Harbinger Of Glory

.....

Back in Rome, the van came through the gates of Coverciano, where the three players in the van looked out the windows as it pulled up to the main building.

Afternoon sunlight washed over the Centro Tecnico Federale, its buildings sitting peacefully behind the gates that had seen generations of Italian football come and go.

The moment the van came to a halt, the trio got out and stretched, while the driver brought out the luggage.

"Let me help," Leo said after seeing the driver struggling with his luggage, which turned out to be something in the boot holding his handle back.

"Senior team is a different thing," Udogie said while looking around.

"The U21 camp and this are not the same."

And he wasn’t wrong.

The facilities had the particular quality of a setup that had been designed to remove every possible excuse.

Leo was putting his phone away when Udogie appeared beside him.

"Are you going to tell me who Tori is?" Udogie said, only for Leo to shake his head.

"Come on. What are bros for?"

"Well, you’d want me to introduce you to her cousins and sisters and whatnot," Leo said as Udogie listened, " but she’s an only child," Leo said as Udogie tilted his head.

"Fair enough, but my curiosity won’t die", he said, after a moment, only for Leo to shrug as they continued further into the building with their luggage.

The woman behind the reception desk looked up as they approached.

"Good afternoon," she made out, offering the trio a warm smile before reaching for a set of envelopes already waiting beside her.

"Carlo Regutti. Leo Calderon. Destiny Udogie."

One by one, she handed them over.

"Room numbers are inside, as well as the training schedule for now and camp information as well."

Carlo and Udogie opened theirs immediately after that, but Leo kept his.

"For now, breakfast starts at nine," she continued.

"Lunch and dinner are in the main dining hall, and if you need anything, reception is staffed around the clock."

The three of them nodded along as she spoke.

Then she glanced down at the sheet in front of her.

"Oh, and one more thing."

"Dinner tonight is a welcome gathering for all arriving players. The coaching staff will be there," she paused briefly, "Coach Spalletti included. He’d like to greet everyone personally."

For the first time since they’d arrived, nobody was looking at their room key.

"Understood," Carlo said as the receptionist smiled.

"Enjoy your stay."

A minute later, they were heading toward the lifts, bags in hand and room keys tucked away.

The lift doors opened on the third floor, which was the stop for Udogie and Leo.

"See you at dinner," Carlo said as the doors began to close.

"See you," Leo said.

After that, the duo walked down the corridor until Udogie found his door first, key card against the panel, a click, and he was gone.

Leo walked a few paces further and found his own door, and opening the door revealed a large, quiet room.

There was a large window, a proper bed, enough space to move around without bumping into furniture, and none of the cramped feeling that came with most temporary accommodations.

Leo glanced around once, decided he had no complaints, and walked in, closing the door softly behind him.

Away from the accommodation of the players, Spalletti looked up from his desk right after Marco entered the room.

"How are things outside?" he asked as the former shut the door.

"Well, they are arriving. Most of the players are currently on site and in their rooms, from what I’ve heard," Marco said as he settled into the chair in front of the desk.

"That’s good then," Spalletti said before looking back at his desk.

"Are your boys in? Have you met with them?" Spalletti said without raising his head, but he could see Marco shake his head before he spoke.

"I wanted them to get the hang of things by themselves. A meeting at tonight’s dinner would do just fine," Marco said before glancing out the glass expanse behind the desk.

"I hope this evening is the start of something good," he continued,

In front of him, Spalletti hummed in agreement, and that was that.

The two didn’t speak again until Marco got up half an hour later, saying he was going to get some rest.

.....

A couple of hours later in his room, Leo stood with his luggage unpacked on his bed after taking a nap.

Glancing around, he found a bag beside his bed.

He grabbed it, and inside was a clean blue polo shirt with the federation’s logo on it as well as his initials.

He traced them briefly with his thumb and then set it down a moment later.

With the night’s activities on the horizon, Leo grabbed his towel and made his way to the bathroom.

He didn’t come out until half an hour later, and once he was out, he changed into the federation shirt before wearing the shorts to match.

He adjusted the collar once, then rolled his shoulders before settling on the bed and slipping on a pair of white socks.

Then, from the bag beside his luggage, a pair of white sneakers came out.

He slipped them on without much thought, tied them properly, then stood up again.

For a second, he just looked at himself in the mirror by the wardrobe.

Then his eyes dropped to the corners of the room, like he had only just remembered something.

"Cameras," he said quietly.

He sat back down, opened his bag again, and pulled out another pair of sneakers, though this one had the Skechers branding on it.

He swapped them over and nodded slightly before looking at the mirror again.

"A show of good faith, huh," Leo said as he thought about Noah’s words.

The contract only obligated Leo to wear the Skechers boots on the field and in training.

Aside from that, he was okay, but Noah had offered him a couple of Skechers sneakers, mainly running shoes and then casual ones like the one he had on.

As a show of goodwill to Skechers.

"Goodwill that I am now getting tired of," Leo said before making his way out of the room.

On his way out, he tapped the keycard against the lock, forcing the door to secure itself.

Afterwards, he walked some metres and knocked on a door which opened a second later to reveal Udogie already dressed.

His version of the shirt was white instead of blue, with his initials right beneath the Puma branding.

"Don’t know why, but I like yours better," Udogie said as they started down the corridor together.

By the time they reached the lift area on the ground floor, Carlo was already there, leaning slightly against the wall.

"Took you two long enough," he said without looking up from his phone.

The building felt more active, and all around them, a few players drifted in pairs.

Players who held some standing in the football world wherever they played.

They were just starting, but soon, they’d command the same, if not more, presence than these players.

"Let’s go," Carlo said a second later as Leo and Udugie followed.