Lukas locked his phone and set it down beside him on the grass.
He stayed seated like that, elbows on his knees, head lowered, staring at the turf. The world outside was loud. The internet was loud. But here, in this quiet patch of green, everything felt muted. His breathing steadied. His thoughts did not.
A pair of white canvas sneakers stopped a few feet in front of him.
He noticed them first before anything else.
For a second, he didn't look up.
Then he lifted his head.
Toppmöller stood there, hands in his pockets, watching him carefully.
Lukas forced a small smile and pushed himself up slightly straighter.
"Morning, coach."
Toppmöller studied his face before responding. "Morning."
There was a brief pause.
"Why are you here?" the coach asked calmly. "Didn't I give you 2 days off?"
Lukas shrugged lightly. "I just… missed the pitch."
Toppmöller raised an eyebrow.
"Missed it?"
"Yeah," Lukas said, glancing at the goal behind him. "Needed to clear my head."
