Andrew opened the door and had barely stepped inside the house when he heard enthusiastic, almost lodic voices coming from the living room. He didn’t need to see to know who it was.
Pepper, Ronaldo, his assistant, and his parents.
He let out a quiet sigh as he closed the door behind him and walked down the hallway. As he got closer, the voices beca clearer. Cam, Pepper, and Mitch were deep in conversation, laughing, jumping from one anecdote to another as if they had just started and still had hours of material left.
’How can they talk so much?’ Andrew thought.
He and his friends weren’t like that. With Leonard, Steve, or Howard, conversations went in a different direction: movies, comics, theories, long debates about any small detail. But not that constant back-and-forth of stories, mories, and chained comnts without pause. It was a completely different rhythm.
"...and I swear the table centerpieces didn’t match anything, it was a visual disaster, that’s what happens when you hire people with no taste," Pepper was saying dramatically.
"I rember it being bad, but not that bad," Cam replied with a laugh.
"Cam, it was an aesthetic cri," Pepper shot back bluntly.
Andrew appeared at the entrance of the living room just as Pepper turned around.
"Oh, look who’s here! The star," Pepper said, imdiately standing up and walking toward him with open arms.
Andrew barely had ti to react before he was hugged. He returned the gesture briefly before pulling away.
Pepper looked him up and down. "You’re getting taller every day, boy," he comnted.
"No, I’m the sa. I’ve been 6’4" for weeks now, thankfully," Andrew replied.
For him, that was the ideal height. Tall enough to see the field clearly, but without sacrificing mobility. Between 6’3" and 6’5" was the perfect balance for a quarterback, and staying at 6’4" fit right within that range. With his weight, muscle mass, and agility, he already matched the ideal NFL prototype.
Pepper made a slight gesture, as if evaluating the answer, then smiled with his characteristic flair.
Behind him, Ronaldo watched in silence, attentive to Pepper’s every move.
Andrew noticed out of the corner of his eye. He wasn’t sure, but he had always had the impression that Ronaldo felt sothing more than professional admiration for Pepper.
Cam stood up right away and approached with a wide smile. "We’ve got everything ready! Well, almost everything. You have to see this."
Andrew nodded, more out of courtesy than anything else.
Pepper didn’t wait. "Oh, I’ll explain it," he said, stepping forward and taking control as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
He started detailing everything without pause. Decoration, lighting, layout. Colors, tables, and little details that, according to him, made all the difference. Ronaldo nodded silently at every point with complete seriousness.
"The food is going to be elegant, but accessible. It’s not a wedding, but it’s not just any party either," Pepper continued. "And the drinks are perfectly balanced for adults, teenagers, and children alike."
Cam nodded enthusiastically. "We’ve already bought everything. It’s going to be legendary."
But Andrew focused on the last part. "Kids? There are going to be kids?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yes," Mitch replied casually. "A lot of the neighbors have children."
"And you’re their idol!" Cam added, as if it were a key point.
Andrew made a slight, resigned gesture, accepting it without arguing. He already understood what kind of event this was going to be. It wasn’t going to be a party where he could just relax.
He was going to have to be present, greet people, probably take pictures, sign things...
’Well, a third one won’t kill anyone,’ Andrew thought. At least it hadn’t fallen on his birthday, which had been just a few days ago, close to Haley’s, on December 10th, his on the 13th.
That one had been quiet. Just family and close friends.
Pepper, without losing montum, changed the subject. "Now, the list. It’s almost finalized," he said, picking up a notebook from the coffee table.
They started going through nas. Neighbors, friends, people close to the family. Andrew’s teammates and friends were on it too, the ones he had ntioned days earlier to be invited.
"Is Sal coming?" Andrew asked.
Pepper, who was reading the list, paused for a second.
Sal was one of his parents’ closest friends. Extravagant, wild, and completely unpredictable.
She loved to drink and, most of the ti, ended up completely drunk. Every anecdote involving her followed the sa pattern: Mitch and Cam acting more like parents than friends, making sure she didn’t end up doing sothing too out of control, or getting herself into trouble altogether.
Sal had just turned 31 not long ago, a 6-year age difference with Mitch and 8 years with Cam.
"Yes!" Cam replied enthusiastically, clasping his hands together. "We haven’t seen her in so long."
"Because she’s always out partying sowhere," Mitch added dryly. Over ti, they had already moved past that lifestyle.
Pepper made a small face. "I just hope she doesn’t drink all the alcohol..." he said, though the way he said it made it clear he had already planned for it. "I bought extra anyway."
Andrew nodded slightly. It would make the night more fun.
He looked down at the list and paused at a na he didn’t recognize.
"The Lewins?"
"Our neighbors next door, literally. Dr. and Dr. Lewin," Mitch replied. "Their daughter Emily and their two sons: Danny and Walter."
It didn’t surprise him much that he didn’t recognize them. Andrew had never been the type to keep up with neighborhood social life or morize neighbors’ nas.
Andrew nodded slowly.
"Emily is your age! Don’t you rember her? She’s very pretty," Cam said enthusiastically, looking at him with bright eyes.
Andrew looked at him calmly. "Yes, I rember her. I just didn’t rember the last na."
He paused briefly before adding, without changing his tone, "And I remind you that I’m dating Jade now. I don’t think she’d like that very much."
Cam blinked a couple of tis, as if readjusting. Back when Andrew wasn’t seeing anyone, he had always hinted at the idea of pairing him with Emily. She was pretty, ca from a good family, two doctors, and, at least from his perspective, she seed interested.
"Yeah, yeah, of course," Cam said quickly, raising his hands. Then he leaned in slightly, lowering his voice. "You’re not going to tell Jade, right?"
Jade had a strong personality, and Cam didn’t like the idea of her finding out he had been suggesting other girls for Andrew, even if it was unintentional.
Andrew smiled faintly. "I don’t know... maybe I’ll ntion it, maybe I won’t."
He stood up from the couch before Cam could react. "By the way, so of Jade’s friends are coming."
Pepper nodded imdiately, taking control again. "Perfect. Nas."
"Tori, Cat, Andre, Trina, and Robbie," Andrew replied.
Pepper wrote them down quickly. "Good. These kinds of additions are already accounted for."
"By the way, where’s Lily?" Andrew asked, already turning to leave.
"With your uncles," Mitch replied.
Andrew nodded and, without much else, gave a casual gesture goodbye before heading to his room.
Cam followed him with his eyes until he disappeared from the living room, then turned to Mitch. "He’s not going to tell Jade, right?"
Mitch shrugged. "I don’t know. But get ready for the twenty-seventh, you’ll notice it in the way she looks at you."
Cam swallowed, while Pepper resud organizing everything with overflowing enthusiasm.
Pepper and Ronaldo stayed chatting for a while longer and then left.
Cam went to open the door for them and, when he returned to the living room, he ca back with an enthusiastic smile. He dropped back onto the couch next to Mitch.
"The end of December is going to be amazing!" he said, looking at the guest list, the food, the drinks, everything perfectly planned.
"Mhm," Mitch murmured.
Cam looked at him. "You could be a little more excited. Christmas is coming, Andrew’s party, then New Year’s..."
December had been an incredibly packed month. The state playoffs, then the final. After that, Andrew’s decision, which hadn’t been just a phone call, but a live ESPN special with more than 2.5 million viewers, a record for that kind of announcent. Then the Gatorade award, the graduation ceremony at Mater Dei, and not to forget Haley’s and Andrew’s birthdays.
"Yeah, I know," Mitch said calmly. "But that’s exactly what worries . Don’t you think it’s too much? Too many events and exposure for soone like Andrew, who deep down prefers a lower profile."
Cam stayed silent for a mont. "He said yes. We asked him," he finally said.
"I know," Mitch replied. "But I also know how he is. He probably said yes because he knows how important it is to you."
Cam straightened up slightly, defensive. "And now it’s my fault?"
"No, no, I’m not saying that," Mitch corrected quickly. "I’m just saying we’re making everything even bigger, and that’s more pressure. Right before he starts college."
"Pressure? What do you an?" Cam asked, frowning.
"What do I an? Isn’t it obvious?" Mitch replied, standing up and raising his voice slightly.
He began pacing around the living room.
"Did you see the reactions when he chose UCLA? Online they’re treating him like he’s the savior of the program. There are videos of students reacting live, celebrating like they just won a Super Bowl. The staff sees him the sa way. And we’re talking about a kid who turned 18 less than a month ago, as if he can just show up and fix everything imdiately."
He paused for a mont, letting the idea settle, then looked at Cam. "What if all of this is too much? This level of hype isn’t normal. Not even Clausen ca in with this many expectations, and even then he didn’t fully live up to everything that was expected of him, everything he himself said he would achieve."
"You’re mixing things up. Andrew isn’t Clausen. He’s got his head on straight," Cam said.
Mitch shook his head slightly. "Yes, I know. I’m not saying he’s going to be another Clausen. Andrew is better, and we know it. He’s going to do great things at UCLA," he corrected himself.
Cam didn’t respond right away. He stayed quiet, thinking.
Mitch continued, "But the pressure is still there. It’s huge. And at the first slip-up, people will jump on him. That’s the point."
He paused briefly before adding, "And on top of that he’s going to be living on his own."
Cam looked away for a mont.
For them, the ideal had always been for Andrew to go to the dorms. It was the most common path for a freshman. Living on campus made everything easier: integration with the team, a more controlled routine, constant proximity to staff and teammates. It was part of the natural process of adapting to college football.
Even UCLA had preferred that at first.
But Andrew didn’t want to, and with the level of prospect he was, it wasn’t sothing they could force on him either. The program had adapted to him.
Mitch looked back at Cam. "He’s going to be alone. With all of this on his shoulders."
"But he’s Andrew," Cam replied, looking at him with certainty. "He’s always imposed himself. He’s always overco everything in front of him."
"I know," Mitch said, calr now. "But what if this ti it’s not that simple?"
He took a second before continuing. "You know he’s never lost. Not in elentary school, not in middle school, not in high school. Undefeated. That’s another one of the records everyone talks about."
The silence grew heavier.
"How is he going to react when he loses for the first ti?" he finally added. "Because it’s going to happen. In college, it’s inevitable."
He didn’t say it in a pessimistic tone. It was realistic. Staying undefeated at that level was almost impossible.
Cam didn’t respond right away. He stayed there, thinking.
Andrew had always been independent. Similar to Jay in that sense. He wasn’t the type to ask for help when sothing affected him on a personal level. Except for a few cases, he preferred to handle things on his own.
It wasn’t that he was emotionally closed off. With them, with Lily, with his family, with the girlfriends he’d had, he knew how to show what he felt and express affection without any problem.
The issue was that when sothing depended solely on him, that’s when he tended to carry it alone.
"Then we have to be there," Cam said in the end. "When it happens. So he has sowhere to lean."
Mitch sighed and sat back down. "Yeah, that’s going to be hard too. Getting him to open up."
They stayed silent for a few seconds.
Cam looked at the notebook where everything about the party was written down. "So... can we go back to the party?"
Mitch looked at him, almost unable to believe it. "Yeah," he muttered. "At this point, I doubt a party is going to make this any bigger than it already is. The snowball is already rolling."
...
That night, Jay was in bed, half propped up against the headboard, with several pillows behind him. A blanket covered his legs. He had his tablet in his hands, glasses on, completely focused.
The bathroom door opened and Gloria ca out, already ready for bed, wearing a robe. She looked at him for a second as she walked toward the bed.
"What are you still doing with that tablet?" she said, in her direct, slightly raised tone. "It’s not good to spend so much ti on screens, especially at night."
She settled in beside him as she spoke.
Jay barely looked up. "I’m buying things for Andrew’s apartnt."
Gloria nodded. "Lately you’ve been completely focused on that."
"It’s important," Jay replied, still fully focused on his tablet.
Gloria slowly turned her head toward him and, without saying anything at first, leaned in slightly to look at the screen. Her eyes widened imdiately.
"You’re going to spend more than four thousand dollars on a TV!?" she exclaid, far too close to his ear.
Jay made a slight face, annoyed by the volu, and turned his head toward her. "Yes," he replied, with little patience.
Gloria looked at him for a few seconds longer. It was clear sothing had been on her mind for a while. Finally, she said it.
"You have favoritism toward Andrew."
Jay frowned. "Favoritism? I don’t think so."
Gloria adjusted herself more comfortably on the bed, not taking her eyes off him. "I’m not saying it’s wrong," she began, in a more controlled tone. "But in the last two weeks, you’ve been completely focused on him. You went to all the apartnt visits, also to the new eting with UCLA, you’re paying his rent in a very expensive place, now you’re buying him furniture and a TV that is clearly bigger than necessary."
She paused briefly before continuing. "You also went to his college visits, you didn’t miss any. Oh, and I almost forgot, the very expensive birthday gift..."
Jay let out a heavier sigh, lowering the tablet for a mont. "And what’s wrong with that?"
"That’s the favoritism," Gloria replied. "You don’t do that for Haley, or Alex, or Luke. You didn’t even do that with your own children."
It was true. Despite his money, Jay had never been the type to give luxuries just because. Not to his children, not to anyone. He believed that everyone had to earn their own way, work for it, and put in the effort. No excessive gifts, no making things easier just because he could.
Jay locked the tablet and set it down on his nightstand. "I’m not being favoritist. Andrew earned it through effort. That’s it. End of discussion."
Gloria imdiately shook her head. "No, no, no... none of that ’end of discussion.’"
She looked at him more intensely. "Don’t the others work hard too? Haley is taking the fashion thing seriously, building her portfolio and even working at a clothing store to gain experience. Alex studies all the ti to get the best grades. Luke... well, Luke is Luke. And Manny with his poetry, with his things, and you canceled plans you had with him today just to go to that apartnt with Andrew, who has parents that can go with him."
Jay stood still for a second, then got out of bed. "It’s not the sa," he said firmly.
"I’m not saying they don’t work hard," he continued, more serious now, pacing around the room. "But the pressure Andrew has is different. Don’t you see it? The whole country is watching him. He put UCLA at the center of college football just by choosing them. There are already recruits going there because of him, and it’s only been a week. Not Barkley, not Leinart, not Clausen had anything like this. Not even starting college players in their senior year get this level of attention."
He stopped, taking a breath, and looked at her. "That’s why I’m paying more attention to him now. Before, I didn’t buy him expensive things or anything like that. I’ve always been the sa with everyone."
Although with Andrew, he did have a closer relationship. They shared more things, from the way they thought to their tastes and hobbies, especially football. There was a more natural connection. With Haley and Alex, the dynamic was different, since they were girls and had very different interests. And Luke, for his part, always seed to be in his own world.
But when it ca to money, he had never made any distinctions. Until now.
"Now it’s different because of the pressure he’s under. If he wants to live on his own, I don’t want him worrying about that. I’ll take care of it. I don’t want him thinking about money, furniture, or anything that isn’t adapting to this new stage of his life. He already has enough on his plate. If setting up the apartnt for him and buying him a TV so he can watch those weird movies or play video gas with his friends takes even a little noise out of his head, then I’ll do it."
Gloria looked at him in silence for a few seconds. Her expression shifted. "That’s true... he always seems so confident that you don’t think about that."
In that mont, she understood it better. Most kids Andrew’s age dealt with different pressures: exams, choosing what to study, getting into a good university, and family expectations. Important things, but within the normal range.
Andrew had all of that, and much more.
It wasn’t just college. It was an entire career beginning. It was a whole country watching him. Gloria rembered the videos circulating online, reactions, people celebrating his decision as if it were their own event.
The gas at Mater Dei with packed stadiums, the final with more than seventy thousand people. Always expecting him to win. Always expecting more.
UCLA, which had just fired its staff after four unsuccessful years, had suddenly beco, for many, a Pac-12 contender just because of his decision.
It was another level of pressure, and he hadn’t even played a single snap in college.
Not even elite prospects entering college with hype arrived with sothing like this. Normally, there were expectations, yes, but within a margin.
In Andrew’s case, that margin didn’t exist. He was already being analyzed, compared, his career projected, so were even talking about him in terms of the draft, when he hadn’t played a single college ga.
Because the mont sothing didn’t go perfectly, the narrative could shift just as quickly. From phenonon to overrated. From generational talent to disappointnt.
"Exactly," Jay added after a few seconds. "He always looks so confident that it seems like he doesn’t need anything from anyone. But that’s part of the problem too. He’s like . Stubborn. He’s going to want to handle everything on his own."
He paused briefly, then added, "And if my money can help him in any way right now, I’m going to use it."
Gloria nodded. "Alright, I get it. You win, it’s not favoritism."
Jay stayed silent for a second, almost unable to believe it. He had won an argunt against her.
He settled back into bed, letting his back fall against the pillows, with a faint smile.
Gloria looked at him, her brow slightly furrowed. "But what you did with Manny was wrong. You had plans and you canceled on him today. He was sad."
Jay’s smile disappeared. He made a slight face, his shoulders dropping a bit. "Yeah... I know. I ssed up."
He could have let Andrew see the apartnt with Mitch or Cam. He didn’t have to be there. But he didn’t want to miss it.
"I’ll fix it," he added. "And I’ll tell you sothing, when Manny got dumped by that little girlfriend a few months ago, I was there for him, supporting him. Sothing I never did with my own kids, or even with Andrew."
Gloria looked at him in silence for a few seconds. She knew that, in the case of Jay’s children, Mitch and Claire, that was true. It was a real change. Growth. Jay usually wasn’t present in those kinds of monts.
With Andrew, on the other hand, it was different. She had never seen him need that kind of support. He had always seed more steady and independent in that sense.
Still, she said nothing.
"Congratulations, you’re learning how to be a functional father," Gloria said.
Jay narrowed his eyes. "That sounded a little sarcastic."
But Gloria was already turning off her bedside lamp, leaving the room in dim light. "Good night, Jay."
"Good night? We weren’t finished talking. Why the sarcastic tone?"
"I’ll tell you tomorrow," Gloria said, unable to fully hide her amusent.
Jay let out a small huff, looked at his nightstand, and after a second, turned off his own lamp.
"This isn’t over," he muttered in the darkness.
And so the days went by, Christmas in between, until December 27 arrived.
-------------------------------------------------
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