For my nieces, sweet girls.

This is a work of fiction, any resemblance to names, people, facts or situations in real life are coincidental.

Paula Braga, poet and playwriter

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Chapter 1

André had a decisive game for that afternoon. Soccer was one of his passions. But he was well prepared. They were winning the school championship. The phone rang. Another of his passions in life, his girlfriend Vanessa. He was smiling when he answered, ‘Hi Nessa, how are you?’

‘If you don´t consider the heat, everything's great. My hair ran. I had to make an appointment with my hairdresser Marc urgentlyyyyy.’

‘Today?’

‘Of course, it is today. He only could fit me in for three in the afternoon. He's great, I wouldn't exchange hairdressers for anything in the worllllldddd.’ - Vanessa always stretched the final vowel sound, for emphasis. Sometimes it upset André.

‘Seriously, Nessa, are you going at three? Did you forget that I have a game at half past three? You promised to go watch it.’

‘Look, André. These games take so long... I'll be on time’, but she had no intention of going. With her hair ready for the weekend, she wasn't going to stand in the stands under that strong sun, sweating. And he knew that.

‘I will be waiting for you.’

They talked a little more about their movie night next Saturday, but when he hung up, he was bored. His friends were most envious of him, because Vanessa was super-hot, but he sometimes thought that in the most important moments for him, he was always alone. She was never very supportive, if she did not have a personal interest in the matter. Arriving at the gate of his house, André saw that his grandmother, Mrs. Luiza, was leaving with a recyclable bag.

‘Are you going to the market, grandma?’

‘The bakery. Do you want anything?’

‘Ice cream’, he always wanted ice cream.

‘Sonny, (Grandma used that nickname to express her affection for him) today there is a game, you better eat fruit’, Mrs. Luiza was his biggest fan. She helped him to eat correctly, she was always studying nutrition tables for athletes. She was a caring person. As soon as André showed interest in soccer, Mrs. Luiza bought him good sport shoes and books about soccer. Entering his house, André went straight to the bedroom. He didn't want to meet his father, who always made him angry and sad. There has never been one person to make another mad, without being a declared enemy, as much as Roberval did to his son André. Since he was a little boy, he heard words from his father that diminished him. Or he heard screams and complains. André had learned to get out of his way.

The sun was really cracking. André looked at the stands. No sign of Vanessa. He already knew. The game had been an exciting one so far. The crowd was agitated. The decision would be by penalty. He was going to kick. It was a responsibility, the last kick was going to decide the match, but that was the adrenaline rush for him.

‘Goooooool’, the crowd from his school screamed loudly, jumping, hugging, invading the field. Brazilians were so passionate, in everything they did... André remembered a world cup, years ago, when France won and the crowd, still seated, only applauded. “But didn't they have blood in their veins?”, was his thought. He didn't understand them. Now, at a simple school match, he was already hugging three friends and two strangers. Everyone sang the school team's jingle. That day would be unforgettable. He was a senior in high school and was going to make the most of it. Sports and parties. Next year he was going to take a preparatory course and had already decided to study hard. He wanted to get into advertising college, since he was good with drawings. But he would have to study hard, because he couldn't afford private tuition.

‘Hey, André, people are going to my house to celebrate... Do you want a ride?’, asked his best friend.

‘Yes, I do, Gera...’, Gera's father, did not care about the loud music and the crowd's mess at his house. As long as they won. He was another soccer fan. André sent a whats to Vanessa, saying that she was at Geraldo´s, but she didn't even see it.

...

The next day, Vanessa was all tender. They didn't even pay attention to the movie. She was beautiful, as always. She was all vain about her school's victory in the game the day before. It looked like she was the one who had played.

‘We are the best in the world, aren't we?’, she whispered in his ear.

‘Yes’, it was better to agree, so they would resume kissing.

‘Can I have the medal?’

‘I gave it to my grandmother.’

‘You are silly to do that," she pouted and stopped kissing him.

But when it came to his grandmother, he was adamant. Mrs. Luiza practically raised him. She met his needs for clothes, books, delicious food. And she was even going to pay for his course. The grandmother believed in him a lot. But the most important was her emotional support. She had always been his fuel source for life, since his parents were very complicated. On the way home, Vanessa sat far away from him. Even the Uber driver noticed. She was like that, if she didn't get everything she wanted, she would be sulking.