I wake up the next morning to a loud ringing. I groan feeling around my bed trying to find my phone to stop the ringing. I slap around with my eyes closed and finally open them when I hear a loud slap.
"Sorry," I mumble as João groans. I forgot he was around. Just as the ringing stops, it starts again. I groan as Floki starts barking.
"Floki," João groans, "go back to sleep."
So helpful, I roll my eyes. I lift my boy off the bed finally spotting my phone. I grab it answering the call.
"Federico, it's 7 in the morning, what is your problem ?" I ask.
"Good morning, it's actually 7:15," here corrects, "can you open your gate please."
"What are you doing outside my house ?" I ask.
"It's a big day," he says.
"Let me brush my teeth," I mumble getting out of bed.
I walk over to the bathroom hanging up the call. I quickly brush my teeth and my hair. I put some shoes on and walk out of my room. I open the door for Floki in case he wants to follow me. I head down to the kitchen to open the gate.
I get the coffee machine up and running, rubbing my tired eyes. I'm zoning out when there's a loud knock on my door breaking me free from my trance. I walk over to the door to let Fede in.
I regret it. It's not just Fede, it's the whole fucking team. My home fills up with the men from the Real Madrid men's team, wearing my little brother's jersey. Tchouaméni walks in with a loud speaker blasting "Hala Madrid... y nada más."
"Aurelien, turn it down," I groan.
"I'll get started on breakfast," Modrić tells me.
"You're an angel," I laugh. "Anyone want coffee ?"
"Yes, please," Kroos yawns.
"Whose idea was this ?" I ask.
"Fede's," he laughs.
"I'm going to kill him," I groan.
"Sofia, what's the heck is going on ?" Cris asks walking out of his room.
"It's the man of the hour," Vini shouts.
Cristiano walks downstairs and the celebrations begin. João ends up coming down as well and I help Modrić make breakfast.
I FaceTime my dad showing him the chaos in my home. He laughs at the situation. He admires the bond that the Real Madrid players form with each other. I get to speak to my mom and siblings before my dad has to leave and we end the call.
I slip away as everyone makes conversation with each other. I get ready for the busy day ahead. I have my brother's contract signing to attend and his presentation. It was just for the academy, so it's not too much of a big deal really.
"I have a jersey for you," Asensio says as I walk downstairs.
"Thank you," I say, walking over to him and taking the jersey.
I slip the jersey over the shirt I already had on. "I love how supportive you all are for my brother even though he isn't playing for the actual club yet, he's still with the academy," I laugh.
"It's only a matter of time," Camavinga says.
"True," Vini agrees.
We all head out of the house after breakfast to the Bernabeu. The stadium is filled with balloons and welcome signs.
"This really feels like home," Cris says.
"I'm glad," Florentino comes up behind him, "it's gonna be your home for the next few years. We'll keep you comfortable while we wait for Sofia."
"I'll be here before you know it," I laughs.
-
We spent the entirety of our day at the Bernabeu. I stood by Cris as he signed his contract with Real Madrid for the next four years. He had his presentation where he got his super cool jersey we were all already wearing. Vini, Camavinga, Tchouaméni, Federico and some of the other players gave João a tour of the Bernabeu, showing him our La liga titles, the copa del rey, the fourteen champion leagues and the rest of the trophies, they really want to see him play with a Real Madrid jersey, and so do I, if I'm honest.
After a long day, we finally head home again. "So, fourteen champion leagues," João says as he drives.
"Could be more if you join the team," Cris shrugs.
"Your sister put you up to this ?" He asks.
"This is all me," Cris says. "Look, you're talented, and I'm not saying you need my help or anyone's for that matter to get scouted, but I'm just trying to help so you don't have to go back to Atlético."
"What's wrong with Atlético ?" João asks.
Cristiano scoffs, "you must be joking, any club is better than Atlético."
"Any club ?" He raises a brow at him through the rear view mirror.
"Yes," I agree.
"Any club ?" He asks again.
"Oh my god, João yes," I groan, "even Barcelona would be a better option."
"Barcelona ?" Cris asks, "I mean yes, but we're scraping the bottom of the barrel here, I think you deserve better than that," Cris shrugs, placing his hand on João's shoulder as we arrive. "Fourteen champion leagues," Cris says in a singsong voice.
"We'll discuss this at dinner," João says getting out of the car.
"Where are you guys going ?" Cris asks.
"The three of us are going where ever you want to go," João says.
"Wait seriously ?" Cris asks, "I'm going too ?"
"Yes," João says.
"And I can pick the restaurant ?" Cris asks excitedly.
"Yes, Cris, it's your special day," João says.
"Awesome," Cris says running inside with his phone in hand.
"It's very sweet of you to turn date night into this," I tell João.
"It was never gonna be date night," he tells me pulling me close kissing my forehead, "Cris deserves it."
"God, just when I think you can't get any more perfect," I sigh, practically melting in his arms.
"Well, I'm not perfect, but I sure do try," he says holding me tight, "perfect woman deserves the best."
I grab his face bringing it closer to mine and pulling him in for a kiss. "I love you," I say.
"I love you more," he smiles pecking my lips again, "let's get ready for dinner."
"That's not fair, you always win the I love you more," I groan as he releases me and walks away.
"I just love you more," he shrugs.
"You're delusional," I laugh.
"Oh yeah," he says stopping in his tracks, "if I'm so delusional, why do I always win the I love you war ?"
"Because you never let me get another word in," I groan, "you're like such a bratty child."
"A bratty child ?" He asks, "you looking in the mirror ?"
"You annoy me," I groan.
"Get ready for dinner," he says ushering me upstairs.
I run upstairs walking up to our room. Our, it's so weird, I don't have anything to myself anymore. It's our home, our room, our bed, our everything. It's nice, having a good man to share everything with. I walk into my closet, that's still mine... for the time being that is.
"Hey sof," Cris comes in knocking on my door, "what are you wearing ?"
"I don't know," I laugh.
"I figured we could all match you," He shrugs.
"Okay, what color are you in the mood for ?" I ask.
"João," he shouts, "what is he even doing anyway ?"
"Game room probably," I roll my eyes.
"I'll be back," he sighs walking out.
I sit on the little couch in the room as I wait for him to return.
"We've decided white," Cristiano says walking back into the room. "He said when you went out for dinner so he could announce his move to Chelsea you all wore blue, white seems fitting."
"White it is," I say looking through my closet for a dress. "I'll be out in a minute to iron your shirt."
"Thank you," he says leaving me to dress hunting.
I find a white dress, more on the casual side, but not too casual. I lay it out, opting to look for heels later. I walk over to the small space I made for João, looking for a white shirt for him. I walked into Cris' room to grab his shirt as well and head down to the laundry room to iron it.
"Alright, shirts are done," I call out when I finish.
I walk upstairs to get ready. I walk over to my restroom to do my hair, was gonna put my dress on, but considering it's white, I should do that after. Once I'm done, I get dressed and put on my heels.
"I took my time," I shout stepping out of my room, "so if you two aren't ready, and I am, I'm beating you with my shoes."
"Fuck," João mumbles.
"Dude, I told you," Cris groans.
"I'll give you both a five second head start," I yell.
The boys sprint past me running up to their rooms to change. I groan plopping down on the couch.
"You look beautiful by the way," João shouts.
I laugh, "Floki, your daddy makes me mad," I say patting the couch next to me and the little wiener dog jumps on the couch. I pet Floki and my phone begins to ring. It's a FaceTime call from Hugo.
"Where'd Cris go ?" He asks, "I was just about to hop online."
"He's getting ready for dinner," I say.
"Oh you look pretty," he says, "what's the big occasion ?"
"Your brother wants to take us out to celebrate Cris for his contract signing," I state.
"Awww that's so cute," he says, "like a little family."
"Except our son stays behind," I pout showing Floki on the screen.
"Floki," Hugo coos, "wait, isn't João supposed to be in England right now ?"
"Yes," I sigh, "don't even get me started on that."
"You've got that man whipped," he laughs.
"I'm in love," João says coming downstairs, hair done, pants unbuttoned and barefoot. "My shirt's in the laundry room ?" He asks.
"Aha," I hum.
"You're staring," he says.
"You're hot," I reply.
"You two are gross, I'll call you when you're not drooling over my brother," Hugo groans and I laugh.
"Your brother is sexy," I whisper.
"You disgust me," he says making a face.
"Bye," I laugh.
"Bye, guys," he says hanging up.
"You know," João says tucking in his shirt, "I felt like I was forgetting something and then I realized I didn't even make a reservation."
"I made it," I tell him, getting off the couch to fix his collar. "You look so handsome," I say pecking his lips.
"And you look, breathtaking," he says kissing me again.
"Yeah, we're going out to dinner now," Cris says on the phone with someone. "Gross, can you two not do that when I'm in the room please," he groans.
There's a muffled voice coming from his phone, I can't tell who it is. "They just kissed," Cristiano groans. "That's so gross."
There's a pause and then Cris speaks up again, "dad says keep the kissing to a minimum."
"Oh god," I groan, "don't look at us kiss then."
"Yeah, whatever," Cris rolls his eyes. "I refilled Floki's food bowl," he says.
"Is everyone ready ?" João asks.
"I've been waiting for the two of you," I say.
"Let me go get my shoes on," he says walking back upstairs.
"Alright dad, I'll talk to you guys later, bye, love you," Cris says.
"Bye daddy, I love you," I shout.
There's a muffled response and then the call goes silent.
"To the car," João says grabbing his car keys off the counter as he comes back in.
"Reservation is set for 8:30," I state as we walk out.
"It's fifteen minutes away, and it's 8:05, we have plenty of time," Cris says as we get into the car.
João drives us over to the restaurant, and we wait a few more minutes in the car before exiting out. We walk over to the entrance and João rushes over opening the door for us both.
"Thank you," Cris smiles at him walking in.
I give him a peck on the cheek following behind Cris. "Hi," I smile at the woman on the hostess stand, "I have a reservation for dos Santos."
"Right this way," she smiles walking us over to our table.
We follow behind her taking our seats and she hands us our menus giving us a few minutes to look over them.
"So," João says, "how excited are you ?"
I tap my brother knowing João is talking to him.
"Sorry," he says, "about what ?"
"Playing in Madrid," João says.
"Oh yeah," Cris smiles, "beyond, I got to see some guys I used to play with back when dad was with Real Madrid."
"I saw Enzo," I state, "your friend from Juve."
"Oh yeah, Marco told me he signed with the academy too, I'm excited to see him again," he smiles.
The waitress comes back taking our order. We continue our conversation focused on Cristiano and his goals for his future with Real Madrid. He seemed shocked yet happy to be the center of attention. Seven kids and my dad makes sure to give us all his undivided attention, but sometimes his focus is mostly on the kiddos, in his defense, they're all under ten.
"What about you ?" Cris asks, digging into his meal the waitress dropped off a few minutes ago, "excited to be heading to Chelsea ?"
"The prem was not really in my plans in the beginning," he says, "but I don't know, I seem to like their playing style, we'll see how it goes."
"Sounds promising," Cris laughs. "And you ?" He asks, "World Cup ready ?"
"I am so ready to get back out there," I smile.
"I'm excited to see you get out there," he smiles at me taking a sip of his drink.
"Okay, enough football talk, why don't we switch over the conversation," I suggest.
The rest of the dinner goes by smoothly. João and Cris begin to bond over different activities they'd love to try out together. It made me so happy, I got along great with João's family, and I'm so pleased when I see him get along with mine.
We finish our dinner and head out back to the house.
João's POV
We arrived at the house and I help Sofia get out of the car. We walk up to the house and I unlock it, holding the door open for Cris and Sofia.
"I need to get out of this dress," Sofia laughs walking upstairs.
"Thank you for tonight," Cris tells me, "it was really sweet of you."
"Oh, yeah, of course," I smile at him. "Your sister has this like work meeting on zoom tomorrow, she said it's gonna take a while, so I was thinking you and I could hang out," I say hopeful.
"Yeah," he says.
"Cool, we could do whatever you'd like," I propose.
He nods and smiles, giving me the feeling that perhaps he has plans. "Or if you already have plans, that's fine, you don't have to hang with me," I say.
"No, I don't have plans," he says, "we can hang."
"Is something bothering you ?" I ask.
"No, no, it's just that," he pauses, "you don't have to do this, you know; I know we talked about stuff at dinner and all, but I wasn't actually expecting anything, you don't have to feel obligated because you're-"
"Because I'm dating your sister ?" I cut him off, sitting on the couch.
"Precisely," he laughs.
"No," I assure him, "we were friends before your sister and I started dating and that changes nothing. I still want to be your friend, hang out like old times," I shrug.
"Oh," he says, "I just don't want it to be weird."
"There's no reason it should be," I smile at him, "just two bros hanging out."
"I'm in then," he smiles. "Thanks again for making today about me, it was very sweet."
"Of course," I smile at him, "I'm glad you had a nice night, I'll see you tomorrow," I tell him. "Goodnight," I call out as I head upstairs.
"Goodnight," he says following behind.
I walk into what used to be Sofia's room unbuttoning my shirt.
"Jesus, sexy, you trying to kill me ?" She groans and I laugh.
"Oh you've seen me shirtless plenty," I say.
"Yeah, but I'll never get over it," she sighs dramatically.
I laugh throwing on a random pair of shorts and sliding in the bed next to her.
"Any plans tomorrow ?" She asks, "I'm sorry I can't hang out."
"It's okay," I tell her, "I've made plans with Cristiano."
"My brother ?" She asks.
"Mhm," I hum.
"What are you guys doing ?" She asks.
"I don't know, we'll figure it out tomorrow I suppose," I shrug. "Speaking of tomorrow, I was thinking we could take Federico and his family out for dinner, you know, like a little token of appreciation."
"For taking Cris in ?" She asks.
"Yeah," I say.
"That sounds nice," she smiles at me, "but you don't have to do that."
"I don't feel like I have to," I say, "I want to."
"We can have dinner here," she suggests, "I'll cook."
"We can double check with Cris in the morning, see what he'd like best," I smile at her kissing her forehead.
"Look at us, like a little married couple," she laughs.
"Do you want to be a little married couple now ?" I ask, "cause I could make us a little married couple."
"Shut up," she laughs, "you can't propose without our families present."
"I have the ring," I shrug, getting our families here is just a few calls and a push of buttons."
"Shut up," she laughs.
"I'm serious," I say.
"So what's the ring look like ?" She asks.
"Goodnight, baby," I say pecking her lips.
"Not fair," she groans, "just give me a hint."
"Go to sleep, Sofia," I tell her.
"Fine," she groans, "goodnight."
A N || HAPPY NEW YEAR 🫶🏼 wish you all the best year ever <33
Also if any of you want to be TikTok mutuals, comment yours so I can follow you all 🤍