Through Her Eyes - Alexia Putellas

Chapter Five

Barcelona were training for the UEFA Champions League against Real Madrid—it had been a few days since the incident between the captain and English athlete.

It was the morning on the match at Camp Nou with a record-breaking crowd, as the two teams walked out of the tunnel at the same time, Valerie took her time to walk slowly following behind Leila who smiled reassuringly at the woman.

"You've never seen a crowd like this?" Leila asked, as they began to train on the pitch in front of the crowd, passing the ball between them.

"No... This is amazing."

The other girls listening in on the two laughed at Valerie's gobsmacked expression, but soon focused back on training when Alexia told them to stay hyper vigilant.

Though Valerie was one hundred per cent certain that she held a strong dislike for the captain, she admired her determination and focus.

"Bet your glad you joined this team then, yes?" As Leila said this, Valerie looked around at her friends from England training with one another and laughing, then over to Mapi and Ingrid who made her feel more than welcome.

She felt a smile appearing on her face.

"Why are you smiling like that?" A voice broke the woman out of her trance, her smile dropping suddenly when realising Leila had disappeared and Alexia was stood before her with her hands on her hips, looking on in judgement.

"Just wishing you were on the other team so I could beat you," Valerie smiled smugly which angered the captain, who's hands dropped and clenched into tight fists.

"¿Crees que podrías vencerme? " (You think you could beat me?" Alexia laughed loudly, gaining curious looks from her teammates before they saw who she was talking to, shaking their heads in understanding.

"Eso explica tu gran cabeza." (That explains your big head) Valerie emphasised with her hands, measuring the captain's forehead with her thumb and pointer finger, to which she slapped away in offence.

"¿Qué?" (What?) Alexia asked in surprise, repeating herself once more as she watched Valerie walk away towards the tunnel, rubbing her head before walking towards Mapi.

"¿Tengo una cabeza grande?" (Do I have a big head?)

✰

Whistles and cheers brought a buzz to Valerie's ears, erupting through the stadium, as the two teams were called out, each one of them marching out with stern looks on their faces, sizing one another up before positioning themselves to start the game.

Valerie was sat on the bench, Jonatan told her that she would be coming on at half time, the woman didn't fail to notice how Alexia smirked at the woman as she sat on the sidelines alongside Ana-Maria.

Lucy and Keira were also sat on the bench beside her, "Did you kill her dog or something, Val?" The dark brunette laughed, pointing out the glare that the captain sent her way before realising she had been caught by her teammates and turned away.

"You'd think so... It was her fault." The athlete grumbled, tightening her boot laces to conceal her frustration. She wanted to play and prove Jonatan wrong, as well as Alexia.

"What happened?"

Valerie recalled the moment when the captain had pulled out on her, then mistook her for a fan. Now that the woman thinks about it, there wasn't much for her to hate the captain for, but her arrogance made her the worst person in the world to the Brit.