From my spot on the sofa, I can hear the door being opened and shut forcefully. This lets me know that my husband Mike is home, and tonight didn't go the way he and the team hoped.
I decide to stand up from my seat and walk towards where Mike is sitting at the kitchen table. "Hey baby." I softly run my fingers though his hair and kiss him on the top of his head. "Do you need anything?" I want to make sure his mood improves quickly, because Mike is not the most pleasant when he is upset. There's nothing anyone dislikes more than when Mike is in a bad mood.
"Hey sweetheart. Can we just talk please? I just need you right now." He sighs quietly and closes his eyes for a moment. Seeing Mike like this breaks my heart and I want nothing more than to make him feel happy again.
Staying silent, I grasp his big hand in my small one and lead him to our bedroom. I sit him on the bed and stand in front of him. "Talk to me baby." My hands find their way onto his face, rubbing my tumb across his cheek to calm him a little bit.
He deeply sighs, closing his eyes for a moment before opening them again and looking down at his lap. "(y/n), when I have bad games do you feel less proud of me?" He speaks very quietly and I can see his eyes get a little watery. My heart aches at his words. Mike always blames himself if the team does badly, but I always tell him how proud I am of him.
"Oh my gosh baby, no." My thumb wipes away a single tear that has esaped out of Mike's eye. "I mean it when I say that you are the most talented and hardworking man I have ever been blessed with knowing." All he does is look up into my eyes, as if he doesn't believe me.
"But how can you think that when I have been letting everyone down all season! Im not being the leader everyone expects me to be and I'm scared you'll realize how much of a horrible baseball player I am." I can tell he is trying his hardest to keep the tears in. I have never met anyone who hates crying more than he does.
Deciding that my heart can't take anymore of sad Mike, I lay down on the bed and hold my arms out so he will come lay on me and cuddle. This is his favourite cuddling position after a bad game, because it makes him feel comforted. Once Mike lays his body over mine, and puts his head in my neck, I start rubbing circles on his back with one hand and running the other through his hair softly.
"Mikey, I need you to listen to me, okay?" I feel him nod against my neck and I take that as my signal to keep talking. "You absolutely can not blame yourself for something that should be a team effort. Sure, the team hasn't been doing the best lately, we all recognize that, but the most important thing is that every single man on that field is trying and not giving up. You are all putting in a lot of effort collectively, and you can not be the only person putting up good offence, you know that. Every single major league player has had more than a few slumps in their career, and this is just one of yours. You are under 30 years old and a seven-time winner of the Silver Slugger award. Mike, there's a reason for that. That reason is because you are so talented and everyone sees that. We are all proud of you baby, everyone. You mom is proud of you, your dad is proud of you, and your brothers are too. Then there's me, your number one fan and biggest supporter. I would be proud of you even if you had a the worst batting average in the league. I didn't fall in love with 'Mike Trout, the 8 time MLB All-Star'. I fell in love with Mike Trout, the boy who tries his hardest to act tough but would do absolutely anything in the entire world for the people he loves. I fell in love with the boy who cried the first time we got in a fight because he was so scared of losing me. I love you for you, the baseball pants are just a bonus."
By the end Mike is looking up at my face, listening to every word I have to say. "Gosh. I don't know what I ever did to deserve you but I'm so glad you chose me." He kisses my cheek and I can see the adoration on his face as he looks at me. After being together for 12 years, he still seems to look at me like its the first time.
The universe really did me a favour by giving me the most wonderful relationship anyone could ever ask for.
