Dark Moves Of Love ~ Neymar Jr

Chapter 86

"You're not packing. And you're not leaving just yet." Scolari said and he got up.

"How else would this die down, if it ever does?" I asked him.

"It won't. But you leaving will add fuel to the fire. We come clean. We come clean about everything." He said and headed towards the door. "Neymar will fill you in." He added before closing the door behind him.

I looked up at Neymar. He was leaning against the door looking outside, before he finally turned to look at me. His eyes were burning bright, they weren't cold like this morning.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you." He told me and approached me, kneeling down in front of me. He took my hands in his, balancing his elbows on my knees. He raised both my hands to his mouth and kissed them lightly and the tears I was holding escaped my eyes. "Don't cry Livvie, please." He said, his voice pleading. "It will all be alright, I promise." He added and I realized that these were the words I had been waiting all day to hear. Him reassuring me, him telling me that everything would be fine. Him believing for me when I couldn't believe for myself, like he always did. He was the one that gave me faith and courage.

"I'm sorry." I said breathlessly. "I should have been more careful." I added, trying to keep my voice steady.

"We both should have." Neymar said, wiping a new tear from my cheek.

"But this is... it's worse for you! You're the one who has too much to lose, I jeopardized the most important thing in your life!"

"You're the most important thing in my life." Neymar said, looking serious. It felt like his gaze pierced through my skin, weakening all my defenses.

"No, don't say that."

"I'm sorry I didn't say it sooner." Neymar insisted.

It was too much. I got up from the bed. He turned around to look at me, his face a mixture of hurt and expectation. "Please don't say that. Let's focus on how to solve this."

"Why not say it?" Neymar pressed on. "It's the truth. Isn't it true for you too?" He asked me.

"What that you're the most important thing in my life?" I asked him, the irony evident in my voice.

"Yes." He said seriously. He wasn't having it, I realized.

"You are." I finally said. "But right now, I can't be for you. The most important thing for you right now has to be the World Cup. You know the stakes."

He nodded. "I'm glad we cleared that up."

"What does Scolari have planned?"

"An interview."

"What me?" I asked in horror.

"No." Neymar chuckled. "Me."

"Thank God." I exhaled loudly.

Neymar seemed almost amused with me.

"And that's it?" I asked.

"It depends on how it will go." Neymar said. "I heard you didn't go to practice today."

"I didn't feel like I could show my face. I still don't know how I'm going to face all those people. It would almost have been better to be kicked out."

"No it wouldn't."

"No it wouldn't." I repeated.

"We'll face them together. Like we'll do for everything." Neymar said. "And we have practice tonight. With Coto."

"Me too?" I asked.

Neymar nodded. "Scolari's orders."

"He was mad, wasn't he?" I asked. "Despite what he said before."

Neymar nodded again. "Well he doesn't like the situation. But his reaction was nothing compared to my father."

"God! Your father! I forgot about that. Did he call you?"

"No he came here." Neymar said. "Half an hour after you left he was here. Along with my agent and my publicist. They had already crafted an apology to issue to the press."

"An apology?" I asked.

"Yeah it's not gonna happen. I shut it down. Scolari shut it down too. But I've had meetings with just about everyone all day. All of the CBF officials must be in the compound right now." He added, sounding tired.

"I'm sorry." I said again. "Neymar..." I started saying. "You said CBF officials. They can't be okay with me staying on."

He looked at me for a few seconds before he spoke. "They weren't happy with it." He finally said. "And my father campaigned hard against it. He has sway with them."

"Then why am I still here? Wouldn't it look better to the public if I was punished or something?"

"Liv, don't think about it. What's done is done." Neymar said and there was a finality to his tone that made me swallow my next words.

"So about that interview... When is it happening?"

"Tomorrow I think. It's a talk show. I hate talk shows."

"And they get to ask you anything?"

"There's probably a list of preapproved questions. That's how these things normally work but I haven't got the details. Ribeiro set it up." He told me. "My agent." He clarified, seeing my confused look.

"Neymar..." I started saying. "I just don't think this is a very good idea." He looked up at me when I hesitated. "It's just, you're a public person, and you're in the spotlight because it's your job. I... I'm not. I don't want to be. I don't want a bunch of strangers hearing about me, knowing my name, getting to judge me... Getting to judge us."

"I understand. But Liv, I don't know if we have another choice."

"What if I just leave?"

"Leave? You'd rather leave?" He asked in disbelief.

"Not you. Never you. Just the CBF."

"You'd have to leave Brazil and we don't have a lot of time left together to begin with."

"I could stay, like Alex did." I argued. "And that way they can go ahead and fire me and say it's over and that's that."

"You'd rather leave the team?" He asked me.

I thought about it for a second. I loved working here. Coming to Brazil was almost like starting over, like I had left all my baggage behind me. I enjoyed it so much and all the more because I met him. But the thought that I would have no control of my life if we went ahead and made things public was too terrifying. And besides, it's not like if I stayed things would go back to how they were before. I would be treated differently. I finally nodded. "I would."

"Okay." Neymar said after a few seconds. "We'll do what you want." He said and stood up. He walked towards me and joined me by the window. His room had one of the best views of the football fields. I could see a bunch of people playing football in one of them. "I'll tell Scolari and the rest that there's been a change of plans."

"And I guess I should go pack." I said, stroking the side of his face with my hand. "All good things must come to an end."

"Not yet." He said, turning his face to kiss my hand lightly. "We still have tonight. One last practice."

I smiled and let him lead the way.

~*~

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