Page 101 of Playing for Keeps
He needed that so badly he hadn’t even realised. His mother had always known how to make things better. She had her work cut out this time.
“I’ll be there in a couple of hours.”
Steven had bought his mother’s house early in his career. His father had been alive then. It had been one of the proudest moments of his life.
As he rolled up on her drive, he was thankful that the scumbag reporters hadn’t thought to come here.
Before he’d left, Nikki had done an internet sweep. It appeared that the media was focusing more on Udo than him. He supposed as a retired footballer he was yesterday’s news. It might be tough on Udo but at least it gave Steven’s family a break.
It was another warm day as he walked toward his mother’s front door. The house sat on an estate. It had a big enough garden that they were hidden from view for the most part.
He let himself in and soon found his mother waiting in the kitchen. She immediately flung her arms around him. Her comforting smell and soothing words were enough for Steven to let his body sag.
“Oh, Mum,” he sobbed into her shoulder. “What am I going to do?”
“Come on, son,” she replied, leading him out onto the terrace.
He scanned the area to make sure no houses were overlooking them. Photographers wouldn’t be above bribing the neighbours for a decent vantage point.
Satisfied they were not exposed, he sat at the table.
His mother sat next to him. Not releasing his hand from hers for the whole time. It reminded him of his first day at school. He’d been absolutely terrified. She hadn’t let go of him once. Not untilhe’d seen his friends from nursery and run off to play with them. Years later she’d told him that it was her that had cried all morning when she got to their house.
The older he got, the more he understood the sacrifices she and his father had made to give Steven’s talent what it needed to flourish. Here she was, ready to make everything okay again.
“Talk to me.”
So he did. Steven spent the afternoon telling his mother all about his hopes for the future with Udo. He reassured her that he wasn’t going to lose his job. When she heard how supportive Javier had been, she declared that she would bake him something to say thank you. His mother was the best baker for miles around.
To his joy, she suggested he help her. They spent a happy hour making chocolate brownies. Javier’s kids would love them. They’d given Steven a wide berth while he’d been staying there. They were confused why their father’s work colleague was sobbing in the spare room. Steven had tried to compose himself as best he could around them. He didn’t want to upset the kids on top of everything else.
“Why do you want a family meeting?” his mother asked.
Her face etched with worry. Guilt seized him. He’d put her through far too much over the years. Now here he was, doing it again.
“I need to find out who took that bloody picture,” he replied.
“And you think it might be one of the family?”
He put his head in his hands and tried to focus. His mind whirred overtime.
“I don’t know,” he replied.
They’d set the meeting for six o’clock. When their mother summoned them, the Cox kids knew better than to be late.
He and his mother spent the rest of the afternoon watching quiz shows on television. It was the most mundane thing in the world. Steven needed that. To focus on anything other than the shit mess he found himself in came as a relief. His mother held theremote control tightly and changed the channel before any news bulletins.
There was no training that day either, so Udo would be at home. He never strayed from Steven’s thoughts for long. Their time apart physically hurt. Would he see him before the match that weekend. He hoped so. It would be bad enough to reunite in front of the team. To do it for the cameras and fans seemed unbearable.
Soon enough, six o’clock came. First to arrive was Andrew. He walked straight into Steven’s embrace and held on to him tightly.
“You okay, brother?”
Steven nodded. “Hanging in there. I thought Naomie would have come with you.”
“She’s on her way,” Andrew replied. “She got caught up with something.”
They walked through into the kitchen. Andrew hugged their mum and sat at the kitchen table. It was the original table that they’d had in their small family home as kids. So many arguments, laughter and homework had been done there.
