All Chapters of A World Cup Without You: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

9 Chapters

Chapter 1

"Ronaldo's definitely starting this time. I'll bring your player-issue jersey over tomorrow."Reid Callister pushed the front door open with his phone to his ear, grinning widely. His voice was bright with excitement.I sat on the couch with the glow of my phone screen washing over my face. On it was the social media post Reid had put up ten minutes ago."Why are you still up?"He kicked off his shoes and walked over, tossing his car keys onto the entryway table. When he saw me sitting in the dark, he came over and switched on the floor lamp. The warm yellow light stung my eyes."What are you looking at?"He sat down beside me, easy and familiar, and reached to drape his arm around my shoulders. I shifted slightly, pulling away from his touch. His hand froze in midair, and his brow creased."Your post."Reid paused for a beat, then pulled his hand back and loosened his tie."Oh, that." His tone was flat, dismissive. "Nola just got back to the country. She dragged me into watch

Chapter 2

The next afternoon, I went to the sports bar Reid always went to. I left a poster there six months ago, and it was stored behind the counter. It was something I had planned to surprise him with on game night.The bar was closed during the day, but I knew the back door was never locked. I pushed it open and made my way down the hallway. Just as I reached the private room I knew so well, the sound of laughter and voices from inside stopped me in my tracks."Reid, that post you put up last night was bold as hell." It was one of his friends, his voice dripping with amusement."Seriously. Wearing a Portugal jersey is one thing, but that caption? Did your wife not lose it when she saw that?""The video of your proposal is still pinned in the group chat, man. Everyone in this city knows how obsessed you were with Argentina."The room went quiet for a moment, then came the click of a lighter."So what?" Reid's voice was lazy, completely indifferent. "The mood was right that night. I just

Chapter 3

When I got home, I dragged two cardboard boxes out of the storage room and started clearing every piece of Argentina merchandise from the house.I pulled the throw pillows with their blue and white stripes off the couch, took the signed jersey down from the wall, and cleared the custom figurines from the display case. Every single item was something I had once picked out for Reid with a full and happy heart, and now, they were all just relics of an absurd marriage.I placed them into the boxes one by one, without tears and without even a trace of longing.At 11:00 that night, the lock turned. Reid walked in smelling of alcohol and perfume. It was a sweet, cloying citrus scent, the same one I had caught outside the bar that afternoon. It was Nola's favorite."Why'd you pull all this stuff out?" He spotted the boxes in the living room and paused."Spring cleaning." I did not look up and kept packing a mug into the box."Spring cleaning doesn't have to happen in the middle of the ni

Chapter 4

It was game day. A light rain had been falling over the city since evening, but it did nothing to dampen the frenzy of the fans.Reid left the house at 3:00 pm. He was wearing his brand-new Portugal jersey, his hair styled without a strand out of place."The client's pushing for an early start, so I'm heading out." He was at the entryway changing his shoes, barely able to contain his excitement. "Don't wait up tonight. Get some sleep."I sat on the couch and watched him close the door behind him. The apartment instantly fell completely silent. I stood up and placed the signed divorce papers neatly in the center of the coffee table. Beside them, I set down the necklace he had given me.I slowly slid the diamond ring off my left ring finger. I had worn it for four years, and when it finally came off, it left a deep groove pressed into my skin.I walked to the wardrobe and pulled open the bottom drawer. Tucked underneath everything else was an Argentina jersey in blue and white. It h

Chapter 5

Third-Person POV:"What did you just say?" Reid's grip tightened around his phone until his knuckles went white. "Divorce papers? She left? Where did she go?"His voice came out warped against the wall of sound from the speakers.The attorney's tone did not waver. "I'm sorry, Mr. Callister. Ms. Whitley's whereabouts are a matter of personal privacy, and I'm not authorized to disclose them. My responsibility was only to notify you."The line went dead. Reid stood frozen in the hallway, his mind completely blank.The door to the private room swung open, and Nola came out holding her glass, pouting playfully as she hooked her arm through his. "Reid, what are you doing out here? Get back inside. Ronaldo's about to take a free kick!"She pressed herself against him, soft and clinging with that sweet citrus perfume. On any other night, Reid would have pulled her closer and teased her with a grin. However, at that moment, the sweetness was suffocating."Get off me!" He wrenched his arm

Chapter 6

The next morning, Reid stormed into the phone carrier's service center like a man unraveling. "Look it up. Pull the call history and location data for this number."He slammed his ID down on the counter. His eyes were bloodshot, and his jaw was covered in dark stubble. The clerk flinched at the sight of him, checked the system, and answered carefully, "Sir, this number was deactivated last night."Deactivated? Brynn had blocked him on every messaging platform, and her phone number was dead. Even her social media accounts had been wiped clean. Brynn Whitley had vanished from his world entirely.Reid pulled every string he had. He checked flight records, train bookings, and hotel registrations. He even went to her parents' house and stood outside their door for an entire day.Her parents looked at him through the security gate, their eyes cold. "We don't know where Brynn went, and even if we did, we wouldn't tell you."Her father's voice was as hard and unyielding as iron. "You've

Chapter 7

Three months later, the curtains in Reid's apartment were drawn thick and heavy, shutting out every trace of daylight. The coffee table was buried under empty bottles and cigarette ash.He had dropped weight fast, his eyes were hollow, and the man who had once run a tech company with effortless confidence now moved through his days like a ghost.He had handed all company operations over to his vice president and spent his time locked inside the apartment. He tried to numb himself with alcohol, but every time he closed his eyes, all he saw was Brynn's face.He remembered the taste of the eggs and toast she used to make him. He remembered how her feet were always freezing in the winter and how she would tuck them against him to warm up.He remembered the way she had set multiple alarms just to help him snag a limited-edition pair of sneakers and how ridiculous and sweet she had looked doing it.He had taken all of it for granted. He had believed that no matter what he did outside, a

Chapter 8

"Brynn."Reid's voice was dry and raw, threaded with a tremor he could barely control.Brynn was watching the children on the pitch. When she heard his voice, her body went still for just a moment. She turned her head and looked at him.There was no surprise, no anger, and no rush of emotion at seeing him again after so long. Her eyes were calm, and that absolute calm was more terrifying to Reid than any screaming accusation could ever have been."What are you doing here?" Her tone was polite and distant, nothing more.Reid's tears came all at once. He crossed the distance between them in a few quick strides and, under the startled stares of the people passing by, dropped to one knee on the rough cobblestone."Brynn, I was wrong." He looked up at her, gripping the hem of her shirt like a lifeline."I know I was wrong. Nola lied to me. I've cut her off completely. I never loved her. You're the only one I've ever cared about." His words tumbled out faster than he could organize th

Chapter 9

Without him, Brynn was more alive and more radiant than she had ever been.Reid tried everything he could think of to make amends.He sent flowers to her door anonymously, but she threw them straight into the trash. He bought every handmade piece in her studio, but when she traced the money back to him, she returned every cent to his account. He even tried to hold an umbrella over her in the rain, but she walked around him without a word.What she showed him did not stem from hatred. It was something far worse. She treated him as though he simply did not exist.Then, one weekend about a month later, Reid was parked in his usual spot on the corner, watching Brynn step out of her apartment building. This time, she did not walk toward the studio. She walked toward an SUV parked along the curb.The door opened, and a tall man with striking features stepped out. He was wearing a simple white T-shirt and holding two ice cream cones. He handed one to Brynn and reached over to smooth the

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