At some neighborhood in Brazil, laughter and cheers filled the air as a bunch of kids gathered at the local field for a friendly soccer match. Excitement filled the air as parents cheered on for their children on the sidelines. One team was trailing 2-0, but the kids kept smiling and trying their best. The public, constituted by the players' parents and family members, encouraged them, making it feel like a big family party.
In the end, the final score didn't matter much – what mattered was the joy of playing together in their close-knit neighborhood.
Everyone was having a great time, everyone except Alex…
On the bench, a small, eight-year-old child with a blank face stared at the game absent-minded. He was the youngest on the field and yet, unbeknownst to all, Alex was contemplating the meaning of life and the mysteries of life after death.
A little kid thinking of such a difficult concept.. it was all because a second ago, he was a 30-year-old salary man!
He tentatively placed his little hand on his chest. He could still remember that tight, crushing sensation…
He grew up inside an orphanage, never married, and worked tirelessly in a low-paying job that eventually led to his heart attack. His whole life resembled a broken record, playing the same monotonous tune.
He smiled bitterly.
"It's sad just thinking about it…"
But before Alex could be drowned in self-pity, a sudden childish voice beside him took him by surprise.
"Don't worry! Wait until the second half starts—I'm totally gonna score three goals and make us win!"
"R-Right…" Alex sweated inside his heart, he had completely forgotten about his surroundings.
More importantly… Alex shifted his gaze toward the enthusiastic boy next to him. At that moment, the kid clearly spoke a different language, but not only did he understand, but also reflexively answered.
This…
As he was about to initiate another conversation with the boy for further investigation, he came to a startling realization.
A steel card hovered above the kid's head.
"…"
It was unbelievable, but luckily, Alex was already emotionally numb from his reincarnation. A dead man who came to live as a six year old… perhaps nothing in this world will ever surprise him again.
Looking at the card, there was a picture of the boy accompanied by a bold "12" in the upper left corner. Beneath the number, the abbreviations "LW," presumably Left Winger, and below that, a Brazilian flag indicating nationality. In the center of the card, the name Cleiton Cordeiro was displayed. Towards the bottom of the card, six attributes were listed:
PAC - 15
SHO -10
PAS - 6
DRI - 5
DEF - 9
PHY - 13
This…
Although Alex's life was monotonous, he was an avid football fanatic. So the moment his eyes laid on the steel card, he still recognize it.
"This is a FIFA card, isn't…" He whispered to himself, in wonder.
He reached his hand to touch it, yet his hand passed through the card as if it were an illusion.
"…What are you doing?" The boy, Cleiton, looked weird out by the hand above his head.
"Uhum, there was a mosquito." Alex coughed a little embarrassed by the kids' eyes.
He also confirmed his ability to speak another language, even though he had never spoken it before; it flowed naturally from his mouth as if it were English. If the details on the FIFA card were correct, then the language was probably Portuguese, and he was likely in some part of Brazil.
"Oh, thanks!" Cleiton didn't care much, continuing his enthusiastic cheers for his teammates.
As expected of a Brazilian kid, he was really warm and friendly. Alex breathed a sigh of relief; back in New York, if a stranger attempted to even touch the space above you, it would undoubtedly escalate into a discussion, even if they were both kids.
He shifted his gaze to the other players, and as expected, each had a steel card above their heads, a guy even had a bronze card. However, when he looked towards the stands, there was nothing.
This led him to think that maybe only soccer players had a FIFA card above their heads. And by the reaction of Cleiton, only he could see these cards.
"Wait…"
All soccer players?
Doesn't that mean that he, too, had a FIFA card above his head!?