The morning was crisp as Izan rode to school, the morning fog wetting his face as it brushed against it.
Getting to school, the familiar scene that he had been facing for a while now greeted him.
The usual crowd at the gates, clamouring for autographs and selfies. Izan got down and fulfilled their wishes.
With a polite smile and a few quick signatures, he waved them off, promising more after school. Mr. Ramos, the ever-reliable security guard, gave him a nod.
"Copa del Rey ga tomorrow, eh? I don’t think you’ll play or will you?" Ramos said.
"No, Not for this ti," Izan replied, chuckling. "I’m being rested. Sosa’s got the spotlight." Izan said after locking his bike before walking away.
Inside, the day passed in a blur of lessons and laughter. Izan and SoSa found themselves paired for a history project, an assignnt that quickly turned into football banter.
"Coach told I’m starting against Cartagena," Sosa said, his eyes gleaming with excitent.
"That’s great then!" Izan exclaid, slapping him on the back. "Your second Copa del Rey match—don’t ss it up and you might be seeing in the main squad.."
"ss it up? Co on, man," Sosa shot back, grinning. "And you’re just sitting this one out because they don’t need you. They’ve got Sosa"
"No this won’t do. Stop hanging out with Pietro, okay? He is influencing you, and badly at that," Izan said, causing Sosa to laugh.
The two laughed, their camaraderie evident. The rest of the day was filled with lighthearted monts—acing a science quiz, joking during lunch, and planning strategies for their next school team match.
...
"Have you done what I asked you to do? You know about the pictures?" a confident voice asked after putting his phone to his ear.
"Yes, I did, but it will be released on the day of their Copa del Rey match." A voice ca out of the phone held to the forr’s ear.
"Good. Then I’ll talk to you later" the voice said before ending the call.
As the figure ended the call, the phone rang again. Squinting at the Caller I’d, the figure picked up the call with a smile.
"Hello Jane" the figure said after picking up.
.....
The next evening, Izan was sprawled on the living room couch with his sister, Hori. The TV was tuned to the Cartagena match, and the comntary filled the room.
"There’s SoSa," Hori pointed out excitedly. "He looks nervous."
"He’s fine," Izan assured her, watching intently. The ga started slow, but SoSa soon found his rhythm, starting a counter-attack that led to a goal and assisting another.
By the end, Valencia cruised to a comfortable win, with Sosa performing exquisitely but falling shy of the man of the match award.
"If only he could do it against those teams in Laliga, I wouldn’t be relied on too much", Izan joked, earning a playful shove from Hori.
After the match, the brother and Sister duo decided to make sothing since their mother hadn’t arrived.
As the duo started cooking, the door to the house opened revealing Komi in a thick Coat. "Where are my Babies," Komi said as she took her Coat off.
Izana and Hori stuck out their heads from a corner of the kitchen allowing Komi to see them.
Taking an apron from one of the shelves, Komi joined her son and daughter in preparing the dinner.
Monts later, Miranda arrived, falling onto the couch. She lay unmoving as she waited for dinner.
After a while, Komi woke her up, pointing to the set dinner table.
Miranda dragged herself to the dimr table where she ate like it was her last.
"Great match, wasn’t it?" Miranda said, joining them in the living room after dinner. Izan nodded at her words before frowning a bit.
"Mom said you were in Milan. What did you do there".
Miranda sat up and looked at Izan before starting, "Rember my friend, Jane, the physiotherapist who drew the plan for your injury recovery,", she said, looking at Izan as the latter nodded.
Seeing as Izan rembered, she continued, "Well she said she had a favour to ask and that I had to co to Milan.
I was excited at the thought of going to Milan since it’s been a while, so I packed my bag thinking I was going to et her, but I t soone else, telling Jane introduced to him" Miranda halted for a bit.
"Okay, go on", Izan said after Miranda stopped talking for a mont. "Well it was a club representative, wanting to trigger your release clause at Valencia"
"No, Miranda, I to-", Izan tried to say, but Miranda cut him off. "Yeah, yeah, I made it clear that we don’t have any plans to leave in the winter or for now but he was still insistent on you having their club as your priority if you decide to transfer.
Talking about Doubling or even tripling your current salary" Miranda ended.
"Wow, talk about determination. Anyways, which club is it?" Izan asked, his curiosity seeping.
Before Miranda could elaborate, a piercing scream ca from Hori. Izan bolted up, heart pounding, and rushed to the living room where she sat frozen, staring at her phone.
"What’s wrong?" Izan demanded, leaning over her.
"Look," Hori whispered, turning the screen toward him.
It was a breaking news headline: "Young Sensation Izan Linked to Top Italian Club in Serie A."
Izan’s jaw dropped as Komi and Miranda exchanged glances. The room was suddenly charged with a mix of disbelief and anticipation.
"What the fu.....
.....
The Valencia CF PR office was buzzing with activity. Phones rang incessantly, emails flooded inboxes, and the team mbers moved with an urgency befitting a crisis.
A large whiteboard stood at the centre of the room, covered in notes about Izan—his stats, recent performances, and potential responses to dia queries.
"Another call from Marca," one staffer called out. "They’re asking for confirmation on the Milan link."
"Tell them no comnt," replied Carn Ortiz, the head of PR, as she paced back and forth, her phone pressed to her ear. She ended one call and imdiately started another.
"This is Carn. No, we won’t confirm or deny any transfer rumours. Izan is a valued mber of our team, and we’re focused on his developnt at Valencia. Yes, that’s all we have to say at this ti."
Nearby, Diego, her assistant, was drafting a statent to post on the club’s official website and social dia channels.
"How about this?" he said aloud, reading from his screen. ’Valencia CF is aware of recent reports linking Izan to other clubs.
While speculation is part of football, we remain committed to supporting our players and their growth. Izan continues to be an integral part of our plans.’
"Perfect," Carn said, nodding. "Post it, but keep the comnts monitored. We don’t want this blowing up unnecessarily."
Another phone rang. This ti it was a call from an Italian journalist. "They’re persistent," muttered one of the interns.
"Just redirect them," Carn said, waving her hand. "We’re not feeding this fire."
Despite the chaos, the team operated like a well-oiled machine. dia channels were monitored, responses were synchronized, and plans were laid out for any follow-up questions during press conferences.
"We need to prepare Izan too," Carn added, addressing the team. "If reporters catch him after training, he needs to stick to the script: ’I’m focused on my football and my commitnt to Valencia.’ Make sure he understands that."
Her assistant nodded before moving to busy himself with another task. Carn sighed at the situation.
"I’m glad I’m getting paid well for this at the very least," she said as her phone rang again. Sighing, she took it and picked it up, "Yes, this is Carn. No not Manchester City......
As the day wore on, the team managed to contain the rumour’s impact, ensuring that the club’s narrative remained intact.
But the buzz around Izan’s potential move to AC Milan was only just beginning, and everyone in the room knew it.
...
While the Valencia Pr team found themselves at the end of requests from Various dia bodies, Miranda herself also got her fair share.
After seeing the news, several calls ca in asking if the rumour was true.
Miranda expertly denied them, but as if to fan the flas, several photos of her eting the representative were released.
"Oh, co on", she said as she slumped on the couch. Izan stood there smiling before his smile broke into a laugh.
Miranda and Hori, as well as Komi, stared at Izan with concern visible in their eyes.
Hori glanced at her mother before pointing to her head and swirling her fingers but Komi threw a cloth at her face.
"Why are you laughing? Do you think this is funny" Miranda asked.
"No, no,", Izan said as he stopped laughing. "I’m just thinking about how distraught Carn would be now," Izan said before he started chuckling.
"Carn?" the trio asked as they looked at Izan. "Our head of PR. She made go through such hellish dia training. It’s about ti she felt what it was like," Izan said as he walked to his room, still laughing.
Komi, Miranda and Hori stared at him as he walked away and only stopped when Miranda’s phone rang again.
A/n: Hope you guys are enjoying your holidays. Have fun with this chapter.
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