Chapter Text
Sunday mornings had traditionally been Rayla’s day of rest. However, between team practices, scrimmages, and actual games, she now had to add the role of parent coach to her parenting duties, which already included making school lunches, attending parent-teacher conferences, and reading bedtime stories. Her six-year-old son, Jericho, had decided he wanted to play soccer, and as luck would have it, she found a team that needed a new coach. They eagerly offered to let Jericho join the team if Rayla took the coaching position. The organizers felt that her experience as a striker on the East Evrkynd Rovers League One team made her uniquely qualified.
She had only met the team of eight six to eight-year-olds at their last practice, and adding Jericho brought the total number of children to wrangle up to nine. Managing them was worse than herding cats. The other parents believed that, because she was a professional, handling nine kids wouldn’t be a problem. This was especially true for Robin, the mother of seven-year-old twins Thomas and Tobias, who constantly offered advice on how Rayla could improve. Rayla felt she had a few tips for Robin as to what she could do with her advice, despite it being only her first practice.Now, she was at the Zubeia Intramural Sports Complex on Sunday morning, preparing the Leak Geek Goal Flushers to face off against the LuxNull NullBots. At least it was a nice day.
Once at the field, her first task was to meet the parent coach of the opposing team. There was a parent meeting night every Wednesday, but she had a scrimmage that day and couldn’t attend. Not that Wednesday nights were a good time for her in general, with it being the official Parent-Student Homework Night that her son's teacher had encouraged her to participate in. Robin had informed her to look for a “handsome, tall drink of water with dark, messy hair, glasses, and a perpetual five o’clock shadow.” If it wasn’t for the handsome part, Rayla wouldn’t have been able to find who she was looking for. That, and the eight kids surrounding the gangling man setting up on the opposing side of the field. Robin had been correct; he was handsome, in a weird, awkward way. He seemed to have a much better handle on his group than she had on hers. They were in a circle when she approached. He was giving them a pregame pep talk. She caught the tail end of it, something about having fun and just doing their best. Rayla was reminded of her youth when soccer was all about fun. Now, it was a job, a nine-to-five. A well-paid nine-to-five but a job nonetheless. But she had a problem. She didn’t remember what his name was. She’d have to wing it.
“Hello!” Rayla greeted with more enthusiasm than she felt to be up this early on a Sunday.
He looked up. Bright green eyes that sparkled behind wire-framed glasses greeted her with a wide smile. “Hello!” he returned with the enthusiasm she had faked, but he didn’t need to.
“I’m Rayla,” she introduced herself. “New couch for The Leak Geek Goal Flushers.” Sources, how she disliked that name, but they paid the bills, and the kids seemed to like the name.
He reached out his hand with a warm smile. “Hi, I’m Callum,” he introduced himself. “I’m with the LuxNull NullBots.” As Rayla shook his well-manicured hand, he pointed to a little girl with dirty-blonde hair and captivating blue eyes. “That’s my daughter, Juliet. Feel free to call her Jules if you prefer.”
Rayla pointed across the field to a small Moonshadow boy with ivory hair, purple horns, and amethyst eyes. “That’s Jericho, my son, he goes by Jerry, but I’ll always call him by his full name.”
“I see you got to meet ‘The Twins,’” Callum said with an ominous tone.
“Why do you say it like that?” Rayla asked.
“Their famous,” Callum chuckled. “You’ll have to find out for yourself. I have twins on my team as well, Max and Maxie,” he pointed to the children. “We have the only twins on the teams.”
“This should be a learning experience,” Rayla mused.
“Not used to a bunch of kids?” Callum inquired.
“Not really,” Rayla confirmed. “Pretty much just Jericho for me. This will be my first babysitting job.”
Callum smiled. “Don’t think about it like that,” he said. “Babysitting is a chore. This is fun.”
“That’s the plan at least,” Rayla said. “But I guess I’d better get back over there.”
“Taking Jericho for pizza after the game?” Callum asked.
“There is pizza after the game?”
“Yep,” Callum said. “We take the teams out for pizza after. It’s like a buffet thing, so it’s not too bad.”
“Yay!” Rayla exclaimed, pretending to be excited. “Aye, we’ll be there.”
“Great! I look forward to seeing you then!”
Callum had learned that the Goal Flushers had a new coach, as their previous one could no longer handle the pressure. He was supposed to meet the new coach at the weekly meeting, but she was unable to attend, making this their first encounter. Some of the other parents had commented on her attractiveness, but Callum hadn't expected her to look like this. With her ivory hair, glowing gemstone eyes featuring purple spiked markings, and elegant purple horns, she was truly remarkable. Rayla was also a beautiful name. She moved with an athletic grace that he hadn't seen in a girl since college. During the game, he found he kept looking more at her way and less at the game. That was until he heard the shrill whistle of one of the referees. He looked to the source to see one of the Goal Flushers surrounded by players from both teams. Parental instinct kicked in as he grabbed his first aid kit and ran onto the field. He reached the player at the same time Rayla had. It was Rayla’s son, Jericho. He had run face-first into the goal.
Callum dropped to one knee and opened the first aid kit while Rayla examined her son. Fortunately, they found only a small bump and a skinned knee. Rayla worked to calm her now-crying son, and Callum pulled out an antiseptic wipe to clean the abrasion. Among all the parents, he was known for having the hardest time letting the kids walk it off. Jericho continued to whimper as Callum applied a bit of ointment and placed a Band-Aid over the scrape. After tossing the trash into his kit, he closed it up, relieved that the emergency had been averted. Rayla thanked him as she helped her son to his feet and brushed off the loose grass.
"It's no problem," Callum replied as he walked back to the sideline with the first aid kit slung over his shoulder. He knew that the other parents joked about his tendency to be overly prepared for minor injuries, but they were always grateful when it was needed. Rayla's appreciation, reflected in her radiant smile, was especially meaningful to him.
As the game progressed, Callum allowed the kids to play freely, frequently swapping positions and rotating players. He wanted to ensure that everyone had the opportunity to participate and try different roles. This approach contrasted sharply with Rayla's coaching style, which focused on dictating plays and determining which player should occupy each position. Rayla took the game very seriously—far more than Callum ever could. Although he didn’t have much experience as a soccer coach, he found it to be an enjoyable way to spend a Sunday morning with his favorite girl. The game ended with a score of two-nil for the Goal Flushers, but Callum never counted wins or losses anyway. He was just looking forward to some subpar pizza and spending more quarters than he cared to count on arcade games older than the kids.
Callum was loading the kids into a van when Rayla approached him again. She had her small group, carrying their team’s gear, and she looked as if she had just returned from a battlefield. Rayla mentioned that the parents had said their teams were supposed to ride together. Callum confirmed this; it was typical for opposing teams to travel to the pizza place together. It gave the kids a chance to just enjoy each other’s company. After stowing all the gear, he walked over to Rayla’s door and opened it for her. Once she was inside, he got in himself and started the van.
“Do you trust unfamiliar drivers?” Callum asked.
Rayla looked to the rear of the van. “Why do these things never have seat belts in the back?”
“It does, but we’d run a few short, I’m afraid,” Callum said. He looked into the rear-view mirror and counted to himself. “Yep, we’ve got them packed in here.” He noticed Rayla’s apprehension. “We’ll be okay, the place is right up the street.”
If there was a pizza Hell, Rayla was pretty sure Cheezy Town was it. The front door was adorned with a large slice of pizza sporting a mustache and a top hat. A speech bubble proclaimed, "Mayor Cheezo welcomes you to Cheezy Town!" A large sign on the overhang of the strip mall displayed the name in a rainbow hue that was almost painful to look at. She looked at Callum in disbelief, but he only smiled and shrugged as he stepped out of the van. With an exaggerated flourish, he opened the van doors wide.
“Who’s ready for pizza?” Callum asked as the kids rushed out of the van. He noticed that Jericho didn’t follow the others right away.
“It’s okay, Jericho,” Rayla said reassuringly. “Momma’s going to eat some pizza too.” The little elf nodded to his mother before finally getting out and joining the others.
“Don’t like pizza?” Callum inquired.
“Pizza is fine,” Rayla replied. “But in my line of work, it’s easy to get caught up in junk food, so I try to avoid it.”
“That’s fair,” Callum acknowledged. “They do have salads, if you can call wilted lettuce and twice-frozen cucumber slices a salad.”
“Eww,” Rayla said. “No, I think I’ll stick with pizza.”
Callum laughed. “It’s not much better, but the kids like it. Come on, coaches are responsible for their teams.”
The interior of the restaurant was not much better than its exterior. A row of various pizzas lined one wall near the ovens, while a salad and pasta bar was located at the end. The walls were adorned with cartoon pepperoni characters dressed in different outfits and professions, representing the citizens of Cheezy Town, known as the Peopleronis. In the rear was a separate room with arcade games and a pizza-themed carousel. An exasperated teenager stood behind the register, watching the adults enter as the children swarmed the counter. When the teenager quoted a price to Rayla, she looked shocked. Callum, noticing her reaction, offered to cover her bill since it was her first time there. Although she tried to respectfully decline, Callum insisted and told her that next time they played, she could pick up the bill if she wanted to.
Rayla was helping Jericho pick some pizza she thought he’d like, while she selected a slice or two for herself. She noticed that while Callum had helped Juliet with what she wanted, he didn’t get anything for himself except a cup of water. She took a moment the see if she was the only one, but saw that the other coaches had selected pizza for themselves as well. She got herself a glass of tea and headed over to the table Callum had chosen. As the only adult she knew by name, she decided it was better than sitting alone. Though that’s what Callum had done, not sitting at the table with the other coaches.
She approached him, her arrival got his attention. “Mind if I join you?”
“Not at all,” Callum beamed.
“Not eating?” Rayla asked.
“I will,” Callum said. “I just like to watch the kids for a bit first before I do.”
Rayla noticed that at the table with the other coaches, they seemed involved in their food and conversation, and not the children. “Should I wait with you?” she asked.
“You’re fine,” Callum said. “Eat before it gets colder.”
Callum was right, the pizza was cold. And it wasn’t that good, but it was edible. Between bites, she asked him, “So, Callum, what do you do for a living? Wait, let me guess. Something in the medical field?”
Callum chuckled. “You’re going to pick on my first aid kit, too?”
“No, I just…” Rayla said, trying to recover. “I just know doctors and nurses who carry stuff like that wherever they go.”
“It’s no problem, I’m used to it,” Callum said. “I’m a software developer.”
“What kind of software do you develop?” Rayla asked.
“I work for a company called LuxNull. My team’s sponsor,” Callum explained. “Our mission is: building artificial intelligence to analyze and identify non-distinctive constructive derivative lineament in collaborative schemas.”
Rayla’s eyes glazed over. “That sounds… complicated,” she said.
“Not really,” Callum said. “It’s tech geek for AI that detects AI.”
“Like if a kid cheats on their English assignment?” Rayla asked.
“Pretty much anything you can use AI to create, we can detect that you used AI,” Callum explained. “What about you, what do you do?”
“I play striker for the East Evrkynd Rovers,” Rayla answered.
“So they brought in a ringer?” Callum quipped.
“It’s nothing like that. I’m a professional soccer player who has a kid who wants to play soccer, and the team needs a coach and has an open roster spot. It’s a really nice pet to have,” Rayla returned.
Callum coughed on his water but managed to collect himself quickly. “I guess you’re right about that. None of us has fun jobs like that,” he said.
“Software development sounds fun,” Rayla said.
“Only if you like late nights with a computer monitor taunting you because your seven is starting to look like a T and you can’t figure out what is wrong with the code,” Callum said. “Besides, software people are a dime a dozen around here. Waldo,” Callum pointed to a tall, well-groomed man with a short ponytail, “is a game developer. Tara,” he indicated an Earthblood, “writes code for a financial company.”
“Am I alone on the single parent front?” Rayla asked, then apologized. “Sorry for so many questions.”
“Not a problem,” Callum said. “There’s me, Tara, and Waldo.”
“Who names their kid Waldo?” Rayla asked.
“Waldo Aloysius Johnston III, to be precise,” Callum corrected her. “Tara is divorced. Waldo, two kids, two moms. Never married.”
“What about you?” Rayla asked.
“Widowed,” Callum said, sounding suddenly down.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Rayla said. She resisted asking any further questions about his situation.
“What’s your story?” Callum asked.
“Divorced,” Rayla said. “Jericho’s father decided I was trying to turn him into Mr. Mom, and his ego couldn’t take it.”
“Sorry to hear that,” Callum said.
“Is what it is, I guess,” Rayla said. "What's the deal with the full blown med kit?"
"Jules is prone to accidents," Callum said. "Kind of like her dad. I also carry a backpack full of juice boxes and animal crackers. Want to talk about that next?" he smiled.
At least he's prepared, Rayla thought. "No, I'm good. Thanks for helping Jericho today. I really appreciate it."
“Don't mention it," Callum said. "Just good to know someone appreciates it. I’m going to go check on the kids,” he added. “Probably grab a bite and see if any of them want to play games. Can I get you anything?”
“No, I’m fine,” Rayla said. “If Jericho wants to play, tell him I said it’s okay.”
“Sure thing,” Callum said as he stood to leave.
When he reached the pizza bar, Rayla was approached by another one of the coaches. A human woman with dark skin and thick braided hair. “Rayla, right?” she asked. Not waiting for an answer, she took the seat Callum had occupied and continued. “I’m Malone, Josh’s mom,” she said as she pointed to one of the older kids. “I coach The Rockers. It’s nice to meet you. How’d you get Callum to talk? Callum never talks during these things; he always just sits right here watching the kids.”
Maybe he would talk if someone could get a word in, Rayla thought. “I just talked to him. But it’s nice of him to watch the kids so everyone can eat.”
“Yeah,” Malone agreed. “I hear you’re a professional. Ever play in the Xadia Cup?”
“That’s a Premier League game,” Rayla said. “I’m only League One.”
“That sounds interesting,” Malone said. “I’m a stay-at-home mom myself. Why don’t you come on over and meet everyone? Callum’s probably stuck with the kids for the rest of the time.”
After lunch, Callum drove the two teams back to the field. He said his goodbyes and told Rayla that he hoped she could make the next parent meeting. She remarked that she’d try to make it, but couldn’t promise anything. On the way home, she listened to Jericho talk about all his new friends. Her son was starved for peer interaction outside of school. It made the extra work worth it.