Pedri Trying To Get Our Forwards To Score From His Chances

We're cruising (not really but just keep smiling) 😎

A Real Madrid loss to top off the two good matches.

love song ♬— pt 1 [ J.M ]

pairings: jamal musiala x fem!oc

summary [please read]

genres: strangers to lovers, fluff, angst, sports romance

[w.c: 2k] masterlist

notes: it's finally here!!! I hope you guys like it, because I swear as the story progresses you're going to fall in love with them xxx (I hope)

noelle braun sat in the crowded lecture hall, here eyes fixed on the clock as the minutes ticked by at a glacial pace. the air was heavy with the scent of coffee and ink, the oddly calming sound of textbook pages turning filling her senses.

all of this was a potent reminder that today marked the beginning of the end— the final thesis topic, the last hurdle before graduation, and the moment of truth that would make or break her academic career.

she had been looking forward to this moment for weeks, yet now that it was finally here, she felt a sense of trepidation wash over her. their psychology professor and head of department, dr. braun stood at the front of the lecture hall with a stack of papers in her hand.

“today you will receive your thesis topics,” she announced and began handing out the reports to the respective students— a few groans and sighs of dread filling the air as she continued to pace the lecture hall.

"remember this is a milestone in your academic journey, and the first time that you haven't chosen your own topics for your research task.”

noelle's knee bounced eagerly as her professor neared her seat, passing a rubric to a learner down the row before finally playing the piece of paper gently on noelle's desk, her eyes widening in anticipation and expectation for a topic that would challenge her.

something that would get the gears in her head turning nonstop, something to feed her curious and knowledge hungry mind. noelle loved thinking. it was her favourite pastime, just simply taking a stroll through the streets of munich with her airpods in as her mind wandered.

but unfortunately that was not the case today. her eyes scanned over the thesis title written at the top of her page, a sinking feeling in her stomach swallowing her until she was drowning in a pool of disbelief.

her hands absentmindedly clutched the piece of paper, wrinkling the edges and her brows. the sound of the bell sounding signified the end of the lecture and day, the clock above reading 2:15 p.m. dr. braun continued to go on about their due dates and so on along with the turmoil of students that stampede their way out of the university to ffinally emerse themselves in the freedom of summer break.

it was only when the lecture hall was empty that noelle hurriedly grabbed her laptop and bag, her eyes narrowing as she approached her professor. the florescent lights overhead casted and unforgiving glare on the worn linoleum floor.

“romantic love?” she questioned dryly and held up the page in the air, the crumbled edges being enough of a telltale that she wanted to shred it.

from her position behind her desk dr. brauner let out a sigh and gave noelle a questioning look. “yes. explore the subjective experience of romantic love. it's a fascinating topic and I think that you'll find it quite rewarding.”

noelle had to bite her tongue in order to stop herself from being disrespectful. how was this supposed to be rewarding? she paused for a moment and watched as the older woman continued to pack her things away, her eagerness to get home evident.

she was just about to give up, a few steps forward but she couldn't settle for this. this was her entire grade on the line. “it's just that–” her shoulders squared, her eyes pleading as dr. brauner took a seat on the edge of her desk. “–I'm not comfortable with this topic, which means that I won't be able to do my best an–”

“–that's the point noelle.” dr. braun threw her hands into the air, a lighthearted smile on her face as she stared at the conflicted girl in front of her. “this is a learning experience. a reason for you to explore and get out of your comfort zone.”

noelle's jaw tightened. “I understand that but–”

“–then you don't understand if you have something more to say,” she shot noelle down and the girl was quiet, her lips slightly parted as she contemplated fighting.

the tension in the lecture hall was thick, noelle's throat constricting with every second she stood silent. she wasn't typically the type who liked arguing, she remained as much of a pacifist as she could. but now that her degree was on the line over a stupid theis topic, she was going to fight for it.

a heavy sigh came from dr. braun and she lifted herself from her desk to take a few steps closer to her daughter, her fingers brushing a few dark strands out of her face. a warm smile drew to her lips as she felt the girl ease under her touch. “I am not just saying this as your professor, but as your mother. I really think this could be good for you.”

“mama, how am I supposed to do a research paper on something that I've never experienced? i'm not interested,” noelle said barely above a whisper, embarrassment and slight irritation looming over her head.

she felt her mother gently squeeze her shoulder. “ella, this is not just about romantic love; it's about understanding human experience. and it's exactly because you're not interested that you need to do it.”

noelle’s face twisted, her mind racing with counterarguments, but her mother's expression remained unyielding. for a moment, they locked eyes, the tension palpable.

finally she looked away, her shoulders slumping in defeat. “fine,” she muttered, the words bitter on her lips.

as she turned to leave, her mother's voice called out, “remember, growth happens outside of your comfort zone.”

noelle's eyes flashed with anger, but she bit back her retort, the words burning in her throat. she knew her mother was right, but that didn't make it any easier to swallow.

instead she pushed open the large campus door and let the munich summer air hit her face— much cooler than you'd expect as the crisp air brought her back to reality with a deep inhale and exhale. she looked down at the page in her hand one last time, the title mocking her.

the phenomenology of being in love: exploring the subjective feeling of being in love.

that thursday afternoon, noelle found herself in her usual post lecture spot— the local coffee shop not too far from campus. she felt down, unmotivated and… bleh. which meant that she needed one thing. coffee.

she pushed the door open, the bell over it ringing out as she stepped inside. the aroma of freshly brewed coffee enveloped her, immediately lifting her spirits. she made her way to the counter, where her friend, lauren, was working.

as usual her smiled beamed the second she caught sight of noelle, the familiar face giving her a reason to take her third break of the day. “I know that look,” lauren said with a sigh and started on noelle’s order without a word.

the glum university student managed a lopsided smile and sat down on one of the bar stools with her caramel macchiato in front of her within seconds. the two sat silently for a bit until noelle mustered up the energy to realise that the coffee shop was emptier than usual.

“where is everyone?” her gaze drifted to the booths in the far corner that were empty, the faint sound of music playing through the speakers. “is something happening today?”

from behind the counter lauren scoffed and continued to wipe down the table. “everyone is getting ready for tomorrow you idiot.”

when she didn't get a response lauren furrowed her brows in shock, initially waiting for noelle to catch on but she didn't. instead she took another silent sip of her coffee.

lauren let out a laugh of disbelief. “summer break means that it's international break.”

there was a beat of silence again which caused lauren to dramatically throw herself over the counter and slap her friend on the head. “the euros you dut!”

oh shit.

how could she forget?? it's been on her mind since the beginning of the year and she planned her entire summer around the football tournament. it was the whole reason she was banking on an “easy” thesis topic, so that it wouldn't consume all her time.

almost as if on cue noelle’s phone rang, making her jump up. “shit,” she cursed and gathered her things so that she could answer the call.

lauren watched in confusion as she scrambled her things together, barely being able to put her coat on properly as she answered the person on the other end of the line.

“I was just about to call you– yeah I just got out of my lecture.” the lie slipped past her lips easily, earning a judgmental look from lauren as she handed noelle the coffee and headed into the back to fetch something.

“I'm literally on my way to the airport right now– no I'm not lying. okay, bye I'll see you soon.”

noelle ended the call as quickly as she picked it up, and hastily grabbed her bag and coffee to make a beeline for the door she completely forget that she had to pick one of her friends up at the airport and somehow needed to be there in the next 20 minutes.

she was more than ready to get at least 3 speeding fines and–

she stopped dead in her tracks, her eyes shut as she felt the liquid seep into the fabric of her sweatshirt and even on her skirt. just great.

“oh no, I'm so sorry!” the man infront of her exclaimed, as noelle tried her best to dry her jumper with the napkins on the counter.

“no, no it's fine! I'm just… really late!” she discarded the napkins carelessly, hoping that lauren would understand when she came back.

“wait, let me help you with that,” he said apologetically, trying to get some napkins to help noelle with the spill but she insisted that she was fine.

“are you sure okay?” he asked again, but she just brushed him off with an awkward laugh and a thumbs up, not giving a proper answer since she was running to the door again, her bag hanging on for dear life.

the stranger watched as she checked her phone again, her figure disappearing through the door and around the corner and surprisingly she bumped into someone as they were coming into the coffee shop again. but there was no time for apologies.

the new customer looked to the dumbfounded boy in front of him. “jamal, that girl that just bumped into me,” he turned to the door again, “sounded a lot like one of aaliyah's friends.”

the stranger now known as jamal let out a heavy sigh and rolled his eyes. “I don't know any of your girlfriend's friends flo, but she bumped into me too.” he looked down at the ground where there was still some coffee. “I spilled coffee on her… kind of.”

florian took a few steps further into the empty coffee shop, his eyes squinting in confusions at the empty reception. he came here for coffee because aaliyah really liked this place for some reason, and so far he didn't see the hype or the employees.

he leant back on the counter to look at jamal who was still hung up on the coffee spill on the floor. “dude, she didn't even look me in the eye.” he let out a groan and put his hands on his head, “oh god she probably hates me!”

“she doesn't even know who you are stop stressing,” his friend replied but jamal was still stressing for whatever reason, letting his guilt get the best of him as usual. “it was aaliyah's friend that recommended this coffee shop too, the psych major–”

“–noelle, what the fuck?!”

the two customers jolted at the sound of the new voice, florian jumping up from the counter where the employee was stood with her eyes wide in anger and shock. and this just made jamal feel even worse.

“yeah that's her name, noelle,” the shorter of the two said and snapped his fingers, looking back at jamal with a smile but the boy looked as if he was ready to crawl into a hole and die.

note to self: apologise to noelle, the pysch major. (double check with sophia)

it's so cuuuuute

love song ♬— chapter 3 [ J.M ]

pairing: jamal musiala x fem!oc

summary [please read]

genre(s): strangers to lovers, fluff, angst and football romance

[w.c: 2.8k] masterlist

notes: heyyyyy, I managed to finish the chapter today!! surprise!! I hope you guys are enjoying it xxx

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the following day, as promised, the group of friends were headed on a little outing to congratulate the boys on their win. they burst into the bustling mall, laughter and chatter filling the air.

it started off well, conversation flowing easily between them just like it used to.

“spain is playing in berlin tonight,” noelle said in recollection and fixed the position of the the bag strap on her shoulder.

florian turned to look at her with his eyes widened, then hitting kai on the arm. “that lamine yamal kid? an absolute class player. we need to go and watch them play.”

from beside him aaliyah let out a scoff. “we actually have an england match to watch,” she let out a dazed sigh, “I need a picture with jude.”

florian’s smile immediately dropped, causing jamal to stifle a laugh from beside noelle. “we'll end up going anyway, let's just pray that they play each other at some stage to kill two birds with one stone.”

jamal looked to aaliyah with a quirked eyebrow. “you could've just asked me, I have connections with mr superstar.”

“no way,” noelle said in surprise. “I have connections with mr superstar's best friend.”

“you know trent?” he asked again, but she shook her head with a smile.

“close, I know his girlfriend. we went to high-school together.”

sophia perked up at your mention, knowing exactly who you were talking about. “I keep on forgetting that you went to high-school with jamie. what a small world we live in.”

“you know jamie?” jamal spat, disbelief spread all over his face and it made noelle furrow her brows, not sure what was so shocking. who didn't know her? “jamie carter? that jamie?”

when noelle nodded he couldn't help but chuckle in shock— the girl he had a thing for was friends with his childhood friend. “small world might be an understatement. we were in the chelsea academy together. major older sister energy, I'm still traumatised.”

the shared connection led to a comfortable conversation between the two strangers, their footsteps trailing behind the two couples ahead who were lost in their own world. noelle shared fond memories of the older girl to jamal, about how she took noelle under her wing for what ever reason.

it was one of those silly situations where the protectiveness of someone would ultimately end in a friendship between someone in year 11 and 9. so for those two years that jamie had left, she made sure to care for noelle as if she were her own.

“oh, she's so small!” jamie cooed at the newcomer, noelle immediately stopping in her tracks to see that she was the only year 9 who signed up for school newspaper.

“what's your name, angel?” jamie questioned and ushered her into the room, everyone lounging around the meeting table with her at the head.

noelle hesitated for a moment, her eyes scanning the faces of her seniors— jamie’s boisterous personality standing out. “noelle braun.”

“no way! kelly, remember when I said that I wanted to name my baby girl noelle?? i have it in my notes app.”

from that day onward, noelle couldn't recall a day where she wasn't sat with jamie at school studying in the library, asking for advice or watching the older girl join in on the football matches that took place at recess.

jamal listened intently as she spoke fondly of her, a warm hearted laugh leaving his lips. “yeah, that sounds exactly like her. toned down a bit, I reckon since she's older now.”

from ahead of them sophia couldn't help but look over her shoulder every so often to see the two wandering slowly, conversation being made despite noelle's timid personality. and that was the shocking part. she didn't like sharing too much about herself unless she was comfortable with someone.

her answers were always kept short and brief, a tight lipped smile following after to mimick her stiff behaviour. jamal was similar, but he knew how to carry a conversation with a bashful smile— which was exactly what he was doing now, his clammed hands stuffed into the pocket of his jeans.

this might be a lot easier than she thought.

as they stopped at a clothing store, sophia and kai drifted off somewhere, with aaliyah and florian heading in the opposite direction. the girls held on to thein boyfriend's for dear life, exchanging smitten looks and kisses every so often.

noelle and jamal exchanged a knowing glance.

“I think we're cramping their love fest,” he whispered and she nodded, her nose scrunching at the sight of kai tickling sophia.

she looked up to jamal. “coffee break?”

jamal couldn't stop the smile that drew to his lips, his heart fluttering for some reason as he stepped to the side and gestured for noelle to walk ahead. “it's like you're a genuis.”

without drawing attention, they slipped away from the group, leaving the affectionate couples to their shopping spree. eventually they settled into a cozy café, jamal taking the liberty to order their drinks as promised.

when their order got called up, he handed the latte to noelle with a playful smile. “my sincerest apologies once again, you'll be able to taste it in the coffee, I swear.”

a giggle left her lips as she took her seat at the back of the café, further away from everyone and he took a seat in front of her. “oh, really? what was the coffee made with exactly?” she asked jokingly, a playful smile on her lips.

“immense guilt and embarrassment,” he desdpanned, causing noelle to force down the laugh itching at her throat before they fell back into a peaceful atmosphere.

the conversation drifted from topic to topic, shared laughter floating in the air. “so what do you think they're going to do next?” jamal asked grinning, hinting at their friends that they left behind.

noelle pretended to think for a moment. “probably plan a joint wedding.”

his eyes widened in mock horror, the footballers reaction being her to laughter once more. “don't even joke about that.”

everything was going great to his surprise, and in no time his sweaty palms were the last thing on his mind. he was curious. curious about how noelle was, what she enjoyed and why she drank 4 mugs of coffee a day? he'd barely scraped the surface.

it came up naturally, his job and her life at university. and the fact that she was a psychology major made so much sense to him. “you fit the stereotype perfectly.”

noelle smiled, “and what’s that?”

the footballer leaned back in his chair, his eyes narrowing as he scanned noelle’s features and stature. not to be weird but he'd been observing her for quite some time, seeing as he didn't have the courage to actually talk to her. all those days in the coffee shop, ordering coffee only to give it to one of his teammates because he wasn't a huge indulger due to his diet.

“you like to keep to yourself, a natural observer.” noelle gasped, ready to plead her case but he cut her off. “yeah, don't act like I don't see the way that you look at people, you're psychoanalysing everyone you creep.”

“creep is a bit much,” she interjected, her hand covering her mouth in shock. accusations— correct accusations. nevertheless she gestured for him to carry on.

he hummed in thought. “your colour palette is very neutral, very cosy. autumn is definitely your favourite season,” he said that was so much certainty and noelle nodded along, a hum of confirmation leaving her lips.

“and you're an older sibling.” her lips parted slightly, shock evident. “I know that from experience, definitely a younger sister— teenager.”

noelle threw her head back with a groan, the mention of her younger sister giving her a splitting headache. “I hate 15 year olds. she's like a demon, sucking the life out of me.”

she didn't have the best relationship with her sister carmen. blame it on puberty, and the fact that carmen hated everything and everyone, meaning that noelle was privileged with the ‘evil older sister’ title for trying to help her— or doing anything really.

“ugh, can you just leave me alone?” carmen would yell, marching out of the living room with her blood boiling. “do you have nothing better to do than make my life difficult?”

the door slammed. all this just because noelle offered to help her with an assignment since she was struggling.

“so, what's your assignment about?” jamal asked, his curiosity getting the better of him. “sophia said you weren't too happy about it.”

with a bitter smile noelle took another sip of her latte, the warm liquid spreading through her chest. “I'm exploring the phenomenology of romantic love— how people experience and understand love.”

the genuine glint shimmered in jamal's eyes, his interest piquing although he could see that she was anything but pleased or excited about it. “that sounds interesting, and fun. how's it going so far?”

“well,” she sighed, her eyes drifting out the café window for a moment. “it's not going at all. I didn't start yet, but I'm getting there.” she smiled. “I hope…”

she went on to tell him about using sophia, kai, aaliyah and florian as he guinea pigs to which he was very pleased about. he let out an amused hum, nodding fondly at the idea. “you're about to get a phd with that thesis, they're your one way ticket to success.”

as they delved deeper into conversation, jamal discovered noelle's infectious laugh, her eagerness and passion for understanding human emotions, and her very subtle sense of humour. in turn, noelle, found jamal's kind heart, his genuine interest in her thoughts and his captivating smile.

the café’s background hum faded into the distance as they lost themselves until they finished their drinks, jamal's phone buzzed in his pocket, a stifled laugh leaving his lips at the message. “looks like the lovebirds are done shopping.”

noelle smiled, stretching her arms with a content sigh. “time to rejoin the flock. thanks for the coffee break by the way, I felt like I was having withdrawal symptoms.”

with a chuckle he held the door open for the smaller girl. “you seriously need to watch your caffeine intake.”

as the evening drew to close, the girls decided to head back to noelle’s apartment since it's where they'd be staying during their time in munich. watching her friends separate from their boyfriend's was a sight for sore eyes, her face displaying her distaste while simply giving jamala a polite wave.

the trio settled into noelle's cozy living room, surrounded by plush cushions and soft lighting. sophia poured wine into their glasses with a satisfied smile before plopping down next to her friends on the couch.

they went over the events of the day and how nice it was to be out with their partners again before they'd be pressed with the task of immense stress to soothe due to the tournament. with that, noelle naturally faded into the background as a listener, trying her best to understand their situations.

it was a task and a half to be there for their partners emotionally during times like this, and it was tough to imagine. but once again, it took a toll on each partner emotionally and mentally. [add to thesis outline]

“where did you sneak off to by the way?” aaliyah's voice snapped her out of her daze, a distant hum leaving her lips as she recollected her thoughts.

sophia and aaliyah eyed noelle with knowing looks. “you left us hanging, to hang out with jamal.”

noelle couldn't help the scoff that she let out, the accusation rather amusing. “first of all, you left me hanging.” she pointed to herself with a pointed expression, then shrugged. “and jamal owed me anyway. I got apology coffee.”

a gasp left sophia's lips and she straightened her posture. “your favourite.”

aaliyah shook her head and set her glass down on the coffee table then snuggled futher into the couch. “sorry that we left you like that. we know you aren't much of a talker, it was probably really awkward.”

“it actually wasn't,” noelle said softly, not thinking much of her answer yet the unfamiliar feeling in her stomach said otherwise.

with confused looks, her friends looked at her with intrigue and mild confusion because they knew that if noelle was put in a situation where she had to be with someone she didn't know, silence was her go to. they'd seen it first hand at parties and gatherings, she would literally sit or stand silently, her mind drifting elsewhere instead of engaging in small talk.

“yeah, it wasn't awkward. he’s actually really easy to talk to.”

sophia nodded slowly, a sly grin settling on her lips. “oh, really?” she turned to aaliyah who was more confused, not quite catching onto her friend's initial thought. “you know, he's not much of a talker either.”

it was aaliyah's turn to chime in. “he's got that whole charming thing down though. I seriously don't underatand how he doesn't have a girlfriend yet.” her tone was laced with something that only sophia caught onto, her smile deepening while noelle simply took in the information.

she shot her friends a quizzical look, surprised by the newfound information. initially she thought that he'd be tied down with someone, you know footballers and their antics. all that stereotypical stuff.

noelle''s expression read “noted”, earning proud glances from the two girls in front, silently scheming. it wasn't the first time that they'd be playing matchmaker with her. they tried whenever they encounter someone who seemed the slightest bit fit for their best friend. even if it were just for the experience.

but when sophia was sitting at home back in london a while ago, jamal had come back to visit for a few days with florian for kai. the two footballers were in her living room one day, waiting for kai to come back from pracrice when she overheard a conversation.

she didn't get the details but all she knew is that jamal had his eyes set on someone that he's never spoken to. it sounded funny at first until the person started sounding oddly familiar, but she pushed it to the side until later that evening again. once again they were on the topic of relationships, and kai was telling jamal to let loose a little.

he was reluctant of course. “you guys got lucky, okay. I can't do that, girlfriend’s don't sure show up out of nowhere.”

“unless…” florian trailed off, hinting at an idea that jamal immediately cut off. “you're too picky.”

sophia hit him on the arm for that comment, feeling sorry for the younger boy. “don't listen to him, he's stupid.” she took a seat on the armrest of the couch beside kai. “start off simple. what do you look for in a partner? maybe I know someone.” that was supposed to be a joke.

he was put on the spot, not having much of a criteria because he wasn't picky. “I don't know,” he sighed. “I just need someone to talk to I guess, someone gentle— I've had my fair share of brutal women in my life. this is going to sound weird but someone warm–”

“dude what does that even mean? you're asking for a pillow,” kai said with a judgemental look thay florian mimicked. of course that earned him another slap on the shoulder.

jamal rolled his eyes. “your girlfriends hate you in secret just so by the way.”

“as if,” florian scoffed and sunk deeper into the couch cushion while kai turned to look up at sophia with pleading eyes although she avoided his gaze, an awkward laugh leaving her lips.

“someone smarter than me,” jamal spoke up and sophia stopped for a moment. “that would be fun. ugh, I don't know,” he groaned in frustration and ran his palms over his face, flushed in embarrassment. “I just need somebody to love without worrying about them trying to steal my money!”

florian choked on his laughter. “okay, justin bieber calm down now.”

sophia on the other hand was on the verge of leaping up and smacking herself for being so damn blind. because she did in fact, know someone.

the only issue was that she was dealing with two very stubborn individuals, one of which hated the idea of romantic relationships as a whole. but there was a plan, there always had to be a plan, and it started with planting the idea into noelle's mind, a single seed of possibility that would eventually plague her mind if it was watered enough.

jamal was easy, he liked her but sophia wasn't sure how much that silent infatuation and intrigue would get her. of course it all needed to happen naturally, but she was more than happy to be the catalyst.

“he has a really cute smile by the way, not to be weird or anything,” noelle stated out of the blue, her friends nodding in agreement at the sudden proclamation, their silent exchange of high fives beneath the blanket giving them hope.

and the seed was planted.

being a ferrari & a barca fan just means double the amount of depression tbh 😭

Another Classico under the belt for the season 💪🏽

Lamine is only 17y/o, he cannot possibly travel back to Barcelona on his own. Call back Pedri as his travel companion

Barca's game against Las Palmas today 😭

"watching sports is so fun!" for YOU maybe. me, im about to slam my head through a brick wall over here

I canttttttt lmao

Helppp

pedri is who these other midfielders wish they were ❤️