Lean on Me

Part One - Chapter Thirteen: The 2011 Pre-Season

Cassidy yawned stepping into airport so that she could fly out to Hong Kong with the team, it was very early in the morning and it was going to be a long flight and she couldn't wait to take a nap.

“What have you done?” John asked looking at the presenter, he stared shocked at her once brown hair that was now blonde again; a couple of the team looked at her surprised at her sudden change, while others looked amused.

Fernando stared at Cassidy wondering what had brought this on, he hadn't called her back since Olalla had become clingy and he hadn't found the time to call her back; he stared at Cassidy as she chatted happily with his team-mates, he felt horrible that things had changed between them.

“I felt like a change… new season, new me,” Cassidy said glancing at Fernando, they needed to talk but she didn't want to do it right now; she had done a lot of thinking and she needed to know where they stood.

Frank looked at John who shrugged watching at Cassidy, there was clear more to it than that and they wondered if it had something to do with the fact that she wasn’t speaking with Fernando.

Cassidy hadn't come with them for the first few friendlies and they had all seen how disappointed Fernando had been to discover that Cassidy wouldn’t be covering them.

Cassidy was wearing pink light jersey T-shirt and kick flare jeans paired with canvas grey plimsolls for the flight; she had wanted to be comfortable while they were in the air.

“So what did you do over the summer?” John asked trying to change the subject away from the fact that Cassidy had dyed her hair again; she wasn’t going to open up about why she had changed her hair colour.

***

Fernando took his chance to speak with Cassidy when they were in the air, he had been walking past her when he had been the toilet and noticed that she was sat alone; he licked his lips as he sat down next to her.

“I’m sorry,” Fernando said trying to adjust to her blonde hair, he had been horrible to her and that she deserved better but after his holiday he had made a decision, he couldn't lose her.

“I know that I wanted us to take a break but I’ve been thinking and I want to continue this,” Fernando said quietly so that no one could hear their conversation, he didn't want anyone catching on to what was happening between them.

Cassidy closed her book annoyed as she looked at Fernando, she took a deep breath determined to be strong; she needed to stand her ground.

“I don’t think I can do that Nando,” Cassidy said making the footballer stare at her, he hadn't expected this to happen.

Cassidy sighed watching him she had to say firm about this, she’d had enough and she wasn’t about to fall into that trap again.

“I haven’t heard from you in weeks and you expect to come back and pretend that nothing happened?” Cassidy hissed glaring at him, she had been wrong in getting involved with a married man and she was willing to end this all now.

Fernando blinked staring at Cassidy, he hadn't meant to upset her and now that she was ending what they had after nineteen weeks, he ran a hand through his brown hair as he tried to figure out what was going on.

“I’m sorry, I never meant to hurt you,” Fernando said softly looking down at his hand, he licked his lips knowing that he had to do something to make her trust him again; he needed to show her that he was serious about them.

“I know you are Fernando, but you have a wife and children and I don’t want to be the one that ends that for you,” Cassidy said looking at him, her heart ached at her words knowing that she wasn’t just hurting him but herself.

Ever since Cassidy had realised that she loved him, Cassidy had been trying to think about her future and it didn't look good; she knew that it wouldn’t end well and she needed to get out before it was too late for her.

“My marriage is dead… I know what I want and it is you,” Fernando said taking her head, it would take a lot to convince her but he was speaking with his lawyer about filing for divorce; they weren’t the same and neither of them were happy together anymore.

“I have an appointment when we go back to London and I would like you to come with me,” Fernando said shifting closer to Cassidy, the two of them were lucky that everyone around them were asleep and no one could hear what was being said.

Cassidy looked at him wondering where he was going with this, she watched him as he pulled out something and handed it to her.

Cassidy furrowed her brow looking at the leaflet, she opened it as Fernando watched her contently knowing that this was the first step in getting his life back.

“You’re getting a tattoo removed?” Cassidy asked trying to wrap her head around what was going on, she looked at him; she tilted her head curiously as Fernando nodded his head and pushed his sleeve on his left arm to reveal the tattoo of Olalla’s name.

***

Fernando carried Cassidy’s holdall up to her hotel room for her, she smiled at him softly as she allowed him into her hotel room; she had a feeling that there was a lot more to this than he was telling her.

“Are you sure about this?” Cassidy asked knowing that she was putting herself on the line, she was aware that until Fernando was divorced then she was messing with his life; he nodded his head as he set down their bags and wrapped his arms around her.

“I’m sure… I have never felt like this with Olalla,” Fernando said holding her close, he wasn’t about to lose her; she was the one giving him the strength to leave behind his unhappy marriage, he didn't care about the backlash and he would do anything as long as he had Cassidy in his life.

Cassidy sighed resting her head against him; she cursed herself for falling in love with him while they had only been together for four months and now she was going to be the cause of his divorce.

“This isn’t your fault… I haven’t been happy in a long time and neither has Olalla, we aren’t being fair to ourselves and it’s time to end things,” Fernando said making her look at him, he cupped her face as he searched her eyes; she was his future and he knew that he would do anything for her.

Cassidy closed her eyes for a moment before she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him, she held him close as they kissed knowing that it had been a while since the two of them had been this close.

Fernando held her close running her fingers through his hair, he had been growing it out again and he knew that it wasn’t the only change; he was taking a big risk with leaving Olalla and he hoped that it wouldn’t cause any problems for his children.

Slowly the couple moved back towards Cassidy’s hotel bed, they hadn't been alone in so long that they couldn't resist the chance to spend some time together.

Cassidy hoped that this time everything would work out, she was putting herself in a lot of trouble; Fernando was a married man and until he was divorced, Olalla was a problem that wasn’t going away any time soon.