Chapter Five

“I’ll be right back,” Ana said as she dug her house keys from her clutch, and sped up the steps. Leo and Cesc nodded as she opened the door, and disappeared inside.

She looked around the empty house, and sighed softly. Her brother was at another appointment for a CAT scan.

She ran up the steps, and kicked off her shoes quickly. She grabbed the first pair of jeans she could find, and then pulled them on. She then peeled off the dress, and yanked on a grey tee. Finally she found a navy blue ADIDAS hoodie, and pulled it over head. She
ran a comb through her hair to settle it back into place, and lastly slipped into her Vans before deeming herself ready.

She grabbed her keys, threw them and her wallet into the first bag she could find, and was out the door. Leo and Cesc were right where she left them.

“That was fast,” Cesc remarked. Ana rolled her eyes, “Not all girls take an hour to get ready.” “Tell that to my sister,” he grumbled. She laughed as they headed down the road toward the famous La Masia campus. She was curious to see what it was like, since she’d heard so much about it.

As soon as they arrived, she noticed she was getting a lot of attention.

“You don’t get a lot of girls visiting around here, do you?” she asked dryly, earning two nods. Leo looked mildly embarrassed, but Cesc seemed relatively amused but it all.

They took refuge in the room that the two boys shared along with Gerard and one other.

Looking around, Ana could tell which bunk was Gerard’s. It was messy, and clothes were tossed atop the bed. He slept on the top, and Cesc was on the bottom, judging from the picture of a girl who looked just like him. Leo slept on the bottom of the other bunk, as he was setting some of his things on it. She didn’t know the fourth boy, but he was a slob too. It was what she’d expected from four teen boys living together.

“Cesc, you’re from Catalunya, right?” she asked. He nodded, “Born and raised here in Barcelona. So is Gerard.” “Then why do you stay on campus?” she asked, curious.

“Freedom mostly – we don’t have to do chores. But it can be nice getting to know the guys beyond a teammate relationship,” he answered, “We have guys like Leo here who are from different continents entirely!” The other boy nodded shyly, “I’m from Argentina.” Ana grinned, “That explains the accent!”

Cesc frowned as he found some of Gerard’s stuff on his bed, and tossed it toward the closet. “I feel sorry for whoever marries him,” the boy muttered, sitting down on his bed.

“I’m not sure who to feel sorry for at this point – him or Dani,” Ana said, deciding to sit on Leo’s bed, since he had cleared it off, yet was still standing. It seemed like that was what he had been aiming for, because she saw him smile slightly. Cesc laughed, “They’re both really stubborn, huh?” The female nodded, “Dani will probably not let things go easily, even if she understands why they were done.”

Cesc snorted, “Geri is just hopeless.”

They hung out and talked for another half an hour until the boys decided to give Ana a tour, and then take part in the scrimmage that was being formed.

Settling in the stands, she watched as the boys divided into two teams. Cesc and Leo were on the team wearing blue shirts, the other team wore blue. There were a couple of other people in the stands watching as well as the game began.

She knew the boys were good, not just every boy was brought to La Masia, but they exceeded her expectations.

However, there was one boy she could not look away from when he had the ball. He dribbled with startling control, and his legs pumped him passed all the opposition. If she so much as blinked, he was gone. It was like the ball was glued to his feet. And if that wasn’t impressive enough, he was able to shoot with not just accuracy, but power as well.

Ana was sure that Leo was a genius – a prodigy. That was why he was here from Argentina. He was the best.


~~

Normally Dani would not have appreciated being dragged down the street against her will, but she was too stunned to fight. So, she was stumbling after the bumbling idiot Gerard Piqué.

Why was he so embarrassed that he’d hit her with the ball? He’d made it seem like it was her fault for standing there from the beginning? Her mind whirled with thoughts, trying to figure out the enigma of the boy who was tightly gripping her hand, tugging her quite unceremoniously through the streets of Barcelona.

Finally frustration overwhelmed curiosity, and she sharply dug her heels into the ground.

He was forced to stop, and he looked over his shoulder at her. “Where are we going?” she asked, tilting her head to the side slightly. “To get a snack and drink,” he replied, unable to meet her gaze. “Why are you dragging me?” she asked, this time slightly louder. She shrugged, but didn’t drop her hand. Instead, his grip tightened, and with a firm tug, dislodged her and resumed pulling her along.

She waved her other arm spastically, trying to get away, or alert someone of her need of assistance. However, passing adults only looked on in mild amusement, none coming to her rescue.

Finally he pulled her into a small shop, and over to the counter. “What do you want?” he asked, gesturing to the menu. She saw they had a variety of coffee and tea, as well as pastries. “I can pay for myself,” she said as he removed his wallet from the back pocket of his jeans. “I want to pay. Go ahead and order,” he urged. “I’ll have the cinnamon dulce iced coffee and a Neapolitan,” she said, pulling out her own money. “I’ll have a coffee and croissant,” Gerard ordered, handing over the cash before Dani could pay.

“I was going to pay, jerk!” she said, stomping on his toe. He winced, “Well to bad.”

She pouted as they took their food and drinks to the outside tables and sat down. She had to admit the iced coffee was really good, but she wasn’t about to tell him that. His ego was big enough as it was.

“Do you like it?” he asked, his entrancing blue eyes fixed on her. No, his eyes weren’t entrancing. They were boring old blue eyes.

“Yep,” she said, trying to shake the disturbing thoughts that’d come to mind. But in the afternoon summer sun, his eyes just seemed to – NO! She would not admit that his eyes were beautiful. No…shit. She wanted to smack herself, but Gerard thought she was crazy enough already. Wait, why did it matter what he thought?

“Are you alright?” Gerard asked, pulling her from her thoughts. “Brain freeze…” she muttered as an excuse, but he seemed to buy it.
“My mom loves this place, so I thought you might like it,” he confessed after a bit.

“It is nice,” she said, trying to ignore the bright smile that was adorning his features. “So…um…why were you embarrassed that you kicked me with the football?” she ventured. His cheeks darkened to a rosy pink, “It’s nothing…” She leaned forward, “I think I deserve an explanation. I was bruised from that, thank you!” “Fine, I was upset that I hit a cute girl,” he blurted.

She felt like her body was on fire, and she was sure she was beet red. “You think I’m cute?” she asked. He looked down, almost pouting, “Until you open your mouth.”

“HEY!” she yelled, standing. In the process, her drink tipped over, spilling all over the table, and onto the boy.

“Clumsy,” he yelped, jumping up and dabbing himself with napkins. “You caused it,” she retorted. There was a dark stain on his shirt and pants, and she felt a slight, smug satisfaction in it. He gave up trying to remove it, and grabbed the remaining coffee and croissant from the table, as well as the dirty napkins, and threw it all away. “I hope you have a good day, Daniyah,” he said, turning and leaving.

She sat frozen for several seconds before jumping up and racing after him. “Hey, you were the one who insulted me! Don’t turn this on me!”

Gerard spun around, “You make me so frustrated, Dani! If I tell you the truth you get upset, and if I lie you get pissed off too! I can’t win with you, and I’m starting to wonder why I even bother!” “You frustrate me too you jerk! Don’t act all high and mighty here,” she snapped in return. They stood there, glaring at each other.

“This is too immature,” Gerard sighed at last, and continued on his way. “Hey!” Dani called after him, but even though she followed after him, she lost him in the sea of people. He was gone, and she was left feeling confused and angry.