#gavi

The WorldCup has never been as horror for Pedri as this year. Not that he was unappreciative of the call up. Of course not. He’d dreamed of playing for his favourite club since he has been put in his first Barca jersey, but playing for his country was another pride he wasn’t able to describe beyond words. He was as grateful as ever to be called up again. Even though everyone knew, not calling him up would have been a loss for Spain’s game. Not only his teammates but the Mexican fans admiring him. He’s heard fans chanting his name all around Spain’s stadiums, but even in Mexico was something he didn’t expect at all. Recieving such recognition in another country, even another continent was simply ineffable.

And still, after all the heart warming chants, the goal, the assist made by his best friend, and the love he’s received by fans that travelled all the way to Mexico for a friendly as well as by the Mexican Spain fans, all he was able to feel was hollow in his chest while laying in bed of the hotel room he shared with Ferran, starring holes into the ceiling.

It wasn’t quite the exhaustion that pulled him down after getting back from the game. It was an intense match surely, but he had worse. He had scored a goal. De la Fuente has praised him for an outstanding performance. Everything was as great as it could be, and still one big part was missing.

It was already six in the morning when they finally arrived at the hotel what meant it’d be around 14 o’clock in Barcelona. He had received her massages right after the game, reading them as soon as he finally plopped down on his seat next to Ferran on the bus after already having survived media duties. Pedri didn’t expect her to actually watch the match and still she’s watched every single minute, sending him ridiculous remarks about situations, her opinion on some decision, and sometimes just her thoughts on how freaking hot he looked, even sending a picture of her wearing his Spain #20 Pedri jersey while sitting on the bed, room only illuminated by the screen after he scored.

He wanted to call so badly. The distance tearing him apart. But he knew her schedule and was more than aware of her university plan today, she would still have lectures until midday. And he himself should probably get a little sleep as well before their recovery session later that day. Still all he could think of was how much he misses her. Pedri is more than aware of the fact she isn’t able to do anything about it but he wished, scratch that, would do anything for her semester to end earlier.

His teammates were all accompanied by their family and wives even kids, but until Fer and his parents would arrive he’d have to do without any of them. The time difference wasn’t any better, while his parents were able to arrange some time for a video call, she wasn’t. The last two month of the semester tearing everything around her apart that wasn’t university. He wanted to personally get in contact with the school ministry to declare the semester for finished so she could travel with him. But that were just ridiculous ideas he had to suppress the actual emotions that overcome him anytime he wanted to contact her but knew she wouldn’t pick up. Still, he left several messages anytime he thought he needed to share some dumb story of Gavi falling in the pool or Ferran snoring on the plane, even though he knew his messages would stay on delivered for many more hours.

"Madre mía, you’re down so bad tío, it’s not even funny anymore," Ferran chipped from the other side of room while doom scrolling on tiktok. Pedri only let a huff escape his lips before dragging the blanket over his face to deny Ferran anymore sight of his miserable state.

"Oh come on, don’t dwell in self-pity now. You’ll be able to talk in what? Six to eight hours. You can survive that no?" Even if the Valancian was trying to be optimistic and encourage Pedri, he was able to extend the small tone of amusement in his voice. "I can basically hear your smug grin through the fabric of the blanket Ferran, no need to act like you're trying to be optimistic, carbón," Pedri huffed again hoping his friend wouldn’t take the words to heart.

"I know you miss your girl Pepi. But there’s no reason to act like a grumpy Gargamel that isn’t able to catch his Smurfs. Don’t you appreciate my assist?" Ferran was actually teasing Pedri by now. And although he knew his friend was only teasing, with the small intention of distracting him of his miserable state, cause apparently Ferran does have a teeny tiny part of softness in his heart, it wasn’t helping. They have never been apart this long, they haven’t seen each other since one and a half week because of her fucking university, Pedri thought, so she wasn’t able to accompany him to Madrid for the Spanish training camp either. The distance was killing him. Still, he tried and failed miserably to suppress the smallest laugh at Fer’s resemblance to the Smurfs.

"You don’t get it Fer. The time Lucho was still our coach you were able to see Sira every freaking day even in Qatar," he stripped the blanket of his face and replaced it with his hands. "Fair point. And still she left with Lucho to France only a few months later," the older countered, not showing any emotion talking about his ex, which Pedri knew, did take him a lot of time and effort.

"Right, sorry," his hands muffling the sound of his voice before dragging them all the way down to fall onto his sides. "No need to apologise Pepi," the older was eager to make clear. "Come on, at least talk to me instead of laying there like a dead starfish," his phone now placed face down next to him, while he himself sat up straighter against the headboard.

Pedri mirrored the older’s action and scooted himself up against the headboard as well, letting his head fall all the way back. "I don’t know tío, I just totally miss her you know? The last time we were separated that long was for that stupid exchange week she did two fucking years ago. Two years Ferran. Two," he could only repeat himself to let it sink in. "And there is still another freaking month to go. I don’t think I can do that man," his hands over his face again. "Gosh I know I sound fucking pathetic but I miss her, so fucking much," he dragged his hands down his face before planting them over his eyes. "If it wasn’t for this stupid time difference. I can’t even call her and the messages stay delivered for hours. Hours Fer," he repeated again. Hands now falling to his side again. "Ay, Dios, soy pena," (My gosh, I’m nothing but sorrow) he wanted to bring his hands up again but knew better.

Ferran, someone who always had a joke handy, ready to tease his down bad best friend, was actually taken back by the sincerity in Pedri’s honest answer. The way he spoke about her made him realise he wasn’t just down bad, that the teasing was actually justified, but that it was really affecting him in ways that may not be the healthiest, both for his psych and performance. The time Sira moved with her family to Paris he didn’t know how to help himself, than fall into a deep hole of sorrow, self pity, spiralling and an endless circle of mental fucked-up-ness. His performance reached an end, the same way the internet wanted it to end. The lack of communication with Sira the cherry on top of the cake. So yes, he knew exactly in what situation Pedri found himself in. Just the difference that the midfielder didn’t seek therapeutic help, as his performance has been the best of his kind lately. So what was he supposed to tell him now? To seek a therapist?

"If it’s reaching a point where it influences your performance, why don’t you talk with de la Fuente so you can skip one or another session to align both your free time?" Pedri mirrored his gaze with hollow. "Yeah, and he’d totally agree with that," even though he didn’t make any effort for his voice to hold trace of any kind of emotion, it was unmistakably filled with scoffing. Ferran knew what he had to tell Pedri if he was spiralling about his performance, but having to hold a pep talk with him about his love life? Yeah no. Maybe he should ask Dani to talk it out with Pedri, at least he is an expert in long distance.

"Im sure he would. If his star player complains about lack of love, and if such problematics lead to debilitated performances of his oh so important star midfielder… He’d buy a whole plane to fly you to Barcelona," the older was actually convinced by the plane buy thing. "Urgh, Ferrr," Pedri dragged the "r" and brought his hands over his face again. He couldn’t bare the thought of having to classify that the reason for his lack of concentration developed from a fucking time difference. How was he even supposed to convince de la Fuente of the situation, the older man would surely think it’s another failed attempt of Gavi trying to be funny. The thought didn’t only make him feel pathetic, but he felt like a burden, someone that relied on pity, someone who needed the attention and was miserable without it. "No, I can’t do that," he finally admitted.

"Why not?" Didn’t he get it? Wasn’t Ferran able to think at least a little bit further? "I simply can’t," Pedri was hoping Ferran’d just let it slide. "Pepi, if you feel, I don’t know, ashamed or intrusive, you’re not. Not for me, neither for mister," Pedri was about to open his mouth to argue but Ferran shushed him. "Look, he said it himself, to function like a team, we need to trust each other, on and off the pitch. So if you think mister would judge you or I don’t know, make fun of you, pity you, he won’t. He’d rather you tell him than dwell in sorrow all month." Pedri still looked at him wide eyed. "You wouldn’t hesitate if it was Lucho or Flick right?" He waited for affirmation from the Canary. He nodded. "See, so if it really is important to you, you’ll find a way of overbearing it. And if you need help in any way, I’m here, okay?" He wasn’t really waiting for an answer, but Pedri’s silent "mhm… thank you Fer. Really," settled something in his chest. "Siempre Pedrito," was the last thing the younger absorbed before drifting off to sleep.

Due to their spontaneous therapy session that night/morning, both forgot to set an alarm, which resulted in Gavi barging into their room by mid-day to drag them out of bed and into their training gear for a small brunch and their recovery session afterwards. To say de la Fuente wasn’t amused about the pair being too late was understandable, it didn’t last long though.

His teammates, especially noisy Lamine, didn’t miss the fact of Pedri bothering something. And everyone, really everyone, has seen Pedri at least once on his phone texting or calling her. So yeah, neither Ferran nor Pedri had to explain why he wasn’t hundred percent focused on his stretching exercises. "Yo Pedri, your Rapunzel is calling," Gavi screamed through the whole gym. "My Rapunzel what?" The Canary was utterly confused, still conceded to make his way towards the Andalusian. "Your dear girlfriend tío. You know, Rapunzel because she’s imprisoned in this tall tower called university, and you're Flynn trying to reach her nevertheless," Gavi tried to evaluate, receiving a handshake from Lamine for the accurate metaphor.

The direct mention of his girlfriend made his eyes widen and his legs basically sprinting towards his duffel bag. At sight of the caller ID his heart basically exploded of longing. He didn’t care about his whereabouts, didn’t care who might eavesdrop, he needed to hear her voice for his heart to slow down before it might combust.

"Cariño?"

"Hola Pepi," the voice on the other end of the line replied. A huge smile he couldn’t contain for the love of god spread across his face. "Amor, te he extrañado muchísimo," he basically whined. He was definitely not lying, he needed to hear her voice, the comfort it brought him, and he’d tell her word for word again, not caring if he was surrounded by his teammates that would use every chance given to bring it up again. He would sound cheesy for her every single time again. He simply was a man in love.

"I’ve missed you even more amor," he wanted to interrupt her as soon as the words left her mouth, he had to disagree, there was no way she missed him more. "Not possible cariño. Not possible." The laughter escaping her brought up way to many emotions for his liking. "Pepi-" she tried to argue, "No no really, there is no sense in arguing. You haven’t seen him sulking. You don’t have to share a room with him starring holes into his phone in sorrow," Ferran interrupted her. "Urgh Fer, leave her alone please," Pedri tried to steal his phone out of the older’s grip again. "Hello to you too Ferran," the low volume of her laughter carrying through the gym, almost making Pedri forget the Valancian still held his phone. "Give the poor boy the love of his life back or you’ll have to deal with his sorrow tonight again Ferran," the only sane one in the gym, aka Rodri, tried to defend the midfielder in any way.

Pedri tried to reach his phone again but Ferran held it high. "Listen to your capitán Ferran," he desperately tried to win back his phone. "Let him have some fun at least. That’s the payback for Pedri whining all day in their room," Lamine obviously defending the banter. Pedri wanted to kick Ferran in the balls so he’d let go of his phone, for fucks sake. How could someone who gave him truthful advice the night before turn so cruel overnight? He actually considered the kicking part as he heard her laughter following a joke from Ferran about something he didn’t pay attention to cause he was focused on how high his foot needed to swing to hit him not too hard but not too light either. Must have been something really funny, probably / surely some exaggerated story about Pedri, cause half of them gym started snickering as well. He’d have to ask her later what it was about, if, and only if he would get his phone back someday.

"Urgh Ferran, please," he pinched the bridge of his nose almost giving up against his best friend, or maybe he should start calling him ex best friend, who knows. "Ohhh did Pedri tell you how he stepped over the cones in training and fell face first into the grass?" Who knew the little devil on Eric’s right shoulder had the upper hand over the sacred angel that normally guides him. "Eric tío really? You too?" Pedri couldn’t believe what was happening, he wanted to laugh at the banter but had the urge to kick all of their asses and lock himself in his room with his phone. How is it possible to love and hate a group of people at the same time?

"Yes yes it was iconic, someone should’ve recorded. That was gold," even Nico went behind his back now. Great. Looks like he’d be stuck with Rodri untill the end of the WorldCup. Speaking of the devil, or in this case, his night in shining armour, strolled over from where he was cycling, shot Ferran one of those "I’m your captain, show respect" looks before taking the phone from the place Pedri wasn’t able to reach and handed it to him with all casualties, like he didn’t just basically save the younger’s life. He shot his captain a look that screamed appreciation. "Now leave the boy alone and do some work," he ordered to his teammates, ruffling Pedri’s hair "And you, make sure our boy isn’t too lovesick anymore por favor. We need him to be hundred percent concentrated to not step over cones again," he spoke into the speaker. Pedri’s checked flushed red before trudging out of the gym and as fast as possible into his shared room.

the security guard at the entrance barely glanced at you before waving you through. you had been here enough times dropping things off for your brother that nobody really questioned it anymore.

with a bag of food in one hand and your phone in the other, you walked through the training center, looking around for him.

“raphinha?” you called, peeking into one of the hallways.

“he’s still out on the pitch.” one of the staff members smiled, pointing toward the doors.

“thank you.” you smiled back, adjusting your grip on the bag.

you pushed through the doors and immediately regretted not bringing sunglasses. the afternoon sun was bright, reflecting off the field, right into your face.

players were scattered around, some training and some talking near the sidelines. you spotted your brother almost instantly. he was talking to a coach across the field.

before you could start walking toward him, a voice caught your attention.

“you shouldn’t be standing there.” a guy said as he walked past you.

you looked up, he had dark hair, thick eyebrows, and a serious expression.

“move out of the way. people are training.” he said before continuing toward the sidelines.

you blinked, no one had ever been straight up rude to you, apart from your rivals fans and such.

he just kept walking, and you stared after him for a second, hoping he’d redeem himself and say he was joking but he didn’t.

you brushed it off and continued toward your brother. “hey.” you smiled, handing him the bag.

raphinha immediately took it from you. “you’re a lifesaver.” he smiled, already opening it.

you glanced back toward the field. the same guy was standing with a few teammates now.

“who’s that?” you asked while pointing toward the boy.

raphinha followed your gaze. “ah, that’s pablito gavi.” he answered.

“why? you think he’s cute?” your brother jokingly raised his eyebrows.

you hummed. “no. i think he’s rude and like a mr. frowny face.”

raphinha nearly choked on his drink. “what?”

“your friend.” you said, nodding toward the field. “he told me to move.”

raphinha laughed. “that’s all?”

“yes.” you mumbled.

“that’s not rude, y/n.” he nudged you.

you gave him a look. “he literally walked up to me, told me to get out the way, and left.”

raphinha shook his head, still smiling. “trust me. that’s just gavi.”

“my point still stands, he’s rude.” you rolled your eyes.

“good thing my friends are off limits anyways.” he winked at you, which caused you to roll your eyes once more.

raphinha always made it very clear that his friends and teammates were off limits, but in reality any human being was off limits for him. you hadn’t tried out dating at all because of how protective he’d get.

“whatever, i’m gonna go now.” you said, already standing up before he even had time to respond properly.

he barely looked up from his food, “you always do that.” he said, voice muffled slightly as he kept eating.

“do what?” you asked, adjusting the strap of your purse on your shoulder.

“run away when i say something you don’t like.” he smirks.

you closed your eyes and let out a small breath through your nose, glancing once more across the training field towards gavi without meaning to.

“i’m not running away.” you said flatly

raphinha finally looked up, eyebrows slightly raised, amused again “sure.” he said, dragging it out a little.

you didn’t answer that instead you leaned down, kissed his cheek quickly out of habit, and straightened again.

“text me later.” you said, flashing him a soft smile.

“yeah yeah.” he replied, already distracted again by his sandwich.

you walked off without looking back.

-

the olympics came faster than you wanted them to and your skates felt tighter than usual, or maybe it was just your brain convincing you of things that weren’t real.

you kept flexing your fingers, then stopping yourself because you didn’t want to overthink it.

your coach spoke from behind you, trying to encourage you before you started, but it sounded so far away that you didn’t hear any of it.

when your music started everything felt crowded. you moved through the ice smoothly just like you had been practicing for the past couple of years.

by the time you landed your final jump, your chest was burning and your breathing was uneven, but you kept going and kept pushing until the music finally ended and you came to a stop in the center of the rink.

for a second there was nothing but silence, then the arena broke open with sound. you flashed a big smile towards the crowd and made your way over to your coach.

you sat through a couple more performances, then came the time to announce the winners. they called bronze, then silver, you were sure that there was no hope for you getting gold, so you tried to accept the fact you lost.

then, they announced the stats for the gold winner and you stood there blinking, your hands slowly rising to your face as the score flashed on the screen and your name popped up at the top. it made your stomach drop.

you stood in shock, it didn’t even feel real at first. your coach reached for you quickly, grabbing your shoulders and pulling you into a tight hug which made you snap back into reality, your face instantly flooded with happy tears.

after that it was all noise and flashes and movement again, flowers being handed to you, cameras getting too close, and people saying your name over and over trying to get your attention, it was overwhelming.

before you left you did a couple quick interviews and said your goodbyes to everyone, thanking your coach once again.

then finally, you were back in your hotel room with the city lights glowing faintly outside the window.

your medal sat on the bed beside you, you still couldn’t believe it. you picked up your phone, to a notification from your coach sending you some pictures from your performance.

-

yourusername: 🤍

liked by raphinha, pablogavi, alexconsani, and 4.7 million others

raphinha talento 😍🔥

⤷ yourusername 🤍

madelineargy thought you couldn’t get any sexier 😍

⤷ yourusername literally all you bb 😘

lamineyamal así mero y/n ❤️‍🔥

⤷ yourusername la niña malaaa 🥹🤍

maoshimada1030 inspiration 😍

⤷ yourusername can’t wait to see you on the ice one day <3

sofyasamodelkina deserved

⤷ yourusername thank you luv, you did amazing too 🥰

igotyuandme can i kiss you

⤷ yourusername you know you don’t need permission ;)

meganskiendiel letting everyone know she’s taken btw

⤷ yourusername let the world know 👀

⤷ candacefitinyou doomed yaoi

⤷ davids.257 someone write a fanfic rn

ynbiggest1fan she’s so perfect wtf

scootiecarrot gavi in her likes??

⤷ che4sofie i mean her brother is raphinha..

⤷ pinkiepiecult #noticing 👀

-

after you hit post you set your phone down for a second like you always do after you post something.

you instantly picked it up again, impatient and nervous about what everyone is saying. you scrolled without thinking too hard, watching your name appear everywhere, edits already being posted, and congratulations from a bunch of people you had never met.

then you noticed something, gavi had liked your post. you stared at it for a moment, confused why he would like it. you figured since a couple of his teammates, including your brother, had reposted it, he probably just clicked and liked it for no reason.

you clicked on his profile, curious, only to see he had 19.4 million followers. you scrolled a bit and saw how passionate he was about soccer.

you also noticed that he always has that annoyed look in his face, even when taking a selfie. you smiled to yourself realizing maybe he wasn’t being intentionally rude to you.

you were still scrolling when your childhood bestfriend, kristiane, called you.

“holis my sunshine!” you heard her say through the phone, using your nickname.

“krispy! hii.” you smiled into the phone.

“you did fucking incredible, i’m so sorry i missed it.” she said softly.

“it’s okay, i know your job never lets you off. i’ll see you soon anyways.” you reassure her.

“can’t wait! also, are you talking to someone and haven’t told me yet!?” kristiane laughs into the phone.

you furrow your eyebrows, confused on what she’s talking about, “what, no? you know you’d be the first person i’d tell.”

“then what’s up with all these edits that keep popping up on my feed?” she says.

“what edits? send me one.” you put her on speaker and wait for her to send you a video.

“with one of your brothers teammates.” she sniffles, “i sent it.”

you quickly open the tiktok she sent and see a silly edit with taylor swifts song, “lover.” in the background.

“kristiane, i promise you there’s nothing going on.” you laugh in disbelief.

“mhm.” she says dragging out the word.

“i promise! he literally just liked my recent post and that was it. i don’t know how these people are so quick with it.” you sigh, closing the app.

“you know how those barca fans are though.” you can feel her smirking through the phone, “watch out for his crazy fan-girls y/n.”

“jesus christ.” you say letting out a soft laugh, “i’m gonna head to bed, i’ll deal with this tomorrow.”

“awe y/n it’s only been like five minutes,” she pouts, “but goodnight sunshine, sleep tight.”

“goodnight, love you.” you say while hanging up the phone.

you place your phone on low power mode and set it on the nightstand next to you, placing your gold medal right next to it.

then, you turn off the lamp and lay on your stomach, closing your eyes and falling asleep.

-

"Don't let me take the ball from you." Pedri says, trying to take show him how to keep the ball. "Vale no, don't push me because if you push someone on the game, they are taking you out."

"Why?"

"Bua, imagine someone comes and pushes you to get the ball. Yo te pongo una roja, chaval."

You shake your head at them, fighting over an imaginary red card. You finish fixing the food while looking at the window to see them playing.

Rosy once told you that Pedri was the same with his father. They were outside all the time playing with a ball.

"Okay, time out. You two need to eat." You call them.

Pedri and you got into a better foot. He was more talkative now. You both sat down to talk, and you decided that you need to be adults for the sake of your son.

He was now more responsive with the texts, with calls, he was better in every way. You feel like now you can actually say that he was with you in everything.

That can also is noticeable on your son, he looks more happy, more confident in different activities. It was all for the better, and you are happy with it.

"Croquetas?" Pedri asks, entering the kitchen. "My diet is really suffering, eh."

"You can eat the salad." You tease him, placing the bowl in front of him.

"Con lo ricas que te quedan a ti las Croquetas, I prefer to break the diet." He says, grabbing a good amount of food. (With how good you make the croquetas)

You smile at him. "But your mom's are better."

"I like yours, mami." Your son says, hugging your legs.

You kneel down, giving him a kiss. "Thank you, amorcito." You smile, kissing his cheek. "Now eat your lunch, you need all the energy you can get for the game."

Pedri loves seeing you parenting your son, it was so cute to see. How your voice goes from normal to this very sweet voice.

You are also so delicate with him. Always knowing what he wants or what he says, even when he doesn't understand him, you do.

He looks for you, even at his house. If he doesn't see you, he's always mentioning his Mami. That was something that Pedri always admired about you, your dedication to your son.

Pedri helps you load the dishwasher while you organize the toys on the floor. You like this Pedri, who was talkative, who was helping you and not just answering with an emoji or leaving you on read.

"Need help with something else?" He asks you, leaving the kitchen.

"Can you put him to bed?" You ask. "I just need to prepare his school bag for tomorrow real quick."

He nods, picking your son from the couch and taking him to his room. "Papi, stay."

Pedri doesn't know what to say, he can't just invite himself. "Buaf, guapo, maybe next time."

"No, today."

He can't help but feel bad, his son is used to having only you or him. He blames himself for that, letting his ego get in the way of him.

"We need to ask mam-"

He can't even finish his sentence when his son outer the loudest scream he ever heard. "Mami!"

"Ey, chaval." Pedri tries to cover his mouth. "Para, the neighbors might hear you."

You walk upstairs after the third call you son's make you. Making you wonder what is going on.

"Si?" You ask, entering the room. "Is everything okay?"

"Si, tod-"

"Let papi stay." He smiles, hugging Pedri by the neck. "Pwease."

You sometimes struggle to understand your son, he's little and still learning to pronounce the words.

But this was too perfect for you to think he's saying something else.

"I-" You begin. Clearing your throat. "I mean, it's up to you, I don't mind." You say, trying to sound normal.

He lifts his eyebrows, silently asking you if it was really okay for him to crash over for the night. You nod, letting him know that it was really okay.

"Now, let's get you a warm bath." You smile, taking your son in your arms. "Tomorrow you have school, and Papi and I need to work."

You both do the bath routine. You can't help but wonder if this is what it would've felt if you and him worked better instead of parting ways as soon as the first problem hits.

"You can stay here, or I can prepare the guest room."

"Whatever is fine." He smiles, grabbing a book to read. "Gracias, for letting me stay."

Both of you thought that it was going to be a one-time thing, maybe he won't ask again, maybe she did it to let our son have his way.

But the reality was that Pedri decided to use those weeks that there was left until the game as an excuse on why he needed to be there.

Are you going to argue?

No, you love it.

"Lunch is ready," You announce. They were out in the patio playing with the ball. "Time out, no more playing. You two need to eat."

They sound of their laughs, the extra place on the table. It all makes you feel like you got what you wanted.

"I want ice cream."

"No, mami made us some yummy food." Pedri says, making your son stop arguing. "I want to ask you something." He says, helping you with the plates.

"Aja?" You ask, concentrated on the food.

"Do you wan-"

"Do you want rice or not?" You ask, asking before serving food. "Sorry, I cut you off."

"It's okay, and no, I eat at the club." He answers. "Do you wan-"

"Mami, can I have mac and cheese?"

"Mijo, there's chicken and rice." You say, placing the plate in front of him. "We can have that for dinner."

You sat down, remembering that Pedri hadn't had a chance to tell you what he wanted to tell you.

"Pepi, tell me what you wanted to tell me."

"Oh, si." He smiles, taking a deep breath. "I was thinking that maybe we can go out to eat tonight. The three of us, maybe somewhere where he can play."

"That sounds amazing." You smile, "He has a play date, but after that, we are free."

"Vale, I'm picking you two after that." He smiles, kissing your son's head. "See you then."

You stay happy the rest of the day. You like the idea of going out, it feels like you are a real family.

You change into something comfortable, but not to the point you look like you are home. You still manage to look casual and stylish.

The play date ended quickly. After a coffee and a good chisme from the other mom, you two parted ways into the mall.

When you get home, you have time to brush your teeth and spray some more perfume. You brush your kid's teeth, making sure he is comfortable.

Pedri picked you up only a few moments later. You open the back door, placing you kid in his chair. When you open the passenger seat door, you are welcome with a bouquet of flowers.

"Estoy esperando no haberla cagado, eh!" He says, giving you a kiss on the cheek. "Are these still your favorite?"

"They are, gracias." You blush a little. "Where are we going?"

"Remember that place near the beach we liked when we first came to Barcelona?"

"The one with those milkshakes?" You ask, already craving one. Pedri nods, smiling at your reaction. "I haven't been there in so long."

"But nothing with milk for him." He says, whispering so your kid won't hear him. "Tomorrow's the game, and I don't want him to get sick."

You can't lie that watching Pedri share moments with your kid is something else. He was something else.

You focus on enjoying the time you have with them, hearing him talk about his day, hearing him talking like he used to when you were together.

You wished the day was longer to enjoy more time together, but sadly as the day got to an end. You know you have to go back home and prepare for the important day of your son.

You thought that this was going to be a calm day. You were going to enjoy your son and his friends.

But you feel nervous, you can't help but want his team to win and pulverize the other team. Even if you are talking about kids and not adult footballers.

"Diviértete, and please don't push anybody." Pedri says, walking to the field with your kid in his arms. "Te amo."

"What if I don't win?"

"Then we pay the referee to make you win." He jokes.

"Pedri!" You hit him in the arm. "No, amor. What really matters is for you to have fun, papi is just joking. We are not paying the referee."

"Vale, ve ahí y chuta." He says, putting him down and pushing him to go with his friends. (Go and score)

You find his parents and brother on the corner of the field. You sit with them, talking about what the expectations were for this game.

You really don't care if he wins or not, even tho a win would be amazing. You can say that he might have a very competitive gene on him. After all, Pedri can't help but want to win everything.

The game was slow, the first half was fun, but it wasn't really much to say about it. Pedri takes mental notes to help the team, calling your son over.

"Vale, do you see those kids?" He asks, turning your kid and pointing. "They are the guys that are supposed to defend, but they run with the rest. I want you to take the ball from that other kid and run as fast as you can to the goal and score."

"But if I fai-"

"If you do, then you do it again. Don't be negative about it. You have some of me in you, so I know you can do it."

He sends his kid back to his group. He knows that even if he loses, he's going to be the proudest father.

"Some of me in you." You chuckle at his statement. "He's all you, your smile, your eyes, your accent even."

"Aren't we both from the same place?" He asks, smiling. "But he has a lot of you. Your stubbornness, your crazy eye and that weird mark on your-"

"I hate you." You frown at him. "Not me saying cute things, and you saying I have a crazy eye." You say, pretending to be mad.

"Ah vale vale, we were supposed to say nice things." He lifts his hands. "Bua, I'm bad at lying." He teases you.

"That's it, you are in time out." You point at him. "Your punishment is to get me a snack over there."

Rosy is watching the two of you. She's happy that you two are finally taking over the role of parents instead of coparents.

She knows that she was out of line when she scolded Pedri about how he was, but she now sees that it was all worth it.

"Mira que si chuta y no le pega ya tendremos pa calentarlo." Fer says at you. "Maybe he's like you and Pedri when he loses, and he kicks mom's favorite flowerpot."

You remember the flowerpot. Pedri got subbed after what he called a bad performance. He was frustrated, and when you took him home, he kicked the flowerpot so hard it crashed over other plants.

Pedri arrives with your snack, passing his arm around you. "Can you believe he's old enough that we are at his football games and not the other way?"

"It's crazy," you say, feeling nostalgique. "Time does flies."

The second half starts, the game continues 0 - 0 to the dislike of everyone. You spend the rest of the game hoping for a change.

It was also about to end, only a minute or less on the clock that was placed on the grass.Pedri calls the name of your son, making signals to do what he was told. He nods, running to get the ball from the first kid.

You can't help the emotion, neither could the other parents. Yelling at your boy to run and to score.

"Chuta, joder!" Fer yells, making someone's mother correct his language.

The whole side of your team yells in happiness when the goals go in. You jump happy, hugging Rosy.

When you turn to where Pedri is, you feel two hands grabbing your cheeks. It was Pedri smashing his lips against yours.

You wrap your arms around him, too happy to care about the reactions of his parents and too into it to care that the game was over.

You two separate, smiling like crazy at each other. You go back for a peck, already missing his lips.

When your son runs to where you two are, Pedri let go of you, picking your son. He's telling him how proud he is and how happy he should be that he scored the winning goal.

You hug the two of them, giving your son a kiss on the cheek, telling him that he was amazing and that he was a champion just like his dad.

You look to Pedri, the look on his faces is not compared to anything. You haven't seen this, not even when he won everything that season.

"I love you so much." You say to your son. "I love you both so much." You smile at Pedri, getting closer to him, joining your lips in a kiss.

Gavi

"Vale, mira." He says, pointing at the goal. "You need to kick the ball there."

He places the ball in front of her, checking that it was aligned to the small goal he has at home.

"Papi, I'm tired." She argues, tired of playing football.

"We will, but first kick the ball."

He picks her up from the grass. Placing her in front of the ball. His daughter looks back at him, turning and going back to the house.

"Ey ven acá. " He says, going after her. "Let's go, one more time, and we are over."

"I'm tired, papi." She repeats.

Pablo hears the doorbell, walking outside to open the door.

"Sorry I'm late, this took more time than it should." You say.

"Come in." He says, moving to the side. "Can you believe she can't score one single goal?" He asks, frowning. "She got your feet."

"Okay, that's rude." You say, giving him a hit on the head. "I told you she doesn't like football, Pablo."

He scuffs, walking inside. "Mami's here."

She runs to you, giving you a hug. "You are so red." You say, noticing her flushed face. "Papi is making you kick the ball?"

She nods, pouting at you. "I want to go swimming with Sebas." She says, making Pablo turn his head to where you are.

He wants to ask, especially since < Sebas > is not a girl name.

"Oh, Pablo. I have the papers you asked me to bring. Let me get them." You smile, walking back to your car.

Pablo took his chance, he walked up to his daughter. "Doll, who's sebas?"

"Mami's friend, he has a big pool." She smiles.

Pablo frowns, turning back to his backyard. "I have a pool." He points at the pool.

"Si, but he has a big unicorn on the pool." She smiles.

He frowns. "I can get you one, two if you want." He kneels in front of her. "You just have to promise me not to go swimming with him anymore, because if you do, the unicorns on papi's pool are going to be sad."

She nodded, excited about the flooties he promised.

"That's my girl." He smiles, walking outside with her. "Now, let's try kicking the ball one more time, yes?"

You watch them both play outside, leaving the papers on the counter. You take your phone to answer some texts.

You didn't have anything else planned for the evening, so you were fine with watching Gavi and your daughter play.

You walk outside, seating at one of the pool chairs he has. You can't help but laugh at how funny he looks frowning when your daughter missed the goal for the third time.

"You know what, let's get you some ice cream." He says, frustrated.

He walks with her in his arm. Telling her that maybe they can try practicing another day. He knows he's maybe a little bit too hard on her about the football thing.

He wants to have something more in common with her. She has a lot of things in common with you, and football might be the only thing he can share with her.

He knows that this past weeks his schedule was too busy, not allowing him to visit her or to do more than just FaceTime.

For him, it's important that when she is visiting. She's having fun and that she enjoys being there.

"Eat your ice cream, I have to talk to mami." He says, pressing play on the movie. He walks over to where you are, seating next to you. "Did you have fun today?"

You turn to him. "I mean, would you consider doing essay research fun?"

"Ni de coña." He frowns. "I want to ask you something."

You nod, leaving your phone and paying attention to him.

"Are you seeing anyone?"

You blink a few times, trying to process the question. "No?" You say, sounding more than a question. "Does it matter?"

"I just, she's saying that she loves going to this friend of yours because he has a pool, and I just." He pauses, not sure how to organize his words. "I don't want other dudes in her life. I don't want another dude teaching her how to swim or helping her with homework. I'm her dad."

"Well, Sebastian is my sister's boyfriend." You say, making him feel dumb. "And he is not teaching her how to swim or helping her with homework. I don't have anyone because I'm focusing on college and on her, but I'm not saying that if the opportunity comes I'll deny it just because you fear she might get help with her homework."

"It's not about the homework." He says. "I just don't want any other dude near my daughter."

"So I have to be alone just because you don't want her to have any male contact appart from you?"

"You don't need to have anybody, joder. I'm here for the two of you. If you want to be with someone, be with me."

You don't expect Gavi to be the one to say that. You and him haven't been together romantically since before the baby was even born.

Your sister always told you that it was pretty much dumb to have hopes to go back to a relationship with Gavi.

He was a footballer who had girls throwing themselves at him. He was one of the biggest footballers in Spain at the moment.

"Papi"

You feel like your daughter could read the desperation of your thoughts and how you can't figure out how to answer.

You follow Gavi with your eyes as he goes inside the house with your daughter. You take a few more minutes before going back inside.

"Pizza or burgers?" Gavi asks her.

"Me?" She asks, making him nod. "Pizza."

"You still like the half veggie half full meat with extra cheese?" He asks.

You smile. "I actually haven't had that in so long. The last time I had it was with you, actually."

You can't help but feel excitement, he wanted you to choose him. To be together and raise your daughter like a family.

You wish you could make your sister know what happened, like a broadcast thing where she's able to hear and see that Pablo was the one finally giving that step.

< "You think that Pablo and you can be a what?"

"Can you not laugh?"

"Y/n, why would you ever think a 17 year old boy would want to get serious with the girl he got pregnant?"

"I not saying that it has to be right now, but mayb-"

"Maybe in 10 years? When you notice you gave a big part of your youth to a boy who's never going to be more than just the father of your child?"

"I think that maybe someday we can be a family." >

Maybe this is your someday.

"Next week I'm going to be in Milan, but after that I was thinking maybe you can let me have her all day this sunday?"

"Sure, I can drop her." You smile, eating a slice of pizza. "Maybe 9?"

"That works. Escuchas princesa? Pasaremos todo el domingo juntos." (You hear that, princess? We are going to spend all Sunday together)

You can't help but feel butterflies on your stomach with him now saying that he can be the one for you.

Your mind works at a million percent the whole week, you can't help but feel like everything he does or says is a signal.

Your daughter insisted on speaking to him because she refused to go to bed without saying I love you to him.

"Vale, now you need to sleep." He says, turning the light on the nightstand off. "Look, even I'm going to sleep."

Gavi was in Milan, the team was coming back in the morning because they wanted to give the team the day in Milan before coming back.

You grab the phone from her hands, walking to the balcony so you won't bother her. "She's off, thank you."

You and Gavi have been talking at night for a couple of nights in a row. It was becoming something you were looking for at the end of the day.

"My mom was at my house the other day, and she almost killed me when she found out she still sleeps with me in my room."

"If you are giving her a room, please don't paint it with the barca colors."

"Que va, I wanted to ask you to help me decorate it. Maybe a bigger bed than those kids ones, so you can crash for the night."

You can feel your smile grow. "We can talk about it when you are back."

You say goodbye, hanging up the call. You can't seem to drop the smile you have. Nothing was going to make you doubt that this was going to the way you wanted.

You know that you should wait and test the waters, but you have waited three years. You'll be fine trusting.

When Sunday finally hit, you woke up earlier than normal. Got your child ready, letting her watch a movie while you got ready.

Since Pablo was going to spend the day with her, you thought it would be an amazing idea to join them.

You have this plan in your head that with you joining Pablo will notice that you are compromised with the idea of him being back in your life.

You got yourself ready, putting on some nice clothes, doing some makeup to enhance your features, and doing a little bit more than just brushing your hair.

"Vamos, amor." You call her, turning the tv off. "Papi is waiting."

The whole drive feels quick, you have the best mood. You sing with her in the car to some of her favorite songs, making it the best of it.

"Okay, don't forget your doll." You say, fixing her hair before walking to Gavi's house.

You let her knock on the door, she was also happy that she was going to swim with him. You waited for a few minutes, knocking again because maybe he didn't hear it the first time.

You were on the third time knocking when the door opened. You would have preferred to see a sleepy Gavi or maybe for him not to open the door.

You have to wait a few minutes before answering to her. The shirt she had on was the same one you picked for his past birthday, the same one your daughter gifted him.

"Where's Pablo?" You finally ask.

"Oh, he's inside." She smiles.

You fake a smile, knowing she's not the one at fault here. "Can you call him over? Please."

"Sure, wait here."

You nod, watching him get inside the house. "Hey, bubs." You say to your daughter. "Why don't you go to the car? Mami forgot that papi wanted me to take you for breakfast before coming here."

She nods, you open the car door for her. Telling her that you were only going to take a moment and you'll be back to her.

You turn, finding Gavi looking at you. "Seriously, Pablo?"

"Joder, perdona. I got caught up last, and she was supposed to leave before you dropped her." He explains, making things worse for himself. "She's leaving, I promise."

You roll your eyes, wanting to smack his head to bring some sense into him. It's crazy how he can be so childish in the worst moments.

"I'm not doing this." You say to him.

You should know better than to be disappointed. You should know better than to feel like this was your fault.

"I'm taking her for breakfast, I'll text you when we are done so you can pick her up at the restaurant. Please take a shower and change the sheets."

"Why can't you leave her?"

You scuffed, shaking your head at how stupid he sounds. You walk over to your car, not feeling like explaining the obvious to a boy.

"Pablo." You call him before entering your car. "I don't want you to ever mention that you are < here for me >, okay? You are her dad, and I love you for that, but whatever game you are playing, it's over."

Ferran

"Why do teachers hold meetings so early?" He groans, reading the note his daughter gave him. "Why do I need to be at a 7:30 meeting with her kindergarten teacher?"

"Sucks to be you, huh?" You smirk. "It's not a meeting, you need to pick her report card."

He doesn't argue anymore. Knowing that no matter what he says, he's not winning.

"Oye, venga, why does Mister Puffy get more tea than me?"

"You ate Mister Puffy's cake."

"Pero hombre, he offered it to me."

You shake your head at them, enjoying how Ferran argues with the bear about eating the imaginary cake.

You grab your wallet and Ferran car keys. Walking to where they are, he looks comical.

The chair he's using looks like it's about to lose the fight. The tiara on his head matches the tutu on his hips.

"Do you want anything from the store?" You ask him, fixing the tiara.

"Maybe some carrots and some celery, please." He says, hand on his pockets to get his card. "Amore, do you want anything?"

"Juice." She smiles. "Pwease."

You nod, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "I'll be back with dinner, love."

You fix her tiara, moving some of the hairs away from her face. If you love something about being a mom, it's being a girl mom.

"Can I get a kiss?" Ferran asks, trying his luck.

You turn to him, getting closer and grabbing his chin, knowing that if you let him, he'll get advantage of the situation.

You place a kiss on his cheek. You can't lie that you want more, but for now, it's all he gets.

"I'll be back. Don't burn the house." You smile, getting up. "No cookies or snacks while I'm gone. It's about to be dinner time." You warn him.

While you are gone, Ferran keeps playing to the tea party. He even got Mister Puffy to be unnivited after he drank all the tea.

He can't lie that he feels happy. You agreed to move to the house he bought you, being much closer to where he is, even agreeing to let him stay.

He got a three bedroom house, thinking that you would agree to let him stay on the spare bedroom you got.

But no, the couch he picked himself was his own torture. You purposely left the spare room not ready, wanting him to suffer a little bit more.

He wasn't going to complain. The fact that you even let him stay after bedtime was enough for him. The physio can help with the back pain later.

"Papi, I'm hungry."

"Well, me too." He chuckles, making the little girl frown at him. "You look a lot like your mami when you do that."

Thankfully for them, you walk back carrying a supermarket bag and a bag from the Chinese Restaurant you know Ferran loves.

He gets up to help you with the bags, using the opportunity to steal a kiss from you.

"That's rude." You say, moving away tying to hide the blush. "Let's go wash our hands, princesa."

You like having Ferran around more than he used to. Thanks to the small distance, he can spend more time with you two.

After dinner, he took care of getting your daughter ready for bed while you organized the pantry and clean the kitchen.

When you are done, you walk upstairs, finding Ferran reading some princess story. You knock on the door, catching his attention.

"Your blanket and pillow are ready downstairs. Also, if you need towels, they are in her bathroom if you want to take a shower."

He rolls his eyes, "You hate me, that couch is killing me."

"Try to sleep early, we need to be on time tomorrow." You smile, moving to your room.

After making sure your daughter was asleep, he went to the bathroom to take the glitter off. He changes into his clean pijama you place in the bathroom for him to change.

As much as he tries, he can't sleep on that couch. The size was a problem, the roughness of it, the cushion was to stiff.

The other problem was that if he wanted to join his daughter. The small bed wasn't much of a better option, yes it was more comfortable but not big enough for two people.

He grabs his pillow and blanket, moving upstairs to your room. He opens the door carefully, trying not to be loud.

He moves you a little to wake you up. "Five more minutes." You mumble, turning to the other side. He tries one more time, tapping on your shoulder. "What?" You ask, opening only one eye.

He can't help but laugh. "Can I sleep here?" He says with the biggest puppy eyes. "The couch is killing me."

You are too sleepy to care. Nodding and moving to the side to let him into the bed.

He knows he might get kicked out, but it's worth the try. Joining you in bed and wrapping his arms around your body.

You don't argue, feeling the warmth of his body comforting, or maybe it's his lips kissing your shoulder what's relaxing.

"Can we skip tomorrow?" He whispers in your ear.

"No." You whisper back, hearing him curse under his breath. You smile at that, enjoying the warmth you need from him.

You can't lie that he wasn't exaggerating when he used to mention that you were the reason he didn't felt like leaving the bed.

All those times he told you to give him more minutes before training is now turned to you. When you begged him to give you five more minutes, grabbing onto him to make him stay in place.

Now you are suffering from the consequences by being a few minutes later than you should.

"You are here!" You boss and friend say. "I thought you called sick. We had three people doing it."

"Oh no, I was-"

"I don't care, it's you, and I forgive you." She smiles. "Can you take care of the three year olds? I know that's where your daughter is, but I swear I can't stand the blonde mom that's there."

"Will do. Do you want me to just do it in general or one by one."

"Whatever is fine, did Mister ball came?"

You pointer towards the lined up parents. Ferran was holding your daughter while checking his phone.

She gives you a look, making you laugh as you walk into the class. You decide to call one by one.

It wasn't that long, all you have to say was, < Oh, your kid is such angel. Here's a golden star for them >

Ferran was the last one, you know that he was doing that to tease you. When he gets there with that big smirk on his face you can't help but smile.

"Señor Torres," you say, grabbing the report card. "Nice to see you here."

"Oh, my pleasure."

"Well, she's been doing her work in class, she's attentive, she's a hard worker. Wonder who she got that from."

You expect him to pull this praise speech on how she's so like him. "She's like her mom. She's the smartest, nicest, most beautiful woman I've ever met in my life. If I can say something about her is that I'm proud our daughter is like her."

You know that it might not be the place, but you don't care. You grab his face, giving him a kiss.

"Let me take this to the principal, and we can go." You smile at him.

You grab the few report cards that were there. Giving it to your friend and telling her that there was nothing else for you.

She was okay with you leaving, as soon as there were no more parents in the area where you should be, there's no need for you to stay.

"Okay, I'm free." You say, joining them in the entrance. "What if we go for some breakfast and maybe later we can go to the store, I need some boxes."

Ferran grabs your hand, confused frown on his face. "Boxes?" He asks.

You nod. "Yes, I need them to pack the toys and everything." You explain, opening the car door for him to place your daughter on the car seat.

"Why do you want to pack them?" He asks, buckling the girl. "Where are you putting them?"

You smile at him, sometimes you wonder how he's that mindful on the field. "That way I can bring them home to you."

Fermin

"Papa."

Fermin looked up from his seat, he was entertaining his son with painting. "Wow, that's beautiful."

You had this very important project that needed your full attention. Having no other option but to ask Fermin to help you while you finish it.

It was the last project you had of the semester. After this, it was going to be easier for you to concentrate on your child.

It's been two weeks, and you are finally about to finish it. After all the stressful nights and stressful times you put Fermin through.

He was happy to help, even offering to move to his house while you worked on the project. It was easier for him to return from training and pay full attention to his son.

"Want to see mine?" He asks his son. "Mine has a son on the corner." He points to the smiling sun.

He knows he's not the best at entertaining babies. That's why when he's out of ideas, he calls his mom.

His mother makes a plan for them to do, a walk on the beach of Barcelona, a nice evening at the park, swimming in the pool.

You don't worry about what they are doing, you know that your son is secure. You trusted Fermin with any activity.

"Why don't we get you cleaned." He smiles, picking him up. "Then we can take a nap, cause honestly I need one."

"Mama"

"No, amor. Mami is busy right now, and the soonest we leave her alone is the soonest it takes to finish her work."

You hear how Fermin says this to your son. You decided to take a break, a much needed break.

"Hola, guapos." You say, hugging Fermin's back. "I missed you."

"We missed you too, mami."

"I heard you talking about a nap," you smile, pinching your son's cheek. "Can I join?"

Fermin turns, giving your head a kiss. "That sounds like a plan."

You love how Fermin gets to take care of everything. Even when the plans changed in the last minute.

He never argued about it, he just supported you.

You all moved upstairs, ready to take a well-deserved nap you all were craving. Fermin, and you don't share a room, he wanted to give you your space.

But for special occasions like this one, you all share a bed to be more comfortable. That also felt right to you.

You can't lie that these past weeks you felt the luckiest person. Not only was he helping you to an extent not every father feels like doing.

But he's also the type of guy to take you food to the room where you are studying, he takes you coffee, tea, a snack, dinner.

You worked better when he was home because he would make his mission to entertain his son to the point you have enough time to work and to even take a quick break before taking over.

When you get to present your project, you feel nervous because what if it was wrong? You don't want to disappoint everybody.

Fermin texted you a picture of your son and him, wishing you all the best. "We trust you, mami. No matter what, you are our star."

You feel the confidence taki g over you again. You know that no matter what, like his texts read, he was going to be there for you.

You walk home, bag on your arm. You can't wait to take the heels off and to put something more comfortable.

"Hey!" He calls from the kitchen. "We are eating our snack, want some?"

"I was thinking that maybe we can go out later." You say, walking to where he is.

"You okay?" He asks, worried about your blank expression.

You shake your head, trying so hard to hide your smile. "More than okay, I'm fantastic. The professor loved my project so much."

Fermin smiles, getting closer to you. "I'm so proud of you. We both are." He says, giving your cheek a kiss. "You hear that, buddy? Mami got her project approved."

"So, do you want to go out to celebrate?"

"Joder, I more than anything want to."

You both finish with the snack, moving to your rooms to change into something more appropriate for the evening.

You kept it casual formal, nothing too fancy but nothing too casual. It was the perfect middle.

Fermin got a call from his mother, trying to check on him and the baby. She knows sometimes he oversleep, so she's making sure they're awake.

When she hears the news about your project, she gets happy. She likes you a lot and she's always happy about your achievements.

"Okay, talk to you later, kiddos." She says, waving at the camera. "Love you, have fun."

You wave her back, moving one arm of your kid to say goodbye too. You love the small laughs that come out of him.

You order some food, talking about his day. What's next for him in the season, what's next for the next season, everything basically.

"I was wondering something." He says, leaving the fork and knife. "I know that this project is over and that maybe you want to go back to having your own place."

You nod, not because you agree but to show him that you were paying attention. You can't lie that being together was fun.

"I want you to move permanently to my house." He drops the bomb.

"Are you sure?" You ask, scared that maybe he's just used to having you and not because he really thought about it.

"More than sure, I know that I want to have you both with me at all times." He smiles, grabbing your hand. "I also want to ask you something."

"Tell me, you know you can tell me anything." You smile, thumb caressing his hand.

"I want us to try being together. I love you and our son. We are young, yes, but I know that if we both want to, we can do this."

You smile, moving your hand from his. You close the distance between you two, giving him a kiss as an answer.

"I want that, Fer." You smile. "I love you."

"And I love you, guys."