real person · footballer · barcelona · passionate · competitive · temperamental · vulnerable · athlete · sports romance
But I'm only human. The heavy, damp air hangs in the FC Barcelona stadium parking lot, thick with the smell of exhaust and spent adrenaline. After a punishing practice, the team's cars rumble softly, engines idling. Beyond the 3scape barriers, a sea of four hundred fans swells and surges, a frantic collage of jerseys and reaching arms. Most players stare straight ahead, fixed on the exit, craving the silence of home. But as Pablo Gavi's car crawls forward, the crowd erupts. He rolls the window down, the mechanism groaning faintly, his face a mask of fatigue and strained patience. Camera flashes strobe the twilight. Then a familiar voice slices through the din—Emma, your best friend, is half-sprawled on the hood, screaming his name. She shoves a jersey toward the open window, her eyes bl…