Ted Lasso OneShots

Little Cries

'Don't turn your back on me, you pussy!' Jamie's father shoved him, then Jamie did something Roy couldn't have predicted. He punched his Dad. Square in the jaw. Then his Dad was getting up, and Roy saw the look of sheer panic on Jamie's face. He mentally readied himself to defend Jamie, but Beard dragged him away. He slammed him of the door and followed for good measure. And Jamie just stood there. Stood there, staring at the spot his Dad had just left. He was almost zoned out. Then Roy remembered something. Something Jamie had said, that Roy hadn't thought about since. 'You know... I had a poster of you on my wall when I was a kid.' Jamie, a kid, who had faced his Dad's wrath god knows how many times.

Roy didn't even fully know what he was doing until he was halfway across the locker room, walking towards Jamie. But when his heart skipped a beat as Jamie flinched upon noticing him, Roy knew he was doing the right thing. He enveloped Jamie in a hug, probably the tightest hug he's ever given anyone. He surprised himself with it- never in his life did he think he'd ever hug Jamie Tartt, but he held firm. Jamie just stood there in shock at first, unable to grasp what Roy was doing. Then Roy felt vulnerable arms snake around his waist and hold on so tight Roy could feel every finger digging into him. But Roy didn't move.

Because Roy was angry. Jamie's Dad made his skin crawl- just the mere thought of what the man must've put Jamie through his entire life made Roy want to knock him dead. Roy's fist was curled against Jamie's back, the anger surging through his body and the urge to beat the crap out of Jamie's Dad still having a strong hold him.

And then he heard it. It was quiet, so quiet Roy's ears hardly picked it up. Jamie let out a little gasping sob and buried his face deeper into the crook of Roy's shoulder. In that moment, all anger evaporated from Roy. In that moment, Jamie needed Roy more than Roy needed to beat up Tartt Sr. Roy uncurled his fist, holding Jamie a little tighter, a little firmer. Letting him know that he was gonna look after him, that his Dad won't hurt him anymore so long as Roy is alive. Jamie let out another little, slightly louder sob and Roy's hold on him only deepened. He barely even noticed the team's stunned and saddened gazes, the looks of empathy and shock, the realisation of what their teammate had been enduring dawning on them.

And as Roy held Jamie, he thought. Maybe this was the reason Jamie was the way he was, he was protecting himself. If that kind of wrath his Dad just demonstrated is what Jamie faced when he didn't dominate the pitch, Roy couldn't blame him. And suddenly, Roy understood. Understood Jamie's fear of changing, his reluctance to share anything of his personal life, his love for praise and acceptance.

A fresh bout of Jamie's cries brought Roy back into the real world where he was there, hugging Jamie after the younger man's Dad attacked him in front of the whole team. Roy dreaded to think what would have happened if Tartt Sr had chosen to target Jamie at home, when there a nobody there to stand up for him. Yes, Jamie had landed a punch. But Roy had seen Jamie all but freeze when his Dad got back up, seen the look of fear on his face as Beard dragged the elder Tartt from the room. Roy cupped the back of Jamie's neck, letting him know that he was safe with Roy, safe in the arms of his childhood hero. Safe from the monsters that hid in the very next room.

Someone in my comments section on TikTok gave me the idea for this one- Jamie's little sobs :'). Hope you enjoyed this, reviews and requests welcome as always :)
Alexander