The speculations about his return continued to be hyped in the media, but Twain was too busy to take notice. The most intense competition schedule had begun. If he and the players still wanted to have an enjoyable Christmas holiday, they could not lose too many games during this period…

Since Twain took over the team, he concentrated the most on defense and stamina. McAllister had neglected the stamina in the summer during preparations for the tournament and had indulged in the practice of his rich and varied offensive routines. To avoid collapsing completely in the second half of the league tournament, Twain could only help make up for what his predecessor did not do. It was why Twain insisted on competing with the simplest of tactics – he really did not have the time and energy to come up with flashy moves to please the crowd.

Since Sophia’s death, Twain had been concerned about Wood’s state of mind. Looking at the past few weeks, Wood had not sunk into despair due to the death of his mother. He did not bring up the matter of retirement again either.

Maybe the song sung by Shania had some effect… Twain hoped so.

Wood was hardworking, serious, and did his utmost more than ever during training. He was using this method to try to forget the pain of losing his mother, which Twain was powerless to do anything about. Time was the best medicine for the recovery from trauma. He believed that over time, Wood would eventually get over those emotions… Of course, it could not happen without the help of others.

“Hey, George.” During a break in training, Twain called Wood over.

Wood thought Twain was going to talk to him about some of the arrangements for the game scheduled for the day after. However, he did not expect Twain to invite him to his house for dinner in the evening. “I’ve asked Shania to cook a meal for you… Why are you looking at me like that? She has honed her cooking skills now… All right, fine, I’ll personally prepare the meal. In fact, Teresa misses her older brother Wood. Can you bear to make a sweet and lovely girl sad?”

Wood hesitated and finally nodded.

Twain looked at Wood’s departing back view and shook his head gently. It was the only thing he could do for Wood. Twain felt uncomfortable at the thought of him locking himself after training ended, in that dark, cold, lifeless house as if it was not a real home, but an eerie and crumbling ancient castle full of ghost legends.

If it had not been for Wood’s refusal, he had even planned to have Wood move to his own home and live with him. After all, there was more life in his own home.

※※※

“Okay, guys. That’s all for today. I’ll remind you again that the busiest period will start from the day after tomorrow. If you don’t want to spend Christmas in the English Football League Championship next season, then give me your best shot. The first target,” Twain put up his right index finger as he spoke, “is to get out of the relegation zone. Always wandering at the edge of the relegation zone puts a lot of psychological pressure on me. That’s all for now, guys.”

The players left the training ground one by one. Twain called out and stopped Wood.

“Aren’t you coming with me?”

Wood pointed to the sweaty training suit he wore and said, “I’m going to go home to change my clothes and take a shower.”

Twain looked at him and said, “George, are you really refusing to consider my suggestion? You might as well move in to live with us.”

Wood shook his head and said, “No, I prefer staying in my home.”

Twain sighed helplessly and said, “All right, that’s up to you. We’ll wait for you at home. Besides, you can come whenever you want.”

“Thank you.” Wood did not turn around straight away but said ‘thank you’, which surprised Twain a little. He thought he would not hear the words “thank you” because of Wood’s awkward temper.

It looked like… he had matured a little.

Twain pinched his chin and pursed his lips.

※※※

Teresa knew that Wood was coming and was excited. After she heard the news, she sat properly in the living room and waited while Twain and Shania were busy in the kitchen, preparing a sumptuous dinner.

However, after they got all the dishes ready, Wood had not come yet.

“He just has to shower and change clothes. It shouldn’t take so long…” Twain looked at his watch. It was 8:30 p.m., and the team’s training was over before seven o’clock.

“Does George have a car?” Shania asked.

“No.”

“He won’t walk here, will he?”

Twain was taken aback by his wife’s idea and said, “Walk all the way here from Wilford? Don’t joke, my dear. He’s not an idiot.”

“Then, could he have met with some trouble…” Shania, with her chin in her hand, looked up at the ceiling and muttered to herself.

“What kind of trouble could he have? I’ll be thankful if he doesn’t give trouble to others…” Twain also muttered to himself. However, he was not sure what happened. Could it be that Wood went home, saw his mother’s photograph, suddenly lost the will to come and decided to stay at home? It was quite possible… However, he should have given him a phone call to explain.

Just as the two people’s imagination was running wild, the doorbell outside rang.

“Big Brother Wood!” Teresa happily yelled as she jumped off the couch and went to open the door, while Twain and Shania looked at each other. It looked as if their guest had arrived.

“Big Brother Wood…” Teresa, who stood at her tiptoes to open the door, looked at the two people outside with a puzzled expression.

“Hello, Teresa.” George Wood, who was wearing a suit, greeted Teresa, who stood at the door looking up at himself and the girl behind him.

“Hello, Teresa,” Wood’s companion gave a friendly wave to the little girl.

Twain, who was still wearing an apron, and his wife came out of the kitchen and were also taken aback when they saw Wood standing outside in the yard with Vivian behind him.

“Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Twain.” Vivian went round in front of Wood and waved her hand in greeting at the Twains.

Seeing the surprised expressions on the faces of both Twain and Shania, Wood pointed to Vivian, who was standing next to him, and said, “I did not ask her to come but she insisted on tagging along with me.”

“I had asked George to have dinner together, but he said you invited him, so I came along. I hope I’m not bothering you,” Vivian said politely to the two hosts.

After seeing the behavior of the couple, Twain understood everything. Consequently, he immediately changed the expression on his face, beamed and invited the two of them in. “It’s no bother at all. We couldn’t be more pleased… You know, George never brings any friends to our place, especially…” he glanced at Wood and added, “female friends.”

Shania also understood what was going on, and hurriedly welcomed them. She patted Teresa on the head and said, “Teresa, show Big Brother Wood and Big Sister Vivian the way.”

Teresa turned back at every step to look at the two as she led them into the house.

Twain and Shania deliberately fell behind.

“She was the nurse in the hospital who constantly cared for Sophia until she passed away,” Twain said to Shania. “You must have met her at the funeral.”

“Yes, she was standing behind Wood at the time… When did they start going out?” Shania whispered.

Twain gave a silent chuckle. “It seems that our woodblock has encountered a persistent character!”

“I think it’s wonderful. The best way to forget a painful period is to find new love.” Shania linked her arm with Twain’s and rested her head on his shoulder. “I’m sure Sophia would be very happy, too.”

※※※

During dinner, the focus of the conversation was on Vivian, as if she were the one invited by the Twains, and Wood was nothing more than a prop.

Shania kept chatting with Vivian, asking her about her job, her current situation, and taking an indirect approach to find out how she and Wood had gotten close enough to have dinner together with his old friends…

All the while, Wood sat there like a blockhead.

Vivian appeared natural and relaxed. She was not nervous at all, facing a legendary manager who had just caused a huge debate across the United Kingdom and a Hollywood movie star and supermodel. She behaved a little like when she first stopped Wood in the hospital.

Twain did not chat with Vivian in the same manner as his wife did. He only occasionally said a few words, and at other times, he observed both Wood and Vivian. He noticed that Vivian always glanced at Wood, intentionally or unintentionally, while Wood was fully focused on eating his dinner.

It was interesting.

“As a friend of George’s, I think he must have been a headache for you, hasn’t he?” Twain interjected. He knew it was not easy to get along with George. He originally thought that only he and Shania could interact with Wood peacefully. Outsiders never knew when they might offend Wood. He was as strong and stubborn as an ox, but tender-hearted like a sentimental young lady.

Speaking of which, Vivian got a little embarrassed. She took a look at the indifferent Wood next to her and laughed as she said, “Actually… I think I’m the one who gives George a headache.”

Both Twain and Shania were taken aback. Oh, my God! Was there anyone else in the world who could give Wood a headache?

Seeing the surprised look in the eyes of the two hosts, Vivian further explained, “I can feel that sometimes George is angry with me, but he will not scold me, nor will he drive me away or anything like that… But I think he must have a headache.”

At this time, Wood, who had not said anything at all until now, spoke up. “She’s right, I do have a big headache.”

Twain laughed, and then Shania laughed along with her husband.

Teresa looked curiously at her parents. Although she did not understand what was going on, since her parents laughed, she laughed as well…

Only Wood and Vivian at the dining table wondered why Twain and his family found this so funny.

Twain stopped laughing after much difficulty and then looked at Wood and said, “Oh, George. I’m so happy that someone is finally able to control you, haha!”

Vivian did not understand why Wood would not scold her even though she made him angry. However, Twain clearly understood. It was because Vivian was the only one who had been with Wood’s mother in the last days of her life. The young nurse had been by Sophia’s bedside the whole time while she was in a coma for the final two days. It was a huge kindness in Wood’s view. He certainly would not mistreat the benefactor who had accompanied his mother and stayed with her at the passing of her last breath.

However, Wood must not like the fact that Vivian was taking care of him, so he felt powerless and annoyed.

Shania also understood the reason behind it, so she laughed as well. The people all over the world who could make Wood yield could be counted on one hand and happened to be here at this table today. She turned to look at her own husband and found him staring at the two people across with a cheeky expression.

What did he see?

George’s future?

Vivian was a little embarrassed by Twain’s words, while Wood was even more uncomfortable.

After dinner, Wood was going to say goodbye. He did not want any jokes at his expense. However, Twain did not want to let him go just like that.

“It’s Christmas in two weeks’ time, George. Come to our place then. Shania is going to work again. Surely you’re not going to let Teresa and me have a lonesome Christmas by ourselves?” Twain was good at finding an excuse. Once he used the sweet Teresa as the trump card, and once Wood had taken a look at Teresa’s bright and beautiful eyes, full of anticipation, he bit back the words of polite decline.

He nodded.

“Are you going to spend Christmas with your parents, Miss Vivian?” Twain asked, turning to her.

“No… They’ve already booked a flight to Barcelona. They’re taking advantage of the Christmas period to go on holiday, which they had been planning since the beginning of the year,” Vivian shook her head.

“In that case, you…”

“And I have to work shifts, so I have to stay in Nottingham,” Vivian gave Twain a smile.

“Well…” Twain turned to look at Wood and said to him, “Don’t forget to bring Miss Vivian with you at Christmas, George.”

Wood looked up in amazement at a smiling Twain.

Vivian also looked at Twain in surprise. Soon, however, she turned her gaze to Wood, as if waiting for his answer.

Vivian was not the only one waiting for it. Twain and Shania were looking at Wood, waiting eagerly.

Wood hesitated and finally gave a curt nod.

Twain smiled and so did Shania. Vivian also lowered her head and smiled.

“Very well, let’s call it a night now.” Twain and his family saw Wood and Vivian out of the courtyard. Then Twain said to Wood, “Take Miss Vivian home first before you go back.”

Wood looked at him.

“A man should not let a lady go home alone.” Twain put his hand on Wood’s shoulder and squeezed it hard.

“If you’re worried you’ll get home too late, I can allow you to be 15 minutes late for training tomorrow morning.”

※※※

Wood was not late for the training session the next day. He was still the first in the entire team to arrive at the training base, the first one to change into the training clothes and the first one to appear on the training ground.

Two days later, in the first game of the devil’s calendar during the Christmas period, Wood led the team to a victory over the visiting Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club. Then a piece of news came from Paris, France, that George Wood was awarded the European Ballon d’Or for his outstanding performance in this year’s national team competition. On the same day, Wood was also awarded the World Player of the Year award by United Kingdom’s World Football publication. In addition, this year’s Laureus World Sports Awards’ Sportsman of the Year award was also waiting for him.

More than a week later, five days before Christmas, Wood and Twain flew together to the Austrian capital, Vienna. In Wiener Musikverein, Wood took the FIFA World Player of the Year trophy from the FIFA President Blatter.

Although the club’s performance was not very good, this year was the year of the World Cup. All the major awards were judged accordingly by a major event like the World Cup. Twain’s England team was an emphasis on the team as a whole. As the core and captain of the team, Wood was naturally the key figure in the team ultimately winning the World Cup. It was indisputable that he should be elected as FIFA World Player of the Year.

Wood appeared a little awkward and slow of speech at the awards ceremony, but his brief acceptance speech made Twain’s eyes tear up as he sat below the stage with a smile on his face and prepared to clap.

“All my glory belongs to my mother, and this is no exception.” He held up the golden cup in his hand and said, “Thank you, Mom. Thank you, Mr. Twain.”

It was the first time Wood had won such a prestigious award and his career had reached a peak. Hopefully, his life would start a whole new chapter from now on…

In addition, Tony Twain, who led the England team to the World Cup, was once again named FIFA World Coach of the Year. This was nothing new. Twain had appeared on this stage to accept the awards when he led his team to win the first UEFA Champions League, as well as the defending UEFA Champions League title and when he won the Treble as well.

It was the fourth time in his coaching career that he had stepped upon this podium.

“I hope you don’t get bored.” Twain’s first words made everyone below the stage burst into laughter. “It’s definitely not a pleasant thing to see my annoying face again. But it doesn’t matter; you all can breathe a sigh of relief.” When Twain said this, he turned to the FIFA and UEFA officials. “I’m only working again for this season, so I want to say goodbye to you in advance.” He waved his hand and continued, “This time, the farewell is real, and I won’t be coming back. So, you can have a good night’s sleep in the future, guys.”

Then, amid the startled expressions of the senior officials, Twain took the trophy and slowly walked off the stage. He was greeted by a standing ovation from the entire audience.

Although there were many rivals here who were his opponents on the field, they still gave respect and acknowledgment to the professional who had won so many honors.

No matter how much they disliked Twain, those championship trophies served as constant reminders for them to respect him.

In Wiener Musikverein, the top classical music hall of Vienna, Tony Twain, the best in his field, had also made it to the top level of football. Everyone, including his opponents, respected him. No one dared to question his status again.