his tone shifting. “And I don’t know if I like it or hate it.”

Your gaze shifted back to him, eyes narrowing slightly in confusion. “You don’t like it?”

Sae ran a hand through his hair, a frustrated sigh escaping him. “I don’t know. Maybe... maybe I like it more than I should.”

The words hung in the air between you, thick with unspoken tension. Sae didn’t look at you, too caught up in his own confusion to face what he was really feeling.

“Maybe you’re not as indifferent as you think you are” you said, a playful edge to your voice.

Sae’s head snapped toward you, his heart skipping a beat at the light teasing in your tone. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You’re here, aren’t you? Talking to me when you could be anywhere else. You’re not exactly the picture of indifference.”

His breath caught in his throat, the words echoing in his mind as if you’d just thrown down a challenge. But Sae didn’t know how to respond. He was suddenly overwhelmed by the realization that his feelings for you had become more than just a passing thought. They were something deeper, something he didn’t want to acknowledge but couldn’t deny.

“You’re... frustrating,” he muttered, though the frustration wasn’t with you, it was with himself.

You laughed softly, nudging him playfully with your shoulder. “I could say the same about you.”

Sae’s heart pounded in his chest, the quiet warmth between you suddenly feeling too much, too overwhelming. He wanted to push you away, needed to keep his distance, but for the first time in his life, he wasn’t sure if he wanted that.

“I’m not good at this kind of thing,” he admitted, his voice softening for the first time that night.

“I’m not either.” you responded, offering him a small smile. “But it’s okay. You don’t have to be perfect all the time.”

Sae’s chest tightened at your words. The truth was, he didn’t know what this was, what you were doing to him. But for the first time in a long while, he didn’t feel like pushing it away. Maybe he didn’t need to have everything figured out. Maybe, just maybe, it was enough to sit there next to you, and let the warmth of the moment speak for itself.

⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘

۶ৎ Shidou Ryusei

Shidou Ryusei wasn’t the type to get flustered. His confidence was his trademark, as unmistakable as his chaotic energy on and off the field. He had his charm, his loud, domineering personality that demanded attention, and he was used to having everyone in the room focus on him. So when he found himself thinking about you, and more importantly, finding himself thinking about you more than he’d ever cared to admit, it was a problem.

The whole thing started out of nowhere, as it always did with Shidou. At first, he barely noticed it,just a passing glance when you laughed, the way your smile had this warmth that caught his attention for a second too long. But after that, it was like something inside him snapped. Suddenly, he was aware of every little thing you did.

The way you’d scold him playfully when he took things too far. The way you made sure to give everyone in the room attention, but there was always something in the way your eyes lingered on him that made him feel… different. He couldn’t explain it.

One night, after a particularly grueling session on the field, Shidou found himself walking back to the locker room, and as usual, you were there. Leaning against the wall near the entrance, scrolling through your phone as if the world wasn’t moving a million miles an hour around you. Shidou paused for a moment, noticing how easily you blended in with the background yet somehow managed to stand out to him.

"You're always lurking around, huh?" he called out, voice loud and unbothered.

You looked up, your face lighting up with a small smile. "I’m not lurking. Just, you know, existing."

Shidou smirked, pushing off the doorframe to approach you. He’d always enjoyed getting under people’s skin, but this... this felt different. "You’re good at existing," he teased, walking closer with that cocky swagger of his. "But I didn’t know you were into the whole ‘looking at me’ thing."

You raised an eyebrow, a soft laugh escaping your lips. "You wish."

“Is that so?” His gaze was playful, teasing, but there was a sharpness to it, something different in his tone that caught you off guard.

It had been a while since Shidou’s attention had ever really stayed on one person for long. People were either in his way, or they were irrelevant. But for some reason, you weren’t either of those things. You were different. And it was driving him crazy.

“So, what’s up?” you asked, pushing yourself off the wall, walking toward him. “Done tormenting everyone else for the day?”

"Someone has to keep them on their toes." he grinned, crossing his arms. But the grin faltered for a moment, and his eyes narrowed slightly. "But you? You’ve been acting weird around me lately."

You stopped in your tracks, tilting your head slightly, genuinely curious. "Weird? How so?"

Shidou couldn’t hide the glint of annoyance mixed with something else in his eyes. He wasn’t used to being so disoriented, especially when it came to someone like you. "You’ve been… paying too much attention. Normally, you just brush me off like everyone else. But now? You’re always there, watching me."

There was a brief silence between you two. Shidou’s eyes were searching yours, and despite the usual cocky attitude he wore like armor, you saw something more vulnerable beneath the surface,a hint of insecurity that he would never admit to anyone else.

“Well, I guess you’re a little… hard to ignore,” you finally said, your voice light but your eyes serious. “You’re not exactly subtle, you know.”

Shidou’s face twitched. "You think I’m loud, huh?"

"A little bit..." you shrugged, trying to keep the teasing tone light.

Shidou scoffed, but his eyes softened slightly. He couldn’t help but laugh at your bluntness, even if it irritated him. "Tch, you’re not making this easy, are you?"

You smiled, taking a small step forward, and for the first time, you could see a flicker of something unguarded in his eyes, a quiet, unexpected softness that didn’t match the usual fire of his personality. "Not everything is easy, Shidou."

For a moment, he stood frozen. The usual arrogant and fiery Shidou Ryusei, the one who never let anyone in, was suddenly unsure, vulnerable even. He couldn’t quite figure out what was happening, but the way you stood there, calm and patient, was making him feel things he wasn’t used to feeling.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" he muttered under his breath, his voice gruff.

You took another step closer, tilting your head slightly as you watched him, a quiet smile tugging at your lips. "You want me to stop?"

“No.” Shidou’s response was immediate, almost too quick. His gaze dropped to the ground for a split second, before snapping back to you. “You don’t get to mess with my head like this, okay?”

You raised an eyebrow. "Mess with your head?"

“Yeah...” he grumbled, looking anywhere but at you. “You’ve got me thinking about shit I don’t want to.”

The words hung between you, heavy with something unspoken. You could sense it now, the way his usual cocky exterior had cracked just enough to reveal the truth he hadn’t been able to face: he liked you.

Shidou let out an exaggerated sigh, his usual bravado coming back, but it was clear something had shifted. "You better not start acting all innocent now, alright?"

You smirked, raising an eyebrow. "I’m not the one acting weird, remember?"

“Yeah, yeah” he muttered, rolling his eyes but still looking at you. For once, the grin on his face didn’t reach his eyes, he was still trying to sort out everything he was feeling. But at least now, he wasn’t pushing you away. He wasn’t sure what this was, or where it was going, but for the first time in a long time, Shidou wasn’t willing to walk away.

“I guess you’re stuck with me for now” you said lightly, smiling as you stepped back, preparing to leave.

Shidou watched you go, his chest tight with something unfamiliar but undeniably strong. For once, he didn’t want to chase you away. He didn’t want you to leave.

And as you disappeared into the distance, he muttered under his breath, his smirk returning but a spark of something real in his eyes. “Tch, you’ve got no idea what you’re getting yourself into, huh?”

#!!! <3 #blue lock

191 notes · View notes

thecurrator · 10 days ago

Note

Hi)

Saw your analysis on Kaiser, why can't you write about him and what he can be like in a relationship. You mentioned trauma, and I have a question for Shidou...

Yes, many in the fandom agree that Shidou most likely had a shitty (and even abusive) past, but in your opinion, what makes you think that Shidou (unlike Kaiser) wouldn't go down the path of manipulation/abuse in a relationship with someone, i.e. not projecting his possible traumas?

Thank you for your question, I hope I answered what u were wondering. Feel free to discuss it in the replies :)

Both Kaiser, and potentially Shidou, carry the weight of difficult pasts. However, their approaches to human connection couldn't be more different. Which is why a relationship with Kaiser would be destructive while with Shidou would be chaotic but not necessarily toxic.

In Shidou’s case we have a limited amount of infos. What we know is that he sees the world in this very artistic, peculiar way. And despite his strong presence on the field, off it, he doesn’t seem to hold the same characteristics (or at least not to the same degree.)

He is loud, anti conformist but most of all he has the most “sane” ego between the players. He plays for himself. He knows his strengths and weaknesses. Not only that, but it’s shown more than once that he compliments people who show real talent.

Unlike Kaiser, who feels threatened immediately when someone is better than him or sees it as a tool for dominance. Like I have said, Shidou recognizes and compliments others' unique strengths. He's not looking to break people down, he's actively acknowledging what makes them special while pushing himself to leave “a mark in this world”. This appreciation for individuality (which is the core of shidou’s character) suggests someone who'd be more likely to build up a partner rather than tear them down.

We also know he seeks physical touch and connection. From attaching to Sae immediately when, for the first time, he found someone who understood his way of playing. In a way it’s like a desperate reach of someone who’s trying to heal something deep within by physical touch, which in his case, could be the struggle in being different and misunderstood. His need for physical touch speaks to someone who's trying to reclaim what was taken from him rather than perpetuate a cycle of harm.

Kaiser weaponizes his past trauma, turning it into a shield and sword. He sees vulnerability as a weakness to use against you. Let’s look what happened with Ness for example. He knew from moment one that he was going to use him. Outside and inside the field. He made Ness codependent, using his vulnerability and naivety against him. A guy who wanted nothing but love and a sense of belonging, is turned into a puppet, because Kaiser knows despite his harsh words or actions, Ness will never leave.

Shidou wears his heart on his sleeve in the most beautifully chaotic way. He is honest, maybe to a brutal extent. But he doesn’t do that in a manipulative way, he does that because he is a honest person. When asked what made him cry recently, he gave that raw, honest answer about becoming nothing. That's not manipulation, that's pure, unfiltered emotional authenticity.

The projection of past trauma? Sure, it might happen. But, who doesn't carry some scars into relationships? But there's a huge difference between unconsciously working through your issues with a partner and deliberately manipulating them.

Would Shidou be a perfect partner? No. But he wouldn’t be a toxic, manipulative individual like Kaiser either. Shidou just... exists, in all his chaotic, genuine glory. His explosive side is confined to the field, showing the ability to compartmentalise rather than let his (possible) traumas bleed into every aspect of his life.

In the end, it comes down to this: while Kaiser isolates himself and pushes people away, Shidou actively tries to connect with others. His ways of connecting might not be conventional (they might be rough around the edges, maybe even a bit chaotic) but he's still trying to reach out and form genuine bonds with people. That's what makes him fundamentally different from Kaiser, who only seeks relationships to his benefit. That’s what would keep Shidou away from going down the same manipulative path as Kaiser.

#REALLL #blue lock

95 notes · View notes

thecurrator · 11 days ago

Text

Love, On Its Way Out.

(This isn't prompted by my real life so much as it is my love for that first song and also. blorbos.)

#quotes

7K notes · View notes

thecurrator · 12 days ago

Text

inspired by Midnight Smokers by dearmonoma on AO3 🫰 go check it out ... very very cute

#the coloursss #squid game

385 notes · View notes

thecurrator · 12 days ago

Text

yayyyy just the3 of them (they can make it if the y try)

(i hope they dont do anything bad)

#AHHHHHH #jamil viper #idia shroud #jade leech #idol au

56 notes · View notes

thecurrator · 12 days ago

Text

twisted wonderland idol au hairstyle tests!!

fav alternate hairstyles, + the groups if you haven't seen them (ive only posted about kissu, c3, unto and suso)

#RAHHHH RIDDLE <3 #twst #idol au

2K notes · View notes

thecurrator · 13 days ago

Text

Sophia Loren / Unknown / @ ojibwa / Adélia Prado / Unmade Bed by Sally Strand / Paul Auster / Unknown / Lucille Clifton / Unknown Artist / Kaveh Akbar / Unknown Artist / Marguerite Duras / Claude Monet

#quotes

1K notes · View notes

thecurrator · 13 days ago

Text

blue lock objectively is insane and probably bad. but the thing about blue lock is that once you watch it youre like holy shit this is peak. its a disease.

#HELP #blue lock

2K notes · View notes

thecurrator · 15 days ago

Text

left side right side....

redraw of king and queen by kanaria as kainess 😮

#!!!#blue lock

110 notes · View notes

thecurrator · 15 days ago

Photo

sangihun nation. today we rise

#toxic doomed yaoi my beloved #squid game

2K notes · View notes

thecurrator · 17 days ago

Text

Let Us Drown Our Sorrows In The Sea, Along With One Another

#9b87fd | #19324f | #583a46 | #ef9a9a | #001f7c

#random

127 notes · View notes

thecurrator · 17 days ago

Text

Chains as a symbol of football and identity in Blue Lock's covers

I know cover analysis are too common, for some even annoyingly common, but bear with me, I had some free time and decided to give it a try. I haven't read the recent "state of art" of the chain interpretations so if I say something already said, I apologize.

Feel free to disagree and add your takes in the comments!

(Featuring Snuffy's quotes and analysis of Lorenzo, Sae, Rin, Hiori, Yukimiya, Zantetsu, Kaiser and Ness' covers)

If you lose soccer, what will you have left?

Snuffy said this to the Ubers team in ch. 214.

The chains in the Blue Lock covers have multiple interpretations so far. I consider the chain to be football and the identity the player forged around the sport, whether it was for salvation or damnation, the sense of self and the prove of existence is wrapped around the chain: the football and who the player is on the pitch.

Take Lorenzo's for example, he bit his chain. Snuffy found him on the streets and taught him to play soccer to save his future, to change his life. His bitten chain relates to his ace-eater persona. He's a defender, the only one we've seen so far that is comfortable with his position. (Aiku still kind of wavered). His football and his identity revolve around his goal of eating the striker's attempts at surpassing his defensive third.

Sae has one of the most interesting chains: from the collar to some short length it's falling apart, it's not rustiness, it's progressive deterioration. My take is that the breaking piece of the chain represents his earlier time at RE AL youth club. We know he let go of the striker position and thus the final broken link represents his fight with Rin in that snowy night. I interpret this scene as Sae's breking point. Rin is a genius, he doesn't understand Sae's struggle and, maybe, jealousy. From there, the chain solidifies back but with way more quality (the golden color) and so the chain continues to move. Sae's identity is nothing but football, as stated in his EB profile. He has absolutely nothing going on besides football, something normal for high performance athletes. But the curious and sad thing here is that he's implied to be a "talented learner", someone who had to struggle, like Isagi, against geniuses before finding his rooting in the midfielder position where he has thrived up to stardom.

The chain broke at some point but it restored itself with new material, from Sae Itoshi striker and Rin's partner, to Sae Itoshi RE AL star midfielder.

In contrast with Sae's chain, there's Rin's.

Holding the chain where Sae's was broken. His identity, his football, still revolves around his brother and their former partnership he can't let go yet. Also, the chain is not moving.

Hiori's cover presents the chain as damnation. The chain doesn't flow like the majority, it's short and held with indifference. It's an absolute burden for Hiori, the weight of expectations, the impossibility of building an honest identity around a sport you never liked to begin with.

Yukimiya's chain also lacks movement. Football for Yukimiya is like a timebomb, the chain doesn't flow because there's nowhere to, Yuki has no future but the immediate moment because of his illness. His whole self is being concentrated in the short-term results.

Ego's cover, on the other hand, solidifies my point: the tension of the four pulled chains means the hold the sport has on Ego. We've seen nothing so far about his relationship with Noa and geniuses. His whole self is football. Without it, the sudden break of chains, after being held with such force, will annihilate his identity like a loser in a game of tug-of-war.

Zantetsu's chain also represents his childish form that made him the player he is. Fast, no time for wavering, that's for adults, just follow the flow and enjoy. Tell him what to do in the pitch, he'll do it, as long as he enjoys it.

Kaiser's chain is fully made of glass, his identity and the football he plays has become his everything, him and football player Kaiser are one and the same. That's why it's so easy to break Kaiser, his whole self is fragile because he put all the eggs in one basket. That's why Isagi surpassing him terrifies him and why he's so obsessive. Taking into account his backstory, where for him there was nothing but malice in the world, he found comfort in replicating it and doing harm to others. Only the love he desperately seeks can replace the glass with some other material idk.

Will you be able to love yourself when you are no longer viewed as a genius?

Ness' chain is my favorite aesthetically. From the collar up to the piece at the back of his head there are no roses, a simple chain in movement. The start of the vines that entangle with the chain is concealed behind his head. From there on, Kaiser's influence became the reason why Ness kept playing football and believing in magic. His sense of self is wrapped in the acceptance Kaiser gave him, Kaiser basically told him he was good the way he was, something his family always disapproved. He has yet to discover his true self as a player: playing for his original ego: the search of magic.

Also, we've seen Ness play without Kaiser, excel in his childhood's soccer team to the point of being invited to BM tryouts. I hope we'll see him rekindle his original dream.

Before you are a football player, you are a person, regardless of whether you are talented or not. So value your life.

Who are they without their chains? Who are they without their talent, without football? Well, just themselves, and it's up to them to value that.

And you? 🫵

Do you have something that chains your identity like football does to this characters?

Mine is probably my field in Academia LMAO. What am I without academic validation? I guess I need to work it out too....

#blue lock

104 notes · View notes