Home is Where the Heart is - Pablo Gavi

Chapter 5: Impressions

I wake up the next day to the sun attacking me. Did I accidently leave my curtains open last night?

"Rise and shine," my uncle's voice comes from the direction of the window. He yanks another curtain open.

"Hey!" I groan. I throw one hand over my eyes and use the other to search for something more permanent to save them from the burning sensation.

"Time to get up, mi sobrina hermosa. (My beautiful niece)" Xavi wanders over to me, abandoning his weapon; the sun.

I finally grasp my blanket and pull it over my head. "What time is it? Shouldn't you be at training?"

"Not for another half hour."

I throw the blankets off of me. "You woke me up at 5:30 in the morning?"

"I wanted to talk to you before I left," he tells me, sitting down on the edge of my bed. He calmly folds his hands in his lap.

I sit up and lean against my headboard. "You couldn't have waited until you got home?" In my head I know I shouldn't be being rude to him, he's housing my vacation in Spain for the summer not to mention my entire University fund. I decide to try and react calmer for the future of this conversation.

"Gavi carried you home last night," Xavi states.

I forgot about that. "How'd he get inside?" I didn't have a key to the house, so unless Xavi has entrusted all of his players with a key I'm not sure if Gavi entering through an open window is out of the question.

"I hadn't given you your key yet so I waited up," my uncle explains.

"Oh. Lo siento, (I'm sorry)" I say, I look down at my hands and realize I've been picking at my nails. I feel bad for causing so many people so much inconvenience so soon into my stay.

My uncle chuckles. "It was only 9:30."

"Oh." Now I'm an inconvenience and an early crasher.

"Gavi said you crashed on Pedri's couch," he continues.

I feel my face heat. "Yeah, I guess so."

"Next time," Xavi says, "stay in his spare room, I'm sure he wouldn't mind."

"He offered," I tell my uncle, "but I didn't want to worry you." Or be even more of an inconvenience.

"So instead you had one of my players carry your unconscious body up my driveway?" Xavi asks with his eyebrows raised.

I don't know how to respond, my mind still fogged with sleep. I hope loaded conversations at 5:30 in the morning do not become a regular experience in this house.

"Tengo que llegar al Camp Nou, ¿tienes algún plan para el día? (I've got to get to Camp Nou, do you have any plans for the day?)" Xavi asks me, finished asking all his questions.

I rub my eyes. "I was thinking of walking around the city for the day, I'll be back for supper."

"Bien, (Okay)" he says. "Dejé algo de dinero y tu pase al Camp Nou en el mostrador de la cocina. (I left some money and your Camp Nou pass on the kitchen counter)"

"Gracais, can I go back to sleep now?" My eyes close involuntarily.

My uncle chuckles. "Sure. See you this evening for supper." I hear his footsteps fade in the direction on my door and the sound of him closing it behind him. A couple minutes later I hear his car start in the driveway.

After twenty minutes of laying in bed, unable to fall back asleep, I decide to get up. I reach for my phone on my bedside table and check all my social medias. When I get to Instagram I see Gavi has followed me and added me to his private story. I click through it to see his pictures and videos from yesterday mornings training---one of him and Pedri hugging, one of Ansu pouring water on him in which Gavi promises to get him back---next he posted the picture of me he took in my car when we were car shopping. I was smiling at him and I look really happy. The next picture was of Pedri celebrating his FIFA win. The last one was taken by someone else in Pedri's basement as Gavi was picking me up and carrying me up the stairs. He tagged me in that one.