Dribble {Sequel to Coach Styles}

Three-

Waking up, I was laying on dad, sprawled out with my arms tight around his waist. He was snoring as usual and I laid my head back down on his warm chest. It was nice to hear his heartbeat again. His snoring stopped as his phone began to go off and he took a deep breath before I felt him sit up. I kept my eyes tightly closed, for fear he'd make me walk.

Thankfully, he stood, my head rolling against his shoulder and my arms limply around his neck. I loved it when he carried me. It was as if nothing or no one could get to me and it made me feel special.

I felt a rush of air and knew he'd taken me out to the garage to get in the car. He sat me down in the passenger seat, leaning the back down so I could lay comfortably. I turned on my side, putting my hands against my cheek and I could hear him start the car. Music blared and he was quick to turn it off before we started moving.

His phone had started to ring again and I was thankful he had Bluetooth in the car.

"Hey babe, how was your game?" he asked. It was mom.

"It was good. We won. How did Pax do?"

"She did great. Yeah, I got to the game at halftime and she started crying she was so excited." His voice was light, he sounded happy.

"Is she there? Can I talk to her?"

"She's asleep right now, but I'll get her to FaceTime you when we get done with her last game."

"Good," she sighed. "Harry, we need to talk." Oh God, I had seen enough shows to know that there were three ways this could go. She was pregnant, hurt, or... Divorcing him. I hoped she was pregnant.

"What's wrong?" There was a long pause and I knew she wasn't pregnant or hurt.

"I think we need some space."

"What? You've been gone for almost an entire month. We've had nothing but space."

"Listen, I don't want to hurt you or Pax, but I see how happy she is with you. She's better with you."

"So what are you saying?" Dad was choking up, I could hear it in his voice.

"I want a divorce, Harry." My breath caught in my throat. "I feel awful, but I got an offer to play in Chicago and it's more money than I'm getting paid there."

"You- you're leaving because of money?" Dad's voice was creepily calm and he was only like this when he got truly upset.

"Harry, it's a lot of other things, too."

"I've given you everything. My life, my money, what about Pax? How do you think she's gonna handle this? We both know she loves you just as much as she loves me. You're just gone so much, you don't even get time with her."

"Harry," she sighed, "I'll send over the papers as soon as I can and I'll come get my stuff." The line cut off and dad cleared his throat. I took a deep breath, opening my eyes and rubbing them sleepily.

"Hi princess," he cleared his throat as we came to a turn. "Did you sleep good?" He kissed my forehead and was trying as best he could to smile.

"Dad." 

"You were awake the whole time, weren't you?" I nodded and he cleared his throat again. The car came to a stop and we both climbed out.

"It'll be okay, daddy. Mom doesn't know what she's missing," I teared up, hugging his waist, my voice muffled by his jacket. I hadn't called him daddy since I was four, but it seemed like he needed to know even though I was tall, I was and always would be his little girl.

"I'll be alright, my darling," he smiled weakly. He squatted down, looking at me and his smile widened, his eyes glassy and red.

"I love you more than anything on earth. You are loved so much and we're gonna get through this together. Okay?"

"Okay," I smiled as he pushed stray hairs out of my face and kissed my forehead. Both of our hair done up in buns. I wasn't very good at it, but dad seemed to have oddly mastered the technique. He pressed another kiss to my forehead before hugging me tightly and letting me climb on his back before we walked into the gym. All the boys were sitting in the stands already and their smiles seemed to fade when they saw us.

I sat next to him, leaning my head on his lap and he put his arm around me. I closed my eyes, still somehow sleepy. Maybe I was picking up on how sad he was that mom was leaving us. I kind of expected it sooner or later with how much she was gone, but I didn't think it'd come a week before my birthday. Whenever I used to think of my mom, I was happy to see her and the memories we had. Now? I was slowly becoming more angry that she wanted to leave.
----------------------------------------
After the next two games, we were 3-0 for the day and seeded number one in the tournament for the championship the next day. By the time we got home, it was 11:37 and mom had tried to call me numerous times.

"Are you gonna answer?" he asked as we both sat down at the kitchen table, opening the bags of food he'd bought.

"I don't wanna talk with her right now. I just want to eat, shower, and go to bed," I sighed, dreading finals that started on Monday.

"Pax, I know you may be angry, but-"

"But what, dad?!" I yelled, slamming my hand on the table. 

"She's still your mum no matter how bad she's doing you and I know she probably wants to say sorry."

"Sorry?" I scoffed. "Sorry? I'm sorry that I'm not okay when both of my parents are gone. I'm sorry that I'm not okay mom is leaving us. I'm sorry that I miss you and mom to my core. I'm sorry that I'm upset that she didn't have the decency to even come to you in person and tell you she didn't love you anymore."

Tears began to cloud my eyes, "I'm sorry that I'm not okay. I'm angry and hurt and it's not fa-ir. I'm sorry-" my breathing out of control, "I'm sorry that I miss my parents even when they're right in front of me." I was sobbing. It felt weird, but oddly good to let out all the tears I had held in.

"C'mere," dad murmured, stretching his arms out. Now, he was crying too. I walked toward him, sinking into his arms and we both just cried. I don't know how long we sat there, but it felt like years.

"Just because she's leaving, doesn't mean she doesn't love you anymore."

"But what about you? I don't want you to be hurt. That's not fair."

"Sometimes life isn't fair, my darling. But, you know what?"

"What?" I sniffled.

"We are strong enough to get through this. When school gets out, we're gonna go see Nana."

"We're gonna go see Nana Anne and Aunt Gemma?" I hadn't seen them since I was six.

"Yeah and then you're gonna go to camp and after camp, we're gonna go to the beach."

"We haven't been to the beach in forever."

"I know. I'm excited to go. Maybe we can invite some of your friends. Louis, Liam, and Niall are gonna come too."

"Dad," I sighed, knowing what he was doing. I knew he was trying to keep my mind off the fact that I was no longer gonna be around my mom. At least he was trying.

"I'm going to give you the best life that you deserve," he cooed, his thumbs running underneath my eyes. I followed his motion, running my long thumbs underneath his eyes and giving him a kiss on his warm forehead.

"You don't have to spend money on me, dad. Just be here and that's enough to make my life the best."