Ale's POV
I didn't want to be here tonight, winning the Balon D'or was the highlight of any footballer's career, but I could think of a hundred places where I'd rather be, number one being at home in bed with my wife, online shopping for baby clothes, like we had nearly every night for the last few weeks. Isy was five months pregnant now, we hadn't announced the news yet to anyone except our friends and family, it was a decision that we had made together, neither of us feeling the need to tell the world about our baby just yet which meant that Isy was staying at home tonight as to keep the secret for a while longer.
I could normally just about manage awards ceremonies, but this year it felt different. This year I had more important things on my mind. I didn't want to be here, I didn't deserve to be here winning this trophy, not after having not kicked a ball in over four months... there were people who had performed for the whole season and deserved it more than me, especially after the euros this summer.
The evening didn't last forever though and before I knew it I was doing the last interview of the night and one step closer to going home. The questions were as I expected, the club had been vague about the reason why Isy hadn't played yet this season, citing medical and personal reasons but the media and fans had been growing more impatient for details.
"Your family must be so proud, what do they make of you winning all of these individual trophies?" The interviewer asked, holding the microphone out in my direction.
"They are proud, winning trophies like these is always special, but it's the team trophies that mean the most to me... I think of these individual awards as more of a reward for my family. I wouldn't be able to do any of this without them. My parents spent years driving me back and forth to training and matches, my sister Alba also gave up a lot during our childhood so that I could live out my dream and my wife has been my biggest supporter since the moment we met. This award is for them..."
"Speaking of your wife Isabel, we know she hasn't played yet this season, how is she doing? Is it also an injury that's keeping her out?"
The question everyone wanted to ask.
"She's good, it's not an injury, she's just not able to play at the moment due to other circumstances" I smiled, knowing full well what the circumstances were.
"Can you give us any more information as to when she'll be back on the pitch? The fans really miss watching you both play"
"I should be back in training early next year and Isabel... well, she'll be back as soon as she can"
After the interview had finally ended, I headed back to the hotel room that I'd been given to get ready in, immediately checking my phone and finding a string of messages from Isy as she watched from home.
Isy 🥰
I wish I was there to celebrate with you tonight, but Nala, bump, and I are cheering you on from right here! xx
The baby started kicking when you did your speech, I swear that they know your voice even through the TV xx
I'm so proud of you! You deserve that award as much as anybody else if not more. We love you so much xx
I can't keep my eyes open much longer so I'm going to go up to bed, but wake me up when you get back and we can celebrate properly xx
The picture that Isy sent, made my heart nearly explode with love, my little family were all waiting for me at home, and right now it was the only thing I cared about. I was ready to leave, I'd had enough of the make-up, the high heels, the fancy clothes, and the flashing lights. The only place I wanted to be right now was back home in Barcelona with Isy.
"There you are! We were looking everywhere for you..." Alba announced as she walked into the room, Mamá following closely behind her,
"Are you two ready to go?"
"Are we leaving already?" Alba asked, the disappointment obvious on her face. She loved these events, getting dressed up and spending the night celebrating was her idea of fun, but it definitely wasn't mine.
"Yeah, I want to get back to Isy"
"Is everything okay?" Mamá quickly asked, taking a few steps closer as worry started to spread across her face.
"Yeah, everything's fine. I've just had enough of tonight and I want to go home to my wife"
"We'll get changed and then we can go, ok?" Mama said, sending an understanding smile in my direction.
"Thanks mama."
Eli's POV
Ale had changed a lot since her injury, but I think a lot of that was down to the pregnancy too. She'd always been protective of her family, but ever since Isy had gotten pregnant her want for privacy had multiplied. She wanted to protect Isy and the baby from any unnecessary stress and I think that keeping the pregnancy a secret for as long as possible was her way of doing that. There was a lot of pressure that came along with the success that Ale had had over the years, the demanding fans wanting to know every detail of her life, the media wanting as much access to her as they possibly could, and the responsibility of being Barcelona captain all added extra stress to not just her but to Isy too.
I think in some way the injury had been a blessing in disguise, it had made her realize that there is more to life than football. Her career wouldn't last forever, but her family would. Eventually she won't be playing anymore, her career will come to an end and she won't have football to focus on, but what she will have is her wife and children at home... a family to look after, and to get to that point she needed to start prioritizing them now.
She didn't care about any of the added opportunities anymore. She would do what she had to when it came to her rehab and club responsibilities, but it always came back to her home life. She would only agree to photoshoots if she would be home by a certain time and she wouldn't travel for work unless she would be home the same day. Normally she would persevere with a night like tonight, spending hours posing for photos, doing interviews with every media outlet, and would end up staying until the early hours of the morning trying to please everyone, but not anymore. Now she only did what was compulsory, the official photoshoot and a few interviews before she. decided that she needed to go home.
She had grown so much as a person in the last 5 months, she was looking after herself properly for the first time in years, she was more focused on her home life, putting Isy first and prioritizing her happiness and I was so proud of her for that.
Isy's POV
I was excited to get out of the house for a bit, I had happily agreed to keep the pregnancy a secret for longer when Ale suggested it, but it did mean that I didn't get to leave the house much in case I was recognized by a fan and they noticed my ever-growing bump. It was easier at the start, the bump was small, and could easily be hidden with a hoodie or an oversized t-shirt, but now we were five months along it was almost impossible to keep the bump under wraps.
"Maybe we shouldn't go" Ale mumbled as we finished getting ready for the dinner that Eli had organized to celebrate Ale's Balon D'or win.
"Ale, we're only going to your mums, It'll be fine!" I tried to reassure her.
"I know, but-" she began.
"We aren't going to be able to keep this a secret forever, I mean... look at the size of me. We've still got 4 months to go and I can't stay at home forever. Maybe we should announce it? Let the world know about our pequeño, I promise it won't be as bad as you think..."
"I know that we can't keep it quiet forever, but I'm scared... the fans are so full-on and the media always seem to ruin everything. I just don't want anything to go wrong" Ale explained, taking a few steps closer and placing a hand on the side of my bump, rubbing her thumb back and forth.
"You've got the next few days off right?"
"Yeah..." she answered hesitantly.
"Let's post it, turn our phones off, and get away for a couple of days... just me, you, Nala and bump"
"Ok" she smiled, adding her other hand to my bump before placing a peck onto my lips.
"Are you sure? I don't want to do anything if you aren't ready"
"I'm ready, let's do it... let's tell the world about our little secret"