Parents United

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This story is submitted for the

YAY TEAM: The Sex & Sports Author Organized Challenge 2024

in which the stories feature sports as a major component. My apologies in advance to the international football world for using the American term 'soccer.'

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"Hey, do you think they're doing it?"

My daughter's voice coming down the stairs brought me to a sudden stop right after I had come into the kitchen from outside.

"Your mom and my dad, that's who."

There was a pause during which I didn't move and barely took a breath.

"They're always hanging out together at the games, though."

Well, that much was true. I usually did spend the entire time at the soccer games talking with Michelle and I could only imagine my daughter Shannon was talking to Michelle's daughter Kaylee, her best bud.

"That doesn't matter. They can sneak out of work and do it when we're in school."

Hmm, my daughter was way ahead of me. Yeah, I wanted Michelle and I'm sure she was interested in me but we hadn't done anything. We hadn't even dated and now my daughter was thinking we were 'doing it.' I decided to do the smart thing by slamming the back door and pretending I was just coming into the house. Once I did, I heard a hurried 'Bye' from upstairs before my daughter came charging down the stairs.

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Let me back up a little and bring everything up to date. For nearly ten years I had been a single parent to Shannon. Her mother was a wonderful woman I met in college and within a few weeks after meeting her, I knew she was the one. Unfortunately, I did not know one very important detail about her background; it seems both her father and mother were serious alcoholics who were in and out of rehab multiple times. I met them only once prior to our small wedding and at that time they were both sober. Suze had mentioned briefly they had 'issues' with alcohol but implied they were dry and doing well and she, Suze, did not drink for fear of becoming a drunk herself.

Life was good, I avoided alcohol unless I was away from her and limited my drinking to only one or rarely two drinks at any time. Suze never minded that I would imbibe but she requested we keep alcohol out of the house. Then Shannon came along. I won't say she was planned but when Suze got pregnant, we both were delighted. The pregnancy was an easy one, at least that's what her OB said, and the delivery went as smooth as could be.

After they came home, that's when everything fell apart. Suze developed a horrible case of post-partum depression. She could barely function and I ended up assuming most of Shannon's care. Suze went to several shrinks and was on multiple meds, none of which seemed to help her. Fortunately, I had a job where I could telecommute most days and when I had to go into the office, my boss was more than accommodating and let me put a crib in my office and care for Shannon there.

What I didn't realize until months later was that Suze, who had sworn she would never consider it, began drinking. She hid things for months and due to my stuffy sinuses and total exhaustion, I didn't even smell it or pick up on any other clues. It all came to a head when Shannon was about two or two and a half. I came home from work one evening with a sleepy Shannon in my arms only to find my wife comatose on the living room floor. I called 9-1-1 and she was taken to Mercy Hospital where they told me she was 'just drunk' and to take her home. I was stunned. I had no idea and when I questioned the ER doc, he assumed a 'Yeah, sure' attitude and so much as accused me of trying to cover up for her.

Up to that point, I had no idea she was drinking at all, much less heavily. I have blamed myself every day since for not realizing her situation, but the damage was done. Things were tough for the next few months. She swore she'd stop drinking, even went to AA for a while but she slid back into drinking. It was subsequently a roller coaster of ups and downs until I had had enough. I told her one Sunday when I was sure she was sober that if she began drinking again, I would file for divorce. She lasted five days. I hired an attorney and rather than kick her out, I moved out with Shannon who wasn't yet three at the time. Our savings were minimal and fortunately, our house was a rental. I offered her car and all of our savings in exchange for complete custody of Shannon. She tried to fight it but my lawyer and the judge made sure that wouldn't happen.

Once free of her and her demons, I found a new job over in Centerton and moved there with Shannon. I often wondered if she missed her mother but in reality, she never really had a 'mother' who was there for her. She was a great kid and ten years later, I was the tickled-pink father of a young teenager. She had a host of friends, did well in school and was a star of her U-14 select soccer team. She was a competitive kid who enjoyed playing the midfield, probably the toughest position on the pitch. She had to swing from attacking offense to scrambling defense and back throughout the game and she simply loved it. Her teammates relied on her, she was the team captain for most of the games and her dad was proud of her. However, I don't believe I was a rabid nut who lived vicariously through his daughter's sports accomplishments as I tried to keep her well-grounded by emphasizing good grades and a healthy lifestyle.

For two years she had a best buddy named Kaylee who was the daughter of a nice widow named Michelle. Kaylee was also on the soccer team and the two of them seemed to have an almost uncanny ability to anticipate what the other would do on the pitch. Kaylee was a forward who was feared throughout the league but she would be the first to tell you it was all because of Shannon. My daughter set record after record for the number of assists, most of which end up in Kaylee's scoring column.

The two of them loved to spend time together and nearly every weekend they had a sleepover. These started about a year before that fateful call I had overheard. Kaylee invited Shannon for a sleepover which I thought was a nice idea but I had to make sure I was comfortable with Kaylee's home situation first. I told my daughter I'd talk with Kaylee's mom at the next soccer game before I'd approve. Afterall, I didn't want Shannon in a bad situation with a predatory father or where drugs or alcohol were an issue.

As soon as I arrived at the next game, I saw Kaylee's mom approach me. I had seen her from afar and figured she was the mother but had never spoken to her other than a casual 'Hi' now and then. She was an attractive woman appearing to be in her late thirties, a few years younger than me. I was never one to perve on women in public as most of my sexual release was confined to porn and trips down for ice cream, but this lady certainly had the potential to catch my eye. She was of medium height, sported a nice figure and when she approached me, I could see her dark blue eyes and a dimpled smile.

"I understand you had questions about my daughter's invitation for a sleepover."

'Nice and direct to the point,' I noted to myself. "Sure, just wanted an idea of who her parents are and, well, you know."

"Parent. There's only me. I'm Michelle. Pleased to meet you."

"And you. Our girls seem to be good friends, aren't they?"

"Yeah and they sure are a pair on the field."

"From what I understand about the game, yeah, it seems they are. Your daughter is a scoring machine." I figured a little praise wouldn't hurt and besides, it was true.

"Uh-huh, but without Shannon feeding her passes, she'd be nowhere as good, I'm afraid."

I chuckled, "Now that we've praised each other's daughter, maybe we can chat about the sleepover. Are you OK having Shan there for the night?"

"Oh, definitely. They're at the age when parents start to fade slightly into the background and friendships become increasingly important. A sleepover is a great way for tweens and young teens to build stronger bonds with others."

"Wow. Sounds like you have some professional background or are a dedicated mom."

"Maybe it's both."

"Oh?"

"I'm a child psychologist and specialize in helping tweens and teens as they try to navigate life and everything it throws at them."

"Then I can only assume your approval of the sleepover meets your clinical judgement," I chuckled.

"Absolutely."

"Ah, I have only one request and that is you be there the entire time."

"Certainly, I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Great. I assumed as much but you know what they say about assume."

"Yes," she laughed, "It makes an ass of u and me."

We chatted some more, traded phone numbers and addresses and made arrangements for the sleepover the following Saturday. The game was beginning as we finished up and Michelle stood next to me for the entire game. We didn't talk about ourselves any more but I certainly got a running commentary on the game. It seems Michelle had played college-level soccer and was quite knowledgeable about the intricacies of the game. She was obviously pleased with the results of the game as the Lady Tigers, as the team was called, won three-nil.

On the way home, Shannon was on cloud nine. She had two assists, both to Kaylee, and the coach praised her, Kaylee, another girl who hit a screaming shot from way back, as well as each individual on the entire team. It was nice to see her find positive comments about each and every player.

On Friday evening, I told Shannon she needed to do all her homework before she went over to Kaylee's. There was a good deal of grumbling but I reminded her once the homework was done, she could kick back and have fun. Michelle and I hadn't set up a definite return time for Sunday so I used it to suggest she might be able to stay longer if no homework was hanging over her head. (It turns out, Kaylee had been told much the same, at least that's what I heard after Shannon came back Sunday.)

On Saturday afternoon I took Shannon over to Kaylee and Michelle's place. It was a decent rambler in a respectable part of town near the junior college. As soon as their door opened, Shannon disappeared with Kaylee leaving Michelle and me on the sidewalk.

"Someone's excited," I said.

"Don't you know it. Kaylee's been on pins and needles all morning. I almost called you to asked you come over earlier 'cause she was driving me nuts."

"I'm sure, at least I hope Shannon behaves. If you have any concerns, please give me a call."

"You'll be available? No hot dates?"

"No, no dates."

"Jim, I, uh, you never told me anything about your situation."

"You mean why I'm single?" She nodded yes, so I went on to explain briefly I was divorced and Shan's mom was not in the picture. "She had problems with alcohol and, well, the court agreed she'd not get any custody unless she sobered up and remained so for at least eighteen months. My attorney back there hasn't heard from her at all so I assume she's still drinking."

"Oh, that's too bad. In my work I see the effects of alcohol and drugs all too often."

"Yeah, well, my biggest concern going forward is if Shan got the drinking gene, if I can call it that."

"If I can put on my therapist's hat for a second...what does she know about her mother?"

"Pretty much everything by now. I've slowly let her know over the years what the issues were. I'm not preaching to her but I've gently let her know drugs and booze can cause major problems. I've decided to not have alcohol in the home and teach by example. However, I live in fear of what's going to happen when she flees the nest."

"At some point she's going to have to make her own decisions and you can only hope she has been taught well and has taken the lessons to heart. Sounds to me like you're doing a good job. By the way, there's no alcohol at my place, either."

"Good. As long as we're telling our life stories, what's yours?"

"Widowed. It's still painful to talk about but Bill was killed in a climbing accident. He and his partner were doing some technical stuff in the Tetons and something happened, we don't know what, and both ended up dead at the bottom of a cliff."

"Ouch, that's horrible. I'm so sorry to hear that. Must be tough."

"Yeah, it has been but it's been a few years now and I'm slowly recovering."

"How's Kaylee handled it?"

"Pretty well. I insisted she see a counselor who seemed to have helped a lot. She still misses her dad but you know, the youth seem to bounce better and higher than us oldsters."

"Well, I certainly agree she is young but I'd hardly put you in the 'oldster' category."

"No? I'm thirty-seven. You?"

"Got the big four-O coming up in a few months."

"You old coot," she teased and for the first time in years, I was able to laugh comfortably with a woman. She seemed to have punctured my reserve with that simple little statement and it felt good. I smiled at her, said I'd best be leaving and asked she call me when I was to pick up Shan.

On the way home, I thought about Michelle. She was a nice woman; one I would be interested to know better but I certainly didn't want to assume (there was that word again) she would be interested in me. Afterall, she had lost her husband in a tragic accident and might not be at all interested in another guy.

For the next few months Kaylee invited Shannon over every few weeks for a sleepover. They seemed to have a good time though I found myself wandering around the empty house wondering what to do with myself on those nights. I wasn't particularly interested in dating or hooking up and tried to keep myself busy by doing extra chores around the place.

I wasn't surprised when Shannon came to me one evening and asked if she could invite Kaylee over. I personally didn't have a problem with this but I knew some parents wouldn't want their daughter spending the night at a house supervised by a single dad. I told her we would have to clear it with Michelle and I'd ask her at the next game.

It promised to be a tough game against a team from the next county. They had a larger community, had more kids to draw from and the team was known to be super competitive. Michelle wandered over to me, we talked about the upcoming game for a few minutes and turned our attention to the pitch.

It was a great game. The Lady Tigers were pumped and jumped out to a two-nil lead within ten minutes. I was pleased and cheered the team on but was surprised to see how intense Michelle got as the game went on. The other team got one goal back right before halftime which seemed to deflate the Tigers. I could see the coach trying to encourage the girls that not all was lost and to keep fighting.

It was during halftime that I brought up Shannon's request. "Uh, Michelle, Shan is wanting to invite Kaylee over this weekend for a sleepover. Your thoughts?"

"My thoughts?"

"Yeah, me being a dad and with no woman in the house, I could see how some parents might not be too happy with our, uh, my situation."

"Oh, I don't think it's an issue. What kind of a place do you have?"

"Split level with my bedroom and office downstairs and Shan's room and an empty guest room are upstairs with their own private bath."

"I don't see how that should be a problem. We've known each other for a little while now and I feel you're a good guy. Yeah, sure. Invite away."

"Let's wait until the end of the game."

The game was so exciting that I nearly got heart palpitations. The Devil Girls tied the score early in the second half and then the two teams attacked and defended back and forth as the clock ticked down. With about five minutes to go, the DG's scored off a corner kick, visibly deflating our girls. On their last attack in stoppage time Kaylee was fouled in the box and the Lady Tigers were awarded a penalty kick. All the sudden, it appeared we could hope for a tie but when we looked at Kaylee, the team's designated penalty kicker, she was clearly limping a little. The coach was yelling for her to take the kick but she shook her head and handed the ball to Shannon!

I can't tell you how anxious I was for my daughter. I know the odds are fairly good for a penalty kick to hit the back of the net but I'm sure her nerves must have been at an all-time high. She and Kaylee talked a few seconds, Kaylee gave her a big slap on the back and everyone took their positions. I was proud of Shannon when I saw her ignore the goalie who was trying to distract and unnerve her by jumping around and waving her arms.

Shannon backed up several yards, kept her eye on the ball and once the whistle blew, she ran to the ball and shot it to the left side of the net. The goalie lunged in the opposite direction resulting in an easy goal! The Lady Tigers went nuts. They cheered and all gave Shannon a team hug as they celebrated the goal. After a minute or so, the ref insisted the game still had some time and though the other team tried to score, the whistle blew before they could.

That three-three tie was as exciting as any win they had ever had. There were smiles all around, they celebrated as they ate their post-match snack and everyone went up to Shan to congratulate her again. Eventually the players drifted off leaving Shan, Kaylee, the coach, Michelle and me to wrap things up. We helped gather the corner flags and hauled the gear to the coach's SUV. She gave Shan a big hug before taking off.

As the four of us walked to our cars, I spoke up. "Shan, Michelle says it's OK to invite Kaylee over Saturday. Still interested?"

"Yes, Daddy, I am. Thank you!"

"Don't thank me, thank Michelle."

"Thank you. We'll be good, I promise," she said to Michelle, "Won't we, Kay?"

We finalized the time and left shortly thereafter. I had prepared a meal already and as soon as we got home, we ate, Shannon tidied up in the kitchen and went upstairs to do homework. Around nine, a tired girl came downstairs to say 'Good night.' I congratulated her on the game, gave her a big hug and told her I was very proud of the young lady who was growing up in the house. She smiled, kissed me on the cheek and headed upstairs. It wasn't five minutes later when I heard soft snoring through her open door.

The sleepover was totally uneventful. The girls disappeared for several hours, reappeared for dinner and took off when I told them I'd take care of the dishes. I was vaguely aware of them being up late but I was exhausted and crashed around eleven. While they slept in, I drank an extra coffee, set up food for breakfast and, when they finally came downstairs around ten, I fed them pancakes and bacon. Then it was back upstairs until around two when Kaylee informed me her mother called and suggested the girls wrap things up.

When Michelle arrived, the girls were still upstairs giggling and carrying on. I invited Michelle in, offered her a soft drink and we sat in the living room chatting about everything and nothing. I did learn some more about her soccer career while I told her about my woodworking hobby. She eventually insisted on leaving and called upstairs for Kaylee who sweetly thanked me for having her over.

It turned out these sleepovers were a great opportunity for Michelle and me to get to know each other more. I found myself looking forward to our chats though I never truly considered inviting her out on a date. Because she still wore her wedding band, I wasn't sure whether she was at all interested in dating again or whether she was at all interested in me. I tried to play it cool but I had to admit there were times when I may have looked at her in more than a casual manner.

On Memorial Day weekend the team participated in a multicounty girls' tournament. There must have been some sixty teams there with girls ranging from seven all the way through high school. The tournament was designed so no team had to play more than once a day so there was a lot of downtime every day. After the Lady Tigers won their game on day two, I offered to buy Michelle lunch at a roach coach serving Mexican food while the girls rested back at their motel. I remember walking across the grounds when our hands bumped, the first time we had ever touched. I was nervous she'd think I was putting a move on her and even though I would have liked to hold her hand, I pulled back. I was surprised a few seconds later when she slipped her hand inside my elbow and kept it there until we arrived at the trailer.