Off the Deep End (Cristiano Ronaldo / Lionel Messi)

Chapter 9: Breaking News

Saturday 14th February 2015

When it came to football, Leo was doing great: after the winter break he had scored twice as much as any other player in La Liga. Also, lately he had even started to get better along with Luis Enrique, which was a great relief considering, how much tension there had been between them.

When it came to his life outside football, however, things weren't going as great.

It all came down to that birthday party. Leo had been thinking that over and over again, still not quite understanding, what went wrong. He had been somewhat drunk, yes, but that was not an excuse. Cristiano had seduced him and played with him, but he should have said no – especially knowing the Portuguese's reputation as a playboy. Leo was just another trophy to him.

The worst thing was how he had alienated himself from Antonella. It was hard to look her in the eye and he felt sick thinking, what he had done to her. A tiny voice inside his head constantly nagged that he should tell her, but he didn't know how. Had it been just some random girl at a bar, it would have been completely different, easier maybe. But Cristiano wasn't just some random girl at a bar. He was a man – and not just any man.

Besides, Leo was not gay. He loved women, Antonella to be exact.

To deal with his guilt he decided to celebrate the Valentine's Day with her by arranging a romantic evening for just the two of them, complete with fine food, flowers and candles. After eating he prepared a rose petal bath for them and Antonella loved it.

"I'm such a lucky girl", she said beaming, slipping into the water. "You didn't have to do all this though, I know you've a lot on your plate right now."

"No, I wanted to. I want to spend time with you. And you do deserve all of this."

"I love you, Leo."

That stung a little.

"I love you too, Antonella."

A long silence ensued, during which the little voice in Leo's head activated again. 'It's time to tell her', it said. 'Or for how long are you going to keep this up and lie to her face? She deserves better.'

Leo rubbed his neck nervously.

"Do you want to have wine?"

"No thanks."

"Okay."

Another long silence. It felt like an eternity and Leo began to grow anxious. It couldn't go on like this. He had to do it now... or never.

His heart was pounding faster than ever as he summoned every bit of his courage to open his mouth.

"Antonella", he started in a hoarse voice. "I have to..."

"Leo, there's something you should know", Antonella blurted at the same time and Leo fell silent.

"What is it?", he asked, bemused.

Antonella shifted uncomfortably.

"It's that... I'm pregnant."

"Oh."

A flood of shock flew through Leo. His arms and mouth went numb. The world around him started to swirl and he grabbed the edge of the bathtub with both hands.

"Can you say that again?"

"I'm pregnant, Leo, I did the test a couple of days ago."

Leo blinked, still trying to get his head around the news. He was going to be father again. He couldn't believe it.