Lost souls | Mason Mount

seven

A few days later...

Hazel found herself sitting on the bench again, at the cemetery. This time without her grandparents being there. She just watched a family visit a grave, and she couldn't help but look their way. She watched them leave with tears on their faces, feeling her heart ache for them.

She sat there alone now, enjoying the fresh air that was blowing her hair away from her face. She started humming the same song she had been humming before. But the humming soon turned into singing, but with a very quiet voice. She loved doing it, just singing for herself when no one was around...or at least she didn't think anyone was around at this moment.

Completely oblivious to her, Mason was standing there, leaning against a tree, hearing her sing. He found it peaceful too; her voice was just enough to make him smile, and he knows he could listen to her singing all day and never get tired of it.

He stood there until she finished her song; he didn't want to disturb her in the middle of it or make her feel embarrassed, even if she shouldn't be because her voice was truly beautiful.

"You have a beautiful voice," he said out loud, breaking the silence and causing her to look back. He was still leaning against the tree, but slowly walked towards her.

"Mason? You scared me," they both chuckled as he went over and took a seat next to her.

"So... how long have you been singing?" He asked, intrigued, as they both looked at the view in front of them.

"As long as I can remember... my mom used to sing too, so I guess I got it from her," she smiled.

"When I asked you if you had any hobbies, you didn't mention singing," he chuckled.

She laughed too, "because I don't like singing in front of people, and if I mention it, it's most likely that they want me to sing for them."

"Would you sing right now if I asked you?"

"Nope," she said, causing them both to laugh.

"You do have a beautiful voice, though," he repeated his earlier words.

"Thank you," she responded shyly. "Can you sing?" She then asked, curious.

"Nah, I think I'm doing everyone a favor if I don't sing," he said, causing more laughter.

"How's everything going then? Have you done anything interesting the past few days?" He asked, making sure the conversation wouldn't die out.

"Not really, it's the same routine as it's been the past few days, I guess," she answered, "how about you?"

"Same here, I'm hoping to get back to training soon," he said. "It's frustrating watching everyone else play and I'm just at home, not doing anything."

It had been over a week, and the break from football for Mason wasn't easy. The past few days, he had been feeling a lot better and had dealt with the loss way better than before. He's been missing the pitch a lot, and can't wait to play again. He just needed to prove to Potter that he was ok now.

Hazel nodded, understanding where he came from. "It does sound frustrating," she said, "but don't rush the process; when the time is right it will happen," She smiled as she quoted another famous line she had heard from her mom.

Mason giggled and nodded, "Yeah...you're right."

They sat and talked for a bit longer, both laughing now and then, forgetting about the fact that they were sitting at a cemetery. It was all they needed—distraction and healing through laughter and talking, learning more about each other every minute that passed.

———

Nighttime had come around the corner, and Mason found himself laying on the couch watching a movie out of boredom. He wasn't even focused on the movie; he was just thinking about random things, and for the first time, it wasn't about his grandfather that he was thinking about. It was kind of a relief; he couldn't deal with the constant thinking of him.

His thoughts were surpassingly interrupted by his phone ringing. He sat up, grabbing it from the table in front of him, and his heart started racing when he saw his coach's name on the screen.

He took a deep breath and answered the call.

"Hello," he managed to get out from the nervousness inside of him.

"Mason, how is it going? Everything alright?" Potter asked intrigued.

"Yeah, I'm all good, thanks."

"Listen, I was just calling to hear from you and how you're doing. I know you've had a rough couple of weeks, but I think a change of environment could do you some good," he explained.

Mason was confused with what he meant by that, so he just responded with an "ok," allowing him to continue and elaborate.

"I think it'd be a good start if you came to training, not to actually train, or at least not yet, but to just come by and watch along, only if you feel ready, of course," he said.

Mason smiled for himself; hearing the gaffer say those words made him feel more relaxed. "Yeah... I feel ready," he let out a deep breath, standing up from his seat out of happiness.

"Lovely, how about you come tomorrow and we'll talk more? Figure out a good plan?" Potter asked, sounding happy on the other end of the phone.

"That sounds great!" Mason nodded in agreement.

"Good, see you tomorrow. Take care, Mase."

"You too," Mason said before hanging up.

He took a seat on the couch again, this time with a smile on his face, knowing thing were going to get better again.