undercover rivalry
alexia putellas x reader
alexia and reader are forced to pair up for a promotional event after competing against one another for almost a decade, and quickly realize how they admire one another
warnings: none
listening to young miko and reggae really helps a girl write faster, maybe not better, but faster
You grew up rising through the ranks of the training academy in Lyon. Football was one of the few things you felt passionate about, so when you got the offer to join the academy, you jumped at it. Around a year after you got playing time and real, good coaching, you were getting offers left and right. And for someone who was a bright, young 16-year-old, it was a big deal.
But when it all came down to it, you decided to stay in France and continue growing your career at Lyon. You did your part; you played at your best, you never stepped out of line (unless it was rules over games), and punctuality was always one of your top priorities. If anyone asked, you would chalk up being one of the best midfielders to the way you followed rules.
There weren't many people you had to compete with to keep your starting position throughout the years. But whenever you played Barcelona, your blood would boil when you saw a certain tall Spaniard. Alexia Putellas. She had to be everywhere, of course. No matter where you were, whether it was home or traveling, her face and name were always there.
It wasn't just her playing style, because you could admit to yourself and nobody else that she was a good player. It was just her. Her cocky attitude on the field, whether it was competing for the ball or just running past one another. She always knew how to push your buttons, and it pissed you off more than anything.
You'd made a vow after you first played her that you would never let yourself form any opinion about her other than that she was annoying and a pain in your ass.
Even after almost a decade of playing against her for both country and club, you still hated each other. Alexia gained two Ballon d'Ors under her belt, and you got yourself one as well. You couldn't stand it. If it were Spain vs. Germany or Lyon vs. Barcelona, the two of you would always clash.
You didn't know how her teammates could stand her, between the competing and the utter fact that she was terrible to be around. Her attitude alone when you had to share the golden boot one year, was enough to solidify your opinion around her.
But it wasn't worth it to grope about every minute of your life. You never let your opinion get in the way of your playing, but it wouldn't stay that way when everyone greeted and said congratulations after a game.
You had built a great life for yourself in France, even if it wasn't your home country. You had an amazing apartment on the top floor with a garden that you gave your life to. You lived with your parakeets and were the neighbor to your favorite person, Sara. Whenever you got homesick, it was nice to have someone there to talk with, and nice to speak in German, of course.
"Was zum Teufel?" Your manager called you earlier last week, saying he wanted to get you involved in more social events to get your personality more 'out there'. You would be the first to admit that on the pitch, you were mostly angry, and off of it, during interviews and such, you wore a blank face most of the time.
You didn't have a problem with social and charity events, especially ones like this one that involved kids. Growing up in Germany, you babysat both your siblings and the kids around your neighborhood, so it helped to remind you of home.
But this one wouldn't.
Because where was it? Barcelona. Of course, it had to be Barcelona. It was a popular place for international charity events to be. And you knew this, but the only time you'd had to go to Spain in general for these was once as a teenager. And now, you were going to the place of the person you disliked most in the world.
"Sara, please help me get out of this. Hide me in your house or something."
It was a classic sunny, but not too sunny, day in France, and you were lying on top of Sara on the floor of the gym. "No, get off me, you oaf. I already told you, you're the one who agreed to the event."
"I agreed to the event, not to bonding time with Putellas." By the way you spoke her name, you would think you were talking about cleaning the toilets, but you'd much rather be doing that. "It'll only be a few days, Y/n, suck it up." The brunette finally shoved you off her, and you groaned into the mat before pulling yourself up and sprinting to the field.
The rest of the training went as usual: conditioning, shots, lunch, and finally being able to go back to the locker room. Even though you loved playing football, the ball beneath you, the wind, and the energy around you, you loved being able to shower after even more. Something about being able to wash off the sweat from your hard work made you giddy.
"Au revoir, Linds." You waved goodbye to the blonde American as you dribbled a ball with your feet, walking toward your car. You hummed a random tune as you packed into your vehicle and started the drive back to your apartment.
Just as you expected, you had an envelope with a plane ticket and the itinerary for the three-day charity event. The groan you let out could probably be heard from the rest of France.
Alexia was having a great day. She got to training on time, they had her favorite yogurt in the cafeteria, and she's gotten every shot made on goal. Everything was going great in the afternoon as well, until Jana and Vicky decided to come up to her with a mischievous look on their faces. "Qué?"
"So Ale, we heard you have a certain event coming up soon."
"Qué? Just the usual routine."
"Maybe, but we heard it's with a certain German whom you won't admit to having a crush on." The two girls smirked among themselves as Vicky shoved her phone in Alexia's face, which admittedly did have a picture of you on it. "Really? We've been over this."
Alexia couldn't help but grab her plate and walk back out to the field. She knew the teasing wasn't done, it never was. Did she despise you? Yes, 1000%. But could she also admit that you were just her type? Also yes. Technically, she didn't even know when the hatred began.
Alexia knew that she would do anything to take you down on the field, but other than that, she didn't care. And of course, the second her team found out that her freezing up and face turning red around you wasn't a coincidence, the incessant teasing started.
Aleixia finally got out of the tactics meeting and opened the door to the locker room filled with music and chatter. "Better start learning German, Capi." Of course.
As if it wasn't bad enough that she was still trying to figure out how she was going to be around you for three days without blurting out how she felt, now the rest of her teammates figured it out, too. Alexia turned to see a tattooed arm wrap around her shoulders. "Really, Ale, we all think you just need to admit your feelings. It's honestly painful to watch."
"Gracias, Cata, but nothing is going on."
Alexia knew the teasing was unavoidable; she'd been on this team for so long, and all the jokes they made her harmless. Eventually, she got out of the training facility and enjoyed the quiet drive home, with a quick stop at her favorite cafe.
She walked into her apartment, shutting the door behind her with a soft click, and dropped her bags at the entrance. There was a miniature envelope she opened and read with the muffin in her hand.
The flight to Barcelona hadn't been a terrible one. You were sitting in a window seat, and they had the cookies you only let yourself have on the plane. It wasn't the longest flight ever, which you were also grateful for, seeing as you were able to stretch your legs after an hour.
You brought the hoodie you were wearing over your head as you felt the warm Spanish air hit your face. You got into the car with your bags, starting small talk with the driver, who was taking you to your hotel.
The drive was amazing, except for the fact that you were constantly seeing photos of Alexia Putellas' face plastered everywhere. It was quite disgusting to see, even if you could admit her face was chiseled to perfection. But luckily for you, the only thing you could see from your room was the beach.
You were lucky that the foundation brought you in a day early, so you could sleep before having to deal with everything else.
After a good night's rest, some shitty hotel coffee, and a pep talk, you were (almost) mentally prepared to go to the event. The weather was nice, and the chatter around you made you feel soothed in a way.
The walk was short, and before you knew it, you could see people dressed in all black setting up everything from stands to cameras. "Hey, Y/n! Let me show you where to get ready." Before you knew it, you were getting whisked away to a tent with five people swarming around you with makeup and jerseys.
Even if you much preferred your Lyon jersey, this one was nice as well. It was specially made for the foundation, and the purple with your jeans made you feel great.
You were tying your shoes when you heard more chatter, and there she was. Alexia Putellas in all her glory. The blonde in her hair had grown out more since you saw her last, and you couldn't help but notice that it looked good. But that was never getting said out loud, absolutely not.
"Wow, Putellas. Looking rough today."
The way her head snapped up from the paper made you want to rub your neck. "Yeah, and you look gorgeo- terrible." Your eyebrows rose to your hairline as you shoved past her to the sunny outdoors.
You spent the next 30 minutes kicking a soccer ball between you and the wall, and attempting different tricks. "Ah, la reina decided to bless us with her presence." Even if she took much longer than you did to get ready, the woman looked amazing.
One of the interns led the two of you toward a table set up with microphones and too many reporters to count. You sipped your water from the bottle next to you as they all started opening their mouths and asking questions, in English, German, and Spanish. You appreciated the attempts to cater to both of you, and it made it easier.
"Y/n, you are a favorite for the Balon d'Or this year. Do you feel you'll win?"
You gave a smile once you found the reporter who asked the question, before clearing your throat. "I mean, I feel I've been good for both club and country, so I hope I can get my second. But, I of course wish luck to all the players nominated." The answer seemed good enough, making them finally motion for the ending of the panel.
The next few hours were filled with more interviews, making videos, and even lunch. It was all fun, but what you were really ready for was being able to coach a football team against Alexia. It was all for the fun of the kids; you couldn't help but be competitive.
You got a good group of kids, and even though you had a few shy ones, they still looked ready.
"Ok, when I blow my whistle, it's go time." The shrill blaring made you start clapping along with the cheering parents around you.
It was a bit of a rough start, as expected when you throw a bunch of people who have never played together. But your team eventually found its groove and got a goal in before half-time.
"Great job, kinder. We've got this, just make sure to not get scared on the ball, Ali."
You gave your group their drink bottles and a quick high-five before watching them run back out to the grass. Even though your quick glance over to Alexia made her look confident, you were even more. And you were right. Your kids scored two more goals before the final whistle blew, making it a 3-0 win.
A tap on your shoulder made you glance up from a little boy, and see a shy-looking Alexia with her hand held out. "Good game, you deserved the win."
"Wow, danke Putellas." You were almost positive you could see a tinge of pink paint her cheeks, but she turned back before you could get a good look.
There was something different about her stare toward you. Instead of the usual competitive sparkle, there was more of a softness, which did make you get it in your head a bit. After you shook your head, you looked down at your hand to see a piece of folded-up paper.
xxx-xxx-xxxx llámame - alexia
You wanted to look around for her, but it was clear most people had already left the stadium. "Of course." You whispered under your breath as you walked to get your bag for the walk back.
Between all the traffic from parents, the organizers, and social media, your odds of getting out of the parking lot looked slim. But just your luck, a honk from a shiny black fancy car caught your attention.
"Do you need a ride?" An almost fully brunette head popped out from the window. It took a minute of debating, but a ride with Alexia Putellas was better than getting hit by a car on the walk out.
You threw your bag on the floor in front of your feet and heard the roaring of the engine starting back up. There was no conversation, and you definitely weren't starting one, so you grabbed a cord connected to the radio and put your playlist on.
"What is this?"
"My music, Putellas, the best kind."
"Es una mierda." Even though she let out a laugh that made your cheeks warm, you couldn't help but make an offended noise. "Did you want a heartfelt conversation then?" The silence answered your question.
"That's what I thought."
You spent the rest of the ride with the window down, singing off-tune to the collection of songs. "This is me." She looked over and was about to unlock the doors before she took her hand away.
"Would you want to, gosh. Would you want to get coffee with me tomorrow?"
Judging by her breathing and the way she wouldn't take her eyes off the steering wheel, it took quite some effort to get the question out there. "Why not. I'll meet you at 9."
You didn't take a chance to see her reaction before grabbing your stuff and slamming the door shut. As you watched her car drive by, you couldn't help but rub your hand across your face.
Alexia was gorgeous; you could admit that much. And did you sometimes think about what it would be like to get to know her better? Maybe. But there was no way you were going to let anyone see that.
As much as you wished the partially stiff hotel bed would engulf you and take you away, it didn't. You went about showering and brushing your teeth before you heard a ding coming from your phone.
Alexia: hi :) i just wanted to make sure my number worked and we are still good for tomorrow You: yeah it works lol and ofc, i just need the address Alexia: perfect! nos vemos mañana por la mañana. [ see you tomorrow morning ]
You put the address she sent you into the search engine and got pictures of a cute corner cafe with what looked like a view of the ocean. The reviews were good, and the menu looked amazing for a small place.
You lay on your bed with the TV on and replied to messages you'd gotten throughout the day, stopping when you saw a TikTok message from Lindsay. Normally, she sent you videos of animals, of her own TikToks begging you to like them. But this time, it was a clip from earlier in the day. A clip of you and Alexia.
Of course it was, because what else would it be? Normally, you didn't mind fan edits or the theories that they all believed to be true. There was no real reason to post on your social media aside from sponsorships or the occasional photo dump.
But something about this being an edit basically saying you and Alexia were looking like a couple from being rivals, made you shiver a bit. She was gorgeous, of course, and there were times you debated asking her out, but there was no way you would ever build up the confidence to actually do it.
The combined sounds of your alarm and texts woke you up from whatever dream you were having. "Oh Scheiße." It was 9:10, and you'd gotten more than five texts from Alexia with varying messages, the last one being her saying that she was leaving and that she was sorry for asking you out.
You were rushing to get dressed in an attempt to catch Alexia before she left, but you knew it was impossible. Even more so with the fact that you had to work the event, but she had practice to go alongside it.
You still called the same car to pick you up, but made a plan to get him to take you somewhere else before the charity event.
Patri was walking with Cata and Claudia when she saw a blonde getting out of a fancy-looking car. "Hey, isn't that Y/n?"
"Wait, yeah. What is she doing here? Confessing her love to Ale?" Claudia muttered under her breath, getting a hit on her shoulder from both women.
"Hallo. Do you know if Alexia is here yet?" You walked up to the trio, seeing a range of looks from confused to amused. "We just got here, lo siento."
You sighed and dragged your hands across your face. "Can I at least come in to see? I need to talk to her."
They walked ahead of you as you scrolled through your messages, seeing if any of them were read. Other than the sounds of talking and faint music, you couldn't find her anywhere until you walked by the gym doors. You glanced in to see Alexia in her Barcelona gear, lifting weights with sweat on her forehead.
"Hallo."
"What are you doing here? Did you break in?" Even in the seriousness of the situation, you couldn't help but laugh under your breath. You set your phone down on one of the benches before walking over to where the brunette stood.
"Alexia, I'm so sorry. I slept through my alarms because my ringer was off."
"No, it's fine. It was stupid to ask you out on a date like that." She walked with the weights in her hand to put them back on the rack. You grabbed her wrist before opening your mouth, "Alexia, I wanted to go out with you, truly. I was kicking myself for missing out this morning. Why else would I be here?"
She shrugged her shoulders as well as she could. You grabbed the weights and set them on the floor before taking her hand properly.
"Let me take you to dinner tonight. Bitte. Just you and me." You could see her thoughts racing before giving you a slight nod.
"Wonderful, I'll pick you up then." You leaned down slightly to kiss her on the cheek before walking out to see her teammates huddled against the wall. You couldn't help but let out a laugh under your breath and grabbed your phone from your pocket, immediately looking for restaurants with the best reviews.
You tipped the taxi driver extra money to get you back to your hotel as quickly as possible. The only clothes that were in your suitcase were jeans, pajamas, a sweatshirt (which you were wearing), and pajamas.
The man at the front desk was helpful in letting you know about the shop across the street with designer clothing, and you practically skipped out the door.
The sun had begun to set as you rushed toward the elevator. You immediately put your hair up to fix your eyebrows and eyelashes, and put on lip gloss. At the small shop, you found an oversized dark navy blazer with a skirt that complemented your wavy hair. You smoothed it on your body, staring at yourself in the mirror.
It was almost dark outside the window when you looked, making you pull on socks and the loafers to rush out. Alexia had texted you earlier, saying she wanted to get to the restaurant on her own, wanting to be with her own thoughts for a while. You were fine with it, of course, you were just lucky the woman agreed to go out with you at all.
You were sitting at the table of two in the back you had reserved earlier in the afternoon. It was a bit awkward when the waitress came over at least twice, asking if you were still waiting. You were wasting time on your phone when someone cleared their throat.
"Hola. Siento llegar tarde, Alba insistió en elegir mi ropa." [ hi. sorry i'm late, alba insisted on picking my outfit. ]
"It's no problem, really, a bit of payback for earlier, I guess." Clearly, the situation was too fresh to joke about, judging by the wince that graced Alexia's face. You got out of where you sat to pull her chair out, before going back and watching her open the menu.
The conversation started slowly, albeit your lack of Spanish and her lack of German wasn't helpful, but a few glasses of wine helped. It wasn't long before you had the older woman leaning against you as you called a cab in the warm night.
"Thank you for dinner, estuvo muy bien." You nodded at her, noticing how her smile widened, and her teeth looked like they glistened more in the moonlight. There was something about the way the wavy pieces of hair that slipped out blew in the warm wind. Then it came to you. "Did you drive here?"
The Spanish woman nodded slowly, starting to touch the baby's hair at the back of your neck, and you immediately canceled the car you ordered. There was no way you were going to let the drunk woman drive herself home. You took her arm to wrap around your shoulders as you walked to soon see the dark matte Cupra.
Alexia was no less stubborn when she was drunk; she insisted on sitting in the front seat, and then forced her hand into yours to grab your fingers as soon as you got in the driver's seat. You sent a prayer to above because if you got a scratch on her precious car, you wouldn't be returning to France.
It wasn't a long drive to her house; it was literally 10 minutes away from the restaurant, but between Alexia grabbing your hands and suddenly sobbing at a pop song, it took almost 30. You ushered her in through the apartment door, not wanting to wake her neighbors, and took off both of your shoes.
"You are so pretty." The mixture of the statement and it being Alexia's first words since leaving made you jump a bit, and you felt your face heat. You couldn't help but shake your head as you grabbed pajamas from the dresser.
As if the brunette hadn't been completely conscious a few minutes ago, she was now slumped against you, again. You let out an insanely loud groan as you undressed down to your bra and underwear. You tried to look everywhere but at Alexia as you washed her hair, but it was hard when she insisted on facing you.
You got both yourself and Alexia dressed before you took her to her bed and pulled the covers over her. You waited until she fell asleep to give her a kiss on the crown of her hair. "Buenas noches, Ale." The bathroom lights felt blinding compared to the dim room, but you brushed your hair and rinsed your face before tiptoing to the chair next to her bed.
Alexia woke up to the brightness in her room from the open curtains. As much as she tried to remember the night before, she couldn't. The last thing she could recall was you tucking her in before she fell back asleep. "Mierde."
As her eyes did a quick run over the room, she saw your messy hair hanging off the edge of the chair. You looked ethereal in her eyes. The more she looked at you, the more she felt as if the two of you were meant to be. It sounded stupid and cliché, but it was how her heart ached that made her believe it. She took a last look at your face before changing into her gear and going to the kitchen.
When you woke, your neck was cramping, and you were warm from the hot sun on your face. It took a minute for you to fully wake up, but you shot up when you did. There was no way Alexia was still home; you would have heard her if she was, whether it was yelling or something else, it didn't matter.
Your flight to take you back to France was later in the day, but you couldn't get on it without talking to the older woman. There wasn't enough time to go back to your hotel room and go to the training grounds, so you made the rational decision of leaving Alexia's apartment to go to Barcelona's grounds.
The reflection of you in the mirror by the front door looked terrible; with your smudged mascara, wrinkled clothes, and frizzy hair, you were looking worse than you would like to when going to confess your love. The most you could do was wash your face, put your hair up, and smooth the wrinkled white shirt. Granted, you had to steal a pair of shorts from Alexia's cabinet, but you'd hoped she wouldn't mind.
You watched the ordered car pull up to the training center, and it was hard to miss the purple training tops for the women's team. "Gracias, señor." You waved as the car drove away, and all your nerves suddenly became real. You knew, or were at least 99 percent sure, that the feelings were reciprocated, but it still scared you.
If you were to go off the schedule they had for you at Lyon, you would reckon that they were about to head off to lunch. And that's when you saw her. Brown ponytail trailing behind her as she laughed with the goalkeeper, you knew as Cata Coll, not being unfamiliar with her saves.
"Joder, Ale. ¿Es esa chica que te gusta la que te está esperando?" [ Holy crap, Ale. Is that your girl crush waiting for you? ]
Alexia shifted her gaze over to see you in the same top from last night, but a strangely familiar-looking pair of shorts. "What are you doing here? The event is finished. Don't you have practice?"
"Yeah, I have a flight later, but I couldn't let myself leave without seeing you." She put her finger up, practically waving it in your face, before going around the gate to stand next to you, leaning on the gate as well. "What happened last night?"
"Just you getting too wine drunk and me having to carry you into your own car and bed." You couldn't help but laugh at the grimace on her face and the way she leaned her head on the fence. "I don't mind, it wasn't anything much."
"But I didn't come here for anything. I wanted to ask if we could keep talking, not as friends, but to see if there could be something more." The minute you started, you couldn't stop. And as nervous as you were, the subtle smile that grew on her face made you feel better.
"Yeah, I think that would be nice. As long as you get a new alarm to wake up."
"Sounds like a deal. I'll look forward to a text, Ale." You leaned forward to kiss her cheek, and you saw the faces of her teammates staring through the glass door. More specifically, the phones of one Vicky Lopez and one Claudia Pina. A laugh escaped your lips, and you turned your back to Alexia, walking out the grounds entrance with a skip in your step.
wow.. this took way too long to get written, but i swear my brain is like fried. i promise i'll try to be more consistent w uploading, but senior year is kicking my ass :)
