herophine - Trouvaille

Chapter 25

Crosby, Liverpool - England, 2026

She enters the family-black Nissan car and buckles up, next to Hero. The way back to school to pick up Sofía is silent, although this time it is a comfortable one.

Josephine thinks about calling Laura tonight and telling her the progress from these past days. She also has other pending calls, which are priority: her manager and her family. She has no idea how to start the conversation with her family and not to end in a disaster. But, Christmas holidays are getting closer and her parents will be calling her soon.

In less than seven minutes they are already entering the school parking. Hero works every afternoon. Sometimes he can't pick up Sofía because he starts training before she gets out, so his sister Mercy is responsible of picking her up and babysitting. Other days he enters after school, so he picks up Sofía and takes her with him to work. Those days she trains in her girls' soccer team next to the fields where Hero coaches. Today, Josephine will be going with them to their soccer trainings.

They get out of the car, walk to the main entrance and the other parents start staring at Jo just like this morning. A couple minutes later, children start to walk outside the building and Sofía appears after them. Sofía is almost capable of smiling when she sees Josephine waiting next to her dad in between all the people waiting there. Almost. The little girl is a tough one. She runs to them after saying goodbye to Miss Mary and jumps into her dad's open arms.

- Hi, daddy. - She snuggles in his arms. - Hello. - She says to Josephine timidly. 

- Hello, Sofía. - Jo says giving her a smile and with her heart pounding. 

If they saw them from the outside without knowing anything about their lifes, they would look to them as the perfect family. So good-looking, so young, so everything. Yet appearances deceive. 

Once in the car, Sofía is more talkative. She talks about the school festival that will be held in three days, where her class is going to sing some carols. 

- Miss Mary told me I can sing some lines on my own. - She says happily. - But... I don't know if I want to. - She says insecure. 

- Why? - Hero looks at her for a couple of seconds through the rearview mirror. 

- Because, what if I forget them? - Sofía whines. - Or, what if they laugh when I sing? I'm not a singer. 

- Sof, you will do great. - Her dad answers. - We will be both there to support you. 

Josephine's heart skips a beat when she hears his "we". 

She wants to offer her help to Sofía. She is not a big singer, but she knows a bit about music. When she was a kid, she used to be a very musical person. Jo used to play the violin, the piano and even though she hasn't ever done it in her professional life, she has a nice voice and knows how to sing. Despite this, she thinks it might be too soon and that her offer could maybe scare Sofía.

They pull over next to an enormous park with more than five soccer fields. Hero unbuckles, gets a small sport backpack and walks to Sofía's carseat. 

- Okay, let's get you ready baby girl. - He starts undressing her from the school uniform and helps her dress into her soccer tracksuit. 

Josephine watches them from behind, analyzing every movement and interaction between father and daughter. Hero laces her soccer boots and then manages to make her a messy ponytail. 

- All done. - And then he smacks a kiss on her chubby cheek. 

They walk towards the smaller field, where there are around ten little girls all ready to train.  Hero tells Josephine that she can wait and watch Sofía play from the bleachers. She will be finished in forty-five minutes and then they can both wait there for him to finish. He gives her Sofía's small sport backpack and her coat for later, before leaving.

Josephine sits and watches a happy Sofía run accross the field, trying to score a goal. 

After a while, she takes out her phone. Three new calls from her assistant and seven from her manager, plus a couple of messages from Katherine asking if she has talked already with them.

Inspire. Expire.

She presses the number and waits with her eyes closed while thinking about Sofía sleeping and dreaming in her bed calmly, the night Jo felt for the first time as her mother.

- It's me. - She says without formalities when they pick the call up. - I want you to cancel everything, from now until summer. At least, until May. We will see after that.

- Are you really serious, Josephine? - Her manager says. - Gosh, Josephine... There are brands that have paid a lot of money for you to be their image.

However, Jo stays firm.

- Well, I guess there exist a clause to withdraw the contract. Make sure the lawyers fix it. - Inspire and expire.

- It isn't that easy, Josephine. You know it. - Lena tries to persuade her from Los Ángeles. She has been her manager for so long now, she has been there since the pregnancy and she has always seen in Josephine a lot of potential for the show business. A potential that believes it shouldn't be wasted.

Josephine is not ready to give up her career forever, but she needs to pause it for some time.

- Lena. - She tries to talk with a quiet and soft voice, instead of a nervous and annoyed one. - I need to stop. I should have had stopped six years ago and I didn't. I am doing it now.

Lena stops arguing. Few words are enough. 

- We will talk about it more calmly when the Christmas holidays are over. - She sighs. 

They end the conversation without much frills. Josephine knows that Lena is an efficient person, and in a couple of days she will have canceled any event she had and solved the contracts with the brands. 

The loud cheers and happy screams from the six-year-old girls, makes Josephine put her thoughts on one side and focus on the field again. Sofía jumps in happiness, and this time Jo affirms it for herself:

Her temporariness staying in Crosby is solved. For the moment, she is not going anywhere but there.

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Hii,

sorry I haven't updated earlier. I just finished my third year in college this week, so I hope I have more time to write now.

Enjoy this chapter✨