The next morning, the weather was bright and clear.
At eight o'clock, after washing up briefly, Theodore drove his sky-blue Lamborghini to the airport.
Not long after he arrived, his parents appeared, pushing their suitcases.
"Son!"
The moment Marianne spotted Theodore, she quickened her pace, rushed over, and gave him a massive hug.
She had clearly missed him.
His father, Xia Dongguo, however, had his attention entirely fixed on the Lamborghini.
He walked around the sports car, inspecting it with wide eyes.
"Theo, is this really your car?" he asked in awe.
"Yeah. Volkswagen Group gave it to me last year as part of a sponsorship."
Xia Dongguo nodded, immediately opening the passenger door and sitting inside. "Come on, Theo. Take your old man for a spin!"
"All right! Buckle up. I'm going to speed up!"
The Lamborghini was indeed fast, but Madrid's morning traffic meant Theodore spent most of the drive braking for red lights.
Theodore did not take his parents straight to the villa.
First, he brought them to the largest luxury shopping mall in Madrid, buying them several expensive outfits for the ceremony before finally returning home.
This was their first time visiting Theodore's massive Madrid estate.
Walking through the front doors, they were amazed by the scale of the property.
Marianne couldn't help herself. "Theo, you're already eighteen now, and in a few days you'll be nineteen. It's time to start dating! Your dad and I have been wanting to hold a grandchild for ages! Living alone in such a big house is too lonely. You should find a nice girl to live here with you."
Hearing his mother start pressuring him about marriage, Theodore quickly waved his hands.
"Mom! I'm only eighteen! Let's talk about that way later! I just want to focus on football for now!"
Marianne looked at her husband, hoping he would back her up.
But Theodore spoke first.
"You two spent hours on a plane. You must be exhausted! Hurry up and go rest. Tomorrow we have to fly to Paris!"
"I'm going to train!"
After saying that, Theodore practically sprinted to the small football pitch in the backyard to begin shooting practice.
He really did not want to deal with the marriage pressure!
...
That evening, his parents prepared a massive feast as a celebration.
During dinner, Xia Dongguo brought up the upcoming ceremony.
"Theo, I read the news before we flew out. They say you have a really good chance of winning the Ballon d'Or. Is that true?"
While eating braised pork, Theodore replied casually, "The media says that, but Lewandowski has a very good chance too. He won the Champions League this year."
"But for me, just being nominated at my age is satisfying. Even if I don't win it this year, I'll definitely win it eventually."
He spoke calmly, completely unfazed by the pressure.
Sitting beside him, Marianne said with full confidence, "Theo, you can definitely do it! The Ballon d'Or is yours. After dinner, I'll personally pray and ask for blessings so you win!"
Theodore nearly choked on his food. "Mom, you really don't need to do that. Just get some sleep!"
He turned to his father. "Honestly, compared to the Ballon d'Or, I care more about winning trophies with the team."
That was the truth.
Theodore knew that if he maintained his current form, individual awards were inevitable.
He wasn't panicking, he was only eighteen!
He had a long career ahead of him.
...
The next day, around eleven in the morning, Theodore and his parents boarded a private flight to Paris, France.
Also on the flight was Florentino Pérez.
As the president of Real Madrid, Florentino was personally escorting his star player to the ceremony.
On the plane, Xia Dongguo chatted happily with Florentino in his broken Spanish.
Theodore's father was in full social butterfly mode, practically trying to become best friends with the billionaire president right there in the cabin!
....
The award ceremony took place at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris.
The opera house boasted a history of one hundred and fifty years.
By seven o'clock that evening, the entrance swelled with a massive crowd. Security guards, reporters, and thousands of fans gathered outside.
Theodore Bjorn arrived with his parents in formal attire.
The moment Theodore stepped out of the transport, a storm of camera flashes erupted around him.
The surrounding fans erupted into loud cheers at the sight of the teenager.
The sheer volume of the noise startled his father and mother.
Theodore had grown accustomed to the spectacle. He waved a simple greeting to the supporters before following the event staff into the designated interview area.
"Theodore! Do you think you'll win the Ballon d'Or tonight?"
"How would you evaluate your personal performance this year?"
"Talk about Lewandowski. Do you think he can beat you?"
The reporters fired a barrage of questions at him. A few appeared more excited than the nominee himself.
"I'm happy to be here at the Ballon d'Or ceremony," Theodore answered. "As for the final award, I don't focus on that. I just want to enjoy this grand evening."
He offered a wave and walked past the press line, Theodore possessed no love for media interactions.
In his view, sports outlets thrived on manufacturing public opinion.
If his form dipped, they would be the first to tear him down.
When he delivered a masterclass, they showered him in praise.
He despised the hypocrisy!
...
Football Twitter was taken over by the broadcast and the timeline moved at a relentless pace.
Confidence reigned among the fanbase:
@MadridFanHQ: Theodore has been a joke this year. Villa or Real Madrid, he is the core! In terms of carrying a team, he beats Lewandowski!
@EuroFoot: Lewandowski won the Champions League, but Bayern were a superteam. Theodore led Villa to the Europa League. That was a much harder carry job!
@TheodoreSZN: Starting tonight, Theodore will have a new title: Ballon d'Or winner!
@LosBlancosEra: Florentino escorted Theodore to Paris himself. That level of royal treatment is crazy!
Theodore entered the opulent interior of the Théâtre du Châtelet.
As a headline candidate, his designated seat was in the front row.
Upon reaching his spot, he spotted a familiar figure: Lionel Messi.
Days earlier, Theodore's Real Madrid had faced Messi's Barcelona in El Clásico.
Theodore had crushed Messi in that encounter, applying suffocating defensive pressure that left the Argentine sick on the pitch.
Meeting again in formal wear, neither player exchanged a word.
The silence hung heavy in the air.
Theodore's seat was two places to Messi's right, leaving an empty chair between them.
The occupant of that middle seat soon arrived.
It was Cristiano Ronaldo.
Cristiano greeted Messi first, exchanging a short conversation.
Then, he turned to Theodore. The Portuguese star looked the teenager up and down before clapping a hand on his shoulder.
"Theodore, we finally meet," Cristiano said. "I've seen you all over the media. Today, I get to meet you in person."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Cristiano," Theodore smiled. "You are the greatest forward in Real Madrid's history! It's a pity we never had the chance to share a dressing room."
A hint of regret entered Cristiano's tone.
"Yeah. If we had played together, maybe I'd have ten Ballon d'Or awards by now." He let out a loud laugh.
Florentino Pérez approached the pair.
Upon seeing Cristiano, the Real Madrid president's expression shifted into something complex.
He adjusted his demeanor.
"How have you been?" Florentino asked.
"I'm happy at Juventus."
"That's good."
Ever since Cristiano's departure to Italy, the relationship between president and player had cooled.
The exchange felt forced.
The final headline figure arrived moments later: Robert Lewandowski.
The Polish striker shook hands with Messi and Cristiano.
However, when he passed Theodore, Lewandowski kept his gaze fixed ahead and offered no greeting.
At nine o'clock, hosts Didier Drogba and Sandy Heribert took the stage.
The atmosphere inside the venue intensified. Following protocol, Drogba did not rush to the main event.
He introduced the supplementary awards first: the Kopa Trophy, the Yashin Trophy, and the Ballon d'Or Féminin.
Despite the musical performances interspersed between the announcements, Theodore found the drawn-out process tedious.
An hour later, the ceremony entered its final phase. Drogba began the countdown for the top ten.
To preserve the suspense, the reveals started from the bottom. The Ballon d'Or voting criteria weighed individual brilliance against collective honors.
In recent years, the results had sparked global controversies, with fans debating the merits of each winner.
Yet, the golden sphere remained the pinnacle of individual achievement.
"Let us reveal the rankings of the candidates from tenth to seventh!" Drogba announced.
"In tenth place—Romelu Lukaku! Ninth place—Neymar! Eighth place—Kevin De Bruyne!"
The giant screen broadcasted highlight reels of the designated players.
Soon, the next batch of rankings surfaced.
7th Place: Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich)
6th Place: Kylian Mbappé (Paris Saint-Germain)
5th Place: Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona)
4th Place: Thomas Müller (Bayern Munich)
Messi's fifth-place finish sparked quiet murmurs.
He had won no collective honors in 2020, suffering a brutal elimination against Bayern Munich.
His saving grace was his individual output, securing both La Liga's Golden Boot and the assist title.
His placement above Mbappé—a Champions League finalist and domestic champion—relied on his global standing.
Müller's fourth-place finish was undisputed. Operating as Bayern's creative engine, he recorded fourteen goals and twenty-five assists across fifty appearances.
His movement and spatial awareness under Hansi Flick's system proved vital to unlocking defenses.
A heavy silence descended on the Théâtre du Châtelet.
"The final three are Robert Lewandowski, Theodore Bjorn, and Cristiano Ronaldo!" Drogba declared.
"Which of these three will win the 2020 Ballon d'Or? We will find out after a short break!"
Online, Football Twitter shattered engagement records!
@FutbolUpdate: The final moment! It has to be Theodore!
@CR7_Goat: If they rob him, the award is rigged.
@TacticalBall: They evaluate the entire calendar year. Theodore's start at Real Madrid is flawless. He is the favorite!
@VillaTillIDie: Villa only lost one match last season, and Theodore wasn't even in the squad for it. He is a cheat code.
@Madridista99: Why is this commercial break so long?! My hands are shaking!
The spectators behind their screens felt more nerve-wracking tension than Theodore himself.