Sidelined Hearts : An M x M Original
My name is Christian Thompson, and once upon a time, I was the best striker in European football.
That was until he came along—Ashford Ryder, young and carefree, 10 years my junior and the new shining star.
I hate him.
At least that's what I tell myself.
Not just because he's taken my spot, but because he's everything I've struggled all my life to be, and not to be.
He's vibrant, he's happy, and the worst of all, he's openly gay.
I'm not homophobic, quite the opposite—I've lived in the closet all my life.
All my life, I've had to hide who I am to please the people around me.
European football hasn't always been this accepting of gay men, and I'd squeezed myself into a box to fit in with what they wanted of me.
It isn’t that hard when you think about my family who'd rather disown me than have an openly gay son.
So imagine how I feel when the world decides to be more accommodating to people like Ashford Ryder when they shoved me in a box.
It's not so easy to hate the happy-go-lucky striker, when he does everything to get close to me, despite my insistent hatred for him.
He's like a thorn in my side—a hot, sexy, blonde, 5ft9 thorn I can't stop thinking about.
But when one day I lose my cool around the popular striker and land myself in bad press, I end up needing his help.
It's supposed to be easy.
Spend some time with Ashford Ryder, and show our fans that we can work together—it's what I need to do to save my career.
But no one tells you how hard it is to hate someone you spend every waking hour dreaming about.
Lire
Chapter: CHAPTER SEVENTY: A Kind Request. Ashford. I can't help but just stare at his sprawled form on the bed. All masculine and all male. How does he walk anywhere and men don't immediately drop to their feet in front of him?Christian Thompson has to be the most sinfully attractive man I've ever set my eyes on, and that's saying the least. There's nothing I wouldn't do to have this dick in my mouth. Absolutely nothing. I clear my throat and turn my face away to hide the sprouting redness, even though I know he can't see it. Yes, change him. I need to trying to get him changed. It'll be unsafe if he slept in such tight clothes while drunk. That's exactly why I'm doing this. Only why. Still, I fist my hands together and can't seem to take a single step in his direction. This might be a little much, even for me. My eyes keep zeroing to his crotch area, and even though there's zero signs of an erection, it still looks so godforsakenly attractive to me. I let out a dry cough, and muster all the energy I have left
Dernière mise à jour: 2026-01-25
Chapter: CHAPTER SIXTY NINE: ‘A Close Friend.’Ashford. The moment the brunette guy releases himself from Christian's hold, he nearly falls. Good thing I'm there to catch him. I don't regret interrupting them. If Christian is going to be kissing anyone drunk, then it definitely won't be some random guy at some secluded bar. And that's if I say so myself. But I don't say that. Instead, I plaster my biggest brightest smile on my face, and hope that this little fucker recognizes that I'm someone important. It won't be the first time I'm using my fame to get away with something anyway. He doesn't. For some reason, this guy has absolutely no clue who I am, and I can tell from his face. Dang, so there are still people who don't watch football. "You're his boyfriend?" The guy barely choked out. At least from the redness of his cheeks, I can tell that he's a little embarrassed. I can't blame him though. I guess it doesn't put Christian in a good light if I make it seem like he got so drunk, he almost cheated on his partner
Dernière mise à jour: 2026-01-25
Chapter: CHAPTER SIXTY EIGHT: Careless Drunk. Ashford. There's a thin line between a crush and a stalker. And I learnt that line in Highschool quite early on. Sometimes, I couldn't tell if the people who let themselves intentionally bump into me were crushes or stalkers. Most times, I felt they leaned more into the latter. I guess now I can see why I always felt so. I take a chilly sip of my fruity punch as I watch the exchange in front of me with something akin to interest and annoyance. There are a couple of things I could be doing right now. For one, is attending the party my teammates are throwing for me for my sendforth. It's a cute little thought and I appreciate it more than anything, so I did attend it. At least a little bit. Then my favorite waiter at my favorite most discreet little gay spot just happened to send me something that caught my interest. Now will I call it fate?Maybe. What else could make him to tell me that he saw someone I know at this bar. And I believe the only reason he thinks I know thi
Dernière mise à jour: 2026-01-25
Chapter: CHAPTER SIXTY SEVEN: Discreet, Drunk, and Distraction. Christian. It hurt. And I let out a tiny wince after I push the drink so far the back of my throat, I can taste it everywhere. I'm usually a whiskey man, but I'm so upset that I'm drinking beer right now. Whatever gets me inebriated the fastest I guess. I rub my temple achingly, hoping for some kind of reprieve. Why am I so upset that I want to be shit faced drunk, you may ask? Well, I don't really know. After watching Ashford's interview, it doesn't take a lot to figure out what team he will be joining in 'England'But I didn't want to believe that I was going crazy, so I called Coach just to be sure. Yes, I picked up my phone and dialed my own flipping coach. Surely Coach wasn't too happy when I hammered down his ear that he couldn't possibly be doing what I thought he was doing. I let out a heavy and bitter sigh when I remember his exact words back to me. I could almost see the lines crease his forehead even through the flipping call when he tells me in so many clear wo
Dernière mise à jour: 2026-01-22
Chapter: CHAPTER SIXTY SIX: Big News. Ashford. "So what are your plans henceforth for the team, Ashford?" Perfect. Just the question I have been waiting for. I smile the brightest I have ever smiled in my entire life at a reporter's question. In fact, not only that—I don't think I've ever willingly come to a reporter myself, instead of dodging all of their questions. By now, I would be in the toilet stall, getting my cock sucked by a beautiful eyed guy, but right now I'm doing something different. I'm taking the bull by the horns. You know how they say it; If the mountain doesn't come to Ashford, then I guess Ashford has to go to the mountain. It's not as if I'm doing something as terrible as ruining my entire career or throwing my entire life down the drain. My manager already knows about this, and he doesn't think it's that much of a bad idea. Plus, with how fantastic my play was today, it'll be the easiest thing ever to switch teams now. Although, I'm a little saddened by he fact that I'm going to have to
Dernière mise à jour: 2026-01-22
Chapter: CHAPTER SIXTY FIVE: How long is too long? Christian. A massive loss, is the only thing anyone would call it. I, on the other hand, I think it's insane. This isn't just some loss, or any kind of loss, it's sociopathic. It's unnecessary. It's insane. What kind of monster just keeps scoring goal after goal like the rest of the team is just propped up dolls. I thought Ashford Ryder was an airhead who was only obsessed with getting dicked about, but oh boy, how wrong I was. Turns out, he is a fantastic player, and no matter how much I can't stand the little shit, I can't deny that too. It's such a shame that he's being wasted in a club like this. He would do amazingly well in a team like England's Egos. I shake my head. Why am I even thinking about that? Maybe he just got lucky. Maybe he isn't even as good as I think he is. But my eyes gravitate back to the numbers on the board, shining in neon green and red lights. 6:1. Absolutely unnecessary. For some reason, after returning to the second half of the game, the gu
Dernière mise à jour: 2026-01-21
Se connecter
