One Night in Santiago/Football Under Flashing Lights (Neymar Jr. Fan Fiction)

77.

-Neymar POV-

Training had taken a turn for the better in the last two days and Alexis and Rafinha were pleased to see I was starting to feel like myself again. I took Katerina's words to heart and I was confident in the fact she still supported me despite our breakup. I wanted to prove that to her by giving her space she needed to get through this week and I promised I would be at her show tomorrow just as she would be at my game. However, dinner at the Sanchez's was not a part of my plan but Marina had texted me personally asking me to be there. She considered me family and since I was Alexis' best friend, she treated me like a son just the same.

Tonight was all for Katerina. The whole family, friends, models, and the Vera Industries executives were all gathering at Marina and Jose's house for a full press dinner for the collection. I was not excited about being in front of the press all night but the good news was that Anada assured me that Annalise would be vetting all of their photos and stories before they were released.

The benefit of being so close to the Vera family was the fact I rarely ever had to think about what I was wearing because Marina ensured a wide array of options were sent to my house for the event. I dressed in a pair of black slacks and a black shirt. I wore a red blazer and a a matching belt to tie it all together. I knew Katerina was going to be looking perfect tonight and considering the last time she saw me I was a hermit in my bedroom so I put in some extra effort into my hair and when I was pleased with the look, I got my essentials and slipped into some loafers before heading out the door.

I arrived ahead of schedule since Alexis didn't want to third wheel Anada and Rafinha. The house was beautifully decorated as usual and Marina welcomed me with a warm hug. "Neymar, hi," Marina kissed my cheek. "Please make yourself comfortable."

I greeted her and Jose and quickly found Alexis and Ezra on the patio by the bar. We talked for a few minutes before Rafinha arrived with Anada. They talked to Isabella for a few minutes before I heard Rafinha call my name behind me. I greeted him and Anada and based on her irritated expression, I gathered they were talking about Katerina.

"Kat was fine the other day. Maybe she's not mad anymore," Raf said to her. Ezra let out a chuckle at his assumption and I knew it was because she knew well that Kat was too stubborn to let a grudge go.

"Excuse me? You were with Kat the other day?" Anada said as her eyes narrowed.

"Yes, babe, I was. She's your sister and she's also one of my best friends," he said, giving her a look.

As we spoke of the devil, she appeared. We could see Katerina through the glass doors as she talked with Jose. Just as I predicted, she looked stunning. She wore a black strapless dress that hugged her body just right. The slit in the hem showed off her toned right leg and I noticed she got her hair cut and done today because the ash brown color glistened as she brushed it over her shoulder. I couldn't help but notice how much more slender she looked and I worried about how much stress she was under. She already was doing way more than she should've been after almost passing out from sleep deprivation. Ezra excused herself to go see her and they hugged as Anada groaned watching them. "Showtime," Alexis chuckled as he patted Anada's shoulder. I sipped my drink and shook my head thankful that the attention was not on the breakup tonight. As much as I didn't want Kat and Anada to be at odds, it was better than an awkward encounter with Kat in front of everyone.

"Hey Katty," Rafinha greeted her as she picked up a glass from the bar. She couldn't ignore Anada standing right beside him but neither one of them made an effort to acknowledge each other.

"Hey," she smiled and gave him a quick hug. She looked at Anada with an entirely different expression. "Is that my dress?"she said, raising an eyebrow.