Chapter 18

Alexia

I had stayed in the gym until my muscles burned and the silence became too loud to bear. I thought if I waited long enough, the halls would be empty, and I could escape to my car without facing anyone. I needed time to process the fact that my life-the carefully constructed fortress I called my career-had just developed a massive, Aurora-shaped crack.

But as I pushed open the heavy glass doors of the training center, a familiar figure was leaning against my car, tossing a set of keys in the air.

“You’re late,” Mapi said, not looking up.

“I had extra work to do,” I replied, my voice as flat as I could make it. “Why are you still here, Maria?”

“Because you’re a terrible liar, and you’re about to drive yourself into a ditch if you keep overthinking.” She pushed off the car and pointed toward the street. “Get in. I’m driving. We’re going to the cafe.”

“Mapi, I’m tired-“

“I don’t care. Get in the car, Capitana.”

Twenty minutes later, we were tucked into the same back corner of the small, rustic cafe where we had sat so many times before. The smell of roasted beans and old wood usually calmed me, but today, the steam rising from my espresso felt like a ticking clock.

Mapi didn’t say anything at first. She just leaned back, her eyes fixed on me with a terrifyingly sharp intensity. She waited until I had taken three sips of my coffee-three sips too many for someone as caffeinated as I already was.

“So,” she finally began, her voice low and dangerously casual. “How long?”

“How long what?”

Mapi slammed her hand lightly on the table, a small smile breaking her serious facade. “Don’t ‘how long what’ me! Alexia, I have watched you analyze a back-pass for forty-five minutes, but I have never seen you look at a person the way you looked at her in that gym. You looked like you were finally breathing again.”

I stared into the dark liquid of my cup. My throat felt tight. “It’s complicated, Mapi. She’s… she’s a teammate. She’s nine years younger. She has a whole life to build, and I-“

“And you’re the Queen of Barcelona, and you think you have to be a martyr for the club,” Mapi finished for me, leaning forward. Her expression softened, the teasing glint replaced by the fierce loyalty that made her my best friend. “Listen to me. I’ve known you since we were kids. I’ve seen you give everything to this badge. Your knees, your time, your sanity. Don’t you think you’re allowed to have something for yourself?”

“It’s not just about me,” I whispered, finally looking up. “The press would destroy her. They’d say she’s only playing because of me. I can’t let her reputation be the price of my happiness.”

“Aurora is tougher than she looks,” Mapi countered. “She’s the only one who’s ever successfully talked back to you without flinching. She can handle the noise. The question is… can you handle the silence if you let her go?”

I leaned back, a long, shaky sigh escaping me. The truth was out. There was no point in hiding behind ‘tactical discussions’ anymore. Not with Mapi.

“She called me Ale and from her it feels special” I confessed, a tiny, involuntary smile tugging at the corner of my mouth. “And last night… she told me she wasn’t a variable to be solved.”

Mapi let out a triumphant laugh, shaking her head. “I like her. I really like her. She’s exactly the kind of chaos your boring, organized life needs.” She reached across the table, covering my hand with hers. “We’ll be careful. I’ll help you. Pina already suspects, and you know she’ll guard you both like a lioness. But stop trying to fight the tide, Alexia. You’re already underwater.”

I looked out the window at the bustling Barcelona street. For the first time in weeks, the weight on my chest felt a little lighter. I wasn’t alone in this.

“What do I do now?” I asked, feeling like a rookie again.

Mapi grinned, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “Well, first, you finish your coffee. And then, you’re going to tell me everything about what you really want. Not La Reina, just Alexia. And I promise: Te ayudaré. (I will help you).”

Mapi

I watched Alexia stir her espresso for the tenth time. If she kept going, she was going to drill a hole through the bottom of the ceramic cup. Typical Alexia. Even her “emotional breakdowns” were organized and repetitive.

“Stop it,” I said, leaning back and crossing my arms. “The coffee is dead, Ale. Leave it alone.”

She finally looked up, her face a mask of exhaustion and that typical ‘Putellas-guilt.’ I’ve known her since we were basically kids. I’ve seen her win Ballons d’Or and I’ve seen her cry in hospital rooms. But I had never seen her look so… humanly terrified.

“It’s not just about the coffee, Maria,” she murmured, using my real name. That’s how I knew she was serious. “It’s the architecture of it all. If one piece falls, the whole building collapses. The club, the dynamics, her career…”

“Stop it,” I said, leaning back. “You’re doing the ‘Captain Math’ again. I can practically see the numbers floating around your head.”

Alexia looked up, her jaw tight. “It’s not math, Mapi. It’s reality. If we get caught-“

“If, if, if,” I interrupted, waving a hand dismissively. She is starting to overthink again. “Look at me and Ingrid. We aren’t exactly hiding under a rock, and the world hasn’t ended. The team still functions, the fans still cheer, and the sky is still Catalan blue. And I told you already. I will help you with everything. And you can tell me wverything.”

“It’s different for you and Ingrid,” she countered, her voice dropping. “You’re… you. I’m the face of the club. And Aurora… she’s so new to all this. I don’t want her to be ‘Alexia’s girlfriend’ before she’s ‘Aurora De Luca, the midfielder’.”

I felt a pang of sympathy for her. Alexia carries the weight of the world on those shoulders. But I also knew she was using her responsibility as a shield to protect herself from being vulnerable.

“She’s already ‘Aurora De Luca, the girl who made the Queen jump into the Mediterranean’,” I teased, leaning forward. “The team loves her, Ale. Pina would literally fight a fan for her. And me? I like anyone who makes you look this flustered.”

I took a sip of my own drink, my mind flashing back to the gym. The way they had been standing-not just close, but connected. It reminded me of those early days with Ingrid, that magnetic pull that makes the rest of the locker room feel like a distant blur.

“You like her really, don’t you?” I asked, a grin tugging at my lips.

Alexia’s silence was all the answer I needed. A faint, genuine blush crept up her neck.

“God, you’re so whipped,” I laughed, leaning back. “Listen. I’ll keep the prying eyes away. I’ll distract the girls, I’ll keep the press officers busy if I have to. You don’t need to worry and especially you don’t have to overthink everything, ok? But you need to promise me one thing.”

Alexia looked at me, her eyes searching mine. “What?”

“Don’t be the ‘Ice Queen’ when you’re alone with her. She’s moved across the ocean for this dream. Don’t make her regret that the dream includes you.”

The look on Alexia’s face softened. The ‘Standard’ finally vanished, replaced by my friend-the girl who just wanted to be happy.

“I won’t,” she whispered.

“Good, because maybe, Ale, you are just overthinking everything, like you always do and everything will turn out completely different that you expect. Just let fate take its course.”

After we left the cafe, I watched her drive away, her hands steady on the wheel again. I pulled out my phone and shot a quick text to Ingrid:

Ingrid ♥️♥️♥️

4:49 pm

Operation: Save the Queen is officially in progress. And yes, it’s exactly who we thought. You owe me twenty euros.

I walked toward my own car, feeling a sense of satisfaction. Life at Barça was never quiet, and with a new Italian firecracker in the mix, things were about to get a lot more interesting. I just hoped Aurora was ready for the ride-and for the protective, stubborn, brilliant mess that was Alexia Putellas.