In the spotlight

46

Matteo Rodriguez

I popped the lid off of my water bottle, sipping huge gulps of water. Still panting, I cautiously threw it back to the bench and picked up the towel, drying the sweat off my forehead with the warm fabric.

"Whew, Coach really outdid himself with this one." Vini jogged up next to me, leaning forward to support himself on his knees. We could barely talk or do anything else besides trying to catch our breath for several more minutes.

Ten miles just for deduction after the training itself sounded crazy enough, but we could only feel it's effects well after finishing. After the burning feeling in my chest along with the drumming noise of my heart beating in my throat quieted down a little, we walked down from the pitch straight into the changing rooms.

Most of our teammates were already present and preparing to go home by the time we had arrived in the room and started changing our clothes. After a quick shower, I threw on my training joggers, paired with a black t-shirt and my usual pair of shoes, before grabbing the straps of my bag and straightening up.

"Matteo." I heard my name being called out from the other side of the room, making me spin and turn towards my friend, who was still sitting down, tying his shoes.

"My tire has deflated on the way here; can you give me a ride home?" Vinicius turned his head up towards me before finishing the knot and standing up next to me.

"Sure, let's go." I nodded towards the exit and waited for him to catch up to me. We cut through the almost completely empty underground garage until we could spot my black Mercedes. I fished the keys out from the bottom of my pockets and unlocked the door, heading straight towards the trunk to load our bags in.

When I slammed the trunk shut, Vini had already occupied the seat right next to the steering wheel, waiting for me to jump in. As I pressed the starting button, the panels in front of me all lit up in a second, showing me that we had almost passed midnight already.

"Jesus, I haven't realized it is so late already." Vini blinked twice rapidly before turning his head towards me. "I don't want to keep you away from home so late." He explained his worries, which only made me frown in confusion.

"It's all good, man. I can take you home. Or you can just crash at my place; we're coming back tomorrow anyway." I shrugged my shoulder carelessly as I found my way out of the underground garage and swerved into the unusually empty street.

"I mean... if I am not disturbing anything, you know." He grinned at me in a mocking manner, wiggling his eyebrows like crazy.

"I wish." I scoffed jokingly. "She is in Seoul right now." A strange mix of both sadness and excitement washed over me as I said those words. I was having a difficult time while having to wait for her to return, and because of the uncertainty of how we are going to meet again, somehow, whenever that radiant look in her eyes flashed in front of me after a kiss, happiness overwhelmed my whole being.

"Uh, I wanted to ask how the boyfriend life is treating you, but like that..." He grimaced, but we both ended up smiling at his comment.

"It still feels a little..." I began explaining while my eyes followed the curve of the empty streets in front of me. "Surreal." I finished my sentence once I found the correct word. I couldn't exactly pinpoint my exact feelings at the moment or the exact state of our relationship right now other than the fact that it was all serious now. It would've been easier if she wasn't thousands of kilometers away.

"It's only natural after the misery the two of you went through." Vini rolled his eyes jokingly, widening the smile on my face as I snapped my head towards him for a brief second, then turned it back towards the road.