Love On The Court

𝕋𝕙𝕚𝕣𝕥𝕪

"You think so?" the tan woman looks up at her, hopeful.

"hell yeah. That woman looks at you as if you hung all of the stars in the night sky." Toni chuckles at her mother's words. "I mean, anyone with eyes can see that, my love."

"Thank you, mom."

"It's what I'm here for." they share another smile. "And remember what I always say..."

"If you don't live for something, you'll die for nothing," Toni says along with her mother and they share a laugh. Elaine goes to wipe sweat off of her forehead which makes Toni frown a bit.

"Ma, are you sure that you're okay? Should we get out of here? Maybe this cafe isn't si–"

"It's alright, dear. I'm okay. I've just been putting up a sweat lately. Comes with old age."

"I thought you weren't old?" Toni smirks, taking a bite of her breakfast bagel. Elaine rolls her eyes playfully before picking up her cup of tea. "Cheers."

"For what?"

"To you falling in love." the mother counters teasingly. Giggling, Toni does the same with her cup before tapping it against the other plastic cup. They smile at each other before the athlete sets her head on the woman's shoulder. "I love you, ma. Always." she hums, shutting her eyes as she inhales the older woman's floral scent.

No matter what, her mother always smells like some type of flower.

"I love you more, Honey." Elaine rubs her arm warmly. "Thank you for taking some time to spend with your old woman."

"Hey, I always have time for you." her daughter sits up. "Always. So if you ever need anything, m–"

"I understand, dear." Elaine chuckles, halting her daughter's ranting. She cups Toni's face in her hands and presses a kiss to her forehead gently.

🏀🏀🏀🏀🏀🏀

"How long have you had this, mom?" Toni asks from her mother's living room.

"I started when your father and I got married," Elaine answers in the kitchen, where she is making the popcorn. "Do you want butter on it?"

"Yes please." her daughter responds while she absent-mindedly looks at the titles on the tapes. One catches her eye and she stops. "Antoinette's first birthday..." she picks it up to examine it before going over to the DVR and pushing the tape into the slot.

"Which one did you choose?" her mother asks when she comes into the living room with a big bowl of popcorn.

"My first birthday."

"Oh my god. I still have that? I always thought I lost it." the woman chuckles and gets comfortable beside her daughter, the two women cuddling close. "It'd be nice to have Kayla here."

"Yeah." Toni sighs. "Too bad Hea had to start school."

"Her daughter needs her more than anything. It's understandable. Plus, she said she's coming down here next week so we can definitely plan something." Elaine pops some popcorn into her mouth.

"Agreed."

The video starts to play and Toni almost loses her breath when she sees her father holding a small camera up while he held her tiny sleeping frame.

"It's this little one's first birthday and she's sleeping..." he snickers softly before placing a small kiss on her rosy cheek.