Weakness

Link's POV.

Inhale. Exhale. Dammit, my breathing exercises aren't working. I need more sleep and I'm hungry but what's new? The muscle roller is helping relieve my calves but it still doesn't help with the pain.

It's way too noisy too. I should try meditating again. I can picture the lineup when I close my eyes but when I open them all I see is Zelda on my lockscreen. Who are all these people texting me all the time? I should just delete Instagram already, it's dumb.

I don't know why I'm still holding on to my stupid phone anyways. I know she's not going to text me. Why would she... She looked so hurt, I probably felt that three times as bad. At that point sleeping was impossible.

The screen fades to black but I tap it to see her again. Shit. I'm doing it again. I can't stop thinking about her. I rub my eyes until I see white stars. I have to win. That's all I should be thinking about right now.

I lie down on my back. The noise is distracting and this bench is uncomfortable... It's probably been like 15 minutes since I warmed up. I'm already cooling down again. I'll have to do another quick warm up in a few minutes.

I have to find a way to get back into the zone. I close my eyes and focus on my breathing until I don't feel my shoulder blades weighing against the wooden plank anymore. Silence. The line up appears in front of my closed eyelids. My concentration is kind of blocked by the image of her smile, but I have to just force myself to think about where my team will be positioned. We are going for defense. Lorule is playing offense. They always do. They're strongest that way.

I picture the players around me. Pipit will have the ball first. Ganon will be opposite me. I can see the way he stands, the way he moves, I can see it clearly. He hasn't fully recovered from our fight at the pier. I know I caused an oblique fracture of his femur. It slows him down. That's his weakness.

I imagine the start of the game, the thought of the sound of the whistle exhilarates my pulse. Welp, there goes my breathing again. Why is my heart acting like this? I've played them before, I know exactly what their strengths and weaknesses are, so why can't I relax? Something's wrong. I don't ever overthink like this before a game.

Okay, there's no point. If I can't relax I might as well overthink it then... The ball will come at an 80 degree angle, the grass is dry, the air thick. I know where I have to go, I know what I have to do to score. I have to move quickly. No mistakes. No excuses. This stadium is so different from ours. The lighting will be different, the space will feel bigger. But I've played in a hundred different stadiums, no matter how different they are, it's always the same. We have to score first. Detain them, take their confidence away, make them doubt themselves.

More people will boo than cheer when I score today. Gotta shut them all out.

Ganondorf will send two or three players to block me. I have to make sure the ball can always reach me. If Dethl comes at me, I shouldn't feint, he won't fall for it again. I will do a Maradona Spin to gain distance. He is good at controlling the direction of his opponents but he doesn't have much stamina. That's his weakness.

Man, my hands are freezing. They just won't warm up... I want her warm hands around them. She's always so careful when she holds my hands, it's really adorable. Ouch--I ripped off the scabs on my knuckles. Great, now they're bleeding. I didn't even notice that I was picking on them again. Crap, I really am a little nervous, aren't I...

I shut my eyes again right as my phone vibrates and my eyes fly open. For a second there I thought it was her but I'm wrong. Just like the other three hundred times today that I was wrong. This is torture. I turn my phone off completely. Can't get any more distracted now. I close my eyes for the thousandth time and I'm not planning on opening them again until Coach comes to get me. Shouldn't be long now.

"After losing last year's championship against Lorule, Hyrule will surely try to win tonight's game. The bitter taste of defeat still lies upon their tongues and they look hungry for the title," the moderator says. The speakers in the dressing room are already set to a low volume but I still can't ignore them. "Ghirahim played every minute of that final and executed a phenomenal defence, but one player still managed to score."

That's right and I'll do it again. His defense isn't horrible but he talks way too much. Most times he's distracted by himself. That's his weakness.

Then there's Zant. He'll be near Ganon most of the time. He is flexible and makes quick turns but his balance sucks. That's his weakness. He'll trip over his own feet if I trick him.

A few minutes later I hear my coach by the door.

"Link?" He probably thinks I'm meditating or napping. I wish.

I open my eyes and look up at him.

"It's time," he says and I nod. "Speed, agility, precision, intelligence. 100%."

I feel more like 99%... But he doesn't need to know that. I sit up and wait for him to leave the dressing room again, then I grab the little white package from my bag even though Mipha said I shouldn't take them. I didn't plan on it but I think I have to. I'm glad she changed her mind and managed to get me some this morning, but when she kept asking why I had trouble sleeping I almost regretted asking her for the pills.

I'm a terrible liar. I didn't know how to tell her that I stayed up all night because of Zelda. Why do I have to tell her about us anyways? I don't get it. Why would Mipha care who I date? I don't care who she's seeing either. Unless he's a jerk, then I guess I'd care.

I pop the little pill out into my flat hand and down it with some water. Adderall will boost my focus and give me the energy I lost when I decided to go to practice at 4 in the goddamn morning. Hopefully it'll keep me from thinking about Zelda. She's my weakness.

I get up and walk out of the dressing room, through the hallway, and onto the field. I hate the attention. They're shouting my name but I'm blocking it out. My eyes immediately go to the stands. Where is she? Did she come? I look at each fan, twice, but she's not one of them. I even check Lorule's side, but she's nowhere to be seen. She didn't come. She's safe.