A/N: a shorter chapter as I'm still sick, but I didn't want to leave you hanging;) depending on how I feel there might be another chapter tonight.

"No, you really don't have to wait for me" I reassured Antonia, who had driven me to the Joan Gamper training facility. It was currently the last day of international break, however both Spain and Germany had already played and their matches and the players would return to practice tomorrow.

If I passed my upcoming medical examination today, I would also be allowed to attend practice again.

"Are you sure?" a worried Antonia asked. Her being a nurse had come in handy during the last week when she had been taking care of me, but it also meant she was still being kind of overprotective now.

"Yes, I'm sure. I need to get back to my normal routine if I wanna go back to practice tomorrow." I gave her a quick kiss. "Goodbye, Anto."

She smiled at me. "See you."

As I watched her drive away, I couldn't help but feel bad. She had been a real lifesaver over the last week and I enjoyed the time we had spent together, but I could tell she wanted more. Meanwhile, I was trying to distance myself from Mapi over the past few days, but I still couldn't prevent my thoughts from always shifting to her. As I was walking to our club doctor's office, I looked at the messages she had sent me for the hundredth time.

[16/09/2024 16:37:24] Mapi: Princesa, you really scared me today! Are you okay?

[16/09/2024 19:43:56] Emilia: I'm okay, it was just a light

heat stroke. I can leave the hospital tomorrow.

[18/09/2024 10:15:52] Mapi: Are you feeling better?

[19/09/2024 17:23:41] Emilia: yes

[22/09/2024 23:55:07] Mapi: I miss you, princesa.

[24/09/2024 07:19:42] Mapi: ?

It wasn't that I didn't want to reply, but I knew it would be better if I distanced myself to prevent myself from catching feelings for a teammate. That just couldn't happen. Nevertheless, I felt bad for not replying and made a mental note to send her a short message later.

Sighing, I took a seat on an old chair outside of the doctor's office, waiting to be called inside. Not knowing what else to do, I scrolled through my explore page on Instagram when I stumbled across a picture that made my jaw drop.

26'387 likes

mapi.news: Mapi and Ana were spotted leaving the stadium together after yesterday's match. Is there still hope for them?

---

ingridengenvibes: poor Ingrid

^woso.players: wasn't she rumored to be with Emilia?

^alexiayjenni: she gets with everyone lol

guapagorcevic: I miss them

anacrnogorcevicfan: mapi and ana forever

Once again, I could literally feel my heart drop.

So much for distancing myself.

I shouldn't have been surprised after what happened last week when she talked about her ex after practically spooning me all night.

But it still hurt.

Even though it shouldn't.

Even the people in the comments were rooting for Mapi and Ana to reconcile, so I should probably join in on that.

The door to the doctor's office opened. "Good afternoon, Emilia" Our club doctor greeted me with a smile. "You can come inside now."

"I just need to check your vitals to see if you're fit to play again" the grey-haired man explained after I had taken a seat on the examination table.

"If the vitals are good, can I play on Sunday?" I wondered.

"Yes, but not a full 90 minutes" he mumbled as he was measuring my blood pressure.

A small chuckle escaped my mouth. As if Jonatan was going to let me start anyway.

After checking all of my vitals, the doctor made me take a seat at his desk.

"Your vitals are good, so you're fit to play again. However, as you have been resting for a week, you're gonna have a special training unit tomorrow morning and on Friday morning as well, before returning to the second team practice on Friday afternoon. How does that sound?"

My lips formed a huge smile. "That sounds amazing!"

"But please remember to drink enough fluids, get at least 7-8 hours of sleep and don't be afraid to ask for a break, especially in those temperatures. Understood?"

I nodded firmly, desperate to finally leave.

"Good, then please find yourself at the physio's office at 8:30 am tomorrow."

Great, that meant I had to leave at 7:30. So much to getting those required 8 hours of sleep.

The next morning, I exhaustedly left the physio's office after an intense two-hour session to get me back on track and headed in the direction of the ice bath. I hated those baths, but the physio insisted on it to help my muscles relax.

As I walked through the dark halls of the training facility, I saw three people appear on the other side of the hallway. I instantly recognized Alexia's laugh and as I got closer, I realized the other people were Mariona and Mapi.

Amazing. Could you believe my luck?

Obviously, I hadn't replied to Mapi's message after seeing the Instagram post yesterday, so this whole interaction was about to be unbelievably awkward.

"Emilia!" Alexia exclaimed, pulling me into a tight hug. "I missed you so much, how are you?"

"Much better" I replied, resting my head on Alexia's shoulder.

"Are you joining us in practice today?" Mariona wondered, greeting me with a quick hug. 

"No, I just finished a session with the physio, but I'll be back with you tomorrow afternoon."

"That's great news, tía!" Alexia smiled. "What about the match on Sunday?"

"I'm allowed to play, just not for a whole 90 minutes, but that wasn't gonna happen anyway" I shrugged, my glance wandering over to Mapi who hadn't said a single word to me.

"Good, because I wasn't going to Tenerife without you!" the Barcelona captain stated, throwing a quick look on her watch. "Listen, we have practice now, but we'll see you tomorrow."

As Mariona and Alexia started walking away, I felt a firm grip around my wrist.

"I'll catch up with you guys in a minute" Mapi informed her friends, still not letting go of me.

Mariona shrugged. "Jonatan's going to murder you if you're late, so you better hurry."

My glance wandered to Mapi's hand, still wrapped around my arm. "Are you going to let go of me or...?" I wondered with a small smile which Mapi didn't return.

"So now you're talking to me again?" the tattooed defender asked me angrily, her eyes sparkling furiously as she wasn't letting go of my arm.

A loud sigh escaped my mouth. "Mapi, I had a heat stroke and was forced to stay at home for a week. I didn't feel like talking to anyone."

"Cut the crap. Do you think I didn't talk to Caro? She told me you even invited Marta and her to dinner."

Shit, I clearly didn't think this through.

"Caro was checking in on me almost daily." I defended myself. "She was really taking care of me, so I wanted to thank her for that."

Mapi, still holding my arm, let out a sarcastic laugh. "Just like your girlfriend then, huh?"

Damn, Caro really couldn't keep anything to herself.

"She's not my girlfriend" I stated, getting flashbacks to the conversation about Ingrid I had with Mapi just two weeks ago.

"Whatever, princesa" Mapi hissed, finally letting go of my wrist.

"Why do you care anyway?" I snapped. "It's not like you weren't busy with your ex."

The blonde girl threw me an angry look, before letting out a quiet chuckle. "Forget it. I need to go to practice now." With those words, she stormed away, leaving me standing speechless in the hall.