Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
For whole of 12th May, Nottingham was full of jubilation. There had been numerous reports in the local media about Nottingham Forest’s success in defending the league title, and countless media outlets had gathered in the central English city to interview the newly crowned Premier League champions.
On 11th May, the Football Association (FA) officials presented a replica of the trophy to Nottingham Forest, and local media were critical of the FA’s contempt for Nottingham Forest. As a result, on the next day, the FA replaced the replica with the actual trophy. This change was swift and it made them speechless.
After winning the championship, Twain gave the team a day off, but he reminded the players before the break that there were still two important games left so they could not go all-out and play.
The players were on holiday so Twain also gave himself a day off. On this day, he spent time with his wife. He did not go anywhere, choosing to rest at home instead. Shania enjoyed the time because on the last moments of yesterday’s match, she had really been scared to death.
Watching her husband get nervous for a moment, then excited, then finally devastated for a while. Even as a bystander, her heart could not handle the strain, much less= Twain who had previously underwent a heart surgery?
Fortunately, the nuclear-powered heart was very strong and there was no problem. Otherwise Shania would rather have Twain’s team achieve nothing at all the whole season than having her Uncle Tony suffer.
Shania still had a lot to worry about, even the next day.
Twain naturally knew this, so he had to make amends to Shania on this day. So he asked, “Where do you want to play? What do you want to buy?”
Shania came over and stuck onto him, blowing towards the tip of his nose and playfully said, “Don’t want to go anywhere, just let me hug you.”
Twain straightened his face, “I’m not your Totoro doll!”
Shania just ignored it, and hugged her husband like a doll, “Let me hug you, let me hear your heartbeat. I’m scared that this is all just a dream,” she murmured.
Twain did not struggle any longer, he placed his chin gently against Shania’s forehead.
“That’s a strong heartbeat.” Shania looked up and smiled at Twain. “I’m relieved!”
Twain did not roll his eyes, he gently rubbed Shania’s hair. There was much he wanted to say but no words left his lips which only twitched a little.
※※※
As Shania and Twain were hanging around at home, Bale was knocking on Shannon’s door with a gift.
The girl seemed to be still angry with Bale, so she only opened the door wide enough to see Bale but not let him in.So Bale, with gifts and flowers at the door, was waiting for almost the entire day when he finally convinced her to open the door and her heart.
“I don’t think you love me at all.” Although Bale had entered her room, her mouth was still unyielding.
Bell smiled and stuffed flowers and gifts into Shannon’s hand, then hugged her from behind and said, “Who told God to forsake me to be a professional soccer player? Sometimes you need to give in a little, you can’t be jealous. You should know about our coach? His superstar wife did not like him coming into contact with football because she’s worried about his heart.”
Speaking of Twain and Shania, the girls would give in. When Twain married Shania, who was twenty years younger than him, he had attracted many guys’ jealousy, but on the girl’s side, it was the envy of many people and Shannon was no exception. Although she was not a fan, but as a Nottingham citizen, she also knew about the story of Tony Twain.
She snuggled up in Bale’s arms, looking forward to her boyfriend being able to also give them an unforgettable romantic experience.
“Then… other than football, you are not allowed to love any other girl.” The girl started to act coquettishly.
Bale kissed her earlobe gently, “Okay, I swear. ”
The girl laughed with satisfaction, as she just followed Bale onto the bed without hesitation.
※※※
“The weather is nice, George.”
Sophia sheltered her eyes with her hands as she squinted up at the sky. She was being supported by her son for a walk outside to bask in the sun. Her pale face was coated with a warm color of sunlight, as she regained some spirit.
Wood hummed in agreement.
“It’s nice to win the league, aren’t you happy?”
“Hm, I am.”
“It’s good that Mr Twain doesn’t have to eat the table and make a fool of himself. . . In the last few minutes, I was really worried that he would suddenly fall on the sidelines. It was lucky that nothing unfortunate happened.” Sophia bowed her head as she said softly.
Two people walked till they were tired as they sat down on a bench to rest.
Sophia turned and looked at her son. He was looking at the walkers in the distance.
He looked like there was much weighing on his mind.
Sophia did not want to disturb him, as she leaned against the back of her chair to enjoy the sun. She felt like she owed her son a lot. At this time, his teammates must have been busy dating their girlfriends, going out shopping, going to nightclubs, bars or other entertainment venues. Only George himself needs to accompany herself as she was useless as a human being.
Perhaps it would be better for George if she died?
It was a pity that she could not bear to leave George behind. She loved George and thought she was the one who loved George the most in the world, and she did not want to leave George alone. Unless there was another woman in this world who loved George more than she does, she would always stay with him.
Wood was startled as he realized that someone was leaning on his shoulder. He discovered that the person to be his mother.
Her mother at this time was like a little girl snuggling up to himself. With her eyes closed, mouth slightly uplifted as it conveyed happiness. The morning’s rays were spilled onto her face, as a colorful glow was shown on her face.
Wood was a little stunned, as his mother has not had such a radiant expression for a long time. She was not well, so she had been in a bad state of mind. Maybe it was because of the sun?
He froze his body, and did not dare to move, in fear of disturbing his mother.
Maybe she was having a nice dream?
※※※
Kenny Burns was standing alone in Nottingham city centre square in front of the bronze statue of Brian Clough. A number of bouquets had been placed at the base of the bronze statue. It was a lot more lively now compared to before. It was all because Nottingham Forest had successfully won the championships and the City stadium needing to be demolished, which reminded everyone about the memories of the past.
Just as he was standing here, several other fans came to lay flowers. Without exception, they were white-haired old men.
What they did not recognize about the old man who stood next to them, was that he was actually one of the architects of Nottingham Forest’s first glory days, having won FWA Footballer Of The Year Award Today. Burns looked no different from an ordinary old English man, in which you simply cannot see the glory of the past that once belonged to him.
Just after yesterday’s game, he and his former companions came here again, as they shared a picture together. But that was only a well-arranged activity by the media. He returned here again today, because he suddenly had something to say to his coach.
“Three league titles, coach. There might be a third European title and a third trophy of the season … He’s really not bad right, coach? Maybe better than you, even…” Burns looked up at the sky. It was crystal blue and there was absolutely no chance of a bolt of lightning slicing onto his forehead.
After discovering his reflexive movements, Burns laughed, “Ha! ”
He remembered coach leaving them in September 2004 because of stomach cancer and died at the age of sixty-nine at Derby City General Hospital. The 69-year-old Ferguson was still leading the team to the Premier League and winning the Champions League. It was the second European Championship of his coaching career.
Now a decade was about to pass by in the blink of an eye.
Ten years ago, Nottingham Forest sent away the number one nobleman in the club’s history as they welcomed the second. The coincidence in the numbers were really signifying a cycle with a flavor of fate in it.
Ten years ago, Burns really did think he would be alive, as he could see Nottingham Forest re-emerge as if it were a dream. A rookie coach who was knocked out of the head by a player on the sidelines had suddenly become Europe’s hottest champion.
After standing for a little longer, Burns said goodbye to his coach and turned to walk away.
Behind him was Clough dressed in a cardigan, with his hands clasped together and his head raised. It was a scene when he decided to retire and bid farewell to tens of thousands of fans at the city’s stadium, which was now permanently fixed by metal.
Beneath the bronze statue, there were still fans who came forward to send flowers and missed the moments. Some people, like Burns, stood in front of Clough’s bronze statue and talked about the years of the past, and about their present glory. It was just like talking to an old friend.
※※※
Despite being waiting at London’s Heathrow Airport, Mr Bendtner, who was returning to Denmark, was still wearing sunglasses and still being able to be recognised. The “man of the round” of the round just made a huge appearance as he was unable to keep a low profile.
He was dragging his luggage to the gate as he was stopped by several people halfway through.
“Hey, Nikki!”
Those people were calling Bendtner’s nickname, as he could not help but stop walking.
“Ha, it’s Nikki! It’s really you!”
Several people came together, and Bendtner instinctively wanted to refuse the interview. But he found out that those were are not journalists, because they did not carry the interview bag, the camera in their hands were too amateur, their faces were very pleasantly surprised, this type of surprise was not the type of surprise when one seen a live news material, but the kind of joy that came directly from the heart.
He found it strange, did he have fans in London also?
Not wanting to disappoint the fans, he smiled as he waited to meet the other side’s signature and photo requests.
As a result, the four men had no intention of taking a picture with him or asking for autographs. They just gave Bendtner a thumbs up, “Well done, those two goals! We watched the show, they were really wonderful!”
“Yeah, well done, Gini . . . Cough, it’s been too long, I’m really not used to it…”
“To tell you the truth, I had no hope for you guys. But I’m glad I was wrong in the end!”
Several enthusiastic fans loudly praised Bendtner as they patted him on the shoulder and arms and then left.
Bendtner turned to look at their backs, they were walking on their heels as if they were flying. He then suddenly realised that these guys were Nottingham Forest fans!
After thinking about this relationship, he then grinned silently.
Last time, whenever he returned to the city stadium, what greeted him were the loud boos and rants of Nottingham Forest fans. Like Judas, he was written in a Biblical story for future generations to scold him hundreds of millions of times, and had no opportunity and power to appeal for himself.
Now the situation was completely reversed and he actually got a heartfelt compliment from Nottingham Forest fans. They even shout nicknames that were only used to be only called in the past, and even patted his shoulders and arms.
Nottingham Forest winning the title was because of himself, it was really a plot in a drama. He did not want to help Nottingham Forest win the championship, he just did not want to be looked down upon.
Standing in place and lamenting his fate, Bendtner dragged his suitcase and continued to search for his waiting area. Yesterday’s exciting game was almost left behind by him. The joy of the Nottingham Forest man was too far for him.
The red memories were already getting blurry, he had his own future, which was unrelated to Nottingham Forest.
※※※
After yesterday’s game, Wenger locked himself in a study as soon as he got home, he did not even want to get close to his wife. It was a special way for him to express and vent his anger — not wanting to eat or sleep, to lock himself up. No one knew what he was going to do, but when he came out from this isolation, most of it would show that his mood was back to normal.
This time, he came out from the study by dawn and gave his wife an apologetic smile.
His eyes were blood-shot, presumably from staying up all night. His wife was busy preparing dinner for him, as he sat alone on the sofa, keeping his eyes closed to rest.
After a night plus a day, the scene of failure was still clear, once he closed his eyes, he could remember it clearly. He had a higher chance of winning, but he lost the championship, what went wrong? Bentner was not marked down? He specifically called attention onto him, but he only needed to take two chances to score. This really could not be explained by common sense. Tactically he did not make a mistake at all, and it was reasonable to say that he should not have gotten that ending. But this was football, it was unpredictable.
Fortunately, his heart was a little bit tougher than Twain’s, and there’s nothing wrong with that stimulation. In fact, those that looked more civilized would have a bigger reaction than those with a worse temper, once they are under huge pressure.
He closed his eyes, trying to banish the scene in his mind, and gradually felt fatigue wash over him.
When his wife came to him with dinner, she found that her husband had fallen asleep and was snoring slightly…
She put down the dinner, pulled a blanket, and gently covered her husband.
※※※
Today, Shania was particularly passionate. She was moaning exceptionally happily as she closed her eyes while hugging tightly onto her lover, all ten of her fingers scratching marks onto Twain’s back. It was as if she was afraid that once she let go, her lover would disappear. Only whilst closely holding him tightly in her embrace, feeling his warmth and heartbeats, listening to his breathing, enjoying his every thrust, would give her the sense of security.
For Bendtner and Arsene Wenger, the intense season was over, no matter if it was effortless or devastating, they could only accept this outcome.
But for Twain who is still battling without rest in bed, it was only a start to his most exciting summer. His heart would still need to continue to go through relentless tests..
