Cause and Effect

Thirty one

A/N: as promised, here is the second chapter of the day ;) thank you for all the love on the previous chapter!

Amidst the general confusion that reigned after the final whistle in Madrid, some of the fans started singing a song, that to me, was vaguely familiar, but not enough for me to immediately recognise it. We were so caught up in our own celebrations anyway, and to begin with, most of us didn't even notice.

[I am not a stranger to the dark
Hide away, they say, coz we don't want your broken parts]

Over the two legs, Alexis and I had scored two goals each, with Neymar supplying the fifth. We had some kind of unstoppable vibe going, a chemistry the three of us definitely didn't deserve after all the heartache we'd caused one another, but somehow it was there.

"I feel so calm," I said, as we walked around the pitch applauding the travelling fans, and Neymar laughed at me.

"How poetic of you."

"Ha. Shut up. I do feel calm, on the inside. I'm remembering why I fell in love with football. Our relationship is uncomplicated. It's beautiful."

"Are you hinting at something?" He smirked.

"No," I laughed. "I love you, Neymar. You're beautiful too."

"I know."

I rolled my eyes.

"Of course you do."

Neymar pulled me to his side, and kissed the top of my head softly, mumbling random Portuguese words that I didn't understand.

[I've learned to be ashamed of all my scars
Run away, they say, no one will love you as you are]

"Nia!" Hector called my name, and I turned to see him approaching with Granit in tow. "You'll never guess what my mum found."

He waved his phone at me, and I took it to look at what he was trying to show me. When I saw it, I burst out laughing.

"This is us in 2006! We were watching Arsenal vs Madrid semi-final!"

"What?" Exclaimed Neymar. "That's crazy that you have a photo."

"So we need to take another one, so I can post them on Instagram side by side."

I rolled my eyes at Hector, but complied, as he handed his phone to Granit.

[But I won't let them break me down to dust
I know that there's a place for us
For we are glorious]

We took a few photos of the four of us together as well, Hector, Granit, myself and Neymar, after roping in Alexis and Mesut as cameramen.

"Can you hear what they're singing?" Asked Granit, who was the first one to pick up on the energy in the crowd.

"The tune is kinda familiar, but I can't pick out the words," I said, and strained my ears again to listen.

[When the sharpest words wanna cut me down
I'm gonna send a flood, gonna drown them out
I am brave, I am bruised, I am who I'm meant to be
This is me]

"Oh, I know what this is," Said Neymar, nudging my arm. "This is from that showman movie you're obsessed with, Nia."

"Oh, The Greatest Showman! I know now."

"Of course Neymar would get it from just the tune," Said Mesut, smirking. "He wouldn't know what the words meant anyway."

"Hey, my English is good now," the Brazilian protested, in English no less, just to prove himself.