The Ugly Truth // Neymar Jr

Chapter 17: The Opening Ceremony

"Are you serious?!" Antonella stood up, gasping.

I laughed, "Yeah, I am."

"Oh, my gosh! That's amazing, I'm so glad you figured things out!" She pulled me off the bed and embraced me tightly. She pulled away a while later, "So, when are you gonna tell him?"

I looked at her, "Yeah... I don't think I can do that."

She looked at me, crossing her arms, "You're joking, right?"

"If that's what gets you going, then okay."

She frowned, "You have to tell him, Tori. You can't bottle up those feelings forever. You're not crushing on him, you're in love with him. Just, don't wait too long to tell him, okay?"

"Okay." I promised.

* * *

I walked into the stadium, the opening ceremony had already started by the time that I had got there. Once the performances and opening were over, I ran into the locker room, finding most of the Brazilian team standing in either their boxers or shorts, but then again it was a locker room.

"Tori!" Someone hugged me tightly from behind.

I laughed, "David?"

He spun me around, "The one and only. Wow, look at you. You look amazing."

I smiled, "Thank you."

"So, what brings you to our locker room, and I know it's totally not because of the amount of shirtless guys in here." He chuckled, winking at me.

I rolled my eyes at him playfully, "I actually came here to wish you guys good luck."

"Thanks! We've heard so much about you." Oscar said, flashing his adorable smile at me.

"So, you're the famous Tori, huh? Neymar hasn't stopped talking about you." Hulk said, smiling.

I smiled back at him, "Yeah?"

"Oh, totally. We're beginning to think that he's in love with you." Marcelo joked.

If only that was true.

I laughed, "Yeah, probably not. Anyways, go kick ass out there, okay?"

"Definitely. We'll see you after the game, yeah?" David looked at me.

"Yeah." I gave the guys a quick hug and left the locker room, colliding with someone.

"I'm so sorry, I should've watched where I was going." The words rushed out of my mouth.

Neymar looked at me laughing, "Relax, it's just me."

"Oh, well, I'm sorry."

He chuckled, "What were you doing in the locker room?"

"I was just gonna wish you guys good luck." I said, smiling.

He smiled, "Thanks. I see you're wearing the jersey." He nodded at my jersey, which technically was his.

I looked down at it before looking at him, "Yeah, you are my favorite player."

He grinned, "Why wouldn't I be?"

I rolled my eyes at him playfully, "I'm gonna go to the bleachers, okay?"

"One more thing."

"Yeah?" He pulled me into a hug. I was surprised for a second before hugging him back. He smelt amazing. His touch was so soft and comforting, I could feel myself melting into his embrace. He pulled away, still keeping his arms around me, "Go get 'em." I smiled, looking at him.

"I will." He let go of me and I left the hallway, heading into the field and finding my seat in the bleachers.

Twenty minutes later, both the Croatian and Brazilian teams emerged out of the hallway. They stood side-by-side as both of the supporting sides cheered for their teams.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the national anthem of Croatia." The intercom announced.

The Croatian supporters stood up, placing their hands on their heart and sang the national anthem with the team. Some had tears in their eyes and the rest sang with a smile on their face.

Once the Croatian national anthem was over, the intercom announced, "And now, the national anthem of Brazil." The Brazilian supporters stood up from their seats, sporting Brazilian jerseys and bright green and yellow face paint. Most of the stadium glowed a bright yellow. They placed their hands on their heart and sang. I also stood up, even though I didn't know the anthem, and looked at the team. They had their arms around each other and stood tall, and strong. They had their blue, Brazilian jackets on. Neymar caught my eye surprisingly and smiled at me. I gave him a thumbs-up and smiled back at him. Once the national anthem was over, some of the supporters sat down whilst the others stood, cheering their host team on.

Both teams wished each other luck, shaking hands and some even hugged. The commentator welcomed us to the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Photos of the team with the referees were taken. The Brazilian team stripped their jackets off in the sidelines and ran back to the field. The first whistle blew, and both teams were off and battling for the World Cup.