Chapter 98: The Hardest Goodbye II
"Brighton?" he finally whispered. "A Championship club? For ?"
"For you," I confird. "They’ve been watching you all season. They want you, JJ. They believe in you.""
"You’ve earned it, mate," I said, a proud smile on my face. "You’re a hot commodity. But Brighton is the right move. They’ve got a great academy, a manager in Chris Hughton who believes in young players. It’s the perfect place for you."
"But... I thought I was coming with you," he said, his voice small, vulnerable, the voice of a boy rather than the man he was becoming. "To Crystal Palace. You said... you said we’d do this together."
I hadn’t said that. Not explicitly. But I’d let him believe it. I’d let him hope. And now I was crushing that hope.
My heart broke.
"I wish I could take you, JJ," I said, my voice thick with emotion. "But I can’t. Not yet. I’m going for an U18s coach job. I don’t think I will have any say over transfers. And even if I did... you’re too good for U18s football. You’re ready for the professional ga, at least in my opinion. Right now. This Brighton deal is real. It’s on the table. And the fee... that ??100,000 secures the future of this club for years to co. It’s your legacy, JJ. Your gift to Moss Side."
Terry stepped forward, his big fra shaking with emotion. "He’s right, son. Do you know what that money ans? New changing rooms. A proper youth setup. We can give kids from this community the sa chance you had. You’re not just securing your own future. You’re securing the future of every kid in Moss Side who dreams of playing for this club."
JJ looked around the room, at the faces of his teammates, at Terry, at . He was just nineteen, but in that mont, he stood taller. "Alright," he said, his voice firm and clear. "I’ll do it. For Moss Side. For all of us."
The room erupted. The players mobbed him, a joyous, chaotic ss of back-slaps and head-ruffles. Their sadness for my departure was montarily forgotten, replaced by a wave of collective pride for one of their own making it to the big ti.
I let the celebration continue for a mont before holding up a hand. There were two more people I needed to speak to.
"Jamie," I said, turning to the seventeen-year-old who had beco our unlikely hero. The kid who had been too traumatized to speak when I first arrived, who now stood tall and confident. "You were magnificent in that final. Absolutely magnificent. There are clubs watching you too. Rochdale, Oldham... they’re interested."
He looked up, his eyes wide with a nervous hope, the sa look I’d seen on JJ’s face monts before.
"But it’s too soon," I said gently, and I saw the hope flicker.
"You need another year here. At ho. With your family. You need to be the main man, the one everyone looks to. Scott will build the team around you. This will be your team now. You go to a pro club now, you’ll be a squad player, sitting on the bench, maybe getting ten minutes here and there. You stay here, you’ll be a star. You’ll play every ga. You’ll grow. And when you do go, you’ll go as the finished article. Do you understand?"
He nodded, a look of mature understanding on his young face. "I understand, Gaffer. I’ll stay. I’ll make you proud."
"You already have, son," I said, pulling him into a hug.
Finally, I turned to Big Dave, the captain, the leader, the heart and soul of this club. "Dave," I said, my voice thick with emotion. "I know you’re thinking about retiring. But the club still needs you. Scott needs you. I need you to stay on for one more year. As a player, as a captain. And then... Terry and I have spoken. We want you to be the new youth team coach. We want you to find the next Jamie Scott, the next JJ Johnson."
Big Dave’s face crumpled. He had given his entire adult life to this club and had never won a thing until this season. "A youth team coach?" he said, his voice breaking. "You really think I could do that?"
"I don’t think, Dave. I know," I said. "You’re a natural leader. You’re patient, you’re kind, you’re wise. You’re the perfect man to guide the next generation."
He stared at , speechless, and just nodded, a single tear tracing a path through the stubble on his cheek.
My work here was done. I had done right by them. I had secured their futures.
"I’m leaving tomorrow morning," I said, my voice barely a whisper. "But whatever happens, I will never, ever forget what we did here. Together."
I turned and walked towards the door, unable to say another word. I felt a hand on my shoulder. It was Big Dave.
"We’re proud of you, Gaffer," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "We’re all so bloody proud of you. Now go and show them what you can do."
He pulled
into a hug, and then the rest of the players followed, a mass of bodies and tears and shouted goodbyes. I was passed from player to player, each one with a word of encouragent, a slap on the back, a promise to watch my career with pride. It was the most beautiful and most heartbreaking sound I had ever heard.
I finally made it to the door, where Emma was waiting. She took my hand, her eyes shining with tears.
"You did it," she whispered.
"We did it," I corrected her.
We walked out of the clubhouse and into the cool night air, leaving the sound of my team, my family, my boys, chanting my na behind us.
Later that night, as I lay in bed in Emma’s flat, unable to sleep, my phone buzzed. It was a text from an unknown number.
"Good luck with the course. You’ll smash it. And thanks. For everything. Mark."
I smiled. He had made his choice. He was coming ho.
My phone buzzed again. It was a ssage from the Moss Side players’ group chat. It was a photo of the tactics board in the dressing room. In the middle, soone had written in big, bold letters: "ONCE A GAFFER, ALWAYS A GAFFER."
I closed my eyes, the tears finally coming. I was leaving Moss Side. But Moss Side would never, ever leave .
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