For the Love of Football [Fernando Torres]

14

I sat down on the couch, holding onto my warm cup of coffee. It's been a day or two since the club opening and my relationship with Patrick had improved drastically. Fernando and I had avoided each other, but when we were together we tried to stay platonic. 

I think. I don't know if he felt that way, but I did.

Nando was standing outside, watching the sun set. Steph and Aaron were on a little date, and wouldn't be back by midnight. It was Nando's last night here, and we were planning on going out to celebrate. He had rented a really nice, three bedroom house about 20 minutes away from ours.

Like routine however, Patrick was watching the news.

I watched the TV, the news showing the signing of Nando with Chelsea. His eyes were cold and lost on the TV. It was the first broadcast of the event, as Fernando's agent had requested the press to air it on a Monday and not during the weekend.

Patrick looked pretty angry, his eyes hard. We were aware of the signing but Patrick was loyal to Liverpool and felt like this was a betrayal to his club. He obviously wasn't happy with Nando's choice. But it's not like he could do anything about it as it already happened. Not to mention, he had a severely hard day at work, his coaches and teammates were being quite hard and unfair on him. He hadn't played very well in his first game and he was punishing himself for it. He had been in a foul mood ever since.

"Lief..." I patted his arm comfortingly, trying to get his attention.

I instantly regretted it, knowing what was coming for me. Before I could even move, his arm flew backwards and hit me across the face. I held onto my nose, my eyes filling with moisture as he snapped out of his rage. Blood spilled down onto my face, making me cringe. I hate blood.

"Marietta..." His voice trailed after me, as I grabbed my car keys, ran down to the garage and slammed my car's door close.

"Marietta!" Fernando's faded voice entered my ears before I put the windows up.

I started sobbing as I opened the garage door, and just as it was wide enough, Patrick's body appeared in my peripheral vision. I couldn't help but feel a flash of hatred as his body entered my whole vision. I was so stupid, I knew what he was like and I had to go and do something like this. This was all my fault. I should've just given him time to calm down.

The squeal of the tyres made me shudder, as lights went on in the houses near ours. As I drove, I couldn't help but sob, my whole body shuddering. The car almost jumped to the side as a huge sob raked through my body. I heard the hooters from other cars, but still drove. I was in the middle of the highway, so I drove into an exit, my car driving around erratically. I didn't know how to feel.

I know Patrick has a temper. I had never been hit by him before though, he had never lifted his hands at me. Only his damaging words and disappointed stares. 

Trees flashed by as it got steadily darker and darker. I put on the lights, my eyes still filling with tears wanting to escape. I couldn't help but replay the event, shuddering again. Sobs echoed through the silent car, my eyes finally too full of tears to see. I pulled out my phone from my pocket, my eyes still trying to release the tears. I couldn't help but feel helpless as I realized, I needed to clear my vision. I need to let Steph know where I was so that she could come pick me up.

I was about to wipe my eyes when in a matter of five seconds, the car swerved to the side, hit a ditch and flipped upside down. The smash of metal against a tree echoed through the forest. Cars driving nearby screeched to a stop, the shouts of the people loud and panicked.

All I can remember was the screech of the engine and the feeling of free falling as the car turned around and then wrapping itself around the tree. It felt like time was suspended, my hatred for the man I was going to be married to coming to the forefront of my mind. I knocked my head on the glass, hearing it shatter around me. Blackness consumed me like a carnivore consumes its prey.

--

Sirens.

Red and blue behind my eyelids.

Frantic, panicking screams, as I felt my chest being pushed up and down.

Air breathed through me as I struggled to move. Arms held me, as I struggled to open my heavy eyelids.

My eyes fluttered open finally as the paramedic scanned my face. His eyes were worried. The loud sirens were slowly giving me a headache. I opened my dry mouth, hoping to talk, when I coughed. Pain spread through my body like wildfire, that when I opened my mouth again, I screamed bloody murder. My body moved around the man's hands, trying to deal with the pain. I had never felt this level of pain before and I couldn't deal with it.

I wanted my best friend here, to laugh with. I wanted Aaron to tell me a corny joke, to make it all better. And most of all, I wanted Fernando here to make me feel safe from the anger that was my fiance.

The noise got louder. The shouts became even more frenzied, my screams getting louder as the pain consumed me. I coughed again and as the confusion continued I blacked out again, falling into the comfort of no feeling.