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I'll be home for Christmas

Chapter 9: and when I'm feeling alone you remind me of home

Notes:

Remember when I posted the last chapter and said I was gonna post it right after Christmas? Lol

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text


Monday December 26, 2022

There was a spring in everyone’s step as players and staff prepared for the Boxing Day match. A blend of the holiday spirit, chilly air, and the excitement from fans of watching their favorite team play footie while surrounded by family made it that much better than a typical match. 

The team was scattered around the locker room in various states of dress; some players were suited up while others were lingering half naked as they waited to get ankles and knees taped by the athletic trainers. 

Roy was drinking a quad espresso and slapping himself in the face at his desk, trying to get himself ready for the game. After kissing Jamie and then leaving the night before, he was again reminiscing on his kiss with Keeley in Liverpool. Specifically, he was remembering how he immediately dipped afterwards, leaving lots of undiscussed feelings and unanswered questions. Even though his intent now wasn’t to run away, he was afraid Jamie didn’t know that. 

He had unloaded some emotions by venting to Dauphine about it all (her only response was a meow he recognized as a cry for more treats), but he was still buzzing by the time he made it back to his own house. 

He ended up spending the night tossing and turning, replaying those kisses over and over and resenting the fact that his bed was cold and empty. One night spent with Jamie and he was already longing for another chance to cuddle. 

It didn’t help that he had just received a text from Phoebe on her mum’s phone asking if Jamie and Georgie had liked their jewelry and if he’d given Dauphine her food. Yes, yes, and yes he had responded. His fingers then hovered over the keyboard, trying to decide if he should elaborate over text, call his sister, or just leave it at that. 

He closed the app and tossed his phone to the side, deciding not to look at it again until after the match.

Now, as he swallowed down the rest of his coffee and waited for it to kick in, he could only worry that kissing Jamie last night would somehow throw him off his game, especially if there was still any unfinished business. 

Jamie on the other hand was completely giddy with precisely zero caffeine in his system and probably an equivalent amount of sleep to Roy. He too, had spent the night tossing and turning and wishing that Roy was still in his bed, but where Roy had been anxious as all hell, Jamie had been riding a high of adrenaline that continued to persist. 

It was so bad that even some of the other guys had noticed. 

“Oi. What’s got you buzzin’ like that, bruv?” Isaac had asked when he noticed that Jamie had been extra smiley when he walked in the building and he kept jumping up and down in the name of “warming up.” 

“Yeah, mate. You’re usually mad serious on match day. Plus you keep like… giggling to yourself,” Colin added with a confused tone. There were sounds of agreement from the rest of the team.

Jamie felt put on the spot but recovered quickly.

“It’s Boxing Day, lads! And me mum actually came down to watch the match. First time she’s ever been in Nelson Road. Can’t I be fuckin’ excited for that?”

There were more sounds of agreement and nods.

“I get it, man. My parents came in from Canada this year,” Zorro said with a smile.

“Ay yo también!” Dani exclaimed. “I bought tickets for the whole family! I love Christmas!” 

Jamie tried not to let out a visible sigh of relief when the focus was shifted off of him (despite his love for attention), but when he glanced at Sam, he couldn’t shake the suspicious look he was receiving. 

By the time the pregame team meeting was over, both Roy and Jamie had seemed to regulate to a normal level of chill and excitement, respectively. As the team started to head out to the pitch for warm-ups, Roy stopped Jamie in the hall.

“Oi, Tartt! Boot room!” he exclaimed. Some of the team looked at each other shaking their heads or side-eyeing one another. Jamie noticed Sam give him another look, then sheepishly turned around to follow Roy. 

As soon as they were both inside, Roy pressed Jamie against a wall of shoe cubbies by the door and kissed him. When he pulled back, Jamie looked stunned. 

“Shit, this a new pregame ritual or some shit? I can get behind that,” he smirked. 

“No! I wanted to make sure that you knew I meant it last night. That it wasn’t just the wine and the Christmas and the fucking Hallmark of it all.”

“Oh… well I kind of figured, mate, considering we did it like four times.”

“Three,” Roy immediately corrected, dead serious. Jamie looked blinked a few times with a still face.  

“... Fine. Three. But that was four, just now.” 

“Fucking hell, Tartt, I just wanted to make sure you were alright before the match today. That I didn’t like, fuck up your psyche or something.”

“Uh, no. Nope. All good up here,” Jamie responded, pointing up to his head. “If anything, that just got me in the zone to fuckin’ crush.” 

“Oh. Well alright then. Get warm and let’s go fucking win,” Roy said after a moment, patting Jamie on the hip, nodding once, and stepping back. “And don’t tell a fucking soul, William! Not even to Nate since you have that fucking… kit man blood bond or whatever the fuck.”

In the corner, Will was frozen in place as he stirred a tub of sports drink mix. He accidentally dropped the spoon in the container and stepped back to rub his palms on his thighs. 

“Shit, right, yeah, no of course. And it’s not a blood bond, it’s just the brotherhood, yeah? I should go get another spoon anyways,” Will said as he rushed out.

Roy and Jamie gave each other a suspicious side eye. Kitmen loved their gossip, former or current, but Will knew how to keep his lips sealed when he had to.

“Right then, get a move on it,” Roy commanded, punctuating the moment with a tap to Jamie’s butt as he moved for the door handle. Once Jamie passed by, a stupid dopey blissful look on his face, Roy hesitated to follow. Finally he tossed his head back and sighed once, stepping into the hall for what was shaping up to be his most interesting Boxing Day ever. 

“Coach Kent, to what do you attribute today’s stunning two - nil win?” a reporter asked from the same crowd that always showed up to the pressroom after matches.

“They’re a fucking great group of lads who work fucking hard every fucking week, even on a fucking holiday. Next question,” Roy responded succinctly, eyes already scanning the room to pick his next victim. 

He paused for a moment when he noticed movement at the back door. Rebecca was ushering in Georgie and Simon from the hall and Keeley was directing them to stand by the window. Behind Rebecca, Jamie quietly peered into the doorway in the hopes he wouldn’t draw anyone’s attention. Roy fought back visible surprise when he and Jamie locked eyes, shaking it off quickly so he could choose Marcus Adebayo.

“Marcus Adebayo, The Independent. Coach Kent, while your team quite clearly executed the finish nicely, it would be a slight to overlook Jamie Tartt’s role in this match as the sole scorer. He looked even… inspired today. Were there any changes in your preparations this week that may have given him that edge?”

Roy’s stomach dropped. Half of him wanted to tell the world that all it took was a fucking kiss (or four) to breathe some extra life into the striker, but that was none of their fucking business and he also knew he couldn’t take credit for Jamie’s hard work. He caught a quick glimpse of the man in the doorway again, looking back at Marcus quickly but not ignoring the expectant look on Jamie’s face. 

“Tartt has continued to put in work outside of training every fucking day and it translates directly onto the pitch. That’s where the edge comes from. And I imagine all the fucking holiday whimsy and food and family and shit don’t hurt either. Alright, one more.”

The crowd laughed as Roy looked for another reporter to choose. His eyes passed over Jamie and his family along the back, all 3 of them smiling at Roy’s (disgustingly) endearing words. He again quickly picked one of the many hands raised in front of him. 

“Coach, since it is still Boxing Day, how do you plan to celebrate this win?” 

Roy fought back a smile as he mulled on the question. Again, it was none of their fucking business, but he could see Jamie back there with his little eyebrows quirked up expectantly and Georgie and Simon holding onto each other with wide grins. 

“I’m only answering this because I’m still in the fucking Christmas spirit,” he started, the smile involuntarily creeping up as he spoke, “but I’ll be with my family.” 

He drifted to Jamie again, his smile widening just a little bit more when he faintly noticed the pink blush creeping up the player’s cheeks. He gave the slightest nod, one he hoped only Jamie would notice as a sign that he was Roy’s family, then composed himself and continued. 

“And tomorrow we’ll be right on again for the New Year’s Eve match. We plan to fucking crush Saturday before the winter hiatus. See you all then,” Roy finished, standing and giving a quick wave. Cameras flashed but he hardly noticed them; he had tunnel vision only for Jamie as he stepped out the side door and hurried towards his office. 

 —

Jamie had been giving his parents a tour of the facilities when they noticed Roy in his press conference. Thankfully Rebecca and Keeley were more than happy to let them in to see it all in person. As soon as Roy finished up, Jamie slipped out from the doorway to greet Roy in the hall. 

“Oi, you fuckin’ crushed that, mate.”

“Not much to crush this week. You lot made my job look fucking easy this morning.”

Another blush painted Jamie’s face but he played it off. 

“Well, we can’t all be as exceptional as I am.” Roy rolled his eyes at the cockiness. “But, um, I thought you said Ruth and Phoebe weren’t comin’ back for like two more weeks, and your family are all shitbags?” 

Roy’s eyes darted to the side in confusion. 

“Yes..?”

“So then who are you spendin’ the day with?”

They both stood in silence for a moment as Roy waited for Jamie to pick up on what he’d been alluding to at the press conference. After what felt like ages of silence, Roy finally corrected him. 

“I was talking about you , you dickhead! You’re my fucking family or whatever the fuck…” 

Ohhhhh ! Right, yeah, right. That makes sense!” Jamie said as his parents rounded the corner. 

“Congratulations, Roy!” Georgie and Simon both said, pulling him into a hug so effortlessly, as if he was anyone but Roy Kent. 

“So happy to see ya win!” Georgie continued, then turned to her son. “Jamie, baby, Keeley said she might show us round the offices upstairs for a bit if you need time to rinse and change. We’ll be back.”

With that they were following the blonde and Jamie and Roy were left alone, slowly walking towards the coaches offices. By the time Jamie had gotten rinsed off and changed into his regular clothes, Roy had thanked his sister for her congratulations, and Keeley was sure Georgie and Simon had seen every corner of Nelson Road, most everyone had left. 

The group stood around Roy’s desk admiring the various posters and artworks hanging on the walls, and Roy tried to ignore the knowing looks Keeley gave him and the whispered “we are so talking about this later” before she made her leave. 

Once she was gone, Jamie seemed to have no reservations about pressing himself right up next to where Roy was leaned against the edge of Beard’s desk, heat radiating off of him like when Dauphine would sit on Roy’s lap during his tea parties with Phoebe. Roy kept his arms crossed but figured there was no harm if someone happened to see them sitting close. 

“Can’t believe you haven’t got any pictures with you in them up here,” Georgie commented as she glanced over Phoebe’s boob art and U8 football team photos.

“We’ve got mirrors around. No need to see my face any fucking more than I have to,” Roy answered, causing Georgie to chuckle. 

“Well, Roy, I know it came across like a joke yesterday, but I was serious about havin’ you join in on our family photos, yeah? Maybe when you and Jamie are on winter holiday? Or during the summer? We’d really like you to be there.”

As if he hadn’t been sent through the emotional wringer already that week, Roy’s eyes again opened wide and mouth parted in shock. He turned his head to look at Jamie, whose hand had fallen over his thigh to give it a pat. Jamie just nodded his head. 

“Well I don’t- I’m not sure if-”

“Just fuckin’ say yes, babe,” Jamie interrupted, rolling his eyes and giving Roy’s thigh a squeeze. 

“Fine, but you can’t call me that at work! Or in front of your parents. Fucking weird, that.”

“Like you didn’t fucking love it,” Jamie retorted as he leaned to bump Roy’s shoulder a little more forcefully, resulting in a little chuckle from his… boyfriend? Coach? Guy he can’t stop kissing? He started to reach up and kiss Roy again, but Roy’s hand quickly reached up to cover his face. 

“No!” he exclaimed, then removed his hand. He leaned in closer before he continued with a whisper. “Save that for when we’re in private , yeah? Like tonight?”

Roy pulled away and his eyes studied Jamie’s face, darting down to his lips quite a few times. Jamie’s pupils were practically the size of saucers and he gulped, nodding lightly then moving his hand off Roy’s thigh to strategically place over his own lap. 

“Riiiiight then,” Georgie finally said, snapping them back to reality as she’d done so many times already. “So are we headed back to Jamie’s or…”

“Yeah, yeah, mummy. Let’s go home. You too Roy?” Jamie asked breathlessly.

“I’ve got to take care of Dauphine, maybe call Ruth. Or Keeley, since she might kill me if I keep this any more of a secret from her. But after you all should come to mine. I’ll make a nice Boxing Day buffet, yeah?”

“That sounds nice,” Jamie answered, his parents agreeing as well. 

And yeah, it really, really did. 

So nice, actually, that he didn’t have to plaster on a fake smile like he had just a week before. 

So nice that he couldn’t even stop himself from tossing an arm over Jamie’s shoulder, pulling him in, and planting a smooch right on top of his still-wet hair, fragrant with whatever special made conditioner he’d been obsessing with lately. 

So nice that he wouldn’t have to be home alone.

So nice that when he pulled away to look at the man in his arms, then the couple watching them in adoration, he didn’t have to be scared of the family that was coming home to him.

Notes:

Ahhhh I love them and their little family so much. I imagine as soon as Roy calls his sister she just starts screaming "I knew it I fucking knew it!" at him

I do also have an epilogue planned, but we all know how good I am at setting expectations for when I upload so I will not be giving any hard deadlines. I do apologize for that.

I appreciate you all vv much!! 🥰

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