˗ˏˋ 'ˎ˗
Tate stared at the thick yellow envelope sitting on her desk, a frown etched so deeply onto her face she wasn't sure she'd ever be able to get rid of it.
It had been sitting there when she had arrived that morning, and it had taken her some time to get to it, having had a meeting shortly after walking in the door. Only after she had made it back to her office and signed off on Shandy's Bantr promo idea—a favor for Keeley—she finally had time to examine the envelope.
The first thing she noticed was that it was addressed from her mother.
That alone nearly had her tossing it all in the bin without opening it, but with a bitter taste on her tongue, Tate had opened the envelope and pulled out it's heavy contents.
She had read the short note her mother had placed on top of the stack of papers filled with legalese, her temper rising—but there also was a sinking feeling in her chest.
Your father and I want you to come home. We've even gotten you a job back here at your father's company doing whatever it is your expensive degree is in. All you need to do is sign the contract and you can come back to us. Big pay raise, too.
True to her word, her mother had attached a thick contract to her note.
At first, Tate was angry. Then she read the note again, and considered the idea. Never had her parents said they wanted her anywhere. But to go so far as to secure a job for her on the hope that she could come back to them? Tears started to prick at her eyes, hot and grateful, feeling for once that maybe her parents did love her.
Maybe they had been right about a whole lot more.
But just as that thought crossed her mind, Jamie appeared in her doorway, and every shred of her that considered leaving Richmond disappeared completely. Tate already was home.
"Hi, baby," She sniffed, waving Jamie into her office before he could even ask. Those two words and her reaction were enough to have him racing into the room, frown on his lips and door shutting behind him.
"Love, what's wrong?" He was at her side instantly, twisting her swivel chair so she faced him as she knelt before her. "You heard about the sign?"
"What sign?" She asked, brows knitting in confusion and she swiped her fingers underneath her eyes to confirm that no tears had actually fallen. There was still a lump in her throat, but she knew it would remain as long as her mother's note stayed sitting atop her desk.
"Ted's BELIEVE sign in the locker room. It's been ripped in half."
"You're fucking joking." Wide-eyed, she tried to think of who would have been angry enough to rip it in half. No one had been in the locker room recently that fit the description, unless it had been ripped for longer.
"I'm not, but what's got you so upset?"
"It's stupid, I promise." She tried shaking her head and glancing around, but Jamie was studying her face as if she held all the answers he'd ever searched for, and it was entirely too much to turn away from.
"Love, if you're upset by it, then it's not nothing."
"It's just..." Tate trailed off, her bottom lip caught between her teeth. The words tasted too bitter on her tongue, so she reached onto her desk and picked up the note from her mother and shoved it into Jamie's hands.
It was her turn to memorize his expressions as he read the note, his frown appearing the very moment he realized who had written the note. And it hadn't gotten any better when he realized the contents of the letter.
"Is this for real?" Jamie asked, holding up the note and referencing the contract still sitting atop her desk. Tate nodded, still unable to form words. "Are you—"
"No," She hurried to interrupt, shaking her head. "I'd never."
Because as much as she somehow still wanted to please her mother, wanted to be able to see Chase and Tommie more, leaving Richmond was so far out of the question.
"But—"
"Jamie," She cut him off once more, holding his face between her hands, thumbs brushing across his cheeks. "I promise I'm not planning on taking this job. I just got... caught up in it all for a moment."
Though he nodded, she could tell he wasn't convinced. So, she extended her pinky towards him, nothing but sincerity in her red-rimmed eyes. A pinky promise, the most sacred of vows—especially between them.
Her worrying only settled when he finally wrapped his finger around hers, sealed with a kiss.
A new tradition.
「☺ ☺ ☺ 」
"And how long have you known Javier?"
"Only a couple of months, but he turns one hundred and eight years old next week."
"Dani, that's not—" Tate cut herself off, unable to hold in her giggle any longer at her friend's words. She hadn't realized the self-control she would need to oversee Shandy's promotional shoot for Bantr, but the boys' pickup lines were so ridiculous that most of the time she had to cover her mouth with her hand to keep from making noise.
"Final checks," Shandy ordered the hairdresser brought into the shoot, moving back behind the camera to where Tate sat. Studying Dani on the screen displaying the camera's view, Shandy started adjusting last minute details as Tate turned at the sound of the door opening behind her.
Keeley stood quietly, holding three cups of coffee, and Tate mouthed a greeting as Shandy called for Dani to start.
"You may not know who I am, but I think the most beautiful parts of a woman... are her flaws."
Tate bit the inside of her cheek to keep her grin at bay, unable to stop herself from glancing at the line of players still waiting for their turn as Zoreaux took Dani's spot on the bench.
Jamie grinned back at her, and her smile faltered just slightly. He hadn't been able to get out of the shoot without seeming suspicious, and Tate knew watching her boyfriend shoot a promotional video for a dating app was karmic punishment for asking him to keep their relationship a secret.
"And how are you doing, babes?" Keeley grinned, wrapping up her short conversation with Shandy and pressing the third cup of coffee into her hands.
"I'm realizing that some of these boys have absolutely no game, whatsoever." She taunted, gesturing towards where Zoreaux, who insisted on being called Van Damme, as he readied to deliver his line.
"You don't know who I am, but I'm looking for someone who likes shorts walks on the beach, so we can spend more time, you know..."
His pickup line was one of the times that Tate had to press a hand over her mouth to stop from laughing out loud, though the boys waiting on the bench didn't care so much to hide their amusement.
"So many dramatic pauses," Tate muttered so only Shandy and Keeley could hear her. Zoreaux made room for the next player, and Tate felt her heart skip a beat as Jamie slid onto the bench in his place.
"He's so fucking hot," Shandy was careful to keep her voice down so no one but Tate and Keeley could hear her, and Tate wasn't even sure if she was supposed to hear. But there was no ignoring her words—not when Keeley's head snapped in her direction. "What's his story?"
"I don't think Jamie's your type..." Keeley tried hesitantly, studying Tate's face carefully, though she and Shandy were watching Jamie carefully through the screen. The hairdresser had stepped into frame and started adjusting a few strands, and Tate felt her heart clench with how adorable he looked.
"Babe, what are you talking about? I'm looking at him right now, and I can confidently tell you, he is my type." Shandy grinned, not taking the hint Keeley was attempting to send her. Tate felt herself biting into her bottom lip, an action that didn't go unnoticed by Jamie, apparently.
"Everything alright, Tate?" He called out, brows pinched in worry, and she remembered too late that Jamie was far too good at reading her emotions. She forced a smile he probably saw through, ensuring that her most obvious tell, biting her bottom lip, wasn't making a second appearance.
"Of course, Jamie." She grinned, trying her very best to be convincing. "Just worried you won't be able to follow that last pickup line."
She knew he didn't believe her, but left it at that and continued to prepare for his promotional shot.
"I just want to know if I can bang him or not," Shandy asked, and the thought of anyone going near Jamie with the intent of getting with him make panic rise in her chest. The sheer fear of possibly losing Jamie was nearly enough to have her confessing that he was her boyfriend, that they were together, but the words got all tied up in her throat and nothing came out.
"Don't think it's a good idea, Shandy," Keeley shook her head slightly. And if Tate already hadn't thought Keeley was the best person on the planet, the blonde placed her hand atop Tate's and gave it a comforting squeeze.
Shandy shrugged, not noticing the grateful look Tate gave Keeley, oblivious to the way Jamie was studying Tate as if he had never seen something more enthralling.
「☺ ☺ ☺ 」
"Babe, hold up, yeah?"
Tate paused her retreat to her office from the locker room after Shandy finished filming, having made it only so far before Jamie's voice was calling out to her. Twisting to face him, he simply glanced behind his shoulder to make sure no one was watching before he set his hand on her lower back and guided her into the boot room they conveniently stood next to.
"What's up, Jamie?" She asked, confused by his actions. Jamie still remained quiet, checking throughout the room to make sure that they truly were alone. Only once he was satisfied with their privacy did he move to stand in front of her, hands tugging at the bottom of his kit nervously.
"I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable by doing the Bantr shoot just now. I didn't ask how it made you feel, and I should have." Jamie's apology caught her off guard, causing her face to scrunch in confusion.
"Baby, I'm not upset about that." Because there was no denying that she was upset. Then it was Jamie's turn to look confused, and Tate exhaled deeply, her stare dropping to the floor beneath their feet as an embarrassed flush coated her cheeks. "Shandy asked me and Keeley if she could bang you, and I guess I let it get to me more than it should."
Jamie smirked, his whole demeanor changing. He held her chin between his forefinger and thumb, gently lifting her face so she was forced to meet his cheeky grin.
"Thought I showed you the other night just how little of a reason you need to be jealous?" He taunted, recalling the night of Sam's dinner party at the restaurant—when Shandy had approached Jamie and Tate had gotten pouty.
"Watch it, Tartt, we're still at work." She grinned, the memory of the night after they had left the restaurant bringing a whole different flush to her cheeks.
"You're the one gettin' handsy, love." He was smug, but he was right, and Tate hadn't even noticed until he said something that her hands had found their way to press flat against his toned stomach. One of his own hands was placed on her hip, while the other cupped her jaw to angle her chip up, so close to his own lips that she grew dizzy.
"And what are you going to do about it, baby?"
And for a professional football known for being an absolute prick on the pitch, Jamie Tartt absolutely melted at being called baby.
His mouth slotted over his without a second thought, and she met the challenge he set in the kiss. It was fast, and needy, and Tate decided she wouldn't mind if he devoured her whole if it felt even a fraction as good as the way his open-mouthed kisses did.
"I feel like doing something really stupid—" Tate's suggestion was punctuated by the sound of the boot room door opening, and she jumped away from Jamie as if he burned.
Wide-eyed and panting, Tate was absolutely horrified to find Ted, Beard, and Roy standing in the doorway.
"If I told you it's not what it looked like, would you believe me?" She tried, probably a little too optimistic. Roy was glaring lethally at Jamie, but both Ted's and Beard's mouths hung wide open in shock as they shook their heads in a decisive no.
Because there was no use in denying anything—not when they had just talked in on a make-out session that was about to turn into more.
"I'm sorry, I need a moment to process." Ted blinked slowly a few times, and Tate shared an anxious look with Jamie. Except, Jamie was a bit distracted with watching Roy carefully to ensure that he wouldn't launch into an attack. Ted shook his head once more, faster, and grinned brightly. "Okay, well, I've processed. And I've got questions."
"Some said this day would never come," Beard whispered, and Tate was pretty sure he was talking to himself, especially as he closed his eyes and held a hand over his heart briefly.
"So, you guys are together together?" Ted asked, nearly bouncing with excitement.
"No,"
"Yes," Tate and Jamie gave opposing answers at the same time, hers a confirmation and his denial. She twisted to face him, confusion and disbelief clear on her face. "The fuck, Tartt?"
"What! I'm giving you space; isn't that what you wanted?" He held his hands up in innocence, and she was quick to shake her head.
"When did I ever say I wanted space?" She questioned, because space had never been an option with him. "Jamie, we've been an official couple for a while now. We just haven't told anyone."
"Oh, fuck yeah." He grinned, looking like he just won the lottery. Tate's disbelief grew more amused, and his reaction to finding out that she was his girlfriend was honestly endearing.
"So you both are good?" Ted asked, him, Beard, and Roy having followed her conversation with Jamie like tennis spectators. "Because if I had y'all then lost y'all in the span of thirty seconds I would be devastated."
"I don't think I could recover." Beard shook his head.
"I'd be fine with it." Roy stated baldly, hands on his hips. Tate and Jamie shot him twin looks of annoyance, faces scrunched in disbelief. "I mean, I want Tate happy, and I want Tartt to suffer, but I don't think I can have both. And I want Tate happy more than I want Tartt to suffer."
There was a long pause, where Roy was clearly still considering his answer.
"I think."
"That's so sweet, Uncle Roy." Tate taunted, hand pressed over her heart sarcastically.
"So, we all alright?" Ted asked again, because no one had confirmed his previous attempt to ask the question. Tate nodded her affirmation, bottom lip caught between her teeth.
"Of course I'm fucking alright," Jamie held his hands up as to say duh, his face scrunched in disbelief that he even had to clarify. "I just found out Tate's been me girlfriend for weeks. Things couldn't be better."
"Did you seriously think we haven't been dating this whole time?" She twisted towards him again, brows knitted together tightly.
"Okay, by this whole time do ya mean since we got promoted—"
"You've been together for that long?" Ted's shocked voice rang out through the boot room, and Tate briefly worried about someone from the hallway overhearing.
"No," She was quick to clarify, cheeks burning bright red as she thought about that first night and all she and Jamie had done together. "We've been together since I came back from New York the end of the off season."
"Right, got it, babe." Jamie grinned with his hands on his hips, clearly proud of himself. Tate pinched the bridge of her nose in stress, both hating and loving the fact that she found his aloofness not only endearing, but attractive.
"Can you guys please just keep this between us?" Tate pleaded, looking between Ted and Beard. She had already gotten Roy's confirmation, and she trusted him to keep his word. "At least until the end of the season."
"Well, I don't understand why you'd want to keep this happy little thing a secret, but you have my word, Tater Tot." Ted held up a three-finger scout's salute, and she rolled her eyes with a grin.
"Thank you, really." She told him earnestly as Beard nodded his agreement as well, a stoic solider.
"Right, now that that's settled," Roy interrupted, glare leveled at Jamie. "Tartt, what did I say about that affection shit in front of me?"
"You walked in on us!" Jamie argued, gesturing between himself and Tate. Embarrassment colored her cheeks once more at the memory of what they had been doing before they had been intruded on.
"Doesn't matter! I still had to see you fucking defile Tate!"
"Does it help if I was the one doing the defiling?" She grinned, tilting her head to the side in faux innocence. Roy's face scrunched in disgust, but it was Ted who spoke up first.
"I know I've made this request before, little lady, that we don't have to talk about these kinds of thing in front of me."
"Sorry, Ted." She smiled bashfully, making her way towards the boot room door and slipping past them, letting Roy and Jamie bicker between themselves.
"Hey, hold on a second, Tot." Ted set a hand on her arm as she passed, his voice low, meant only for her. "I'm happy for you, Tate. I hope you're letting yourself be happy, too."
Her answering smile was a little wobbly, and she didn't trust her voice enough to answer Ted. He only gave her arm a gentle squeeze before letting go, and Tate pressed a kiss to his cheek, then to Beard's, the silence between them filled only with the sound of Roy calling Jamie a little prick baby, though she was nearly certain it was meant as Roy Kent affection.
"We need to talk to you, Tate," Beard added, shooting Ted a pointed look the longer the head coach stayed silent. "In our office. That's why we came in here after you, right, Coach?"
"Uh, yeah, yeah, all right." Ted nodded, his hesitance clear and causing worry to seep into Tate's bones. She didn't want to worry about whatever it was that they were searching her out for, but it was clearly something important.
But she trusted Ted, and let him lead the way to the intended office as Roy ordered Jamie to go get an extra lift in, which she was positive he only said so that Jamie wouldn't follow.
Something that made her more anxious.
And when she found Trent leaning against Ted's desk, a pitied look on his face, Tate thought she might throw up.
"I'm sure you've heard about the sign being ripped in half, Tater Tot." Ted started, and Tate nodded, knowing that he was referencing the bright yellow 'BELIEVE' poster that hung, re-taped, in the locker room.
"And I'm certain you have a suspect in mind," Beard frowned, and Tate nodded again. It had taken her a while to piece together who she figured it was, but a few hours after Jamie had shared the news about the sign's demise, it had clicked in her mind.
"Well, we had no fucking idea," Roy grunted, gesturing towards Trent and the open laptop on the table before him. "So our resident arsehole author had the actually fucking brilliant idea to look up the camera footage to see who it was."
"Except," Trent's voice was grave, and she caught her bottom lip between her teeth. "We looked at the wrong camera, first, and caught Nathan Shelley..."
"Being a right fucking dickhead." Roy concluded, arms crossed over his chest. Without another word, Beard hit the spacebar on the laptop, and the video started playing—camera footage of the kit room, showing Tate and Jamie hugging, and she knew it was from the night had rejected his pinky promise of never confessing his feelings for her again.
But then the door opened, and Tate listened to the conversation she had lived through months earlier, watching with dread pooling in the pit of her stomach as video-Jamie left the kit room, and Nate slammed the door behind him.
"You're a distraction to the locker room. You'd be better off staying in your office, where you belong. The team doesn't need you down here, making them worry about your business when they really should be focused on tomorrow's match. Make your tweets and Instagram posts somewhere else, because it's not fucking helpful here."
Beard hit the space bar again, pausing the video just as screen-Nate was half out of the door.
Silence settled over the office, all four men waiting not-so patiently for Tate to say something. But her tongue was tied in knots and words weren't something she was exactly capable, especially the longer she stared the the screen-Tate, never having known she could look so shattered by something someone said.
She wondered if that was how Chase and Tommie saw her, if that was how she looked after every conversation with their mother.
"Now, why didn't you tell us, kid?" Ted's words were gentle, and all Tate could manage to do was shrug, clearing her throat in attempt to removed the horrid mess of emotions lodged there.
"Thought you'd agree," She mumbled, staring at the broken look on her own face, a little grainy through the camera but the ache on her face was so, so clear. "Didn't want to know if I was right."
"Well, you fucking weren't." Roy's rough voice was just a tad softer than usual, though his expression hardened as he pointed towards the laptop, a fleeing Nate half-blurry on the screen. "If anything, those boys get more focused whenever you're around. You're a part of this team just as fucking much as the rest of us. You hear me? That little prick was just jealous. And when we see him next, we're going to fucking crush him."
Beard nodded slowly, seriously, his eyes wide and genuine.
Tate didn't have an answer, not with words, at least, and chose to launch herself towards Roy, her arms going around his middle so tight he grunted. Beard was her next victim, and Trent even got a kiss on the cheek, and when she threw her arms around his shoulders, if only to whisper her next words in his ear.
"Don't let them be stupid, please."
Because Nate had been her friend, at one point, and she didn't want to be the reason Roy Kent went to jail for assualt.
「☺ ☺ ☺ 」
[a/n: this is so long. that was an accident. enjoy!]