“Go Lily!” I shout encouragingly, not too loud. I don’t want to embarrass her after all. To my left you’re sitting with our three year old daughter in your lap. She’s squirming around, babbling about “bluey”. But your attention is fully set on the game in front of us. I can see how uptight you are about what’s happening on the field. Your jaw is clenched and your hands are in fists. You have one hell of a competitive spirit. Well, after all, you were the one that used to be running around on a field.

We met when we were both 18. There was this gala for charity. Basically every famous person from England was there. Including one direction. And including the women’s football team. I’d heard a bit about you. I mean, I enjoy watching football, always have. You were the newest recruit in the team. Just 17 years and you had already blown everyone’s minds away. It was clear that you were going to be something big.

But I knocked you up, just a year later. Even though it turned out alright in the end, it wasn’t an ideal situation. Two teenagers on the rise of fame, in the public eye. You took a break from the football, and instead came with me on tour. Neither of our managements were very happy of this little incident. But, nine months later, you gave birth to twins. Lily and Elio stole our hearts, and our sleep.

When the twins were five, you decided to slowly start making your way back to the football. You were still young, and you hadn’t lost your skills. After about a year of training, you played your first game. It was magical, seeing you on the field, the twins sitting next to me. You were magical, glowing, and I just got so happy, seeing you do something that you love.

You continued playing in the England national team for four more years, until you got pregnant again, with our youngest daughter Odette. And that’s when you decided to retire from the football. It was all your decision. You said that you wanted to spend more time with our kids, and with me. And I mean, it’s not really that we have a lack of income.

So, now-a-days, we mostly live a normal family life. Well, as normal as it can be when one parent is a retired lioness and the other is an artist with a past of being in a famous boy band. Our kids, however, don’t really care about our “fame”.

Lily decided to take after you, much to your delight. She plays in the football team for her school, and her coach has told us that she has a bright future.

Elio, on the other hand, loves music. He plays the guitar, and recently he started begging me to teach him how to play the piano. He pretends like the lyrics he writes in his notebook are nothing, but I’ve seen them. And I couldn’t be any more proud of him. It’s gonna be exciting to see what kind of interest Odette takes up..

The score board shows 1-1, with 10 minutes left. It’s not a serious game, but I know how bad Lily wants to make a goal, or atleast just win. She gets the ball and dribbles forward, and I hear you cheering her on, a bit too loud, causing odette to wince. I chuckle softly and take her from you, setting her down in my lap instead. I look back at the field, when all of a sudden Lily gets tackled. She falls to the ground. Hard. Everyone gasps, and there’s a moment of complete silence before she lets out a chilling scream, loud enough for everyone to hear. You and I immediately stand up, a parental reflex taking over us. I hand odette over to Elio, before you and I rush down the stands to the field.

Her coach already stands by her, crouching. We gather around her, crouching down as well, reassuring her that everything is gonna be okay, though her sobs and gasps of pain only gets louder. Since you have quite the experience with football injuries, you quickly recognize that she has torn her ACL. My heart drops.

I immediately lift her up, one arm under her knees and one right under her head. I look down at her tear-stained face. “It’s gonna be okay darling, we’re gonna get you to the hospital.” I try my best to reassure her, my gaze flicking up to yours, hoping that my words are true