𝗙𝗔𝗡𝗧𝗔𝗦𝗬 - FERMÍN LÓPEZ

003.

fermín
present, 2024

barcelona's training schedule was much tougher than betis'. it took a few months, but i eventually adjusted into the city. and then the loan happened. but it wasn't long before it was back to barça.

the players and coaches more mature here. even though i knew i wouldn't break into the first team for a while, i pushed myself everyday, just to come back to the locker room to ice cream emojis from sophia.

the promise i did keep. the debut for the first team i did make. and a year later, de la fuente wanted me in the 2024 euro squad.

sophia's going to flip.

i planned to tell her when i went back to seville this year when the laliga season was over. it had become a tradition. even if it was a week in summer i got to see my best friend, i'd take it. she still lived in the same house that had been renovated a few times.

nothing was the same anymore. not our schedules, not our lifestyles, and certainly not our friend groups. i feared that we'd drift apart when i moved. but neither of us let that happen. we'd fight about stupid things. and the next morning i'd facetime her and we'd apologize or vice versa. 

but this summer was different. i wanted her to come to germany with me. and secretly, i wanted to show her off to everyone- the team, the fans, and my friends too.

though me and her never took it to that level, i still admired her in ways i wasn't supposed to. at 12, i decided that i liked laying in her lap rather than my own pillow, even on days where i things at home weren't half bad.

i stood admiring the wind chimes in front of her house as i waited for someone to answer my doorbell, my suitcase in hand. the familiar scent of her mom's classic spanish breakfast was already starting to fill my nostrils. she'd always cook up a storm when she knew i was coming over. "fermín!" her mom ushered me inside before giving me a tight hug. 

i always felt at home at her house. the scent of light citrus mixed with a hint of pinewood. it smelled like childhood.

"sophia'll be down in just a second. i think she's taking a shower. you're here early!" she still had her apron on. she smiled, letting me follow her into the kitchen. "yeah, the flight landed early."

"i see... well, take a seat. how are you? i hope you're hungry," she flips a spanish omelette in a pan. she watches me settle down on the dining table. 

"i'm always hungry for your meals mrs. gonzález," her face lights up in delight as she waves her hand.

footsteps descending the staircase captures my entire being. i fight to keep my lips from parting at the way her hips swayed, the way her luscious hair that she'd just trimmed to be right below her shoulders glistened as the rays of morning sun creeped through the windows, and the way i could tell she'd just applied vaseline because her lips too, shimmered.

"soph!" 

"minnie!" 

my family only called me that to tease me. but when sophia started calling me that, i never complained about it again.

her arms wrapped around my neck as mine wrapped around her waist. she'd grown taller over the years just enough so that every time we hugged, my head would fit perfectly in the crook of her neck.

"you weren't supposed to be here for another 20 minutes!" she let's go of me, going to the opposite side of the island to help her mom with the toast.

"yeah, flight landed early and there was no traffic this morning," my elbows rested on the island, "can i help with anything?"