The start of something new

Everleigh

I looked in the rearview mirror to see my sister grinning in her carseat. Her feet kicking back and forth as she looked out of the window beside her.

The scenery was different from what she is used to. Long meadows stretched several miles on both sides of the small street we were driving on.

I couldn't help but smile at my cute baby sister, while I turned my gaze back at the road.

A small gasp made me furrow my brows and look up again at the little girl behind me.

"What's the matter Everleigh?" I asked. At first I thought something had happened, but it seemed like I had mistaken.

"S'a cow!" She exclaimed as she tried to stand up, but the seatbelt was too secure for her to get out. A small whine left her mouth.

"Out!" Her hands were reaching out for me. She wiggled a little trying to get out. "See cow!" Wiggling a little more as a cry left her little body.

"Not now, baby. We have to get to the big school before practice start. Remember?" I told her calmly. This immediately got her to quiet down while the smile that previously was on her face returned.

"Col...ege?" She tried her best to pronounce the word college. Her cutie mispronunciation made it better.

"Yes, that's right." I chuckled. "We are going to Ben's work. And do you know who else works there?" I asked her, talking about myself in third person.

Everleigh's nose scrunched up, indicating that she had to think about it. She added to it by tapping her finger on her chin, looking out of the window.

After thinking for awhile she turned to me again. She gave my a cute little shrug. "Don't know." She said.

"Well I know." Teasing her before telling.
"Can you make a drumroll?" She started to gently hit her thighs, pretending to hit on a drum.

"It's Anna!" I heard her gasp. Didn't think she would gasp. I looked back to see if she was joking, but she got really excited.

"Elsa too?" She could hardly sit still in her seat. Now I understand the excitement.

"Oh princess, not Anna from frozen. Anna my girlfriend. You saw her this morning." I cleared up. I kinda felt bad for that one.

"Sorry, honey."

She leaned back in her seat with a pout on her lips muttering a small "S'okay" to my apology.

You are probably wondering why I'm on my way to work with my three year old sister in the back.

I'm on babysitting duty. My parents had to go on an important business trip out of the country. We have an other brother, but apparently he had fallen of the wagon again, so mom and dad wouldn't let him watch Everleigh. That I understand.

I live an hour flight away from my parents which means my sister's daycare is also an hour flight away. That's why she's joining me. This wouldn't be the first time either. My parents are kind of busy with work, and getting a baby twenty-one years after their eldest was born might not have been intentional nor practical.

This means that I have been babysitting a lot these past three years and Everleigh have joined me at work several times. My coworker's love her, so does my players.

That leads me to my work. Both me and my girlfriend, or fiancé if you'd like, Anna,  are professional football coaches at one of the most prestigious schools in America.

Anna and I have been playing as long as we can remember. We both had a pretty bad accident while dating in collage that resulted in our careers as football players ending.
Both of us studied at the school we are coaches for now.

When the doctors told us that we could no longer play, we were both devastated. Football was our life.
We got to finish our degree at college, but after graduation both of us got the offer to coach a team. Of course we had to say yes to the offer.

Now I coach the guys team, while Anna couches the girls team.

"But I saw Anna at home." Everleigh stated, a little confused to how Anna could be both places at once.

"That's right, but she left a little earlier than we did, so she will be at the school before us." I only earned a nod before she turned her head to look at whatever caught her eye outside of the car.

I came to a stop in the parkinglot outside the football field. My players were already warming up, probably on the order from Anna.

That's a perk of living with another coach. If something happens or one of us just wants to sleep in that day, the other one take the warm up for both teams.

"Anna!" Everleigh yelled as I opened the car door to let her out. I heard a click, signaling that the seatbelt was off and Everleigh was out of the car running towards the football field and Anna.

I got everything out of the car and walked after her. By now she had talked to at least half of my team and half of Anna's team, who were practicing together today.

Everleigh was being passed around. She was a big hearted little human, everyone deserved a 'good morning' from her.

One of my players and possibly Everleigh's favorite, Chris, were holding her upside down while tickling her. Her cute giggles made everyone coo and smile.

"Okay! boys and girls, put my sister down. Hurry out on the field." I told them as I took Everleigh in my arms and walked after them, throwing commands on what they were going to do. Anna doing the same with her girls.

After about two hours I could tell Everleigh was getting tired. She had been clumsily running between cones that I had laid out for the teams, while doing the same exercises they were doing.

The stubborn girl didn't want to quit.

I knew if I were too take her away while the others where still training she would throw a fit, so I decided to give them all a break.

I blew in a whistle as I walked towards the team, aiming for my sister. "Take ten minutes rest. We'll continue after that." When I said that Everleigh threw herself at the ground in a dramatic matter, breathing heavily.

The team praised her for how good she was at this. Though she did everything much slower and clumsier I was impressed and extremely proud of the three year old.

I picked her up from the ground, she immediately laid her head on my shoulders. Getting her down for a nap now wouldn't be a problem.

"Sleepy." She mumbled sweetly, her thumb that had sneaked it's way to her mouth was making her words muffled.

My hand went up and down her small back, sending her even deeper into a sleepy state.

"That's okay, you did so good. I think you will have a well deserved nap." I whispered into her ears.

Her only response was to lift up her hands to wave at the others over my shoulder. I chuckled at that. It warmed my heart to see all of them being so nice towards her.

"Good nap, Everleigh." Amanda, a girl from the girls team chimed in. I saw it made Everleigh very happy that they talked to her.

"Good nap, Everleigh." Could be heard from everyone, like choir. This made Everleigh blush. She hid her face in my neck, a little shy from all the attention she was receiving.

I headed towards the car to get out Everleigh's stroller. When I got to the car small snores could be heard coming from the little girl. She was so cute.

I got everything she needed out of the car. The stroller, a blanket to keep her warm and the most important thing, Lamby. Her stuffed lamb.

If I were to put her down in the stroller without that lamb she would be awake within a minute. She is able to sleep without the lamb if she is sleeping with either mom, dad, my brother or me. Anna is slowly getting in on that list. But if none of us is holding her while she sleeps, lamby has to be there.

After putting her down I pushed the stroller onto the field. I sat it at the farthest end of the field so I could keep an eye on it, but she wasn't so close that she would wake up. It is a big field.