A/N - very sorry for the lack of uploads lately. Life has been extremely hard recently and I haven't been able to find the motivation/time to write. I've received a few messages asking if the book is on hold and it's not. I did consider it, but I'm going to try my hardest to be consistent with new chapters. As always, new ideas and feedback are very much appreciated. Thank you for being so patient.
Lucy Bronze's POV:
Pushing the office door open, a brunette with a confused look on her face tilted her head and frowned, "Lucy, what are you-...". I shut the heavy, wooden door behind me and took a seat in front of her, interrupting her, "Why are you ignoring me? And what the hell is going on with Rosie?". Georgia shut her laptop lid and folded her arms, "I don't know what you're talking about". I stared into her hazel eyes and pleaded, "I know something's going on...please just tell me". She narrowed her eyes, "Nothing is going on with Rosie, I promise". I turned the tone of my voice from pleading to serious, "Then what is it? Look, you can talk to me and I'll try to help with whatever it is". My daughter's girlfriend rolled her eyes, "You can't fix something that's already out of cotrol". Now it was my turn to be confused. She sighed and spoke sternly, "You can't tell Rosie". I bit my lip, not liking where our conversation was going, but agreed anyway.
After lifting her laptop lid back up again, the room fell silent while she navigated her way through the computer to find exactly what she wanted. A downcast look fell on her face, mixed with apprehension and some nerves before turning the laptop around to face me.
What appeared to be simply a collection of news articles, proved to be much, much more. Georgia explained, "These are articles published by reputable companies about Rosie's performance so far at the Euros". My eyes scanned the text and I didn't need her to tell me any more.
DID BRONZE TRY TO SABOUTAGE ENGLAND'S CHANCE AT A EUROS SEMI-FINAL?
Last night, a deflected goal gave the Swedish national under 17 team some hope at making a semi-final. Despite scoring a hattrick of goals earlier in the match, Rosie Bronze was the reason for this mistake. She appeared to purposely stick her leg in a compromising position where it helped the ball inevitably go in the back of the net for the Swedes. After a debate on twitter, over 50% believed that Lucy Bronze's daughter did this on purpose. But why? Does it have something to do with her secretive battle with mental health? Or maybe there is some tension between herself and the team? Perhaps she's not the promising England star we were all hoping for. These, and many more, are theories suggested by England fans for Rosie's surprising actions.
I raised an eyebrow, scrolling through multiple articles all criticising my daughter. And Georgia was right, the companies producing these stories were normally very accurate and truthful.
IS ROSIE BRONZE REALLY SOMEONE WE WANT PLAYING FOR OUR COUNTRY?
WHO IS THIS ROSIE BRONZE AND WHY IS EVERYONE PRAISING HER? FROM MY POINT OF VIEW, WE SHOULD BE DOING THE OPPOSITE
INSIDE ROSIE BRONZE'S PERSONAL LIFE - WHO IS THE BARCELONA STAR DATING? WHY HAS SHE SUDDENLY RISEN TO THE TOP? HOW HER EXPERIENCE WITH ABUSE SHAPED HER ENTIRE LIFE
I didn't really know what to say. Obviously it's a stab in the heart to read such awful things about my daughter, but I felt helpless. As Georgia had previously said, these articles had clearly spiralled out of control and I couldn't see a way to stop them from going further. There were at least twenty, negative stories. Not just about the match against Sweden, but they spoke about more personal things - including our family, her life before, and even Georgia.
Pushing the laptop back towards Georgia, I spoke, "I've seen enough. Does anyone else know about this?". She shook her head, "No, I've contacted all of the companies to try and bring down the articles but they haven't replied yet". I rested my chin in my hand, "You're right, there's nothing we can do apart from wait and pray that Rosie doesn't see these before her match against Spain". Georgia nodded her head slowly before speaking, "About that...I've booked a flight to Estonia...for tonight". Her statement came as a surprise, I wasn't expecting that, "Does Rosie know?". She shook her head, "I haven't spoken to her in about two weeks but I just need to make sure that she's okay".
A million things circled around my brain before I focused on one, "I'm coming with". Georgia looked up at me across her desk, "You can't just take time off at such short notice-...". I had made my mind up and nothing she could say would change my decision, "I'll figure something out. If she does find out about these articles, I want to be there".
Even though I didn't tell Georgia, I was extremely scared for how Rosie might react to the opinions published about her. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if something happened and I was in a different country. Surely Jonatan would understand if I needed to take some time off. Family comes before football in every situation. I need to keep my family together even if that means being fined thousands of euros for missing training sessions and a match.
Later that night...
My fiancé turned off the television and stated, "We should probably start getting ready for tonight". I looked up at her, "Tonight?". Keira chuckled, "Yes Lucy, tonight. We've had this date planned for two weeks". A feeling of guilt arose within me. I was wondering why she was in such a good mood, but now I know why. Knowing that I'm about to ruin her positive spirit makesme feel even worse. Due to being so busy, we rarely ever get to spend time together alone. The smile on her face showed me that she was clearly looking forward to it and I felt awful. She asked caringly, "You okay?". I cleared my throat and spoke truthfully, " Err...I'm really sorry but i'm going to Estonia tonight". Keira stared at me with an expression that was very hard to read. She eventually spoke, "Haha very funny Luce now go and get ready". I shifted my body towards her, "I'm not joking". Her happiness dissipated, understanding that I wasn't making it up to be funny. She crossed her arms, "I-..Wh-..I don't even know what to say. Isn't that the sort of thing that we should decide together?". Nodding silently, we stared into eachother's eyes, trying to understand what the other one was feeling.
In that moment, I felt truly awful. I had ruined a night that Keira had been looking forward to for two weeks. But I reminded myself that I was going to Estonia for a good reason. I tried to explain, "I need to know that Rosie's okay. Also, she's in the semi-finals of her first tournament with England, I think she would like it if I was there supporting her". Keira frowned, "I just can't believe you would book a flight without even talking to me about it". She shook her head while speaking and I stayed silent. Taking a deep breath, I tried to grab one of her hands but she moved away, "I know, and I'm sorry. But this is important".
It hurt when she wouldn't let me hold her hand. Keira sighed, "Luce, you need to talk about these things with me. Why do you need to go so urgently?". I bit my lip, wanting to explain everything, but I didn't want to remember the awful things that the articles said about our daughter. She interrupted my thoughts, "Forget it. Just go, we'll talk whenever you get back". I knew she was pissed off and she had every right to be.
The rest of the night felt awkward. I was packing a small suitcase while she was laying on our bed, scrolling through TikTok. Despite my efforts to make eye contact, she appeared to be trying her best to ignore me.
When it was time to leave, we wrapped our arms around eachother quickly and eventually were forced to make eye contact. After she pulled away from the hug, I kept one hand resting on her waist. Kissing her forehead, I told her, "I love you". She produced a tiny smile but didn't speak back. She stayed in the doorway of our house until my car reversed off the driveway, out of the gates and onto the road. I felt terrible leaving her behind like that and even questioned whether I was doing the right thing during the drive to the airport.
Georgia met me inside the airport and we sat together, waiting to board our flight. Looking her outfit up and down, she explained, "I've just finished work". Raising an eyebrow, I asked, "Do you always finish this late?". Georgia sighed, "Depends, I'm contracted to finish at 5 but most days it's between 6 and 7 or even later". She crossed her legs and changed the subject, "Anyway, I thought you would've persuaded Keira to come with". I hummed, not making the effort to give a verbal response. I knew I had messed up and upset Keira but I didn't really want to talk about it. Georgia seemed to understand that, and we sat in silence.
Due to me booking my seat on the plane so late, I couldn't choose where I wanted to sit. This meant I wasn't sitting next to Georgia, although, I could see her from my position on the plane. During the fairly short flight, I had some time to think about my daughter's girlfriend. She had taken multiple days off work to fly to a different country to see Rosie and make sure she was alright. I knew she was also trying her hardest to take down the articles to prevent more people from viewing them. Slowly but surely, she was bringing happiness back into Rosie's life. I'm so glad that they found eachother and I'm praying it lasts. Georgia appears to care about Rosie an insane amount, and I respect that a lot. I couldn't imagine a better person for my daughter to be with. They just work. I don't know how to explain it, but everything about them seems to fit together.
Before take off, Keira had sent me a text: I love you Luce, have a safe flight. Let me know when you arrive x
Obviously I knew that we loved eachother an insane amount, but when she didn't say it back earlier, it disheartened me. Keira and I haven't had many fights or big arguments, but whenever we do it makes me feel awful. I know I've disappointed and upset her, but I can't change that now. I'll make it up to her when I get back. Looking out of the plane window, I wished that me and Keira were doing this together. I already missed her and it hadn't even been more than four hours.
Estonia wasn't anything special, just an average European country. I didn't really pay much attention to my surroundings though. Instead, I was longing for my bed. It had been an exhausting day, an intense training session on top of everything else. We were staying in the same hotel as the England team, which made it even more nerve-wracking. I had no idea whether we were going to see Rosie before the game or if Georgia was planning to leave it until after. It was all very confusing and nothing was certain. I was in Barcelona only a few hours ago and suddenly I was on the other side of Europe. Crazy how things can work out.
Nothing was clear in my mind as we wandered through the front doors of the hotel. I knew that we wouldn't bump into Rosie and the team tonight due to how late it was. Estonia was an hour ahead of Barcelona, two ahead of England. That made me even more certain that we could move freely for tonight at least. Hopefully, Rosie would be in bed fast asleep, preparing for a final training session the next day.
We queued in the reception area, waiting to check-in. There were only a few people ahead of us which was actually surprising considering the time. But I suppose international flights land all the way through the night. Even though I was feeling exhausted, I knew that Georgia must be feeling a lot worse. She hadn't even been home since starting work that morning. I was sitting on my suitcase in a creased tracksuit while she looked very put together, like she had just woken up after a good night's sleep.
A voice and an accent I recognised all too well abruptly alerted me away from my sleepiness. Sure enough, the person in front of us in the queue thanked the receptionist and turned around, "Luce?". A smile crept up on my face as I was face-to-face with my best friend, "G? What the hell?". She pulled me in for a hug which made all of the drowsiness escape my body. Her presense was enough to make me feel energised again. The smile on her face could make anyone feel better. Stanway also pulled Georgia in for a short hug, introducing herself at the same time, "I'm Georgia". Rosie's girlfriend grinned, "I'm also Georgia, Rosie's girlfriend". Stanway's mouth dropped and she turned to me, "Rosie has a girlfriend? Since when? Why am I only finding out about this?". Georgia laughed and explained, "We were keeping it private". Stanway motioned towards the receptionist who was watching us, "Get checked in and then we can catch eachother up on what's been happening".
It had been a while since me and Georgia had spoken. We both had our own separate, busy lives so only really saw eachother on England camp. Things were very different compared to when we both played for Man City.
When we finally collected our room keys, took our suitcases to the rooms and met Georgia, I was feeling much more awake and alert. Sitting myself down on a sofa next to my best friend, I questioned, "Does Rosie know you're here?". Stanway shook her head, "I haven't spoken to her in weeks but I've had this trip booked for about a month or so. You?". Shaking my head, I told her, "Clearly Ro isn't very good at communicating with anyone because we haven't heard from her in a few weeks either. I wasn't even planning to come here so I only booked the flight this afternoon". Georgia asked with a grin, "What changed your mind? Keira annoying you too much?". Rolling my eyes at her, I explained, "I just needed to know that she's okay". Stanway raised an eyebrow, "You're talking about the news articles...right?". Exhaling, I nodded my head, "You've read them?". She replied, "Yep, I'm praying that Rosie hasn't read them". All three of us were hoping for the same thing, knowing how much damage it would do if Rosie did read them.
If Georgia has read them, it makes me wonder who else has seen them as well.
Stanway crossed her arms and forced a stern look on her face, "So Georgia...what are your intentions with Rosie?". She accidentally let out a laugh which made it impossible to take her serious. Lightly punching her arm, I grinned and told her, "G, stop it". Georgia looked between me and Rosie's girlfriend before speaking, "I'm being serious...is she a good one Luce?". Nodding my head confidently, I replied, "She is". Both Georgias looked at me, satisfied with my response.
Rosie's POV:
Semi-final matchday morning felt different to the others. There was a lot of pressure on the team. If we lost, we would be on the plane back to England the next day. We're so close to being in that Euros final and potentially bringing the trophy home to England, but first we must overcome Spain. It's not going to be easy, but we've prepared the best we could. Every possible scenario had been thought out - extra time, penalties, injuries, red cards. I don't think there's anything that we haven't planned for.
Knockout football is scary. If you don't win, you're going home.
Before the match, we walked out onto the pitch in our England tracksuits to see where we would be playing only hours away from kick-off. Vicky Lopez walked up towards me and embraced me in a hug. Despite being international rivals, we were good friends at Barcelona and also off the pitch. Of course it's not easy facing your friends in such an important game of football, but we both have to play our best for our respective countries. I wished her good luck and she said the same back to me. Both of us had scored quite a few goals already this tournament so it will be interesting to see if either of us will score in this match.
Someone from England's media team suddenly approached us, asking if we would mind taking a photo together. I placed a friendly arm around Vicky's shoulder and smiled into the camera. We're both similar ages, both play for Barcelona in attacking positions. The only thing that separates us is the country we play for.
The support in Estonia had been amazing so far. Considering we are only an under 17 team, I hadn't expected many people to turn up to the matches. But there had been at least a couple of thousand at every game I had played in. Throughout the course of the tournament, I had met quite a few of my teammates families. It made me miss my own. Having professional footballers as mums definitely has negatives as well as positives. Obviously I love them, but I wish sometimes that their job wasn't so demanding. My friends' parents had been able to take a few weeks off work to come to Estonia and support. I've barely spoken to them since I've arrived, knowing that i'll miss them even more if I do. Seeing Leah on Facetime the other day made me feel homesick more than I thought it would. But knowing that I only have a maximum of two games left makes me feel much more happier. Soon i'll be back with Lucy and Keira.
As soon as I had to say goodbye to Vicky, I guessed that kick-off was looming ever so close.
And I was right. Soon I was standing in the tunnel with a wide smile on my face, holding the mascot's hand tightly. As it was a night game, the temperature had dropped quite rapidly and was slightly cold. During the national anthems, I noticed that a few of my teammates had taken off their jackets and draped them around the shoulders of the mascots, so I did the same. One by one, the rest of the team followed, and soon none of us were wearing jackets anymore.
Everything happened so fast. Kick off. Spain. Vicky.
Within five minutes, we were already a goal down. And the rain had started to fall. I wasn't too concerned, it was the very start of the game and we had plenty of time to reset and change things around. In fact, it probably made me even more determined to win. It was a defensive mistake due to lack of communication, completely unavoidable. I shouted over the top of the Spanish fans chanting, "Refocus and communicate girls! There's still 85 minutes to play!". I could see that the goal had rattled some of my teammates slightly, causing loose passes and general sloppiness on the ball.
There was no denying it, Spain were on top. Quite literally. Everything we did, they did better. A free kick? They were more accurate. Long range shots? Ours were inaccurate, theirs hit the crossbar or required a fingertip save. If I'm being completely honest, our goalkeeper was saving us. Ever since Vicky's powerful, direct header to open the scoring up, it felt like we were constantly playing catch up.
In the 36th minute, we were awarded a penalty. I jogged up to Zara who was holding the ball and told her, "It's not a pen". She frowned, "It doesn't matter". Pressing the ball into my chest, she spoke, "Take it, you're the most in form out of all of us". She had a point. I had scored three goals while the rest of the goal scorers were only on one. I felt guilty walking up to the penalty spot but had to remind myself that this is football and sometimes the referees get things wrong. It's up to me to capitalise on her mistake and help my country out.
We were so early on in the game that I wasn't feeling the pressure too much. I knew that if I didn't score, we still had just under an hour to equalise and win. With the talent on the team, I was sure that we could do that. But there was no need as I calmly slotted the ball bottom left corner of the goal leaving the goalkeeper with no chance at saving it. My teammates ran up to congratulate me, but I collected the ball from the goal, ready to begin playing again.
The goal changed something, leaving us on top for the rest of the half. We entered the dressing room feeling quietly confident. But we were still level, anyone could win it.
Lucy Bronze's POV:
The stadium was already filling up when me, Stanway and Georgia arrived. The day before, we had ventured around the captial of Estonia - Tallinn. It was a beautiful city with a lot of history. The food was delicious and unlike anything I had tasted anywhere else. The people were welcoming. The culture was incredible. I had previously never thought about Estonia as a place to visit, but it's definitely underrated.
All three of us wore our R. Bronze 7 shirts with pride, even Georgia who I suspected was secretly supporting Spain. Nevertheless, she clearly thought that supporting Rosie was more important than her home country.
The teams were warming up when we went to find our seats in the small stadium. We walked up the stairs, trying to find row D seats 24, 25 and 26. Counting the seat numbers out loud, I was interrupted by a recognisable voice, "You alright mate?". Looking up, I saw Leah Williamson, Beth Mead and Lotte Wubben-Moy staring down at the three of us. Stanway didn't seem at all surprised to see them, in comparison to me who had just had a heart attack. Three of the people I would least expect to see in Estonia and here they are, supporting my daughter. I really have some of the best friends.
They all had their England shirts on with Rosie on the back so as a group of six, we all looked quite funny. Leah grinned down at me, her crutches resting against the seat beside her, "I didn't think you were able to make it Luce. Rosie told me that you had a game today". Nodding my head, I told everyone, "I do...well obviously I don't because i'm here. But yes, we're playing Villarreal today". Beth asked with a grin, "And you just decided to take the £1000 fine and come here instead?". Shrugging my shoulders, I replied, "Basically". Lotte commented, "You're mad Luce, but I respect you putting family above football".
Before Beth had mentioned it, I hadn't even thought about the fine for not being available for selection even though I'm fit. Oh well. Sitting in the stadium watching Rosie warm up alongside her team made me certain I'd made the right decision.
Leah asked, "No Keira?". Shaking my head, I climbed over the seats and went to sit next to the already-seated Arsenal players.
By half-time, the nerves were kicking in. I was ecstatic that Rosie had scored a controversially awarded penalty, bringing hope back to the England fans in the stadium and back at home. Leah was probably the loudest person in the stadium when the back of the net rippled. She was louder than the deafening drum and trumpet playing behind us, and that's saying something.
I sat back in my seat, listening to my friends all talk about how incredible my daughter is playing. I was simply absorbing everything, feeling extremely proud to be Rosie's mum. Beth nudged my shoulder, "No Keira hmm?". I was about to tell her that I didn't feel like talking about it until I followed her line of sight to someone I knew all too well. She was standing at the bottom of the stairs, looking up at us with a surprised and confused face. Exactly my reaction when half of the England team surprised me in the middle of Estonia. First Georgia, then Beth, Leah and Lotte and now Keira. I'm half expecting Sarina to jump out from somewhere in a minute.
My fiancé's eyes locked with mine, not breaking the connection as I climbed over our friends and walked down the stairs towards her. She was the only thing around me that mattered. Nothing else in that moment could distract me from her. She had come. Keira had followed me to Estonia despite being incredibly annoyed at me. Drowning eachother in an embrace, we were held close. My arms encircled her waist tightly, not wanting to let her go incase she disappeared back to Spain. Breathing a sigh of relief, I pointed out, "You came". She buried her head in my shoulder and explained, "I let you leave without telling you that I loved you. Georgia texted me and told me everything about Rosie and the articles". I smiled into our hug, still not letting go, "You didn't have to come-..". I was interrupted by my soon-to-be wife, "I did. I'm here because I want to support our daughter. Family over football. Always".
When we finally detached our bodies from eachother, I gripped Keira's hand firmly.
It was back and forth between Rosie and Vicky. After the break, Rosie put England ahead with a beautiful goal and put England ahead for over twenty mintues. It seemed likely that England were going to win it with only 10 minutes remaining on the clock. It felt similar to the Men's World Cup final. Messi and Mbappe both going head to head, trying to win the trophy for their countries. Of course the rest of the teams were also contributing, but the goals came only from Rosie and Vicky. Two amazing Barcelona players, but only one could win it.
Rosie's goal was not enough. In the dying minutes of the game, Vicky equalised and then scored a further goal putting Spain ahead. The Spaniards were back in front. I could barely watch as England were pushing and pushing to break Spain just once more to take it to extra time.
Minutes were remaining when Rosie threw absolutely everything at it, charging through the Spanish defence. She was one on one with the Spanish keeper, players dropping back. It was now or never. There would most likely only be a couple of minutes of added time which added further tension. Rosie had to score to give England a chance. However, there was never any doubt. She sent it rocketing towards the top corner and it slid into the net. Or so we all thought. From the angle at where we were sitting, I was certain the ball went into the back of the net, but from the reactions of the players, I knew it hadn't. Rosie threw her hands up to her face and dropped to her knees.
Thirty seconds left.
Mine and Keira's hands were gripped together - we knew it was over. But the England team did not stop trying. Until the final seconds of the game they attempted anything they could think of - long balls over the top, through passes, short passes.
The whistle blew and that was it. As quick as that, England were on top and the Spaniards had somehow found a way back in front. But that's football.
My heart ached for Rosie. The sight of her at the whistle. Collapsed onto the floor, exhausted, mentally and physically drained, feeling devastated. Throwing her shin pads onto the floor angrily, I knew she would blame herself. My own body trembled, she had tried so hard. They had all thrown everything at it, but it wasn't enough. Her brace of goals and the team's efforts nearly sent them flying into a final. It was almost unbelievable. The seven of us sat in silence, not able to believe what had happened. Despite the Spanish players and fans screaming and celebrating in front of us, it didn't seem real. It couldn't be real. It just couldn't.
And the worst part was that Rosie didn't even know that we were in the stadium.
A/N - not editted so let me know if there's any mistakes