Madrid

Alana

– What?… What a question! You know , I have to go, and we’ll talk later. – I get out of the car like a striker when he finds himself alone in front of the area, and runs desperately to score his goal, in my case I just wanted to get away from this abused defender as much as possible, because it wasn’t enough to kiss me, touch me in such an ardent way , he still comes to ask me such an intimate question like that?

Just as the attackers are intercepted by the defenders, who always get in the way of the big moment of the game , I am stopped by Raúl, who also gets out of the car as if he were running towards the area. He grabs me by the arm before I reach the door. I stare at Raúl with a mixture of fear, anger and desire. You might be thinking, “Wow, now you realize you’re lusting after him, sweetheart?” Yeah, I think I feel, no… I feel a desire for him! I know, I’d be a fool if I didn’t feel anything for this man, and looking at him in front of me, I feel this crazy urge to kiss his mouth again, but I don’t know, I’m so nervous about what he asked me.

– Let go of me, Raul!

– Dear, I’m sorry. I know it may seem impertinent on my part, but I was really curious about you, your love relationships, and it’s not that I’m bothered if you’re not a virgin… It’s just curiosity. – Seriously, why does he have to be like this?

– Raúl, I… – He doesn’t let me finish the sentence, he holds my waist firmly, pulls me lightly against him, and kisses me again. This defender seems to have the power to make me light, clumsy. He slows down the kiss, and mumbles a few words that make me think I’m in a hypnosis session.

– I want you , baby! ¡Mira de lo que estoy hablando! he says that, and continues to lightly kiss my mouth. We are there in front of my house, not worrying about anything, but an unbearable noise catches our attention. Someone is honking. We look in the direction of that sound. Dani in her convertible with her girlfriend.

From the way he honked, he must have seen our kiss. Something I don’t understand is your concern about Raúl, and speaking of the defender, he’s there, holding my hand, waiting for Dani. My stepbrother parks the car, and gets out. He walks towards us, looks at us and says something.

– Are they arriving now? – I don’t like that tone of voice of his, it seems to reproach me.

– And you weren’t home when we left? – I ask unpretentiously, but in a slight tone of mockery.

– Was. I went to get Isabella.

Of course Daniel, you went to get her to have sex all night, and moan like imbeciles , and leave me without sleep, but this time it’s different, I won’t cry for you!

– Hey guys! How are you? – Asks the girl.

– Good, and you? – Raul responds.

– Very well. she says, looks at our hands, and asks. – I’m curious to know, are you together?

Good question!

I don’t know what I’m feeling exactly. Isabella watches me closely, and seems to sense my discomfort, and Raúl responds.

– I don’t know yet, I think we’re getting to know a side of both of them that we didn’t know yet!

– I just hope that this side you are getting to know, doesn’t lead Alana to suffer for a relationship that is not worth it, or that exposes her to a ridiculous situation!

Seriously? I understand his concern about not wanting to be exposed, but this is already getting boring and repetitive.

– Don’t worry about me Daniel, I think I already know how to take care of myself…

– Do you really know, Alana? – he asks sarcastically, and walks off leading his girlfriend.

Oh, how I want to hit him in the face! I look at Raúl a little embarrassed , we say goodbye , and I enter the house. In my room, lying on my bed, I think about everything that happened tonight, from dinner to the little awkwardness with Dani. I don’t know what’s really happening to me, I’ve always been so sure of what I felt for my half brother, but tonight when he created all that cheap little show, I felt angry at what he said, because I knew he was referring to Raúl. I don’t want him to speak ill of my friend, I mean, I don’t know, or rather, we’re not just friends. After all, friends don’t kiss each other on the mouth in that outrageous way, or get as excited as Raúl was. Thinking about him, his kisses, his scent, raises my temperature, and when he asked me if I was a virgin, I was very nervous, I didn’t know what to answer, in fact I didn’t want to talk about it, if I opened my mouth to say anything. I would have to say that I still am, because I expected to lose my virginity to Dani .

I know, they can blame me! But what can I do? I liked him…

Díos mio…

¡Mira de lo que estoy hablando! ¿Dije que me gustó? ¿Significa eso que ya no me gusta?

What is this quarterback doing to me? I was convinced of what I felt, I planned, and I decided that my first time would be with Dani, and in little more than a month, all that was gone. I think Ed was right. At this point in the season, it feels like I’m switching teams.

Raúl

I wake up to the ringing of my phone, one eye open and the other closed, I pick up the device, and the name of Fernando, my manager, appears on the display. Something tells me that Pedro is ready.

– Hello?

– Finally you picked up… I’ve been calling you for a long time, and…

– Good morning to you too, Fernando!

– I don’t know if the day is so good for you, Raúl!ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

– What did Pedro do?

– It was not him. But you who punched him in a nightclub because of a woman, at least that’s what’s been circulating on the websites, and some sports journalists called me to find out what the problems are between the defenders of Real Desportivo de Madrid, because Pedro has already dealt with spread to some untrustworthy sites, that you took his place, and persecuted him so much, to the point that coach Aguirre removed him from the team because of you, and even said that you have a lot of protection within the team, that you are looking for something way to use the image of your childhood friend, hanging out with his sister, and…

I knew he was a worm, un hijo de puta, but to think he was going to use that stupid fight to make up a pointless story, to have the pleasure of harming me? This is too much for me! He thought little, and put the name Dani, and still wants to use Alana’s image? And what’s worse, he could jeopardize my possible call up to the World National Team Tournament in Africa, as Del Castillo is very demanding with the players he calls up to the national team, and if he thinks I’m a problem, and not summon me? I would not forgive myself!

– Fernando, what do I do? What do you suggest?

– If you weren’t very well known, you now have your minute of fame, and I think you can turn that around, and use this story to your advantage. I’ll get an interview, and you’ll tell me what happened!

– But do you think this will work? Won’t it look very appealing?

– Tell me what happened between you and Pedro. In addition, you have your life story, you can tell it to become better known, everyone likes a story of overcoming. You are the eldest child of a widowed mother, your mother had to work very hard to raise you and your siblings. You ran after your dreams, and after going through small teams in Spain, you got to the biggest team in Europe, and you’re about to play your first World Team Tournament, and Pedro is just chasing you because you got off the bench. reservations for the place he occupied…

I listen carefully to everything Fernando says, but I don’t know if that would be a good idea. As soon as he hangs up, after a series of memories about Pedro, the team, and especially the national team, I’m going to take a quick shower. Under the shower, the water touches my skin, but worry takes over my mind. I don’t know what to expect when I get to the club, but there’s something else I can’t get out of my head, Alana. Thinking about her calms me down. Remembering her heat, her scent, her mouth on mine, all this makes me forget about the fight with Pedro, the strange atmosphere that settled between me and Dani, even with all that, she’s like a balm.

As soon as I go down the stairs, and I get to the living room, I come across one of my brothers. Javier watches me, his gaze looks worried, his wide smile in the morning has given way to a dull, withered smile. I love my family, I am capable of anything for them, I worked hard, I helped my mother to take care of them, because being the eldest of four siblings in the situation we lived in was not easy. My brothers are younger, I am twenty-four, Hector is twenty, he is another pride of the family, he was selected for the medical course in Salamanca . Javier is already seventeen, and La Niña one of our family, Eva Ibañez recently completed her thirteenth birthday. The two are in school, and I go to great lengths to pay for the best school for them, and keep Hector at the University of Salamanca . I want the best for each of them, that they fulfill their professional and personal dreams, and be very happy, because the days of suffering are over. I bring my hand to Javier’s head, stroke his brown hair, and question.

– What happened, Javier?

– Anything.

– Nothing, and you look like that?

– Nevermind…

– Never mind anything! – Just tell me what happened…

– It’s just that… Some websites are saying that you had a fight yesterday, with that defender…

I feel like killing Pedro right now! How can anyone be as stupid, as venomous as he is?

– Look, this is all a big lie!

– Is it a big lie, Senhor Raúl? – I hear someone talking behind me. I get a little startled, and turn around abruptly.

– Mom, I… Pedro made up this whole story! I look at my mother, who looks at me with those big green eyes, in a worried way.

– But did you fight with him?

– I fought, but I didn’t beat him up like he’s been saying…

– After all, why did you fight? – Yeah, he’s been talking about Dani, and Alana, a very strange story, that you’d be using your friend’s sister to get the attention of the press, because he’s the main striker of the national team, and…

– Mom, this is all a big lie on his part. I really hit him because he wanted to force a situation, wanted to grab Alana, and…

– Was she with you?

– I was, we actually went out together, and…

– How did you go out together? – Is something going on between you two? asks Javier.

– Let’s just say we’re discovering something. – I say, and my mother looks at me with a smile on her lips, and approaches me, runs her hand through my hair, and says something that surprises me.

– They’re discovering something, but you’ve found out for some time now!