Torn Between Two Seductive Star Strikers

Offer

“Grandpa, what are you doing here? Where is grandma?”

The whole team stopped their messy fights and usual blame-him-not-me after every game and looked everywhere else aside from the undeniably huge and intimidating presence the old man was emitting inside the small and enclosed dugout. Some of them met Athena’s eyes, but she was quick to look away with a red face. Those abs… really.

“What do you think, Evander?” the old man answered, his small smile not wiping off his face as he looked around at every player inside, those who played and even those who did not. “I just want to congratulate you on the interestingly…boring game.”

Oof! That was straightforward. Athena had to admit it.

The players obviously winced. The old man seemed to know them well and how to say things that would surely affect them with painful truth hidden by an indirect attack, if that even made sense. But they should admit, it was a boring game. It was as if everyone already knew the outcome and only fools would believe in them.

She just didn’t know about their reputation, so she somewhat thought they would win against them. It turned out, that Airblades Fighters were two spots above them in the bottom list of weak teams.

“Thank you, grandpa,” Evander replied, walking to his grandfather and holding his arm carefully. His eyes traveled to her for a quick scan before returning to him. “But you have to get out of here. The smell of stinky players isn’t good for your health.”

Wait. Grandpa? Were they related? Athena just realized it. And with straightforwardness and somewhat mean words and nonchalance, she could tell that it was in their blood. Really, it smelled like a kid for a whole day running without taking a bath inside the room.

The old man chuckled and shook his head. He looked around. “Wait a moment. Where is your coach? Where is the coaching staff here?”

“They all resigned, grandpa,” Evander answered, getting impatient because of the old man’s insistence on staying.

The old man creased his forehead and looked at Evander. He leaned in and whispered, but Athena still heard it, “Did they resign or did you fire them? I told you not to do that again.”

Could he do that? What kind of player is able to fire a coach or, better yet, a whole coaching staff? What’s with this team, really? And what is she doing there anyway?

“They are useless, anyway. They are just making us do the usual. Sometimes they are just waiting for their paycheck, so they don’t really help much. What coach would even make us do fencing using hockey sticks, are they high?” Lennox butted in, removing his top and throwing it to the side, and changed it to a new shirt. Athena secretly traveled her eyes on his rock-hard body. Well, did she say that Austin wasn’t muscular earlier? She’s taking it back.

Austin looked at her while changing. Athena felt like she was being seduced. He smirked at her first before turning to the old man. “We don’t need coaches, señor. Unless it’s going to be you. Again.”

“He can’t,” Evander immediately countered. “He’s old enough to guide nincompoops like you.”

“But here you are, an old man taking care of an even older man. How sweet,” another player at the side commented sarcastically.

Evander gave him a dead look in the eyes. “Five laps in the next practice.”

The young man groaned and raised his hands in irritation, turning his back and also changing to his extra shirt. That’s what he got from interrupting and butting in the conversation with the captain. If it was her? She would do the same.

So, basically, the ruler of the team was the captain as well. She once again analyzed him. An all-rounded—grandson of the previous coach, the whole coaching staff, the captain, the striker, and the goaler, basically the one keeping the team alive.

“Anyway, everything aside. You did terrible stunts back there, you scaredy pants. You look awful and embarrassing. I am sure everyone wants to have a match with you for a worse reason. You guys have to improve.” His face turned to a broader smile. He looked over his shoulder where she was and met her eyes as he continued, “and I have finally found the answer to that.”

The whole team turned to look at her. All eyes were on her now, and maybe she was also not good with pressure. She could feel her legs shaking. Probably that was because of handsome men focusing on her? No. She was not that kind of girl.

But as if she was the most uninteresting person there was. They just turned their heads away from her. She even saw Evander rolling his eyes!

She knew she had to decline the offer.

—

Beggars can't be choosers.

That phrase had always been her phrase ever since college and she had been trying to live off her life through college. From the lunch that she was having only with canned goods and sometimes dried foods from her food last night while watching replays of hockey games. On the other hand, her friends were all eating in fast food chains or some were in high-class restaurants, talking behind her back.

Or those times that her uniform was already worn out because her mother had just borrowed it from their cousin who had graduated from the same school. Her mother had also told her the same phrase when she complained about the clothes being huge to her.

And now, she was having the same phrase inside her, or another dilemma that she would have to think of for a few days, hopefully not weeks.

“Why do you have that same face when you were deciding whether to retire or not? Or that time when you want to confess to Mico but you didn’t know how. You look like... someone who needed to go to the bathroom… urgently, to be honest.”

Athena glared at her best friend, Beatrice, and frowned at her description. “Shut up. I’m trying to focus here.”

Beatrice leaned closer to her until their shoulders bumped into each other and looked at the small card Athena had been holding with both of her hands since earlier. She squinted her eyes and read the small letters, “Giovanne Johnson of Johnson’s Companies. What is that? Is he the one offering you a job? As what? Sugar baby or something?”

“Bea! What are you saying?” Athena asked, bumping her best friend’s shoulder in surprise because of what she said. She looked around the nearby tables, afraid to have judging eyes looking at her. “No! He’s not offering me that job. How could you think of that? He’s offering me a coaching position for a hockey team. Field Heroes, if you have heard of them, but I’m sure you haven’t because-”

“Oh my gosh, are you serious!? Field Heroes! The team's smoking hot and ever so shining in armor, my baby Lennox Austin? And my ever-mysterious but also sizzling hot and handsome Evander Guiller? Girl! If you won’t accept that, then give it to me! I won’t say ‘no’ to seeing angels!”

Athena covered her ears with how loud her best friend was screaming and fangirling inside the quiet coffee shop. She was just reminded of those women in that hockey game screaming men’s names who didn’t even glance to their side. Well, except for Lennox Austin, who seemed to be enjoying the fame.

“What would you even do there? Salivate on their abs and muscles? You don’t even know about hockey,” she replied, rolling her eyes and tearing her best friend’s daydream about those two Field Heroes players. “On a serious note, I only have the whole day to decide about this offer. This old man who just creepily showed up on my side and offered me this position just gave me a short time to think.”

Beatrice took her coffee and sipped it. “Well, do you have a job right now? None. Will you find anything anytime? Maybe. Is there a chance that you wouldn’t impulsively resign again? Definitely would. Do you have any money to pay for your rent or just even the coffee you ordered? No more. Should you accept the job? My goodness, that’s not even a question!”

Her best friend was usually hyper, but right now? She was beyond her usual self. But then she sighed, she really needed to make her decision now and call him within the day. “But would I be able to handle this? They seemed to be a problematic team. The worst team to handle is those who have no cooperation. I think they are a team who don’t acknowledge each other and work individually. There is a lot of work to handle.”

“Yeah? Does it matter to you? You’re Athena, your name is from the goddess of wisdom, Adonis and Apollo would certainly just follow you around like good dogs,” Beatrice said, and Athena couldn't help but grimace at what she called those two men who she really admired the appearance of. She just even had to choose the two handsome gods to describe the two men.

Honestly? Even when she watched the game and she was in front, she didn’t get to see the handsomeness of those two men whom they were fussing about. She even forgot their faces now. But all that was left with her was how badly their team played and what could have been done. There was a lot of potential and it was all wasted because of the lack of cooperation. Athena didn’t even know how she was able to see all of those, but maybe goddess Athena’s wisdom was also transferred to her.

She sighed. She had a lot of dilemmas to share about this job. “I don’t know if that will be the right job for me. If I took that job, then I wouldn’t be able to back down for maybe years? I'm sure I’m going to give up easily once they try to rudely treat me.”

“Huh. As if they can. You are like an sss woman, Athena. Remember that man who tried to steal our money and phones? You beat him to a pulp, girl! He even begged you to stop and just take him to the police station. I’m sure, bestie, that you are just going to be fine,” she said, tapping her back. “Accept it. I bet coaching a team that competes nationally will pay a whole huge sum of money by just simply staring at the player’s abs.”

Athena huffed. Her best friend was really hopeless. When she saw a handsome man, she just became a very different person, but even so, she knew she was not so easily fooled by men, probably why she was still single. “I really feel like it will be a wrong idea to be the coach. It’s like I’m throwing myself in the lion’s den. They are like wild animals and look at me, I am just a cat.”

“A cat who can kick.”

“ Would you like to shut your mouth and just help me with the decision-making here? You’re not really helping me right now.”

Beatrice rolled her eyes. “All I’m saying to you, Athena, is you can’t be choosy. You’re a beggar. Of course, you have to take that. You have no job right now. What’s stopping you? I know you like that kind of job, you get work with office work, you like it when you’re using your body as well, so this is the perfect job for you.”

“There, there. You can be serious, right? It’s not so hard.” She rolled her eyes at her, then she frowned. “You really think so? And wasn’t that beggars can’t be choosers and not that longer version you said?”

“You got the point so still the same. But really, Athena. Yes, I believe this is the best job fit for you, so take the opportunity. It’s not every day, and it’s not everyone who gets to be offered this position and to say that you are a girl, which is very unusual to lead a hockey team. I mean, not just any ordinary team, but a team of handsome men. My gosh, if you don’t take it, I will volunteer myself.”

Athena rolled her eyes. Here she was again. “Fine. I’ll take it. I just hope this is a good idea.”

Her friend beamed. Of course, it meant that she would have a free VIP ticket in every game that they would watch. She couldn’t be thrilled enough for her. “Trust me, it will. Make sure you don’t forget to slip in my number to any of the players there, most especially Lennox or Evander, okay?”

“I’m not there to be your matchmaker, Bea. I don’t even know the scope of what I should do. If anything, I’m sure I will just be the assistant coach, or maybe a manager or something. Just another staff among a lot of them.”

“Oh? What do you mean staff? Field Heroes has no coaching staff. Just recently, before the game started, they were fired for some reason. I don’t know what exactly, but well, I guess you will be the head coach.”

“Head coach!?” She repeated, shocked at what she said. “I can’t do that! No, I wouldn’t accept this offer. That’s one hell of a big responsibility!”

“Hey, hey, calm down. That’s also a big opportunity, Athena. Get a grip. This old man wouldn’t recruit you if he didn’t see something in you, okay? I’m sure he had a plan, so better ask him first before you accept his offer.”

Nonetheless, Athena was still worried. And she had the right to be.