Off the Deep End (Cristiano Ronaldo / Lionel Messi)

Chapter 21: Someone Knows Too Much

Thursday 23rd April 2015

"Vale, chicos, where are we going to party, when Real Madrid wins the Champions League, got any ideas?"

Gales of laughter shook the dark grey walls of the VIP room of the fancy restaurant, where Cristiano, his big brother Hugo and his friends Miguel, Badr and Ricky had gathered to celebrate the victory against Atlético. Elegantly dressed waitresses circulated around their table, all the time bringing them more foods and drinks to enjoy.

Cristiano rolled his eyes at his good friend Ricardo – "Ricky" – who had cracked the joke, but nevertheless laughed with everyone else and took a bite of the steak on his plate.

"Goa, Caribbean... or Ibiza?" Badr Hari – a Moroccan kickboxer Cristiano had become good friends recently – suggested.

"Shh, talking like that will bring bad luck", Miguel, an ex-footballer himself, said after the laughter calmed down a bit and knocked the wood.

"But really, what a triller, great goal by Hernandez and your run and assist were top-class as always, bro", Hugo said affectionately.

"Thanks. I'm just happy that leech got a red card, I actually asked him, whether he wanted me to send him a sample of new my perfume since he was practically glued to my skin the whole time."

"Legacy by Cristiano Ronaldo will be out in stores next fall, however, limited edition of the heavenly CR7 scent is already available for a carefully selected audience", Ricky mocked in a deep salesman voice, making the table of men burst out in laughter again.

"Let's give it a try then", Badr stated and sniffed Cristiano's shirt dramatically. "Mm... smells nice, manly and wooden. Oh, hi Jorge!" he said, when he got up to go to the bathroom and nearly collided with a suited, well-tanned older man, who had just stepped into the room.

Cristiano turned his head and spotted his manager, Jorge, whose pearly-white teeth spread in a broad smile at the sight of Cristiano and he started to compliment him profusely, patting his back.

"... and can you believe it, 50 goals and 19 assists this season only, Cristiano, that's something, that's incredible", Jorge finished his rant and punched the air. "That's phenomenal!"

"Always hungry to be the best" Cristiano said straightforwardly and made room at the table for Jorge. "You know, how I am."

"Yes, I do, and you are much better than the other guy", Jorge kept on praising and Cristiano's smile faltered a bit, knowing who he was referring to, but he quickly pushed the thought aside. "The semi-final draw is tomorrow at 12, by the way, are you going to watch it together?"

"With the team? I think we will, we'll have a recovery training session at 11. Hey, since Jorge is here, let's take a picture. Señor, can you take a picture of us, please?"

"No, no, no, please, count me out, Sandra doesn't know I'm here", Jorge laughed.

The waiter Cristiano had been addressing nodded, eagerly took his phone and the group of friends minus Jorge and Badr arranged and posed for a picture. While returning the phone, the waiter politely noted Cristiano it had just vibrated. Cristiano checked his messages and – indeed – he had received a new message.

He didn't have the number saved, but it wasn't very unusual, because from time to time he got messages from unknown numbers, them being usually either sponsors, who had got his number for some reason, distant family members or ex-teammates.

But this message wasn't from any of those and as soon as Cristiano realized, who it was from, the final remains of the smile disappeared from his face.

"Hi there! I'm Sergio, the guy, whose drink you spilt at the bar, do you remember me? I really enjoyed your company, even though my clothes smelled of beer even after a couple of washes. Hopefully you had good time too... I was just wondering, would you like to meet again sometime? Anyways, congratulations on the win and have a good night!"