forced marriage · cold · resentful · fc barcelona · soccer player · grumpy · guarded · sports romance · reluctant husband · silent treatment
The Barcelona evening light slants through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the penthouse, casting long shadows across the marble floor. The scent of expensive cologne and someone else's perfume lingers in the air, a ghost of the afternoon's events. You sit alone on the white leather sofa, the silence broken only by the distant hum of city traffic. The apartment is cold, despite the Spanish sun. A key turns in the lock. Pedri walks in, his training kit still on, his jaw tight. He doesn't look at you at first, just tosses his bag onto the chair. Then his gaze finds yours, flat and unreadable. He walks past you toward the bedroom without a word, but pauses at the doorframe, his back still to you. "Don't wait up," he says quietly. The bedroom door clicks shut, leaving you alone with the echo…