THAT'S PROGRESSING, I SEE.

[  season 1 — episode 07  ]

WHILE WAITING FOR THE TEAM BUS TO LEAVE FOR AN AWAY GAME, Daisy was sitting next to her father at his desk, talking with Henry over FaceTime. He was asking all about the people he met while visiting and how training was going.

"Hey, almost forgot. You know how we're playing Everton tomorrow?" Ted asked him.

"Yeah."

"Well, that's not a town. It's actually a team in Liverpool!"

"Like the Beatles!" Henry exclaimed, thinking of one of his favorite bands. "If you see John, Paul, George, or Ringo, will you take a picture, please?"

"Oh, absolutely, Little Bit," Daisy said, nodding her head. "We'll keep a lookout."

Then Beard, who was at his own desk, made a 'wrap it up' motion. And at the same time, Allora arrived, entering through the connecting office and smiling as she caught Daisy's eye.

"Okay, hey, we better get a roll on here, all right?" Ted told Henry.

"Okay. And Mom wants to talk to you. Hold on," he said before walking away from the screen.

"Love you!"

"I love you, buddy."

Henry quickly responded to both of them. "I love y'all too!"

"Still haven't told him John and George are dead?" Beard then asked.

"They're what?" Ted asked in alarm while Daisy pretended to faint.

"It was Keith Richards," he whispered, making Daisy giggle.

Michelle came on screen, so Daisy spoke quickly. "Hey, Mama. Allora just got here, but I love you."

"Love you too," she said, smiling at her as she sat on the couch back in Kansas.

Daisy waved at the camera before going to the other office. Allora had a duffle bag sitting on the floor. She agreed to come with Daisy to the away game, knowing she needed a good vacation. The room booked for Daisy had two queen beds anyway, so it wouldn't cost the club any extra money. They would ride the team bus to Liverpool but then meet up with Rebecca and Keeley once they arrived for a little girls' trip.

"Hey," Daisy greeted, hugging Allora as she did so.

"Thanks so much for this. I've been looking forward to it for weeks," Allora said, sitting on the edge of one of the empty desks. "Those little bastards in my Monday, Wednesday, Thursday tap class are driving me fucking insane."

"They're eleven," she said, raising an eyebrow.

"And little devils," she added, not retracting her statement. Then she eyed Daisy's phone that was sticking out of the pocket of her green corduroy overalls. "So, any word from Mr. Tartt?"

Jamie hadn't contacted Daisy once since leaving for Manchester City three weeks ago, and so Daisy didn't contact him either. They weren't dating, so there wasn't any kind of expectation to keep showing interest in her.

"Nope," she said, shaking her head. "Saw on Twitter this morning that he was out having dinner with his team and some pretty model was on his lap. I do believe whatever it was is now as dead as a armadilla on the side of a backroad."

"Ugh, men," Allora groaned. "Come to my side, Daze. We could rock the world together."

"You're like sixteen years older than me," she reminded her.

"So? Fucking Kent is an absolute goner when it comes to you and he's just a year younger than me."

"What?" she asked, looking at her friend in disbelief. "What are you talkin' about?"

"Roy. He fancies you," she said, shrugging. "Never took his eyes off you back at the gala. And he always stops to talk to you when he picks his niece up from work — Roy fucking Kent doesn't make small talk. Well, I'd imagine 'cause I don't really know him."

"I think you're reading into that too much," she denied, shaking her head. Daisy hated that she knew she was blushing.

Allora just raised a challenging eyebrow. "Right. And did you or did you not think Roy was a total ten and were starting to have feelings for him before Jamie Tartt interfered and confused your brain?"

Daisy chewed on the inside of her cheek, avoiding eye contact. Of course, she had a crush on Roy. Who wouldn't with his sculpted body and sense of humor and the way he was around his neice? But he was thirty-five, and no way would he want to go anywhere near someone that was twenty.

"Let's just get ready to go, yeah," Daisy mumbled, ignoring Allora as she laughed.

"God, you're so adorable," she said, pinching one of Daisy's cheeks. "This is gonna be fun."

She rolled her eyes and lead Allora into the locker room. It wasn't as lively as the mood typically was when they were about to leave for an away game. No one was talking much, and all you could hear was the occasional squeak that accompanied Beard writing plays on the whiteboard.

"Who died?" Daisy muttered under her breath.

"Richmond, tomorrow," Allora couldn't help but answer.

Daisy thought one of the players would speak up and tell her to 'fuck off' for not having any faith, but they all continued to sulk, which made Daisy even more concerned. So, she ignored the smirk that grew on Allora's face as she approached the captain and asked him.

"Roy, has somethin' happened?" she asked, keeping her voice low.

But Roy didn't even give her an answer. He just let out a frustrated grunt and turned around to hit his locker.

"All right, gentlemen. Who's ready to go show Everton what we got?" Ted asked excitedly while coming out of the office, finished talking with Michelle, who was hassling him to sign the divorce papers already.

He was met with silence, though Dani let out a half-hearted, "Whoo!"

"Thank you, Dani," he said before wandering over to Beard. Daisy followed, listening as he lowered his voice. "Jeez, Louise. Why's everybody so down in the dumps? What happened? Did Beyoncé dump Jay-Z or something?"

"No," Beard said, touching his shoulder, "nothing like that."

"Why would you put that thought into the universe?" Daisy asked, squinting at him.

"Thank goodness. And you're right, Daisy, just saying it out loud made me immediately sad," he claimed as Beard shivered in horror. "Let me see what's going on here." Then Ted faced his team once more. "Hey, guys. Seriously, come on. Talk to me. What's up?"

Sam was the only one to speak up. "Well, we're fine," he said, clearly lying.

"Yeah, I'm all right," Isaac then added.

"Okay," Ted said, nodding along.

"Tell the truth," Allora spoke up, looking at her freshly done nails.

Roy then hit his locker hard, startling them all before beginning to shout. "We're in a shit fucking mood because we never fucking win at Everton and it sucks fucking shit!"

Daisy's mouth hung open, surprised by such a reaction. After all, Richmond weren't really known for winning much, so she didn't understand what the big deal was. "But y'all always lose... uh, I mean, no, that must be really disheartening," she murmured, cringing at her carelessness.

"Ah, come on, fellas. How long has it been since y'all won up at Everton?" Ted asked them.

"Sixty years ago," Colin informed them.

Beard stumbled back. "Jesus Christ!" he exclaimed in shock.

"That's three of my lives," Daisy mumbled, surprised by such a long streak.

Ted let out a long whistle but he wasn't thrown. "Wow. That is a heck of a long time. Okay. So we got that going on. And obviously, we're bummed out that O'Brien tore his butt."

"It's my upper hamstring, Coach," O'Brien quickly corrected.

"You tore your butt, son. There's nothing to be ashamed of, okay? It happens," Ted told him, which made the other members of the team laugh, which was just what he wanted. "People tear their butts all the time in athletics. You're not alone, man."

"Uncle B has torn his before," Daisy told him, grinning. "How many times was it?"

"Three times," Beard admitted shamelessly.

Ted held up three fingers and nodded. "Three times. Butt's an amazing muscle. God as my witness, your butt will heal. The silver lining here, with O'Brien's tore butt, is that my man from Montreal is gonna be filling in as goalie. Give it up for Zorro."

Thierry Zoreaux was sitting down and looked up at him. "Oh. It's pronounced, um, 'Zoreaux.'"

"I'm sorry. Zorro," Ted said while pronouncing it exactly the same.

Granted, it was difficult with his southern accent. Even Daisy struggled to say it correctly. Zoreaux repeated it again, as did Richard, who was trying to help.

"Zoreaux."

Ted just sighed and glanced at Beard, just confused and not hearing a difference. "You... I don't know what I'm doing wrong here."

"We'll work on it on the bus," Daisy told him.

"Hope that helps," he said before facing the team. "Point is, gentlemen, unless one of y'all got a crystal ball, we don't know what's gonna happen tomorrow. That's why we play the game. So let me hear it! Richmond on three! One, two, three!"

Dani was the only one, yelling, "Richmond!" excitedly. The others just groaned and grumbled while Roy headed out.

"Right, come on. Let's go," he ordered, leading them all outside. And as he passed Daisy, Roy let out a low grunt in greeting before disappearing with the others.

"Oh yeah," Daisy said, coming to stand by Allora. "Every man grunts and ignores the girls he likes."

Allora just rolled her eyes and nudged her. "He's in a shit mood because of the game, and you know it. He'd be all smiles and shit for you any other time."

When they got outside, two familiar reporters were waiting on them. Lloyd stopped Ted before he could make it to the bus, and Daisy stopped next to him.

"I call dibs on the window seat," Allora told Daisy while lining up to get on the bus.

"You could always sit on my lap," Richard offered, smiling flirtatiously.

"Yeah, no, I like vag, Richard. But thanks," she said, patting his arm and moving on. He let his head hang like a disappointed child while Bumbercatch rubbed his shoulder comfortingly.

"Howdy, fellas. How can I help you?" Ted asked the reporters

"Um, so, uh, since Jamie Tartt has gone back to Man City, uh, you've lost one, you've drawn one, you've not scored any goals," Lloyd pointed out.

"Yeah," he said, unphased.

"So I'm wondering, how worried are you about the threat of relegation?"

"Well, Lloyd, right now I'm mostly concerned with the definition of relegation," Ted admitted, making Daisy chuckle. Then he nodded to the other man. "What you got for me, Marcus?"

"Just wanted to know how you're feeling about the departure of Jamie Tartt."

"Yeah. Um... Well, if I'm being honest, it, uh, breaks my heart a little. I think one of the neatest things about being a coach is the connection you get to make with your players. That's a loss that hits me a lot harder and is gonna stay with me a lot longer than anything that happens while playing a game on a patch of grass."

The two men nodded in understanding, knowing most of the fanbase was crushed when they learned about Jamie leaving.

"Right, and how is the Cheerleader feeling?" Marcus then asked, looking at Daisy.

Though the Premier Leugue didn't have cheerleaders like in American football, more and more people had been referring to the coach's daughter as such after Trent's initial article where she talked about Sam's birthday, which was followed by the feature on her father that mentioned her cheerful disposition several times — as well as her tolerance for spicy foods. Not to mention she sat in the box with the reserve players half the time too.

"Yeah," Lloyd said, chiming in. "Everyone wants to know, what with you sporting Tartt's Richmond kit."

In each game since Jamie's departure, Daisy had forgone her Obisanya and Kent jerseys to instead wear Jamie's actual kit that he left behind. It made her feel like he was still a part of the team somewhat.

"I miss Jamie. He's a great player and I think he was finally starting to settle in here with the team," she admitted. "But I know he's gonna keep doing great things over in Manchester, so he's still got a cheerleader in Richmond."

"Sweet, as always, Daisy," Lloyd told her, scribbling down her answer.

"All right. See you fellas in Liverpool, yeah?" Ted said as he followed Daisy to the bus.

She waved goodbye at Marcus and Lloyd before getting on and going to the seat Allora saved for her. And of course, it was next to Roy, who was sitting on his own.

"Has Richmond's Sweetheart finished with her interview?" Allora asked teasingly.

"If anyone is Richmond's Sweetheart, it should be Keeley," Daisy said while dropping into her seat. "Now, please tell me you downloaded the movie on your iPad."

"Oh, you know it," she said while pulling the tablet out.

"What movie are you gonna watch?" Roy asked as the bus took off.

"Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle," Allora answered. "Quoted it the other day and she had no idea what I was saying."

"Oh, that's a fucking good one. But I'll never trust Neil Patrick Harris because of it," Roy said, moving to the edge of his seat.

Daisy smiled even though his words confused her, just figuring the actor played an untrustworthy character in the film. "You can watch with, if you want."

"Hey, where's Nate?" Isaac suddenly asked, looking around the bus.

Before they were even out of the parking lot, the bus was stopping once more. Ted and Beard got off, going to check the last place Nate was seen — the luggage compartment built into the side of the bus.

Everyone cheered when Nate stumbled on the bus, squinting a bit as his eyes adjusted to the light once again.

"I bet riding in there would be kinda fun," Daisy said, leaning to look out the window.

Roy scoffed and pulled her back. "I bet the fuck not."

✵︎

Nate was somewhat reminding Daisy of a teacher on an overnight school trip as he recited rules to the players while handing out the key cards to their rooms for the next two nights. None of them were really listening, and if anything, it gave some of them ideas.

"So, just to remind you, the hotel furniture stays in the rooms, not the hallway or the pool. Nor are you allowed to ship it to your homes or other hotels, okay?"

"Someone did that?" Daisy asked, giggling.

Colin leaned over to whisper. "Jamie two games before you and Coach got here."

Daisy's smile dimmed a bit at the mention of Jamie, actually missing him. After all, he seemed to be changing for the better just before Man City snatched him up.

"All right, fellas," Ted said once most of them had their keys. "We got team meal in an hour. After that, it's either gonna be movie night or a pillow fight. What's it gonna be this time around?"

Everyone on the team spoke in sync, saying, "Movie night."

"All right. But I tell you what, y'all say 'pillow fight' one time, and we'll never watch another movie together again," Ted told them as they broke off toward the stairs and elevator.

"Imagine the fun men could have if their fragile concept of masculinity didn't get in the way," Allora whispered to Daisy, who nodded in agreement.

"With how aggressive they are, you'd think they'd love a pillow fight," Daisy added while Nate gave them their room keys.

"Daisy, Allora," he said. "And that's for you, Coach."

"Thank you, sir," Ted nodded to him.

"And that's for you," he said, handing Beard his

"Thank you."

"Whoo!" Ted suddenly exclaimed, seeing his number. "Room 5150. Finally — Sammy Hagar, greatest lead singer in Van Halen history."

"Now hold on," Daisy said as Beard also looked at Ted skeptically. "Correct yourself."

"In the post-David Lee Roth era," he said, giving in.

"Thank you," Beard told him.

"Coach, what room you got?" he then asked.

"5148."

Both men looked absolutely delighted by their rooms being right next to each other. They grinned and tipped imaginary hats at each other in greeting.

"Hey."

"Howdy, neighbor."

"Please tell me we aren't 5146," Allora mumbled, taking the cards from Daisy to look at the room number. "Further down the hall. Thank fuck."

"You say that, Ally, but I bet you two leave your little girls' weekend to come to movie night," Ted told her with a smile.

Allora couldn't help but laugh. "Ted, Rebecca is a billionaire paying for everything, and Keeley is the most gorgeous girl in the world — plus your daughter is a delight. No way am I coming to team movie night with all those sweaty, smelly men."

"Not even for The Iron Giant?" Beard asked her, raising an eyebrow.

"Now we're definitely not coming," Daisy said, scoffing. "This mascara is not waterproof."

✵︎

Spending the evening with Rebecca and Keeley was already turning out to be so fun and relaxing. Daisy was bundled up in a fluffy robe that was already waiting for them after she and Allora finished dropping their bags off at their own room before going up to the nicest suite in the hotel.

"Which dress should I wear?" Keeley asked Daisy and Allora while holding up two garments.

"Save the sparkly one for tomorrow," Allora said, who was sitting next to Daisy on the couch. "If we win, it's perfect for partying. If we lose, you'll look gorgeous enough to cheer the lads up."

"Thought you said she was always gorgeous," Daisy spoke up while continuing to look at her Twitter feed.

Allora elbowed Daisy in the side while Keeley just grinned. "You're totally delicious, too," Keeley told her. "Like, if I were to dip my toe back into the lady pool, you are the ideal woman. God, you're hot."

That was all Allora needed — confirmation that Keeley was into women as well as men and that Keeley was attracted to her too. Daisy knew where things would head soon, especially if any of them started drinking. And of course, they would be drinking. It was Rebecca and Rupert's anniversary weekend, so that was why they were all getting together to begin with.

"Don't make me a third wheel this early into girls' weekend," Daisy whined, putting her phone down. "It's not even six yet."

"I'll try, but I can't just turn off the charm," Allora said, smirking.

"Well, try," she said, rolling her eyes playfully. "Where's the remote? I wanna see what's on TV. Rebecca is taking forever."

"I can hear you, Daisy. The door is wide open," Rebecca called from her room. She and Keeley had private rooms connected by a living room.

"Oops," Daisy muttered as Allora grabbed the remote from her side of the couch, turning it on.

Allora pressed a few buttons, seeking out the channel guide. But then they were all stunned when Keeley popped up on their screen in a pink outfit with crimped hair. And she began reciting off a script that listed off all the things they could do in Liverpool.

"Oh, my god," Keeley — the real life Keeley — mumbled, embarrassed as she watched herself. "Turn it off."

"No way," Allora said, laughing. "This must be the height of your career."

"No!" she whined, reaching for the remote. Allora just giggled and handed it over. But instead of turning it off, Keeley just stared at herself in horror. Rebecca was saying something, but none of them heard over the TV.

"Shipley's steak house is unmatched in its cuisine and ambiance."

"We could go to the steak house for dinner," Daisy then suggested. They mentioned just eating in the hotel restaurant, which was quite nice, but she'd never turn down a good ribeye or New York Strip. Though, she supposed they probably didn't have those over here.

"The business center is open twenty-four hours a day."

The in person Keeley let out a groan, hating it but still unable to look away.

"What was that about the business center?" Rebecca asked, finally coming into the room. And she saw that they were watching the TV. It hadn't been the real Keeley answering her questions.

"Guests also have access to our state-of-the-art gym, filled with the latest in workout technology — like kettlebells!"

Allora couldn't help but snicker, and it was Daisy's turn to elbow her in the side. Rebecca then joined them on the couch, just as surprised as Keeley. "Oh, my god."

"Liverpool has much to offer when it comes to nightlife. From pubs and clubs, to the great Asian pastime of karaoke!"

"I don't even remember doing this," Keeley finally said, which she thought made it so much worse given how horrible of a job she'd done.

"And if you're the artsy type—"

Rebecca grabbed the remote and turned the TV off so that they wouldn't have to watch anymore. "Right, enough. This weekend is moving forward — me with Rupert, you and Daisy with Jamie's nonsense, and Allora with... something, I'm sure."

"Nah, my life's going really smashing right now," she admitted, leaning back. "Sorry."

Keeley managed a half smile as she sat next to her on the couch. Daisy was just glad it got her to smile and move on from the bad acting job.

"When that champagne arrives, we are going to get drunk, have a nice meal, and leave the past in the past," Rebecca told them. "Sound good?"

"Sounds fucking great," Keeley said, leaning her head on Allora's shoulder.

Then there was a knock on the door, as if Rebecca had summoned the roomservice.

"Oh, speak of the devil," she said while rushing to the door to get it.

"Is champagne good?" Daisy asked Keeley, leaning around Allora to do so. After all, she and Jamie promised to show her what tasty drinks were.

Keeley peered at her. "I don't know that you'd like it on it's own. Maybe we'll have a mimosa at breakfast—"

She cut herself off when they heard a voice that definitely didn't belong to the same young boy that showed them to their room and brought the robes.

"Hello, Stinky!" a woman greeted, letting herself into the room. Daisy craned her neck to see a pretty, tall brunette with Rebecca trailing behind her. She looked around the fancy room and let out an impressed whistle. "Still giving you the big room even without old gray walnuts footing the bill. Good. Fuck Rupert!"

"Heck yeah," Daisy said, grinning.

The woman finally looked over at the three strangers on the couch. "Oh, who're they, then? That's a lot of concubines — someone's ambitious. Is one of them Russian? Are any of you Russian?"

"No, but we've got an American," Allora said, throwing an arm around Daisy's shoulder.

"A, I love you," Keeley said, getting up. "B, who are you?"

Rebecca finally got over her shock and smiled a genuine smile. "Let me introduce Flo Collins, my best mate since we were little. Brilliant child psychologist and proud, newly single mother to the most amazing twelve-year-old little girl called Nora, my goddaughter. Both of whom I've completely neglected to speak to in the last six years."

"Wow," Keeley breathed out.

"Bit depressing at the end," Allora whispered to Daisy, who nodded.

And her friend agreed. "Oh, Jesus, Stinky. Remind me to bury you in the set list for speeches at my funeral," she said before beginning to shake all their hands. "Hi, I'm Flo. Or you can call me 'Sassy.' I don't care which."

"It's so great to meet a friend of Rebecca's," Daisy said, getting up to shake her hand.

"That makes you the American with that adorable as fuck accent," Sassy said, chuckling. Then she looked back at Rebecca. "So, you heard about the divorce?"

"Yeah. I bumped into Derren at a party," she confirmed. "He told me right after he hit on me."

Sassy wasn't all that surprised or offended by that fact, just shrugging it off. "Hey, what's new? Still, weird order for him to roll out that information," she muttered.

"Would've been a great way to test the friendship, though," Allora chimed in. "See if she'd help him cheat."

"Ooh, where were you when I was married?" Rebecca asked, rolling her eyes playfully, making them laugh.

"Right, what's in the plan for tonight, then?" Sassy asked, looking between the four women. "Shall I call down? Get myself a robe?" Then she walked over to her purse that she'd sat down, pulling out a bottle of champagne. "Oh! Look what I've got. Ta-da! Stole it off a room service trolley outside."

Daisy giggled, realizing that was likely the bottle meant for their room anyway. And Keeley impulsively hugged Sassy, already loving her energetic personality. "You're amazing! I'm Keeley, by the way. Hi!"

"Oh! Yeah, I know who you are, honey," she said with a gentle smile. "My ex used to masturbate to you like a maniac, so..."

"Awe, that's sweet," Keeley said, releasing the woman.

"From what I've learned since gettin' over here, most everyone has done that while thinking of Kee," Daisy mused, and the others just nodded in agreement. "That's really, like, cool and empowering, knowing that about you."

Keeley cooed and moved her hug over to Daisy, squishing their cheeks together. "You're cool and empowering too, the way you would gaslight and manipulate Jamie and the lads before he was transferred."

"I did not manipulate him," she instead.

Keeley pulled back and looked at her doubtfully. Then she purposefully widened her eyes and bat her eyelashes. "Oh, Jamie, you're the best player on the team, so I'm sure you can afford to get Sam a birthday present and run decoy since no one else is good enough to be a decoy."

"But that's all the truth," she told her. "I just told him in a different way than everyone else."

"You told him in a prettier, sweeter way, Darling," Rebecca said, patting her shoulder. "Now, dinner?"

"Absolutely," Allora said. "I'm starving. But before we do — group poll. Roy? Does he fancy Daisy or not?"

Rebecca and Keeley both answered at the same time, not even taking the time to think about it.

"I'm sure of it."

"Oh, absolutely, fucking yeah."

"I don't know what the situation is, but I'm gonna go with yeah," Sassy said, giving her vote even though she wasn't asked. "Are we talking about Roy Kent? God, what a ride."

"I don't appreciate being ganged up on," Daisy mumbled, pouting a little. "Roy doesn't like me."

"Fine," Allora said, crossing her arms. "But if he makes a move, then I get to watch you take a shot of tequila."

"Does tequila taste like a fruity little cocktail?"

"...Sure."

✵︎

Sassy's presence at dinner only made it better in everyone's opinion. Rebecca opened up even more than usual, and the five women were all laughs as the food and drinks kept coming. It was so refreshing to meet a real friend of Rebecca's and not some celebrity she name-dropped to emphasize her wealth.

Daisy liked Sassy a lot. She really was a brilliant doctor with a great and funny personality. She made sure to ask Daisy about how she was liking Richmond and what working as a dance instructor was like. And the woman just lit up any time Daisy asked about her daughter.

Currently, though, Sassy was embarrassing Rebecca while telling them all about her wedding to Rupert, which had been a classy affair until a microphone was put in her hand. "Right, so I hadn't prepared anything. Not the brightest idea for a maid of honor, especially with an open bar."

"Yeah, she was the star of the weekend," Rebecca chimed in, sipping on her wine.

"Yeah, I gave Elton John a boner," she declared.

Keeley put her hands on the table and leaned forward in disbelief. "You did what?"

"No, you didn't!" Rebecca said while laughing loudly.

"Yes, I did!" she insisted.

"Tell me everything," Allora said, smirking.

"He has repeatedly denied that, Allora," Rebecca told her, shaking her head.

Sassy just shrugged. "Ah. Classic 'she said, she said,' innit?" she joked, making Daisy snort and nearly spit out the mouthful of her mojito.

"You are horrible," Daisy said, laughing as she said so.

"Maybe, but you'll need entertainment like me at your own wedding or it'll be boring as shit," Sassy told her.

"Oh, that's my job," Allora said, grinning. "I'll get to make all the cradle-robbing jokes. Roy will be her Rupert."

"Now, stop it," Daisy said, kicking her under the table. "Roy doesn't like me, and he would never be anything like Rupert even if he did."

"I do have to agree with her on that last part," Rebecca spoke up. "Mr. Kent is far from the likes of my ex-husband, thankfully. In fact, they hated each other when he owned the club."

"He was such a creep," Keeley said, shivering for dramatic effect. "Thank god you bought the club, Rebecca. You and Daisy's dad are running things a million times better together."

Rebecca pushed down the bit of guilt eating away at her as she smiled at Daisy. Every day, she and Ted wormed their way a little further into her heart, and Rebecca fucking hated it. Because how was she meant to want the club to fail if it meant watching someone she was starting to care about fail too?

Her internal guilt trip was interrupted by their waiter coming to check on them. "Would you ladies like another bottle?" he questioned while taking away the empty wine bottle. "A little dessert perhaps?"

Sassy smirked up at the young, attractive man who'd only been speaking to Rebecca all night when asking if they needed anything. "My sexy and extremely single friend here actually prefers her desserts on the larger side," she said, leaning close to an embarrassed Rebecca. "If that's something you could possibly accommodate."

Rebecca looked up at him apologetically with burning cheeks, and the waiter just smiled. "I'll give you a few minutes."

"Thank you. Sorry," she muttered. The others just laughed as he left, and she glared playfully at Sassy. "I can't believe you just did that."

"Oh, shut up. You love it," she insisted before grabbing her purse. "Right. I'm going for a smoke. Stinky?"

"No. Don't smoke anymore."

"And yet, you're still on fire," Sassy murmured, nodding to the waiter that was not-so-subtly checking Rebecca out.

"Don't get cancer," Daisy called as Sassy left, not feeling bad about trying to guilt her.

"You sound like her daughter," Rebecca told her with a smile.

"Well, I'd do the exact same if Daddy started smoking," she told her. Then Daisy leaned on her hand, smiling at Rebecca softly. "I'm glad Sassy showed up tonight. She's really great."

"She is," she agreed. "I've missed her."

"I like how you are with her," Daisy admitted. If she was expecting the others to back her up, it didn't happen, because Allora and Keeley were in their own little world, whispering and giggling to each other. "I've never seen you smile so much — it suits you."

"Well, maybe I just wanted to be a bit more like Daisy Lasso. You're always smiling," she told her. "I think the world would be better if everyone was a bit more like you, honestly."

"That's sweet, but I don't know," she said, shrugging. "Rebecca, you don't see how great you are, you know? And it's all his fault. You don't see how strong and powerful and amazing you are. You're the woman I dreamed of being before I stopped growing in the fourth grade."

Rebecca raised an eyebrow. "You do know that height is not a requirement for being successful in this world, right?" she questioned, looking literally down at Daisy, who was over half a foot shorter than her.

"No," she laughed, "but looking like an Amazon warrior would certainly give me the confidence to demand what I want out of life."

"Well, should you need someone to stand up for you, this tall warrior is always available," she said, chuckling a bit at the specific compliment on her figure. "Though I can't imagine anyone not giving you what you want. You're so precious that it's almost annoying."

Daisy grinned at her, the dimples in her cheeks appearing. "That's the Lasso Charm."

"Yes," she mumbled with a smirk. "It's like a disease that won't stop spreading."

"I'll take that as a compliment," she decided.

"Well, you do that. I'll be right back," Rebecca said, getting up from the table. She spared a glance at the other two girls who had scooted their chairs closer together. "That's progressing, I see."

Daisy did her best to tune out what Keeley and Allora were saying after hearing a few words that made her face burn. She wasn't an innocent virgin or anything, but both Allora and Keeley were shameless about what left their mouths, and that remained true for the indecent promises that they were now making.

It was safe to say Keeley would be dipping her toe back into the lady pool that weekend.

When Daisy saw Sassy coming back, she sighed in relief, looking up at her. "I should've taken up smoking," she muttered, making the older woman laugh.

"Okay, so I just met the fucking Marlboro Man in the—" Sassy cut herself off when she sat and noticed Rebecca's absence. But her arrival broke apart Allora and Keeley, at least. "Where's Stinky gone? She abandoned you?"

"Not sure," Allora said, looking around.

"I think she might be in the bathroom," Daisy told her.

"Ah."

"Where does 'Stinky' come from?" Keeley then asked. All of them were dying to know given how serious and professional Rebecca was. How'd she get a nickname like that?

"I remember the day she moved into our town," Sassy told them. "She was already taller than me, had bigger boobs — family was rich. So, first day of year seven, I told everyone her nickname was 'Stinky.'"

"That's horrible," Daisy said with a laugh at the same time Keeley said, "That's genius."

"Brilliant tactic," Allora added.

"To the ties that bind us," Sassy said, holding up her wineglass.

"To Rebecca," Keeley said as the four of them clinked their glasses together.

But then Sassy frowned a bit. "Yeah, that's not Rebecca."

"How do you mean?" she asked.

"No, the real Rebecca is silly," she told them with a sad smile. "Strong, yeah, but not cold. Have you ever heard her sing?"

"No," Daisy said softly. She had been right when she thought Rebecca was lighter around Sassy. Maybe one day, she'd be back to her real self.

"Ah. Beautiful voice. Her and Nora would sing through the door for hours," Sassy explained before cupping her hand around her mouth. "Do you wanna build a snowman?"

"Who's Nora?" Keeley asked, having been talking with Allora earlier when Sassy told Daisy about her.

"My daughter."

"Oh, yeah."

"Yeah, if you like that woman, you are gonna love Rebecca," she told them.

"I hope so," Daisy said, already thinking about it. Richmond was beginning to feel like home, so she wanted to be as close as possible to everyone she was beginning to care about.

"Ready?" Rebecca asked as she reappeared, smiling at them all.

"What about the bill?" Allora asked, reaching for her purse. Sure, she knew most of the weekend was on Rebecca, but she'd been raised to offer to pay for her portion and a fraction of the tip.

But before she could answer, the handsome waiter returned, handing over Rebecca's receipt and card. "Thank you, Miss Welton," he said while dragging his eyes down her form.

Daisy's mouth hung open as the others laughed and whistled while the waiter walked away. And Rebecca was unphased, just looking to Sassy while tucking her card away. "Do you wanna do that thing where you pretend you wanted to pay?"

"Oh, yeah, yeah," she said before looking at the other three. "This is really good fun. Join in."

"Oh, you absolute piece of shit! I was about to do that!"

"I was just about to get my card out."

"You didn't even give us a fucking chance!"

"I can't believe that you've done this."

"Oh, Daddy would be so upset if he knew I didn't pitch in!"

"We were gonna split. That was so nice."

"Six years I've waited for this," Sassy whined as they got up. "Honestly, Rebecca."

✵︎

Daisy was coming around the corner, ready to turn in for the night — they'd spent another hour in the lobby just talking and having fun before Allora and Keeley were the first to leave, Keeley hanging onto her hand as they did so.

However, she couldn't go to her room right away because, at the end of the hallway, she saw Nate awkwardly shoving some paper underneath the door to her father's room, which made her giggle. Before she could ask him what he was up to, Ted swung the door open fast, startling them as he yelled at Nate, not spotting his daughter down the hall.

"What the hell are you doing?" he asked harshly.

"I'm... I'm so sorry," Nate stuttered, not used to Ted's aggressive tone. "I just—"

"You're what?" he asked while snatching the paper from him. "What is this?"

"It's just my thoughts on the team," he mumbled.

Ted shook his head. "Go, Nathan. Come on, it's past curfew. Go! Get outta here!" he snapped.

"Sorry," Nate mumbled, scurrying off as Ted slammed the door shut.

Daisy had a deep frown on her face as she quickly went to her dad's room, knocking on the door. A second later, it swung back open.

"Nathan, I told you—" Ted stopped short when he saw his daughter and sighed. "What - what do you want, Daisy? You've got your own room."

"Just wanted to check on you," she said, keeping her voice down. It was late enough that she was sure other people would be asleep. "Can I come in?"

Ted didn't really want her to but let her in nonetheless. As she stepped inside, she looked around and saw the setup at the desk. The envelope containing the divorce papers was out along with an empty bottle of whiskey.

"How much you had to drink, Daddy?" she asked him, turning back to study his wrecked features.

"I'm a grown man. I can have however much I please," he said defensively.

"I know you're grown. That means you can do whatever you want, including talk to Nate like you just did," Daisy said, crossing her arms.

"He was—"

"He was trying to help," she cut him off softly. Then she looked back at the papers, going over to the desk. She slid the legal agreement back inside the yellow folder. "Get some sleep, Daddy. Sign them another time. Michelle can handle waiting a few more days."

Ted stared at the folder and then nodded weakly, his eyes watering. "I don't know how I'm supposed to do this," he whispered, his throat feeling tight.

"It ain't gone be easy," she said, leading him to the bed. She also grabbed a trash can on the off chance he threw up the alcohol in the middle of the night. "But you'll get through it so long as you don't push the people that care about you away — people like Nate."

"And you?"

Daisy rolled her eyes playfully like he'd said something absurd. "You can't push me away, Daddy. You raised me to be too clingy."

"Clingy is good," he mumbled while falling into bed tiredly.

"I'll put some Tylenol on the nightstand next to Nate's note," she told him, putting the covers over him.

"Love you, Adanna."

"Love you too, Daddy."

After turning the lights off and making sure he had everything he'd need when he inevitably woke up with a hangover, Daisy left his room and headed down the hallway back toward her own. She figured Allora was up in Keeley's room since she had a private suite, meaning she'd be alone for the night if things went well.

While walking, Roy came around the corner, ready to turn in for the night as well. And he nodded to her in greeting, stopping at the door right across from her room.

"How was movie night?" Daisy asked, leaning against the wall by her door.

"Fine," he muttered, making her suspect that he teared up along with the other boys at the ending of the movie.

"Mhmm," she hummed with a smirk. "Get some rest, Roy. You've got a losing streak to break tomorrow."

Daisy saw a barely there smile on his face before she turned and opened her door, only to get three steps inside before running out and slamming it closed once more.

"What?" Roy asked in alarm, seeing her wide-eyed expression. "Is there a fucking bug in the room or somethin'?"

"God, I wish," she muttered. Since she was from Kansas, she was a pro at killing bugs even if they creeped her out. "Uh, um, Allora has brought Keeley back to the room despite Keeley having a room all to herself."

"She in your bed then?"

"No, Roy, she's in Allora's," she said, letting out a little laugh of disbelief. "They're havin' sex. Heck, Daddy's probably already asleep and might not hear me knocking to share."

"You can bunk in my room," Roy found himself offering without really thinking it through.

"Oh," Daisy murmured, surprised by the offer. "Um, yeah, if that's alright with you."

Roy let out a grunt and nodded his head before turning and unlocking his room. She silently followed him inside as he turned on the lights, looking around at the empty room with a small recliner in the corner and a king-sized bed.

She didn't even notice when he dug something out of his suitcase. "Here," he said, throwing her a plain gray t-shirt. "Don't think those sequins will be good for sleeping."

Daisy smiled while looking down at her dress, glad he thought of it. "Thanks," she said, heading to the bathroom to change. It didn't take her long to get ready, which was a little disarming because she had a lengthy nighttime routine complete with hair and skincare, but she supposed she could survive for one night so that Allora could get lucky with someone as amazing as Keeley.

Roy's shirt was ridiculously and unflatteringly large on her — it was longer than the dress she had on, so Daisy certainly didn't feel exposed as she left the bathroom. She liked wearing his shirt but knew she'd keep that thought to herself.

Roy had already changed into a pair of athletic shorts and removed his shirt, so she quickly averted her eyes from his broad, muscular chest. It didn't feel the same as seeing him shirtless at training. He had gotten a spare blanket from the closet and seemed to be getting into the chair.

"What do you think you're doin'?" Daisy asked him with a frown.

He raised a bushy eyebrow. "Going to fucking bed?"

"Not in the chair. I'll take the chair," she told him. "That'll mess your back up somethin' mighty for the game tomorrow. Take the bed."

"Um, I've got to be a fucking gentleman, don't I? You take the bed," he ordered.

Daisy huffed at the ridiculous argument, feeling like she was in a TV show or a book. "Roy, we're both grown, and it's a big bed. Would the world end if we shared?"

Internally, Roy thought it might. Daisy was twenty years old and the coach's daughter — everything he needed to stay away from. But now she was wearing his clothes and offering to share a bed with him because she cared more about his health than getting too close to a man fifteen years older than her.

"You gonna do that thing where you put up a wall of pillows?" he managed to ask while getting out of the chair. "Saw that in a movie once."

"You're a freaking giant, Roy. I'd need about fifty to hide you, probably," she told him with a smile. "Now, do you care which side I take?"

"I've got to have the right side," he declared, moving that way. "And if you kick me or are a blanket hog, I'll fucking push you off."

Daisy was fairly certain he wasn't joking and she suddenly wondered if she moved around much in her sleep. At least she knew she didn't snore, but that wasn't one of his issues. Though Daisy was always cold, so there was a chance she would wake up on the floor.

The silence was awkward — for Daisy at least as they both got underneath the covers. Because the bed was so big, they weren't anywhere near each other, but Daisy could still feel the heat coming off of him. It didn't help that he weighed the mattress down so much that she had to actively keep from rolling to his side.

"Goodnight, Roy," she managed to say, staring up at the ceiling.

And Roy was staring up at it too, fighting the urge to pull the younger girl into his arms. "Goodnight, Daisy."