It's the year 2027. After the ligament operation, Alexia's recovery, which initially seemed very promising, was marred by one complication after another. Time, slow recuperation, and age eventually distanced her from professional football.
Although...
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Alexia remained solemn in the small waiting room they had left at her disposal for preparation. She had mentally reviewed her notes for the press conference at least a dozen times in the last hour. Through the door, she could hear the press room filling up with journalists, scrambling to grab one of the available seats.
Her gaze stayed fixed on the floor, still too shocked by the presence of Elena Garay and Martina Álvarez in the same room. Her soon-to-be-official girlfriend in the public eye had attended to support her, also aiming to demonstrate unity in the photos that journalists would take as they left the Manchester United sports complex. Elena was there as the head of press, evaluating the work Alexia had done throughout the previous day. Alexia couldn't help but feel immense guilt when looking at both of them, discovering that when she needed to feel capable, her eyes gravitated towards the Asturian. Therefore, she preferred to keep them on the ground, away from guilt and prying eyes.
She didn't like where she was, nor the decisions being made regarding her case. Martina, on the other hand, had been thrilled, not raising a single objection. She had gotten angry hearing what they were saying about her partner, of course, and agreed on the need to do something about it. The solution had excited her, perhaps too much for Alexia's liking.
The former footballer was not happy about canceling her plans with her old teammates either. She hadn't had the chance to get used to her presence again; it was like jumping into the pool without dipping a toe first. And the water was freezing. She had too much on her mind for sharing a room with them not to disturb her enough to show it. Moreover, the cancellation of that introduction had forced her to reschedule it for the following week, on Irene's youngest son's second birthday, an event too crowded for her liking. Although, truth be told, after introducing her to the press, presenting her to her lifelong friends shouldn't be the headache it was turning out to be.
Elena had maintained professionalism at all times, but anxiety had overwhelmed her several times, away from Alexia and her partner's accusatory eyes. During the preparatory session the day before, she had apologized more than once, rushing to the bathroom before completely losing her composure in front of both of them. She had touched up and redone her makeup more times than she could count.
"Martina. It's a pleasure to meet you, Elena." That's how the brunette had greeted her, completely unaware of everything as Alexia had told her seconds before the presentation took place. Martina Álvarez knew nothing. It was a relief, of course, but the fact that she couldn't even recognize her name stung a bit. Alexia had never talked to Martina about her. No one had.
Elena shook her hand as firmly as she could and invited both of them to enter the office that the organization had assigned them.
It took a couple of hours to draft the statements that Alexia would make in the press conference, another hour for gestures and non-verbal language, and another for possible questions from the journalists. Martina had been extremely attentive to her partner, understanding that she wasn't going through her best moment to date. She held her hand when things got overwhelming, smiled at her with understanding when she sought her eyes. Elena felt that she would have never done it like that; it hurt to know that Martina did it much better than her. That was the first time she apologized before leaving the room.
