𝐖𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐀 𝐁𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐒 (𝟏𝟖+) || 𝐏𝐄𝐃𝐑𝐈 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐆𝐀𝐕𝐈

He Who Dares Not Grasp The Thorn

Gavi had always known there was something 'off ' about him; even as a young boy he couldn't understand why his mates would drool over long blonde hair with pink ribbons, lips coated in shiny gloss or petite bodies in tight dresses. He never found an inkling of interest in the desires and fantasies  they would verbalize. He just thought he was too unbothered by anything other than football; too focused.

He did however come to discover  his sexuality in the summer of 2018; he was only 14 and yet he realised right away what his feelings dictated.

There was a new member in their team that year who had been promoted from the U13 to the U15.  He had immediately caught Gavi's attention with his wide innocent green eyes and curly blonde hair. He politely introduced himself to the older teammates with a shy smile; timid and careful with his words; hoping to impress the new teammates . Pablo had felt his breathing grow unsteady at the sight of him, this boy in front of him looked like one blessed by the Goddess of beauty, Aphrodite herself. Even the way the sunlight reflected and bounced off his shiny blonde curls,  looked like it formed a circular ray of light around, making him even more unrealistic.His ears completely blocked off anything the boy said, the only thing he managed to catch was a name, "Oscar"...

He initially dismissed it as the obvious fact that the boy younger than him was simply too ethereal, infact even the other boys had commented on how handsome he was, so Gavi somehow managed to ignore his feelings and gave it a different interpretation.

However, as much as he tried to get away from the bright eyed boy, it only seemed to have an opposite effect as they got significantly closer than the others; sticking to each other throughout the season and with Oscar being only a year younger than him, they shared literally everything with each other.

They had spent countless moments after late evening practices, lying on the grounds of La Masia staring up at the sky as it changed from a dark blue to matte black with twinkling stars appearing one by one. They talked about their fears, the stress and pressure of being a La Masia product; the immense and almost too heavy hopes their parents placed on their young shoulders but most importantly, their dreams; dreams of one day making it big...

And so his feelings only grew with time, to a point that he couldn't even deny it anymore. Yet he kept it hidden from all his family and teammates out of fear of what might happen if they ever found out. Ansu was the only one he told..

He'd come so close to confessing to the boy on so many occasions, but he didn't... He couldn't. And so he accepted the friendship that came with it but never allowed the blossoming feelings of something warm, dare he say love, to appear, he was just so young, and so scared ...

When people say life is fleeting ... it couldn't be any more true. Cause Pablo got the news that he'd been promoted to the first team at just 17, at a time when they had least expected to be so brutally torn apart like this. That evening, as orange hues lit up the beautiful city of Barcelona they cried tears of genuine happiness as they held each other close in the comfort and secrecy of Gavi's room, but a strange bitterness filled their hearts with a cruel and crippling hold that only seemed to grow around them and so they held each other a little tighter, a little longer, neither of them wanting to let go.

Gavi had never in his wildest dreams thought that being promoted to the main team would leave an almost unwelcome ache in his heart...

As they parted ways, they had made promises to not let anything tear them apart, that they'd be just as close as they'd always been. What lies those were ...