Godfather Of Champions

By the time Twain’s team returned to England, the airport newsstands had already put out the latest newspapers. He was on all the front pages. He bought a copy of all the newspapers and enjoyed the media’s praise on the bus back to Nottingham, which greatly satisfied his vanity.

It was truly great news that they could beat Barcelona in an away game, score two away goals and make a good start to advance into the Champions League’s top eight teams.

If they did not have to play a league game this weekend, Twain would have really wanted to give the group of hard-working players a day off and let them have a relaxing break.

The bus arrived at the Nottingham Wilford training base and the players said goodbye to Twain in succession as they left their respective cars.

Unlike the players, most of the coaches did not have cars and choose to head home on public transport instead.

The British gasoline price was high. Even though many people bought cars, they would not often take them out. The coaches’ income was of a completely different bracket than the players’. The coaches could not afford to drive the cars that the professional players could.

But Twain was not the same. He earned the same as the players.

Therefore, van Nistelrooy did not forget to stop and tease Twain as he drove past the gate, “hey, chief, waiting for the cab again? Do you want me to drive you?”

Twain kicked the air and said, “I’m walking home for the exercise!”

Van Nistelrooy chuckled as he drove away.

When van Nistelrooy was gone, Dunn also said to Twain, “I also think it’s good for you to consider buying a car. You’re a public figure. Sometimes you have places to go other than from the training grounds to the stadium.”

Twain did not speak. Shania had mentioned this to him before, but he was only tempted for an afternoon before he abandoned it. Furthermore, he did not know if he had a driver’s license or if he knew how to drive.

“Don’t worry. You have a valid driver’s license.” Reading his mind, Dunn said, “if you don’t know how to drive, you can learn.”

Twain shook his head and said, “we’ll talk about it when the time comes. Let’s go back.”

※※※

The two men returned to their place from the training base and only took about twenty minutes to walk. This was one reason why Twain was reluctant to buy a car. He could use this time to chat with Dunn and think about problems, which did not work well with driving.

When he got home, the two men said goodbye to each other as they opened the doors to their respective homes.

When he got inside, Twain collapsed on the couch without even taking off his clothes. He just wanted to have a good rest now. He was worn out from the last few days. Could it be his thirty-something year old body catching up to him?

“Meow.”

Lying on the couch, rubbing his temples, Twain suddenly heard a cat’s meow. At first he thought he had misheard, but the sound came again, and it was clearly from his room.

He did not remember when he had picked up a cat from outside. How could he have a pet when he could barely take care of himself as a single man?

Could it be a stray cat that snuck into the house while he was away these few days?

Twain remembered that he shut all the doors and windows tight when he left. Burglaries were common in Nottingham, where the legend of Robin Hood was born, and theft was rife. He was afraid to be careless.

Was it a stray cat or a burglar?

Twain got up from the couch and looked around the living room. He did not discover any abnormalities. Before he left, he had hired a part-time cleaner to clean the house, so everything was in place as it should have been. There was no trace of things being rifled through.

After he confirmed that the first floor was the same, Twain began to inspect the second floor. As he heard the cat’s meows, he focused on checking those corners.

He did not find anything out of place when he opened the door to his room.

The big picture still hung on the opposite wall and the bed was well made. There were no traces of any disturbances by a small animal.

Everything was also normal when he opened the bathroom door to check.

After he checked almost all the rooms on the second floor, there was only one room left in front of him — Shania’s guest room.

Although she rarely visited, Twain still left her a bedroom.

Twain did not know why he did it. Shania was now an internationally famous model. She had luxury residences in Milan and Paris and stayed in famous hotels. She was so busy she had no time for herself. How could she still come here to stay? She was no longer the little, homeless thirteen-year-old girl she used to be.

Twain opened the door. He saw the Totoro toy that he had given to Shania sitting quietly on the bed, and everything else was as normal.

Standing at the door and looking at the empty room inside, Twain shook his head and smiled.

How could Shania still come back here to stay? It was not ] easy to even meet up with her nowadays.

At the thought of Shania, Twain thought of her bright smiling face, and the voice that called him “Uncle Tony.” Although he used to be opposed to Shania addressing him like that, he later felt that it was quite nice. It was better than calling him “Mr. Twain.”

Twain leaned against the door frame and looked at the bedroom in front of him. He would come in and clean the room every once in a while. It was usually locked. The part-time cleaner would not be able to get in. Twain did not want outsiders to clean in there. Even when Dunn lived there before, he did not go in.

It was a restricted zone for other people. Twain had stopped short of hanging a “no trespassers allowed” sign.

Seeing that everything was fine, Twain was relieved. He shook his head as he closed the door. Maybe I just misheard.

“Meow.”

Twain was startled. He jerked around. Leaning against the door was a marmalade kitten looking at him strangely.

This cat was being held by someone. A pair of fair arms held the kitten’s two front paws. It was only when Twain snapped back to himself that he saw who was standing in front of him.

“Uncle Tony, you’re so timid.”

Who else could it be?

“Sha— Shania?” Twain was surprised to see the girl in front of him.

Standing in front of him with the cat in her arms and smiling at him was the world-renowned model, Judy Shania Jordana.

Twain’s mouth was wide open for a long time. After a long while, he eventually asked a question that made Shania roll her eyes. “Am I dreaming?” He reached out to gently pinch Shania’s face. “It feels warm… It’s a real person.”

“Uncle Tony!” Shania screamed with annoyance.

“Huh… It looks like the real thing.”

“Hey!”

When he saw Shania’s frown, Twain snickered. “This is to get you back for scaring me just now. You know I’m very petty.”

“Heh heh, Uncle Tony, you’re such a bad guy.”

Twain smiled. “All right, enough of this. Why are you here, and what’s going on with this cat?” He pointed to the kitten in Shania’s arms.

“I’ve decided to come back to England.” Shania replied as she played with the cat in her arms.

Twain did not understand. “What?”

“I have decided to settle in England.”

“Your career…” Twain understood her this time, but he still had a lot of questions.

“It doesn’t affect my job if I live in the UK. I always need to fly around anyway. Anyway, London is an important fashion capital.”

“In that case…” Twain wanted to ask Shania if she would live in London.

“But I don’t want to live in London. I don’t like big, noisy cities. I prefer smaller places. I don’t like Paris, Milan and Madrid. I bought a house in Nottingham’s Lace Market.” Shania casually stated her decision, and Twain shrugged. She was really a famous model that made a lot of money. That was where Nottingham had the most expensive houses. The houses were at least a million pounds, but she said it so casually.

“The Lace Market… That’s not too far from here.” Twain nodded. He thought it would be convenient for him to go to see the little girl.

Shania smiled when she saw Twain nod. “But I don’t want to live there.”

“Eh?”

“Or I should say I’ll just live there once in a while.” Shania put the cat on the floor, walked through the open door, and lay down on her bed and stretched her back. This movement exposed her small waist and belly button. “I will live here,” Shania said, as she sat back up and looked at Twain.

Twain was completely taken aback by this remark.

“I’ve decided to live here, Uncle Tony. That house is too big for me. I’m afraid to live alone.”

“This…” Twain did not know what to say. He waved his hand, opened his mouth and closed it again.

“What? Am I not welcome, Uncle Tony?” Shania asked with a grin.

“No, that’s not what I mean… I mean, uh, if you live with me, aren’t you afraid of the… the reporters?” Twain asked carefully.

“Is Uncle Tony afraid that those people will know I live with you? Don’t they all know about our relationship?”

What’s our relationship? Twain wanted to ask, but he held back.

“I live in my Uncle Tony’s house. What’s wrong with that?” Shania stood up and walked up to Twain. Their faces were close together.

Twain unconsciously leaned back. “Uh, no, no. Nothing’s wrong… What about your aunt in Newcastle?”

“I don’t want to live there, even though my family would love me to stay there. But I don’t like them. Besides, I have decided to live in Nottingham, and my parents agreed too. Do you want me to call them and ask them to tell you?” Shania pulled out her phone, and Twain hurriedly stopped her.

“No, there’s no need. I believe you…” He actually wanted it to be true. “Where’s your luggage?”

“I have already put it away.” Shania flashed the key in her hand. When she had first lived there, Twain had given her the keys to the house. Later when she was dragged away by her parents, she did not have time to return them. And much later, when the two met up again, Twain had forgotten about it.

“What’s going on with this cat?” Twain pointed to the kitten crouched between the two of them looking up curiously at both of them.

“I picked it up on the side of the road outside.” Shania crouched down to pick up the kitten. “It’s still young. Isn’t it cute?”

Twain did not like dogs and had little interest in keeping a pet, but since Shania liked it, he could not object. He nodded. “What’s its name?”

Shania turned and smiled. “I haven’t named it yet, but I’d like to call him Toto.”

Twain cleared his throat. “I think Jor is also a good name.”

“Toto!”

“Jor!”

“Toto!”

“Jor!”

“Toto!”

Twain raised his hand. “Are you being cheeky to your elders again?”

“Hmm, you’re only older than me by twenty-something years.” Shania was not afraid.

“Only?” Twain widened his eyes. Ah, age is his eternal agony. “If your father had married and had a baby early, or your mother had had a child out of wedlock, I could have been be your father!”

“Do you want me to call you daddy?” Shania’s retort almost made Twain choke.

“Ahem, this, this, we can forget about it…”

“So what if you’re older. We’ve known each other for so long. Do we have any barriers because of our age difference?”

Twain shook his head.

“That’s just it. There are a lot of young models in my world looking for white-haired old men to be husbands. Do people find it strange?”

Twain shook his head again.

Shania smiled and looked at Twain. “So, even if I suddenly fall in love with you one day, you shouldn’t be surprised, Uncle Tony.”

Twain admitted that his heart had stopped beating. He thought he was confused and heard wrong. He very much wanted to ask, “What did you say?” But eventually his lips only quivered a little and he did not ask the question.

To cover up the awkward moment, Twain chuckled. “You’re a real jokester, Shania… Have you had dinner yet?”

“It’s not time to eat yet, Uncle Tony.” Shania hugged the kitten, and the kitten nestled comfortably in her soft and warm— Twain stopped himself with a soft groan.

As Twain looked at it, he asked, “Is it a tomcat or a female cat?”

“Toto is a male cat.”

He grimaced.

Although this cat was forcibly named “Toto” in the end, Shania’s return was the most gratifying thing for Twain. He felt it was worth it even if he lost the argument over the cat’s name.

Watching Shania having fun with the cat, Twain gently called her. “Shania.”

“Yes?” Shania was busy playing with the kitten and did not look up.

“Umm… Welcome home.”

The cat tilted its head to look at its female owner, whose face was filled with a bright smile.

※※※

That was how Shania came to live at Twain’s house. Although she claimed she was not afraid of the media finding out that she lived here with ger Uncle Tony, no one wanted the house to be surrounded by a swarm of paparazzi all day long with their camera lenses aimed at the windows. Shania also did not want to her life to be disturbed.

“I can’t be here every day.” Shania laid on the couch, eating cake. She constantly exposed her calves, which were as fair as the cream on the cake.

“Of course, you still have to work…” Twain pointed to the door.

“No, I mean my time outside of work. I don’t want the press to know that I’m here.”

Twain smiled. “Are you afraid of the press finding out that you live with me?”

“Are you willing to let those paparazzi block the door all day long, aim their cameras at your windows and doors, keeping an eye on your every move, with even all your… sleeping postures captured in the papers for strangers to see?” Shania popped the last small piece of cake into her mouth.

Twain hurriedly waved his hands. “I’m not a flasher.”

Shania laughed happily when she saw Twain was flustered. “That’s right. I don’t want to disrupt your quiet life, Uncle Tony.” With that, she jumped off the couch and brushed away the cake crumbs on her hands.

“It’s time for me to go.”

“You’re not going to be here this evening?” Twain felt strange.

“Not today. I’m going to attend a dinner party this evening.” Shania gave Twain a charming smile, and picked up her tiny bag. “Bye, Uncle Tony.” She waved gently to Twain, turned around and opened the door to leave.

By the time Twain said goodbye, Shania had already closed the door and left.

He gave a whistle at the closed door.

Just after that whistle, the door was pushed open again. Twain thought Shania had changed her mind again and came back. He did not expect the person who came to be Dunn, who was holding a videotape.

He rolled his eyes.

“Shania was here?” Dunn asked, “I just saw her leave…”

Twain nodded, “She’s moving in with me.”

When he heard Twain, Dunn was shocked for a long time. He put the videotape on the table and mumbled, “It’s going to get busy…”

Twain nodded. “I think what you said makes a lot of sense.”

The two men glanced at each other.