Page 204 of Off the Pitch

I turned to the rest of the dressing room. “Alright, listen up,” I said, cupping my hands and yelling until everyone quieted and turned to face me. “Our boy Christian is gonna ask David to marry him!”

Everyone cheered, and suddenly Christian was surrounded by guys giving him hugs, asking him questions, and offering to help. It was kind of adorable to see how much everyone wanted to get involved. People talked shit online about how gay footballers would ruin the game or that people would feel awkward in the dressing rooms, but they had no fucking clue what it was really like. Here, there was only love. We loved Christian, and we just wanted him to be happy.

I just really, really hoped I wasn’t going to have to plan another wedding. I still had nightmares about Liam’s.

Chuckling to myself, I grabbed my phone out of my bag and gave it a cursory check. There were five missed calls from my dad, all in the last ten minutes, and a message asking me to call him as soon as I could. Dad never called me after a match. He always waited until the evening or the next day.

I hit the Call button, my legs refusing to move from where I stood. Something was wrong, but I couldn’t bring myself to even consider the possibilities because each of them was hideous.

“Dad?” I said, as soon as the line connected.

“Jordan, hey,” he said, the smooth bass of his voice calming me.

“What’s going on?”

“It’s Nan,” he said, and I heard the tremor in his voice. Fear flooded my body, freezing me to the spot. I didn’t want to hear the next words out of his mouth because I couldn’t bear to think about one of the people I loved most in this world being gone. “She’s been taken to hospital. She collapsed this afternoon while we were watching the game at hers. They think she might have had a stroke.”

Chapter Twelve

#family

Jordan

North Middlesex University Hospital was packed, considering it was late Saturday afternoon.

After the call with my dad, I’d been rooted to the spot until Liam had noticed something was wrong. As soon as he’d forced a brief explanation out of me, he’d gone into full organizational mode and within twenty minutes we were showered, dressed, and on the road to the hospital. He’d insisted on taking me himself, saying I wasn’t fit to drive. It was sweet of him, but I couldn’t find the words to tell him how grateful I was.

I couldn’t find the words to say anything.

My dad was waiting for me and Liam just outside the main entrance. Even through the crowd, it was impossible not to notice him. My dad was nearly six foot six, and it killed me that I’d not inherited his height. I was six foot on a good day.

“Dad,” I said, unable to stop myself barrelling into him for a hug. We’d always been close, and even after we’d gone to live with my grandma, he and I had stuck together as a team. “How is she?”

“She’s okay,” he said. All the breath I’d been holding suddenly escaped in a giant rush. “They’ve given her a CT scan, and she’s currently on some IV medication. They’re running some blood tests too.”

“Did she have a stroke?”

“I haven’t seen the doctor to ask, but last I heard, they think she might have had a minor one.” His face was neutral, but I could see the worry in his eyes. My dad had always been like that; you could never tell when he was worried, upset, or angry because he hid it so well. Being calm was good for his job as a youth worker, but I’d never been able to manage to control my feelings the way he did. I wore my heart on my sleeve.

“Can we see her?” I asked. Even if she was unconscious, I needed to see her, just to calm my racing mind and convince myself she was okay.

“I think so,” Dad said. “They’ve taken her up to one of the wards. She was asleep a few minutes ago, but I don’t think they’ll mind. The nurse said she might be quite sleepy while she recovers.” He beckoned the two of us to follow him.

“You okay?” Liam asked, as we wove our way through the crowds of people to one of the lifts.

“Yeah, I think so. Thanks for bringing me.”

“No worries.” Liam gave me a small smile as we squeezed into the lift. “I wouldn’t let you do this alone. Besides, I love your grandma too.”

Liam had met Nan not long after we’d become friends, and she’d adopted him instantly as another grandchild, like she’d done with most of my friends over the years. She adored him and was always talking about him. Honestly, I sometimes wondered if she loved Liam more than me, especially since I was the one who was always getting told off, whereas Liam could do no wrong. To be honest, Nan would probably grumble to Dad and me about all this fuss once she woke up, but she’d think Liam was sweet for coming to see her.

The lift dinged, and we made our way through shiny corridors under strip lights that reflected off the linoleum floors. Hospitals have always given me a weird disassociated feeling, like they are almost otherworldly. I don’t hate them, but I don’t like them either. Being in a hospital felt like being trapped somewhere between nothing and reality.

The ward was quiet. Nurses moved in and out of various rooms, each of them smiling at us as we passed and directing us towards the right room. I’d always admired people who chose nursing as a career because they have to have the patience of saints. Plus, they dealt with some serious shit on a daily basis and still showed up and did amazing things. I couldn’t do it.

Nan was in a small room by herself. She was still asleep but breathing steadily and hooked up to various machines. The three of us settled on some chairs to wait. They weren’t the most uncomfortable things I’d ever sat on, but I figured it wouldn’t be too long until my ass went numb. Dad was the last to sit down after having a quiet conversation with the nurse by the door.

“The nurse said the doctor will be around in a bit, and we’ll know more then,” he said, sighing as he settled into the chair beside me. “Once we hear from the doctor, I’ll nip back to hers and get some bits. She’ll kill me if she doesn’t have some different clothes to wear or her knitting.”

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