Accidents Can Happen

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Fernando's Last Match

"You look nervous," Flori mused sitting down next to Leona, she was a little surprised to find the blonde woman already in her seat but she guessed that had to do with the nerves and the fact that Fernando was warming up for his last match.

The news had taken Flori and her husband by surprise and they both knew that Fernando must have put a lot of thought into the decision if he was prepared to make it now.

He had been playing football since he was a little boy and Flori could only imagine how hard this was going to be on him; she just hoped that he had some sort of idea of what came next.

"I am... for him," Leona murmured looking down at Freya, she still couldn't believe that they were here now and she could only hope that this would be the perfect ending to Fernando's career.

The tickets that they had gotten for the match had been amazing and Leona was so happy to be there to support Fernando when he needed it the most; she was sure that either way he would shed tears tonight.

Flori nodded her head looking towards the pitch, her eyes easily spotting her youngest son and she hoped that he would be alright; she hated the thought of anything ruining this match for him.

There had been so many injuries in Fernando's career, the main one being the one that had required surgery back in 2010 just before the world cup.

"I am sure he'll be fine," Flori stated trying to not only comfort herself but Leona as well, she was happy that her son had someone like her with him now.

He was going to need someone to be patient with him when his career was over and Fernando was trying to find something else to do with his life; he was going to have to get used to his life without the sport in it.

"He told me about the plans to move to California," Flori mentioned wanting Leona to know that there were no secrets, she had been a little upset by the news but she knew that it wouldn't be a permanent thing.

Fernando was just trying to find himself now that his career was at an end and he had the money to do whatever he dreamed right now; the idea of living in America for a few years was that at the moment.

He had told his mother that he had even considered playing for an American team, maybe even with his former Liverpool team-mate Steven Gerrard but he hadn't liked what he had seen of the clubs out there.

"You don't mind?" Leona asked peeking at Flori, she was still trying to wrap her head around this as well and it didn't help that Fernando was already making plans for the move.

Everything was happening so fast and Leona was a little worried what that could mean for them if things didn't start too slow down.

They had a five and a half month old to think about and there were some decisions that needed to be carefully planned out; Leona was more than a little concerned about what Fernando might have planned next.

Flori looked towards the younger woman, a small smile on her face knowing that she was probably a little nervous about all these plans that Fernando was talking about but he wasn't going to do anything that she wasn't ready for.

"It's okay... I know this is all a little strange but he's just trying to find something to replace football with," Flori reassured gently, she was sure that in time that Fernando would settle into a nice coaching role but first he needed to take a step back before he did anything like that.

Leona nodded her head, she was glad to see that she wasn't the only one with worries about Fernando's planning and she had a feeling that it would all work out in the end.

"I am so proud of you," Leona gushed kissing Fernando, it was his very last match and she was delighted for him; she had come with Freya to Cardiff for the final of the Champions League against Bayern Munich.

It had been a difficult match and Leona had been worried that Atletico might not be able to handle the German time after they had gone two-nil up before half-time.

The match had ended three-nil with Fernando scoring the second goal, it had been an amazing goal even if Freya had no idea what was going on; the little girl had squeaked and clapped her hands.

Celebrations were taking place around the couple and they both knew that this would mean so much for the club since this was their first ever Champions League cup.

"Are you okay?" Leona asked concerned when she stepped back from Fernando, she wasn't sure how he would react to this but she wanted to make sure that he was alright.

Fernando nodded his head, he was sad that his time had come to end his career but he had been playing for years and he would rather end it now than end up stuck on some bench with no chance of playing again.

"I will be fine," Fernando encouraged with a smile, he was happy that he had helped his team win their first Champions League especially against such a difficult team and that was what was important now.

He had said his goodbyes to everyone at the club and Fernando knew that he would never regret his decision to end things now; this was a way for him to move forward and he was doing it on a high.

Leona looked at him warily, she wasn't sure that she did believe him and she could only hope that he was right; she peeked down at Freya who was wiggling in her arms.

The little girl held out her arms for Fernando to take her, she was getting bigger every day and Leona was sure that they would have their hands full in a couple of years.

***

"Freya's sleeping," Fernando murmured almost relieved that the little girl had settled down so well and he was thankful that being in a strange place hadn't upset her too much.

They were staying in a hotel for the night since the celebrations had dragged on longer than expected and Fernando didn't want to leave Leona and Freya behind while he travelled back to Madrid.

Leona nodded her head, she was pleased that Freya had gone down well especially since the little girl had been cranky and she could only imagine what she would have been like if they had tried to fly her to Madrid.

The idea would not have gone down well and Leona was a little surprised that Fernando had opted to stay with them instead of celebrating with his team-mates.

The celebrations would certainly continue long into the night and Leona doubted anyone would get much sleep with everything that was planned.

Fernando flopped down on the bed, he wasn't really that tired but he knew that he had to get some sleep for their early flight back to Madrid the next morning.

His parents had already gone and had made them promise that they would come and have dinner with them later in the week; they wanted to spend time with their son and his family before they went to America.

Leona watched her boyfriend as a small smile formed on her face, they had been together for six months and she knew just how to celebrate with him.

"Nando, I'm ready," Leona said making him look up at her, in the six months that they had been together they hadn't been intimate with one another.