The beautiful game - Part 2 - Remastered 09 - Final

Chapter 9 – Till death do us part

With his heart pounding in his chest, Milos looked up at the flashing neon sign above the entrance to the nightclub, hoping it would be the last time he ever had to lay his eyes on it.

Letting his mind wander, Milos thought back to what life had been like before working there and struggled. For as long as he could remember, It had been long blonde hair, bouncy breasts, impractically long nails, skimpy outfits, and sky-high heels. Imagining himself dressing like a man again tomorrow felt a little strange.

“Candy doll, what are you staring at? Hurry up, will ya”, Marko hollered from the entrance to the club.

“Sorry baby”, Milos purred, “I’m coming”. Tottering over to the entrance on his stripper heels, he placed his inch-long nails into Marko’s outstretched palm.

Marko responded by squeezing Milos' bottom through the thin material of his slinky mini dress before leaning in to kiss the feminised man passionately on the lips, eliciting a little moan.

Coming up for air, Marko looked Milos straight in his dark made-up eyes and brushed a hair away from his face. “You look so sexy tonight, Doll, I’m not sure I’m going to make it through the evening without one of your little visits. Why don’t you come and see me in my office in an hour or so? We’ll have a little fun”.

“Of course, Marko”, Milos answered almost automatically, knowing that if all went to plan, Marko would have other more pressing concerns in an hours’ time.

“Good girl”, Marko replied, giving Milos another playful smack on the bum before leading him down the perilously steep staircase and into the club.

Having been out for dinner beforehand, It was later than usual as Marko and Milos entered the main floor that evening. Inside, the Saturday night party was already in full swing. The music was blaring, and the clubgoers were dancing and having what seemed like the time of their lives.

With Marko heading up to his office, Milos made his way towards the VIP section, passing Alek on the way and giving him a little nod. Alek nodded back, indicating everything was still going ahead as planned. All Milos had to do now was wait.

===================================================================

Time seemed to tick by slower than usual that evening as Milos buzzed about, delivering drinks, and stopping for the occasional chat with a regular. He did his best to stay calm and flirt a little, something that came as second nature these days. Milos always told himself that flirting with the customers was expected and just part of the job. But in truth, there was a part of him these days, that got a thrill from the attention. Especially as everyone knew he was Marko’s girl, and as such, no one dared cross the line or lay a finger on him.

Olga was there, as per usual, sat near the bar sipping her drink, occasionally glancing over to see what he was doing. Catching her eye now and again, Milos would smile. Each time, receiving a scowl in return.

Looking at the clock, Milos notes that almost an hour had passed since he first arrived. Worried he was about to be beckoned up to Marko’s office any minute. Milos wondering when Alek was going to make his move. When suddenly, he almost jumped out of his skin as a siren started blaring out over the club.

He was expecting the piercingly loud alarm but actually hearing it, hurt his ears. The music stopped, and all the lights came on. With everyone starting to panic on the dance floor, Milos knew it was his time to move. Quickly, he left the VIP section and minced over to the DJ booth in the main room. He gave the DJ some instructions before turning on the microphone to speak to the guests. “Ladies and gentlemen, please stay calm. There is no need to panic. Please make your way to the nearest exit”.

As the mass of angry and confused people pushed and shoved their way towards the exit, Milos carefully stepped down from the DJ booth and headed towards the bar. Arriving, he found the bar staff looking just as confused as the patrons. Having never experienced the fire alarm going off before, they didn’t know what to do. Milos told them to evacuate along with the rest of the people, and after a moment’s hesitation, they all hurried off towards the exit.

With everyone distracted, Milos quickly ducked behind the bar and into the back corridors of the club. A few people passed him along the way as he shouted at them to hurry.

(See image 9.1)

===================================================================

Milos found Alek just where he said he would be. Looking beautiful squeezed into a form-fitting yellow dress. its cut-out design showing off his tanned smooth skin beneath and highlighted his slim feminine figure.

Stood leaning against the wall, with his fingers in his ears, Alek watched Milos approach. “Wow, I didn’t know it was going to be so loud”, he shouted over the racket of the alarm.

“It’s an alarm, what did you expect”? Milos yelled back, jokingly. “Do you know what you need to do”?

“Yeah, as long as Marko leaves his office, I should be able to get in and out and get what we need”.

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure he leaves”, replied Milos. “Do you remember the safe code Bojana told me”?

“0509, right”?

“Ok, good. Now wait here for a few minutes, I’ll go up and get him out of there”, Milos said, smiling at Alek, “wish me luck”.

===================================================================

Bursting in through the door, Milos found Marko behind his desk, drink in hand like nothing was happening, “Marko, what are you doing? we have to go outside”, Milos screamed, “there’s a fire”!

Marko looked up annoyed, “calm the fuck down, will you? Do you see any smoke”?

Milos tottering over to his side pretending to look frightened. Getting down on his knees in a familiar position, he took hold of Marko’s hand. “Marko please, one of the girls said they saw flames coming from the back rooms! Is it really worth the risk? Please come out with me, just in case”.

“Fine, let’s go”, Marko answered with a groan before getting up and lifting Milos to his feet with ease. “You know, I thought you'd have preferred to see me burn”? He said, laughing.

“Please, can we just go”? Milos replied, tugging on his arm, and ignoring the comment.

===================================================================

Stood outside freezing, with Marko's hand stroking the small of his back, Milos waited forty-five minutes for the firefighters to check the building.

When the all-clear signal was given, Marko, who had been strangely quiet throughout, led Milos back inside as the annoyed clubbers gave out an ironic cheer.

Arriving at the bottom of the stairs to Marko's office, Milos tried to pull his hand away. But Marko’s vice-like grip didn’t let up. “Where are you going, Doll”? he asked, squeezing his hand tightly.

“Back to work”, Milos stated, feeling very apprehensive, “I was going see if everyone is ok”.

“Oh, they’ll be fine. Why don't we go up to the office for a bit? We are overdue some quality time together”.

Milos faked a smile and nodded his head, knowing better than to argue. One last time, he told himself. Alek would have hopefully found something incriminating in the safe and would be halfway to the police station by now.

Stopping outside his office, Marko turned to face Milos. He put his hand under the smaller man's chin and gently lifted his head. Milos, forced to look up, was powerless to resist as Marko’s expressionless face approached with parted lips. With his eyes closed, he felt the man’s lips roughly press against his own as he tried to block out the thought of who he was kissing, and the strong smell of aftershave and hard liquor filling his nostrils.

Pulling away, Marko took a hold of Milos’ shoulders and gazed down at him. “You know, it’s a real shame things had to work out like this”, he announced, his eyes filled with rage.

Then, unannounced, before Milos had a chance to consider what was happening, Marko flung open the door to his office and flung Milos violently through. Stumbling on his ridiculously tall shoes, Milos lost his balance, tumbled towards the ground, and landed with a heavy thud.

Dazed and confused, Milos looked around slowly before his heart stopped. His breathing quickened as he looked on in horror to see a nervous-looking Alek sat on the sofa fidgeting. Sensing another person in the room, Milos swivelled his head to discover the reason for Alek’s uneasiness. Leaning against Marko’s desk with a gun in her hand, was Olga. Her face was devoid of emotion, and she was pointing the barrel of the gun straight at Alek’s head.

Closing the door calmly, Marko strolled over to the large window that looked down on the dancefloor. “Oh, Candy! Candy, Candy. You never learn, do you? Marko announced, without turning. “I gave you a second chance and you’ve gone and betrayed me again”!

Shaking with nerves but overcoming them, Milos dragged himself to his feet. “A second chance! are you fucking serious”? He screamed. “A second chance at what? To be a prisoner, a sex fucking slave”? Fuck you, Marko! You fucking piece of shit”!

“I see you've finally found your backbone, Princess”, Marko announced as he turned around clapping. "But have you looked in the mirror recently, boy? What else is someone like you good for? Remember, I wasn’t the one who forced you to dress like a woman. You did that all by yourself”.

Milos stood there shaking with anger. “You’re sick, you’re a sick murdering psychotic son of a bitch”, he screamed at the top of his lungs, charging at Marko with his arms flailing. Seeing him approach, Marko batted him away with ease, sending him tumbling back to the ground.

“Hey, leave her alone”, Alek shrieked from the sofa.

“Ah yes, who could forget the hero! The washed-up reporter who thought he could play dress up and not be caught. Do you really think you had fooled me, Alek! Marko scoffed. “This is my club! I see and hear everything that goes on here! All your plotting. All your scheming. All the crying over your dead father. You're pathetic just like your old man".

“You killed him, admit it”, Alek cried, jumping to his high-heeled feet but stopping as Olga cocked the trigger of the handgun in her hand.

“Yes, shot him dead, right here in this office", Marko announced grinning. "It’s quite poetic really as you will die in the exact same spot”.

He stepped to the side slightly. “Well, as fun as this has been, I've had quite enough of this nonsense, Olga. Kill them and take their bodies to the river”.

Olga moved to the centre of the room. The slow rhythmic clicking of her heels, almost as loud as Milos’ heart threatening to break out of his chest.

Olga pointed the gun at Milos’ head and stared down at him with her lifeless eyes. She cocked the trigger as Milos closed his eyes preparing himself for the end.

Milos didn't want to die, but at that moment, after everything, he had been put through, he was somehow at peace with the idea.

The room fell silent before a series of loud noises rang out in quick succession. The first being a male voice screaming out the word, "no". It was swiftly followed by a thunderous bang, louder than anything Milos had ever heard that left his ears ringing. A second bang shook the room, then a third, followed by the sound of glass shattering. The final sound was something heavy hitting the ground with a thump.

The music cut out as the sound of screams erupted out from the club floor below. With the partygoers running for the exits for the second time that evening, Milos slowly opened his eyes, surprised to still be alive.

Above him stood the statuesque Olga, still holding the gun in her extended hand but now pointed above his head.

Behind him, Alek was stood shaking with a stunned expression on his face. The window was broken window and below it lay the bloodied body of Marko with Marko half his head missing.

Hearing the gun drop to the ground behind him, Milos turned once more to see Olga flash a smile at him.

“I don’t understand”, Alek announced, “why save us”?

Olga eyed him up, “why you ask? That’s simple. I hated that bastard with every fibre of my being. He deserved a bullet, and it was way overdue”.

Milos gingerly picked himself up from the floor. “But if you hated him so much, why did you torture me for so long”? He asked while straightening his dress and rubbing his knee.

Olga smirked. “I’m sorry for that but there was nothing I could do. You see, our situations are not so different. You may have come to Marko dressed as a woman, but I was forced to become one as a punishment”.

Alek and Milos glanced at each other to see if they had heard her correctly before turning back to look at Olga with their mouths gaping.

It was hard to believe, but not implausible given the circumstances. Looking her over slowly, Milos noticed a few small details, he had failed to notice before, like her large hands and prominent jawline. Olga was also tall for a woman, easily over six foot tall, even without the six-inch heels she usually wore. The clues were all there, but until that moment, he had never put the pieced them together.

“My name is Ozren Sabic. I used to be Marko’s driver, that is, until one day I tried to go to the police after seeing him murder someone right in front of me”.

Pausing to readjust his skirt, Ozren took a deep breath. “I was young and stupid. Word got back to Marko, and well, this is my punishment, a life of servitude without my dick”, he said closing his eyes and inhaling deeply.

Alek looked listened as he continued his story. “It all happened so quickly, I was knocked unconscious, and when I woke up, my body was unrecognisable from my former self. It seems that sick fuck had a kink for turning men into women! He got off on it. That’s probably the reason he kept you two around for as long as he did”.

The room fell silent for a moment as all three feminised men struggled for something to say until Milos broke the silence. “I’m sorry you had to go through all that, Ozren, but thank you for ending this. That monster deserved what he got. He murdered Alek’s father, Coach, and who knows how many other people”.

“I know”, Ozren replied, “I’m sorry about Coach and your father Alek”.

“Did you kill them”? Alek blurted out, not really wanting to hear the answer.

Ozren bowed his head. “No, Well, I didn’t pull the trigger, but I helped dispose of the bodies”.

The room fell silent once again before Ozren turned and clicked across the room. He stopped in front of a painting on the wall, removed it before punching a code into the safe beneath. The safe clicked open before Ozren walked back across the room, plopped himself down onto the comfortable-looking chair, and crossed his legs above the knee.

(See image 9.2)

“The police will be here soon”, Ozren stated, “There is evidence in that safe of corrupt real estate dealings and blackmail. There’s also the gun Marko has used to kill dozens of men. All their bodies were weighed down and dumped in the river, down by the steel mill. Tell the police to send down the divers”.

“Why are you telling us this? What are you going to do? Alek asked Ozren, with a confused look on his face.

“Well, I’m not waiting for the police”, he announced. “I don’t want my parent hearing my story on the news. I’m getting out of town and starting over again as a man, penis or no penis”.

“Thank you, Ozren”, Milos said, wanting to run over and hug him but thinking better of it, “you saved our lives”.

“Well, perhaps you will do the same for someone else one day”, Ozren said, getting to his high heeled feet. “Well, so long, Milos. No offence. but I hope we never meet again”. With a final smirk, Ozren strutted from the room, leaving Alek and Milos looking at each other wide-eyed, trying to work out what the hell had just happened.

Epilogue – Back where it all began

Resting on a bench near the Tiger’s new training complex, Milos took a few deep breaths, tired after his jog. It was the one year anniversary of the infamous night where Marko met his demise. What an eventful year it had been, but as Milos sat, feeling the warmth of the afternoon sun on his skin, he was at peace with it all.

In the weeks that followed Marko's death, there had been one major scandal after another, as a string of politicians and government officials were arrested. Marko’s safe, as it turned out, was a treasure trove of evidence. Containing dozens of documents and photos, showing some very powerful people doing some things they shouldn't have been.

Milos and Alek were questioned by the police but eventually released without charge. Their story became front-page news across the country. Everyone wanted to hear the story of how a seemingly ordinary footballer had gotten wrapped up in one of the biggest scandals the country had ever seen.

Right at the beginning, there had been an opportunity, to tell the truth. To tell the world that he was Milos, the orphan boy who had gotten caught up in the crazy schemes of two bitter rivals. But for some reason, Milos kept quiet, letting everyone continue to believe, he was Milena Ivanovic. It just seemed easier to go along with it, and as time went by, and the invitations to appear on talk shows and radio stations came flooding in, it became more and more difficult to reveal the truth.

Six months after the incident, Milos was offered the job as player-manager of the Tigers. He hesitated at first but with overwhelming support for him to take the position, he agreed to go back to his old team. Now, with a new season about to begin, in honour of Coach’s memory, Milos was determined to lead the Tigers back to glory by winning the cup once again.

Daydreaming while looking up at the clouds drifting across the crisp blue sky above, Milos had to admit, life was actually pretty good. Living as a woman hadn't ever been a future he could have envisioned for himself as a young man, but he was rich, a local celebrity, and he was doing what he loved, playing football.

“Uh-hum, is this a bad time”? A voice announced, bringing him out of his trance.

(See image 9.3)

Milos glanced up to see a familiar but surprising face. “Alek! What are you doing here? And wow, look at you”!

“Hey, Milena, nice to see you too. Please, call me Hana. That’s my official name now”, Hana said, pouting, “And you know, you don’t have to look so shocked”!

“Sorry”, Milos stuttered, “I just haven’t seen you in months, I’m just a little surprised. I didn’t expect to see you looking so…so…”

“so…”? Hana asked, tilting her head.

(See image 9.4)

“So beautiful”, Milos blurted out, smiling.

Hana smiled back. "I tried living as Alek again for a while. But after everything that happened, it just didn’t seem right. I guess I’ve always felt different from other boys. Living as Hana just seems right”.

Milos stood up and hugged her, “That’s great, Hana, you should do what makes you happy”.

“Exactly”, Hana replied, “and you? Are you happy, Milena”?

Milos thought for a moment before nodding, “you know, I think I am”, he replied before there was a brief pause in the conversation.

“Hey, love the boots, by the way", Milos announced, looking down at Hana's fashionable footwear. "But I don’t know why anyone would choose to walk around in heels that tall, all day. These days, it’s flats all the way for me.

Hana giggled, “what these things”? She answered, lifting up a leg and grabbing one of her ankles with a manicured hand. “To be honest, I hardly even notice I’m wearing them anymore, and besides, a girl’s got to look her best, right”?

Milos chuckled. “You always were a natural in heels. So, what brings you down here anyway? Have you come to try out for the team? I could use a new left-back”.

“Ha-ha, very funny”, Alek joked. “No, I’ll leave the football to you, but you will be seeing a lot more of me around here from now on”.

“Really? How so”? Milos asked, intrigued.

“I just got a new job”, Hana announced. “Sports reporter for the gazette. I’ll be covering all your games this season”.

Milos hugged Hana once again. “Congratulations, Hana, that's amazing news. And It’s really great to see you. I’ve missed you”.

“I’ve missed you too, Milena”, Hana squealed, squeezing Milos tightly. “So, how about a tour of the grounds”?

“Sure, but I’m still getting used to the place myself after all the construction work”, Milos announced. "That TV money came in real handy. How about we start with the new Dejan Kolorov memorial stand we’re building? It’s going to be fantastic when completed”.

The End