Chapter 268: Merry Christmas Part 1
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
When Twain took Wood to the youth training base to look for Dunn, Dunn had just finished his day's work and was ready to go home as planned.
"Don't go back, we have other plans for tonight," Twain said to him.
Dunn looked at Wood, who was with Twain, and nodded. "I understand. But..."
"But?"
"This isn't going to work." Dunn pointed to himself.
Twain then noticed that Dunn was wearing an oversized sports jacket. He was not used to wearing such attire. Even in normal training, he was dressed more or less like a mob boss: a dark red suit to represent the Forest team's dark red color, a white shirt, and a black wool coat.
Tang En looked Dunn up and down and agreed. "Yes, we'll make a trip back first." He turned to Wood and said, "George, you go back first. We'll go over when we're ready."
Wood nodded and turned to leave.
Twain and Dunn left in the other direction, which was closer to Branford Garden Lane where they lived.
They passed through the youth training ground, where nearly all of the young players had left. And now, only the turf maintenance personnel were there, watering the training field that had just been used.
Twain paused for a moment on the sidelines to look around at the open training base. From behind, Dunn asked him, "What are you thinking about?"
"I worked here for half a season," said Twain, pointing to the training ground. "No, not even half a season. My time here was very short, but I've used what I learned during that time all the way until now. I've read all the notes and books that you put on the bookshelf at home." He turned to Dunn and said, "Your mentor was Paul Hart, and my mentor is you."
"Why do you want to talk about that today?" Dunn did not smile. He just continued his questions.
"No reason... Just, another year has passed. Feeling a little rueful."
Dunn, who stood behind Twain, wanted to say something, but in the end, he gave up the idea and remained silent.
"A year ago, George was still training on this field, and I had promised to put him on the First Team by Christmas. At that point, I still thought I'd let him train on First Team, play in the youth and reserves games, occasionally put him on the First Team's substitutes list, and then bring him on from the bench in the last moments from time to time to feel the atmosphere of an official game. And after a season, I thought I could slowly try to let him play more games... But the kid's performance far exceeded my plan, and my expectations..." Twain looked up at the overcast sky. "Now, Dunn, did you know? I get asked by several football clubs almost daily for prices, and they are all about him."
Dunn nodded. "When I was with the Forest youth team, there was no one like that on the youth team." He meant that Wood was a rookie of Twain's own discovery; it was a roundabout way of complimenting Twain's ability to nurture young players and unearth talent.
Twain smiled back at him in thanks. "Let's go."
When the two men came to the side door of the youth team training base, they saw Gareth Bale and his father, Senior Bale, who was putting a scarf of young Gareth.
Senior Bale faced the door and saw the two managers walking side by side. He quickly waved to say hello to them.
"Merry Christmas, Mr. Twain! Merry Christmas, Mr. Dunn!"
"Merry Christmas, Mr. Bale. Why haven't you gone back yet?" Twain was surprised to see his first contract signing here.
"We're just about to go back by car."
Young Bale turned and said hello to the two coaches.
He was stronger and more confident than when Twain had last seen him, and he seemed to be doing very well on the youth team.
Dunn, who stood next to Twain, said to Gareth Bale, "Bale, don't forget to come on the afternoon of the 29th."
Bale nodded with delight.
Dunn was referring to a Christmas award ceremony held inside the Nottingham Forest Club. On that day, a number of awards selected from within the club, such as best player of the year, best coach of the year, best young player of the year, and rookie of the year would be presented. There would also be a few very interesting awards, such as the year's most popular coach, the year's most popular teammate, the year's best turf maintenance staff, and so on.
As the manager, Twain already knew which of the awards belonged to whom, but the players themselves only knew who had entered the shortlist. Of course, whether they were nominated or not, they all would have to attend the event, which was also a Christmas party.
In the past, the Forest team had had a lot of ups and downs, and when they were at the lowest ebb of their fortunes and faced a financial crisis, the club was not in the state of mind to organize such activities. Now that Evan was in charge and their situation had stabilized, he wanted to start up the tradition again and make it more modern. It was also a great opportunity to create goodwill, cultivate the players' sense of belonging to the club, and re-establish the image of Nottingham Forest.
After seeing Gareth and his father off, Twain and Dunn went home to freshen up and get ready for their appointment.
※※※
The two men slowly walked back to 13 Branford Garden Lane, and Twain saw a person seated at the door of his house from a distance. He wondered who it was. He walked closer, and was astonished. "Shania!"
When she heard Twain's voice, Judy Shania Jordana, who was sitting at the doorway and nodding off, suddenly looked up. Upon seeing that the man who stood before her was indeed Tony Twain, a happy smile appeared on her face. "Merry Christmas, Uncle Tony!"
"Merry Christmas, Shania... What are you doing here?"
Hearing Twain's question, Shania pouted. "Did you forget? I told you I'd spend Christmas with you."
"No, I didn't mean it like that. I mean… Aren't you supposed to be with your aunt and family tonight?" Twain hurriedly explained, as he knew Shania had misunderstood.
"I spent Christmas Eve with them, and came here today. I specifically didn't call you, just because I wanted to surprise you. Am I not welcome?" Shania was still pouting.
"Why would I not welcome you?" Twain opened the door. "Come in!"
Shania picked up a backpack that was disproportionately large relative to her size, and smiled to Dunn next to him. "Merry Christmas, Uncle Dunn! I won't be in your way, will I?"
Dunn shook his head. "No, Tony already told me about this. He cleans your room every week..."
Twain cleared his throat beside him.
Shania gave Twain a sideways glance and her face finally revealed an impish smile. Then she entered with her head held high and chest puffed out. Behind her, Twain waited for Dunn to walk up and softly muttered, "Why do you have so much to say today?"
"Didn't you want me to be more outgoing around people?" Dunn asked.
Twain had no retort. Darn, I've no one to blame but myself.
"Hey, why aren't you both coming in? What are you talking about out there?" Shania turned back and found that Twain and Dunn were standing outside the door.
"Um, nothing..." Twain came in first, and Dunn went straight upstairs to his room to take a shower and change.
Shania was very much at home here. She went straight upstairs and opened her bedroom door. It was exactly as it had been in the summer. The room was very clean, and it seemed that Dunn was right. Tony did clean the unoccupied room every week. She let out a yelp of excitement, and then, with her backpack still in the doorway, dove onto the bed and hugged the big Totoro soft toy. She buried her face in it and rubbed its belly, making the toy squeak non-stop.
At that time, Twain was considering another problem in the living room.
Sophia had originally invited him and Dunn to her place to celebrate the holiday, but now Shania was here as well. He could not leave this young girl here alone and go to the dinner with Dunn. And he also could not refuse Sophia's invitation just to accompany Shania. The only real solution was to bring Shania to Sophia's home.
He did not know if the young girl would agree with that arrangement.
Thinking of that, Twain went upstairs to ask Shania's opinion. "Shania?"
"Yes?" When she heard Twain called her, Shania sat up from the bed.
"Are you hungry?"
Shania shook her head. "Not hungry!"
"Well, are you tired?"
Shania continued shaking her head. "Not tired!"
"In that case... let's go out later for an appointment."
"An appointment?"
"Um... Do you know George Wood?"
Shania nodded. "Of course! How can I call myself a Forest fan if I don't even know who Wood is?"
Twain laughed; the young girl was so adorable when she spoke so earnestly. "His mother invited us to dinner this evening."
"Fantastic, I'll go too!"
"Of course, how can I leave you alone in a cold and dark house? Put on your best clothes." Twain winked at Shania and then left the room, remembering to close the door behind him.
When he went downstairs, Dunn had already changed his clothes and was sitting down on the couch. He was wearing a dark blue jacket with a turtleneck sweater. He looked nothing like the football manager Dunn, who wore a sports jacket all day.
Seeing Twain come down, Dunn said to him, "I'll admit it..."
"What?"
"The new Tony Twain's life is much better than the old Tony Twain's."
Twain laughed. "Isn't that good?"
Dunn nodded and muttered, "Yes… It's very good…"