Falling back into routine here in Barcelona after our mini vacation together was scarily easy. It seemed like Alexia and I had lived together for years. We cooked together even though she was bad at it, went grocery shopping together, and cleaned the apartment together. In this short time we had built our own little routine.
A day after we got back, I had another appointment with the real-estate agent to check out an apartment. Alexia offered to tag along again but just like the first time she didn't like this one either. So again I told the agent to keep looking for something else.
This time it was something about the location? I don't know, she just didn't think it was the perfect match and I guess she knows the city better than I do so she probably knows best.
I had run into Maria a couple of times too and like promised I stopped by for some coffee and a lovely chat as well. I offered to do some grocery shopping for her because I had to go anyway so it wasn't a problem which she accepted.
Before I had to leave for trainingscamp she told me that she had bought a season ticket to come support me and the team throughout the season.
And that is where I am now. We had just arrived back at the hotel after practice. We were on a training camp where the last preparation would be done for the season that would soon start.
Two games were scheduled during our camp. The first one was won with three against one to Bayern and the next one, which will be tomorrow, will be against PSG. After that we would all fly back to our national teams for a short international break and for the first game of our victory tour.
On our way back to the hotel the girls and I decided to go for a swim before dinner and relax for a bit but upon arriving those plans vanished into thin air.
We were a day before the game and Luis wanted to go over the game plan one more time with the whole team so he told everyone to chill in their rooms, go to the meeting and afterwards we were allowed to do whatever we wanted.
"I'm bored." I whined plopping down on my bed.
Mapi, who was not impressed by my whining, just shrugged her shoulders. "Then go do something."
She was laying on her bed as well, scrolling on her phone. I glared at the girl's reaction, which wasn't helpful whatsoever.
"Waw, thank you for the great advice captain McObvious" I glared at the defender next to me.
Tired of being bored I got up and decided to go look for something to do. This seemed to spike the interest of the defender who looked up from her phone for the first time.
"What are you doing?" She raised an eyebrow at me in curiosity.
"I'm going to see what Alexia is doing, or maybe Leila. Maybe they know something to do to kill the time." I grabbed my phone and keycard and made my way to the door.
"I bet Alexia does!" I heard her yell after me. I didn't need to see her face to know there was most likely a smirk on her lips.
"Shut up!" I got out of the door as fast as I could, not in the mood to have yet another conversation about our star midfielder who happened to be very hot.
Of course luck wasn't on my side because when you speak of the devil he or better yet she will appear. The moment I got out of the door I bumped into someone who was about to knock at it and that said person just happened to be Alexia.
Before she could go flying to the ground I grabbed a hold of her arms to keep her up and she held on to mine for support. Her touch sent sparks through my whole body.
I quickly looked her up and down and noticed she was only wearing a bikini which made me blush a bit at the close proximity we were in.
"Ah, just the person I was looking for!" She excitedly said while letting go of my arms.
"Why are you in your bikini?" I mumbled, trying not to stare at her.
"Because we're going swimming. Vamos! Get changed." She said with a smile on her face. This effectively snapped me out of my daze.
"What? No. We have a team meeting which starts in twenty five minutes." I looked at my wrist like I was wearing a watch which must have looked pretty stupid because I wasn't wearing any.
"So that gives you five minutes to change and us fifteen minutes to have fun at the pool." The look she gave me was intense, she was doing her absolute best to convince me to go with her but I wasn't caving. I'm new here. I still have to make a good impression, breaking the rules, even if it is something so small as this wouldn't be the smartest move.
"Ale, we can't. There isn't enough time." I sighed out.
"Fine, then I'll go alone." And without another word she turned around and made her way towards the elevator.
Because she had her back towards me I couldn't see the smirk on her face when I sighed out again and followed behind her anyway. Of course she knew I would follow her. She knows I would follow her everywhere.
"This is a bad idea." I mumbled getting in the elevator, crossing my arms over my chest.
"Someone once told me that a bad idea doesn't mean it's not gonna be a good time." Alexia, still wearing that stupid smirk, pushed the right button to go to the pool. I glared at the Spaniard, how dare she use my own words against me? The audacity.
"Yeah, well I liked it better when you wouldn't agree with me on that." I deadpanned, pouting like a small child.
Alexia leaned closer to me so that her lips were almost brushing my ear. "Don't worry. We'll have fun." She whispered in my ear, leaving me flustered.
She stood back up and looked straight ahead, the smirk from earlier never leaving her face. When the elevator finally reached its destination, she walked out without another word.
It's safe to say that after our vacation the whole vibe between us changed drastically. The short break definitely did wonders for Alexia. It was clear to see that she was feeling a lot lighter now and more like herself again.
As for between us, we became even more flirty and ever since our last night in Croatia, Alexia slept in my bed or I slept in hers and I hadn't had a nightmare since.
Now here I was, rooted in my spot, the door almost closing on me brought me back to reality. Luckily I was fast enough to make the doors stop and open again. Alexia however, dropped her towel on one of the chairs and made her way to the pool.
"Ale, you can't go for a swim. Lluís will kill us if we are late." I caught up with the Spaniard but my pleas were ignored when she winked at me and jumped into the pool.
I dramatically looked around and started waving my hands in front of me, carefully looking at them. "Am I a ghost now? Can anyone see me because if not and I am in fact a ghost, I want to be called Casper the cute little ghost." I sarcastically said to no one in particular.
Alexia however came up for air and swam my way. "Come on, get in! The water is great." She chuckled and splashed some of the water my way, making me jump back a bit, doing my best to avoid the water.
"Ale I beg you." I clapped both my hands together, making my point. "Please get out."
But my pleas didn't help, if anything it made her smirk even more. "I like it when you beg." Her stare was intense and no doubt made me blush.
"O god." I groaned, not really knowing what to say to that. A bit flustered to come up with a good response.
"I'm not a God but I'll take it." She shrugged her shoulders with a smug smile sporting on her face.
"I'm serious Ale. You need to get out." This time I looked at her seriously. Time was ticking and if she wanted to get ready before the meeting she had to get out now.
"Fine." Was all Alexia said but the mischievous smile on her face should have been the first clue that she was up to no good.
She got out of the water like she said but instead of taking her towel she walked right past it. That should have been clue number two.
Clue number three should have been the one where she walked up to me with that same mischievous smile on her face.
I should have known, I mean how many clues does one need before she knew that Alexia was going to throw her in the pool? Apparently three wasn't enough because before I knew it Alexia threw herself at me and took me down in the pool with her.
She was still latching on to me when we both surfaced, me with a face full of shock, she with the biggest grin.
"Really?!" My eyes were still closed due to the water that was in them. My arms were held a bit above my head because I was still completely surprised by the fact that she would push me in.
I slowly opened my eyes and Alexia repositioned herself around my body. Her arms went around my neck and her legs wrapped around my waist. Instinctively my hand went to her thighs to support her a bit.
It was just now, when I opened my eyes that I realized how close we were. The moment I opened them her eyes locked with mine. Our lips just mere centimeters away from touching, my breath caught in my throat. Now it was just her and me.
"Stop fighting it." She barely whispered. Her lips brushed over mine and that was it. I was done for. All the promises, all the fighting it was now all out of the window.
"Fuck it." I closed the gap between us and crashed my lips into hers. Our lips moved in sync. Her hands instantly went to my hair playing with the loose strands that had fallen out of my bun while my hands continued to hold her up by her thighs.
The kiss was full of passion, full of lust. The emotions, frustrations that had been building up, finally coming out. While I was in control the Spaniard wasted no time in deepening the kiss.
I walked us over to the edge of the pool and pinned her between my body and the wall. My hands traveled a bit up along the side of her body. This gave her the perfect opportunity to take the lead as she went to stand on her own two feet.
Her hands immediately left my neck and went to my hips. With a swift motion she turned us around so that now I was the one pinned against the wall, hands holding onto her arms in surprise a bit. She firmly held me in place and nudged my feet apart with hers.
Her lips traveled from mine to my jaw and finally my neck, desperately looking for the sweet spot while one of her hands got dangerously close to the waistband of my shorts.
So consumed by each other, we hadn't noticed a certain defender walking in, in search of me.
"Ellie, are you here?!" At the sound of Leila's voice we both jumped apart right before she could actually guess what was going on between us.
"Here you are. Let's go before we're late for the meeting. You too Ale." Oblivious to what she just walked in on, she grabbed a towel and waited for me to get out.
I grabbed the towel from her hands and rushed out the door without a second glance to either Leila or Alexia. The defender was incredibly confused about my behavior while the Spanish midfielder was just looking very annoyed and frustrated.
I reached my room in record time, closing it right behind me and leaning against it, finally releasing the breath that I was holding.
"What's up with you and why are you wet?" A very confused Mapi walked out of the bathroom, making me jump.
"Nothing. I'm fine." I immediately responded, not helping my case whatsoever.
Mapi just raised her eyebrow and stared at me, not saying a word. She kept doing that for a couple of more seconds before I caved.
"I did something." I said, closing my eyes for a brief second before looking back at the defender in front of me who seemed intrigued.
"Oh my God, did you kill someone? Wait
Never mind, don't tell me that because otherwise I'm an accessory to murder and then I can't provide you with an alibi. You need an alibi! Have you got rid of the body yet or?" But before she could continue her ramble I interrupted her.
"What no! I didn't kill anyone!" I furrowed my eyebrows together.
"Okay, we still have to kill them. I can do that but again we need an alibi." Mapi rambled again
"I kissed her." This effectively shut her up. "I kissed Alexia."
"I'm confused. I don't see the problem here." The defender tilted her head a bit in confusion. She really didn't see the problem here. To her the both of us are perfect for each other. To be honest it amazed her that I hadn't hooked up with the midfielder sooner.
I walked right past the defender to the bathroom so I could change while talking to her.
"It can't happen, Mapi! Alexia and I can't happen." I changed into dry clothes, checking the time.
"And why is that? You two are perfect for one another." She stood patiently waiting by the bathroom door listening to my problem that she didn't see as a problem in the first place.
"It just can't." I harshly opened the door. I didn't want to go into detail. Not because I didn't trust Mapi but because I wasn't ready to talk about it yet but the defender seemed to be unaware of that.
"Ellie talk to me." Mapi stopped me right before I walked past her to the door to go to the meeting.
"I'm not ready, Mapi." I said without looking at her. "I can't talk about it yet. Please let it go." I pleaded with her.
"Okay but just know that I'm always here for you when you need it." She gave my wrist a light squeeze and with that we went to our meeting.
The last days of training camp were spent ignoring Alexia to the best of my abilities. Only on the pitch there were a few words shared with one other but beside that we both kept our distance.
We had won the game against PSG barely but nevertheless we won. Before I would leave for national duty my friends decided to go out and celebrate the wins.
So here I was, back in Barcelona at a bar, doing my best to have fun while ignoring the person I apparently have fallen in love with.
Some family members of my teammates had joined us at the bar. That's why not only Alba but also her friend Isabella, who seemed to be very interested in her friend's sister, was here.
Just like the day at the beach Isabella seemed to always be around Alexia. It was clear that they were having a good time, dancing, laughing, just enjoying each other's company but what I failed to notice were the lingering looks Alexia sent my way when I wasn't looking.
Instead I was seated at a table that we had claimed in the beginning of the night, trying to enjoy my drink with some friends.
"Have I introduced you to Isabella yet?" The younger Putellas asked me, completely unaware of the tension that name brought.
"No, you have not." I mumbled, staring at my drink. Mapi, who was sitting beside me, sent a pitiful look my way.
"Oh, I definitely should. You two would get along great." Oblivious to the situation, she keeps telling me how great her friend is and if I weren't so jealous I would have probably agreed with her.
While I was listening to Alba rambling on and telling stories about everything and anything, Isabelle approached our table. I didn't really think anything of it seeing as her best friend was sitting with us but it was me she called out for.
"Hey, Eleanor right?" She took the seat next to me and held out her hand for me to shake.
"Uhm, yes that's me. Isabella right?" I shook her hand, greeting the girl while my friends around the table pretended not to listen in on our conversation.
"Yes. I'm gonna be forward with you but is there something going on between you and Alexia?" Everyone stopped with what they were doing, shocked about the question the girl asked me.
A part of me wanted to say yes but when I looked at how happy Alexia was at this moment. The way she was laughing at something Aitana had said. The way she was dancing and having fun with Leila. I just couldn't ruin that and then I remembered the things Alba had told me about Isabella. She was a good person, sweet, caring.
"No, there's nothing going on between us." I said, shocking everyone at the table, especially Mapi. Of course this brought a smile to Isabella's face.
"No, go for it. Just make her happy." I fake a smile.
"You seem to be her best friend. Can you maybe help me with the date?" She looked at me hopefully, almost pleading, making me sigh.
"Don't do anything too big. She doesn't like the grand gestures. She likes the small things." I explained to her, Isabella carefully listening to what I was telling her.
"So dinner?" She questioned.
"Pick her up and drive her to the beach. Take her on a small walk there at sunset. The one closest to her house is her favorite because it's the one she would go to with her family when she was younger. Then after, take her to dinner. Drop her off at her place again and walk her home." I got up from my seat and threw some money on the table that would be enough to cover my part of the bill and said my goodbyes.
I was about to exit the bar when I heard someone hurrying behind me, trying to catch up with me, calling my name. When I turned around I was met with the sister of the girl that I so desperately fell in love with.
"Why did you do that? Why did you help her?" Alba asked me.
"Like you said" I smiled at the younger Putellas. "she is a fantastic person. Tell Ale I said hey." I squeezed her arm softly and walked out of the bar asking myself if I did the right thing but isn't that how the saying goes? 'If you love someone you set them free'? Well I love her and now I've set her free.