Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
It has been more than a month since Twain last returned to his home atop the Mapperley Park hill in the northeastern part of Nottingham City. Everything in his home was covered in dust and the yard was almost fully covered by fallen leaves. He had no choice but to employ a cleaning company to clean up his place.
If not for the fact that Shania was flying back from Paris to stay for three days, Twain had no need to return.
He realized that it was very hard for him to have any sort of routine in his life ever since he became the manager of the national team. His homes were hotel rooms and along with the league and cup matches, he had to travel all across England, even overseas sometimes, to examine his players.
If Shania was waiting at home for her husband’s return instead of being busy in her own career, she would have to switch on all the lights in the sizeable house every night before she could go to sleep. Now that he thought about it, maybe it was not a bad thing for them to be living separately. Being unable to return to his own home was naturally worse than that.
Twain clapped in satisfaction as he looked at his home, which looked brand new after the makeover. Then, he looked down at his watch, decided that it was about time to fetch Shania from the airport and hopped into the car at his door.
※※※
At the London Heathrow Airport, Twain found out that there was a group of reporters lugging their cameras and video cameras with them also waiting for the same flight from Paris to London.
These reporters did not react to a celebrity like Twain, so it was impossible that they were sports reporters.
Who were they waiting to interview then?
The answer was revealed when Shania appeared at the exit.
There was a commotion amongst the reporters when they saw the tall and fashionable Shania walking out with a small Louis Vuitton luggage. They all rushed forward and camera flashes started to flash all around them.
The situation became out of control for a moment.
The security detail tried their best to maintain the order and prevent the reporters from disturbing Shania.
Shania paid no mind to these disturbances. She tiptoed a little and started searching the crowd. Twain did not wave at her to indicate where he was. He was standing outside the group of reporters, trying to see if Shania would be able to find him.
The telepathy between the two lovers passed this minor test.
Shania merely turned her body a little and she found her target. She did not care that there were reporters and security guards around. She waved at Twain and then walked quickly past the surrounding reporters towards Twain, who was waiting in front of a pillar, with the luggage in tow.
Twain stood there with his arms open as he waited for Shania to dive in.
The reporters finally recognized the old man who appeared in front of them as Shania’s husband——England national team’s manager, Tony Twain.
“Uncle Tony!” Shania exclaimed happily as she dived into his arms.
If he was not leaning onto a pillar, Twain would most definitely have been floored by Shania.
“Oh… Take it easy, have you grown fatter dear?”
“That’s the luggage!” Shania rolled her eyes at him.
Twain looked at the LV luggage on the floor and chuckled.
Of course, Shania knew what Twain was laughing about. This made her a little red-faced from embarrassment and she used her ultimate move in order to stop her husband from teasing her about her weight——She planted her lips on Twain’s without hesitation right in front of countless media and strangers, and her nimble little tongue even took this opportunity to enter Twain’s mouth.
“Mm…”
Twain could not speak even if he wanted to and he could only make muffled noises like that.
Even though he had been a Caucasian for so many years, Twain was still not used to kissing in front of other people. However, Shania had no such concerns since she was a true-blue westerner and she only wanted to fully enjoy this moment after being separated for so long. She eventually threw her purse on the ground and put her arms around Twain’s neck, completely losing herself into her husband’s scent.
Twain lost track of how long this kiss was. When their lips separated again, he was almost out of breath and Shania was flushed in her cheeks as well.
The media got the whole process on camera from all angles. These images would probably appear on all entertainment news and the internet the next day…No, later in the afternoon.
“We’ll be on the headlines again, Shania,” Twain panted as he told his wife.
“Who cares!” Shania did not care how she would be judged by other people, “I love you, Uncle Tony!”
“I love you too,” Twain picked up Shania’s purse that was on the ground and gave it back to her, then grabbed her luggage that was behind her before telling her, “Let’s go.”
“To where? The hotel?” Twain did not tell Shania that he had cleaned up their home so that he could give her a surprise. That was why Shania thought that Twain had booked a hotel room in London for her.
“No,” Twain turned around and gave her a warm smile, “Let’s go home.”
※※※
Let’s go home.
Shania was very excited in the car all because of that sentence. She even whistled at the people outside without giving a thought about her image. Twain laughed as he shook his head and drove. He did not stop her as he knew why his wife was so excited.
For a couple that had been living in different countries for so long, “going home” was a phrase that was so tempting. It could invoke countless beautiful imaginations within them.
In their quiet home, there was no paparazzi following and stopping them, they did not have to worry about whether their outfit and behavior were congruent with their public images. They could sit on the sofa in front of the television in any way they wanted, prop their bare feet on the table and eat their favorite chips while enjoying the soap opera that was aired.
There was nothing they looked forward to more than a quiet life like that.
The world could only see the money and lifestyle that a superstar enjoyed, but not the freedom that they had to sacrifice for them. Normal people could vent their displeasure by scolding vulgarities when they were unhappy. However, if a superstar did that, what awaited them was someone exposing them and them getting criticized. Tony Twain was a star that did not acted like a star. Too bad in the eyes of the public, he was merely a “star with an attitude”. They did not know that he was a star that was working hard to be a regular person.
Shania was known as someone who loved an old man and because of that, she was also the victim of a lot of gossips when she announced that she was marrying Twain.
“Uncle Tony, would I be disturbing your work now that I’m back?” Shania got her head and arms back into the car after she was done being excited as she turned to ask Twain.
“It’s just a weekend without watching football, it’s nothing,” Twain said nonchalantly.
“Aren’t you afraid that the media will say you’re unprofessional?”
Twain laughed and said, “Haven’t the media criticized me enough times?” For Twain, it was a situation of “a dead mouse feels no cold”, “It’s rare that you’re back. I think it’s worth it to be criticized a little just to accompany you.”
Shania felt that it was very sweet. All women desire to be the only one that her man thinks about, even if he had to go against the whole world. Every woman will have this selfish thought, even though it was not a very rational one…
Then, she turned her body a little and slowly slid towards her husband in the driver’s seat, before finally resting her head softly on Twain’s shoulder.
“Uncle Tony,” Shania mumbled with her eyes closed as she leaned on Twain’s shoulder.
“Hmm?” Twain had to ensure that while focusing on driving, his actions had to be not too exaggerated while changing gears so as not to disturb his wife.
“I’ve calculated, these few days falls into my risky period you know,” Shania looked up and smiled at Twain.
Twain was stunned for a moment before realizing that “risky period” means “ovulating period”. If they were to make love during this period, it would be very easy for her to be pregnant.
“Let’s have a baby?” Shania looked at Twain expectedly.
Twain backed down, “Shania, you’re only 23… It’s too early…”
“Why are you just like Mr Fasal?” Shania pouted, a little unhappy, “We’ve been married for five and a half years.”
“My bride had just reached 18 then,” Twain freed one hand and gently held Shania’s hand, caressing it, “You’re still young, Shania. You should not be tied up by a child at this age.”
“But you’re not young anymore, Uncle Tony,” Shania had a different opinion.
“This isn’t good for your career…” Twain continued to back down.
Shania continued to press him, “I’ve already said that I don’t care about my own career. If we have a child, I’ll retire from the entertainment and modelling circles.”
“Are you acting in a fit of pique?” Twain gave a wry smile.
“I’m serious!”
And Twain’s smile became more awkward.
Shania knew what Twain was afraid of, she consoled him and said, “Don’t think too much, Uncle Tony. Maybe you’ve been too tired and have too much stress? Let’s have a good rest during these few days and not think about anything, okay?”
Twain finally nodded, “We’ll do as you say, Shania.”
※※※
It was just like what Shania said. There were almost no trace of Twain and Shania in the entertainment or sports media during these few days.
They disappeared from the public eye after that passionate kiss in the airport.
Not caring about anything, enjoying their married life.
They made love passionately, all because they wanted a baby.
A child, their plans for the future ever since they got married.
Shania’s considerations were valid, and Twain agreed in his mind too. He was already 46 years old, an age that would not be considered young for someone who was healthy, let alone someone who had a heart disease like him. It was a serious matter to still not have a child and nobody knew how much longer he could live for.
If he was a little older… Taking four years as a stage. The World Cup is held every four years, so is the European championship. If he led the team to the European championship trophy, he would undoubtedly be offered the contract to lead them in the World Cup as well. In four years, Twain would be 50 years old. He did not know whether he would still be as potent as he was now.
That was why they had no time to waste.
Life is really short…
Maybe having a child was the one thing that Twain would never be able to do. A person who was a godfather after winning so many trophies and yet he did not have any offspring. Could this be a side effect of time travel? Or maybe… This was karma for all the times he acted so arrogantly?
Twain did not want to think about such questions. He spent all his effort on his wife.
After he got tired, Twain laid next to Shania, considered for a very long time before saying, “Shania… If this doesn’t work, let’s adopt a baby?”
Shania covered his mouth with her hand, “I only want a child that looks like you, Uncle Tony.”
Twain had no choice but to continue working hard.
※※※
Working hard for a baby with Shania was the only time for relaxation in Twain’s busy schedule. Holding Shania’s youthful and alluring body in his arms, no matter how stressful he was, how busy he was, how exhausted he was, they would all be forgotten. Twain did not deny that he was madly in love with this youthful body. He was not a believer of platonic sex. A relationship without a material basis was something that he could not imagine.
Twain did not appear in the Goodison Park’s stands for the seventh round of the league because he was spending his time with Shania. The national team’s assistant manager, Des Walker was there in his place.
As there were photographs of Twain and Shania kissing passionately at the airport, some of the media complained that Twain had forgotten about his work because of love. This was not the attitude that the manager of the England team should have.
When Twain returned, the reporters asked him some questions regarding that. He simply replied that it was his private life and he had the rights to enjoy his private life. As for the match between Everton and Manchester City, he indicated that he watched the match live at home and recordings of the match after that. He also analyzed the notes that his assistant manager, who was there on the grounds, provided him. He was sure that he knew more about what was happening at every single moment of that match than any of the reporters who covered it.
Even when he was with Shania, he did not stop paying attention to everything that happened in the English Premier League, no matter how minor it was.
Tottenham Hotspur’s Delph had been in a bad form for the past two rounds. If he did not adjust soon, his name would not be included in the call up list for the next national squad.
Manchester United’s Ferdinand pulled his left thigh muscle during the match with Newcastle. Initial reports indicated that he would be out of action for a month so he would definitely not be able to make the international matches in mid-October.
Nottingham Forest’s David Bentley did not have any impressive performance. If there were no surprises, he would also not be included in the call up list for England this time.
He also considered the fact that there were too many players of the same type in midfield, so Twain removed Manchester United’s midfielder, Michael Carrick from the next call up list too.
Middlesbrough’s Paul Pepper had been performing admirably in September. Not only did he attract the interest of all the big clubs, he also made Twain think about calling him up to the national team.
If there were no other surprises, Anton Ferdinand would be replacing his brother in the national team.
There were two more weeks to the next European Championship qualifier match and Twain was already preparing for it. He had already led the team to three wins on the trot (if one counted the friendly match against Nottingham Forest), and the fans and media were all looking forward to watching him keep winning.
He used to be the most hated person in the whole of England. Other than the Nottingham Forest fans, 93 percent of the people in the country disliked him. Now, what could he do to win them over?
Winning of course.
Only winning.
