[ cinc ] in which he visits her house

Marc made a point of walking to practice a couple of days later, making sure to pass the house where Ashley and Valerie lived. From her spot on the couch, Ashley was able to catch a glimpse of someone passing her house. When she noticed it was the Barcelona footballer, she gasped, reaching for the box at her feet to grab the blaugrana jersey. She had been waiting and even hoping for him to walk by. Her hand gripped the jersey tightly and she was quick to reach the front door.

"Hey, Barca boy!" She called, pushing the screen door open. He stopped in his stride and turned his head to look at her. 

Ashley stepped out onto the porch where Marc was able to see the jersey in her hand. A smile broke out onto his face and he took a couple of steps back in the direction of her front yard. "I see you got my present." He gestured to the Barca jersey.

"Yeah." She sighed. Rolling the jersey up into a ball, she tossed it at him and added teasingly, "I don't appreciate you leaving your trash at my house."

Marc was quick to come up with a comeback. He scoffed, a hint of outrage at her words reflected on his face. "Funny. Then give back that Ronaldo jersey and I'll dispose of it properly."

"Disposing of a Cristiano Ronaldo jersey would be a crime against humanity." She rolled her eyes at him.

The young footballer tossed the jersey back at her. "Keep the jersey."

"I don't want it." She shook her head, ready to throw it back.

But he raised a hand up to stop her. "Give it to your friend. At least she will appreciate it. She has good taste in football, unlike some people." Marc let out a sigh and looked forward down the end of the street. It was nice and quiet on the residential neighborhood and he walked forward without saying more to her.

Ashley's confident smile dropped. From behind her, Valerie dropped a hand on her friend's shoulder heavily. "Wow." Said Valerie. "That was pretty harsh. You know, if deep down in that cold heart of yours there is a spot that is melting due to all of this cuteness, you need to act now. That boy will not be chasing you forever. One day he will lose hope and just stop trying." She explained.

"Maybe I was a bit mean to him." Ashley sighed.

"You were." Valerie admitted.

"Hey!" Ashley gasped. "You're my bestfriend. You're supposed to help me feel better about myself, not worse."

"As your friend, I'm forced to tell you the truth." She said. "If you want me to lie to you, I can do that too." Patting her hard on the back, she added, "Now come on, we need to get ready to go to work."

The two girls worked at an elementary school for half of the school day and later worked for the afterschool program on Tuesdays and Thursdays. They got paid a good amount of money and had tutoring jobs on weekend mornings. Monday, Wednesday and Friday were days they attended the university from morning to late afternoon. It was something that eventually got tiring, but they loved their jobs and they loved their studies at the university.

.

.

.

.

Marc arrived at practice with slumped shoulders to the training ground. Gerard, Neymar, and Lionel were the first ones to check on him. Throwing an arm around his friend's shoulders, Neymar asked, "Why the long face?" On his own face was a grin that tugged at the corners of his mouth. 

Of course he's smiling now, Marc thought to himself. His life turned out great in the end. 

Back at the world cup almost two years ago, Neymar had been injured on the field during the game against Colombia. (this happens in 'Catfish' & 'April'.) The damage had been so bad that the doctors said he wouldn't be able to walk again. But the Brazilian footballer was determined to play football again, and supported by his loving wife, who was his girlfriend at the time, he was now up and walking again. Sure he couldn't play ninety minutes anymore, but something was something.

Marc was happy for his friend. But his bad mood made him resent the fact that, according to his negative thoughts, Neymar always had it easy. They all knew that wasn't the case though.

The Catalan footballer sighed, "I gave the girl a Barcelona jersey with my name on it."

"And?" Lionel wondered.

"Did she love it?" Gerard added, a smile on his lips.

Marc shook his head. "No. She's a Real Madrid fan."

There were gasps from his three friends. Lionel was the one to speak first. "Taboo." His voice came out in a haunting, yet amused way.

"This is some Romeo and Juliet shit." Neymar laughed.

"We need to help this poor unfortunate soul." Gerard announced, a fire of determination in his eyes.

"That's not necessa-" Marc began.

"Nonsense, Marc." Lionel interrupted him. "You need all the help you can get. We will help you get the girl in the end. Trust us. Geri and I are like your parents and Ney is like your brother, would family ever do you any wrong?"

"Funny," Marc cracked a smile. "I don't feel reassured-" 

"You offend us with your negativity." Neymar gasped, his face contorted into a look of someone who had just been terribly insulted.

"You didn't let me finish." The Catalan pointed out. "What I was going to say was that you're my brothers, I know I can trust you."

He hoped that with the help of his friends he could be able to win over Ashley.

-

new chapter, after ages of not updating.

thank you so much for all your love and support.

it means a lot to me.

anyway, now we have marc seeking help from his mates. hopefully they will not make things worse. i kind of want to make it rather comedic though, so they might make things worse. i don't know.

anyway, thank you for reading.

i love you.

-clary xx