Chapter 33: A United Jersey

                                    

                                          

🎶 It's Time — Imagine Dragons 🎶
February was a great month. Except for a draw against Chelsea at home, City won every game and were also through to the quarter finals of the FA Cup. And March started off with the derby, this time at the Etihad. Alfie, Mum, Sarah, Alice and I sat in the family & friends stand and I had warned Sarah not to wear anything red. I could not believe how she seriously thought United had more handsome players than City, but apparently she had a bad Mason Mount crush since the last EUROs.
"You do know he's not even playing because he's injured?" I hissed at her, trying to persuade her once again to become a City fan.
"But that Garnacho guy is cute!" she countered and my eyes widened.
"He looks like a trashy version of Draco Malfoy! And he's six years younger than you!" I replied exasperatedly.
"I hope that Grealish comes on" Alice piped up, who was now more in love than ever with that guy after hanging out with him that night at the club. At least she hadn't started crushing on Walker.
"He's injured too" I replied.
"Boring" she mumbled.
"Just focus on my handsome boyfriend" I said giddily when the players ran out of the tunnel to start warming up. Ruben was in his usual group with Kyle, Stones and Bernardo and I followed his every step, in awe of the muscles flexing in his legs. Alfie was somehow trying to flirt with Alice but failing miserably, but at least Mum got along well with Sarah as they chatted about the patterns of bedsheets (I don't know how they got to that topic).
The game definitely didn't start in our favour when Rashford scored a screamer and Ruben probably thought that it had been, at least partly, his fault. The mood was quite subdued at half-time, but I counted on Pep giving the players a technical talk that would let them bounce back during the second half. Ruben often told me about those tactical talks and how they all often struggled to follow. But he really admired his manager and also never stopped yapping about tactics - and I learnt a lot from Ruben's insights on the game. And even though he probably still hadn't fully admitted it to himself, he definitely was going to become a coach at some point after retirement.
And Foden gave us that equaliser, ten minutes into the second half, making the stadium roar. But he wasn't quite done yet and scored a second goal, putting us into the lead in the 80th minute. United had completely lost control of the game and conceded a third goal during injury time too. As the final whistle blew, we all stood up and cheered for the win. Ruben was quick to spot me and formed a heart with his hands that made me swoon. And those around me too.
"Aww, he's such a good boy" my mum gushed and I shot a side eye to Alfie, who was snickering to himself.
"He literally sets the bar so high" Alice sighed, looking at the pitch with a sad face.
"You say that now but he's going to kill you on our run tomorrow" I huffed, already dreading what lied ahead of us. They day after our "fight" about going clubbing, I was still dying from a hangover, but Ruben decided that then was the time to prove that he was a devoted boyfriend and set me and my two friends on a strict regimen that involved no alcohol or sweets until the day of the marathon. And on top of that, he worked out with us every single day. It was tricky at first with all our schedules, but Ruben did not shy away from calling us at 11 in the night for a run that had to happen right now.
"At what ungodly hour are we meeting tomorrow?" Sarah asked.
"I think it's 5.30, right before our shift" I replied.
"It's all for charity, it's all for charity..." she mumbled to herself before saying goodbye to us, with Alice following her. Mum disappeared looking for Dad, and Alfie had to get to the restaurant to work, so I waited in the stands as the stadium cleared out, as Ruben texted that he would come out after a quick shower.
"Hey, where's everyone?" he asked as we met on the field a few minutes later.
"All had to go, but at least I got you all for myself now" I said and grinned happily as I hugged him and pressed a quick kiss onto his lips.
"Not quite, we're going to dinner with Rodri, Bernardo and the girls" he replied.
"I'm not dressed for dinner!" I pouted, looking down at my jeans & jersey outfit with a warm coat thrown over it.
"We can stop by your house, we've got time" he replied, always finding a solution where I saw a problem.
And that's what we did, with me changing into a nicer skirt and ruffled blouse before putting on some heeled ankle boots.
"This whole closet is a mess" I sighed when I saw the chaos around my room when I was done.
"What did you expect? It was enough for your clothes as a 14-year-old, you're 25 now" Ruben chuckled.
"Yeah, yeah... I know that I should move out but... you know how much money I'm saving by not paying rent?" I asked as we got going.
"You could move in with me" he just said, not making a big deal of what was a big deal.
There was a moment of awkward silence in the car and he threw me some side glances trying to make out my reaction.
"You already spend half your nights at mine and... it's closer to the hospital" he added, trying to underline his point.
"Are... you sure about this?" I asked.
"Of course I am, or I wouldn't suggest it" he replied and shrugged.
"I... There's so much that comes with this, how are we going to split up groceries? You buy a lot of expensive meat or items I would never spend money on" I said, starting the discussion.
"I earn way more than you, I'll pay for them, it's not a big deal" he simply replied.
"And the cost for your housekeeper? She'd have to clean for two! I mean, I could still iron my own stuff, but-" I argued, but he cut me off.
"Soph, money is not an issue, I'm well overpaid, I can afford buying some more meat and vegetables for you! If you want to feel good about it, you can buy your own tampons" he huffed.
"Why are you always so chill about... everything?" I asked.
"Because life's already complicated enough, I don't like creating unnecessary problems where there aren't any" he replied and I saw that we were close to arriving, with him slowing down to find a parking spot.
"So, what's your answer? I'm not disappointed if you say no because you think it's too early, but I'd be disappointed if your pride got in the way" he joked and sent me a wink, looking at me with those adorable eyes I would never be able to say no to.
"Ok" I just said and grinned.
"Ok? As in... yes?" he asked excitedly and I nodded. The smile on his face grew even wider and he leaned in to hug me, kissing my cheek and my shoulder.
"I do still have one more surprise for you though" he said, that grin still on his face, as we entered the restaurant and I looked at him with a mix of anticipation and suspicion. We were the second ones to arrive with Laura and Rodri still missing, who joined us a few minutes after. The boys were all in high spirits after their win and the conversation flowed easily, until Ruben coughed loudly to get our attention.
"So... The boys and I have got something for you to motivate you for the last month of training before the marathon..." my boyfriend said and I looked funnily terrified now.
"Ruben told us you fancy Bruno Fernandes more than him, so I got an idea" Bernardo said mischievously, and I dropped my jaw.
"Ok, it wasn't exactly like that, I just-" I tried to argue, but Ruben pulled out the United jersey of said player, freshly worn from today.
"No way" I whined, still not sure what this had to do with my marathon, but embarrassed enough that he brought this up with his friends and possibly also Bruno Fernandes.
"If you run the marathon in this jersey, Bernardo, Rodri and I will each donate 100,000£ to the charity you're running for" Ruben said, grinning widely. I threw my head back while the others were laughing, and I looked at them if they were really serious, but they did seem to be.
"If my family sees me wearing this they'll behead me" I sighed, taking the jersey that was still a bit sticky from today's sweat and accepting my fate, it was for charity after all.
After ordering dessert, Ines excused herself to the bathroom and I took the excuse to follow her too.
"Oh- you look serious, it's not about the jersey thing, right? We just thought it would be fun-" she brabbled when she saw my serious expression when we were in the darkened bathroom, but I cut her off.
"Ruben asked me to move in with him" I said nervously and she tried to read my face.
"But that's good, right? What did you say?" she asked.
"I... I said yes! You don't think I'm moving too fast, right? I really want this to work" I whined.
"Soph, this is a good thing! You've been dating for a few months and you guys aren't 18 anymore, you're adults. It's just the logical next step. Ruben loves you and you love him, all is good" she said and I nodded, she was right. As long as we loved each other we would be alright.