#rebecca welton fic

[vastill]

I love you Rebecca Welton fics🩷

So maybe a Rebecca Welton Fic where reader and her have been married for a while but no one quite believes it until reader shows up to drop off pinch for Rebecca?

Forgotten lunch

Rebecca Welton/fem!reader

warnings: fluff

words: 1700+

My requests are open!!

English is not my first language!

A/N: firstly, i love your request, and thank you for sending it! and secondly, im really sorry, my brain read your request a little differently but I hope you will like it! hope you will enjoy reading it! let me know what you think!!💚

Rebecca Welton always wanted to have an aura of secrecy around her. Sharing every aspect of her life with others was not for her. After a messy divorce from Rupert, she learned even more about living in secrecy. She didn't want to experience another drama in her life, and she certainly didn't want the press meddling in her private affairs again, so she decided to keep some things to herself. However, as the owner of a football club, it wasn't easy, as it involved many plans and rules she had to follow.

Rebecca's daily schedule remained consistent. Each morning, she had to go through her ritual to ensure she didn't forget anything important. Being an early riser, she would often admire her partner's sleeping face before the alarm went off. Despite her demanding job, Rebecca always made time for you. Mornings were her favorite moments, a brief shared moment of lying in bed and cuddling before she went to get ready for the day. During this time, you would go downstairs to prepare breakfast for both of you and pack lunch for Rebecca. Remote work had the perk that you could spend most of the day in your pyjamas without worrying about anything.

“How can you look this gorgeous so early in the morning?” You asked when she came downstairs in all her glory. She grabbed you by the hand and tugged you for the sweetest kiss. “I don’t know, how can you look this cute in your pyjamas?” She laughed when you scoffed and kissed your nose.

“Well, not everyone is the owner of a football club, baby. So I need to pull off my pajamas look.”

“And you do it perfectly darling,” she smiled and beckoned you closer to her, “I love seeing you like this. It’s a shame that I need to go to work.” She said while her hands went under your shirt to caress the soft skin of your stomach.

“Someone is clingy today. You sure you can’t stay today?” You asked, internally knowing the answer but there was no harm in asking, maybe one day she would agree.

Rebecca sighed, leaning her head on your chest and hugging you tightly, “No, sorry sweetheart. I can’t, I have some meetings today but I promise I will be home for dinner.” The two of you stood in your embrace for a little while, taking this moment of calmness.

“Oh fuck,” you heard Rebecca silently murmur before quickly getting up. “I need to go, otherwise I will be late. Have a good day, I love you!” she shouted as she left the house. As she opened the door, you noticed her packed lunch sitting on the counter. “Wait, love! You forgot your...” The door closed before you could finish the sentence, “...lunch.”

You pondered for a moment about what to do with the lunch box. Your initial thought was to bring her lunch to work, but since no one knew about your relationship, you weren't sure if Rebecca wanted them to know. However, you had made her favorite dish, and you knew she was craving it, so not having it today would surely ruin her mood. Ultimately, you decided to send her a text and wait for her response.

Hi, love! You forgot your lunch from home and I know you have been craving this meal so what do you want me to do with it? I think I'll put it in the fridge and it'll be waiting for you. Missing you already xx

Rebecca got to work without being a minute late. She sat in her office and checked her phone, seeing your message she searched her purse, “Shit!”

“Hello to you too, Boss!” she saw Ted standing in her office with his usual box of biscuits in hand. “Sorry, Ted. Yes, good morning.” She said with a tight smile.

“Got up on the wrong side of the bed? Maybe these will help.” Ted said, handing her the box.

“Thank you,” she said, grabbing one of the biscuits, “I just forgot my lunch at home. It was a tasty lunch, so I’m a little upset.”

“Maybe you can send someone to grab it for you? I don’t mind going there if you want me to. It’s not like I have many things to do today.” Ted offered.

“No, that won’t be necessary. I think I have an idea. But back to work, do you have something you want to talk about?” she asked while texting you.

I didn’t even notice! You and your pyjamas distracted me! But I thought maybe you could come here and drop it. And if you are not busy, have lunch with me in my office? That would be very nice. Love you xx

Yeah, of course! When do you want me to be there?

Around two? How does that sound?

I’ll be there! I can’t wait! xx

Rebecca was nervous, not because she was ashamed of who she was or her relationship, but because she wanted to protect her and your privacy. And you coming here wasn’t something that she expected to do. But she was also excited. She wanted you to be in all parts of her life and perhaps introduce you to some of her friends at AFC Richmond if you were up for it.

As two o'clock approached, Rebecca paced in her office. The door swung open, and she turned around to see Keeley standing there. Although she felt disappointed, she didn't show it on her face.

“Hey! I need to tell you all about this new staff at my office. He is getting on my nerves so bad!” Keeley said, settling comfortably on the couch in Rebecca’s office. “You know, he is new but fucking hell he doesn’t know how to do anything. He broke the printer today! Printer, Rebecca! How does someone not know how to use the fucking printer!”

“Oh hey, yes, I’m good, thanks for asking. And no, you are not interrupting.” Rebecca said, her voice laced with sarcasm.

“Don't tell me you're busy. I saw you pacing!” Keeley exclaimed. Another person appeared in the doorway. “Oh, Ted! Come here, maybe you have some gossip to share!” she shouted from the couch.

I’m here. Do I just go straight in or do I need to do something?

Go straight in, when you reach the stairs you need to go up and there is my office.

Rebecca didn’t know what to do. You will be here any minute, and she is not alone.

FYI Ted and Keeley are here in my office.

Oh. Do you not want me to go there? I mean I can ask someone to bring you lunch.

Don’t be silly, come here. I want you to meet them. I want you to be a part of this family I have here <3

Okay, give me a second, I love you xx

“Who are you texting? Me and Ted are here so..did you finally meet someone?” Keeley asked, and Rebecca could only smile. She saw you standing in the hallway and beckoned you inside. “Who is there? Are we inviting more people to the gossip group?” Keeley said, but Rebecca wasn’t listening to her anymore.

You shyly stepped into the office, stealing a glance at Keeley and Ted before waving at them. They looked at you with confusion, unsure of who you were. But before you could speak, Rebecca embraced you in a hug. “I’m so happy you are here, darling,” Rebecca whispered in your ear. After releasing the hug, her hand remained on your waist. “Thank you for bringing me lunch, I know I promised you to eat together but I didn’t expect to have company." She said, giving a narrowed look to the two individuals on the couch.

“You didn’t tell me you are bringing a hot date here! So that’s not my fault!” Keeley exclaimed. She quickly introduced herself, saying, “Hi, I’m Keeley, Rebecca’s best friend, and you are?”

You smiled at her, “Hi, I’m Y/N, Rebecca’s-“ You glanced at Rebecca, and she nodded, so without hesitation, you continued, “wife.” The two of you exchanged smiles as you noticed their confused expressions. You couldn't help but feel a rush of joy as you saw the surprise on their faces.

“Wait a moment, did I hear correctly? You said wife, didn't you? I mean my hearing isn't as good as it used to be, but surely it can't be that bad. Or maybe I imagined it?” Ted questioned, his eyebrows furrowing as he nervously rubbed his ear, trying to make sense of what he'd just heard.

Rebecca laughed lightly at his surprise, nodding in affirmation. “Yes, Ted, you heard me correctly. She is my wife, it will be two years soon.” Rebecca confirmed with a gentle smile, her fingers tenderly squeezing your side for reassurance.

Keeley seemed to get out of her confused stage, “I knew you were a little fruity but WIFE! And you didn’t tell me! I’m seriously offended!” she said, her voice filled with faux disapproval, “It will take a lot of hot gossips for me to forgive you!”

“I don’t know about hot gossip, but we definitely will have girls' night since you know who I am.” You said, a note of excitement creeping into your voice, “I'm sorry Ted, I can't make any promises about them letting you in, but just so you know, from my side, you're also invited!”

“Yes! Girls night! I always wanted to be invited to one!” He jumped into the air in his excitement, his fist pumping in victory.

The room filled with laughter as Ted looked like he'd just won the lottery, and even Keeley's initial surprise had faded, replaced with an eager grin. Rebecca and you both laughed at his excitement, “I'll look forward to it,” Rebecca said, a smile dancing on her lips.

You couldn’t help but feel a rush of warmth spread through you as you watched Rebecca talk and laugh with her colleagues. It was a sight you didn’t get to see often. She caught your eye and winked at you, her eyes sparkling with happiness.

This was a new chapter in your life, and you both were ready for it. Rebecca was finally ready to let the world know about her love for you, ready to take on whatever came her way with you by her side.

[yelena-bellova]

Heartfirst: A Ted Lasso Story - Chapter Twenty One

Chapter Twenty One: Coming Home

Plot: Loose ends are tied up and big changes come after Richmond’s victory.

Word Count: 4.2k

Warnings: language, mention of parental neglect/abuse, mention of alcohol, one suggestive line

A/N: Well, we have arrived at the end! I definitely intended to be done a long time ago, but life had other plans lol. Thanks to everyone who came along on this ride I had no intention of taking. I hope you enjoyed it!! MERRY CHRISTMAS AND GO RICHMOND!!! 💙❤️💛🎄❄️🎅🏻

————

In the afterglow of Richmond’s big win, there was a sadness that couldn’t be ignored, and it came in the form of a Boeing 747.

The day of his and Beard’s departure, Ted exited his apartment for the last time. He took a reflective breath and knocked his knuckles against the wood before turning away. As always, his assistant coach was waiting for him nearby.

The two men walked through Richmond for the last time, a few locals wishing them well as they left. When they made it to the curb, they spotted a familiar face.

“What’re you doin’ here?” Ted smiled.

Y/n shrugged from her place on the bench. “I figured you’ve done so many coffee runs at the office,” she held up two cups, “I’d return the favor.”

Ted and Beard moseyed over, Y/n stood and handed them the cups.

“And maybe I wanted to say goodbye,” Y/n smiled, “Just one more time.”

“Well, I won’t say no to that,” Ted replied, waiting for Y/n to retrieve her own cup so the three could toast. When he took a sip, he coughed. “What exactly is this?”

“An Americano,” Y/n answered.

Ted cleared his throat of the strong taste before he paused, realizing the joke. “The three Americanos.”

Y/n smiled, “Bingo.”

“Aw, hell, that’s too good,” Ted said proudly, “I’ll push through.”

Beard touched his chest. “You’ve come so far.”

“Well,” Y/n sighed, “If you guys have to go, I’m making sure it’s on a high note.”

“That’s right,” Ted smiled, “You and Jamie got any plans for the break?”

“Yeah, actually, Nike wants him to do this shoot in Brazil,” Y/n answered, Jamie’d only sprung the news on her last night, “We’ve gotta get down in a few weeks.”

Ted and Beard both let out suggestive ‘oohs’ that gave Y/n a laugh.

“Watch you back, Dave and Posh,” Ted teased, “There’s a new power couple on the pitch.”

As much as she wanted to deny it, there was something in Y/n’s gut that told her Ted wasn’t wrong. Since their kiss after Richmond’s win, Jamie and Y/n had been flooded by requests for interviews. Paparazzi and fan sightings were abundant. Even then, at the buttcrack of morning, Y/n spotted two teen girls whispering and pointing in her direction, no doubt debating if that really was Jamie Tartt’s girlfriend. It was new territory, but they were rising to the occasion. The footballer and the PR girl.

“Just promise us good seats at the wedding,” Ted continued, “Don’t be bumpin’ us just ‘cause Ronaldo and Messi show us.”

“How ‘bout we hug?” Y/n quickly changed the subject. Baby steps was the key to her staying happy with Jamie. “Let’s hug.”

Ted and Beard laughed before they all piled in a group embrace. The three of them had become a team of sorts, being the only Americans, and it was a bond Y/n was sad to see go. The only thing that comforted her was that Ted and Beard meant so much to Richmond, it certainly wouldn’t be the last they saw of one another.

“Alright,” Y/n said when she felt the tears begin to form, “You two get out of here. The plane’s not gonna wait for two dumb Americans.”

Ted laughed, patted Y/n on the back and pulled back to look proudly at her. “You take care, Y/n.”

Y/n’s smile was watery and full of unspoken gratitude, “You too.”

Beard spotted Y/n one more hug, seemingly needing it more than she did. “Bye, Y/n.”

“Bye, Beard.”

Finally, the three of them separated and Ted and Beard flagged down a coming cab. When they had loaded their luggage, Ted turned back one last time and gave Y/n a wave. She returned it, finally letting the tears fall down her contradicting smile.

Ted had done more for Richmond than anyone ever had. But more importantly, he had changed the people that made the Greyhounds who they were. No one would ever be the same after Ted Lasso’s reign. And that, Y/n concluded as the cab drove off, was a beautiful thing.

—————————

Post-victory, Richmond was still residing in its usual chaos.

When Y/n came into the office, taking care of a few post-season items with Higgins and Rebecca, and saw Beard in the hall, she was surprised but ecstatic. It was good for both of them to have some semblance of home.

Then came the announcement that Roy would be promoted to head coach, with Beard and Nate as the assistants. It seemed only natural for him to take over. Everyone was glad they didn’t have to adjust to someone new. And it was good territory for Roy to step into a leadership role. He was coming into his own in this new stage of life.

KJPR became KBPR as Keeley and Barbara officially went into business with one another. At first, Keeley had worried that Y/n may feel slighted. After all, she had done so much to help when Keeley was still getting her bearings. It ended up being quite the opposite. With Barbara as partner, Y/n could return back to Richmond, something she was thrilled about. The three women continued to work in total harmony.

Rebecca had even made some changes in her life. Under circumstances Y/n and Keeley were promised to hear about eventually, she had run into her mystery Dutchman and the two had started going out. It did everyone good to see Rebecca so happy. She deserved it.

Y/n and Jamie weren’t the only couple having the handle a mess of PR after the match. Colin had unofficially come out after kissing his boyfriend, Michael, on the pitch. Journalists, both honest and sleazy, were hounding the both of them. The day it stopped was the day they got cocky enough to trespass on Colin’s property. They were unaware that his publicist was present, and Y/n took a great deal of joy in coming around the side of the house with the gardening hose and spraying them all away. Needless to say, Colin felt extremely protected with her as his first line of defense.

Jamie and Y/n stayed the same, sickeningly in love with one another and growing more so by the day. Just after Roy was announced as head coach, they were booked to fly out to Brazil. Somehow Roy and Keeley, separately, had roped themselves in to coming as well.

“Our first trip away together,” Jamie lamented as they were packing at Y/n’s apartment, “And the old fart latches on.”

Y/n was across the room, grabbing a stack of t-shirts from her dresser. “That’s a horrible thing to call Keeley.” She laughed as Jamie flashed her a glare, “I can’t wait till you stop acting like you’re mad about this.”

“I am mad about this,” Jamie insisted.

“And the minute we’re all there, you two’ll be inseparable,” Y/n crossed the space to the bed, where Jamie and his suitcase sat, and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “I’ll be lucky if I get two minutes with you.”

Jamie scoffed, even though he knew there was truth to it. He could no longer deny him and Roy hated one another. Instead, he put his energy into rifling through his girlfriend’s suitcase.

“Jamie, I just got that organized,” Y/n whined, “What are you doing?”

“I’m thinning it out,” he answered, throwing item after item out onto the bedspread, “You don’t need half of this.”

Once he was done, Y/n looked into the square, there was very little. “Three bathing suits and underwear?”

“Yeah,” Jamie said deadpan before smirking, “All you need.”

Jamie pressed a kiss behind Y/n’s ear and wandered out of the bedroom. She was left laughing and undoing his handiwork. She was in the middle of repacking her pajamas when her cell phone rang from her nightstand.

“Jamie,” she called out, “Could you grab my phone?”

“Hang on,” Jamie yelled from the living room, “Phone’s ringing.”

Y/n sighed and went to collect her mobile herself. She glanced at the caller ID.

Dad

Time itself seemed to stop and Y/n was immobilized. It had been a month since Manchester when she’d been brave and called her parents. Not a word from either of them. It had been so easy to have courage in her rush of adrenaline, consumed by confidence and prepared to knock any obstacle down to get back to Richmond.

Now…she didn’t know what to do.

The little voice in her head that sounded much like the her in Manchester said to pick up.

Just before the last ring sounded, Y/n swiped across her screen and started the call.

“Hello?”

“Hi, uh…” Y/n’s dad stammered, “Hi, honey.”

“Hi,” she repeated.

“Hi.”

The two fell silent.

“Um…how-how are you?” Y/n was the first to ask.

“Oh, fine. Fine…yeah, we’re uh, we’re okay. How are you?”

Y/n wiped her hand across her jeans, beginning to wander the room like a Roomba. “Uh, I’m good. Decent. I, uh, I’m packing right now.”

“Oh, are you moving?”

“No, no. I’m, uh, I’m going on a trip with some friends and my uh…my boyfriend.”

Her dad didn’t seem to be phased. “Yeah, I heard something about that. I mean, I read it. You’re making headlines over here.”

Y/n stopped, “I am?”

“Well, it’s not front page or anything,” he corrected himself, “But there’s a few. That Tartt fellow seems like a hell of a player.”

“He is,” Y/n smiled, “He’s a great guy.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” her dad finished before another pause hit them. “Listen, I, uh, I wanted to call…well, I wanted to call sooner but…I wasn’t quite sure what to say.”

Disappointment began to settle in Y/n’s gut. It felt like there was some lame excuse coming. “Yeah, well…I didn’t exactly send a Hallmark greeting.”

“No, you didn’t do anything,” her dad quick addended, “I just wasn’t sure how to…how to speak to what you said because…it was so true.”

Suddenly everything became shaky, including her original message. “It was?”

“Of course. It was…painfully true. And I didn’t know what the right thing to say was and then when I felt like I did I was still worried it would be the wrong one and so…”

Another pause.

“Your mom and I, we, uh, we got into therapy,” Y/n’s dad continued.

Now that surprised her. “Oh, really?”

“Yeah, there were a lot of reasons. Nothing we did to one another, just…things from before you and Caylee were born. But mostly we, uh…we talked about how we raised you girls and all the areas we…could have done better.”

Y/n stayed silent, shocked into submission.

“And it’s been really helpful…and very….difficult.”

Y/n sighed, slightly annnoyed, feeling like her father was about to make the conversation about himself. “Yeah, well, I’ve heard therapy’s hard.”

“Not in the way you’d think,” her dad continued, “It’s been hard to…come to terms with what me and your mother did to you and Caylee.”

Now this was an entirely different kind of surprise. Y/n sunk onto her bed.

“Yeah?”

“Yes. We…I…I don’t even know where to start, but we’ve…we were a mess. A complete mess and we took it out on you girls.”

“I think…” Y/n drew a breath, “Taking it out on us would have been preferable.”

Her dad drew the same breath. “We ignored you girls. We left you to your own devices. We didn’t…we didn’t bond with you or support you in any way. Not the ways you needed at least. I think we thought if we were keeping a roof over your heads and keeping you alive, we were doing something right, but…that was nothing compared to what we didn’t do for you. What we kept from you.”

On opposite sides of the world, on different continents, separated by a great big ocean, father and daughter both began to shed tears.

“And I’m so sorry, honey,” Y/n’s dad’s voice wavered. “I’m so sorry.”

Y/n’s breath trembled, these were the words she’d longed to hear since she could recognize the problems in her family.

“Your phone call…it woke me and your mom up to a lot of things I think we’d known for years,” he went on, his voice a bit stronger now. “That we had the greatest girls given to us…and we didn’t care for you the way we should have.”

“Nothing you said was untrue, honey. And I’m glad you said it. You needed it and we needed to hear it. We needed to be woken up.”

Y/n sniffled trying to hold in the sobs she wanted to let go.

“And I can’t tell you how proud I am of you,” he audibly smiled through the phone, “Of the woman you’ve grown up to be and the life you’ve built for yourself. I think despite all the odds, you became the best version of yourself you could be.”

Y/n chuckled, a fresh batch of tears falling. “I love it.”

“I’ll bet you do,” her dad laughed, “I watched Richmond’s last game. It was a corker. And then to see you on the field…”

The two laughed in unison.

“That would be how I ended up in the headlines,” Y/n wiped her eyes.

“Mmm, I don’t think love’s a bad way to make headlines.”

Y/n had yet to say anything about loving Jamie, and yet her father already knew. Their moment on the pitch spoke for itself.

“So…you’re the only one that feels guilty?” Y/n finally asked.

“No,” her dad switched gears, “No, she’s actually at a session right now. I think she’s still a little nervous about making a call, but she wants to…she’s just trying to figure out what to say.”

“Tell her just to get really sad and really in love and pick up the phone,” Y/n suggested her method, “It’s easy.”

Her father laughed heartily, a sound Y/n was never really privy to as a child. It was so joyous, so full and round, it made her laugh as well.

“I hope it’s not too late to say it, but…” Y/n’s dad paused, “I really do love you, honey. And I’m sorry I didn’t do a better job of it.”

Y/n smiled, her eyes glazing oer with tears.

“And if you’ll let me and your mom…we’ll spend the rest of our lives trying to make up for all those years we were selfish.”

If she were a more vindictive person, Y/n would clutch the grudge in her palms and reject the offer. She’d tell her dad to go fuck himself and that no amount of time would ever make up for what was lost. But Richmond had softened her edges and rounded her out to be a more forgiving person. She’d learned from Ted and all his little life lessons on kindness he dropped. She’d learned from Rebecca, moving on and becoming the bigger person in the aftermath of her divorce. She’d learned from Jamie, who had done a complete 180 in his life and become one of the best people she knew. If he could forgive her for everything she’d put him through, how could she not pass it on to someone else?

“Yeah,” she answered, “Yeah, I’d really like that.”

Her dad took a quivering breath, full of emotion.

“But mom’s gonna have to do some groveling too,” Y/n joked.

“Oh, she’ll do it,” her dad agreed, “Probably even more than me. But she’ll do it as many times as necessary.”

The two of them stopped again, unsure of where to go from where they were.

“If you’re okay with it, eventually…we’d love to come out and see you. See this great big beautiful life you’ve built for yourself.”

It was an offer/request beyond what Y/n thought she’d ever get from her dad. Beyond what she ever thought possible for their family.

“Or maybe you could come home,” her dad suggested, just in case he’d pushed her forgiveness too far. “For a long weekend or something. Maybe in between games. Caylee came out last week.”

Her sister had failed to mention that piece of information. “She did?”

“Yeah.”

“She didn’t tell me.”

“Well, we kind of had the same talk. I think you and your sister share the same set of balls. She read us the riot act too.”

Caylee had never shied away from.…anything. She was the first of the sisters to put their upbringing behind them, to carve out a new life for themselves. It wasn’t surprising at all that she’d beaten Y/n to the punch of their parents.

“I think she wanted to wait to see how our talk went before she talked to you,” Y/n’s dad added.

“How’d that go?”

“Good,” her dad smiled, “Really well. Horrible, and then really great.”

Y/n smiled, looking down at her lap. “Yeah, I think I’d like both those things. Maybe I could bring you guys to a game.”

“Oh, we’d love that. We’d really love that. Is that American guy still coaching?”

“No, he left a few weeks ago,” Y/n answered.

“Huh, that’s a shame. Maybe I could jump in, give the guys some pointers.”

Y/n chuckled, “Oh, they’d love that.”

“Listen, I don’t wanna push my luck, so I’ll let you get back to packing,” her dad began to close the conversation, “Maybe we can talk more after you get back from your trip.”

He was right, it was a good place to stop. “Yeah, I’d like that. And if Mom calls, I promise I’ll let her grovel.”

“Attagirl,” her dad chuckled, “I love you, honey.”

Y/n smiled tearfully, the words she’d longed to hear all her life. Suddenly, it seemed so wasy to return them.

“I love you too, Dad.”

“Talk soon.”

“Bye.”

And with one click of a button, it was over.

Y/n felt stuck to her bed, nailed to it more like. All her life, she’d imagined screaming and yelling at her parents and it ending with them in tears as well, apologizing in spades to her and asking for them to forgive her. Her daydream had come true, though nothing like she’d thought it would. She was still, she was silent, and her father was more eloquent and composed. But both were filled to the brim with emotion. Somehow, it had all worked out better than she’d wanted.

Her family was coming back to her. The whole dang thing.

Y/n sprang to her feet, needing to word vomit the news onto someone. Jamie was closest. He was a good choice.

“Jamie,” she called, “Jamie.”

As she enterd into the living room. Jamie sported the same stunned expression she did. Had he heard the call?

They met in the middle of the room, each holding their own space. Each holding their cell phones.

“Who was that?” Y/n asked.

The words floated out of Jamie’s mouth slowly. “That was me dad.”

Y/n’s eyebrows dropped, along with her jaw. “Your dad?”

“Yeah,” Jamie breathed, his eyes flicking to Y/n’s phone, “Who was that?”

“That was my dad,” Y/n answered.

“Your dad?” Jamie echoed.

“Yeah.”

“What’d he say?”

“He wants to come see me. Him and my mom.”

“They do?”

“Yeah.”

Jamie’s face soured somewhat with apprehension. “And…what do you think?”

There was so much news to process. Still, Y/n’s purest emotions won out. Her lips quirked upwards, “I think I feel good. Really good.”

Jamie managed a distracted smile, “Good.”

Y/n shifted focus away from her. “What did your dad say?”

“He, uh,” Jamie breathed, “He’s in rehab, I guess. Wanted to call and congratulate me on the win. Wants me to come and see him.”

Y/n’s eyebrows shot up, “Whoa.”

“Yeah,” Jamie said.

“How do you feel about that?”

He blew out a huff of air. Jamie had just as many complicated feelings on his dad, if not more, than Y/n. And yet this time, there was some sort of peace that told Jamie this was alright.

“I think I feel good.”

“That’s good,” Y/n exhaled, “Do you want me to come with?”

“No,” Jamie quickly said, “I don’t want you near him till I…till I make sure it’s real this time.”

Y/n wasn’t about to start arguing with him. “Okay.”

The two of them finally looked at one another, well and truly, and saw each other transformed. If Richmond was one piece of what Y/n and Jamie were made up of, their relationship the other, their jobs the third, there’d been a missing fourth piece, empty and void of any love, for years. Suddenly, with but a drop filling it, there was new life in both of them. They stood a chance at becoming complete.

They fell into one another’s arms, wrapping around one another in hopes they could hold each other together. This was the beginning of something truly beautiful for both of them.

In the weeks and months that followed, after the trip to Brazil, things began to bloom. Jamie did go and visit his father, coming back with a genuine smile on his face. Y/n didn’t push, but Jamie felt confident that his father was making progress and that maybe, just maybe…they could form a relationship.

Y/n’s mom did indeed call, groveling and weeping over how poorly she’d treated her daughter. Y/n was there to accept every apology and cry with her. It was the best conversation they’d had in years. Her parents and Caylee jumped on for their first three-way call ever. Y/n made plans to come back home for Thanksgiving, and her parents and Caylee promised to fly to London for Christmas. It was the first holiday season they’d be spending together since high school. They were all counting the days down.

A few months after the season started for Richmond, Beard and his very pregnant girlfriend, Jane, announced they were getting married. The whole Richmond clan gathered together at Stonehenge for the event. It was strange, in keeping with their relationship, but full of love.

Eventually, Keeley came to Y/n with a business proposal. She had an inkling of an idea that she wantd to bring to Rebecca. But she wanted to give Y/n the opportunity to help her with it. The second she read the idea, Y/n was floored, and immediately onboard. Together, the two of them proposed a Richmond women’s league to their boss. It was an unflinching yes.

“But I have a condition,” Rebecca said before pointing to Y/n, “I want you to oversee it.”

Y/n blinked, “What?”

“I think you have a great deal of untapped potential,” Rebecca smiled, “And I think you’d make an incredible football club owner.”

“I-I…there’s no way. Unless you’re selling the team and I-“

“Nonsense,” Rebecca shrugged, “You bought a share, didn’t you?”

Rebecca had decided against selling the team off entirely, instead giving Richmond fans the opportunity to buy shares of the club.

“Well, yeah, I own like…half of a half of a percent.”

“Consider that your purchase,” Rebecca looked to Keeley, “What do you say? Is it okay if I poach one of your employees?”

Keeley was beaming from beside Y/n, “I’d be disappointed if you didn’t.”

Y/n wasn’t sure what was happening or how it was happening so fast. It felt eerily similar to a year prior in a London restaurant.

“What do you say?” Rebecca smiled, “Do you want to run a football club?”

Despite her shock, it was one of the easiest yesses she’d ever given.

Jamie had been thrilled, obviously, spinning Y/n around his house when she’d told him the news. One of Jamie’s biggest fears was losing all the good things in his life. Even though he knew him and Y/n were solid, a job like that was guarantee that neither of them would be leaving Richmond for a very long time.

All was well, no, all was better than well, for the Greyhounds. Sam’s restaurant flourished, Nate brought his girlfriend round finally to be introduced to his work family, Keeley and Roy began skirting the borders of exploring the possibility of maybe getting back together…all was as it should be.

Y/n was nearly in tears contemplating the beauty that was her life one night as Jamie drove them back to her place. Higgins’ and his family hosted the team barbecue that month at their home and the whole staff had shown up. Keeley, Roy, Jamie and Y/n had stayed in a huddle most of the night, laughing and talking as if they’d been family all their lives, which it was starting to feel like. Everything, from the smallest detail to the biggest, felt perfect.

“Hey, babe, what’s on the schedule for Friday night?” Jamie asked as they climbed the stairs into Y/n’s home. He was a few steps behind her. “Colin and Mike want to do a double date. I didn’t know if-“

He was rudely interrupted by Y/n smashing her lips against his. Jamie adjusted quickly and sunk into the kiss with her.

After Y/n pulled back, Jamie admired her. “What was that for?”

There were ten different answers she could have given him. For knocking into her that first day of work. For sitting down with her that night at the pub. For being the steadiest presence in her life. For forgiving her when she broke his heart. For supporting her and supporting her and supporting her. For adding to her happiness in a way nobody else could.

But instead, she shrugged and smiled. “No reason at all.”

And for the first time in her life, Y/n was truly, wholly happy.

———————

Heartfirst Taglist: @lalla-04p @optimisticsandwichgladiator @makingmunson94 @taytaylala12 @storysimp @sokkigarden @lightninginab0ttle @poohkie90 @alipap3 @verra-nerevarine @shineforever19 @spaceagechimera @burnafter-reading @qardasngan @cyberpvnk-enthusiast @sogoodtoheritsvicious @buckybarnex @angelsunflxwer @blueanfield @thewildestwonderland @sablecities @oxxolovemelikeyoudooxxo @strawberryacethingz @mentalistfan @tortilla-maria1 @katdahlali @for-fuck-sake-im-alive @glitterquadricorn @jamieolivia27 @imvibin69 @katlizada @lil-tracys @fanaticalfantasist @heyitz-julia @cactajuice @peachyy-tea @notalxx @rockchickrebel @anxiety-prime-max @loveforaugust @jellycolors @actuallybarb @heletsmelovehim @lovinnscarletknight @imfalling-inlove @leslieiscrying @meg-ro @littlemisssunshine192 @beboldbebravethings @maydayfigment @spencerreidsbookclub @dream-alittlebiggerdarling @lemoonandlestars @im-a-weirdo-for-life @mindless-rock (tags cont. in comments ❤️)

[spirit-whump]

The whump fandom usually prioritizes male characters, so tell me in the tags your favourite female characters to whump! OCs or canon characters, whumpees or whumpers - name some women.

[willalove75]

Being Rebecca's partner /gf ( younger like Keeley ) and some of the boys flirt with reader. Both remain professional and hide their relationship but there's just something about a possessive strict rebbeca ...

Loveeee thisss!! Thank you so much for the request!💕💕

Warnings: Smuttt (idk how to write a possessive Rebecca without it tbh LOL)

18+ only Minors DNI

Tension was at an all-time high. Sitting next to Rebecca, you can feel the stress radiating off of her. All you want to do is wrap your arms around her, kiss her on the head and whisper words of comfort into her ear. When she glances over at you, you know that's all she wants too. But the two of you were in public and you haven't told a soul about your relationship yet, both of you agreed to keep it under wraps for the time being. Plus the season was almost over, neither of you felt the need to make the end of the season more chaotic than it was already about to be.

What was not helping the tension, or Rebecca's stress, was the fact that you were at an away game at West Ham. The team Rupert recently purchased.

Laying in your arms last night, Rebecca told you how nervous she was to go to the game, that she was anxious about seeing her piece of shit ex-husband again. Running your fingers through her soft blond hair, you reassured her that everything was going to be fine, and that you would be by her side, no matter what.

"Howdy boss, y/n!" Ted pulls both you and Rebecca out of your spiraling thoughts.

"Hello Ted." Rebecca says.

"Hey!"

"How 'bout the two of ya'll come in for the team mixer, West Ham and the boys are all getting acquainted with one another before the big showdown."

Exchanging glances, Rebecca reluctantly stands up and you follow the two of them inside.

It was noisy and pretty crowded, also unusual for the two teams to be getting together like this before a match, but you decided to not think much of it and followed Ted and Rebecca to the bar. Just before you reach your destination, someone pulls Rebecca away to introduce her to some people. She shoots an apologetic look your way and you softly smile back at her, letting her know it's fine.

Walking up to the bar, you notice a couple of West Ham players make their way up to you. You do your best to not pay them any mind, but they make it impossible when they try and talk to you.

"This game was going to be a breeze, but knowing there's gonna be such a gorgeous woman in the stands, I think I'm gonna have a hard time focusing." One of the players says, flashing you a million dollar smile.

"If you get distracted that easily, you're gonna have more problems than the match." You retort.

"Pretty and quick, that's a rare combination."

"It's only rare when you give off the energy of an entitled football player."

The boys around him erupt in a chorus of "ohhhh shitt!" and you laugh, making the football player talking to you laugh as well.

Rebecca hears the commotion and looks over, immediately spotting you in the middle of a group of footballers. Her eyes are locked on you, there's a bubbling of, something, in her chest that feels foreign to her. Anger? Stress? Jealousy? That last one resonated more than she expected, what she jeal-

"Earth to boss, come in boss!" Ted says, pulling her back to reality.

"My apologies Ted, what was that again?"

Surrounded by the boys, you had no idea that Rebecca spotted the interaction. The player talking to you leans in a little more.

"May I buy you a drink gorgeous?"

"You're literally about to go play football, you're gonna drink?"

"Of course not, I have morals!" He says with a laugh and you shoot him a look, eliciting another laugh from the group. "I will be drinking water, what will you have?"

"I'm flattered, but no thank you."

"Please," he says, taking your hand into his. "I insist." He lightly kisses your knuckles and you stand there in shock for a second, never expecting him to be that bold.

Hearing laughter erupt, Rebecca looks over towards you again and see's the footballer lean in. Her eyes narrow when she see's him take your hand and place a kiss on it. Never in her life has Rebecca's body tensed up so much, seeing someone else's lips on your skin set something off in her that she's never felt before. Looking at your face, she knows immediately that you're uncomfortable. Even though she was in the middle of a conversation, before her brain can catch up with her legs, she's walking over towards you.

Walking straight through the group of guys, she stands next to you, an intense glare in her eyes directed at the player that was flirting with you.

"Don't you have a match to warm up for?" She says, her tone is cold and icy. It's taking every ounce of self control she has to not wrap her arm around your hip and pull you into a deep kiss, claiming you as hers.

With fear in his eyes, the guy mutters "oh right, yeah we gotta go." and walks away, the rest of the players following close behind him.

You let out a sigh of relief and turn towards Rebecca, you're surprised to see the intense look that's lingering in her eyes.

"Thank you- are you okay?"

She takes a deep breath and tried to ground herself.

"Yes, are you?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, just the usual footballers acting like dogs. You sure you're okay?"

"Yes, I promise." She says, leaning into your ear. "Although it took ever ounce of self control I had to not show all of them that you're mine." She says with a low voice.

Your heart skips a beat and you feel your cheeks blush a bit.

"Well, that certainly would have been interesting, wouldn't it?" You joke.

"You have no idea."

"Rebecca Welton, I didn't know you were the jealous type."

"Neither did I, I suppose it's only when someone tries to take what's mine."

"Fuck." You whisper, your eyes meet hers. Her pupils are dilated just enough to know how sincere, and turned on, she is.

"I'm walking away now before I do something stupid." She says with a mischievous look in her eyes. She gives you a wink and walks back towards the group she was talking to before.

The players slowly leave and prepare for the match, leaving the room much emptier than before, although there's still a lot of people left. Walking around with a drink in your hand, you wander aimlessly, eventually landing by one of the windows and looking out onto the pitch.

Rebecca spots you from across the room and can't help but smile as she watches you gaze out the window. Her attention is pulled back into the conversation she was in and she turns back to the group.

You're not sure how much time had passed, since you ended up spacing out looking outside, but you're sure the match is going to start soon. Just as you're about to walk away you feel a hand wrap gently around your arm. Turning around, you find yourself face-to-face with no one other than Rupert Mannion, Rebecca's ex-husband. For a second you freeze, you can't stand this man. You're convinced that he's dedicated at least 75% of his life to trying to ruin Rebecca's - for whatever sick reason. Trying to keep your scowl at bay, you try and smile at him, hiding your distain.

"You must be from Richmond, there's no way someone so beautiful could be working at West Ham and get by me." He says, laying the charm on thick.

"Yes, I am from Richmond." You say, ignoring the last half of what he said.

"My name is Rupert Mannion, please, take a seat." He gestures to the two chairs near the window.

"Oh, that's okay-"

"I insist." He has a look in his eye that's telling you he isn't asking.

To avoid any more confrontation, you sit, trying to see if you spot Rebecca anywhere.

"I'm sorry, what was your name again?" He asks.

"Y/n."

"Oh yes, I've heard of you. You're one of the newer additions to the fine staff over at Richmond."

"Uh, yeah."

"So, y/n, tell me, what is it that you do?"

You begin to describe your job and what you do on a daily basis. The more you speak, the further Rupert leans in. If you didn't know any better, you would be smitten by his charm. He may be a bastard, but he's certainly a charming one.

"What a coincidence, we recently lost someone in a similar position here. You wouldn't be interested in it, would you? I can guarantee you a much higher salary here than you would be making over at Richmond."

"Uh, I appreciate the offer, but no thanks, I really like it over there."

Rupert lets out an obnoxiously fake laugh.

"Oh you're a funny one. Well at least think about it, for me." He says, practically batting his eyelashes.

"Uh-" The words suddenly disappear from your lips when he puts his hand on your knee, slowly sliding it up to the middle of your thigh. You freeze, not having any idea of what to do. Well, you want to scream at him to get off of you and run into Rebecca's arms, but that's not an option for a plethora of reasons.

"I would love to have someone as gorgeous as you in my office every day, y/n." He says, leaning in.

As if she has a sixth sense for trouble, Rebecca turns back to look at you and see's you with Rupert. Her jaw clenches when she see's him talking to you. Shifting her eyes down, she see's his hand on your thigh, coupled with the look on your face, she feels like every cell in her body is bursting with anger.

Walking away from the group, Rebecca makes it over to you in an instant. You're pulled from your frozen state when you feel a hand wrap around your wrist, pulling you up.

"Get your hands off of her." Rebecca snaps at Rupert.

"Rebecca, dear, how are you?" He says, glaring at her.

"Keep your hands off of my staff Rupert." She growls, pulling you behind her.

"Ah, always the protective one, must be that maternal instinct kicking in, isn't it?"

Rebecca's hand tightens around your wrist, that one had to have hurt, even if it was a little. She glares at him with an anger you've never seen before and Rupert puts his hands out in front of him, signaling he means no harm.

"Alright, alright, I was only getting acquainted with your new staff member, no need to get angry dear."

Rupert stands up and begins to walk away.

"It was so lovely meeting you, y/n."

Rupert walks out to the stands and Rebecca pulls you out of the room. Down the hall, she opens a random door and finds a supply closet, pulling you in, she closes the door and pins you up against it.

With her hot breath against your skin, your knees almost give out underneath you. Her pupils are completely blown as she stares down at you, a hungry look in her eyes.

"Rebecca-"

"Sh," she says, putting a finger over your lips. "those stupid football players I can deal with, but him, that fucking asshole, absolutely not."

"I didn't-"

"I know, trust me I know that was all him, but even still. You are mine."

Before you can even agree to her statement her lips are on yours, her tongue pushing it's way into your mouth. She kisses you rough and passionately, as if she'd die if she ever stopped. Her hands pull at the fabric on your body, pressing you into her as hard as possible.

"How I would love you take you bent over his desk right now." She pants as she kisses you hard. "But this will have to do."

Her hands travel to the waistline of your pants and she unbuttons them and pulls them down to your ankles along with your underwear.

Seeing her like this, so possessive, so protective, so hot for you, she didn't even need to touch you for the wetness between your legs to threaten to leak down your thighs.

Slender fingers find their way between your folds and you moan into her mouth as they circle your clit. Once you're stimulated even further and Rebecca's fingers are coated in your arousal, she slides two fingers into you effortlessly until she's knuckle deep. Your eyes roll to the back of your head and you bite down on your lip to suppress the moan.

Rebecca begins to pump her fingers in and out of you, you know this is going to be fast and rough and the thought is only making your center drip even more.

"You are mine. All mine." She says as she fucks you. "Mine to do whatever I please with, mine to fuck wherever and whenever I want to."

Your nails begin to dig into her skin as she rushes you towards the edge, you won't last long, not with how she's fucking you and talking to you. She knows what gets you going and today she's pulling out every trick in her book.

"Say it, tell me you're all mine." She growls in your ear.

"I'm- fuck- I'm all yours, only yours, yours to do whatever you- ah! want with."

She picks up the pace and presses the base of her hand against your clit, grinding into it with every thrust of her wrist.

"You're such a good girl, letting me take you wherever I want. Watching those boys flirt with you, god I wanted to take you right then and there."

"Yeah?" You whine.

"Yeah, bend you over that bar and fuck you senseless."

"Oh fuck, Rebecca, I'm gonna-"

"Good girl, that's it, cum for me, I want you to cum all over my fingers."

She thrusts harder and curls into you, driving you right to the edge. You bite down on the collar of her blazer to keep your moans from ringing out into the building. Grinding down on her you clench and she shoves you over the edge into bliss.

Your eyes roll to the back of your head and your vision goes white. Your legs tremble underneath you, gripping onto Rebecca for dear life. She pulls the orgasm out of you for as long as possible before finally pulling her fingers out.

You fall into her arms, your body almost completely limp. She catches you and holds you tight, licking her fingers clean. Resting your head against her chest, you lay there for a minute as you catch your breath and come back down to Earth. Rebecca runs her fingers through your hair and kisses you on the top of your head.

"You were so good for me, thank you my love." She whispers into your hair, pressing another kiss into it.

Standing up straight, she holds onto your waist until she's sure you're steady on your feet. She pulls your underwear and pants back up, buttoning and zippering them again. Cupping your face, she brings her lips to yours and kisses you. This kiss is nothing like the last one, this one is soft, tender, filled with love. You kiss her back and wrap your arms around her neck, pulling her close into you.

When your lips part she fixes the collar on your shirt and you fix her blazer and wipe away the smeared lipstick from her lip.

"I should get you jealous more often, holy shit Rebecca." You say with a giggle.

"Don't play with fire my love, you'll get burnt." She says, placing one last kiss on your lips.

The match started by the time you got back to your seats, you got a few questioning looks from Higgins and Keeley but you both ignored them and sat down and watched the game.

Richmond ended up losing, pretty badly at that. Even though the match was lost, both you and Rebecca left the match satisfied in a much different way.

[softspaceboibrian]

Fell in Love with the Fire Long Ago || Jamie Tartt

Chapters: 1 - more to come

Pairing: Jamie Tartt x Y/N - Social Media Manager for AFC Richmond || I used she/her pronouns, but there is no actual physical description, so the pronouns can be switched with whatever anyone wants or prefers!

Summary: When Y/N received that email, she couldn't believe it. He was coming back.

Warnings: maybe some swear words. hints and mentions of sexual acts (still SFW). S1 Jamie Tartt aka a dick. a little angsty. Sam being is lovable self.

Characters: Jamie Tartt, Sam Obisanya, Isaac McAdoo, Colin Hughes, Dani Rojas, Ted Lasso, Rebecca Welton. Some others may appear as mentions.

Wc: 3800 (this works as a pilot or a prologue, to set up the story)

A/N: this story is based on this idea I had and that a few people seemed to like. hopefully you enjoy this first chapter/prologue. and if you want to read more, feel free to leave a comment. If enough people like it, I was thinking to do a taglist, so that people can stay updated. anyways, thanks for reading &lt;;3

When you first heard the news, you couldn’t believe it. You couldn’t believe that they could do such a thing. Not to the team, not to you. That was the reason you were stomping up the stair, the clinking of your heels echoing against the walls, as you reached Rebecca’s office.

You didn’t knock, you didn’t wait for them to welcome you in. They knew you were coming. Especially after the email they had sent out. The email had been sent only to the “necessary” people that needed to be involved, and you, being the social media manager for the club, received it. It was probably a way for them to warn you to start preparing the content for the announcement. But you obviously didn’t take it well. They knew about your history, they knew how things had gone down. They had to be expecting you.

“How could you?” Your loud, clear voice, full of anger and disappointment filled the room.

“Good morning, Y/N!” Ted’s cheerful greeting made you want to scream. “To what do we owe the pleasure?” The sarcasm was obvious.

“How could you? After what he did to the team? After what he said about you?” Your tone was loud, so much so that you were sure people from downstairs could clearly hear every single one of your words. “How could you?” You choked on your last words, and as you finally met Rebecca’s gaze, you could feel the familiar sting of the tears that threatened to fall, spill, pour.

The woman sighed, getting up from her chair to make her way around the big desk. “Listen, love, he’s a great player. When Ted told me about their talk, I knew we had to get him back.” She explained, walking over to her. “We cannot let our feelings get in the way of the team’s success.”

You shook your head, taking a step back. “I never thought you would become this cynical.”

“I’m not cynical, just rational.”

“It’s all the same thing. He’s a prick. And pricks don’t change.” You were furious. “And it’s not just my feelings, but the team’s feelings. But you obviously don’t remember how he used to treat everyone.” You lingered on that last word, looking briefly at each of them, before turning around and making your way out of the office and down the stairs. “No one understands.” You whisper, your fists so tight you started to feel that burning sensation of your nails leaving marks on your palms.

Keeping your head low, trying to hide the tears streaming down your face, you made your way to the changing room. You knew you couldn’t say anything to any of the boys yet, but still, you needed some comfort. You needed Sam.

You quickly reached the locker room and knocked, waiting for them to give you a sign to let you know you could come in. And, as soon as you opened the door, you ran straight to Sam, immediately burying your face in his chest.

“Hey, Y/N/N. What is going on?” His thick Nigerian accent immediately bringing comfort to you. “Did something happen?” He asked as he tried to pull away slightly, trying to understand what was happening.

“Just… hug me… please.” You pled, the voice muffled by his jersey. And he did. He wrapped his arms around you, softly placing a kiss on top of your head, before laying his chin in the same spot. You’re immediately comforted by the warmth of your best friend’s embrace. However, you didn’t fail to notice how the familiar chatter of the changing room had started to slowly simmer down until it ultimately came to a halt. A sense of pain and anxiety washed over you at once, and your head started again to fill with the same questions you had asked Rebecca and Ted. Why? Why him? Why now? How could they?

But soon, your stream of thoughts was interrupted by Isaac’s voice. “Who do we have to kill?” You didn’t need to raise your head from Sam’s chest to know that the feeling was shared by most if not all the team’s players.

“No one. Yet.” You mumbled, sniffling. “It’s complicated.” You added as you finally pulled away from Sam, yet still remaining extremely close to him, as if his presence was the only thing keeping you sane and calm at that moment.

“When the moment comes, just call, okay?” You gave a quick nod to the team captain, accompanied by a shy smile. To any casual passer-by, the comment may have seemed sarcastic, the usual banter between friends that care about each other. But the team knew that that was not sarcastic at all and that Isaac would indeed, without a shadow of a doubt, kill someone for you.

You couldn’t exactly remember when, but somewhere down the line, the team had become your chosen family. However, you could clearly remember how that process had started.

You had started working for AFC Richmond around the same time that Ted and Coach Beard did. You didn’t care much for football or sports in general, but you had just recently graduated from university and had found this work through Keeley. You and her had met at your cousin’s going away party a few years before, when he had decided to move to Greece to become an archaeologist. You had immediately bonded over who can even remember what, and remained close friends ever since. So, when she heard that the position had just opened up, she immediately sent your CV to Rebecca, without warning you first. You found out about the job only when you received a call from a certain Mr Higgins, who told you that they had read your curriculum and found it really interesting. And so, you ended up moving to Richmond-upon-Thames and started working for the club.

It didn’t take you long to get to know the team and become friends with them. Obviously, you had your prejudices against footballers, who you thought were self-centred egomaniacs – and you weren’t completely wrong about that – but, to your surprise, most of them turned out to be great people. You quickly became very close with Sam; Roy tolerated you; Isaac and Colin were always kind to you. Even Jamie Tartt, the prick of the team, would usually drop his dickhead persona when he was with you. And that was how you two ended up together. For the first month or so, you would notice his constant flirting, but you never really gave it too much thought. You had read about him in the tabloids, and you knew how he was famous for having a different girl every week. You weren’t that oblivious, you knew he was fit. But, every time he would flirt with you, you would play along for a while, before brushing it off and going back to your business. I’m just his latest challenge, he will move on sooner or later, you thought. Until, roughly a month and a half after you had started working there: he started waiting for you outside the clubhouse, asking you if you needed a ride home. Which then turned into him asking you to grab a coffee with him one day before practice. Then it was dinners. Movie nights at his place. Stolen glances in the hallways of the clubhouse. Sneaking in the boot room to secretly make out. And sooner than you could realise, you were sleeping over at his place most of the time.

You asked him to keep things private for a while. It wasn’t that you were ashamed of him. You just needed to be sure about him. So, you kept sneaking around. Avoiding each other as much as possible, too worried that the team might just figure it out. Let me show you off, Jamie would whisper into your ear, in-between wet kisses, as he stood behind you in the kitchen in the morning, wrapping his arms around your waists. Let me take you out to a restaurant, on a proper date, he insisted. But you kept declining his offers. Not yet, baby, you would reply, as you slowly melted under his touch, I need a little more time, you said as you turned around in his arms. And the conversation would die there, with Jamie immediately picking you up and placing you on top of the kitchen counter, his lips trailing their way down your neck, your collarbone, your chest, down, down, until your vision turned hazy and you had to grip onto the marble countertop with all the strength you had in your body, too afraid you might fall off of it, as his lips met finally met your core.

You were able to keep your relationship private longer than you had expected. It was after almost 4 weeks that Nate eventually walked in on you two in the boot room. You weren’t doing anything too private, you were merely making out. But Nate being Nate, froze on his feet as he saw you two holding onto each other, too stunned to move. I was… I needed to… sorry… I didn’t…. As usual, he was too embarrassed to form a complete sentence, so he simply left the room. You two looked at each other and knew that it was only a matter of time before your secret would be out. And you were right. The secret didn’t last the entire day, and when it was time to go home after practice, you were met by a horde of football players, asking you when it had started, how long had that been going on, if you two were official, and so on.

Somehow, but still not completely unexpectedly, the news reached the press in less than a day. The next morning, as you lied in bed with Jamie’s head on your chest, you were woken up by the constant buzzing of your phone. Check this article from The Sun, said a message from your high school friend, with a link attached to it. Is it true? Asked your mother. Congratulations! read the message from your aunt from whom you hadn’t heard in ages. And the messages kept coming. Yes, it was true. You were now in a relationship. Yes, your boyfriend was a famous footballer. Yes, you knew about his fame. Still, you didn’t care. Because, when Jamie was with you, he wasn’t Jamie Tartt, star striker for AFC Richmond, but just Jamie. And you loved just Jamie. He was sweet, he was passionate, he was kind, he always made sure you were feeling well, he brought you flowers once a week, he left some coffee for you in the pot in the mornings, he always made sure you were sexually satisfied – something he was really proud of.

Sadly, you hadn’t realised that, with going public, also came the hate from his fans, who thought that you would be too distracting for their beloved favourite player, and from the girls, the actresses, the top models, the reality tv stars, who had hoped to one day end up with him and whose dream you had shattered overnight. You pulled through it, and that was also thanks to Jamie, who never missed the chance to remind you how much he loved you and cared for you.

However, two months after going public, things started to change. You couldn’t understand why if it was something that you had done or said, but he started to become distant, cold. He would invite you less and less over to his place, and when he did, it was mainly to have sex, to ‘release the tension from practice’. And whenever the team lost, the sex would be rough. He was always on his phone, texting, dming, emailing. A part of you knew it was girls he was talking to, but you couldn’t bring yourself to confront him about it, so you just said nothing and held on. He soon stopped asking you how you were, telling you how much he loved you. You tried asking him what was going on, but he would always deny everything, saying that you were imagining things, that you were just paranoid, and that everything was fine. Fine. Oh, how you came to hate that word. You asked him how he was. Fine. You asked him if he wanted to spend the night together. Fine. You asked him if he wanted to drive to the clubhouse together. Fine. Fine. Fine. Fine. You hated fine. In Jamie’s language, fine meant if you really have to, or I would rather you left me alone, or I don’t really care. You hated it. And you hated what your relationship had become. But still, something stopped you from leaving him, maybe the hope that soon things would go back to normal, that soon he would go back to being just Jamie.

But that never happened.

And things only got worse when Ted decided to take him out during a match. You knew that Ted was doing it to teach him a lesson, and he was right to want to do so. But as you watched your boyfriend leave the pitch, you knew things would only get worse. So, you stopped constantly looking for him. You stopped texting him every day. You only met when he asked you.

It was in that period that you grew closer to Sam. You could distinctly remember the day he walked into your office to ask you for a few suggestions on how to make his Instagram page more appealing. Instead walked in on you sitting on the floor, with your back against the wall and your hands in your hair. You didn’t even have the strength to pretend things were okay, so you simply looked up, black lines scarring your cheeks, and met his eyes. “Sorry, Sam, it’s… not a great moment.” You struggled to get the words out.

But Sam didn’t say anything. Instead, he closed the door behind him, made his way across the room and took a seat on the floor next to you. “Is it Jamie?” He asked with his thick Nigerian accent that you would grow to love and even find familiar. You nodded silently. ��Do you want to talk about it?” You shook your head. “Do we just sit in silence?” A nod. A beat. Then your head slowly fell to the side, until it found its resting place on his shoulder.

You don’t exactly know how long you stayed there, on the floor, in silence. It could have been a few minutes or entire hours. In either case, Sam stayed there, and didn’t leave your side. He never once took out his phone to check his messages, even though you could feel it buzzing in his pocket. He only changed position once, to move his arm and wrap it around your shoulders. That was the first time you had spent that much time in silence with someone without feeling the need to fill it with superficial chatter.

From that day forward, you and Sam were inseparable. There was something about him that simply brought you comfort, a comfort that not even Jamie had been able to give you. Whenever you weren’t sleeping over at Jamie’s, he would come to pick you up and drive you to work. He would drive you home in the evenings, making sure you were all the way inside your house, before sprinting off the road to go home himself. You would start having lunch together, usually joined by some of the other guys – in all of this, most of the time Jamie was nowhere to be found. And whenever your boyfriend acted like a dick with you in front of everyone, he would speak up. Are you his boyfriend now, Sammy? Jamie would mock him, using your nickname for him. I don’t think so. She’s me girl, so I’ll talk to her how I want, a’ight? He would puff out his chest, trying to look bigger and intimidating.

That evening, after practice was over, Jamie sprinted off to who knows where or to who knows who, leaving you there, alone. And, as per usual, Sam would come to the rescue, offering you a lift home.

“Why are you still with him?” Sam asked you as he stopped in front of your house. “You deserve better, not an asshole like him.”

You shook your head. “He’s not like that when it’s just the two of us.” You would always find a way to make excuses for him.

“I don’t care how he is when he’s alone with you, Y/N! If he really loves you, he should treat you well in public as well!” You had never really heard Sam raising his voice before, and it would have been a lie if you had said that you were not intimidated. But, despite everything, you could feel the care and preoccupation in his voice. “You deserve someone that truly cares for you, and that isn’t afraid to show it!” You knew he was right. Yet, you couldn’t bring yourself to say something, to break up with him.

But you never had to.

It was maybe a week after your discussion with Sam when you showed up unannounced at his place. It was cold outside, and you were only wearing a thick jumper. You stood there, in front of his door for at least three whole minutes, before finally knocking on his door. You knocked instead of ringing the bell so that if he was already asleep, you wouldn’t wake him. But he had heard it, and less than 10 seconds later, he was opening the door.

“Y/N, what are you-” He didn’t even finish his question. He took one look at you and knew exactly what had happened. He took your hand gently in his, and immediately pulled you inside, guiding you to the living room. “Wait here a moment.” He said, making you seat on the couch, before running off in search of a blanket. “Okay, wrap yourself in this while I put the kettle on.” He opened the blanket and put it around your shoulders.

“Stay here, please.” You whispered, grabbing him by the wrist before he could move away again.

“But you’re shivering.”

“Just… please.”

As soon as he met your eyes once again, he felt his heart drop to his stomach. He had seen you in distress before, he had comforted you multiple times after your fights with Jamie. But this time he didn’t even need for you to tell him what had happened, he already knew. He took a seat next to you, fixing the blanket so that it was properly covering your entire body, before pulling you to his chest.

“He said that I was too much work.” The words left your mouth watery. “That I asked too much of him. And that, since he was going back to Man City, it was better to call it quits.” You whispered. You could feel Sam’s body tense, the air blowing through his nose. You knew he wanted to say a lot of things. He wanted to tell you that he was a dickhead, that he never realised what he had in front of him, that he had just lost the best woman he could ever find, that he was a moron, a jerk, an idiot, a fool. But he didn’t. He remained silent. And he did the best he could to comfort you. He stroke your hair and your back, he rocked you and hummed to you, until you fell asleep.

After that night, it didn’t take long for the rest of the team to find out what had happened, and how it had happened. Every single one of the boys sent you a text, saying, each in their own way, that they were sorry, that Jamie was a dick, and that they were there for you if you needed them. And you were glad to know so many people cared for you, people that up until a few months ago didn’t even know you and that you would have never expected in your life to end up being friends with. They all stopped and hugged you when they met you in the corridor for the first time after it had happened. But some of them surprised you.

You hadn’t been able to sleep for the last few nights, which was made obvious to everyone by the way you dragged your feet against the floor whenever you walked around the clubhouse, your legs too heavy for your exhausted body to properly move. You had also stopped taking care of yourself. Yes, you showered and brushed your teeth because you hated not being presentable for work. But you had stopped brushing your hair every morning and every night, like your grandmother had thought you when you were little. And you had stopped wearing make-up. Not that you would normally put on a full face every day, but you stopped using mascara because it made your eyes burn whenever you cried, and the light concealer you used under your eyes to make yourself look fresher, more awake. And now your puffy red eyes and dark circles were there, on display, for everyone to see, a reminder of how you were feeling.

That morning you had opted for a very comfortable pair of sweatpants and a warm AFC Richmond hoodie. Using supportiveness as a way to hide your depression. Smart, you thought. Sad. You were sitting in your office, alone, working on the new social media campaign, when suddenly you heard someone knock on your door. “Come in.” You said flatly. As the door opened, you looked up from your laptop, only to see Sam walk in, followed by Isaac, Colin and Dani. “How can I help you, boys?” You forced a smile on your face.

“Want to watch a movie with us tonight?” Asked Isaac, taking the lead. You looked at the quartet in front of you, unsure of what to say. “We can watch whatever sad movie you prefer, and Dani can bring some Mezcal.”

“Boys, I-” You started, but you were instantly cut off.

“Uh-uh!” The Welsh stepped forward. “We don’t want to hear any I’d rather be alone or I don’t want to be a bother bullshit, okay? We want to do this.”

“Yes, we only asked to be nice, but if you say no, we will just kidnap you and force you to do it.” Said Sam, a soft, warm smile on his face, as he leaned over your desk.

“Por favor, Y/N” Dani pled, showing you his big, brown puppy eyes.

“Fine!” You gave in. “On one condition: we order Chinese.”

They all look at each other, before bursting out laughing.

A/N: if you read all the way through, thank you ! feel free to leave a feedback/comment. i would love to know what you think about it and if you would be interested in reading more of this story. let me know if you would like to be put in a taglist for this fic! love you <3

[thornsnvultures]

Ohhhhh my goddd 🥵🥵

Hey, Ozzie!! Big congrats on your 10k and happy early bd!!! 🥳 Thank you for your writing!! Your stories always make my heart bit faster❤️‍🔥👏 Well I saw her name on the list and ran here FAST🏃🏼‍♀️ If you please📝 Boss!Rebecca Welton x PA!reader and numbers 146) and 10) 💗💗💗

warnings: Boss!Rebecca Welton x PA Fem!Reader. mention of masturbation. illusions to smut.

word count: 799

author's note: first time writing Rebecca. go easy on me. THANK YOU FOR REQUESTING THE QUEEN!💙

10K Birthday Celebration

You stalk up the steps of your boss’s lavish house and let yourself in. The house is quiet as you hang your purse on the coat rack and slip your heels off. You dip your head into the kitchen and the sitting room looking for the gorgeous woman. 

You’d secretly been harboring a crush on your boss since the first day you started working for Richmond. Rebecca was a tough but gracious boss. It made your tedious job even more difficult with the fact that you had to hide your feelings. Rebecca made the dingy world around you shine.

Many times you could’ve sworn you caught her looking at you but you chalked it up to late, stressful nights and poor eating. You wanted so badly to be with her but it would be unethical and she could have anyone she wants. Why would she chose you?  

You tap your fingers on the door frame and bite your lip when you come up empty. She said she’d be here. Rebecca wanted to go over the itinerary for an upcoming away game this weekend, leaving you barely enough time to get things scheduled.

You double check your watch with a sigh when a sound from the floor above catches your attention.

“Rebecca?” You call you curiously as you ascend the marble stairs. You pray it’s your imagination toying with you and that Rebecca will waltz through the front door any second. 

 A soft cry halts your movements just as you reach the bedroom door. You press your ear against the ajar door as breathy, muted moans rumble from the other side. From the slight view the open door gives you, you can see the foot of her Rebecca bed and her feet shifting under the sheets.

Your brain short circuits when you hear her cry out your name. Maybe she’s thinking of someone else with the exact same name? She moans again and your cunt clenches at the sinful sound.

You wish you could know what she looks like while she touches herself. You want to know what drives her mad and gets her off.

You’re so deep in the fantasy of picturing your boss sprawled out on her bed with her fingers buried in her cunt that you lean too far forward and fall through the door and into the room. You hit the carpeted floor with a bang making your boss scream and jump under the covers.

“It’s only me! It’s only me!” You shout and raise your hands in a fury.

“What the fuck are you doing here!?” The blonde huffs. Her naked chest heaves under the sheets as she holds them against her bosom.

“You said you wanted to go over the schedule for this weekend and I let myself in with the key and then I heard something and ran upstairs and tripped into your room.” You anxiously blabber and tug on the seam of your shirt.

“You heard what exactly?” Rebecca shakes her head going white as a ghost.

“Uhh, I mean, not much…but were you just masturbating?” A smirk tugs your lips.

“U-uh..no, I was just..” Rebecca stammers as she smooths out the silk bedsheets in a frenzied hurry. Her cheeks are flushed and her usually quaffed hair is a mess, falling perfectly  and framing her face. 

She looks stunning. So stunning you can’t help but take the chance you’ve been wishing and hoping for all these years even if means you could get sacked.

“I’ve seen the way you look at me when you think I don’t notice.” You confess while dragging a finger up the curve of her silk covered calf.

The older woman freezes on the spot. Her wild blue eyes lock onto yours and for once she doesn’t know what to say.

“Want some help?” You offer with a quirked brow.

“I’m your boss. I should not be thinking about you this way.” Rebecca says, trying to reason with herself as you pull the duvet cover back and slide in beside her. 

“What if I’ve been thinking the same way about you?” You say, demurely as you press your breasts into her arm and spoon your body into her naked side.

She holds your stare as your confession lingers in the thick haze of arousal that’s filling the room.

Rebecca tips your chin with a manicured finger and presses her soft lips to yours. The kiss is delicate and subtle with tinges of yearning as she swipes her tongue along your bottom lip. A moan tumbles from your throat as sticky warmth settles deep in your belly. 

Rebecca’s hand cups the side of your face as she breaks the kiss. “Then I’d say we’re fucked.” She thumbs the apple of your cheek and you lean into her touch. “In a good way.”

[iamtheholyghost]

My Rebecca Welton x Reader fic is finished!

AO3 link here.

Title: I could do the shit that he never did

Rating: Explicit, NSFW, 18+ ⚠️

Summary: The sun rays hit Rebecca's skin as you both lay in her bed. You watched her gently breathing and the beautiful glow on her skin.

Rebecca pulled you into a kiss and you moaned when her hand slid between your legs. You arched your back and your hand gripped her neck while the other held on to her shoulder.

The after effects of the alcohol still lingered and you reached over to grab the glass of water on the side table. The sun rays hit Rebecca's skin as you both lay in her bed. You watched her gently breathing and the beautiful glow on her skin.You gently played with her hair and shuffled closer to her warmth. She stretched out and wrapped her arm around your hip. Rebecca's phone buzzed on her bedside table and she grumbled reaching over to grab it.

"Aw fuck," she said sitting up.

"What's wrong?"

She showed the caller id which read "Keeley" you laughed.

"She set us up and it fucking worked," you chuckled.

"I don't like giving her the satisfaction," Rebecca smirked.

"I'm gonna find my clothes and make up an excuse to work as to why I'm not in the office again," Rebecca smiled in response and stroked your back before you left her bed.

"But you're not working til Monday?"

"Yeah it's to prepare them, I'd rather extend my stay here than go home," You arched your brow and smirked. Rebecca gave you a cheeky grin then focused on her phone.

You heard Keeley's screeching down the phone and laughed. Rebecca of course told her you spent the night. She screeched again and then Rebecca just sighed and said “yes.”

You gathered your clothes and gave your boss a text saying you'd be working from home on Monday. You tossed your phone onto the side table and placed your clothes neatly where you'd find them. You didn't want to get dressed yet. You enjoyed the fact that you and Rebecca were both completely naked, lipstick marks and bites were dotted over your pale skin. Rebecca had some marks on her shoulders and on her chest. You wished you remembered last night more vividly, rather than the random flashbacks.

Rebecca put her phone under her pillow and sighed. You laughed and straddled her, her slender hands slid up and down your waist.

"I say we don't give a shit what people say and we finish what we started last night,"you said in between kisses across her neck.

'Ha, I believe you're the one who finished dear," Rebecca smiled.

"Just means I fucking owe you doesn't it," You bit around her collarbone and down her chest. Rebecca gasped and tried to remain composed.

"Yeah, it does," she grinned. "I do have my own ideas first,"

Her slender fingers pushed between your folds and rubbed teasing circles around your clit.

"God." you moaned.

Rebecca attacked your neck with bites and kisses. You rocked your hips into her hand making soft low moans that made her grin.

"I'm going to make you beg me to make you come, then you can have your fun," Rebecca growled in your ear. The only reply you could muster was rocking your hips harder into her hand. You could feel yourself coating her fingers with each movement of your hips. Rebecca slid two fingers inside you and you gasped, loudly whining into her neck. She dug her nails into your hip as you rocked yourself on top of her.

"Jesus christ, fuck." you panted.

"Are you going to beg me?" Rebecca teased as she pulled you in for a deep kiss still working her fingers between your legs. Rebecca repeated what she said but slowed her movements which caused you to cry out needily.

"No, don't stop." you cried.

Rebecca wrapped her free hand round your throat and sat up so you could use her to balance. It also gave her more control which she wanted. Those manicured fingers dug into your throat slowly and her eyes pierced into yours. The hand between your legs had stopped and you had to give in, you wanted her badly.

"Please 'becca, fuck me," you gasped wrapping your smaller hand around hers.

Rebecca grinned and flipped you over so you were on your back. You took a moment to take in Rebecca's beautiful body, muscular arms, strong shoulders, long legs and incredible breasts. She truly was breathtaking. You went to put your hands between your legs but Rebecca grabbed your wrists pinning them above your head. Her tongue traced over your collarbone slowly and you whined.

"I begged you, what's with the fucking teasing!?" you exclaimed, wriggling underneath the taller woman above.

"I didn't tell you to touch yourself, you didn't get permission so you're being punished for being a bad girl," her silky smooth tone almost melted you and you swear you made a mess of her sheets.

"Fuck," you whined shuffling under her grip.

Rebecca smiled, eyeing the very vulnerable position you were in. Her lips ghosted yours as she took in the situation. You could tell she absolutely loved this, loved being in charge and loved that you did as she asked.

"Leave them there," Rebecca ordered. She let go of your hands, you didn't dare move them. You ached for her touch so badly. She straddled you showing off her beautiful curves. Her green eyes scanned over your body, she took your breasts in her hands and you whined. Her slender fingers kneaded and caressed them. She took great pleasure in teasing your hardening nipples. Rebecca attacked your neck with bites and sloppy open mouthed kisses marking her territory.

"You fuckin' marking me huh?" you grinned though shaking breaths.

"You're full of attitude this morning aren't you?" Rebecca grinned resting her forehead on yours. "What if I don't let you come and I make you watch me? You watch me touch and moan but you have to go the whole day unsatisfied and dripping, with no release," Rebecca sneered. She had such a sinister tone to her voice and pressed light kisses to your neck.

Rebecca sat up right, adjusting her position. Those muscly thighs squeezing your body a few times while she straddled you. Her hand dipped between her long legs as she started to moan. Fuck she looked utterly gorgeous.

"Can I touch you, please, Rebecca?" you asked. It took everything you could not to touch yourself or her without permission. Rebecca grinned and gasped as her long fingers worked between her folds.

"Move your hands to my hips."

You did as she asked and placed them on her body, her soft skin and beautiful shape under your touch. You watched in awe as Rebecca moved her fingers through her folds moaning and shuffling on top of you. You almost lost your mind when she bit her bottom lip. You wanted to taste her again, it would take your mind away from the aching between your legs. You could hear how wet Rebecca was by the motion of her fingers, moving around her and sliding inside her. She gasped and grabbed her boob. You dug your fingers into her hips, tightening your grip possibly leaving marks.

"Bite me," she gasped repositioning so you could get into the soft flesh of her breasts.

You didn't need to be told twice, you nibbled at her skin and used your tongue to sooth the gentle bites and Rebecca moaned deeply. You sucked and bit being careful not to leave any marks. You sucked on her hard nipples hearing a low moan that escaped her parted lips.

"Can I cup your face?" you muttered on her skin.

"Yes," she gasped. You could feel the breathy moans building up and the changes in her demeanour as she started to give into her pleasures. Her green eyes half lidded and how she bit her bottom lip. She was utterly gorgeous and you wanted to help guide her to orgasm no matter what. You cupped her face and worked biting kisses along her jawline and down her throat being sure to bite harder when her moans got louder.

"Fuck, I'm close," Rebecca groaned, her hand working harder between her legs as she rubbed her now throbbing bud.

"Let me help you," you said.

You latched onto her nipple again, biting harder. You were sure you'd leave marks but you didn't care now. You wanted her to finish.

"Oh my god, fuck," Rebecca gasped. Her whole body tensed as the warm feeling shot through her body. You felt her wetness on your skin and you'd be lying if it didn't make you crave your finish more. You held her face and let her slowly come down from her high. She gave you a pleasant smile and you kissed her softly on the lips. You pulled Rebecca into you so your chests were pressed together as she caught her breath. You drew patterns across her soft skin.

"You are so gorgeous Rebecca,"

"So are you," Rebecca smiled. She sat up and ran her hands up your thighs to your hips and your ribs stopping when she reached your neck pulling you into a deep tongue kiss. You moaned into her mouth digging your nails down her back rocking your hips into her body trying to gain any kind of friction.

"Please." you muttered.

"What was that?" Rebecca grinned.

"Please!" you huffed. "Fuck me."

"That's what I thought," Rebecca made her way down your body kissing and biting. You groaned at the contact and tangled your hands in her blonde locks. She parted your legs gripping your inner thighs and grinned at your soaked folds.

"Didn't think seeing me orgasm on you would have this effect."

"Yes, you did. " you breathed.

Rebecca arched her brow and you avoided her gaze. You just needed her to touch you. Her tongue lightly traced across your folds. Your hips bucked into her mouth immediately, you were desperate and she could tell. Her mouth latched onto your swollen clit and you let out a scream of Rebecca's name. Fuck finally she was giving you what you wanted. Two of her fingers slid inside you with ease and you rocked against her rhythm. You could hear how wet you were and Rebecca lapped up every drop of you. You were wound up so tight, it didn't take you long to finish.

"Oh my god, oh my god," you panted as the warm feeling spread through every nerve and your eyes shut tight. Rebecca rode out the wave with you until you were nothing but a sweating panting mess beneath her. She wiped her mouth and you grabbed her hand, sucking her fingers clean. She grinned while you did it and drew patterns across your stomach.

Rebecca pulled you on top of her and you pressed a lazy kiss to her lips. She kissed you harder and you let her explore your mouth. The kissing turned to lazy makeouts, you broke the kiss to snuggle into the nape of her neck. She rested her hands on your hips and drew patterns across your back.

"Holy fuck, you're amazing," you smiled.

"Plenty more where that came from darling," Rebecca grinned stroking your hair.

A/N I had this thought that Rebecca would be such a tease and love it. Of course she’s got her dom boss energy.

[sillygooseassociation]

Messy

Requests: Heyyyyy, could you write ted lasso x reader where reader likes ted, and she vents about it with rebecca or keeley and ted listens to it but thinks it’s for somebody else, not him? I’m so sorry for my English, and thank you very much! /// hiiii could you write ted x reader where reader gets jealous of ted with sassy (like reader has a crush on ted but never told anyone about it) and reader is younger than him and thinks that maybe nothing will happen between them?? the drama of it all lol, okay thank you byeee

Description: When you and Ted both eavesdrop on conversations of the other, miscommunication occurs that leads to tears, laughter, and confessions.

Warnings: lots of angst, idk, kinda mentions of divorce

Pairing: Ted Lasso x reader

Word Count: 4.3k

-

You drop the stack of files on the desk outside Rebecca’s office, pulling a highlighter out of your pocket, needing to mark one more line that you noticed was missed on the walk from your room. Biting the cap off, you hold the plastic in between your teeth as you trace the line on the paper, pausing to listen when you overhear voices from the office. “Now boss, you know I wouldn’t keep anything from you, it's just not in my nature. But a gentleman doesn’t kiss and tell, and that includes the person that signs my checks.”

Initially, you chuckle at Ted’s mannerisms - even after two years in England, he hadn’t lost that endearing midwest charm. However, your laughter falls flat when you realize the implications of his words, who did he kiss and how did Rebecca know to ask? You weren’t one to eavesdrop, you knew it was rude and you would never want to invade someone’s privacy, especially not the privacy of your two bosses. However, all logic seemed to go out the window when imagining the American gaffer kissing someone. 

“Oh Ted please, we’re both adults, we’ve both been married, we’ve both been through heartbreak, so please tell me, what do you think of Sassy?” Sassy? Why did you recognize that name? Well, if you could even consider that a name. You cap the highlighter, returning the writing utensil to your pocket before listening back in, “Why she’s just fine and dandy, nicer than the whole French city.” 

Discarding your previous plan of handing the files directly to Rebecca, you instead write her a message on a sticky note and place it on top of the stack, leaving said stack on the desk. As you leave, you hear one more pressing question from Rebecca, “Oh Ted, please speak plainly for once and tell me what you think.” As you head back to your office, you can’t help but wish you were on Ted’s mind as much as he is on yours.

As you sit at your desk, you can’t help but think about Ted and Rebecca’s conversation, how did Ted meet Sassy? And where in the world do you know this name from? It feels like Ted spends all his time devoted to the team, how could he even have the opportunity to meet someone? He eats every meal at Crown and Anchor with Beard, and oftentimes you, that doesn’t give him much of an opportunity to meet a woman at the pub. The rest of his life is spent at his flat or Nelson Road, at least that’s how he made it seem when you all talked about your lives outside of work.

The Liverpool match took up so much of his attention, and it paid off if the game was to be used as evidence. Liverpool! That’s why you know the name Sassy! She was Rebecca’s mate who you met briefly after the game, Keeley was practically attached to her hip. Of course, it had to be Sassy, you couldn’t even go talk to your best friend about how you were feeling, she was practically in love with your competition.

Not that Sassy could even consider you as competition, Ted hardly knew you existed, well, on a romantic level at least. Working as Richmond’s physical therapist, you often made decisions hand in hand with Ted. It was not something you had experienced before with coaches at the previous amateur teams you worked with, they just did what they wanted and left you to pick up the pieces of their sore players. Ted, on the other hand, wanted you right there as he created plays and decided which players should fill which roles, he wanted to make the decisions that were best for the team’s success but also best for the safety and health of his players.

You considered Ted a close friend and you liked to think he thought the same of you, but that’s all it would ever be in his eyes. You were about twenty years his junior, after all, he was far in his career and a wonderful dad, and he had been married before. You, on the other hand, were just starting off, Richmond was your first role as head therapist, many still saw you as a kid even in your mid-20s, and your longest relationship had only lasted a year before your ex decided you were “too much” for him. 

To the rest of the world, you were at two stages in your life, how could that ever even work? But in your mind, none of that truly mattered. Different stages in your career didn’t really mean anything, you loved kids and were getting to the point of wanting to start your own family. But at the end of the day, you were inexperienced, you had run off every partner you ever had because of how “needy” you were. You were young. Too young. So you would love Ted from afar, laughing at pop culture references that no one else but Beard understood, nodding in agreement at his motivational speeches to the boys, and admiring the way he put his entire self into everything that he did.

Noticing the time, you realize you would be running late for the pre-training meeting if you didn’t get a move on. You grab your copy of the playbook, checking the pockets of your athletic leggings for your signature highlighter and red pen. You head down the hallway to the locker room, passing through the gym when you hear low voices, looking over to notice the window shared with the coaches’ office was open. “Well, are you going to ask her out, Coach?” 

Your eyes widen, walking far enough into the room where you are hidden from the view through the window, deciding to again selfishly listen in, “That’s the thing Coach, I would love that. But I’m me and she’s… well, she’s her. I tell the boys to not be judgmental, but I can’t help but judge myself for having these feelings.” You sigh softly as you shake your head, you hated that Ted thought this way about himself. Any woman would be lucky to have Ted, even if that woman was Sassy and not you. “Ah fuckin’ ‘ell Lasso, you would tell any of those muppets in there to go for what they wanted, why shouldn’t you get to do the same thing?” 

You clear your throat quietly, pushing down tears as they well in your eyes, rounding the corner to make yourself known before you have to hear Ted talk about Sassy even more, “Hey team!” Three men in the room jump slightly, startled by your appearance while Roy remains still, not being surprised by anything apparently. Ted runs his hand through his hair, seeming to be frazzled, “Well what do you know, Ms. Sheryl Crow, how’re you Y/N?”

A laugh leaves your mouth though it is much quieter than your normal response to Ted’s humor, something you hope goes unnoticed by the rest of the room. “Oh, I’m okay, just life as normal.” Giving a tight-lipped and forced smile, you thank every god above as Nate asks a question, a stupid one at that, which switches the conversation off of you. Roy lets out a groan and disgruntled mutter about Nate, an offhanded comment that brings out a laugh, hoping your smile dispels any suspicions anyone had about you and your short response to the earlier question. And for the most part, it does, no one in the room is any the wiser about how you are truly feeling, no one, that is, but Ted, whose concerned eyes never leave you.

By the time training was done, you felt emotionally exhausted. After hours of canned laughter, forced smiles, and repressed tears, you just wanted to go home. But nope, it was then a couple of hours in the clinic working on the players. Thankfully with a more hands-on task, the time passed quicker than it did during training. Back in your office, you pack up your backpack before hearing a knock, looking up to find Keeley at the door with her signature smile. “Babes! You’re not answering your texts!” You turn on your phone as it sits on your desk, realizing you have numerous texts from her as well as other contacts, “Shit, sorry Keels, I’m just out of it today.”

Keeley’s smile falls, clearly able to tell that you are not your normal cheery self, “What’s up? Why are you so frowny?” You attempt to give her a smile but before she can even call you on your bullshit, your tears can no longer be held back. “Oh, babes!” She walks you over to the couch in your office, and sits you down, passing you a tissue from the box on your coffee table, “What is going on? Does Roy need to beat some prick up?” You laugh lightly as you wipe away your tears though your effort is for nothing, more tears just falling in their absence, “N-no, it's okay. I don’t want to bother you.”

Your friend looks at you with wide eyes, “Are you absolutely mental? Something that is bugging you like this is never going to be a bother.” You shrug slightly, looking at your lap in embarrassment, “I know I’m not your only friend though, and I don’t want to be an arse and talk shit about someone you like.” Keeley pulls you closer, rubbing your arm in a comforting manner, “You’re right, I do have other friends. But none like you, you’re my best mate. Now tell me what’s going on.” 

Taking a deep breath, you tell Keeley what you overheard earlier in the day, both from Rebecca’s office and the coaches’ office. She nods along as you speak, paying close attention until you let out a sigh after finishing your story, “Well, I haven’t talked to Rebecca today, so I don’t know what Ted said. But I do know that Sassy left to find Ted the other night in Liverpool and then came back like, ten minutes later.” You shake your head as you wipe away your last tears, “But that doesn’t mean anything Keeley. They still kissed. It's not like I had a chance with Ted anyway but now I really don’t, he has real feelings for her!” Admitting out loud what you had been ruing all day, you begin to cry again, sobbing softly at how stupid you felt. 

Approaching your office door, Ted ran through his script in his mind. He wanted to check on you but he also didn’t want to cross any boundaries. Sure, you were friends, really good friends he would say, but you also technically work for him and you’re a beautiful young woman. He would never want to make you uncomfortable. Which is why he came up with what to ask you, wanting to be careful to avoid stepping over the line. 

However, his script was immediately forgotten as he reached your ajar door, hearing your cries from behind. His brows furrowed, terrified that you were hurt, either physically or emotionally, and determined to help however he could. But before he could push the door open more, he heard someone quietly shushing you, someone he soon recognized to be Keeley. He paused, relieved to know that you weren’t alone while feeling this way. He weighed his decisions, popping his head in to offer his aid and support or leave you two ladies be. But before he could decide, he hears your soft voice from the other side of the door, “There’s no reason he would want to be with me, I know that. He’s absolutely perfect, he would never want an idiot kid like me when he could get someone like her. Even though I always knew that I just feel so broken now that it actually happened.”

Ted backed away from the door, slowly walking to Nelson Road’s exit and making his way home, sending a quick text to Beard to apologize for not being able to make it to beers that night. As he walked on the cobblestone path, he couldn’t help but feel his heart hurt, how could you think that way about yourself? You were one of the most amazing people Ted had ever met. You were incredibly intelligent and ridiculously gorgeous; you appreciated all of his humor and had compassion that rivaled that of the virgin Mary. Hell, all of this and more is why he fell for you. But of course, you had your eyes set on someone else. It only makes sense. You were still young, you had so much of your life ahead of you, and he was a tied-down old man with a kid. Let’s be honest, your job was literally to touch and massage some of the most athletic people in the world, why would you want to be with him?

Even though he was feeling a bit torn up at confirmation that his feelings were unrequited, he felt most sad about how you talked about yourself. No one deserved to feel unworthy of love, but you especially didn’t deserve that. You always made sure everyone in your life was supported and had all they needed, it was one of the first things he noticed about you. When he was putting together birthday celebrations for Sam during his first week, you were already making a grocery list of cake supplies before Ted even came to you with his idea. You had a calendar with all of the players’ birthdays sitting on your smaller desk, working as an assistant physical therapist at the time, and knew that Sam’s was coming up. On your small salary and in your unappreciated position, you wanted to make sure the birthday boy didn’t go unrecognized. If you could offer that love to everyone in your life, even those that annoyed you like Nate, you deserved to have someone show you that same love, if not an even greater love.

After a talk with Keeley that was full of hugs, tears, and dirty jokes (mostly from her), you made your way home, deciding to have a quiet night filled with ice cream and Nancy Meyers films. Keeley offered to join you though you quickly brushed her off, sending her to have a conversation with Roy after she told you about their kiss over the weekend that ended with him running off like a fucking twat. Pulling your fuzzy blanket over your crossed legs, you pulled the ice cream carton from its spot on your coffee table and into your lap, pressing play on The Holiday. You roll your eyes at Jude Law’s flirting, what bullshit. A man with an accent foreign to the woman, a man with a young child mind you, was gonna get the girl, and that girl was gonna get her happy ending. Fucking Hollywood lies.

Your internal screaming fit at the television was interrupted by a knock on the door. You groan, putting the frozen tub back on the coffee table, wrapping your blanket around you as you walk to the door in your pajamas, “Right as I got fucking comfortable.” You open the door, planning to rudely take your anger out on the person likely meaning to knock on your neighbor’s door, but instead, you find your favorite American standing there, hands in his pockets as he nervously makes eye contact with you, “Ted?” He takes a hand out, giving you a small wave, “W-what are you doing here?” He ponders your question before looking around, seeming to remember he’s still in the hallway of your flat building, “Can I come in?” 

Nodding, you open the door wider to allow him in, closing it behind him before you walk over to the living room, grabbing your ice cream container and then making the short walk to your kitchen to put it in the freezer. “I love the soundtrack for this one.” Walking back into the living room, you offer Ted a confused look before noticing him point to your film selection, “Oh yeah. It’s a great one, even if the plot is unrealistic bullshit.” Ted’s eyes widen as you cross the room to the couch, sit down and turn off the television. Sure, you cuss occasionally, but never in such an intense and negative tone. He apprehensively sits on the other side of the couch, turning to see you looking at him expectantly, “Why are you here, Ted?”

Ted clears his throat, his mind suddenly blank. He had practiced exactly what to say to you on the way over, how to gracefully tell you that he accidentally eavesdropped while also telling you that anyone would be lucky to have you but keeping his feelings a secret. He had figured it all out but the moment he saw you, he lost it all. He could only focus on you. “Oh, um well, I was worried about you. This morning, you weren’t exactly yourself and I wanted to check in.” 

You show a small smile at his compassion, of course, he noticed that something was wrong and of course, that meant he then took the time out of his evening to come and check on you. This man was practically perfect, and yet he wasn’t yours, “Yeah, I mean, it was just a rough morning. Got some bad news before training, that’s all. Ted, it's nice and all that you came over to check on me, but you really didn’t have to change your evening plans to do that.” Ted nods in response, looking down as he plays a bit with his fingers, he knows he didn’t have to, he wanted to though, “I know that. Truthfully, I stopped by your office earlier to check on you but you already had company.

Cocking your head to the side, you look at him confused, you had no clue what he was referring to. No one had been in your office that day, no one but you and, oh god, “Shit.” You stand up, beginning to pace around the room with anxiety. Of course, your luck worked out like this. You cried at work about being in love with your boss and he overheard, of course, because why wouldn’t that happen? He was there to fire you, to let you down easily both about your feelings and your job. “Shit, Ted, I’m sorry. I-I promise, this won’t get in the way of my job. I love Richmond and I love the team, please, I would never want to put that in jeopardy.”

Looking confused out of his mind, Ted stands up and steps in front of you, stopping your pacing, “Woah, Y/N, I’m not firing you. Honestly, I don’t even know if I have the power to do that, I like to leave all that stuff up to Mrs. Big Boss. But, even if I did, why would I fire you over being sad that someone you like turned you down? Now, I thought you would know me better than to think I would do something like that.” You look up with wide eyes, he didn’t know, he didn’t know the ‘someone’ was him. “Oh no, um, I know that Ted, sorry. I just, I thought it was something else.”

Thankfully he lets you off without further explanation, though he was still incredibly lost, what else could it have been that you would think would be worthy of him firing you? You return to your spot on the couch, expecting him to follow you except it was now his turn to anxiously pace. “Now, one time in middle school, we had a dance unit and were taught different kinds of dances like line dancing and square dancing. They also taught us disco and I was just absolutely horrible, could not get it down no matter how many times I watched Saturday Night Fever. I bring this up because I don’t want that again, I want to avoid bad vibes as much as I can.” You nod, holding in a laugh at his story, not wanting to interrupt whatever he was working up to say, “I overheard what you said to Ms. Keeley and I just want you to know, Y/N, it is not true at all.”

Your breath catches in your throat, what did he just say? “Now, I don’t know who this guy is but he must be darn stupid if he’s letting you get away. But ya know what, forget him. You don’t need him. You are just perfect on your own. You are not an idiot and you’re not a kid, which I’m pretty sure means you scientifically can’t be an idiot kid. I know I’m just an old man saying all this and it probably doesn’t matter but just…Hell, I’ve been out of the dating scene for a long time and I’m still not entirely in it, I’m as single as a batter running only to first base. None of this probably means anything to you, but I hope you believe me because you are one special woman, Y/N.”

You were speechless, Ted just said everything you ever wanted to hear and yet you could only focus on one part, “What about Sassy?” Having turned himself away from you in his nervous pacing during his monologue, Ted turns to face you with a wild expression on his face, “What’re you on about?” You look down at your hands, shrugging as you wonder if you can get yourself out of the situation, “Just, this morning, before training, I overheard you talking to Rebecca and she asked you about Sassy. You said you don’t kiss and tell…” You trail off, not wanting to finish your sentence one because you hadn’t stayed around long enough to hear Ted’s response beyond that, but also because you were worried about what that answer was. “Before training? Was this before or after you got your bad news?” 

Fuck, he was figuring it out.

Sighing, Ted walks over to the couch, sitting closer to you this time, your knees almost close enough to touch but still leaving a distance between the two of you, “Y/N, Sassy found me this weekend after the match and kissed me,” you nod sadly in response, looking away as you hope he can’t see the tears beginning to roll down your face, “but I pulled away so I could tell her I was interested in someone else.” Why was he telling you this? He’s not interested in Sassy, so what? Not like the specific person matters to you, it hurt just the same. Ted sighs again, sliding just close enough that your knees bump each other, “Honey, please look at me.”

You turn to meet Ted’s eyes, his expression falling when he sees the tears running down both cheeks. He raises a hand, gently brushing the tears away, “Why are you crying?” You shake your head which then shakes his hand off, bringing your palm up to wipe away your tears, “’s stupid.” Ted tuts at you, “It’s not stupid if it’s got you worked up like this.” 

Well, you’re already crying in front of Ted and are too embarrassed to ever show your face at work again, hopefully, Rebecca will accept an emailed letter of resignation and still be willing to be a reference, “It’s you.” Ted’s heart drops, he made you cry like this? Should he have not said any of those things? Did he say something wrong? He should have never come over, he just knew it, stupid Ted, always messing things up, “I-I made you cry?” You shake your head again, still not meeting his eyes, “No, well, kinda. Ted, it’s you, you’re the guy. I was talking to Keeley about you.” 

Ted lets out a chuckle, unable to keep it in. What the fuck, you basically just told this man, your boss that you’re in love with him and he has the audacity to laugh? Before you can ask what the hell is wrong with him, his voice interrupts his laughter, “Well, this is perfect.” You lift your eyes to meet his, seeing a bright smile across his face, how can he possibly be smiling right now? Seeing the confusion on your face, Ted places his hand on your knee, “You’re the ‘someone else’, Y/N. I told Sassy I’m not interested in her because I have feelings for you.” 

The world stopped. Well, it didn’t, it still moved on its axis while also moving around the sun but for you, the world stopped. The world stopped as your world sat in front of you, telling you that he felt the same. “What?” You were struck with disbelief, how could Ted feel the same? He was a successful coach and the best father in the world and you were merely a member of his team who can only barely rent a car legally. Ted nods, his smile seeming to grow even though you didn’t think that was possible from how wide it had been, “Yeah darling, it’s you.” 

Your smile matches his as you launch yourself at him, wrapping your arms around his neck as his wrap around your waist, it was perfect, it was natural. Though you wish you could spend the rest of the time like that, you pull away, your faces close enough that he rubs the tip of his nose against yours. “Are we really doing this?” Ted smiles softly at you, sensing your euphoric feeling of disbelief because he was experiencing it too, “I think we are.” 

You let out an excited squeal, pulling him in for a kiss. It was messy, far too much teeth from you both still smiling and your dried tears seemed to stick to his skin but it didn’t matter. It was messy but it was perfect, just like the two of you.

[someplace-darker]

In The Static | Ted Lasso

Pairing: Ted Lasso x reader (no y/n) Wordcount: 2.1k Warnings: panic attack/talks of panic attacks, vague mentions of trauma. That's about it I think, it's a touch angst and hurt/comfort I suppose. Fluff. Summary: Ted thought he was past his panic attacks until he encounters another, and you follow him to make sure he's okay. A/N: "now jay" you might be saying "wasn't the last thing you posted smut almost a year ago?" and the answer is yes. But i've recently become insanely attached to Ted Lasso, and I dipped my toe into writing more than a wip. SO here's my middle aged white man of the month. Enjoy :)

“REFEREE!!!” Keeley stands with a force that causes her to latch onto your arm to keep from falling forward. It continues to astound you that for such a tiny lady, she really contains an insane amount of spunk. One of the opposing team’s men had just slid Sam’s legs out from under himself, causing him to land hard on his shoulder. The game had been a rough one so far, more aggressive and bitter than most. Richmond had been respectful at first (as per usual) but the second their opponents had started playing violent and dirty, that changed.

Roy and Beard were obviously shouting and pointing angrily, though you couldn’t make out what they were saying from your seat in the box. Ted, however, was standing stiffly with his balled fists shoved into the pockets of his Richmond zip-up. You can feel that something is off. Even if you can’t see his face, you know him well enough to read his body language. There’s mere minutes left in the game and the teams are tied.

Rebecca is already standing and gathering her belongings to head back in, gesturing for the lot of you to follow. That’s exactly what you begin to do before the crowd goes ape-shit, jumping from their seats and screaming so loud it makes your head thrum. 

“ROJAS INTERCEPTS THE KICK AND PASSES TO TARTT AND JUST LIKE THAT-”

You turn just in time to watch Jamie kick the ball into the net, the stadium erupting in cheers that shake the ground.

“AFC RICHMOND TAKES ANOTHER VICTORY 2-1 IN A SHOCKING LAST SECOND SCORE”

Keeley, Higgins, and Rebecca rejoice, grabbing at each other in shock. Placing your fingers between your lips you let out a piercing whistle, jumping up and down as thousands of chants echo. You look down to your coaches, expecting to see all three soaking in the sweet relief of not gaining another loss. Instead, you see Ted darting for the locker room, head down with his phone held two inches from his face. It was obvious to you that he was trying to use it as a cover. 

“I’ll meet back with you guys later, I’ve gotta check something real quick.” 

They smile and wave you off, relishing in the buzzing excitement clearly felt throughout the facility. As much as you wish you could join them in celebration, you were pretty sure Ted needed you more. So you slip through the small crowds with ease, having much practice during your time with Richmond, taking the back staircase to the locker room hallway. 

At first you check his office, finding only his jacket laying on the floor. The second spot you search is the right one, opening the door to darkness. You almost turn and leave but a staggered breath gives him away. 

“Ted?” you whisper, stepping into the boot room and closing the door gently. He sniffles almost silently and hums in response, curling in on himself when the lights flicker on at your touch.. You’ve never seen him look so small before, his entire body condensed into half of his height in the corner of the room, the sight moving you to shut the lights back off for his sake.

“Hey,” you murmur softly, walking over to kneel in front of him. He has his head placed between his knees, hands on the back of head with his fingers intertwined tightly. As much as you know of his panic attacks, you’ve never been present for one. Something tells you he tends to keep it that way with everyone around him. 

However, you’re well versed with them yourself.

“I’m gonna sit beside you, but I won’t touch you unless you say it’s okay.”

You lower yourself onto the ground, the floor cold beneath your already freezing ass. England's weather was not kind to the warm blooded. Ted doesn’t lift his head all the way, simply angles it towards you just enough for an eye to peek out from behind his arm. He looks at you with the gaze of a wounded puppy, eyes red and wet, smeared with warm tears.

The silence that follows is deafening, a faint ringing the only thing you hear. Ted looks like he wants to say something, but thinks better of it. It’s not like you can blame him. The last time he opened up to someone he considered close about his panic attacks, it ended up plastered on every magazine and tabloid across the country. Trust within himself and others had been fractured- not broken. No one could ever betray Coach Lasso enough to break that within him, it was fundamental to who he was as a person.

After a few more minutes of silence his foot slides over to yours, just barely nudging it. He lifts his head and sniffles, using his sleeve to wipe the mix of tears and snot off his face.

“I want to tell you about it, I do. I’m just… stuck. Feels like if I tell you, it’ll be too much,” he murmurs, keeping his foot pressed to yours.

“I understand, Ted,” you whisper. “I started having panic attacks before I was even a teenager. I’d been through things- rough things -and they plagued me for years.” He begins to unfurl himself, listening intently to every word you say, the blatant honesty and vulnerability easing his anxiety. “It took me a while to open up to anyone about them, let alone a therapist. I spent so long trying to hide them, that when I finally did get help I felt like a fake.” 

Ted adjusts himself to sit up straighter, shimmying closer so your shoulders touch. You can tell he’s trying to be inconspicuous about it, but the man is known to be anything but subtle.  Outside you can hear the boys begin filing into the hallway, headed for the locker room surely for some type of victory activity. Their shadows dance across the wall in the darkened boot room, slashed into segments by the blinds slanted slightly open. Both of you seemed to have held your breaths as they passed, because as soon as they’re gone there’s a simultaneous exhale of relief.

An amused breath comes from Ted, palm pressing from the corner of his eye to the tip of his cheekbone to wipe away the stray tears. He knocks his knee against yours and dares to glance at you, opening up enough to make eye contact. Here in this room, he looks more human than you think you’ve ever seen him. For the most part he keeps his mood insanely optimistic, tending to care more about others happiness than his own. It gave him an almost otherworldly bounce to his step and light to his eyes. 

But now that he’s sat no more than two inches in front of you with puffy eyes and a chewed lip, Ted is just… a broken man. 

“You’ll never be too much, Ted. It’s normal to feel stuck, and it’s okay to not be able to talk about it yet.” His eyes flick to your hand when you lift it towards him, a lifeline of trust, openness in the form of warm skin and an upward facing palm. Internal conflict tugs at his lungs, his breath hitching as he weighs his options for all of five seconds before taking your hand. You are someone Ted knows he can always find solace in. 

Someone who he could spot in a crowd of thousands, someone who he will always seek out. 

His other hand reaches to pat the top of yours, rubbing his thumb against your skin in soothing circles. A shuddered breath begins to pass his lips, but he smothers it to ashes with the cool press of a kiss to your wrist. 

Humming amusedly at the feeling of his mustache tickling your skin, you lean your head on his shoulder, moving slightly as they lift with the intake of air into his lungs. “I suppose you’re right. I just feel bad that I haven’t spoken to you ‘bout it,” he tsk’s softly to himself, carefully navigating his brain for the right words. 

“I was fine out there, y’know? I’ve been doin’ better, Sharon’s helped a lot. But it just got so loud, and everything felt out of my control- out of any of our boys’ control and I- I just couldn’t breathe. Tunnel vision, boom, just like that.”

You whisper encouragements softly under your breath, murmurs of ‘it’s okay’ and ‘you can keep going’ pushing him gently in the right direction. Voices can be heard from the locker room, loud cheering and chanting from the team acting as muffled background noise for Ted’s moment of vulnerability. 

“After everything that happened with Nate, I learned to mask it a bit better I guess. That’s the fancy word Doc told me about,” the corner of his lips quirks up “I figured I’d be okay in here for a bit anyway, then you walked in.” Your brows furrow and you pull away from his shoulder, opening your mouth to apologize for intruding but he beats you to it.

“No, no, that sounded different than I meant. I am very glad that you found me here. I needed you even if I didn’t know it,” he traces the details of your face with his eyes, not stopping you when you move your head back down to his shoulder. 

“I think you’ve worked on it so much quicker than you realize, Ted. It wasn’t that long ago, yeah? Healing and improving takes time, and it’s okay that it takes time. I certainly took my time,” you muse, channeling your own therapist’s word. “But I think it’s right on par with who you are, who I know you to be, that you got on it as fast as you did. Even if it was begrudgingly at first.”

“Yeah, Doc definitely had her work cut out.”

You laugh, normally at first but then Ted snorts and you both lose it, bodies bumping against each other with the shakes that come with post-meltdown laughs. Soon enough you’re both wiping away tears of a different variety, the air in the room much lighter than before. You take that moment to push yourself up and off the floor, lending a hand to Ted to pull him up.

“I am immensely proud of you, Coach Lasso. So is the team. You have a very large family backing you up, as unorthodox as said family is.” You take one step closer, hand still holding onto his, pressed between your bodies. Taking your free hand, you hold the side of his face and lean in to kiss his cheek, thumb stroking his jaw. 

Ted presses into your lips, chasing your touch even when you turn to the door. Twisting the knob open you find Will standing there, boots tied by their laces hanging over his shoulder, hand outreached to grab the now absent handle. 

He blinks at the two of you for a second, gaze one of vague shock, before curling his lips in an embarrassed smile and stepping out of the way.

“Not a word, Will,” you sing-song when he opens his mouth, pulling Ted down the hall to stand outside of the locker room door. 

You can hear Roy in the middle of a somehow happy/angry sounding congratulation speech that only he is capable of, grinning and turning to face your Coach once more. “Now, get your butt in there and relish in the sweet taste of winning.”

“I mean, relish is pretty tasty-”

“Ted.”

“Yep,” Ted takes a deep breath and nods, squeezing your hand “you coming in with me?” 

“I don’t want to intrude on your moment, Coach.”

He rolls his eyes exaggeratedly and pushes the door open, dragging you with him. The boys’ faces light up, immediately rushing to storm him, all reaching to touch him and jumping up and down. Their team song buzzing and bouncing along with them.

“WE’RE RICHMOND TILL WE DIE, WE’RE RICHMOND TILL WE DIE, WE KNOW WE ARE, WE’RE SURE WE ARE, WE’RE RICHMOND TILL WE DIE”

You slide past the group, safely reaching Roy and Beard without your feet being stomped on. The smile on your face is one of pure joy and contentment, not faltering when Beard slides to your side, bumping your elbow. 

“Thanks,” he speaks, nodding towards Ted. It’s easy to know what he means immediately, always one to be of few words. 

“No need to thank me,” you reply easily, watching your family bond even more “it’s what we do.”

[jamiesfootball]

i would LOVE to see what you do with “when will you learn?” for the prompt drabbles MWAH

All Rebecca had texted her mother that morning was, "Hope things are well [heart emoji]."

And then this shit.

"Again?! Mother, that's the third time this month."

"You know your father. He just gets a bit whimsical when things are going well."

"No. He's trying to buy you back. That's what he's doing."

"Well, they've all been lovely gifts!"

"Of course they are, mother. Because he's a miserable, shriveled up cock who thinks he can buy your affections because you let him get away with it."

"I'm not naive, Rebecca. I know exactly what kind of man your father is. You're the one who seems to need the reminder. Honestly, Sausage, when will you learn?"

"Argh!" Rebecca smashed at the middle finger emoji, the frustration only growing when she hit a pink heart instead and her handbag slipped out of her arms. "Shit!"

"Um. Everything alright?"

Rebecca swiveled on her heels; her coat slipped off, fluttering to the ground to join her handbag.

Standing next to his car, Jamie Tartt watched wide-eyed as his boss made a silly little fool of herself.

Perfect.

"Here, I can get that for you," he offered, already jogging towards her before she could respond.

Rebecca closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Thank you, Jamie. Sorry, this whole morning has been a disaster."

"Not a problem," he insisted. He picked up her coat and, in an oddly solicitous gesture, gave it a little shake before holding it and her handbag out towards her with a formal, "Here you go, Ms. Welton."

"Rebecca, please," Rebecca corrected out of habit. She shuffled the items in her arm, trying to figure out how to free a hand. She had her keys, her scarf, a briefcase-styled handbag that she hadn't had the time to swap out that morning but that didn't work with the outfit she had on, her gym bag because Keeley insisted they move Pilates to after lunch this week, a to-go cup she'd impulsively asked the driver to stop for-

Her phone dinged. She jumped, nearly dropping the whole lot of it on the ground. "Shit."

"Do you need to get that?" asked Jamie. As if anticipating standing in for her coatrack, he carefully clutched her coat and the handbag that did work with her outfit against his chest. It did not match his iconography at all.

Rebecca waved him off. Flicking her phone over to silent, she complained, "No, no. My mother's just lost her fucking mind this morning."

She attempted to juggle everything again. Eventually, she noticed the silence. When she looked up, she found him staring at her uncomprehendingly.

The thing was that between Keeley's love of girl talk and the promotional materials Jamie regularly did for the club, Rebecca had an entire encyclopedia of knowledge about him stored in her head that she'd never even asked for. Jamie Tartt. Richmond's newly returned striker. Debuted at eighteen. Preferred whites over reds, evening showers, and knew a surprising amount about high-end cars. He also, somehow, regretted none of his tattoos.

It just felt like she already knew him.

Meanwhile back in reality, they'd only spoken a handful of times, and most of that had been contract negotiations and welcome schmoozing.

Probably not a good icebreaker then- maligning one's own mother at half-eight in the morning.

"Not that I speak to her like that," said Rebecca, the need to defend herself overriding any foot-to-mouth filters. "She's just been going through a rough patch with my father, and I think she's being stupid."

Well done, Stinky.

"Right. Um." He opened his mouth. Closed it. Held his arms out and asked, "Do you want help carrying all this in then?"

Gratitude filled her chest at the change of subject.

"Yes. That would be lovely, thank you."

Jamie smiled, lips and opinions kept tightly to himself. He popped off ahead of her to grab the door. With one more glance down at her phone, Rebecca found that at least one heart had flung free, sailing itself into her mother's waiting arms.

Her mum had sent one back in return.

The walk up to her office passed in relatively painless silence. She'd always assumed -- from the everything she knew about him -- that Jamie would be more of a talker. But then in the handful of months since he'd returned to Richmond on a permanent basis, he'd made himself eager to please and keen not to make waves with anyone whose name wasn't Roy Kent.

This was bad news for Rebecca, who personally could have used a small wake to clear the embarrassment lingering in the air. Where was Ted when you needed him?

Driven by mad compulsion and lack of Lasso, she found herself volunteering, "Really, I normally get on with my mother."

"It's alright, Ms. Welton. You don't have to explain anything to me," he answered. He chewed on the inside of his cheek. Then with a small grin, his eyes flicked towards her. "Besides, I wouldn't want to be judged on how I talk to my parents either. Doesn't make sense to judge anybody else on how they talk to theirs, you know?"

"Ooh, I like that. That's practically wisdom." She offered him her own commiserating smile. "I take it you don't get on with yours?"

Jamie shifted like he was about to put his hands in his pockets, only to remember at the last moment that he was actively carrying stuff. He settled for a half-hearted shrug. "I do with my mum, yeah. When I see her, that is."

"Does she live in Manchester?"

Jamie snorted. His eyes lit up. "Always. She'll never move either. Won't even let me buy her a new house or nothing. I tried to surprise her with a new car a while ago, and she asked me how I thought I'd be getting back to London with two cars."

"She sounds like a firecracker."

A fond smile broke out across his face, only to be reeled back in, dulled down into something wistful. "Yeah. She- yeah, she's great."

Without any flourish, he stepped ahead to open a door for her. She could see what Keeley meant when she described him as 'thoughtlessly sweet.' When he wasn't trying to push people's buttons, he was easy to like.

Not that he'd ever tried to push hers. Oh, no- she just hadn't liked him because Rupert had liked him.

Her heart stirred. That kind of behaviour she wasn't proud of anymore.

Pushing down the emotion knotting in her throat, she asked, "Does she have any plans to come see you play at any of our upcoming matches?"

"Nah," Jamie huffed. "No plans for any upcoming matches, no."

"Well then perhaps you should invite her." When he turned towards her with a question written in his furrowed, handsome face, she elaborated, "You know we always have spare tickets set aside for friends and family."

"I do know that, yeah." His eyes darted away from her. Some of the excitement faded from his expression. "Really, I appreciate the offer, but she doesn't come out to my games in Manchester either. She's good with catching me on TV when she can."

All signs indicated that she had hit a sore spot. She shouldn't interfere. Really, that would be the height of hypocrisy- her telling anyone what they should or shouldn't do about their parents. But with her hand gripped tight around the heart in her phone-

She was trying to do better.

Her mother had chosen gladly to stay in the ivory tower her father built. Rebecca might not be able to talk her into coming down, but perhaps she could convince Jamie not to leave closed a door that served him better open.

So she pressed, "How about you invite her to our semifinal match at Wembley?"

He froze up next to her.

"I know that we're playing against your old club, but really, it's a huge accomplishment for the team to have made it this far, and we wouldn't have done it without you," she told him bluntly. His ears caught pink. Emboldened, she continued, "And even if she doesn't care for football, I'm sure she'd love to see you. You can make a special occasion of it. Treat her to a night in London. I know two weeks is rather short notice, but I'm sure Higgins can help arrange some wonderful accommodations-"

"That's not going to happen," he cut her off sharply.

No. No, it wasn't a door at all. Rebecca knew that icy chill. For more than five years, she'd wake to find it haunting the cracks of her reflection in the mirror. Attention focused his straight ahead, not from awkwardness at the situation but in pure dismissal. Every one of Jamie's expressive features was schooled in position of bland indifference, a perfectly sculpted shell made out of a person.

Tower or not, he dawned his armour all the same.

"My apologies," she spoke softly. "I shouldn't have pushed."

They continued their walk up the stairs in silence.

When they arrived, he held up her coat and bag and asked in a nonchalant tone that bordered on boredom, "So where do you want these, then?"

It was exactly the attitude she'd expected from him at the start. Disappointment crawled into her chest and made a home.

"Right there on the tree by the door is fine," she sighed.

His brow furrowed. "Right there by the what- woah." He took a step back, eyeing her coat rack tree up and down appraisingly. "Nice. That's fucking mint, that is. You've got good taste."

A sharp laugh escaped her. "Why thank you. I happen to think so as well."

He hung her bag up. Then, gingerly, he arranged her coat on the other, smoothing out any wrinkles.

Guilt and care made for a strong mix at half eight in the morning. It would take a crueler person than her to leave things on such a sour note when he'd been nothing but darling company before she opened her mouth.

Willing to make a fool of herself one more time, Rebecca called out before he could leave- "Jamie."

He halted, already halfway out the door.

"I- apologise, if my earlier remark made you uncomfortable. I truly didn't mean for it. I only meant to say that-"

She took a step towards him. He stepped back, one foot out of the office.

Her heart felt positively chilled.

"The door is always open," she finished, defeat numbing her ears to her own pitch. Nonetheless, she perserved, determined to say her part even if the wind stole it away. "If you ever do change your mind, talk to Higgins. He'll see to it that she's treated like a VIP. Anyone important to you is important to this club."

A shadow crossed over his face; some dark presence moving in the tower just out of sight.

"I'll keep that in mind," he said cautiously. Then, as simple as snapping his fingers, he closed back up. The armour latched shut, and in it's place was the usual cocky arrogance -- the one she found herself growing reluctantly fond towards. He gave her a wave. "Thanks, Ms. Welton. You've been a help."

She frowned. Gathering the only name she'd never shared with disappointment to her chest, she shouted after him, "It's Rebecca!"

He was already gone, the sound of his footsteps on the stairs the only response.

[vastill]

Rebecca Welton x fem!reader, domestic bliss?

Domestic bliss

Rebecca Welton/fem!reader

warnings: fluff

words: 900+

My requests are open!!

English is not my first language!

A/N: i loved your request! thank you so much!!💚hope you will enjoy reading it! and like carol mention:) let me know what you think!!💚

The sun crept into the room through the gaps between the curtains and gently illuminated Rebecca’s peaceful face. You couldn't help but smile at the sight of her sleeping form. Her chest slowly rose and fell with each breath, and you could hear the soft sound of her snoring. You rarely woke up before her, so you took the opportunity to admire her beauty.

Her rosy cheeks, soft plump lips, and long eyelashes made her look so delicate. You couldn't help but lean in and give her a soft kiss on the forehead, hoping not to wake her up. When you pulled away, you couldn't help but feel grateful for having her in your life.

You loved days like this when you and Rebecca had time off of work. It wasn't often that you had all day to yourselves. You cherished mornings when you could sleep in with your wife next to you.

You decided to get up and make breakfast for the two of you. Quietly slipping out of bed, trying not to disturb Rebecca's peaceful slumber. Making your way to the kitchen, still basking in the warmth of the morning sun. You decide to make some pancakes, knowing it’s one of Rebecca’s favorite breakfast foods.

As you pour the batter onto the pan, you felt hands wrapping around your waist. You turned around in the hug to see Rebecca, who has just woken up with her hair all messy and a sleepy smile on her face.

“Good morning, baby,” she says in a soft, husky voice, making your heart skip a beat.

“Good morning, darling,” you reply, feeling your cheeks flush with warmth. You lean in for a kiss, tasting the toothpaste of her lips as they press against yours, your body melting into hers.

“Are those pancakes I smell?” she asks, her stomach growling in response.

“Of course, I thought I’d make you breakfast in bed but you had to get up so early.” You say, chuckling.

“I missed you in bed.” She said pouting slightly.

“You are so cute, darling.” You said gently kissing her nose, “But despite that go away, back to bed. You didn't see anything here.”

Rebecca giggles as she makes her way towards the bedroom. You finish making the pancakes and bring them to the bedroom on a tray. Rebecca is already sitting up in bed, eagerly anticipating her breakfast. You watch her as she takes a bite of the pancakes, savoring the taste. Her eyes widen in delight as she savors the fluffy, sweet pancakes. You can't help but feel a sense of contentment wash over you.

“So what are you thinking of doing today?”

“Maybe all day laying in bed? Doing nothing? We deserve to rest.”

You chuckle at the suggestion but can’t deny that the idea of spending all day cuddled up in bed with her sounds tempting. “That is a brilliant idea, darling.” You say giving her a kiss on the forehead.

After breakfast in bed, you two moved to the couch in the living room. Rebecca reached out to put on another romcom from her collection. And you snuggled with her on the couch. Taking in her comforting presence, you could lay there all your life.

Rebecca mouths the lines from the movie as she combs her fingers through your hair. You feel so relaxed that you fall asleep.

The sound of sniffing above you startles you from your nap. You notice that the film is coming to an end. You turn to Rebecca and see that she is wiping away tears.

“Oh darling, you okay?” You asked concerned.

“Yeah, yeah, it’s just a really emotional scene,” she says, sniffling.

“It still amazes me that after watching it so many times you still cry.” You can’t help but chuckle at her reaction to the movie.

“Should I remind you of your reaction to the Endgame?” She asks raising her brow at you.

You opened your mouth in mock offense, “No, we don’t want to go there.”

“That’s what I thought. So no more comments.” She huffed at you.

“I won’t do that, promise.” You looked at her pouting face and couldn’t stop yourself from stealing a kiss from her. “Do you want to order something?”

Rebecca’s eyes instantly met yours, “Thai?”

“Whatever you like, darling.” You grabbed your phone and ordered your food. “And maybe we can watch another one?” You ask, already knowing her answer.

“Yes, maybe now you choose? I don’t want to bore you to sleep again.”

“Hey! I was just comfortable, I wanted to watch it again.”

“Whatever you say, babe.” She chuckled, hugging you closer to her.

“So maybe we can watch Carol? You know the one with-”

Rebecca sighed as she finished your sentence, “Cate Blanchett, I know.”

“It’s a fucking amazing movie! The plot, the romance, everything is fucking amazing! I still can’t believe that they didn’t win any Oscars!”

Rebecca lets out a chuckle listening to your complaints, “Yeah, I know, you mention that every time we watch this film.”

As you were about to answer her, the doorbell rang, “Okay, go get the food and I will put Carol on.”

As the movie ended, Rebecca and you sat in silence, both sniffing. You turned to look at her, taking in every detail of their face, from the curve of her lips to the crinkles around her eyes when she smiled.

“You know what? You are flung out of space.” You said softly, breaking the silence, making Rebecca let out a soft chuckle.

You smiled at her, feeling your heart swell with love. She leaned in to kiss you, your lips meeting in a tender embrace. You both pulled away, your foreheads resting against each other.

“And you are such a sap.”

“But you love it so much.”

“Yeah, I do.” Rebecca said with a soft smile on her lips.

[yelena-bellova]

Heartfirst: A Ted Lasso Story - Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Eighteen: Free

Plot: The morning after Y/n and Jamie’s heartbreaking talk, an unexpected savior shows up on Y/n’s door, leaving her at a crossroads.

Word Count: 6.8k

Warnings: f!reader, language, mention of child neglect/abuse, mention of sex

A/N: THIS IS IT. THIS IS NOT A DRILL. THIS IS THE CHAPTER. I’m so excited for you guys to read this one and have all your questions answered. I hope the payoff is as sweet as you’ve been expecting. Y’all have been so enthusiastic over the last few chapters, it really makes me smile. Enjoy!! ❤️💙💛

———————

Heartache could spread through the body just as easily as illness. Y/n’s head was fogged, her limbs hurt and she felt nauseous the second she opened her eyes.

Somehow she managed to call room service and order breakfast, plain toast and coffee, before falling back into bed. The clock read 10AM, she hasn’t slept that long in years. Then again, there wasn’t much sleep had.

The weight of Jamie’s confession weighed in her chest just as heavily as the moment he’d made it. She’d been up till some unholy hour, replaying the whole thing. His words, the quiver in his voice, his lips against her face…it reduced Y/n fits of tears, breaking her over and over.

There was no question as to whether she should skip the match or not. Not only did she have no desire to be around people, but she didn’t want to mess with Jamie’s head any more than she already had. She was worried enough she’d already cost him the game.

A rhythmic knock at her door signaled room service arriving. Y/n trudged across the room and opened the door, expecting to meet the waiter.

Instead, she got Ted, comically lifting the lid off the platter.

“Mornin’ sunshine!”

Y/n sighed, smiling as much as she could, which wasn’t very much.

Ted, however, found himself hilarious. “Room service fella was about to knock right as I was walkin’ by. Thought I’d have some fun with it.”

“Of course,” Y/n gestured to the room, “Come on in.”

Ted set the tray down on the table before turning back to Y/n, who was already moving to the other side of the room. There was a stiffness to her posture, as if she’d allowed a home invader in. Ted was well familiarized with her character, but he hadn’t seen her so reserved since she first started at Richmond.

“So what’s up?” Y/n asked, her tone devoid of any life.

“Oh, I just wanted to check up on you,” Ted shrugged, slipping his hands into his pockets, “Haven’t seen ya in a while.”

“Yeah, things have been busy.”

“I bet,” Ted smiled, “You and Keeley must be kickin’ butt over there. The Dynamic Duo, but with gobs more style.”

Y/n chucked politely, playing with her hands out of nervousness.

Ted waited, watching as Y/n tried to dodge his line of vision. He didn’t expect an explanation to fly out of her mouth, but she was clearly on edge. His chances of waiting her out were decent.

“Well, we’re all glad you’re back,” Ted added, “Owner’s box has been lonely without you, I’ll bet.”

Y/n shut her eyes, it made the lying easier. “Yeah, Ted, I don’t think I can make this one.”

His face didn’t fall an inch, “Oh no. Something wrong?”

“Yeah, I just didn’t get much sleep,” she continued, that part was true. She thought she remembered the clock reading 5AM around the time exhaustion took over.

“Well, I’m sorry to hear that,” Ted played along, “I know the boys miss havin’ you around.”

Y/n slipped around the topic, walking to the window. “They excited for today?”

“Oh, yeah,” he nodded, “Revved up and ready to go.”

“That’s good,” she kicked her foot against the wall and diverted her gaze to the curtains. “How’s, uh…how’s Jamie?”

Ted studied Y/n, taking in her fidgeting hands and the exaggerated effort to her words. As hard as she tried, Y/n wasn’t that good an actress.

“He’s alright,” Ted answered, “Bit off, y’know. Little bit like you.”

With every word exchanged, Y/n could feel Ted unraveling the whole thing. He could see right through her.

“That’s too bad,” she said, her voice wobbling. The tears that she’d fallen asleep with were reawakening.

“Yeah, it is,” Ted agreed, “I sure hope he figures out whatever’s botherin’ him before the game.”

“Mm-hmm,” Y/n hummed, feeling like she couldn’t breathe, “He’s got a lot of people counting on him.”

“Yeah, but that ain’t as big a deal,” Ted took a seat on the edge of Y/n’s bed. “I’m more concerned with him, y’know. Why he’s hurtin’.”

Ted noticed Y/n’s shoulders begin to tremble.

“Why he’s keepin’ whatever it is to himself rather than leanin’ on somebody.”

Y/n wiped her hands over her face, her cheeks wet with guilt. She had finally reached it, her dreaded breaking point.

She turned to Ted, who looked at her as only a father could. He knew.

“You wanna tell me anything goin’ on?”

Crossing the room and sinking down on the mattress next to Ted, Y/n softly sobbed.

“Is it Jamie?” Ted asked.

Y/n bit her lip.

“Is it us?”

She sniffled.

“Whole enchilada?”

Y/n’s trembled as she inhaled, “I’m scared, Ted.”

“Of what?”

“This,” she gestured around them, “Richmond. This whole thing.”

Ted waited for her to explain further.

“I grew up having to fight for every shred of attention,” Y/n continued, “Doing everything I could to get my parents to…care. And no matter what I did, they never loved me. Not like parents are supposed to love their kids. And when I realized that, I just…shut everyone out. In high school, in college…and it worked. I was safe. I didn’t have to worry about getting hurt.”

“And then I…” Y/n paused, the happy memory washing over her, “I met these two women in a bar and they offered me a job. And suddenly, I’m a part of this sport that I never cared about and there’s this…family I never asked for. And it should have made me happy,” she grasped her stomach, “But it scared me, Ted. It fucking terrified me because you were all so kind and welcoming and you just took me in.”

She stopped to take a breath, “And then Jamie just…” Y/n sniffled, “He just…happened. And that was the scariest part because…”

She couldn’t say the words. Just like 12 hours before, she still couldn’t physically force them out of her body. But somehow, even without speaking, the sentiment got across.

“Hey,” Ted slid an arm around Y/n’s shoulders. His dad mode had been activated.

For the first time in a long time, Y/n allowed herself to be held as she weeped.

“It’s okay,” Ted soothed, rubbing a hand over her arm, “You’re okay.”

After hours of crying underneath her sheets, Y/n thought she had nothing left to give. But the comfort of another person’s presence created a whole new wave. She was letting down from years of self-determination to conquer her pain on her own.

“Y’know,” Ted said after a moment, “Openin’ yourself up’s one of the scariest things in the world. Anyone who says otherwise’s never really done much hurting. But it’s worth it.”

“How do you know that?” Y/n whimpered.

“You don’t,” Ted stated, “No way to know what’ll happen before it happens. But if you don’t take the risk of gettin’ hurt, you’ll never end up with anything worth having. Just how life works.”

“But y’know,” he sighed, “Where we work…it’s kinda the exception. The people there’re some of the best I’ve ever known. They don’t let you down.”

Y/n’s tears were slowing in speed, but not intensity.

“Know how our right reverend Mr. Rojas likes to say that football is life?” Ted earned a slight smile from Y/n, “Same goes for AFC Richmond. These people’re gonna stick by you through thick and thin. Once you’re a part of the family, you’re there. Doesn’t matter if you wanna be. It’s up to you whether you let ‘em in..but they’re gonna love you whether you like it or not. It’s a heck of a lot easier to just let ‘em.”

Throughout the years, Y/n had lacked many relationships, but that of a parent was the one she’d longed for the most. She needed someone to help guide her, to lovingly correct her when she was making the biggest mistakes of her life. In the moment she needed it most, Ted fit the role perfectly.

Without any prompting, Y/n slipped her arms around Ted’s neck and hugged him.

Ted returned and received it, he’d been going through it too. As true as ever, helping someone out of their pit stitched a little piece of him back together as well. He wanted Y/n to succeed in everything she did and he believed without a doubt that she could. But he wanted her to be happy, truly happy, more than anything.

“Thank you,” she whispered over his shoulder.

“No thanks needed,” he smiled, “I got your back.”

Y/n let go of him slowly and hesitantly. It was 10:30, the match was less than two hours away. “You need to go.”

“I do,” Ted replied, patting her shoulder before standing up, “You think you’re gonna stop by for a bit now? Cheer us on?”

Grimacing slightly, Y/n ducked her head towards the floor.

“C’mon now,” Ted clicked his tongue, “I thought we just made progress.”

Y/n chuckled and wiped under her eyes.

“Well, I hope you change your mind.”

Ted left Y/n with plenty to mediate on and strolled back into the hall, shutting the door behind him. He could lead her to victory, but he couldn’t hand her the win.

Y/n stayed on the bed’s edge a long while after Ted left, contemplating all he’d said. She was at what was potentially the most important crossroads of her life. Heeding Ted’s advice held the possibility of more heartache, more loss, more feelings of inadequacy. But didn’t her isolation already offer that in spades? Wasn’t she hurting enough on her own? Tearing herself down at every opportunity? How could anything possibly be worse than that?

But she had felt worse, twelve hours ago. Breaking Jamie’s heart after he’d poured his out to her had crushed her. She’d hurt him so deeply in the name of self preservation. Walking away from him was the most difficult thing she’d ever done. The worst part was that it was totally avoidable. If she’d have told him that she loved him too, they’d have been saved so much pain. Jamie wouldn’t have had to endure her rejection, Y/n wouldn’t have lost the most important person in her life. The blame was entirely hers.

It wasn’t just Jamie. Y/n was so tired of keeping Keeley at arm’s length. She craved her weekly tea with Rebecca. She missed problem solving with Higgins. She wanted to laugh with Ted and talk life with Beard and annoy Roy. She wanted to go to movies with Sam and drink with Dani and have lunches with Colin. She wanted to cheer the boys on at games and celebrate with them after.

She wanted to win and lose with all of them.

She wanted to be a part of their family.

But to do so, she had to heal her first one.

Before she knew what she was doing, Y/n grabbed her phone off her nightstand. She scrolled through her contacts, even though she had memorized the number in hopes that would somehow equal a call. She pressed the name and dialed.

It rang once.

Twice.

Three times.

Y/n hadn’t expected them to pick up. It was 4-something AM where they were.

The familiar message played, asking her to leave her name and number.

Finally, the machine beeped.

“Hi…it’s me…” she started, suddenly nervous, “It’s Y/n. I know it’s early there, I don’t even know if you are there but…I needed to do this.”

Y/n drew a quick breath, it was now or never. “You guys really fucked me up. Me and Caylee. I mean, we’re really screwed up because of you. Maybe she’s doing better than me, maybe I’m the only one who’s still not over all of it but…you really messed up. And maybe you know that, maybe you don’t, but it’s the truth. I am…” she paused, “So broken because you two couldn’t love me. No— you know what,” her voice gained strength, “You could have loved me. You didn’t. For whatever reason, you didn’t. I did everything I possibly could to earn your love, and I never got it. And that’s fucked up.”

Her anger hastened her heartbeat, urging Y/n to go on. “And I don’t know how to forgive you for that. I know it’s possible, worse people have done worse things and they’ve somehow found a way to still be a family, but…I want to. If not for you guys, for me,” her chest’s rise and falls had evened out, “Because I’m tired of being broken. I’m tired of pushing everybody away. I’m tired of thinking that there’s something unlovable about me. I’m tired of thinking that being alone is somehow better than having people that care about you, and I’m tired of being scared,” Y/n threw her free arm out at her side and laughed, “I’m so tired of being scared.”

“None of this probably makes any sense to you, but, ” she sighed, “Mom, Dad, I don’t want to keep doing this. Only talking on my birthday, seeing you every couple years, not knowing what’s going on in your lives…I don’t want that. I want to know you. I want to come home for Christmas. I want to share my life with you. And if you can’t do that then…I don’t want anything.”

Her own words shocked her, was she really potentially kicking her parents out of her life?

“Because I’ve built a really amazing life here,” she said, her voice faltered with emotion, “With amazing people and they love me. They really love me and I’m crazy about them. And I want you guys to be a part of it,” she exhaled and felt the tears rock forward in her eyes, “And if you don’t want that, that’s okay. I’ll be alright because I have them.”

Y/n sighed, feeling the weight of a lifetime lift off her chest.

“I love you, Mom. I love you, Dad,” she continued, “And I hope you love me, for once, more than you do anything else.”

Y/n lowered the phone, staring at the call time. 2 minutes and 10 seconds was all it had taken. “Bye.”

The moment she disconnected, the room suddenly came to life. There was color to the walls and texture to the curtains. There was light shining in through the window and the smell of the coffee on its tray filled the room.

Y/n was free.

Lightened by the release of her life’s pain, the decision at hand became so clear. Y/n flipped on the hotel television, switching the channel to Sky Sports. The match was already into its second half and the Greyhounds were up by one goal.

She did the math in her head. The stadium was ten minutes away. She could still make it.

Flying across the room, Y/n dug through her suitcase for any clothes that weren’t pajamas. She emptied the contents onto her bed only to spot a familiar piece of fabric tucked in one of the compartments.

Y/n unfolded it.

Jamie’s jersey. Still packed from Wembley.

She laughed under her breath, the coincidence of it all was too perfect.

Y/n slipped on the oversized shirt, same as the last time. She threw on jeans and sneakers, grabbing her phone and coat before racing out her hotel room.

The elevator would take too long, she decided, so she sped down the stairs from the sixth floor all the way to the lobby. Jamie hadn’t been the only one to benefit from Roy’s training sessions.

Y/n bolted out the front doors of the hotel and ran to the sidewalk, waving her hands wildly to the cabs that drove by. Eventually, one stopped for her.

“Where to, love?”

“Ethiad Stadium,” Y/n answered as she hopped in the backseat, “Quick as you can.”

The cabbie got back in his lane and took her the way of the stadium. Y/n buzzed in the backseat, adrenaline pulsing through her veins at what she was doing.

“Could you put the match on?” She asked, most of them were typically broadcasted on the radio.

The driver flipped the station till he found the correct one. Y/n listened intently from the backseat, hanging on every word.

Halfway to the stadium, the cab hit typical game day traffic. After waiting impatiently a few minutes, the commentators announced there were twenty minutes left on the clock. If nothing changed in the next thirty seconds, Y/n would miss it entirely.

“You know what,” she reached into her coat pocket, picking a few bills from her wallet and throwing them in the front seat, “Keep the change.”

Y/n ignored the confused calls of the driver as she slid out the backseat into traffic. She ran through the lines of cars until she hit sidewalk. With every slap of her foot against the sidewalk, she could feel Ted’s words penetrate her heart even further. This was what she was supposed to feel.

The sight of Ethiad Stadium welcomed her. Guided by signage, she sprinted to the back entrance she’d usually come through with Rebecca and Keeley. Her sneakers practically screeched across the marble floor, slowing down only for the metal detector and security pat-down.

“Y/n Y/l/n,” Y/n recited her name to the liaison holding a guest list, “I’m with AFC Richmond.”

“Ah,” the young man located her, “Welcome to Ethiad Stadium, Miss-“

Y/n was off before he could finish, bolting up the staircase that would lead her to the VIP box.

She pushed past guests dressed far nicer than her and slid through gaps half her size. Somewhere along the way, Arlo White and Chris Park’s voices became clearer. They were being played through the stadium’s sound system.

“Tartt tried to soldier on, but now he’s in some distress and may require attention.”

Y/n’s steps slowed, pausing in the busy hall to listen properly.

“The med team is helping him off the field. It looks like Richmond may be in trouble.”

Never in her life had Y/n run faster.

Arriving at the VIP box, she rushed up to the security guard.

“Ticket please.”

“I don’t have one,” Y/n panted, “I’m with AFC Richmond.”

“Sorry, love,” the burly man shook his head, “Can’t let you in without a ticket.”

“No, no, no, I’m PR,” Y/n insisted, “I need to get in there now.”

The security guard was unmovable, taking a firm stance in the doorway to block her. “I can’t allow you in without a ticket, ma’am.”

With Jamie injured, there was a new recklessness to Y/n’s urgency. She didn’t quite care what she had to do to get in. She jumped in place to see over the guard’s shoulder, spotting the top of Rebecca’s coiffed hair and Keeley’s curls.

“There! There’s my bosses!” Y/n exclaimed, surging forward through the tiny space between the man and the door.

He pulled her back and away from getting any further, “You can’t enter without a ticket. If you don’t leave now-“

“Rebecca!” Y/n shouted, “Keeley! Keeley! Rebecca!”

She was loud enough that both women, plus Higgins, turned around in their seats. The sight of Y/n struggling against the security guard must have frightened them more than she’d intended.

Rebecca rushed through the room, “Let her go! Who the fuck do you think you are?”

“You know this woman?” The guard asked, still holding Y/n back as if she were some crazed fan.

“She works with me,” Keeley scolded, having followed Rebecca, “Get your fucking hands off her.”

The guard released Y/n quickly, eager to avoid any more reprimanding. “I’m so sorry, ma’am,” he addressed her, “Go on in.”

Y/n launched herself into Rebecca’s waiting arms, exhausted but charging off once more with the women.

“We thought you weren’t coming,” Keeley said as they rushed back to their seats.

Ignoring any and all things around her, Y/n ran down the steps of the box and threw herself against the railing. Jamie. Where was Jamie?

Down by the side of the pitch, he was laid out with the physios working on his ankle. Whatever move he’d pulled had cost him something terrible.

“What happened?” Y/n asked, unaware of who she was asking.

“He stopped a goal and landed wrong,” Keeley explained, slipping into the seat beside Y/n’s, “They just brought him off.”

Y/n clutched the railing with a vice-like grip, her eyes never leaving Jamie. She could see he was breathing hard, that his body clenched with every touch the physios made. He’d never been injured on the pitch this bad.

The game, however, couldn’t stop for one player. Ted made the call to play with ten men for the time being while Jamie rested. The Greyhounds held their own, Van Damme in particular blocking nearly every goal. But all Man City needed was one goal to tie things up and take the league title.

“Come on, Jamie,” Y/n mumbled as if she could will him to rally, “Come on.”

When the medics had done everything they could, Ted kneeled down next to Jamie. They appeared to be in deep conversation, Y/n would have killed to be on the other side, encouraging Jamie back onto the pitch. Whatever Ted was saying had to help. The team didn’t stand a chance if it didn’t.

“Get up, get up, get up,” she whispered, “Jamie, please get up.”

In perfect timing, Jamie extended a hand to Ted, who helped get him to his feet. Y/n held her breath as he bore weight on his ankle and exhaled when he didn’t buckle.

“Yes,” she clapped.

Ted went back to Beard and Roy, and Jamie took his time getting back on the pitch. The Man City fans livened up and began booing their former striker.

With her emotions driving her, Y/n turned to the sections around hers. “Oh, fuck off!”

Jamie shared her sentiment, taking the hate as well as the praise. He egged them on further and encouraged the taunts, jutting his tongue out and beating on his chest.

“Come on, Jamie,” Y/n cheered. There was no way for him to see or hear her, but she stayed up and screaming as if she were right beside him.

Jamie made it back to the pitch and the match resumed. Van Damme blocked another goal with spectacular skill and got the ball over to Isaac. Isaac kicked it across the field to Jamie, who controlled it masterfully.

Y/n’s breath hung in her chest as he moved across the field. Before her eyes, he came back to his truest self. This was him at his very best. This was Jamie playing for no one but himself and it was beautiful.

Jamie avoided every single City player that tried to steal the ball away. Making it to the net, he sent the ball flying and the whole stadium froze.

It soared past the goalie, a perfect shot.

The Greyhounds pounced on their teammate, hugging and slapping him on the back. The entire crowd went wild, the Richmond fans lost their minds.

“YES!!” Y/n threw her hands in the air, “JAMIE!!”

Keeley, Rebecca and Higgins jumped to their feet, cheering and screaming. Y/n and Keeley reached for one another and squealed.

Jamie chose the honorable route and didn’t make a big deal over the goal against his former club. When the boys let go of him, the ref blew his whistle and held up the sub board. Roberts was coming on, Jamie was coming off.

It was the most extraordinary way to leave a match, and Jamie was in a bit of pain. He wasn’t going to argue with the decision. But he hadn’t expected the Man City half of the stadium to change their tune. When their boos morphed to cheers, his eyes glistened with lifelong tears.

It had been a long road to get to a point where Jamie could play for himself. He’d spent all his years working to prove his father wrong, using his hatred as motivation to grow his skills. When he’d exhausted that option, he found himself a man without a country. He wasn’t sure what to do.

Then Y/n had shattered his heart.

He’d woken up with very little motivation to play. Their goodbye had added edge to all his fears. Mixed with the possibility of seeing his father, it was a miracle Jamie could move. But he was a fighter till the end, and even if he was a wreck, he would still give 110%. That was his gift.

As he looked up into the stands, despite everything, he wished Y/n was there to celebrate with him.

Little did he know, Y/n was crying tears of pride on the second level. She watched Jamie walk off the field feeling her heart completely tied to his. He’d proved everyone, even himself, wrong.

The game ended soon after that, with Richmond coming out on top. They had earned their spot in the last game of the season and a chance at the Premier League title. Y/n, Rebecca, Keeley and Higgins fell into an group hug.

“Hey, hey,” Y/n pulled out of Keeley’s arms and locked eyes, “You’re my best friend.”

Keeley’s gaze grew teary. She didn’t know what had changed in Y/n since the night before, but she welcomed it and hugged her tighter.

“And you,” Y/n reached over to Rebecca, “You’re just so fucking amazing.”

Rebecca laughed and wrapped an arm around Y/n, lovingly kissing her hair. Her friend was back from wherever she’d disappeared to.

“Oh,” Y/n grabbed hold of Higgins and grinned, “I love working with you so much.”

Higgins embraced her and shouted over the crowd. “Good to have you back.”

As much as she adored them, Y/n’s eyes fell downwards to the pitch. Jamie was celebrating amidst the boys, but they were about to leave.

Keeley followed her gaze, “Go. They’ll take him to the med room.”

Y/n’s face dropped, realizing that she had made a huge faux pas towards Keeley she hadn’t even considered.

Keeley could read the worry before it crossed Y/n’s lips. “Oi, fuck off,” she laughed, “Go get him.”

She didn’t need to hear anything else. Y/n took off running.

She sprinted through the stadium, weaving in and out of the crowd until she hit the authorized personnel area guarded by security.

“I’m with AFC Richmond,” Y/n breathed, exhausted by the effort expended. She reached into her wallet, “I have proof.”

She held up the employee ID and let the guard examine it.

“Go ahead,” the taller one slid to the side.

Y/n rushed through the glass doors. This was one of the only stadiums she hadn’t been to and she didn’t know her way. She peeked through every door until she found the physio room. Neither the medics nor Jamie were back yet.

Jamie hobbled down the hall, assisted by the physios that had aided him on the field. The adrenaline of the game was starting to wear off and he was looking forward to getting off his foot.

They opened the door to the back room to reveal the last person he expected to see.

Y/n spun around and their eyes met, fear suddenly taking hold of her. In her mad dash to the stadium, overcome with emotion, she hadn’t taken into consideration that Jamie may not have wanted to see her.

“Ma’am,” one of the medics spoke up, “You can’t be back here.”

Jamie was dazed, from the thrill of the match and Y/n’s presence. He took clumsy steps toward her, stuck in the magnetic pull they had on one another.

Y/n cautiously moved forward, terrified of what could come next. Jamie had every right to throw her out and never speak to her again. She almost wanted him to, to make her regret ever turning him away. Deserving seemed like too plain a word. She had earned his indifference.

But in the way Jamie’s eyes traced her face, warm and familiar, shocked and relieved, she knew that wasn’t the case.

They fell into each other’s arms without a single word.

“I’m sorry,” Y/n whispered through her tears, “I’m so sorry.”

Jamie buried his face in her neck, unable to do any more than absorb her. She was here. She was here.

Y/n, however, had so much to say. She urgently guided his head up to face her, tears welling in both their eyes. In that moment, telling the truth never seemed simpler.

“I love you.”

Jamie’s mouth curled upwards, searching her face in shock.

“I love you so much,” Y/n confessed, holding his cheeks, “I’m so sorry for what I said.”

She was cut off by Jamie, pressing his lips fervently into hers.

Neither of them could clearly remember the kisses they’d shared during their one night together. They certainly couldn’t count them. But this, this held all the glory and promise of a first kiss. Months of tension and longing they didn’t know they’d felt were poured out, replaced by sweet relief.

With his brain hazy and high, Jamie backed them up towards the physio table. The first step he took on his ankle made him wince, but he didn’t break from their kiss.

“Jamie, Jamie, Jamie,” Y/n pulled away, smiling breathlessly, “Ankle.”

“Don’t care,” he mumbled as he chased after her lips.

Y/n giggled, letting him steal a few more sloppy kisses. She wasn’t in a place to deny him anything.

When Jamie did eventually pull back, he nudged his nose against Y/n’s, breathing her in. “You only back here ‘cause I won it for us?”

“You caught me,” Y/n ran a hand through the back of his hair, “I’d have slipped right back out if you hadn’t.”

Jamie grinned and stroked a hand over her head. Now that he had her as close as he’d craved, he wanted to touch as much as he could. He looked down between them and spotted the familiar blue and red.

“I swear, magic shit happens when you wear this thing,” Jamie rubbed the fabric between his fingers.

Y/n rested her forehead on Jamie’s shoulder, shaking with laughter.

“I’m a fucking genius for buying it,” he beamed, pressing a kiss to Y/n’s hair. “I love you so much.”

Knuckles rapped against the door and someone cleared their throat. At some point, the medics had left and returned.

“Mr. Tartt,” one said, “We do need to check your ankle.”

Y/n removed herself from being pinned between the table and Jamie. Jamie dropped his hands to hold hers, unwilling to lose full contact as he took a seat. The physios had a difficult time working with Jamie’s constant movement, trying to pull Y/n in for kiss after kiss.

All things considered, Jamie got off lucky. A brace was wrapped around his ankle and he was advised to use crutches for the next few days. Jamie heard most of their instructions…well, some. He’d more distractedly spare the medics a glance before looking back to Y/n, who memorized all their warnings.

When they left once more, giving Jamie a minute to rest, he tugged Y/n between his legs and wrapped his arms around her waist. Y/n tucked herself into his chest, holding his head as it dug into the side of hers.

There was so much to say, so much to explain, but neither one could think straight enough for any of it. All they wanted to do was hold each other, reveling in the sweet relief of longing being exchanged for love.

—————————

Back at the hotel, Y/n packed both hers and Jamie’s room while he rested on the Coach. She’d handed his suitcase off to Will before heading to her own car, regretting her decision not to join the team bus considering how the trip was ending.

Jamie got Y/n on the phone the second they pulled out of the hotel. She’d insisted he ride back with the boys, but he was more insistent on not being apart for a second. They spent very little time talking as the phone got passed around, each of the Greyhounds wanting to speak to Y/n after so many weeks with no contact.

Keeley and Rebecca coveted the mobile the longest, badgering her for as many details as Y/n would give them on how her and Jamie had come to be. Y/n revealed precious little information, both because she was still retracing the sequence of events herself and because she didn’t feel like telling the entire team just yet.

Along the way, Kenneth the bus driver and Y/n were weaving between lanes together, switching spots in front on one another. The boys could be heard shouting for Kenneth to drive faster so they could beat her. Y/n smiled and laughed the whole way back to Richmond, lighter than she’d been in years.

They pulled into Nelson Road Stadium late, but full of energy. The Greyhounds poured out of the bus toting champagne bottles, singing and chanting as loud as they could. Man City was their great white whale, and they’d beaten them so spectacularly, they deserved a fucking celebration.

Y/n moved around the physio room while Jamie was in the locker room, setting up a bucket of ice water for his ankle, per the medic’s instructions. She headed down the hall to retrieve him after, running into the boys changed into their dress clothes.

“Looking good,” she complimented.

The stragglers cheered and hung back to hug Y/n, Isaac picking her up and spinning her around. Richard pressed a kiss to her cheek.

“Hey,” Colin grew serious and pointed a finger towards her, “You owe us an explanation for where you’ve been.”

“Yeah, not cool,” Isaac agreed, setting her back down.

“I know, I know,” Y/n chuckled, “You’ll get one. But tonight,” she gestured to the door, “Go make a big fat mess of headlines for me to clean up.”

They cheered rowdily before heading out the door, leaving Y/n beaming. She was home.

She slipped into the locker room, Jamie was seated in his assigned spot, fidgeting. She knocked softly on the door.

“Come on, superstar,” she held out a hand.

Jamie smiled coyly, “Where you takin’ me?”

“I’m making sure Richmond has a fighting chance next weekend,” Y/n replies, helping him to his feet, “Can’t afford to lose you before you beat the shit out of West Ham.”

Jamie wrapped an arm around Y/n’s shoulders, much preferring to use her as his brace than the crutches. They took their time getting down the hall and into the physio room.

Y/n went about getting Jamie situated while he typed something into his phone. Once his foot was submerged in the ice, she stood to her full height and asked, “Whatcha doing?”

“Texting me dad,” he answered plainly.

Y/n blinked, “I’m sorry, what?”

Jamie clicked his phone shut and set it aside. They had a lot to catch up on. “When I was down, Coach came and talked to me. Told me that I should forgive me dad,” he quickly held up a hand to Y/n’s worried expression, “Not for him. For me. I’ve been in my head all week ‘cause I felt like I couldn’t be me without hatin’ him. Y’know? But between Coach and mum…I don’t know…I found it again. That thing that made me wanna play in the first place. Not for him, not for anyone…just me.”

Y/n smiled proudly. Jamie’s dad was the permanent thorn in his side. Rather than live with the pain, he was learning to grow around it.

“What?”

“Nothing,” she shook her head. It was also deeply ironic that Y/n had made a similar phone call to her parents hours ago. “Just something to tell you later.”

Jamie stroked a hand over her back, “How ‘bout you tell me what made you change your mind?”

Y/n slotted herself between Jamie’s thighs and wrapped her arms around his neck. The new intimacy stole any intention of ever having less than one hand on each other.

“Ted came by my room this morning,” she started, “We had a talk and I…I just realized that I wanted to be with you more than I wanted to stay scared of you.”

Jamie’s brows raised, “Scared of me?”

Y/n nodded and brushed a hand through his hair, “You and all those big feelings…they scare the shit out of me. But I got a taste of what life’s like without you,” she sighed, “And I can’t do it.”

Jamie’s fingers moved against Y/n’s back, he watched and listened intently.

“I raced through the fucking streets for you,” Y/n smiled, “I fought a security guard.”

Snorting at the mental image, Jamie slipped an arm under Y/n’s legs and lifted her onto his lap. She yelped and tightened her hold around him.

“We’re gonna break this table,” Y/n laughed, “And people are going to make assumptions.”

“Let ‘em,” Jamie smirked, eyes full of adoration, “Say it again.”

“I love you,” she whispered joyfully.

He wanted to hear it a million more times and he wanted to say it an equal amount. He captured her lips once more in a soft kiss, content to stay there as long as the world would let them.

The door to the med room squeaked open, “Oh, fuck.”

Jamie and Y/n broke apart, twisting to see Roy and Keeley stood in the doorway.

“You two were annoying before. You’re gonna be fucking unbearable now,” Roy complained.

“Oh, stop it,” Keeley lightly smacked his hand, “They’ve waited this long.”

“What’re you guys doing?” Jamie asked.

“We thought we’d come and keep you company,” Keeley answered.

Roy kicked the door shut and held up an unopened champagne bottle, “Fucking celebrate!”

Keeley squealed and ran over to hug Y/n and Jamie, the three of them embracing one another. “‘Cause that was fucking amazing, Jamie.”

“Yeah, I was fucking amazing,” Jamie agreed, “You’re right.”

Keeley cackled while Y/n dropped her head to Jamie’s shoulder. “Dear God, I don’t think I can handle this ego.”

“Gotten this far,” Roy grumbled, rolling his eyes at his protege.

“We might need to tag team it,” Y/n suggested, “What do you say, Royo?”

“No,” he pointed between Jamie and Y/n, “You signed up for this, he’s your fucking problem.”

Y/n looked down at Jamie, who was already grinning up at her. He’d been her problem for a long long time.

“I’ll make the best of it,” she said, pecking Jamie’s lips.

Roy popped the champagne and he and Keeley pulled up chairs. He offered his ex the bottle, “You start us off.”

“Mmm, don’t mind if I do,” she took a swig.

“Right,” Jamie turned to Roy, “What the fuck happened, man?”

The four of them laughed as the champagne was passed around.

“Did I look sexy?” Jamie asked, turning to Y/n and handing her the bottle, “Babe?”

“I take it all back,” Y/n joked and took a swig, “I’m not ready for this. We’re back to being friends.”

Jamie laughed and tugged her closer to him.

“Shame you weren’t injured in your fucking head, innit?” Roy grinned.

“Right,” Keeley spoke up, “You gonna tell us how this happened? Spare no details?”

Roy took the bottle from Y/n, “You can spare the details.”

Y/n scoffed, “Oh, there’ll be details spared.”

“She just doesn’t want people to know she stole my virtue,” Jamie cheekily smiled, “I get that right, babe?”

Keeley gasped, Roy grunted.

“I will fucking leave you here to freeze to death,” Y/n threatened, “If you ever tell people that’s what happened.”

The foursome stayed put for a good half hour, their raucous laughter bouncing off the walls. Y/n and Jamie explained an edited version of what happened in London to cause such tension at Georgie and Simon’s house. Keeley, surprisingly, didn’t seem to care that she was watching one of her best friends and her ex-boyfriend tell how they’d fallen in love. She was more thrilled than anyone. Roy was less than enthusiastic, but couldn’t hide his smile as he saw how happy Jamie seemed.

When it was time to leave, Roy helped Jamie in to Y/n’s car. He’d need someone to help him around the house for a day or two and there was no one else he wanted to take care of him. They made the twenty minute drive to Jamie’s house non-eventfully, Jamie pressing a kiss to Y/n’s hand at every red light they hit.

Y/n unloaded their bags first, dropping them in the hall, before coming back to help Jamie out of the car. They managed the driveway and the threshold just fine, and the second Y/n had locked the door behind them, Jamie was on her, crushing their lips and bodies together.

After so many months of falling without notice, neither realized just how much love they had for one another until they could express it fully. Like looking through some all-knowing kaleidoscope, everything leading up to that very moment made crystal clear sense. The jealousy, the adoration, the attachment…it had all been leading to this.

All of Jamie’s hard work, his effort to become his best self had mattered. This was the payoff.

Y/n’s long-standing walls crumbled with each touch, never to be rebuilt. Her fear melted at their feet.

They were free of their pasts, belonging only to their future.

————

Heartfirst Taglist: @lalla-04p @optimisticsandwichgladiator @makingmunson94 @taytaylala12 @storysimp @sokkigarden @lightninginab0ttle @poohkie90 @alipap3 @verra-nerevarine @shineforever19 @spaceagechimera @burnafter-reading @qardasngan @cyberpvnk-enthusiast @sogoodtoheritsvicious @buckybarnex @angelsunflxwer @blueanfield @thewildestwonderland @sablecities @oxxolovemelikeyoudooxxo @strawberryacethingz @mentalistfan @tortilla-maria1 @katdahlali @for-fuck-sake-im-alive @glitterquadricorn @jamieolivia27 @imvibin69 @katlizada @lil-tracys @fanaticalfantasist @heyitz-julia @cactajuice @peachyy-tea @notalxx @rockchickrebel @anxiety-prime-max @loveforaugust @jellycolors @actuallybarb @heletsmelovehim @lovinnscarletknight @imfalling-inlove @leslieiscrying @meg-ro @littlemisssunshine192 @beboldbebravethings @maydayfigment @spencerreidsbookclub @dream-alittlebiggerdarling @lemoonandlestars @im-a-weirdo-for-life @mindless-rock (tags cont. in comments ❤️)

[security-chief-odo]

To Love and Be Loved in Return - Chapter 4

Chapter 1 & 2 & 3

Roy Kent x Reader

Description: Between you, Roy, and Keeley, who will spill the beans first?

Note: Hope you’re ready for fluff because oh boy is that all I felt like writing tonight.

Word Count: 2.3k

• • •

Chapter 4 - Drunk Words, Sober Thoughts

Roy’s knuckles go white as he grips the wheel, trying to find his composure along the journey. He knew he would obviously see you again and have to reckon with his feelings now that he couldn’t just throw a pity party for himself over a rejection he hadn’t even gotten. One that he may not even get.

That little spark of hope that has only just crept into his heart might be the thing that breaks him. It’s that hope that has him imagining what it would be like if you were his actual date to the gala. It’s that hope that has him picturing you in his arms after a hard day at work. It’s that hope that has him imagining your lips on his after the team wins a game. It’s that goddamned hope that has his palms sweaty and heart racing faster than he knew it could as he pulls up to the club.

He pulls up outside the bar and sees the three of you standing together. Keeley is the first to notice his car and corrals you all in his direction. The excited smile that crosses your face as you notice his arrival is enough to make his heart melt. He can’t let himself read into that though, you’d probably be just as excited for an Uber driver considering how fucking late it is.

Of course, he’s lying to himself though, because he does read into it just a little. He does get his hopes up that even a fraction of that excitement was specific to him.

Keeley and Rebecca guide you to the car, perhaps using your drunkenness to expedite their matchmaking as they guide you to the passenger seat. It’s only when you get buckled and they’ve already settled into the backseat that you realize what they’ve done. You couldn’t complain too much at getting to be close to the man you had so clearly fallen for, but Keeley was about to give you reason to complain.

She is sitting behind Roy, so you can see the smile on her face as she begins what could best be described as a transparent attempt to make Roy jealous. “So, y/n, who was that tall guy you gave your number to earlier?”

Bummed at hearing this and completely oblivious to the mischievous smirk adorning Keeley’s face, Roy feigns casual interest, “Oh?” he asks with a raised eyebrow.

You whip your head around to reply to Keeley, not wanting Roy to think you’re unavailable, “It’s not like that and you know it.”

This piques Roy’s interest and he begins to steer the conversation, “Then do you give your number out to just any strange man?”

“No, not my number,” you clarify, “Beard’s.”

“What?” he asks, now more confused than he was jealous.

“So one time I was at the Crown and Anchor with Beard and some creep just wouldn’t back off. Eventually I relented and gave him my number just to make him go away. Beard told me to start giving out his number instead of my own to creeps. He gets to enjoy scaring shitty men and I get to enjoy a peaceful night with my friends with no creepy texts in the morning. It’s a win-win situation”

“That’s fucking brilliant” Rebecca chimes in, “I’ve got to start doing that shit.”

“So you didn’t find a date tonight?” Roy asks, trying too hard to be nonchalant about it.

“Wasn’t looking.” you reply more to the window than to him as a faint blush crosses your features.

He pulls up to Rebecca’s house first, and when she gets out Keeley adjusts to the middle, using the opportunity to finally see Roy’s face, and try to figure out if he feels the same for you. It doesn’t take long for her to see the softness that he looks at you with, but it will certainly take longer for her to get him to admit it.

“Since I’m taking her shopping tomorrow, you should probably tell me what color you’re wearing.”

Knowing your friend too well, you brace yourself for this conversation. Her lack of subtlety only worsened when alcohol was in the mix. “Don’t worry about it Keeley. He’s not bringing me as an actual date anyways. We don’t have to match.”

Roy is kicking himself for being so obvious with his feelings. Keeley could read him like a book and this was her idea of either teasing or being helpful. He hasn’t quite figured out which. “I don’t know yet. I try not to think much about that stupid event. If it wasn’t for a good cause I wouldn’t even go to the fucking thing.”

“But Cheryl would miss you if you stopped going.” She has definitely settled on teasing then.

“Fuck Cheryl.” he rolls his eyes. He is not looking forward to another year with her as the highest bidder. She may not be as bad as he made Jamie think, but the idea of going on a date with anyone other than you makes him feel sick.

“You would if she got her way.” you chime in.

At your teasing Roy can feel that heat in his face, “She won’t. I’m not interested in her.”

“But you are interested in someone?” she adds barely letting him finish his own sentence.

He growls, “I didn’t say that.”

“But you still aren’t denying it.” Keeley says with a smirk evident in her sing-songy voice. Though she is clearly taking this as confirmation he likes you, you sink into your seat hoping it swallows you whole. Him liking somebody doesn’t mean he likes you. Then she asks the question you’ve both been dreading, “So who is she?”

“She’s none of your business.” Roy lets out a huff. If he wasn’t certain Keeley knew he liked you before, he definitely knows now.

“Come on!” Keeley whines, knowing she won’t get her way but enjoying watching him squirm all the same. “Tell me who’s captured the attention of the Roy Kent.”

He has taken to ignoring her prodding in hopes that she’ll get bored or at least give it up for the minute or two left in the drive to her flat.

His hopes are quickly shattered by her adding “Is it someone we know?”

Now that’s a question he can’t answer. If he does, he’ll give everything away, and if he can’t have you, he’d at least like to not lose you.

Lucky for Roy though, you seem to have gotten tired of this subject too. “Knock it off Keeley.” you roll your eyes at her, trying your best to play at being casual.

The car ride continues in relative silence until you arrive at Keeley’s. She gets out and cheerfully yells bye at both of you. Winking at you both, though each of you assume it is directed at only yourselves.

Once the car is finally moving again, you let out a breath you didn’t realize you had been holding in. Even in your inebriated state, you can still feel the full force of the embarrassment Keeley brought on in her attempt to play wingman. You sigh, “Sorry about her. All of that really. It was pretty invasive.”

He smiles ever so slightly and glances at you before looking back at the road and replying, “No worries. Not your fault. I know she’s just drunk. She’s always a little nosy, but never more so than when she’s drunk.”

You both chuckle at how true that was. You can’t help recalling all of the strangers Keeley has practically interrogated on past nights out. “Yeah, she gets that way, but it is kind of my fault. She was just trying to help me out and she overstepped.”

You don’t quite register how revealing your words are until he parks just outside your flat. “What do you mean?” Roy has turned entirely to face you.

In this moment, you have half a mind to run out of the car and straight into your flat and bury yourself in pillows hoping sleep will make you forget this night ever happened. Though it must be true what they say about alcohol being liquid courage because you don’t move towards the door, but instead you turn to face Roy.

“Fuck it.” you let out a sharp breath and begin. “It’s stupid and kinda embarrassing, but I have feelings for you. She found out today and has been pestering me about it all night. I’m sorry, I didn’t think she’d bother you with it or –”

He cuts you off with a groan of “Fuck” but you continue, reading his reaction as confirmation of your every fear.

“That I’d be telling you for that matter. I didn’t really want you to find out, certainly not like this. Don’t worry about it though, I’ll text Rebecca and have her move me to work under a different department if it makes you uncomfortable.”

“Wait” he cuts in again.

“I can even look for a new job. I like it at Richmond but I know this probably ruins our friendship and I don’t want to make things weird for you at work too. It’s really no big deal.”

Finally frustrated with your flat refusal to listen to him he yells your name. This gets your attention and for the first time since you started rambling, you make eye contact with him. “Stop talking for a second, y/n”

“Ok” you reply. You immediately failing at the request makes him roll his eyes at you.

“Please don’t quit. I have been freaking out all week because I’ve been head over heels for you for months now and I was finally trying to ask you out.”

“What?” you look at him in sheer confusion. Just minutes ago the man groaned in frustration at your confession. You never would have guessed it was because he returned your feelings.

“I asked you to be my date to the gala.”

“But then you told me it wasn’t a date”

Stumbling over himself he continues “Well – I – You’re the one who replied to me asking you on a date by telling me I’m the best boss. That one’s kind of your fault too.” He drops the defensiveness and continues on. “Then I asked you to lunch today, but you had plans already. Fuck. You don’t make it easy to ask you out.”

“I can tell because you still haven’t actually done it.” you tease.

He grumbles in response. “You’re right. Y/n, I am madly in love with you. Would you please do me the honor of being my girlfriend?”

“Hm. Let me think about it.”

“Don’t you fucking dare start that shit,” he scowls and points at you accusatorily. Although he won’t say it right now because the last thing he needs is more smugness from you, that playful smile has his stomach doing flips. It is probably his favorite expression of yours. You look so unburdened when you’re having fun like this, even if it is at his expense.

“Absolutely. I’d love nothing more than to be your girlfriend Roy.”

Over the moon at your response, he finally realizes the late hour. “Let me walk you up to your flat. Wait there.”

He turns off the car and walks around to your side. He opens the door for you and steadies you as you step down. When you get up to your flat you’re barely not stumbling. Between the exhaustion, the heels, and the alcohol in your system, it feels like a miracle when you reach your door. You hand Roy the keys and he gets the door for you, his left hand still on your back to guide you. He walks you to your bedroom, finds you pajamas to change into, and closes the door as he leaves the room to give you privacy.

You call out from the other side, “Scared you’ll like what you see too much?”

“Shut up and get dressed,” he responds, his tone clearly light. He moves to the kitchen to grab you a glass of water and some ibuprofen, both of which you will definitely need come morning. He knocks gently on the bedroom door, “You decent?”

“Sadly, yes.” you reply. He opens the door and seeing your sleepy eyes light up leaves him in awe of you.

He swiftly crosses the room to place the pills on your bedside and the water on a coaster next to it. He pulls back the blanket on your bed and gestures to the space below it. “Come on, y/n. You need some rest.”

You settle into your bed and look up at him. “Can I get a goodnight kiss from my boyfriend?”

“Not tonight.” he replies as he tucks you in.

You pout at this response and ask, “Please?”

“Nope”

“Why not?” you whine.

“You’re drunk”

“And? It’s just a kiss. Why should that matter?”

He leans in and you think he’s going to give you your way, but he stops just shy of your lips and whispers gruffly, “When I kiss you for the first time, I want to be sure it’s fucking memorable.”

With that he pulls away and you're a little more turned on than you’d like to admit. The anticipation for something as simple as a kiss, has turned you into a sleepy pile of mush. Okay, maybe it was the alcohol that did most of that, but It sure didn’t help.

He turns to leave and you call out, “Roy?”

He turns to you and cocks his head slightly in confusion.

“Can you stay the night?”

“Of course. I’ll be on the couch. If you need me, don’t hesitate to wake me up. Goodnight y/n”

“Goodnight.” you doze off into a far more pleasant sleep than you expected.

• • •

Taglist: @infinetlyforgotten @taytaylala12 @siriuslyreads @ashy-kit @isla-finke-blog @laukora1030 @tamberjo @queen-of-the-downtown-scene @harry-bowie-mercury

[willalove75]

Keeley and Rebecca would gossip at lunch about Roy and Reader . Especially after seeing them workout together , reader has tattoos . Maybe they go on a double date or with Jack ? Some banter , teasing . Rebecca KNOWS what gets reader going 😳🔥

Yessss!! Love this request so much! Sorry I took literally FOREVER to get to it💕

Warnings: 18+ ONLY. Minors DNI

Tags: flirty, teasing

A/n: Holy shit it's been a MINUTE since I've done a Rebecca fic! I'm going to be trying to do a better job at responding to the Rebecca requests that have been in my inbox for months. I'm so sorry it's taken so long to get through them!

Rebecca and Keeley walk through the halls of AFC Richmond together as they're on their way to lunch. They make their way through the locker room in search of you. Rebecca knocks on Ted's office door and walks in.

"Well howdy boss! Keeley! What are you two rascals up to?"

"Good afternoon Ted." Rebecca says. "Have you seen y/n? I thought she would be in here."

"Ah, I think I saw her and Roy head into the gym a little while ago."

"Of course that's where they are." Keeley says with a playful eyeroll.

The duo head to the gym and lo and behold, there you were. You were doing bench presses and Roy was your spotter.

Rebecca's breath hitches in her chest when she sees you. Her eyes rake over your body, your legs spread on either side of the bench, the little arch in your back, the tight white tank top you had on - you must have pulled your work shirt off. She was practically drooling over the way your muscles flexed when you brought the bar down to your chest and pushed it back up. The tattoos covering your arms were glistening with a thin layer of sweat and it made her heart skip a beat. You didn't even know she was standing there and you were already driving her crazy. It was baffling to Rebecca that someone had such an effect on her.

"Hi babe!" Keeley says as she trots over to Roy and kisses him on the cheek.

As you bring the bar back down to your chest you hear Keeley and look over and see Rebecca practically gawking at you. You flash her a quick smirk before Roy brings you back to reality.

"You're not done yet." He growls. "Four more. For every second you stare at her I'm adding two more."

You quickly refocus and bang out the last four reps before Roy helps you rerack the bar. Using it as leverage, you pull yourself up into a sitting position and look back over at Rebecca who's strutting her way over to you.

"Hey babe." You say.

"Hello my love." She says, leaning down to give you a kiss on the cheek.

"What are you guys doing here?"

"Well we were going to invite you to lunch, but it looks like you're rather preoccupied at the moment." Rebecca says.

You look over at Roy who lets out a low growl letting you know he's not finished kicking your ass yet.

"I'm sorry baby, but it looks like Oscar the Grouch here isn't done torturing me just yet."

"You asked for this." He deadpans.

"It's okay my love, we'll get lunch another time." She says.

"Okay lets go! I'm so hungry I could fuck a horse!" Keeley says.

You, Rebecca, and Roy all look at Keeley.

"Don't you mean 'eat a horse?'" You ask.

"Nope. Bye babe!" She says before kissing Roy and heading towards the door. "Lets go Rebecca!"

You shake your head at her and Rebecca looks down at you. Looking up at her like this does things to you and she knows it. She tries to do it as often as she can and it drives you wild. She bends forward and subtly squeezes her breasts together so you get the best view of her cleavage since you can see right down the front of her shirt. You can feel your cheeks turn red and it's not from working out. Rebecca cups under your chin and pulls you in for a kiss.

When she pulls away and you open your eyes you're met with a beautiful pair of piercing green eyes staring back at you. Your heart stutters in your chest and she gives you a little smirk.

"I'll see you later, love." Is all she says before turning around and walking away. She sways her hips a little as she walks away and you develop an ache between your legs.

After she leaves you drag your hands down your face and groan.

"That woman will be the death of me."

Roy snickers at you and you shoot him a look.

"You chose that punishment. I have no sympathy. Lets go, you have two more sets to finish and then I'm throwing you in the ice tub." You groan in protest. "After that little, whatever the fuck that was, you're gonna need it."

At lunch Rebecca and Keeley are seated at a table and they go over the menu after placing their drink orders. Rebecca is chewing on her bottom lip as she looks over the menu and Keeley giggles at her.

"What?" Rebecca asks.

"You."

"What about me?"

"She really got you flustered by just existing, didn't she?" Rebecca rolls her eyes at Keeley and looks back at the menu. "Oh come on! I saw the way you were looking at her and how you practically eye fucked her in front of the entire team!"

"Keeley Jones! I did no such thing!"

"Oh yes you did and you know it!"

"I wasn't eye fucking her, just, playfully flirting."

"Yeah, okay. Anyway, we should go on a double date, we haven't done that in ages!"

"That sounds like a wonderful idea, Friday night?"

"Perfect."

Friday night rolls around and you and Rebecca and dressed and off to your double date with Roy and Keeley. Her driver drops you off at the restaurant and Keeley and Roy pull up right after you. After exchanging hello's the four of you head inside and are lead to your table. Drinks and orders are placed and the conversation starts to pick up.

"So how do you think the boys are going to do at next weeks match?" Rebecca asks Roy.

"They better kick their fucking asses." He says.

"How's Isaac's injury?" Keeley asks you.

"He should be fine to play next week. Luckily he didn't tear anything in his knee so I worked on him throughout the week to try and strengthen it so he should be good to go." You say.

"Well that's a relief." Rebecca says.

You go to speak but your words die on your lips when you feel a foot drag up your leg. Looking across the table at Rebecca, she's resting her chin in her hand and looking at you as if she's not teasing the shit out of you right now.

"Are you okay, love?" She asks.

"Yup. All good." You say as you take a sip of your drink.

Her foot climbs higher and pushes your legs apart a little and you try to not choke on your drink. Thank god Roy and Keeley started talking about something else so they don't see you struggling.

The waitress comes over with your food and you feel Rebecca's foot pull away and a wave of relief washes over you. The four of you start eating and just as you're about to take a bite her foot begins stroking your leg again. Looking at Rebecca she has a smirk on her face and you watch as she slowly brings her fork to her mouth and wraps her lips around it before pulling it away. You take a sip of water when you feel your face flushing. This woman can breathe in your direction and immediately fluster you.

"So how has working out with Roy been?" Keeley asks you,

"It's been really good, he's been kicking my ass."

"You needed it." He says.

"Okay, listen-"

"That wasn't a question."

"Such a prick." You laugh.

"Why have you been working out so much, love?" Rebecca asks.

"I don't know, I like it. Especially since I have full access to a gym at work I mean, why not?"

"You have certainly gotten stronger over the last few weeks." She says as she reaches across the table and squeezes your bicep. She's subtle about it but you can feel her drag her nails across your skin as she pulls away.

"Thanks." You sputter and try to cover it with a sip of your drink.

Throughout dinner Rebecca keeps catching your eye, maintaining eye contact when she takes a bite of her food, watching you squirm when her foot grazes the inside of your thigh. She drives you crazy the entire night.

The waitress brings out dessert and Rebecca maintains eye contact with you once more as she takes a scoop of her dessert and eats it.

"Here." She says. "Try it."

Rebecca picks up a spoonful and reaches across the table and feeds you. She slips the spoon between your lips painfully slow and pulls it out at the same pace, not once breaking eye contact. You let out a small moan and try to play it off as if you're moaning about the dessert. Keeley and Roy don't seem to notice but Rebecca's eyes flash with lust for a moment.

She reaches across the table again and drags her thumb across your bottom lip, wiping away some of the dessert left behind.

By the end of the night you're squirming, the heat between your legs is damn near unbearable and she knows it.

You say your goodbyes to Keeley and Roy and climb into the car. Rebecca pushes the button to pull up the privacy divider between the front and back seats of the car and looks at you with lust in her eyes. You try and make a move but she stops you pinning you back against the seat. A pathetic moan leaves your lips and she smirks.

"What's the matter, love?" She says as her lips ghost the shell of your ear.

"Rebecca." You pant.

"Yes love?" She asks before placing soft, open mouthed kisses on your neck. "What's the matter? Got you all worked up?"

"Yes." You groan.

"So easy to fluster."

"Please."

Rebecca cups your core and presses her fingers against your soaked panties.

"All this for me?" You nod your head.

She pulls her hand away and you whine.

"Don't worry my love, when we get home I'll have you whining for all of the best reasons."

[bbymunsonx]

The Last Time (Ted's Version)

Chapter One

chapter warnings: language

word count: 962

authors note: even though these two beginning chapters are on the shorter side, I hope you enjoy so far! I cannot wait to get into the main chunk of the story there's gonna be soooo much drama hehe

Ted Lasso: Lacy where did you go?

Coach Beard: I think your singing scared her.

Lacy Watson: I literally told the both of you I was going to the bathroom. I'll be right back. 

***

After Ted had sent me his address last night, I packed a bag filled with some under garments and makeup and most of my important belongings and left. At this point, I didn't even care anymore. I'm starting fresh and whatever I can't bring with me, I'll buy when I get there. 

I followed my GPS and pulled up in front of a house that had the name LASSO on the mailbox. Of course Ted would be the kind of guy to have his last name on his mailbox, I thought to myself. 

After taking my bag out of the car, I walked up to the front door and knocked on it. Ted answered after the third knock. 

"Hey, there! Welcome!" Ted obnoxiously yelled out as he answered the door. 

"Hi, Mr. Lasso," I answered back. 

"Please, Mr. Lasso was my father. Call me Ted." He reached out his hand. I grabbed it and shook it. God, his hand is huge. 

I walked into his house and looked around, being a little bit nosy. The house was decorated beautifully, most likely by a Mrs. Lasso. There were also some toys scattered around the house. Why would Ted take a job overseas when he obviously has a wife and child? Is he running from something too?

"Beard, come say hi to Lacy," Ted called out into the living room, where Coach Beard was passed out on the couch with his mouth wide open. 

"Aw shit, party's already over," I said with a snarky tone in my voice. 

"Sorry 'bout that. He's been a little stressed about the whole move." Ted responded.

"Aren't you?" I asked. 

"A little. But I'm more excited about the opportunity, ya know? It'll be a fun adventure." Ted smiled. 

"Yeah, it'll be a great opportunity for a fresh start." 

"Well, yeah, that too," Ted tried to smile, but I could tell it was fake. "Alrighty, well we have to leave for the airport in about five hours so try to get some sleep. If you want, my wife and son are staying with my in laws so you can sleep in my bed if you don't wanna sleep in the same room as Beard. He don't bite though, I promise." 

"I make no promises," Beard said sternly in his sleep making you and Ted jump. 

"Christ, I thought you were asleep," Ted exhaled. 

"I am. But I am always listening." Beard continued, his eyes still closed. Ted looked over at me and shrugged. 

"Uh, yeah. I think I'd rather sleep in your dirty bed than sleep in the same room as him." I laughed a bit. 

"Okay, yeah. I can't say I blame you there. Well, make yourself at home. Bedroom is upstairs, last door on the left."

"Thanks, Ted." I smiled and headed upstairs with my bag. Still feeling weary about sleeping in a man's bed who I literally just met, I just laid on top of the comforter and stared up at the ceiling. 

What the fuck am I doing?

***

If someone asked me twenty-four hours ago where I would be, I would have died laughing if they said 35,000 feet in the air sandwiched between Ted Lasso and Coach Beard. 

I'm starting to think there might be something wrong with Beard, all the man does is sleep. Ted was talking to him for a good five minutes before he realized that he was asleep the whole time. 

"Should we play a game to get to know each other better?" Ted proposed. 

"Okay. What do you want to play?" I responded. I haven't played these sorts of games since I was in high school. 

"I'm just gonna throw a bunch of questions at you and you just say the first thing that pops into your mind, okay? Don't even think about it." 

"Wait, wait, so you aren't even gonna answer them? You're just gonna get to know me?" 

"No, I'll answer them at the end. You're gonna go first. Alright. Favorite singer?"

"Taylor Swift."

"Favorite food?"

"Anything Italian."

"Favorite color?"

"Purple."

"Favorite show?"

"South Park."

"Okay. Kenny Rogers, peanut butter, orange, and Cheers." Ted said all at once. I just stared at him with a blank look on my face. 

"I don't really see the logic in us playing the game like that." I laughed. 

"Yeah, I suppose you're right 'bout that. I'll keep that in mind for next time." Ted smiled. 

After a few minutes of silence, the cabin lights started to dim as most of the people on the flight started to drift to sleep, even though it was midday. We still had eight hours left on the flight, so I might as well get some rest. 

"Goodnight, Ted." I looked up at him to see his eyes already shut and mouth wide open. I smiled quietly to myself as my eyes started to flutter shut, as well. 

***

It's almost impossible for someone to sleep through an entire flight, but I really lucked out. Eight hours later, my eyes began to slowly open as my body could feel the decent into London. My stomach dropped a bit as I realized my head had been resting on Ted's arm. As I lifted my head off of Ted's arm, I had accidentally knocked Beard's head off of my arm. 

"Christ, sorry, Ted. You could've moved me." I apologized. Ted had been awake reading a book. 

"Nah, that's alright. You two looked so peaceful I didn't wanna disturb ya." Ted smiled, not looking away from his book. 

"Ladies and Gentleman, British Airways welcomes you to London. The local time is 8pm. 

Again, what the FUCK am I doing?

[rebeccasbiscuits]

I've said this already but the extra love in my heart I'm feeling about rebecca and keeley's friendship atm in light of the show making it clear the writers view keeley as bi... what a wonderful depiction of a queer woman's friendship with another woman where her sincere compliments and entirely genuine attraction are in no way some predatory stereotype but are instead one of most significant parts of an arc about rebecca regaining confidence in and love for herself. I love them both very very much.