Football OneShots

The Only Exception - Neymar

Inspired by the song "The Only Exception" by Paramore

2014-2015 Season

I rolled over in bed, groaning at the sound of my alarm clock going off.

"Fine,fine.. I'm getting up." I moaned. I banged my hand on the snooze button.I sat up and placed my feet on the cold wooden floor.

Today was the first day of my new job. I was an intern photograph at FC Barcelona. It was kind of my dream job. I've had a camera in my hands since I was a little kid and I loved football, although i had never played it. I guessed I would suck really bad at it because I was bound to screw up any sport involving a ball.

"Bella. Quiet down. I'm trying to sleep." My best friend and flatmate Maria, yelled from her room. "Just cause you have to get up super early doesn't mean you..." She had probably fell asleep again.

I looked at myself in the mirror. I didn't look that bad, besides the fact that my hair was like a birds nest. I yanked a brush through it and pinned my bangs back. I really couldn't afford my hair sticking to my head in the hot summer sun.

I got dressed and silently opened the door, tossing my camera over my shoulder. Before I left, a photo frame beside the little table. It was Maria's. A photo of her sitting on her fathers shoulder and her mother standing by her. They were all grinning ear to ear.

But there was none of that when I was growing up. Mostly because my dad was an alcoholic. I still remember him, sitting in a corner, whispering to himself. I remember having to pick my way carefully through the empty bottles laying everywhere.

Thankfully my dad wasn't the aggressive type even when he was drunk, so me and my mom got along.

I always wondered why she didn't get a divorce? Maybe because she was too kind to leave my dad in his time of need.

Although my parents didn't have too much money, our house was actually not bad and they could afford to buy me my own camera. I would spend countless hours in our backyard. Taking photos of flowers and birds and clouds. Trying to escape from reality.

When I was a little kid, I made a mental promise to myself. If love was like the relationship between my parents, I would prefer to not fall in love, But later on I realized, that was not love. I saw the meaning of real love when my friends got married one by one to the love of their lives. But I still preferred being alone

I decided to walk to the "Ciutat Esportiva" since I was so close to it. I put my headphones into my ears. That made the world fade away.

I thought about how the past few weeks had been a dream. I had gotten a call from my college photography teacher saying that an intern position had just opened up in FC Barcelona for someone to photograph their training sessions. Being an avid fan of Barca, of course I said yes. After a few phone calls, they told me to come to today's training session and take a few pictures so they could see how I was.

As I arrived at the gates, I lifted my head and walked in.

"Bella Delgado." I told the guard, sitting at the gate. "I'm an intern photograph..."

He nodded like he knew what I was talking about.

When I entered, I saw a guy standing by the door. He looked like he was waiting to greet me.
"Hi Miss Delgado, I'm David Blanco." He extended his arm towards me and I shook it firmly. "I've been asked to show you around and help you get settled."

He lead me to one of the main pitches. "This is were you'll be taking photos from. Is this a good angle?" He asked, looking at me with a concerned look.