I have no clue when to end this book. It's just so much fun to write. Anyone with any suggestions is more than welcome to private message me. I feel like I should keep writing a lot more chapters, but somehow I have no clue what to write.
I NEED FEEDBACK! PLEASE... That's all I ask for. I love comments. I'm obsessed with feedback. I just need criticism.
So without further ado, here is the chapter! Hope you enjoy.
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It was the late in the afternoon the day after Cristiano and Abril's conversation had taken place and four friends were gathered around a table. One of them was scratching his beard, the other looked like he was about to cry, another one twiddled with her thumbs nervously and the last one, well the last one was the one who was yelling, "Just do it!"
Who were these four people you may ask? Well it's none other than the four best friends: Isco, Toni, James and Abril.
They were all staring at the phone in the middle of the table. It was Cristiano's phone and it was still open. The screen was open on a contact name. The name of the contact was Guy Who People Say Is Better Than Me When The World Knows He Is Not.
"It's not that easy," Abril said as she bit her lip. "I mean, what if she's not there and we're stuck with telling him how we know about them?"
Of course she had told them everything. They were her best friends. Her true best friends. Besides, if Catalina could spill her secret, she could spill hers.
They all hummed in agreement and went back to staring at the phone.
Cristiano had given her his personal phone for the day while he was shooting a commercial. He had his business phone with him just in case something happens. She specifically remembers him saying call me if the baby pops out. And of course Abril glared at him when he chose that specific wordplay.
Someone let out a low breath and another one sighed. The only sound you could hear was the sound of James's Rolex ticking. Just when the screen was about to go black someone tapped it and it went back to being bright.
It went on like that for another twenty minutes. Sighs, ticking and touching. That's all they did until Abril finally picked up the phone.
Isco gasped, "Are you really gonna do it?"
James stuttered a low, "W-what if e-everything goes wrong?"
Toni basically yelled out a loud, "YEAH! THAT'S MY BITCH!"
Abril tapped on the number and glared at them all, "Just shut up." She then proceeded to put the phone on speaker.
The phone rang three times before someone answered, "Hola?"
It was the voice of a man. It was Messi. Nobody could miss that thick Argentinian accent. Nobody moved and it felt like no one was breathing until Toni took a dramatic intake of breath, "Hello? Cristiano? Is that you? Are you all right?"
Abril thumped the back of Toni's head and answered, "No. It's not Cristiano."
"Oh great. Is this another fan. Listen, you can't just steal someone's phone, call someone and then expect them to be fine with it. It's not right and-"
Isco laughed slightly and said, "It's not a fan. It's Isco."
"And James."
"And the blonde German one."
"Real Madrid? Why are you guys calling me?" Messi asked confused.
"It's not just them," Abril answered softly into the speaker of the iPhone, "I'm Abril. Abril Delano. Catalina Russo's best friend."
"Oh, no," He mumbled and then you could hear some rustling on the other side. There was a thud, then a whine and then another thud. The four looked at each other in confusion.
"Are you alive, bro?" Toni asked.
A door slammed through the speaker and then Lionel cleared his throat and answered, "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a bit surprised though."
Abril spoke up, "Why?"
"Um-" He stuttered, "W-we weren't expecting a call from you."
"Oh, look, James, he stutters. Just like you!" Toni exclaimed earning a whack on the back of his head. At this point he couldn't be bothered to know who did it.
"Who's we?" Abril inquired.
"Oh, come on. You know who else. I'm not gonna hide. I know you know."
"You mean the traitor," Another whack.
"Wait what? That's what you think of her," Messi asked.
Abril gave Toni another hit and sent him a menacing look as if asking him why did you say that? Abril then proceeded to answer truthfully, "Well, kind of. She did do what she did to save herself and you. We've known each other our whole life and she chose a guy that she has only known for a few months over her best friend. She ruined our relationship to save yours. And no offense, though, but you're relationship with her won't last."
He scoffed, "What makes you say that?"
"First of all, you're married. Second of all, she falls in love real fast and I think she really loves you if she did what she did and then went all the way to Barcelona to be with you. As we all know, you won't leave your wife for her! You have two kids!"
"For your information, and I have no clue why I'm telling you this, me and Antonella are getting a divorce soon," He said proudly, "Also, you should learn the cold hard facts before assuming. I love Catalina and, even though I'm married and have two kids, I will love her forever. She did what she did for us and, frankly, I'm glad she did do it!"
There was silence after that and no one dared talk. Isco, Toni and James left the room because it got too tense. Abril sat on her chair with tears brimming in her eyes (damn her hormones).
"Look, I know you and Catalina have been friends for as long as you two can remember, but you've grown apart. She finally found her true love and if you can't be happy for her then, forget about her. All she ever wanted was to be someone. She's told me how she was always your second. Your sidekick. You are smart, rich and have a great life with a boyfriend who loves you. Can't you accept that she's found the same thing? Antonella and I will be getting a divorce soon and then Catalina and I are gonna go live together. Here. In Barcelona. So can you please work things out so that we can move on with our lives. You go be with Cristiano and she'll be with me. And maybe, if you fix things, then you can still be friends," Lionel explained.
Abril was hit with a huge reality check. She had no idea Catalina felt this way and somehow she felt horrible. But what could she do? Turn down everything she had ever been given. No. It's not her fault her family was wealthy or that she decided to study during the weekend instead of going to parties. And it's not her fault that she fell in love with the most gorgeous man on the planet. But Messi was right. She needed to talk to her. To fix things. Abril knew things weren't going to be the same. She had new friends and she no longer had the trust she used to have in her.
They had grown apart.
It was inevitable.
"I'll tell her to call this number when she's ready. We're going out tonight so it'll be after dinner. Answer it, please. You and I both know that it won't be the same after this," He said softly.
With teary eyes and a shaky voice Abril finally answered, "I know."
"Oh, and congrats on being pregnant," He said.
"Thanks," Is all Abril answered and hung up.
She was too overwhelmed to say anything. She cried when her best friends comforted her and cried when Cristiano came home two hours later. She cried and cried.
Cristiano led her to the bedroom and cradled her in his arms. She told him everything Messi had said while crying, hiccuping along the way, too. She had no idea why she cried this much, but it made her feel a bit better. Like she was letting out something that was bottled up for so long.
"Shh... It's okay. You're okay. We're okay," Cris whispered gently in her ear. "You didn't know she felt this way."
Abril held him tighter, feeling guilty as ever, "It'll never be the same again, Cris."
"I know, I know."
Then she told him stories. She told him stories about how she and Catalina would go play laser tag with their high school friends. Or how she would invite her over to watch El Clásico or other important games. Abril would normally cheer for Real Madrid while she cheered for the team playing against Real Madrid. Then she told him about how when Abril was with Jonathan, Catalina would ignore her calls and texts. Or how they would fight a lot and had the discussion of how she felt like a third wheel. It all made sense now.
Junior came bounding through the door later in the night. He said his goodnight and kissed Cristiano on the cheek and then he kissed Abril. She finally smiled. The only smile in the night because then came the phone call.
The dreaded phone call.
"Hello?"
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Dun Dun DUN!
Cliffhanger I know...
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Lola out!