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Rebecca was on the couch with Sarah resting in her lap, head settled against Rebecca’s chest while settled in a comfort sling. The seven month old was snoozing away without a care in the world while her mother was looking some work stuff with Keeley. The younger woman was curled up against Rebecca while scrolling on an iPad, pointing out cute colors and designs for a new kit color. They wanted to make a new kit for a children’s charity, one that Rebecca donated to frequently, and Keeley was all aboard. Now they were just resting while adding adjustments to the kit, trying to be as quiet as possible with little Sarah in the room.
“She gets to rest on that gorgeous chest of yours, no fair.” Keeley teased gently, glancing up at the blonde with a smile. “When will it be my turn?”
“In your dreams darling.” Rebecca replied with a chuckle. “She gets first priority.”
“I’m jealous.” Keeley whispered over to Sarah, leaning over so she could kiss the little girl on her forehead. Once she was done, Keeley settled herself back in Rebecca’s side. “Lucky lady.”
“You can get your chance when we do movie night next week.” Rebecca suggested softly, letting her cheek rest on the top of Keeley’s hair. She glanced down at the iPad screen, catching sight of the color that Keeley had selected. “Oh, that’s a beautiful color, use that one?”
“You want the gold and white? I’ll send it in, see what the manufacturer says.” Keeley told the woman as she finished the kit selection, sending the email to the assistant designer before setting the iPad down in her lap. “I’m starving, are you hungry? What about Sarah?”
“She’s been fed, but I am starving.” Rebecca replied to Keeley as the younger woman began to pick up the iPad and set it inside her purse. “Did we want to grab takeout or is Roy still making dinner tonight?”
“Babe, Roy made dinner for an army, but if you wanna go home with Sarah we’ll swing by to take it back.” Keeley suggested while adjusting the strap on her back.
“Keeley, I’ve been craving that Lemon-Pepper chicken Roy makes, and Ted says I ate the last of it the other day, so I want it now.” Rebecca told her honestly, which earned a giggle from Keeley. “Sarah will most likely nap the whole time.”
“Either way, we’ve got food, can’t have my baby girl starving.” Keeley cooed out to the sleepy Sarah, wiggling her finger at the baby. “Gotta make sure my little niece has a full belly!”
“Oh but I can starve, love you too.” Rebecca teased gently while adjusting Sarah, making sure she was secured before grabbing her purse. Keeley went first so she could open the door for Rebecca, stepping in front so Rebecca wouldn’t fall. The two ladies made their way down the stairs, Rebecca checking on Sarah before their walk towards the front door. They reached the hallway next to the training room when Keeley stopped and threw her hand out, catching Rebecca’s stomach by accident. The older woman started to ask the reason why Keeley was stopped, but the gasp that fell from her mouth moments later gave her the answer: Rupert Mannion was standing in the hallway.
Rupert looked tired, and Rebecca almost grinned the moment she saw his face. Bex managed to suck the life out of Rupert, taking just about everything he had for her and her little girl. The one thing she didn’t take from him was West Ham. Rebecca had tried to get Bex to take it, but she had refused, claiming she had no use for it. Now, Rupert was standing in the hallway and giving Rebecca a smile.
“There’s the little one! Isn’t she precious.” Rupert cooed out towards the little girl, not noticing how Rebecca stepped back and away from Rupert. Both women glared at Rupert, unwilling to stay and longer. They tried stepping aside, but Rupert was quicker.
“Now darling, I just want to talk, that’s all.” Rupert tried explaining as his hands hovered in front of him, showing that he wasn’t a threat. “I wanted to talk about one of our games coming up.”
“Now is not the time, I’m busy.” Rebecca told him while adjusting Sarah, letting her arm wrap tight against the baby. “If you’d like, Higgins can put you in for tomorrow, I would heavily appreciate that.”
“I don’t think this can wait.” Rupert huffed nervously. “I just wanted to say-“
“Whatever you have to say, save it.” Rebecca snapped suddenly, letting out a frustrated sigh. “Whatever you’re hiding, I don’t care. Have a lovely night Rupert.”
With that being said, Rebecca moved past Rupert with ease and started going forwards the locker room. Keeley then started to follow behind her, but Rupert decided that they weren’t done.
“Darling! Now hold on-“ Rupert tried to explain as he stepped forward, his hand grabbing Rebecca’s arm so he could gently pull her back. To a man, it was gentle. However, it was not.
Rebecca yelped at the contact that Rupert had made by grabbing her arm, yanking Rebecca back and almost pulling the woman off her feet. When Rupert had pulled on Rebecca’s arm, it happened to be the arm that was holding Sarah. Even though the little girl was resting in a sling, Rebecca’s arm was holding the underside of Sarah. The movement caused Sarah let out a scream when both her and her mother got pulled back, her tiny arms trying to cling to her mother for support. Now the little girl was wailing loudly.
It was like a siren going off, the noise starling everyone in the room and anyone else nearby. Rebecca was trying to calm herself and Sarah, trembling hands holding onto the baby. Rupert had realized what he’d done a bit too late, and before he could get a word out of his mouth, a black leather purse had smacked him directly in the face without warning.
“I swear to god I’ll kill you! Touch my niece again and I’ll kill you!!” Keeley screeched loudly while keeping her purse up towards her face. “Next time I’ll get a purse with spikes so it hurts when I shove it up your ass!”
“Oh! Ow-?” Rupert had cried out as he pressed a hand to his injured face. “You-! You vile woman! I just needed a moment!”
“I’ll show you vile, you limp cock!” Keeley replied with another swing from her purse, this time hitting the top of Rupert’s head. The man winced upon contact, throwing his hands up to try and block any of the other attacks.
Sarah’s cries were so loud that it had attracted the entire team, and Roy was the first one who had made it out of the locker room. The boys had gathered behind him as they tried to get a glance around Roy to see what was happening. Roy then scanned the hallway and soon spotted Rupert, and that’s where things got chaotic.
“You piece of shit! Did you touch her? Fuckin’ answer!” Roy shouted out the moment his feet carried him through the hallway, letting Jamie and the other boys file behind him. The older man was stunned at this point, unable to speak as Roy approached him. At this point, Sarah’s wails had ceased, but the tears on her little face were there.
Roy grabbed Rupert by his shirt and pulled him close, faces inches away as he began to pull a punch with his other hand.
“Roy!” Keeley cried out as she tugged on the hem of Roy’s sleeve, motioning to Sarah once he pulled his eyes away from the man in front of him. After a few seconds, Roy got the idea and let Rupert go, basically letting him fall to the ground.
“Fuckin’ pathetic.” Roy hissed out to Rupert while the man stumbled up and settled on his feet. While Rupert tried to collect his thoughts, the rest of the Richmond boys gathered in a circle around Rupert.
“Listen old man, you touch anyone again, yer gonna get ya fuckin’ ass kicked.” Jamie sneered heavily, cracking his knuckles while he spoke. “You’ll be fuckin’ shit on the pavement when we’re done with ya, won’t be able to tell who ya are.”
“I’d be fuckin’ happy to bury you under the ground where nobody can fuckin’ find you.” Roy added as he approached Jamie’s side. “People are gonna watch as we fuckin gut ya, everyone’s gonna hear you scream!”
“Now boys, I didn’t mean-“ Rupert tried to explain with his hands now in the air, trying to separate him from the group. Roy didn’t want to hear it, so he lunged and snatched Rupert by the arm.
“Every inch of me wants to beat you to a bloody pulp, right here in his fuckin’ hallway.” Roy hissed out while dragging the older man closer. “Sadly, I can’t. You try this shit again, the last thing you’ll see is my fist, in your fuckin’ face. Hear me?”
“I…I’m sorry.” Rupert finally managed to get out, his hands shaking the moment Roy let go of his arm. “I didn’t mean it…”
“Get the fuck out.” Roy growled heavily, using his hand to motion for some extra backup. Isaac and Richard stepped up, flanking Roy on either side. “Take him out.”
Isaac was the first to grab Rupert, yanking the older man upright by grabbing ahold of his arm, Richard grabbing the other so he could be dragged out. At this point, Rupert didn’t fight back, and was physically dragged out by the two footballers.
While they took care of Rupert, Roy was now focused on the two ladies. Sarah’s tears had dried up by now, basically laying in her carrier while everything went on around her. Her tiny fist was embedded in Rebecca’s blouse as she glanced around, spotting her uncle Roy as he stepped over to Rebecca’s side. The woman was trembling slightly, her arms tightly holding onto Sarah. Keeley was trying to comfort Rebecca, her hand running up and down Rebecca’s back.
“Get Ted, please.” Roy told Jamie, who was standing right behind him. The younger player nodded and made his way back to the locker room. Meanwhile, the other boys were still standing around, not knowing what else to do. Roy nodded his head towards from the front door, and Sam understood what he wanted. With a wave of his hand, Sam led the rest of the boys to the door so that Rupert couldn’t come back, which left Roy with the ladies. He pulled Rebecca into a gentle hug, kissing Rebecca’s cheek.
“You’re alright.” Roy soothed gently as his hand ran up and down Rebecca’s shoulder. “You’re ok, both of you. You girls are go fuckin’ strong.”
“Damn right.” Keeley whispered in response as she added to the hug, her arms wrapping around Rebecca’s waist.
They stayed in a light embrace, letting Rebecca calm down from the ordeal until Ted could get to her. If Ted had been here, who knows what he would have done.
Heavy footsteps could be heard from the hallway, which meant Ted was on his way. Before Ted had gotten there, Jamie had burst through with a huff, holding it open for Ted.
“Rebecca! Darlin, I’m here!” Ted called out as he ran through the building and approached the training room, stopping in the doorway the moment he saw the scene in front of him. His eyes were red, and Rebeca could tell right away that Ted had fallen into a panic attack the moment he had heard about the interaction. When he saw Rebecca, he let out a sound of stress, almost a choked sob, as he rushed to Rebecca’s side. While Rebecca and Ted clung to each other, Roy pulled Keeley into their own hug.
“We’re alright darling, promise.” Rebecca whispered softly. “It was a bit of a fright.”
“Thank God y’all are safe.” Ted replied in the same tone, looking at her and Sarah as he squeezed Rebecca tight. Upon being in the middle of the hug, Sarah voiced her displeasure with a whine, hands now wiggling up at her father. Ted leaned back and chuckled at his daughter, letting go of Rebecca so he could give Sarah a kiss on her forehead. “I’m sorry darlin, daddy was just worried. You seem fine now.”
“She’s got her mum’s attitude.” Rebecca joked lightly with a sniffle as she slowly took Sarah out of the sling to transfer her into Ted’s arms.
“Strong like her too.” Keeley piped up softly, nudging Rebecca’s shoulder with her own. “I’m sure she’ll forget this ever happened.”
“Rupert does have a very forgettable face.” Jamie spoke up from the corner of the room, stepping over to Ted’s side with a smile as his eyes landed on Sarah. “Yer a tough lil’ bug huh? Isn’t that right?”
Sarah gave Jamie a smile while a giggle erupted from her throat, clearly over the fact that she had made a scene just moments ago.
“See? Strong like the boss lady, a little lioness.” Jamie cooed softly, smiling as Sarah wiggled her fingers at him. “Oh she’s gonna take over the world.”
“We’ll be right behind her.” Roy added with a wink to Rebecca, leaning over so he could kiss Sarah on the top of her head. That caused Sarah to let out a noise, unaware of where that kiss came from. She turned around in Ted’s arms and saw her uncle Roy, giving him a smile.
“You two alright? Need me to take her?” Keeley asked Rebecca softly as Roy kept Sarah entertained. “I think you need to sit, you’re still shaking babes.”
“Keeley’s right, c’mon boss. Need ya ‘ta sit down for a sec yea?” Jamie said softly, looking over at Rebecca. When she nodded, Jamie turned over to Ted. “Coach, you too, c’mon.”
Rebecca was led to the sitting couch resting near the bottom of the stairwell, Ted pulling her down with him on the soft cushion. She let out a huff, Keeley reaching over to pull the baby sling off Rebecca so the older woman could relax more.
“Babes, can we take Sarah, just for a second?” Keeley asked her friend softly, crouching down to Rebecca’s eye level. “We’ll be just a second, gonna give her some cuddles while you talk, yea?”
Rebecca’s eyes were wide as she turned to Keeley, unable to come up with an answer. She let out a shaky exhale as Ted took his hand and reached over for hers, giving it a squeeze. Slowly, Rebecca nodded, and Sarah was given to Jamie without any fuss. The little girl just smiled at Jamie and began to babble, the footballer nodding along as if she was explaining some hard maths equation.
“You’re right, I am the best uncle.” Jamie replied softly, giving Sarah a wink. The little girl smiled and reached her hand up to grab Jamie’s hair, which was just long enough and was considered fair hair. When she tugged on it, Jamie winced, and that made Sarah laugh.
“That’s my girl.” Roy replied with a smirk as Sarah kept messing with Jamie’s hand, eventually getting bored with his hair and letting it go. She was now focused on the necklace around Jamie’s neck, which was a perfect distraction for her so that she could be away from her parents just for a few moments. Once Sarah was busy, Keeley gave Ted a nod, leading Jamie and Roy back into the locker room.
The second the door had closed behind Jamie, the dam that Rebecca was holding in finally broke.
“It’s alright darlin, take a breath.” Ted whispered softly as he pressed a kiss to the side of his wife’s head, using his arms to pull her into his embrace. The sob Rebecca let out was heartbreaking, and Ted had to fight off his own tears as she buried her face into the crook of his neck. Ted ran his hand up and down his wife’s back as he tried to sooth her gently.
“He…he could have hurt our baby! Our little girl!” Rebecca cried out in between the heavy sobs racking her body, leaning onto Ted as much as he could. “Sarah was terrified! I’ve never seen her so scared, she was holding onto me so tight!”
“I can’t imagine honey, I wish I would’ve been there instead.” Ted whispered softly as he squeezed his wife. “God, darlin’ I’m so sorry, I should’ve been….fuck…”
Ted was now crying, the tears slowly falling as he let himself cry with Rebecca. The two just held each other, unable to do anything but cry and feel frustrated over the lack of control in that situation. At the end of the day, Sarah was safe and happy, that’s the most important thing.
There was a few more minutes of crying, Rebecca eventually being the one to part first so she could sit up.
“You know what the oddest thing was?? He said he was sorry. I don’t think I’ve ever heard him say those words before.” Rebecca admitted with a chuckle, shaking her head as she went back and thought about every moment he could have said those words, but didn’t. “He kept saying he had something to confess something, about an upcoming game. It was like, he seemed genuine about this confession.”
“Whatever it was, we’ll find out.” Ted told her softly as he squeezed his wife’s hands. “Even if I gotta beat ‘em up.”
“You’d be my hero.” Rebecca chuckled out, her other hand resting on Ted’s cheek. “Although, I would hope you wouldn’t fight anyone, I believe that’s Roy’s job.”
“Darn right it is. Besides, gotta work on my punches.” Ted confessed with a soft smile. “I’d fight for you either way, I love you.”
“I love you too, my sunlight.” Rebecca whispered before pressing a chaste kiss to Ted’s lips and almost melting back into his embrace, pulling apart as Ted let a moan of displeasure slip out. She chuckled, knowing there would be more time for the fun stuff later.
“Well darlin, should we grab our lil’ girlie and head home.” Ted asked after a few seconds of sitting in silence, taking his wife’s hand and squeezing them. Rebecca nodded and let out a sigh before standing up, bringing Ted with her. The two held hands as they stared going towards the locker room, Ted opening the door with his other hand.
Inside that locker room, Keeley was holding Sarah in her arms and twirling her around, making whooshing sounds like a plane. Sarah was squealing and giggling the entire time, her tiny legs kicking as Keeley moved her around. She then handed Sarah over to Jamie, who continued making airplane noises as he held Sarah in that air. However, the moment that Ted and Rebecca walked in, Jamie settled Sarah on his hip.
“Look! There’s ya mum and da, yea?” Jamie told Sarah while bouncing the girl on his hip. Sarah soon noticed her parents and wiggled her arm out forwards them. “Alright, here ya go princess.”
Jamie hands Sarah over to Rebecca, letting the young girl cling to her mother as she settled. Rebecca pressed a few kisses along her daughter’s forehead, holding her close while Ted snuck a few kisses of his own to Sarah. The little girl giggled, watching her parents with glee.
“So, you two want dinner still?” Roy asked as he placed a hand on Ted’s shoulder. “I can drop it off later, the two of you can go home and relax.”
“I still want that chicken you made, so we’re doing dinner now. Please.” Rebecca told Roy with a very serious look. “I think some time with family would be lovely.”
“Suit yourself Blondie, we have a straggler comin’, can’t shake ‘em.” Roy added with a chuckle, looking over at Jamie to give him a smirk. “Mind if he joins?”
“I’d be offended if he didn’t.” Ted replied in full honesty, reaching out to pull Jamie into a side hug. “All this cryin’ has gotten me hungry.”
“Oh yea, I love a good snack after a cry.” Keeley confessed with a straight face as she gathered her purse, pulling the keys out to Rebecca’s SUV. “I’m driving!”
“Let’s go, michelangelo!” Ted cried out with glee while leading his wife out of the locker room with the rest of the group following behind them. Soon they were all gathering in Rebecca’s car, with Sarah sitting in the middle. Jamie was bringing Roy’s car back, so they could all get to Roy’s in once piece. While settling Sarah in her car seat, she could hear Ted chatting with Keeley and Roy. She took a moment to collect herself as Sarah was finally settled, almost jumping out of her skin when Sarah reached up and placed her tiny hand on her mother’s cheek. Rebecca chuckled, giving Sarah a smile as the little girl began to babble at her mother.
Sarah was safe, and the best part was, her family had her back.
Nobody messed with Sarah Keeley Welton-Lasso