Her phone buzzed on the counter, and she smiled, seeing Madison’s number.
“Hi honey, how are you?”
“Fine.”
Ella heard the heaviness in her daughter’s tone and cringed.
“Are you going to Annie’s rehearsal tonight?”
“I play a thousand games a year, and nobody comes to every single one.”
Ella turned her kettle on, taking a deep breath.If Annie was the easygoing, mild-mannered one, Madison was the one who was more stubborn and rough around the edges.
“A thousand games?It’s that many?”Ella practically heard her daughter’s eye roll.
“You know what I mean, Mom.Aunt Rosalind always comes to Annie’s stuff and not mine.”
“Well…” Ella suddenly didn’t have the energy to defend Zee’s sister-in-law.
It’s not that she didn’t like Rosalind; it’s just… she found her hard to relate to.
“Do you want Aunt Rosalind to come to more games?”
“That’s not it,” Madison said.
Ella heard the door slam and wondered where her daughter was at the moment.
“I have a lot going on.Maybe I’ll just drop out and nobody will have to come to my games.”
“Maddie!You love soccer.”
“Yep, I love soccer and I hate school.You know what I want to do, Mom.”
Ella sighed as she took out a mug.
Last year, a professional European team approached Madison with an offer.
Madison wanted to accept the offer, but Zee told her not to, insisting that she finish her education.
With the girls’ education, Ella had deferred much of that conversation to Zee.
After all, he knew how education and sports intertwined and what the best options would be for the girls.
But secretly, Ella agreed with Madison.
If she had the chance to play for a pro team now, she should do that.
Universities weren’t going anywhere.
Madison could always complete her degree after.
Parenting was where their dynamic stayed out of it, and they decided together whatever was best for the girls, staying a unified front.
“Madison, it’s not that bad.”Ella poured the boiling water over her tea bag.
“I know I flunked the last test I took.It’s an effort to maintain my grades.”
“We agreed to take it semester by semester, right?”
